A hundred-thousand-year soul ring? And seven of them?
Anyone with a shred of sense would be in utter disbelief upon seeing Heita's soul ring configuration—because it was simply too powerful!
Even in their youth, none of the elders of the Sea God Pavilion could have ever achieved a soul ring configuration like Heita's. Not even the current Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion had such a lineup—she still had black ten-thousand-year soul rings. But Heita? All her soul rings had already surpassed the hundred-thousand-year mark.
If she ever reached the level of a Titled Douluo, her soul rings would likely turn into the legendary orange-gold rings—just like Yun Ming's!
> "Little girl, we're not trying to force or coerce you," Cai Yue'er said with a warm smile. "We just think that with a genius like you, not joining Shrek Academy would be such a pity!"
Her face beamed kindly, as if she were a kind old granny—completely different from her attitude toward Zhuo Shi just moments ago.
But Heita knew Cai Yue'er's nature well. She was only being so polite because of Heita's talent, wanting to leave a good impression. If it were someone else… who knows how cold and overbearing she'd be?
In the original story, this woman had always bullied the weak by relying on her status. Yao Lan had no fondness for her, and since Heita was Yao Lan's split soul, she naturally understood why.
> "If you're not trying to force me, then why are you blocking my way?" Heita put her hands on her hips, her tone sharp and eyes full of disdain. "And if you already know I'm a genius, do you really think you can teach me anything? Honestly, you might not even be a match for me."
Truthfully, although Heita's reputation was widespread, very few people actually knew her true identity. She spent most of her time shut in her lab, refusing all outings or social interactions.
So, on the continent, almost no one believed that the rumored prodigy was actually a twelve-year-old girl named Heita. Except—Shrek Academy knew.
After Wu Zhangkong's letter arrived at Shrek Academy, the elders all thought he was joking. There were many geniuses in the world, but none so ridiculously overpowered as Heita!
Twelve years old. Spirit power at Rank 70. All her soul rings were hundred-thousand-year rings. And she was already a three-word battle armor master.
Her auxiliary professions were unknown, but Wu Zhangkong speculated that they were likely above Level 8—or even Level 9! Based on his understanding of Heita, surpassing her level was just an everyday occurrence.
Heita's arrogant tone naturally ticked Cai Yue'er off. She was hot-tempered to begin with—she had just impulsively jumped in earlier, after all. Now, her temper flared again.
> "A genius, huh? You think you're that impressive? Do you know how many geniuses we've trained at Shrek Academy? Each one of them became top-tier in their field!"
> "Little girl, you better learn to be humble. Young people shouldn't be so arrogant, or one day you'll get knocked down and not even know how to recover!"
Cai Yue'er was visibly angry. Seeing this, Zhuo Shi quickly tried to stop her.
> "Cai Yue'er, what's your problem picking on a little girl?"
> "Zhuo Shi, shut up! With a personality like hers, if we don't temper her now, she'll become uncontrollable! She needs to be disciplined!"
The two elders bickered, but Heita had no interest in their spat. She just looked at Cai Yue'er and said:
> "You think you can beat me, old hag?"
> "Heh! A little girl like you? I could deal with you with one hand!"
Cai Yue'er was absolutely blunt. She had already decided to teach this disrespectful brat a good lesson—to show her that in the world of the strong, power speaks loudest.
Even if you're a genius, you still need to keep a low profile until you truly grow up. If you're a dragon, coil; if you're a tiger, crouch. Otherwise—Cai Yue'er would be the one to teach her a lesson right now!
> "Oh yeah? Then bring it on!" Heita replied coolly.
After so much talk, Heita realized something—some people, no matter how you reason with them, won't get it until they suffer. Only after tasting defeat will they understand what they should or shouldn't do.
> "If you beat me, I'll agree to whatever you want. If you lose… I won't make you do anything. Just say 'I'm mediocre' three times. That's all."
> "Little girl, are you looking down on me?" Cai Yue'er's eyes widened in fury. She was practically grinding her teeth.
Just fighting a twelve-year-old was humiliating enough—and even if she lost, the kid didn't demand anything? That wasn't just insulting—it was complete disregard.
Cai Yue'er had roamed the continent for decades. When had she ever been treated like this?
> "If I can't take you down easily today, I'll write my name backwards!"
> "If I can't crush you without effort, I'll take you as my teacher!"
As soon as these words left her mouth, everyone around stared wide-eyed. Even Zhuo Shi's jaw dropped.
How could she dare say something like that?
Heita, on the other hand, looked disgusted.
> "Forget it. Taking in a disciple like you would just embarrass me…"
> "Hahahaha! Cai Yue'er, she doesn't even want to take you as a student—hahaha!" Zhuo Shi couldn't hold it in anymore. He had been enjoying the show, but Heita's comeback totally stunned him. Savage.
> "You—you little brat! You're driving me crazy!"
Heita's words had Silver Moon Douluo fuming, stomping her feet in rage. But she didn't rush in. The other elders of the Sea God Pavilion were all hiding nearby. If she made the first move against a child, she'd be the laughingstock of the Pavilion!
> "Hurry up and attack. My mom's already calling me home for dinner. If I'm late, I'll miss it." Heita's casual tone lit Cai Yue'er's fury all over again.
> "You brat! I'm going to teach you what it means to always have someone stronger out there!"
> "Come! I'll let you make three moves first!"
Cai Yue'er was still a Titled Douluo, and her pride showed. She actually planned to give Heita three free moves.
> "Well, since you said so, don't blame me for not holding back!" Heita said, seeing the other party was so out of touch.
> "The sooner I beat you, the sooner I can eat. I'm starving!"
Heh! This girl really is too young!
Letting you make the first three moves, giving you a false sense of victory—and then letting you experience the harsh reality of adulthood!