Master of Nine Stars

CLANG!

A crisp ring echoed!

Wielding a longsword, Xu Taiping desperately tried to parry the incoming long halberd upward. At the same time, he ducked low and charged at Rong Taotao.

But Rong Taotao suddenly lifted his foot and kicked the shaft of his Heaven-piercing Halberd!

As it turned out, when the ironspear point of Rong Taotao’s Heaven-piercing Halberd was parried upward, the shaft naturally swung downward.

Rong Taotao, holding the halberd shaft’s center point with one hand, went with the downward momentum and kicked the shaft, adding even more force to its rotation!

Ingenious! Exquisite!

To react like that in such a short amount of time was no less impressive than the time he used a small force to deflect a great one against Si Huan Nian!

How many countless hours of grueling practice must it have taken to develop that kind of muscle memory?

Xu Taiping’s expression froze. As he charged forward with his shoulder, he was struck solidly by the long shaft!

However, the immense force from Rong Taotao’s blow was neutralized by the wisps of Soul Power enveloping Xu Taiping’s shoulder.

Xu Taiping was able to hunt in the vast, snowy wilderness and hide himself beneath the white blanket of snow not because his Soul Technique: Heart of the Snow Realm was particularly advanced, nor because his Soul Power was exceptionally abundant. It was because of his identity as a "Snow Realm Soul Beast."

As a Soul Beast, Xu Taiping’s body had been more fragile than other Snow Realm Soul Beasts in his youth, but there was no doubt that on the level of Soul Power, Xu Taiping was stronger than Rong Taotao.

When the halberd shaft, acting as a long staff, struck Xu Taiping’s shoulder heavily, he was nearly frozen in place in the snow.

It was at this very moment that Rong Taotao knew he had to use technique to overcome brute force.

Fortunately, Xu Taiping was no Si Huan Nian. Faced with Si Huan Nian’s absolute power, even with all his skills, Rong Taotao couldn’t have withstood a single flick to the forehead from the "Forget-me-not."

Seeing Xu Taiping before him, his momentum broken, Rong Taotao once again used the rebound force of the halberd shaft. He went with the flow, swinging the ironspear point in a semicircle through the wind and snow and bringing it crashing down!

The next moment, however, Rong Taotao’s expression grew solemn.

Xu Taiping... wasn’t planning on taking it head-on.

Moreover, Xu Taiping had an advantage that the other examinees lacked: he moved through the thick snow as if on solid ground!

Unlike Rong Taotao, whose lower legs were buried in the snow, Xu Taiping’s feet rested on top of it, and his dodging speed was extremely fast.

Xu Taiping twisted his shoulder sharply, and the tic-tac-toe-shaped battle halberd grazed past his side, smashing heavily into the snow and sending a flurry of snowflakes flying...

"Die!" Xu Taiping’s face twisted menacingly. In the instant he dodged, he swung his longsword horizontally, aiming straight for Rong Taotao’s neck!

"Heh." Rong Taotao abruptly bent at the waist. Wielding his long halberd, he drew a graceful arc on the ground. The side of the tic-tac-toe-shaped battle halberd glinted as the sharp Crescent Blade swept toward Xu Taiping’s legs!

Wherever the ironspear point passed, a dance of snowflakes followed...

If this weren’t a life-or-death battle, what a beautiful scene it would be.

At the same time, a woman’s voice faintly drifted through the vast, snowy expanse. "Rong Taotao?"

Amidst the biting, howling wind, the voice was intermittent. Rong Taotao could only guess its general direction but couldn’t see a soul.

Upon hearing this voice, the red glint in Xu Taiping’s eyes intensified!

He possessed an agility unmatched by the other examinees. In this deep snow, he actually leaped up lightly, dodging Rong Taotao’s sweeping Heaven-piercing Halberd.

Behind his goggles, Rong Taotao’s eyes blazed as he roared, "I was waiting for you to jump!"

