Chapter 26: This Old Man Likes Playing with Pressure?
Zu Zong quietly thought to himself, So this must be Sun Buyu. He's been hiding in the dark, watching for quite a while, and now he shows up at just the right moment. Is he trying to test my strength?
Meanwhile, Xue Beng was helped up by a few background characters. Covered in bruises and panting heavily, he roared, "Teacher Sun, look at these two maniacs! They dared beat us up like this—they clearly don't respect the Heaven Dou Empire's Royal Academy at all! You must give us justice!"
Classic Xue Beng—first thing he did was try to smear them before anything else.
But Sun Buyu clearly didn't like him. Others may fear Xue Beng's status, but not Sun Buyu. With clear irritation, he snapped, "I saw everything. Getting wrecked by two new students—aren't you ashamed? Xue Beng, this is an academy, not the imperial capital. I suggest you get lost."
Then he turned to Zu Zong and Xiao Wu, eyes sharp, as if trying to see right through them. "You two have some skill. What are your names?"
Zu Zong replied, "I'm Zu Zong. This is my 'adopted' little sister, Xiao Wu. Here's our admission invitation." As he spoke, he handed over two specially sealed letters.
"Zu... Zong?" Sun Buyu paused, even with his self-control, the name still caught him off guard. If he hadn't seen the academy's official invitations, he might've thought they were messing with him.
He opened both letters, and his expression changed. When he looked back at Zu Zong and Xiao Wu, his gaze had softened noticeably.
"Alright. Follow me. I'll take you to meet the Academic Committee."
Zu Zong smiled and responded politely, "Then I'll trouble Teacher Sun."
Sun Buyu led the two of them to the Academic Committee building of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
Besides the word "extravagant," Zu Zong couldn't find another term to describe it. A one-story building that towered over ten meters high—even the Spirit Hall back in Nuoding City wasn't this grand.
Zu Zong (resentful of wealth):These filthy nobles, bleeding the people dry… One day, I swear I'll haul all their gold back to my place.
As they stepped through the gates of the Committee Hall, Zu Zong saw that there were only four people inside. Three elderly men in black robes sat at the central table, while a man in his thirties stood quietly to the side.
Even though the three elders were merely seated, they radiated an overwhelming presence. It felt like they weren't just the core of the Royal Academy—but of the entire school.
They wore calm, even friendly expressions, but the pressure of true power could not be hidden.
Zu Zong muttered softly, "So these are Heaven Dou Academy's Soul Douluo… and there are three of them."
Beside him, Xiao Wu's eyes widened when she heard the word "Soul Douluo." These were cultivators powerful enough to see through the human disguise of spirit beasts.
Startled, she instinctively hid behind Zu Zong.
Her legs trembled slightly, and she kept stealing nervous glances at the three elders, completely forgetting that she had already shed her beast form.
Zu Zong gently patted her hand, reassuring her, "It's okay, really. You're fine."
Long ago, Zu Zong had already used the system to verify her condition. Even the system confirmed that Xiao Wu was now completely human. If that weren't the case, there's no way he would've dared bring her here.
Sun Buyu bowed toward the three elders seated at the head of the hall. "Respected Chairmen of the Academic Committee, I've brought the students the academy was looking for." Then he turned and exchanged a polite smile with the middle-aged man standing nearby, who nodded back. That counted as a greeting between colleagues.
The thin elder seated in the center laughed heartily and stood up. "Not bad, not bad! To face the pressure of the three of us without flinching—indeed, you're material worth cultivating! I'm Meng Shenji, Head of the Academic Committee. My spirit is the Black Demon, and I'm a level 86 Control-type Battle Soul Douluo with eight rings. Let me introduce the others."
As he spoke, he gestured to the short, plump elder to his left. "This is Bai Baoshan, Deputy Head of the Committee. His spirit is the Heavenly Star Furnace, a Defense-type level 85 Battle Soul Douluo."
Bai Baoshan had a constant, kindly smile on his face. The fat on his cheeks wobbled with every laugh. When Meng Shenji introduced him, he nodded warmly at Zu Zong and Xiao Wu.
Then Meng Shenji pointed to the final elder. "This is Zhi Lin, the third seat of the committee. His spirit is the Sky Blue Vine, a Control-type Tool Spirit at level 83—also an eight-ring Soul Douluo."
Unlike Meng Shenji and Bai Baoshan, Zhi Lin didn't smile. In fact, ever since Sun Buyu had entered with Zu Zong and Xiao Wu, he had been frowning.
That was because a strange sensation had settled in his heart—one he hadn't felt in years. He'd only ever sensed it from one other person: Chrysanthemum Douluo.
And that exact same feeling was now coming from the young man standing before him.
Zhi Lin stood and spoke seriously, "Young friend, may I take a look at your spirit?"
Zu Zong nodded and replied with equal seriousness, "Zu Zong. Martial spirit: Blue Silver Grass. Control-type with enhanced attack. Level 37, three-ring Tool Spirit Master."
As he spoke, he gestured for Xiao Wu to step back. He raised his right hand, and a faint white glow surfaced over his skin. A mass of deep blue vines with black undertones and strange patterns burst from his palm—the Blue Silver Emperor.
Three spirit rings—yellow, yellow, purple—rose from his feet and spun slowly around his body. A clear sign of a Spirit Elder with three rings.
Aside from the ring color and the Blue Silver Emperor, Zu Zong had no plans to hide his level. Since he had already decided to join Heaven Dou Royal Academy, sooner or later his strength would be exposed. Better to reveal it himself than let others dig it up.
Everyone present—except for Xiao Wu, who already knew his strength—was shocked.
Even Sun Buyu, who was holding the admission letters, nearly dropped his jaw. He had already been surprised to see two Spirit Elders not yet thirteen years old, but a level 37 Spirit Elder?
That meant Zu Zong had likely reached Spirit Elder level before the age of twelve—possibly even eleven. It was terrifying.
As Zu Zong released his spirit, the strange feeling in Zhi Lin's heart instantly crystallized into reality. This was—spirit suppression.
"This is spirit suppression! My Sky Blue Vine is being suppressed!" Zhi Lin cried out in astonishment.
Suddenly, the black robe on his body—symbolizing his Soul Douluo rank—fluttered without wind. Though he remained still, Zu Zong clearly felt a heavy pressure beginning to form around him, increasing bit by bit.
Zu Zong showed no reaction on the surface, but deep down, he was amazed. Damn, this old man really does like testing people with pressure, huh? Just like in the original story when he first met Tang San. And now it's me. And he went straight to Spirit King-level pressure. But fine, I can handle it.
Zhi Lin narrowed his slightly clouded eyes. Silently stunned, he continued raising the pressure.
Level 36... 37... 38...
Even when it reached the level of a 40th-rank Spirit Master, Zu Zong still stood as if nothing had happened.
Zu Zong:Of course I'm fine. My spirit's already out. If I showed any weakness, that would be the real surprise.
(End of chapter)
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