Douluo: In an extraordinary world, with unparallel understanding!

Join my Patreon to be 30 chapters ahead of the webnovel releases:

patreon.com/ZeroMoney

I would appreciate your help if you could join my Patreon and support me because it would keep me motivated. 

******

Jing Hongchen assigned tasks to the two teams. 

"Su Yu, you four can also watch the matches," he added. 

After a moment of consideration, Jing Hongchen decided not to send Su Yu and his group back. Instead, he allowed them to spectate the event together. 

Who knows? They might gain some insight from it. 

Although their abilities had grown significantly, truth be told, their actual combat experience was severely lacking. 

Jing Hongchen was unsure about Su Yu and Huo Yuhao's situation, but he was well aware of Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen's. Ever since the Soul Master Tournament, the siblings had barely fought. The few tasks they had undertaken were nothing more than minor challenges, offering little opportunity for meaningful growth. 

In reality, Su Yu and Huo Yuhao also didn't have much battle experience to boast about. 

---

*Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy* 

The tournament hosted by Jing Hongchen caused a significant stir across the academy. 

All students were allowed to participate, including those who had postponed their graduation and were technically overage. 

If anyone managed to win, they would receive a reward of 100 kilograms of rare metal. Of course, this rare metal would be calculated using standard Heavy Silver units, with the equivalent value being exchangeable for other rare metals. 

This reward was undeniably substantial. 

Win one match, and you could earn 100 kilograms of rare metal. 

Naturally, achieving victory wouldn't be easy, but that didn't stop the academy's strong students from signing up enthusiastically. 

*"Students from the under-20 Soul Master Tournament team?"* 

*"Ha! No matter how talented they are, they're still under 20!"* 

The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy even had students who were almost selected for the Soul Master Tournament team years ago. These individuals remained at the academy to further their studies and had now reached the age of 25 or 26, boasting Soul Emperor cultivation and sixth-level Soul Engineer skills. 

*"I heard this tournament was requested by those team members who got overly arrogant after their training."* 

*"Really?"* 

*"Hah! A bunch of kids under 20, thinking they're invincible."* 

*"I've heard some of them are Soul Emperors, though. Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen might've already broken through to that level, right? Five years ago, they were Soul Kings, so it's reasonable they've reached Soul Emperor by now."* 

---

The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy's testing arena was massive, large enough to accommodate all the academy's students and faculty. 

This arena was originally designed for assessing students' progress, but even so, combat-related assessments were quite rare. 

Thanks to Jing Hongchen's efforts, this tournament had drawn nearly 90% of the academy's students to watch. 

Su Yu arrived at the preparation area, from where he had a clear view of everything happening on the stage. 

The arena was filled with noise and chatter. 

"Silence!" 

A booming voice amplified by a soul tool echoed throughout the entire arena. Jing Hongchen's stern tone, combined with the overwhelming pressure of his soul power, caused everyone to fall silent. 

"The rules for this tournament should already be clear to all of you," Jing Hongchen announced. 

"The team participating in the upcoming Soul Master Tournament has been finalized by the academy and has undergone a period of intensive training. Now, a stage has been set. For anyone who manages to defeat a member of the team, there will be a reward of 100 kilograms of rare metals per victory. Defeat two members, and you'll earn 200 kilograms. Beat three, and that's 400 kilograms, and so on!" 

The trial arena, which had just quieted down moments ago, once again burst into an uproar. Many students could barely comprehend the sheer scale of the rewards being offered. 

For most students, 100 kilograms of rare metals was already an extraordinary resource. 

But now, what the dean was announcing far surpassed any rumors they had heard before. 

One hundred kilograms, two hundred kilograms, four hundred kilograms—and if it continued, it could even reach eight hundred kilograms or more. Winning just three matches could secure enough rare metals to sustain a Soul Engineer's career for the next ten or twenty years without worry. 

Meanwhile, in the preparation area, Shi Xing, Zhou Xinghao, and Xiao Ping wore heavy expressions. 

The pressure from this tournament was far greater than what the Hall Master had mentioned during their training in Sun-Moon Hall. 

*Damn it. If we lose, Sun-Moon Hall can definitely pay out all those rare metals, but would they just give them away for free? Absolutely not!* 

Without question, any losses would be deducted from their future resource quotas. 

Whoever lost would have their share docked. 

The three months of intensive training they had undergone, during which they had successfully created their personal battle armor, gave them a deep understanding of how powerful battle armor truly was. 

Battle armor wasn't just an external enhancement—it elevated a Soul Master's abilities at their very core. It felt like an intrinsic source of power, instilling unparalleled confidence. 

However, their success in crafting their first-level battle armor also made them keenly aware of how resource-intensive its production was. 

Having experienced the might of battle armor, giving it up was simply not an option. Their pursuit of higher-level battle armor would only grow more fervent. This made it even clearer to them that they couldn't afford to consume future resources prematurely. 

If they lost two or three matches this time, it would undoubtedly delay the production of their mid-level battle armor by years, if not decades. 

Especially since there was no shortage of six-ring Soul Emperors and sixth-level Soul Engineers in the academy. 

And then there were the peculiar, exceptionally gifted outliers to worry about. 

*Losing is not an option.* 

Most importantly, being the third person to lose was out of the question. 

Whoever lost their match would have the rewards docked directly from their personal resource allocation. On the flip side, the first person to take on a challenger would benefit the most. 

This rule effectively eliminated any chance of the three of them slacking off or deliberately underperforming to avoid punishment. 

It was impossible to avoid stepping up. 

If they ran into a truly tough opponent, the later someone went up, the worse it could get for them. 

"I'll go first," Xiao Ping declared. 

"No, let me go first. I'm the youngest here, so I'll test the waters and gauge the strength of these senior students." 

