Offense as a substitute for defense

So she wants me to attack, forcing me to use a defensive move?

Dugu Ling was suddenly a little curious.

For a Body Tempering Realm cultivator to trade blows with a Free Roaming Realm expert could only end with the former being obliterated.

Yet, she saw Shangguan Xue brush her hand over the Spirit-Storing Pearl, extracting the reserved spiritual energy and absorbing it into her body.

“No wonder you chose this…”

Only now did Dugu Ling understand why she had chosen the Spirit-Storing Pearl.

“Be careful!”

Shangguan Xue called out a reminder, leaving Dugu Ling a bit stunned.

‘Wait, I’m the one in the Free Roaming Realm, right?’

She saw the young Martial Saint advance with “Sliding Step,” her waist powering the rotation of her upper body as the curved blade in her hand slashed out with the momentum.

The air was sliced open by the sharp blade, letting out a piercing shriek.

Before the blade even arrived, Dugu Ling already felt her skin stinging as if cut, and even her spiritual sense throbbed with a dull ache.

Shangguan Xue wasn’t using a Spirit Seal, but the pressure she brought to bear on Dugu Ling far surpassed that of one.

She was using a divine ability.

So-called divine abilities could, in theory, only be comprehended by those in the Creation Realm, the result of a powerhouse fusing all of their capabilities into one.

And what Shangguan Xue was using was a “youth edition” of the Martial Saint’s divine ability, its power likely not even a hundred-thousandth of the original.

But in the lower realms, this was more than enough.

“Is this the kind of power a Body Tempering Realm cultivator should have?”

Dugu Ling felt her scalp itch, as if her brain was about to grow.

She gathered all the spiritual energy in her body into the palms of her hands and pushed forcefully towards the rapidly approaching Wolf Fang Blade.

“Ha!”

Shangguan Xue let out a soft cry, her body and blade becoming one, her spiritual energy vibrating at a unique frequency.

Boom!

A shockwave rampaged through the training hall, knocking the dummies to the ground.

Fortunately, the Starfire Stone floor was sturdy enough; otherwise, the people downstairs would have already gone to complain to property management.

After the explosion, Shangguan Xue staggered back, barely managing to stay on her feet.

The Wolf Fang Blade fell to the ground, shattering into dust.

Dugu Ling looked down at her hands, which were seeping blood, and couldn’t help but let out two wry laughs.

“Just what in the world are you… I’ve never heard of a Body Tempering Realm cultivator being able to injure someone in the Free Roaming Realm.”

She felt that Shangguan Xue was probably not human.

Shangguan Xue smiled weakly.

That single slash had completely drained her of all her strength.

“What’s that move called?”

Dugu Ling was extremely curious.

“It’s called…”

Shangguan Xue opened her mouth, then suddenly realized she had never given her divine abilities a name.

After all, other people’s divine abilities were all special effects, the kind that would burn through a movie’s budget.

Her divine ability was to charge forward and slash; all her moves looked like basic attacks.

Giving them cool names would only make her seem like a chuunibyou…

“…I don’t know what it’s called either.
You can call it whatever you want.”

She finally answered this way, then quickly changed the subject.

“Senior Sister, have I passed the assessment?”

“Passed, absolutely passed.”

Dugu Ling held out her hands, showing the recording spirit treasure her injured palms.

“This is already above and beyond.”

Only after she turned off the spirit treasure did Shangguan Xue lean against the wall and sit down.

“That seventh-grade spirit treasure was destroyed… How about I compensate you for it?

I can even give you a sixth-grade one.”

Shangguan Xue didn’t have many other hobbies; aside from having many ex-girlfriends, she had a large collection of weapons.

Sometimes she even wanted to change her title from “Martial Saint” to “Great Saint of Weaponry.”

“No need.
It’ll be counted as normal wear and tear.
We’ll have the academy replace it for us.”

Dugu Ling smiled and waved her hand.

“Hey, you have a sixth-grade spirit treasure?
Why didn’t you use it?”

“For the challenge,” Shangguan Xue said, taking off the Spirit-Storing Pearl and the Wind Pouch, preparing to return them to the storeroom later.

After this battle, Shangguan Xue felt her strength had grown once again.

Moreover, she had verified the feasibility of the youth edition of her divine ability in actual combat.

‘Should I write a paper to promote it… Forget it.
Who else in the Creation Realm besides me is idle enough to re-cultivate these days?’

Slumped on the ground, Shangguan Xue grumbled to herself in her heart.

“You…”

Dugu Ling didn’t know whether to laugh or not, so she just called out to the doorway.

“Yueyan, come in.”

Qin Yueyan walked in with two sixth-grade and one seventh-grade spirit treasures.

Unlike Shangguan Xue, she wasn’t fond of challenging higher difficulties.

‘The recovery speed of the Free Roaming Realm is truly astonishing…’

Shangguan Xue clicked her tongue, wondering when she herself would be able to return to the Free Roaming Realm.

As expected, Qin Yueyan’s assessment also went smoothly.

She was already skilled in defense, and the spirit treasures she chose were all defensive types.

Facing Dugu Ling’s attacks, which used only spiritual energy, she stood firm and unmoving.

“Not bad, not bad,” Dugu Ling’s face was wreathed in smiles, as if she had won the lottery.

“Two new students entering the Treasure Vault.
The Martial Arts Society has really gained some face this time.”

“Senior Sister, are we the only new students going to the Treasure Vault?”

Shangguan Xue inquired.

“Hm?
No, there’s another one named Luo Jin.
He’s using the slot from the Demon Dragon Gang.”

‘That organization’s name is chuuni enough… As expected.

Even though that brat didn’t manage to cozy up to Taiming, his luck still gave him the chance to enter the Treasure Vault.’

Shangguan Xue wasn’t surprised by this answer at all.

But Qin Yueyan hadn’t anticipated it.

“Luo Jin?
He’s worthy?”

“Yeah, who knows what the Demon Dragon Gang was thinking, letting a fool like him go,” Dugu Ling couldn’t understand it either.

“If the Demon Dragon Gang’s assessment is as difficult as ours, then it means he still has some ability,” Qin Yueyan’s mind was sharp.

“We should still be careful.”

She reminded Shangguan Xue.

“Thanks for the reminder,” Shangguan Xue agreed, while thinking to herself, ‘He’s the one who needs to be careful.

I’m going this time specifically to cause trouble for him.’

“Alright, you two can cultivate on your own.
I’m going to give the recording to the Dean to prove you passed the assessment.”

Dugu Ling picked up the recording spirit treasure and headed for the door.

“Thank you for your trouble,” Qin Yueyan nodded.