Li Chang'an won—won without any suspense. His soul power output was overwhelming, and his clones could even use his soul abilities. Once he went all out, no one could stop him. Not to mention, he still hadn't even used many of his trump cards.
But strangely, even after Li Chang'an's victory, Yu Xiaogang didn't immediately announce the result. Instead, he stood frozen in place, muttering to himself, "No... that's impossible... this shouldn't be possible…"
"Teacher Yu, I won."
Li Chang'an strolled up to him with an air of calm confidence, his voice bringing the stunned Yu Xiaogang back to his senses.
Yu Xiaogang's eyes lit up with an intense glint as he looked at Li Chang'an.
"Can you tell me… How do you maintain such high-output soul power? How is your first soul ring already purple? How did you…"
Yu Xiaogang felt that if he could uncover Li Chang'an's secrets, it could take his own theories to the next level—maybe even help him break through his own limitations.
Li Chang'an rolled his eyes. 'Is this guy seriously this naive? You think I'd just tell you everything if you ask?'
"Sorry, that's classified. Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, Fatty—you three, come with me. From today on, I'll be leading your training. We'll be competing directly against Teacher Yu's group."
With a cool flick of his sleeves, Li Chang'an turned and walked off, leaving behind a dumbfounded Yu Xiaogang and the rest of his team.
Ning Rongrong watched Li Chang'an leave, a thoughtful look forming on her face. She had originally been quite interested in Yu Xiaogang, but after what just happened, her impression of him had dropped.
As a member of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, she was well aware that some questions simply shouldn't be asked. Yu Xiaogang's interrogation had clearly crossed a few boundaries—it was the kind of behavior only a clueless bookworm would exhibit.
'I kind of want to join Teacher Li team too…'
Meanwhile, Yu Xiaogang had finally collected himself. Looking at the four people left in front of him, he took a deep breath.
"From now on, you'll be training with me. Don't worry—our training will be the best!"
"Yes, Sir!"
All four of them responded in unison, but their morale was clearly lower than before. Except for Tang San, the others had all developed a rather negative impression of Yu Xiaogang—but for now, they had no choice but to follow along.
"None of you managed to beat Teacher Li today, so you'll all receive punishment! You're going to run—no using soul power, and you'll supervise each other. Run from the Academy to Suotuo City and back. Ten laps, before lunch. You eat when you're done. Tang San—you're a Control-Type Spirit Master, and your failure was the most serious. You'll do twelve laps. Go. Now."
Tang San took off without hesitation. For him, his teacher's words were as binding as commands.
Ning Rongrong, Dai Mubai, and Oscar followed shortly after, all silently cursing under their breath.
---
On the other side…
Li Chang'an brought his trio to a smaller training field. He casually sat down on a massive millstone and looked at the three before him.
Xiao Wu needed no introduction—she was his girl. Zhu Zhuqing was almost same, and as for the chubby one—he was the odd one out.
The reason he hadn't chosen Ning Rongrong and had instead brought Fatty along was simple—he felt a little sorry for the guy. Though he was clearly experienced with the "ladies" of certain establishments, he still came across as a bit pitiful. More importantly, Li Chang'an needed someone who could restrain Tang San's Blue Silver Grass, and Fatty fit the bill.
Ahem.
"They're probably off doing punishment runs right now—with weights. You should be thankful I picked you."
"But that doesn't mean you get out of training. It just means… you're getting better training. Scientific. Professional!"
"I'll design a specialized plan for each of you. Trust me—it'll be leagues above what Teacher Yu can offer."
"Alright, let's begin with something basic—pressure!"
As soon as he said it, an intense aura descended on the three. It came from Li Chang'an himself.
But this wasn't your run-of-the-mill suppression. For Zhu Zhuqing, the pressure was noticeably stronger; for Ma Hongjun, it was lighter. The intensity was tailored to each person.
None of the three had expected him to go this hard right off the bat, but all of them chose to endure it. This kind of pressure wouldn't cause immediate breakthroughs, but it was excellent for tempering soul power.
And this was the key difference between Li Chang'an and Yu Xiaogang's teaching styles. Even if Yu Xiaogang had called Flender over, he couldn't achieve this level of finely tuned pressure control. Without that, the effect on soul power refinement was much weaker.
The biggest difference, though, was that Li Chang'an was from Spirit Hall Academy. He'd received the best, most advanced training available. He hadn't just attended Spirit Douluo lectures—he'd even listened in on classes by Title Douluo. His vision and teaching methods were completely different.
Shrek's training was excellent, yes—but it lacked certain advantages only Spirit Hall could offer.
Their methods were tailored to general genius-level students. But when it came to customized, individualized elite training, Spirit Hall Academy reigned supreme.
For Zhu Zhuqing, Li Chang'an designed a program centered on speed and assassination techniques. Xiao Wu's plan focused on close-combat development. And Fatty—his path would be that of a mage.
Li Chang'an's pressure wasn't static, either. For example, if Zhu Zhuqing seemed like she still had energy, he would increase her pressure by another ten percent. If Ma Hongjun was struggling, he would ease off a bit.
Thirty minutes passed.
Ma Hongjun was already drenched in sweat, like he had been fished out of a river, but he gritted his teeth and endured.
Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing were in the same boat. Sweat soaked through their clothes, outlining their curvaceous figures—especially Zhu Zhuqing, whose body was a walking masterpiece.
Li Chang'an took the opportunity to sneak a few appreciative glances, then used his soul power to lift the exhausted Ma Hongjun and move him to a resting spot.
Ma Hongjun let out a loud "Waaah!" as he was moved, gasping for air.
"Teacher Li, I… I'm done for…"
"You did well," Li Chang'an nodded, acknowledging his limit.
"How do you feel?"
"Hard to describe, but… my soul power feels thicker. I think I've gotten stronger!" Ma Hongjun replied, grinning.
Li Chang'an nodded again. That was to be expected—but the real benefits of pressure training would only come with long-term persistence.
"Alright. Now we begin your specialized training," Li Chang'an said, gesturing for Fatty to sit on the grass. He joined him shortly after.
Though a bit intimidated by Li Chang'an, Ma Hongjun was eager for guidance. He had seen the fire skills Li Chang'an used earlier—and he was dying to learn something like that himself.
The chubby teen sat down excitedly, his round face full of anticipation. His enthusiasm made Li Chang'an feel a little uncomfortable.
This guy's kind of a little perv too, huh…
"First things first, Fatty—let's correct how you use your fire. Your martial soul naturally determines that you're not suited for melee attacks. Your real strength lies in long-range offense. Your advantage is…"
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T/N:
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