"Wang Zhong, what do you want to do! Are you going to stand up for Hu Liena!"
Zhao Shi looked at Wang Zhong, who had walked onto the stage, his expression panicked. He couldn't help but retreat repeatedly in fear.
Wang Zhong, who had beaten Feng Yuan Sheng into such a miserable state, would find it incredibly easy to torment him.
Reflecting Zhao Shi's panicked eyes and his body trembling subconsciously from fear, and recalling the torment Hu Liena had just endured, Wang Zhong's fists clenched with a creaking sound.
A bloodthirsty ferocity churned within his heart like molten lava.
Ying Yanyang looked at the fierce aura surging from Wang Zhong on the stage and shook his head helplessly. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Hu Liena, Wang Zhong, Xie Yue, and Yan, these four were almost inseparable whenever they weren't in class.
Although there was no blood relation between the four, in Ying Yanyang's eyes, their bond was closer than that of some so-called blood brothers.
This pure friendship had astonished him more than once.
Wang Zhong was stubborn and proud, Xie Yue was indifferent and aloof, Yan was silent and obstinate. He would have been grateful if these three didn't fight every day, let alone become good friends.
But the fact was, the three were incredibly close, bound together by Hu Liena.
Xie Yue was Hu Liena's sister, so their close relationship wasn't surprising to Ying Yanyang. Yan harbored the youthful admiration for Hu Liena characteristic of his age, so Yan's obedience to Hu Liena was understandable.
However, Wang Zhong's feelings for Hu Liena truly surprised him. It was a belief akin to a vow and a promise, even classifiable as a special existence of a guardian.
If this phenomenon had been somewhat obscure before, it became increasingly evident after Wang Zhong obtained his first spirit ring and widened the gap in spirit power cultivation with Hu Liena.
Wang Zhong, much like his spirit, stood silently behind Hu Liena like a tree, using his still small branches and tender leaves to shield her from wind, rain, frost, and snow as best he could.
Ying Yanyang had no doubt that Wang Zhong, with such emotions, would erupt in killing intent on the stage, disregarding the competition rules, and keep Zhao Shi on the stage forever.
"Standing up for Nana?"
"Ha, ha, ha!..."
Unexpectedly, the ferocity in Wang Zhong's eyes suddenly receded, and he burst into laughter.
"You trash overestimate yourself too much!"
"You've already broken through level ten and obtained your first spirit ring, a hundred-year one at that, yet your spirit power is no different from a level five spirit master!"
"With such strength, where do you get the confidence that I would even spare a glance at you?"
"Nana's talent is no weaker than mine, perhaps even stronger! She doesn't need anyone to stand up for her. The things she has lost will all be reclaimed in the future."
"I walked onto this stage to tell you that this place is not for trash like you!"
"Get lost!!!"
A yellow spirit ring rose from his feet, and a torrent of spirit power, vast and surging like the ocean, erupted from Wang Zhong's body. A massive shockwave swept across the entire stage, with Zhao Shi bearing the brunt of it.
*Puff.*
Under the impact of this terrifying force, Zhao Shi was flung off the stage like swept-aside garbage.
"Zhang Shuai of Class A, second year, come up!"
The entire square fell into a moment of dead silence, everyone's minds like frozen computers, lost in a daze.
On the throne, Bibi Dong, her delicate hand propping up her jade-like chin, couldn't help but raise her head, her gaze on Wang Zhong tinged with surprise.
"Challenging an opponent of the same grade from a higher year, a suicide-like challenge match. I didn't expect anyone to dare initiate one," Chrysanthemum Douluo frowned slightly, utterly perplexed by Wang Zhong's suicidal act.
A spirit ring's difference, coupled with a spirit power disparity of at least ten levels, anyone with a shred of sanity would not choose such an opponent.
There was simply no possibility of winning. Were it not for school regulations, such an act would be no different from seeking death.
"As expected, an interesting young man," Bibi Dong smiled, her beauty peerless and her grace captivating.
Zhang Shuai, whose name was called, from Class A of the second year, was momentarily stunned.
"He wants to challenge me?"
"He dares to challenge me?"
Two questions echoed in his mind. In less than a breath, Zhang Shuai snapped back to reality and burst into laughter.
"Ha, ha, ha..."
He laughed at Wang Zhong's arrogance, his presumptuousness, his overestimation of his own abilities, and at the fact that he, Zhang Shuai, was considered a challengeable opponent by a student who had only been at the academy for half a year.
"Wang Zhong! Who do you think I, Zhang Shuai, am!"
A fierce roar echoed, and Zhang Shuai leaped high from the ground, landing heavily on the stage.
"I am the strongest little overlord of the second year, second only to Brother Pei Yan!"
"Roar!"
A ferocious roar sounded from behind Zhang Shuai. A giant ape, entirely black, its fur like steel needles, its muscles taut, with comically thick arms, bared its teeth and roared menacingly at Wang Zhong.
"Top-tier mutated spirit, Iron Arm Great Ape!"
Below the stage, Hu Liena, her complexion regaining some color, gasped in shock, covering her mouth as she saw the spirit behind Zhang Shuai.
The Iron Arm Great Ape was a special spirit mutated from an ordinary Black Ape spirit. During its mutation, it inadvertently gained the attributes of Iron Arm and Great Strength, resulting in a monstrous enhancement in both defense and offense.
This enhancement was enough to allow Zhang Shuai to hold his own against a Spirit Master one level higher than him, and if the opponent's spirit was weaker, it wouldn't be uncommon for him to win.
Recalling the characteristics of the spirit that Ying Yanyang had discussed in class, Hu Liena's small face suddenly turned pale.
Wang Zhong was now challenging not just a ten-level spirit power gap, but a chasm of nearly twenty levels.
This meant that Wang Zhong was not challenging a Great Spirit Master, but a Spirit Elder with the strength of level thirty but who had not yet obtained their third spirit ring!
"Zhong!" Hu Liena's voice began to tremble. She dared not imagine the outcome of this match, even feeling an urge to rush onto the stage and make Wang Zhong give up this challenge.
She didn't want to see Wang Zhong get hurt, nor did she want to see him give his all only to suffer a bitter defeat. His pride, his persistence, everything about him, Hu Liena had seen and remembered.
Day after day, his physical training never ceased, regardless of winter or summer, wind or rain, that determined figure never slackened for a moment.
But not all things in this world could be determined by effort.
The appearance of the Iron Arm Great Ape was the best proof. The years, even decades, of arduous training of others could be shattered with a mere spirit embodiment.
"Nana, believe in him! Wang Zhong has never lost a fight since he came to the orphanage! He didn't then, and he won't in the future!"
Xie Yue patted Hu Liena's shoulder and smiled comfortingly. Compared to his sister's worry, he had absolute confidence in Wang Zhong.
Even with a twenty-level chasm, he still unconditionally believed Wang Zhong would win.
No matter who the opponent was, how old, or how strong, that person would always struggle to his feet and achieve victory in the end.
"Nana, believe in your brother! Although I'm very reluctant to admit it, Wang Zhong is truly different from us," Yan pursed his lips and comforted her unwillingly.
"People are different, and there's even a gap between geniuses. Wang Zhong is a monster standing at the pinnacle of everyone!"
Saying this, Yan's teeth felt a little sore.