This shout was not only a Battle Cry but also a response to the woman’s voice in the blizzard.

Because Xu Taiping had just swung his longsword with all his might at Rong Taotao’s neck and missed, the momentum caused his body to spin in mid-air as he jumped to evade the attack.

Meanwhile, Rong Taotao didn’t retract his sweeping Heaven-piercing Halberd. His body also spun once in the snow. During the rotation, Rong Taotao loosened his grip, letting the Heaven-piercing Halberd slide forward.

Just as the battle halberd was about to slip from his grasp, Rong Taotao caught the very end of the halberd shaft!

Using the force of his spin, Rong Taotao violently swung the halberd shaft up in an almost full-moon arc, bringing it down from behind him to smash heavily onto the Xu Taiping before him!

Though described as a "smash," it wasn’t a flat strike. The Heaven-piercing Halberd came down vertically, its sharp Crescent Blade aimed to split Xu Taiping’s head!

About to land, Xu Taiping’s heart went cold. Beneath his pale, short hair, his face was utterly grim.

Don’t jump. That was the first lesson Xu Taiping learned from Rong Taotao!

Only with your feet planted can you be the last one standing.

With no way to leverage himself, Xu Taiping could only take the full force of this arcing strike. He was certain that Rong Taotao had channeled as much Soul Power as possible into this attack.

Even if Rong Taotao’s Soul Power was meager, Xu Taiping wasn’t willing to bet his life on it.

But what happened next was completely unexpected to Rong Taotao.

Xu Taiping suddenly extended a hand. In his deathly pale palm, a vortex began to spin.

BANG!

The rapidly swirling snowflakes exploded before they could even form a snowball.

And Xu Taiping’s figure, in mid-air, was actually forced backward!?

Did Xu Taiping just launch himself like a cannonball?

If there wasn’t some distance between them, and if there hadn’t been so little time, Rong Taotao believed he would have been the one blasted by that exploding vortex of snow.

There was no reason for Xu Taiping to blast empty air; by comparison, blasting Rong Taotao away would have been the better choice.

As they say, an inch longer is an inch stronger!

And I,

Rong Taotao, am longer than you!

Xu Taiping’s retreating figure landed swiftly without leaving the slightest footprint in the snow. He continued to fall back, and within a short five meters, his form was already fading. The next moment, his ghostly figure had vanished into the vast, snowy expanse.

Rong Taotao quickly retrieved his Heaven-piercing Halberd, gripped it tightly with both hands, and shouted in the direction the woman’s voice had come from, "Watch out for Xu Taiping!"

"Come toward me!" Stone Tower shouted with all her might. Wary of his surroundings, Rong Taotao slowly started moving.

A chilling voice surfaced once more in Rong Taotao’s mind. ’This is only the third day. There are still four days left, Rong Taotao.’

There was only a voice in his head. As far as his eyes could see, there was nothing but the vast, snowy wilderness, not even a ghostly shadow.

Rong Taotao grinned and said, "Four days? Hah, what could you do with four years?"

As it turned out,

The time he had cried "daddy" on the rooftop was already a year ago.

Since his master left, Rong Taotao had gotten back on his feet!!!

This time, only gusts of cold wind answered Rong Taotao; Xu Taiping’s voice was gone.

In the distance, Stone Tower, with a rope made of clothing tied around her and a battle blade in hand, didn’t have to wait long before her beautiful, slender eyes narrowed slightly.

In a gray, dim world, amidst the swirling blizzard.

Faintly, a figure emerged from the snow, the Heaven-piercing Halberd in his hand seeming to confirm his identity.

Stone Tower raised an eyebrow and asked, "Did Xu Taiping show up?"

"Yeah. Let’s talk inside," Rong Taotao nodded.

Following the rope of clothes tied around Stone Tower’s waist, the two remained vigilant of their surroundings, found the right direction, and walked back to the cave.

However, at the cave entrance, Rong Taotao not only saw Jiao Tengda’s overjoyed expression but also five or six Snow Burning Army soldiers leaning silently against the wall.

