Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique

With that, Mu Chen nodded. "I’ll give it a try." After all, deep down, he was a fighter at heart. Di Cang and Zhun Cang shared a knowing smile. "Then follow me first."

With that, Di Cang turned and walked toward a bookshelf behind him. After searching for a moment, he stopped in front of a particularly ordinary-looking book and casually pulled it halfway out.

RUMBLE... CLANK CLANK CLANK...

Following a series of tremors, a huge room appeared behind the office, revealing itself to Mu Chen. The sight left him in utter shock; he had never imagined such a vast space could be hidden within a small office.

It was a space about the size of a public square. However, Mu Chen recalled that the top floor of the instructors’ building was only as large as a dormitory, and a dormitory was merely a tenth of the size of a square. Where could this space have come from? Other than being artificially created, Mu Chen could think of no other explanation.

Behind him, Zhun Cang chuckled. "I knew you’d have that expression. Before you and Old Cang fight, let me tell you a bit about the history of the Imperial Academy."

Mu Chen followed him as he spoke. With his hands clasped behind his back, Zhun Cang walked and said, "The Xuanling Imperial Academy... you’ve seen its current scale. In truth, it’s merely the number one academy of a minor nation. But do you know how many countries like the Xuanling Empire there are on this continent?"

Mu Chen shook his head; he truly didn’t know. Zhun Cang sighed. "Across the entire Extreme Martial Continent, there are a total of one thousand two hundred countries, large and small, just like the Xuanling Empire. And do you know where our Xuanling Empire ranked among those one thousand two hundred nations a thousand years ago? Two hundred and thirtieth!" Zhun Cang exhaled.

"Don’t look down on that two-hundred-and-thirtieth place. It made the Xuanling Empire an upper-middle tier nation on the continent. Such an honor represented a kind of strength that made all the countries ranked below us look on in awe and fear."

Mu Chen nodded. "And now?"

Caught off guard by Mu Chen’s question, Zhun Cang’s old face flushed red. He cleared his throat a few times. "I’m not afraid to tell you. The Xuanling Empire is now ranked one thousand one hundred and twentieth. We’ve been relegated to the bottom ranks, the lowest of the low among the lesser nations. It’s gotten to the point where our country has become someone that anyone on the Extreme Martial Continent can bully."

Although Zhun Cang said it nonchalantly, a storm was raging in Mu Chen’s heart. ’The place I live in is actually a country at the very bottom of the continent, yet I never realized how weak we were before.’ He sighed. ’This is human nature. As long as disaster doesn’t strike them personally, people will never feel a sense of crisis.’

"Is it because our country lost something... or someone?"

Mu Chen knew there had to be a reason, and that reason was surely related to the enormous space before him. Only two things could create such a vast space. One was a weapon capable of shattering and creating space: a Sacred Weapon. The second could only be a Saint.

Zhun Cang gave Mu Chen an appreciative look. "You’re very sharp. That’s right. A thousand years ago, a genius Dean appeared in our Imperial Academy. His strength was terrifying. In less than a hundred years, he became a Saint—what’s commonly known as a Martial Saint. From that moment on, the Xuanling Empire’s overall strength began to climb. Then, in a mere six years, the Xuanling Empire shot up from a rank of over six hundred to two hundred and thirty. Most of the credit for that goes to that Dean."

"But the good times didn’t last. Ten years after that Dean began leading our academy, he suddenly and bizarrely disappeared one day. His disappearance was completely baffling. He didn’t even leave behind a single letter. If he had left on his own, he never would have departed without a word. Everyone suspected he might have been murdered, but the Dean was a Saint! A Saint! Martial Emperors ceased to exist ten thousand years ago, so who could have possibly killed the Dean so silently? To this day, the mystery remains unsolved."

"And the Xuanling Empire, because of the departure of that Saintly Dean, gradually declined to its current state..."

Zhun Cang’s expression was full of sorrow. Clearly, the Xuanling Empire’s current situation was completely different from its outward appearance. Mu Chen sighed along with him. A sigh was all he could offer. He now understood that the huge space before him was what that Saintly Dean had left behind.

"We’re here. Mu Chen, you need to be prepared. Even if I suppress my realm, my control over Primordial Power won’t be as crude as those kids’," Di Cang said, stepping into the space in a single flash. While Zhun Cang had been talking about the academy’s history and current state, Di Cang’s brow had remained furrowed. The pressure on him was clearly immense.

Mu Chen’s expression hardened. "I will use my full strength, holding nothing back. So please, give me your best shot."

As he spoke, a powerful battle intent erupted from his body. Faced with this fighting spirit, Di Cang’s tightly furrowed brow suddenly relaxed. He laughed heartily. "Such strong battle intent! Good lad, I’m liking you more and more."

An equally powerful battle intent exploded from Di Cang’s body. Unlike Mu Chen’s, however, Di Cang’s battle intent pressed down on Mu Chen as if it were tangible.

