vncnus Chapter 6 Black Dragon Possession, Mirror Light Sculpts Shape
Chapter 6 Black Dragon Possession, Mirror Light Sculpts Shape
A month passed quickly.
Chen Yingwu leaned back in his chair in the classroom, looking out the window at his classmates running on the playground, his expression somewhat languid.
Ever since he stumbled upon a bargain in a shop and took the Soul-Solidifying Pill that was mistaken for a Soul-Ascending Pill, his soul power has been pushed from level fifteen all the way to level seventeen.
The medicinal power of that pill was far more potent than he had imagined; most of its power remained within his body and was not fully refined.
Over the next month, he cultivated step by step every day, extracting the remaining medicinal power little by little, and finally broke through to level eighteen three days ago.
From the time he awakened his martial soul until now, it's only been a little over a month. Six years old, level eighteen soul power.
If word of this speed were to get out, the entire Mingdu Primary Soul Master Academy would probably be shaken.
But Chen Yingwu didn't tell anyone.
There's neither the need nor the interest.
He turned his gaze from the window to his outstretched right palm. With a slight thought, a small, antique mirror appeared.
A mirror of morality.
He flipped the mirror over and put it inside his body. He did this very discreetly, and even the classmate sitting next to him didn't notice.
It can be controlled and extended with ease!
During this month, he did more than just cultivate his soul power.
He was also testing his martial spirit to strengthen his control over it.
One day after school, Chen Yingwu did not go straight back to his dormitory, but instead went around to a small grove of trees behind the school.
He scouted the location beforehand to ensure it was remote enough before deciding to conduct his first truly comprehensive test there.
As the evening sun shone through the gaps in the tree canopy, it painted the ground with mottled golden-red hues.
Chen Yingwu stood next to a roughly square bluestone and took a deep breath.
First is... the Dao Jie Yi Xian.
He summoned the Mirror of Morality, letting its surface hover above his right shoulder. Then, with a thought, he turned the mirror towards himself.
A faint, almost invisible beam of light shone from the mirror, enveloping his entire body.
In that instant, Chen Yingwu felt as if he were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand and pulled downwards. The speed of his soul power circulation suddenly dropped drastically, and the originally smooth, flowing soul power became stagnant and slow, as if it had turned from stream water into thick porridge.
The efficiency of soul power circulation has decreased by at least 70%!
His body weakened at a visible rate, as if some kind of support had been removed from his limbs, making it difficult even to stand.
But that's not the worst part.
What's most terrifying is his mindset.
In that instant, Chen Yingwu clearly felt as if his brain had been filled with a bucket of paste.
My once clear and sharp thoughts became sluggish and blurry. Many thoughts would vanish as soon as they arose. Even the most basic awareness of "what I am doing now" required a great deal of effort to maintain.
He felt like he had become an idiot.
The experience was so terrifying that he almost instinctively stopped the mirror light.
As soon as the mirror of morality faded, everything returned to normal. Soul power flowed smoothly again, the body was filled with strength once more, and the mind regained its clarity.
Chen Yingwu leaned against a tree trunk, panting heavily. A fine layer of cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
"...Very strong."
He said something in a low voice, with a hint of slight satisfaction in his tone.
This mirror could even shave itself, and it did so without any mercy. The effect of the Dao-Severing Thread was even more domineering than he had expected—it weakened everything, from the physical body to the soul power to the mind, leaving nothing unscathed.
Especially in terms of mental capacity, if his manipulation were a little more precise, he might be able to create a temporary "mental deprivation aura" for others.
Who knows, I might just end up with a domineering female Douluo falling in love with me.
Unfortunately, his ambitions lay elsewhere.
Next, he tested the weakening effect on the first soul skill.
After releasing the Yuan Kong Dao Body, and then shining the mirror light on it, the soul skill that had a 100% amplification of all attributes was immediately reduced by 70%, and the amplification rate dropped from double to only 30%.
The only drawback was the excessive consumption. The Dao Interception Line only lasted for one minute, almost completely draining his level 18 soul power reserves.
He then tested the "everything leaves a trace" test.
This feature consumes far less energy. When he activates the "Traces of All Things" ability, all movements within a radius of 100 meters are clearly and accurately reflected in his perception.
The trembling of leaves, the crawling of insects in the grass, the wriggling of earthworms under the soil, and even the subtle changes in airflow are all clearly visible.
It's like having a God's-eye view.
Anticipating the enemy's moves—that's all there is to it.
It looks similar to Huo Yuhao's mental detection from ten thousand years ago, but this one must be at least a Pro Max enhanced version.
