The technique Su Yanyang was unleashing at this momentâthe Xuanhuang Giant Handprintâwas one created specifically to complement the Xuanhuang Mountain-Suppressing Seal Technique.
As the massive hand formed from surging Xuanhuang Qi Technique descended, Zhang Yu felt as if his entire body had suddenly grown ten, a hundred times heavier. Every vulnerable part of his flesh was being crushed under immense pressure, groaning under the strain.
But even as Su Yanyangâs palm pinned him down, Zhang Yu's body kept surging with waves of Martial Qi, gradually eroding the Xuanhuang Qi pressing upon him. Su Yanyang let out a cold chuckle.
âWith the array boosting me and Spirit-Energy converging at my command, you dare challenge me in a contest of Mana?â
He drew more Mana from his dantian, and an even greater tide of Xuanhuang Qi surged toward Zhang Yu.
Yet Zhang Yu ignored his taunts. Gazing around the seemingly empty warehouse, he activated his EyeNet and asked Zhao Tianxing, âOld Zhao, whatâs going on? Why is there nothing here?â
Zhao Tianxing replied, âYouâre under the effect of the Ten Thousand Ghosts Bewitching Array Technique.â
âIâm trying to override the arrayâs identification function.â
As his vision flickered, Zhang Yu saw building materials begin to appear across the floorâonly for them to vanish like a mirage. Flickering in and out of existence.
Zhang Yu understood. There was a clash of Soul Cultivators (Entity) within the array.
Sensing Zhang Yu's shift in focus, Su Yanyang snapped at his array spirits through the EyeNet. âWhatâs the hold-up? Havenât you stabilized the formation yet?â
Soul Cultivator: âBoss, weâve only got three peopleâtoo many subsystems to manage.â
Soul Cultivator: âAnd the other side seems to know more about this array than you do.â
Soul Cultivator: âThey keep exploiting vulnerabilities we didnât even realize existed.â
Su Yanyangâs brow furrowed. âDonât tell me⊠they bought expert consultation during the break?â
âYou people really think you can beat me?â
He found the idea amusing. In his eyes, the disparity between the two teams was massive. Especially after the previous round, there was no way they could mount a comeback.
âThe victoryâs already mine. Now itâs just about how impressively I win.â
He was fully aware that the Civil Engineering Department instructorsâespecially Director Lin and True Lord Lingyueâwere watching.
Su Yanyang channeled even more power. Gazing down at Zhang Yu, who was still pinned beneath his Xuanhuang Giant Handprint, he said coldly:
âSurrender. Otherwise, Iâll cripple you.â
âThis isnât just surrendering to meâitâs surrendering to smart architecture, to financial innovation, to better funding and higher tech. Nothing to be ashamed of.â
âBut keep resisting, and youâll end up paying a fortune in medical bills. Is that really what youâre fighting for?â
Confident that his speech would earn points with the Neutral Faction and Peace Faction instructorsâespecially Director Lin and True Lord LingyueâSu Yanyang prepared for the finish.
Another sonic boom echoed through the air.
He glanced over and saw Xiao Qingxuan racing in like a missile.
At that moment, Zhang Yuâs body erupted with a vast surge of Xuanhuang Qi.
âWhat?â
âLevel 5⊠7⊠11?!â
Su Yanyang could clearly sense the Xuanhuang Mountain-Suppressing Seal Technique Zhang Yu was now channeling had reached at least Level 11.
âHeâs only been a sophomore for three months. Heâs practiced this technique for, what, three months max? And already pushed it this far?!â
The sheer force of Zhang Yuâs Level 11 seal broke through Su Yanyangâs suppression, propelling him forward in a blast of shockwaves.
At the same time, Zhang Yu and Xiao Qingxuan communicated through their Law Husks.
Zhang Yu: Youâre finally here.
Xiao Qingxuan: Took a detour.
Zhang Yu: Letâs crack his Martial Qi. The Soul Cultivators will buy us an opening.
Facing their pincer attack, Su Yanyang remained calm. Not out of arroganceâhe simply knew that even two-on-one, his strength was more than enough.
âXuanhuang Giant HandprintâCapture!â
He pressed his palms together, unleashing a flood of Mana that formed eighteen massive handprints slamming toward both Zhang Yu and Xiao Qingxuan.
At the same time, he stomped the ground, sending tremors rippling outward. With the support of Small Threefold Harmony Technique, the ground surged up into countless walls, boxing the two of them in.
Then his vision warped.
