Master of Nine Stars

”We won! We won!” Dai Liunian exclaimed, his expression ecstatic as he announced, ”Chen Muge has been ruled unable to continue fighting! And although Chen Zhaowu could have fought on, he has wisely chosen to surrender! The team from Songjiang Soul Martial University is victorious!”

Su Wan pressed a hand to her chest, her voice trembling slightly. ”It’s truly hard to believe. They’ve actually made it to the finals.”

”In two consecutive matches—the round of 14 against Molten Rock and the semifinals against Starfield... there’s no question that the Snow Realm Soul Martial Artists were at an Attribute disadvantage in both.”

”But to everyone’s astonishment, Rong Taotao and Gao Lingwei just bulldozed their way right into the grand finals!”

”Indeed,” Dai Liunian sighed, filled with emotion. ”Ever since the Outer League, this pair has been consistently underestimated. But time and time again, Rong Taotao and Gao Lingwei have used the blade and halberd in their hands to carve out a new dawn for themselves, fighting tooth and nail!”

”Su Wan, have you noticed? The Gao Lingwei and Rong Taotao we see now are far stronger than they were three months ago. They’ve even had a qualitative leap in skill!”

Hearing this, Su Wan said, ”Exactly. Their power has seen a visible increase, and their coordination is more in sync than ever. I’m not sure if everyone caught that little detail just now, but when they were face to face, they actually pushed each other’s shoulders at the same time to dodge the Star Wave Stream.”

”That includes what followed, when Rong Taotao used his Snow Ghost Hand to move Gao Lingwei around the field to engage the enemy. Their every move, every second, was almost perfectly seamless. It’s simply terrifying!”

”It’s hard to imagine what they must have gone through in the past three months to hone...”

A strange look crossed Dai Liunian’s face, and he suddenly blurted out, ”The synergy of a married couple?”

Su Wan: ”...”

’It was... a compliment, of course, but something about it felt off.’

Dai Liunian quickly added, ”The Snow Realm home-field advantage also provided them with a huge boost. Rong Taotao is just terrifying. On this green field dusted with frost and snow, he seems able to use every single inch of it, turning it into a weapon...”

Amid the commentators’ astonished praise, a tide of applause surged from all directions. Rong Taotao and Gao Lingwei waved to the crowd as they walked toward the edge of the field.

Gao Lingwei saw the reporters swarming the sidelines from a distance. She gently bumped Rong Taotao’s shoulder, the joy of victory still on her face. ”Your every move was completely unexpected.”

Rong Taotao grinned, turning to look at Gao Lingwei’s profile. ”You know... for a moment there, I almost thought I was back at the First Wall.”

”Mm,” Gao Lingwei murmured, stopping on the field about ten meters from the reporters. ”Are you nostalgic for it? For those times?”

But Rong Taotao just shrugged. ”It was alright. Now is better.”

Gao Lingwei: ”Really?”

Rong Taotao: ”Of course. Back then, you were a deity I had to look up to.”

Gao Lingwei raised an eyebrow slightly. ”And now?”

Rong Taotao puffed out his chest. ”Well, I’ve gotten taller, haven’t I? No need to look up anymore.”

Smiling, Gao Lingwei lightly jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow.

While the two chatted idly, the reporters at the edge of the field were like ants on a hot griddle. But the event organizers clearly had strict rules: they were absolutely forbidden from entering the competition area. Doing so would lead to severe repercussions, which meant...

...they could only stand there obediently, watching the pair with pathetic expressions, waiting for them to come off the field.

An idea struck Rong Taotao. He took a few steps to his left. The cluster of reporters on the sideline, shouldering their long-lensed cameras, moved in unison with him. He shifted to the right, and they quickly shifted right as well...

’Whoa, am I playing Breakout?’

’To catch him, the ”ball,” the crowd of reporters had formed the ”paddle.” And without even picking up a power-up, the paddle was extending on its own...’

The scene was rather comical for a moment.

At the edge of the field, Yang Chunxi had a fond yet exasperated smile. She couldn’t bring herself to be angry with Rong Taotao. ”Hurry up, Rong Taotao! Get over here!”

”Okay...” Rong Taotao pouted, muttering, ”I just won and you’re already yelling at me.”

As he spoke, Rong Taotao stepped off the field. Instantly, he was caught by the ”paddle.” Not only was he caught, but they didn’t let go, refusing to let the ”ball” bounce away.

”Rong Taotao, what was the effect of that flower petal you created? It didn’t seem to do anything. Was it purely to distract your opponents?”

”Rong Taotao! Everyone was looking forward to this match. Your feud with Chen Muge has been going on for a long time. Now that you’ve defeated him, do you have anything to say?”

A cacophony of voices assaulted his ears. Rong Taotao quickly raised a hand, trying to push his way through the crowd as he picked one question to answer. ”There’s no feud between me and the Chen Brothers. We’re all aspiring Soul Martial Artists who want to challenge strong opponents. That’s all there is to it.”

”For two matches in a row, you faced Molten Rock and Starfield. Despite having a major Attribute disadvantage, you rallied and won both. This has completely defied everyone’s expectations...”

Rong Taotao kept his head down as he walked, casually remarking, ”It just goes to show, when Goddess Wei draws her bow, all I have to do is lie down and relax!”

”Wait, was I actually lying on the grass the whole time?”

Gao Lingwei: ”...”

”Rong Taotao! Your use of the Snow Ghost Hand Soul Skill—”

Hearing that question, Rong Taotao immediately looked toward the source of the voice, held up a finger, and said with a dead-serious expression, ”It was Principal Mei who strongly recommended I embed the Snow Charm Demon Soul Pearl.”