He pushed this characteristic to its limit, maintaining it for a full half hour before his soul power was nearly depleted. If he had restrained himself and only maintained basic perception, the consumption would have been even lower.
Finally, it is "morality is in my hands".
This is the purest form of killing among the four characteristics.
Chen Yingwu had two ways to release the light. He first tried the covering method, spreading out the mirror light and enveloping the one-meter square bluestone in front of him.
Without a sound or a tremor, the bluestone silently turned into dust under the mirror-like light, so fine that it seemed as if it had never existed.
He then tried to condense the light into a single line. The mirror light contracted into an extremely thin beam, sweeping across the landscape, and seven or eight trees that would take two people to encircle snapped in two, the cuts smooth as a mirror, even the wood grain neatly severed.
Finally, he used a beam of light to cover a nearby hare that was about to achieve the name of "Soft Bones".
An invisible, water-like mirror light spread in all directions, and the rabbit's body instantly froze on the spot. The falling leaves around it also stopped their drifting trajectory, as if they had been frozen into a painting.
This is the Morality in My Imprisonment characteristic, which can be used in conjunction with the characteristic of "Nothing Can Be Cut Down".
Not long after.
Chen Yingwu put away the Morality Mirror, looked at the rubble and fallen tree trunks scattered on the ground, and the wild rabbits running again. A satisfied look appeared on his brow and lingered for a long time.
"All tests are complete, it's time to go back."
He turned and left the grove, his steps steady and his expression unchanged.
From that day on, he gained a clearer understanding of his own abilities.
Among those of the same level, probably no one can rival him. Even across several levels, as long as the opponent hasn't reached the Soul Master level or above, he can easily sweep them aside.
But he also knew that the mirror's true potential was far greater than that.
Each of its four characteristics is incredibly powerful, equivalent to an innate soul skill, and at least a 10-year-old soul skill.
……
Chen Yingwu pulled himself out of his thoughts and refocused his attention on meditation. Just then, the back door of the classroom was pushed open.
Three people walked in.
The boy in the lead was much taller than his peers, with dark skin, sharp features, and an undisguised arrogance between his brows.
Two shorter boys followed behind him, one with a round face and the other tall and thin, like two tails he couldn't shake off.
Zhao Penghui.
He possesses innate soul power at level nine and a martial soul of the One-Horned Black Dragon. In the entire first-year class, besides Chen Yingwu, he has the highest innate soul power.
At that moment, he walked straight up to Chen Yingwu, looked down at Chen Yingwu sitting in his seat, and had a smile on his lips.
"Chen Yingwu".
Chen Yingwu raised his head, his eyes narrowed slightly, and met his gaze.
"What's up?"
Zhao Penghui placed his hands on the table and leaned forward slightly: "Don't leave after school, see you at the battle arena."
He spoke quite loudly, and almost all the students around him heard him, turning to look at him. The classroom was quiet for a moment, then filled with hushed whispers.
Chen Yingwu did not answer immediately, but just looked at him.
Zhao Penghui felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze, but quickly raised his chin and added, "I'll wager 100,000 Federal Credits. If you win, the 100,000 is yours. If you lose, you don't have to pay a single penny."
The terms offered were extremely generous.
One hundred thousand federal dollars is no small sum. For an average family, it's almost a whole year's expenses. Zhao Penghui's family is wealthy, so this amount of money is nothing to him, but when used as a bet, it's a very serious matter.
The classroom quieted down a bit. All eyes were on Chen Yingwu, waiting for his answer.
Chen Yingwu looked at Zhao Penghui for a few seconds.
He knew exactly what Zhao Penghui was thinking.
This person disliked him from the very first day of school. The reason was simple—the title of "innate full soul power" completely overshadowed Zhao Penghui's innate level nine soul power.
Zhao Penghui was a prodigy from a young age, always the center of attention wherever he went. But in this class, everyone's eyes were first on Chen Yingwu before they even noticed him.
Zhao Penghui couldn't swallow this sense of loss.
He needed an opportunity to prove to everyone that soul power level didn't represent everything. He wanted to show everyone through actual combat that he was the strongest.
Just the day before yesterday, he successfully fused with a soul spirit, became a soul master, and broke through to level 12.
He believed his martial soul was powerful and that he was also a Soul Master, so he could still suppress his opponent even if their Soul Power was two or three levels higher than his.
So this opportunity has come.
"OK."
He answered very readily.
He greatly admired the youthful spirit, so how could he refuse?
Besides, there was a fee involved, so he had no choice but to agree.
Zhao Penghui's eyes lit up, seemingly surprised that he agreed so readily.