Zhang Yu and Xiao Qingxuan had somehow teleported forward, already within striking range.
âWhat?!â
He realizedâhis Ten Thousand Ghosts Bewitching Array Technique had been hijacked to twist his perception.
âThey used my own formation⊠against me?!â
A message popped into his EyeNet:
Soul Cultivator: Two enemy Soul Cultivators exploited a vulnerability and temporarily marked you as hostile. Weâve patched it nowâthey canât affect your status again.
Zhang Yu: Thanks, Old Zhao, Mo Tianyi.
Inwardly, Zhang Yu marveled, âThat True Lord Magneto guy is terrifying. He even knew how to reverse-hack an array against its controller.â
He recalled the note written in the array diagram:
True Lord Magneto: Modern Immortal Dao tech makes arrays stronger, smarter, and easier to deployâbut also full of new holes.
True Lord Magneto: Whether or not you've studied consistently, amassed diagrams, and mastered array vulnerabilitiesâthose factors decide the outcome long before the array is breached. Breaching it just proves what was already decided.
Meanwhile, Zhao Tianxing hesitated. âShould I send Zhang Yu a good-luck message? Would it distract him?â
And nearby, the other Soul CultivatorâMo Tianyi, the representative from the Alliance of the Resentful Poor, and someone who had worked with Zhang Yu in Songyang Cityâhad just guided Xiao Qingxuan to the battlefield.
Mo Tianyi thought to himself, âOnce I get back, Iâm putting this battle on my resume.â
âI participated in the War of Myriad Techniques Geniuses. Maybe Iâll even get to stay on Floor Two. At least Iâll survive a little longerâŠâ
In that split second, every mind on the battlefield buzzed with calculations.
But thought didnât slow time.
Just as Su Yanyang flared his Martial Qi to fend off the attack, Xiao Qingxuanâs Nine-Dragon Heavenforce Palm Technique struck home.
The blow landed like being mauled by nine giant dragons at once. Amid the deafening crash, Su Yanyang was hurled into the ground.
The impact shattered the earth, stone chips flying. Su Yanyang lay at the center of a crater.
Though stunned, he wasnât worried. So long as he could withstand this burst, heâd be able to mount a fierce counterattack.
As Zhang Yu advanced with his next strike, Su Yanyang sneered.
âSo what if I take one of your hits?â
He had long studied Zhang Yuâs style: exceptional durability, expert at redirecting force and grapplingâbut no overwhelming damage potential.
âNo oneâs here to give you an assist this time.â
But then he saw itâZhang Yu had drawn the Green-Silk Flying Sword (Artifact) gifted by Bai Zhenzhen.
It didnât require Mana. It self-charged daily with Spirit-Energy. Each of its seven threads could be unleashed once per day.
Heâd used two already, one in the first half and one to breach the Dimensional Isolation Array (Artifact). That left five.
And now he released them all.
All five threads of the Green-Silk Flying Sword sliced forward.
Five deep sword gashes erupted across the battlefield.
At the center, Su Yanyang was pinned downâarms, legs, torso already converted into Law Husks, now showing five visible dents.
Zhang Yu, though expecting this, still felt a jolt of awe. âEven five of those couldnât pierce his Law Husk? That thing is insanely durable.â
Though not enough to cripple him, the barrage tore away most of Su Yanyangâs Protective Qi Barrier.
Zhang Yu followed up immediately.
He struck with the Magnetic Meridian-Severing Hand Technique, his fingers stabbing out in a blur of afterimages.
Su Yanyang suddenly lost all sensation in his right arm.
Then his left leg.
âDrink!â
With a roar, Su Yanyang surged with Qi, pushing Zhang Yu and Xiao Qingxuan back with a wave of shock and dust.
He glared down at his limbs, alarmed. âWhat did you do?!â
All he noticed was the paralysis.
What he didnât sense was the emotional fallout.
Each Green-Silk Flying Sword thread carried a unique Sword Intent, capable of temporarily suppressing a specific emotion.
Now, after taking five in a row, Su Yanyangâs mind was left with nothing but shock and fury.
Those emotions surged through him, driving him to lunge at Zhang Yu in a blind offensive.
But Xiao Qingxuan intercepted him again, waves of dragon-shaped Martial Qi crashing into his path.
Missing a leg and an armâs worth of Law Husk power, and wild with rage, Su Yanyangâs strikes were riddled with openings.
Dozens of exchanges later, as shockwaves blasted through the battlefield, he realizedâ
He was completely blocked.
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