"Watch closely. My true power... HAH!"

With a thunderous shout, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi in the air began to riot violently. In an instant, Di Cang’s clothes swelled, and one by one, purple Martial Rings rapidly spread out from beneath his feet.

DING!

With a crisp ring, nine tangible-looking Martial Rings flickered with an eerie purple light. Mu Chen was utterly horrified. ’This small Imperial Academy actually has a Nine-Ring Martial Emperor Peak expert, and he’s just a vice dean of the outer circle! Even with someone this powerful, the Xuanling Empire is only ranked 1,120th on the entire Extreme Martial Continent. Just how strong are the deans of the other academies?’

"HAH!"

Before Mu Chen could even recover from his shock, another explosive shout rang out. The purple Martial Rings at Di Cang’s feet all vanished, replaced by a single silver Martial Ring that emanated a faint silver glow. At first glance, this ring seemed almost transparent, yet it unleashed a fluctuation of Primordial Power even greater than the nine purple Martial Rings combined.

"Old Cang... you... you..." Seeing the silver Martial Ring at Di Cang’s feet, Zhun Cang’s jaw dropped, and his voice trembled.

SWISH! Di Cang’s eyes flew open, a silver light shooting from his pupils. Immediately after, his entire aura was completely withdrawn. "Do you see? This is my full strength."

"A Martial Venerable!" Mu Chen’s pupils contracted violently. This was the first time he had ever seen a Martial Venerable, but he instantly determined Di Cang’s rank from the oppressive aura and the silver Martial Ring.

Zhun Cang finally recovered and turned to shout at Di Cang, "Old Cang, when did you break through?! This is wonderful! Absolutely wonderful! With this, the Xuanling Empire can definitely rise into the top thousand in two years’ time!"

"Old Zhun, you still don’t understand. My strength alone isn’t enough." After speaking, Di Cang turned to Mu Chen. "I’ve revealed my full power to you to show that I have no ill intentions. I also want to tell you something else: I am an attribute martial artist, and my Lifebound Elemental Power is Fire! Now, I will suppress my realm to that of a Second Ring Martial Artist. You must remember, a kid like Balrek is all form and no substance. In terms of actual combat ability, any Martial Master from the Holy Hall could easily defeat him. What you need to do now is force me to raise my Primordial Power realm step by step. That’s the only way to accurately test your true limits."

As he finished speaking, the Primordial Power fluctuations around Di Cang’s body decreased sharply. In a moment, the ring at his feet transformed into two orange Martial Rings. Yet, for some reason, Mu Chen had the distinct illusion that he was facing a Martial Spirit expert.

"So this is the gap between Martial Artists," Mu Chen murmured. But for some reason, he felt a sense of excitement, the feeling of an impending, satisfying battle. "Since you haven’t hidden anything from me, Vice Dean, it wouldn’t be right for me to hide things either. However, I hope you can promise me that no matter what you and Deputy Director Zhun see next, you will keep it a secret for me."

Seeing Mu Chen’s serious expression, Di Cang and Zhun Cang exchanged a glance. They knew this young man was anything but ordinary. "We promise."

The moment Di Cang’s words fell, a confident smile spread across Mu Chen’s lips. He slowly pulled the giant black case from his back and placed it on the ground with a BOOM. The instant the black case touched the floor, the entire space trembled.

Di Cang’s pupils shrank. With a flash, his figure vanished from its spot, reappearing in front of Mu Chen an instant later. "This black case..."

With that, Di Cang grabbed the edge of the giant case and tried to lift it with force, but the black case didn’t move an inch. So, he began to gradually increase his Martial Artist Realm. It wasn’t until he reached the Martial King Level that he was finally able to lift the enormous black case. However, from his flushed red face, it was clear that even at the Martial King Level, lifting this case was incredibly difficult.

"You carry this thing around all the time?" Di Cang stared at Mu Chen in horror. He couldn’t imagine how a student who looked so frail could live a normal life while carrying a weight of nearly eleven thousand jin.

Mu Chen nodded. ’If the Profound Jade Fan hadn’t acknowledged me as its master, Di Cang wouldn’t have been able to lift this case at all.’ After the black case was taken off, he felt the circulation speed of the Primordial Power in his body increase significantly. He knew that the speed and Explosive Power he was about to unleash would be several times greater than before.

"Vice Dean, let’s begin. To be honest, I’d also like to know where my limit is." Mu Chen closed his eyes, his battle intent surging once more.

Di Cang’s expression turned serious, yet within that seriousness, a flash of excitement flickered in his eyes. "Alright, come at me!"

A grin spread across Mu Chen’s face. A fight where he could go all out was something he had always wanted. Thunder Light surged beneath his feet, and with a flash of white light, a figure had already appeared behind Di Cang.

"Thunderbolt Fist!"

CRACK! The sound of a fist tearing through the air echoed.