He straightened up and nodded vigorously: "Okay, the battle arena after school, no take-backs."
After saying that, he turned and left, and his two underlings quickly followed.
The classroom erupted in noise again, the discussions even louder than before. Some were excited, some curious, and some worried about Chen Yingwu.
After all, Zhao Penghui's martial soul is a one-horned black dragon, which is a top-tier beast martial soul with extremely strong combat power among those of the same level.
Chen Yingwu ignored the discussions.
He lowered his head again and continued meditating.
By the time the bell rang to signal the end of the last class in the afternoon, the news had already spread throughout the entire first grade.
"Have you heard? Zhao Penghui from Class One is challenging Chen Yingwu, who has innate full soul power!"
"A bet of 100,000 Federal Dollars? Zhao Penghui's family must be really rich."
"Chen Yingwu agreed? He's got some nerve."
"Who knows? Full soul power doesn't mean you can fight. Zhao Penghui has a one-horned black dragon martial soul."
A stream of people poured out of the teaching building and converged on the direction of the battle platform.
Although it wasn't an official competition, the fact that it was a duel between someone with full innate soul power and someone with level nine innate soul power was captivating enough.
The battle platform is located in the center of the school. It is an open-air circular stone platform with a diameter of about twenty meters. The platform surface is paved with special gray stone and is covered with densely engraved reinforcing soul-guiding patterns.
It is said that this battle platform can withstand the full force of attacks from those below the Soul Master level without suffering any damage.
When Chen Yingwu arrived, Zhao Penghui was already standing on the stage.
He took off his school uniform jacket, leaving him in only a black, tight-fitting short-sleeved shirt. He crossed his arms, raised his chin slightly, and looked confident of victory. Two henchmen stood below the stage; one held his jacket, and the other clutched a metal card—presumably the 100,000 federal dollars stake.
There were already thirty or forty students gathered below the stage, and several teachers were also standing at a distance watching.
Today, Chen Yingwu's homeroom teacher had something to do and did not come to school.
The person in charge of the safety of the combat platform was a middle-aged male teacher surnamed Zhou. He was burly and his arms were as muscular as if they were cast in iron.
He stood at the edge of the fighting platform, his gaze sweeping between the two men, and said in a deep voice, "The competition is to be stopped before it's over; no killing is allowed. One who concedes or falls off the platform loses. Understand?"
"Understood," Zhao Penghui replied first, his voice loud and clear.
Chen Yingwu nodded: "Understood."
Teacher Zhou glanced at him, his gaze carrying a hint of scrutiny. He had only seen a handful of students with innate full soul power in all his years of teaching, so naturally he paid him more attention.
"Come up on stage."
Chen Yingwu walked up the steps to the fighting platform and stood ten meters away from Zhao Penghui.
The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the table, casting long shadows of the two people.
Zhao Penghui cracked his knuckles and grinned, "Chen Yingwu, to be honest, I admire your courage. But after today, everyone will know that soul power level doesn't mean everything."
Chen Yingwu did not respond.
He simply stood there calmly, his hands hanging naturally at his sides, not like he was about to fight, but rather like he was going on a leisurely outing, completely at ease.
Zhao Penghui frowned, provoked by his attitude, and without saying another word, he shouted in a low voice, "Martial Soul Possession!"
A deep black light surged from his body, condensing into a blurry dragon-shaped phantom behind him.
The phantom had a single horn on its head and was covered in scales. Although it was just a phantom, it already exuded a chilling sense of pressure.
At the same time, Zhao Penghui's body also changed - a layer of fine black lines appeared on the surface of his skin, like the prototype of dragon scales, his fingernails grew slightly longer and harder, and his pupils were tinged with a light gold.
The Black Dragon Martial Soul is a top-tier martial soul among dragon-type beast martial souls.
A low murmur rippled through the audience.
Zhao Penghui's momentum reached its peak at this moment. He pushed off the table with both feet and rushed towards Chen Yingwu like an arrow.
He was very fast; his level 12 soul power granted him physical qualities far exceeding those of his peers, and he covered the ten-meter distance in the blink of an eye.
He threw a punch.
The wind howled from the punch.
Chen Yingwu turned to the side and moved his feet lightly.
The punch grazed his clothes and missed.
Zhao Penghui was slightly taken aback, then changed his punching stance and slammed it down horizontally.
Chen Yingwu leaned back to dodge the punch, and at the same time took another step back, creating another meter of distance.
Several punches missed their mark.
