Everyone was stunned. These people didn't know Wang Feng's true strength and simply assumed he was an ordinary new student. But those who had witnessed his power knew that he could suppress a thousand-year soul beast with just his physical strength alone.
Bei Bei smiled quietly, sensing that Xu Sanshi was in for big trouble this time.
Having finally found a legitimate way to beat someone up, Wang Feng readily agreed when Xu Sanshi made the challenge.
"Alright, I accept. Let's head to the battle arena now!"
Xu Sanshi felt something was off when Wang Feng agreed so easily, but as one of the "Twin Stars of the Outer Court," he couldn't back down so casually.
Then Wang Feng added, "Since this is a spirit battle, there should be spirit battle rules. I heard both sides can also sign a private contract, and the stakes for victory or defeat can be decided personally, right?"
Upon hearing that, Xu Sanshi said, "Yeah, kid, there's a reason for that. Since you brought it up first, I won't hold back. If I win, you'll give me that grilled fish. If you win, what do you want? Just say it."
Wang Feng didn't beat around the bush and answered directly, "I heard from someone that you're a member of the Xuanming Sect. If that's true, it wouldn't be too much to ask for ten Xuan Water Pills, right?"
Xu Sanshi immediately frowned. "Ten Xuan Water Pills? Are you joking? Those are extremely valuable!"
Wang Feng replied with a relaxed smile, "Then what? Are you scared of losing?"
Xu Sanshi snorted. "I'm not scared! Fine! I agree! But if you lose, don't even think about backing out!"
Bei Bei, standing by the arena, shook his head with a small smile. "Xu Sanshi really just walked right into Wang Feng's trap."
As soon as Xu Sanshi shouted "Deal!", he headed straight for the battle arena. After Xu Sanshi left, the students who had come to eat, as well as Huo Yuhao and the others, slowly returned to their senses.
It was only the first day of school for the new students, and already such major news was spreading. A fifth-year student was actually going to fight a first-year student. That was huge. Something like this hadn't happened in years, at least not in the memory of the older students.
"This year's freshman class is interesting," many of the observing teachers thought to themselves.
After receiving a brief explanation from Bei Bei about Xu Sanshi's martial soul, Wang Feng caught up to him and dashed toward the Spirit Battle Arena.
And thus, the group supporting Wang Feng began their march toward the Battle Arena.
Nearly all the students who had been watching the commotion at the academy gate came to witness the battle. The news spread like wildfire—from one to ten, from ten to a hundred. The already large arena was now packed with people.
At this moment, Shrek's Spirit Battle Area was buzzing with activity. Because this was a match between a freshman and a seasoned fifth-year student, countless students gathered in the stands. Everyone was curious about how a freshman who had only just arrived at the academy for one day dared to challenge a powerful fifth-year senior. There were mixed opinions about the battle.
Some said Xu Sanshi was abusing his senior status to bully the new students, while others claimed that these freshmen were usually too arrogant and needed to be taught a lesson...
And when Wang Dong heard someone saying Wang Feng was overestimating himself, he was about to stand up and show them why the rose was red, but Huo Yuhao quickly stopped him and told him not to stir up trouble.
Wang Dong was so angry that he sat down silently, refusing to say a word.
Seeing Wang Dong like this, Tang Ya smiled mischievously and said, "Oh, Wang Dong is mad. Weren't you just arguing with Wang Feng earlier? Why are you still sulking just because someone said something bad about him?"
Wang Dong was flustered upon hearing that and wanted to explain himself. Seeing Wang Dong's face turn red, Huo Yuhao quickly said to Tang Ya, "Senior Xiaoya, Wang Dong is thin-skinned, please don't tease him…"
At this moment, Wang Feng and Xu Sanshi had arrived at the center of the battle arena and were facing each other.
The referee slowly walked to the middle of the arena and spoke in a heavy voice, "First-year student Wang Feng is challenging fifth-year student Xu Sanshi. Due to the large difference in levels between the two parties, if the freshman wins, the fifth-year student must pay an additional 100 gold soul coins. After the spirit duel, the loser must also pay the fee for using the battle arena. As for any private wagers, I trust you have already agreed on those terms. Are you both ready?"