The soldiers’ eyes were fixed on Rong Taotao, not saying a word.

Rong Taotao waved at them. "Well, look at you all. Get inside, it’s warm in there. Don’t block the entrance. If a Soul Beast actually attacks, you’ll be interfering with the assessment process by blocking the doorway. That’s a violation of the rules."

The soldiers had various expressions, their feelings quite complicated. Rong Taotao had gone out this time out of kindness, to call them into the cave to rest and escape the wind and cold.

Rong Taotao went out, and because of that, he was hunted down by Xu Taiping.

But the soldiers had to remain hidden. They couldn’t reveal themselves unless Rong Taotao explicitly declared he was "withdrawing from the competition." Not only could they not appear, but they also couldn’t give him any hints.

Normally, a teenager encountering such a situation would, if not throw a tantrum, at least hold some resentment. However, Rong Taotao’s behavior...

’The young man is sensible and well-mannered!’

As Rong Taotao entered the cave, a figure gradually emerged from the blizzard behind him. It was the soldier assigned to protect him, the same young warrior who had once ridden with him.

Facing the wary students, the young soldier let out a puff of white mist and nodded at Rong Taotao.

In a rare moment, the young soldier from the Snow Burning Army actually praised Rong Taotao, and with sincere admiration at that: "Good Martial Arts."

"Hehe." Rong Taotao scratched his head, a silly grin on his face, a little embarrassed by the praise.

You have to understand, the Snow Burning Army soldiers were all like wooden statues. Ever since the examinees entered the assessment, none of them had spoken a word.

So, the young soldier’s compliment made the other students in the cave look at Rong Taotao with new eyes.

"Get inside, all the way to the back. We’ll pretend you don’t exist," Rong Taotao urged. The few Snow Burning Army warriors immediately moved away from the cave entrance.

"You scared me to death!" Having witnessed the incident, Sun Xingyu had been waiting anxiously at the entrance. As the soldiers moved away, she grabbed Rong Taotao’s arm with one hand and raised a foot...

Rong Taotao yelped, grabbing her short leg as it swept toward his butt. "What are you doing?"

Sun Xingyu blinked and said seriously, "Kicking you. For making me worry."

Rong Taotao let go of her short leg. "Shouldn’t that be a hug? Why are you kicking me?"

From the side, Li Ziyi snorted, "What’s wrong with kicking you once? Are you made of glass?"

’What the hell?’

Rong Taotao stared at Li Ziyi, dumbfounded. "You’d be happy if she kicked you. But she’s kicking me... why would I be happy about it?

She’s not my girlfriend. Besides, I’d never date someone with such short legs..."

Sun Xingyu: ???

"Hey."

Rong Taotao’s expression hardened, and he abruptly turned to look outside the cave.

Seeing this, everyone tensed up, their faces growing nervous.

A few meters away, a blurry figure gradually appeared, and a voice faintly drifted over: "Don’t come out again. You’ll die." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

But Rong Taotao just smiled. Looking at the blurry figure standing in the blizzard outside, he repeated Xu Taiping’s own words: "My Soul Power, Soul Techniques, and Soul Skills are all superior to yours. This is my true home turf. You’re already dead~"

In everyone’s line of sight, the figure standing in the blizzard suddenly began to tremble, obviously furious.

You have to remember, the figure was already blurry, but even so, the students could still see him trembling. One can only imagine how ridiculously pissed off he must have been...

Rong Taotao chuckled. "Apologize to Xing’Er, and I’ll let you in, maybe?"

The figure did not respond.

Rong Taotao leaned casually against the cave wall. "A bonfire, a nice warm sleeping bag, lamb pilaf, canned braised pork, fragrant meat soup... ahh~ I could just die from how good life is~

In this weather, only an idiot would be outside freezing his ass off like a chump~"

Deep within the cave, a few soldiers covered in frost and huddled around the bonfire exchanged glances...