The students watching from below the stage were dumbfounded. Zhao Penghui's attacks were fierce and swift, each punch accompanied by a whistling sound, but Chen Yingwu seemed to know in advance where his fists would land, always dodging them by the slightest margin, his movements as calm as if he were taking a stroll.
Everything leaves a trace.
Even without changing his martial soul, Chen Yingwu can still use this characteristic.
He is not pushing it at full speed right now, but is keeping it at a very low level of consumption.
Even so, every move Zhao Penghui made was already perceived by Chen Yingwu before he even made a move.
The tension in muscles, the shift in center of gravity, the focus of the gaze—these subtle signs come together to form an attack prediction accurate to the millisecond.
Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Zhao Penghui stopped the pointless pursuit.
He took two steps back, his chest rising and falling slightly.
The continuous high-intensity punches had taken a toll on his stamina, and more importantly, the feeling of hitting cotton with every punch caused his mentality to become unbalanced.
"All you can do is hide?" he said through gritted teeth.
Chen Yingwu looked at him, his tone flat: "All you can do is shoot at thin air?"
A few suppressed laughs came from the audience.
Zhao Penghui's face flushed red, a flash of anger crossing his eyes. Without further hesitation, he slammed his hands together in front of him and roared, "First Soul Skill—Black Scale Dragon Claw!"
His soul power suddenly erupted.
Black light surged from his hands, condensing into a layer of solid black scales that completely enveloped his hands and forearms.
The scales were a deep, inky black, with edges that gleamed coldly, and they looked incredibly hard. At the same time, his finger bones cracked, and his strength more than doubled in that instant.
Zhao Penghui's figure also became lighter, and his agility improved significantly.
"Now, let's see how you hide!"
He charged forward again, this time much faster than before. His right claw, covered in black scales, tore through the air, whistling as it clawed at Chen Yingwu's chest.
If that claw lands firmly, it will definitely hurt.
Chen Yingwu did not hide anymore.
With a flick of his right hand, an antique mirror, seemingly made of jade but not quite, appeared out of thin air and hovered above his right shoulder. The mirror surface was a warm, pale white, and the ancient patterns on its edges shimmered with a faint glow in the setting sun.
The suspended mirror rotated slowly, and when Zhao Penghui blinked, the deep mirror surface was already reflecting directly onto him.
The mirror changed from deep to clear, and his face was reflected on it.
He felt no familiarity with his reflection in the mirror, only a chill that instantly spread throughout his body.
It was as if he was being targeted by something terrifying.
Zhao Penghui's pupils contracted slightly.
Is this his martial spirit?
He didn't have time to think. The Black Scaled Dragon Claw was already in front of Chen Yingwu.
Then, a flash of light appeared in the mirror.
A pale white beam of light shone from the surface of the Mirror of Morality, accurately illuminating Zhao Penghui's figure.
There was no earth-shattering display, no dazzling light. It was just an ordinary, almost transparent ray of light.
But Zhao Penghui's forward momentum was suddenly stopped by an invisible hand, halting him halfway.
His expression changed from fierce to bewildered, and then from bewildered to terrified.
In that instant, a large portion of the soul power within his body seemed to have been slashed away by something.
It's not a simple weakening, but rather the entire operating system becoming sluggish, insensitive, and intermittent.
The once surging soul power now seemed to have turned into a stagnant pool, no matter how he tried to activate it, it wouldn't budge.
As his soul power stagnated, the black scales on his hands began to crumble.
Piece by piece, it shattered and peeled away from the fingertips, turning into specks of black light and dissipating into the air. The Black Scale Dragon Claw soul skill, having lost the support of soul power, was collapsing at a visible speed.
not only that.
Even the Martial Soul Possession state was fading. The black patterns on the surface of his skin faded, the golden light in his pupils dissipated, and the phantom of the one-horned black dragon behind him let out an unwilling roar before turning into a wisp of black smoke and disappearing without a trace.
In the blink of an eye, Zhao Penghui went from a battle state with his soul power fully unleashed to an ordinary person who couldn't even maintain his martial soul possession.
He looked down at his hands, which had returned to normal, his pupils contracted sharply, and his lips trembled slightly.
"this……"
He looked up, as if to say something.
Then a foot suddenly magnified in his field of vision.
Chen Yingwu did not give him a chance to speak.
A clean and crisp kick landed squarely on Zhao Penghui's chest!
The force wasn't too great, but Zhao Penghui had lost his martial spirit possession at this moment, and his physical strength was only slightly better than that of an ordinary six-year-old child. How could he withstand such a kick?
He was sent flying backward, arcing through the air, and crashed onto the edge of the fighting platform with a thud. He rolled twice before falling off the platform.