Both Wang Feng and Xu Sanshi nodded to the referee.
"Very well. Then I hereby declare the spirit battle begins!" After the referee's announcement, he quickly stepped back and left the spirit battle arena.
Xu Sanshi immediately released his martial soul after hearing the start of the match.
As his martial soul was released, his body rapidly expanded, and a large tortoise shell-shaped shield appeared in his right hand. A heavy and stable aura radiated from him.
On the other side, Wang Feng remained calm. He watched Xu Sanshi unleash his Martial Soul without showing even the slightest hint of tension. For him, this battle was already over before it even began. He believed he could defeat Xu Sanshi with just his physical strength.
"Hey, why aren't you releasing your Martial Soul? Are you looking down on me!?" Xu Sanshi asked in a displeased tone. He had been waiting for Wang Feng to activate his Martial Soul, but after a while, Wang Feng still hadn't moved.
Casually, Wang Feng took a fighting stance and said, "To beat you, I don't need a Martial Soul."
Without giving Xu Sanshi a chance to respond, Wang Feng charged forward at high speed.
Xu Sanshi was surprised, but his anger quickly overpowered his shock. However, before he could say anything, Wang Feng had already appeared right in front of him, fist ready to strike.
Boom!
When Wang Feng's punch landed, Xu Sanshi tried to block it with his shield. But in an instant, his body was violently thrown backward. The spectators, who had initially expected a balanced fight, could only stare wide-eyed in disbelief.
Xu Sanshi crashed hard onto the arena floor. His arm went numb from Wang Feng's punch. With a stunned expression, he muttered, "Damn, how does this kid have so much strength? Is he some kind of human-shaped monster!?"
Xu Sanshi got up from the floor, still in disbelief. His arm, numb from Wang Feng's blow, slowly began to recover, but his heart was still reeling in shock.
However, as one of the "Twin Stars of the Outer Court," Xu Sanshi wasn't someone who gave up easily. With a serious expression, he immediately activated one of his spirit ring's abilities.
"Mystic Deep Power!"
His purple spirit ring glowed brightly. In an instant, a dense black light enveloped his body. Xu Sanshi's aura surged dramatically, and his body appeared slightly larger. With this ability, all his physical attributes were enhanced by 100%, making him far stronger than before.
He looked at Wang Feng with a confident smile. "You're pretty strong, but let's see if you can still beat me after this!"
Xu Sanshi didn't recklessly attack. As a defense-type Spirit Master, he knew that directly confronting an opponent as strong as Wang Feng wasn't a good idea. Instead, he chose to play defensively and buy time.
He swung his Xuanwu shield forward and activated his first spirit ring ability: "Mystic Deep Quake!"
One of his yellow spirit rings lit up. A black shockwave spread rapidly from his shield, sweeping forward more than ten meters. Everything in its path was violently thrown back, and anyone hit by it would be briefly stunned.
Seeing the black shockwave approaching, Wang Feng remained calm. Instead of dodging, he stepped forward and stomped the ground, generating a powerful counter-force to resist the wave's momentum.
Boom!
Wang Feng's body shook briefly, but he remained firmly standing in place.
"You're still standing!?" Xu Sanshi was shocked. Even senior students stronger than him would be blown away by Mystic Deep Quake, but Wang Feng stood firm as if nothing had happened.
Wang Feng rolled his shoulder and smiled. "Interesting attack, but still not enough to bring me down."
Xu Sanshi didn't immediately strike back. He tried to use his advantage in defense to keep his distance and drain Wang Feng's stamina.
However, Wang Feng didn't give him the chance. With incredible speed, he vanished from sight and reappeared right in front of Xu Sanshi!
Bang!
Xu Sanshi couldn't react in time. A direct punch hit him in the stomach, sending him flying backward and crashing to the ground.
The arena fell silent. Everyone watching the fight was stunned, unable to believe what they had just witnessed.
Xu Sanshi, one of the "Twin Stars of the Outer Court," had lost in a physical fight—without Wang Feng even using his Martial Soul!