”And on that note, I’d like to give a special shout-out to the principal of Songjiang Soul Martial University, the esteemed Mr. Mei Hongyu...”

「Meanwhile, far away in the Snow Realm, in a women’s dorm room at the Songjiang Soul Martial Arts Hall.」

”PFFT...” Shi Lan, who had just taken a sip of water, sprayed it everywhere upon hearing his words.

Beside her, her older sister, Shi Lou, gave her a look of displeasure.

”Hee hee~” Sun Xingyu covered her mouth with a small hand, giggling as she looked at the laptop on the desk. ”Taotao is giving a shout-out to the old principal again... and again... and again~”

”Ahem, cough, yeah, that’s right!” Shi Lan wiped the water from her mouth. ”Last time Principal Mei held a class meeting, he left a quote on the blackboard that was so heavy it felt like none of us could lift our heads or even breathe...”

”And now, during this National Competition, Taotao keeps calling out Principal Mei again and again, haha... You think he’s trying to get back at him for it?”

Recall the sky-high ambitions of youth, a promise once made to be first-class in the world.

After all, that was the line Principal Mei had left for them. No wonder Rong Taotao was calling him out so relentlessly!

Nearby, Fan Lihua suddenly tugged on her sister Shi Lou’s sleeve. ”When you and Shi Lan compete in the future, will you call him out too?”

Shi Lou looked down at the deceptively well-behaved Fan Lihua. She wrapped an arm around Fan Lihua’s shoulder, then smoothly transitioned into a playful headlock. ”Little Li Hua, you’ll be competing too. You can be the one to call him out, okay?”

Beside them, Sun Xingyu’s beautiful big eyes lit up with interest. She nodded enthusiastically. ”Yes, yes! Let’s all do it together! We’ll all call out Principal Mei!”

Fan Lihua whispered, ”Uh... all of us? Won’t Principal Mei explode?”

Shi Lan snorted. ”He’ll be too happy to be mad! Ugh... but it’s so stressful. That blackboard is still hanging at the back of the classroom. Every time I walk in, I have to keep my head down. I don’t even dare to look at it. It’s driving me crazy.”

”Nope. I’m going to spend the next two years stocking up on some witty comebacks for my future post-match interviews...”

SMACK.

Shi Lou slapped the back of Shi Lan’s head, her eyebrows shooting up. ”You’re a young lady! What kind of language is that?”

Shi Lan clutched the back of her head, looking at Shi Lou with a wounded expression.

”Hee hee~” Fan Lihua snickered to the side, watching the computer screen where the Junior Class students had regrouped with their two teachers... Her gaze, however, was fixed on Gao Lingwei.

After her victory, Gao Lingwei was truly like a Little Sun, absolutely radiant and full of life.

Without a doubt, Gao Lingwei had become the leader of the Soul Class, and even more so, a role model for all the girls in it.

’I hope... in two years, I’ll also be able to step onto the same green field she walked, and become someone just like her...’

Fan Lihua thought to herself.

”We need to talk to Coach Si about our development path,” Shi Lou said suddenly.

”Huh?” Shi Lan looked at her sister in confusion.

Shi Lou said, ”The two of us are like Wei. From the looks of it, a team of two Weis isn’t enough to go all the way.”

”In both this match and the last, no one favored the Snow Realm team. That’s just common sense.”

”But Taotao played support for both matches, and in these two matches where they were the underdogs, he and Wei won almost effortlessly. So...”

Shi Lan nodded thoughtfully. ”So one of us should switch to a support role? Which one?”

”We’re sisters, so it doesn’t matter which one of us switches. What matters is who would be more effective.” Shi Lou released Fan Lihua and pushed Shi Lan toward the door. ”Let’s go ask Coach Si right now.”

”Oh.” Shi Lan nodded instinctively. In truth, she preferred their team composition of two sharp blades, but if that couldn’t take them far...

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. Shi Lou knocked on Si Huan Nian’s door.

”Yeah?” A listless voice came from behind the door. It was Si Huan Nian.

Shi Lou opened the door, only to see Si Huan Nian slumped in a chair before her desk, legs crossed and propped up on it. She was holding a bag of chips, her eyes glued to her computer screen.

’She didn’t look like a teacher at all. More like a mob boss!’

CRUNCH, CRUNCH. Si Huan Nian chewed her chips, her eyes still on the computer. She didn’t even turn her head. ”What, did the match get to you?”

Shi Lou: ”No, no, we came to...”

Before she could finish, Si Huan Nian waved a dismissive hand. ”Fine, no need to make excuses. Even I was a little shaken by it.”

Shi Lou: ”...”

Si Huan Nian popped another chip into her mouth. ”Two Starfield opponents... if either of them had been touched even once, it would’ve been over. That kid really has guts, leading Gao Lingwei around in circles killing them. He treated them like they weren’t even people...”

At the doorway, Shi Lan muttered under her breath, ”What wouldn’t he dare to do? When he first awakened and enrolled, he was just a little Soul Soldier, and he still dared to touch your calf...”

Si Huan Nian: ???

Shi Lou was horrified.

She leaned close to her sister’s ear, hissing through gritted teeth, ”Are you trying to get me sent to stand in the corner with you again? Taotao isn’t even here, so she has all this pent-up frustration with nowhere to vent it, and you’re just handing her an opportunity...”

Si Huan Nian tossed the bag of chips onto her desk, a strange smile spreading across her face as she looked at her two ”good” disciples. ”You two...”

The world went dark for Shi Lou and Shi Lan. ’It’s over,’ they thought. ’We’re so dead...’