"You're not as steady as I am. With my soul cannon paired with my battle armor, I'm practically undefeatable!" 

The three of them began arguing over who would have the honor of going first. 

In the end, Xiao Ping was selected to step up first. 

There was no avoiding it. Despite being the youngest among the three—so young, in fact, that he was a year behind Su Yu in the academy—Xiao Ping's strength was unquestionably the greatest among them. 

His "iron fist" earned him the spot. 

In truth, sending Xiao Ping, the strongest of the three, was also the safest choice. 

Meanwhile, in the trial arena, even some wealthier students had started setting up betting pools. Many students placed wagers, but not a single person bet on the representative team achieving a clean sweep. 

There were even a few troublemakers who placed bets on at least one senior managing to pull off a total upset and win seven consecutive rounds. 

While this outcome seemed highly unlikely—given the presence of experts like Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and the ever-mysterious Su Yu—it still felt slightly more plausible than the team going undefeated. 

"The first match: Xiao Ping versus Xia Xuanchen." 

Xia Xuanchen, a fifth-level Soul Engineer. 

"Xiao Ping, level fifty-five Soul King, and a fifth-level Soul Engineer," Xiao Ping announced confidently, his tone brimming with composure despite the mounting pressure. 

Both competitors stepped onto the stage. Around them, a soul barrier began to rise, slowly encasing the entire platform. 

This soul barrier was powerful enough to withstand the attacks of a Soul Douluo for at least three seconds. 

The barrier's energy system was also far more advanced than those used in the Star Luo Empire's tournaments. Its core formation featured an intricate design that absorbed ambient heaven and earth energy, converting it into a continuous power supply for the shield. 

This advanced formation was so complex that it could only be used in large venues like this trial arena. 

As the barrier activated, Su Yu couldn't help but marvel at its power source. 

"Absorbing heaven and earth energy to power the core formation?" 

All it took was an initial injection of soul power to activate it, and from there, it could run indefinitely. 

"I wonder if this could replace electricity." 

Harnessing the ever-present energy of the world as a power source could potentially accelerate the development of soul tool technology in the future. 

However, Su Yu didn't dwell too long on the thought, as the match had already begun. 

Facing Xia Xuanchen, a fifth-level Soul Engineer, Xiao Ping didn't dare underestimate his opponent. He immediately activated his battle armor. 

After all, each combatant was allowed an hour of rest between matches, with the academy providing resources like soul power restoration tools and even specialized "milk bottles" for faster recovery. In addition, there were instructors on standby to help replenish stamina and other physical conditions. 

It could be said that Jing Hongchen had gone to extraordinary lengths to prepare for this tournament. 

The level of logistical support surpassed even that of the Soul Master Tournament, where the focus was solely on keeping participants alive, not ensuring their optimal condition between matches. 

*Battle armor, activate!* 

Xiao Ping's body flashed with light from fourteen storage soul tools embedded throughout his armor. 

Before the advent of modern battle armor, soul tool armor was designed for convenience, using embedded storage soul tools to enable wearers to equip their armor instantly in the heat of battle. 

Xiao Ping's battle armor snapped into place seamlessly, covering him in a sleek, powerful suit of armor that exuded confidence and strength. 

At this moment, Xiao Ping was only 30 meters away from Xia Xuanchen. Xia Xuanchen had no time to deploy any more Soul Tools.

Dumbfounded, Xia Xuanchen stared at the glowing muzzle of the cannon, speechless.

Had he already lost in less than ten seconds?

The arena fell into complete silence.

How could Xiao Ping, a fifth-level Soul Engineer, crush Xia Xuanchen of the same level so thoroughly?

How could he unleash a burst of speed, power, and defense that exceeded even a Soul Emperor's level, and resolve the fight against Xia Xuanchen so quickly?

Was it possible that Xiao Ping had lied about his Soul Power level?

Impossible.

He was only seventeen years old—could he really be at the Soul Emperor level? Or had he somehow broken through to sixth-level Soul Engineer?

"It's that Soul Tool armor!"

Someone in the crowd finally figured it out.

His Soul Power had been forcibly enhanced to a level surpassing that of a typical Soul Emperor!

"If I'm not mistaken, that's just a fifth-level Soul Tool armor, right?"

"Yeah, it's just a fifth-level armor."

This comment came from a couple of seventh-level Soul Engineers among the faculty. Their sharp eyes identified the Soul Tool's grade, and their faces held expressions of disbelief.

Could a fifth-level Soul Tool armor have such a massive amplification effect?

Jing Hongchen nodded slightly as he observed the battle's outcome.

Xiao Ping had performed excellently in this match.

Xia Xuanchen stumbled off the stage, looking dazed and defeated.

Xiao Ping, too, returned to the preparation area.

Shi Xing stepped up.

"Silence!"

Jing Hongchen's commanding voice cut through the noise in the arena. The overwhelming pressure of his soul power silenced the buzz from earlier, and the crowd grew quiet once more.

"Next." He said.

Shi Xing faced off against fifth-level Soul Engineer Lu Ren. Seven seconds later, the battle was decisively over.

Zhou Xinghao fought against fifth-level Soul Engineer Wang Yuan. In just three seconds, under the coverage of a Soul Cannon, the victory was complete.

After three quick battles, the fighters entered a rest period. Xiao Ping, Shi Xing, and Zhou Xinghao recovered in the preparation area.

Meanwhile, the students and faculty in the arena erupted in unprecedented excitement.

Even under the pressure of Jing Hongchen's soul power, quiet whispers still persisted.

"One hour later, the match will continue."

Jing Hongchen casually scanned the arena and made no effort to silence the murmurs further.

(End of chapter)