The battle is over.
From the moment Chen Yingwu summoned the Mirror of Morality to the moment Zhao Penghui fell off the battle platform, the entire process took no more than five seconds.
The audience was completely silent.
Everyone stared wide-eyed, their mouths agape enough to fit a water glass.
The two henchmen of Zhao Penghui were frozen in place, one clutching his coat and the other gripping the metal card, their faces like solidified mummies.
Teacher Zhou, who was in charge of safety, was also stunned. He looked at the boy on the stage, who had a calm expression and seemed as if nothing had happened, his eyes filled with disbelief.
He has seen many battles and many geniuses.
But he had never seen a six-year-old child so effortlessly swat away an opponent with innate level nine soul power and the martial soul of the One-Horned Black Dragon from the battle platform, as if swatting a fly.
Zhao Penghui got up from the ground, covered in dust. His face showed no anger, only bewilderment.
He looked down at his hands, then looked up at Chen Yingwu on the stage. His lips moved a few times before he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence.
"What exactly is that mirror of yours?"
Chen Yingwu did not answer.
He put away the mirror of morality, turned and walked towards the steps. After taking two steps, he stopped and glanced at Zhao Penghui.
"One hundred thousand."
Zhao Penghui was stunned for a moment, then reacted, took the metal card from his underling with a complicated expression, walked up to Chen Yingwu and handed it over.
"I'm willing to accept the consequences of my bet." His voice was a little hoarse, but still quite decisive.
Chen Yingwu took the metal card, glanced at it, and put it in his pocket.
Then he patted Zhao Penghui on the shoulder, turned around and left.
The setting sun cast his shadow long, long, stretching all the way to the edge of the battle platform.
The crowd behind me gradually grew noisy, with discussions, exclamations, and cheers all mixed together, like a hornet's nest that had been stirred up.
But Chen Yingwu did not turn around; his steps were steady, as if he had just finished a trivial matter.
Zhao Penghui stood there, watching the not-so-tall but exceptionally composed figure walk further and further away. Suddenly, he felt that his previous arrogance and jealousy were utterly laughable in front of this person.
Teacher Zhou watched Chen Yingwu leave, remained silent for a moment, then took out his communication soul tool and dialed a number.
"Teacher Lin, that Chen Yingwu in your class..." He paused, carefully choosing his words, "You need to pay close attention to him. This kid's martial spirit is no ordinary thing."
After hanging up the call, he glanced again in the direction where Chen Yingwu had disappeared and muttered to himself.
"A mirror...can it really shave a person like this?"
He shook his head and turned to disperse the students who were watching.
At this moment, Chen Yingwu had already walked out of the school gate.
A cool evening breeze blew by, carrying the slight chill of early summer. He put his hands in his pockets, his fingertips touching the metal card worth 100,000 Federal Credits, and a faint sense of joy rose in his heart.
Although he revealed some of his strength and martial spirit, it wasn't anything special.
He was born with full soul power, so it's normal for his soul power level to be higher. Of course, his outward soul power level is only three levels higher than Zhao Penghui's.
As for the martial soul, only others can confirm that this unknown martial soul is a top-tier martial soul in terms of quality.
That's it.
Isn't it normal for a genius with innate full soul power to be paired with a top-tier martial soul?
Throughout the entire Douluo Continent, many of the geniuses who possessed innate full soul power had martial souls that were at least top-tier.
As for the ability to weaken soul power that he has revealed, it is not only his martial soul that can do it.
Moreover, regarding the "Severing the Path" characteristic, he not only activated three layers of power, but also only revealed the characteristic of weakening the opponent's soul power and soul skills, without using the characteristic of a brain-reducing aura.
His expressiveness is just stronger, which makes him stand out a bit.
Therefore, his spirit quality is no less than his opponent's, and may even be higher. His spirit power level is also three levels higher than his opponent's. Plus, his abilities are somewhat unique. So what's wrong with easily winning the match by surprise?
no problem.
As long as he remains a genius in the conventional sense, the kind of genius recognized by the world, then there won't be any problems.
Everyone would just think that he is indeed a genius with innate full soul power.
On the contrary, it would be abnormal and conspicuous if a genius with innate full soul power were easily beaten by the opponent.
Of course, if you act too genius-like, like having level 20 soul power right now, you'll also stand out.
Some of his abilities will be exposed sooner or later, as long as these abilities aren't too outrageous.
The phrase "innate full soul power" is enough to cover up everything.
On the contrary, actively showcasing one's genius can garner more attention and support from others.
This was something he had already planned in his mind before fighting this battle.