After firing the first round of Hidden Weapons, Tang San didn't continue with any further Hidden Weapons attacks. Instead, he moved around the arena, dodging Zhao Wuji's strikes.
The reason Tang San had insisted on fighting Zhao Wuji alone was twofold: first, he feared his Hidden Weapons might accidentally injure the others, and second, being alone gave him more room to dodge without any concerns.
At this point, the eyes of everyone watching from the sidelines had gone slightly blank. Especially during the period when Hidden Weapons kept flying from Tang San's body, their hearts were filled with sheer astonishment. Whether it was Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong, or Dai Mubai—they all felt a chill creep through them. They realized that if any of them were in Zhao Wuji's position, they would probably have already been hit.
Tang San's Hidden Weapons were bizarre and varied, with extremely unpredictable flight paths, making them incredibly difficult to dodge.
Even Ning Rongrong, who came from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and was well-versed in many things, couldn't identify which family's attack style these Hidden Weapons belonged to. But she could fully sense their power.
The incense burned on unnoticed. In just this short while, it had already burned down a third of its length.
Zhao Wuji, who had been chasing Tang San, suddenly stopped and cursed with a grin: "You little monkey, you're quite slippery. Trying to stall until time runs out? That won't be so easy. Third Soul Ring skill, Gravity Enhancement."
The third Soul Ring on Zhao Wuji's body—the purple thousand-year Soul Ring—suddenly expanded, but rather than injecting its power into his body, it drifted downward, directly sinking into the ground.
In an instant, Tang San felt as though his feet had sunk into a marsh. His body became incredibly heavy, as if his weight had doubled. Zhao Wuji, clearly unaffected, charged toward him with great strides, a faint smile in his eyes, as if to say: "Let's see where you run now."
What a formidable Soul Ring skill. Under the effects of the enhanced gravity, Tang San's speed was noticeably reduced. Although the Ghost Shadow Phantom Trail was exquisite, dodging Zhao Wuji's attacks under this gravitational burden was becoming increasingly difficult. He narrowly avoided Zhao Wuji's Vigorous Vajra Palm several times by the slimmest of margins.
Zhao Wuji glanced at the incense burning to the side. It had already burned down to nearly the halfway mark. Even he was starting to feel a twinge of anxiety.
He, the great Immovable Bright King, was struggling this much against a mere twelve-year-old child? If word reached the other teachers, he'd become their laughingstock. He was definitely taking this kid in. But this examination ought to be coming to an end.
With that thought, Zhao Wuji's fourth Soul Ring lit up.
Purple light blazed, and to everyone's astonishment, the fourth Soul Ring on Zhao Wuji's body actually flew outward—as if it had eyes—chasing after Tang San and clamping directly onto him.
What did this mean? Tang San's heart lurched. But once the purple thousand-year Soul Ring settled on his body, it brought him no discomfort whatsoever.
Zhao Wuji laughed heartily. "It's time to end this. Forcing me to use four Soul Rings—you've earned the right to be admitted."
The moment the words left his mouth, his thick, powerful legs surged with force, and his entire body launched off the ground.
Tang San quickly tried to shift his position, but he was shocked to find that Zhao Wuji, airborne, turned in midair to follow his movement, still descending directly toward him.
He didn't know that this was Zhao Wuji's fourth Soul Ring skill, Positioning Tracking. Once his fourth Soul Ring locked onto a target, he could close the distance in an instant within a hundred meters using the force of a jump.
This skill might not be particularly useful for Soul Masters who cultivated differently, but for a strength-type like Zhao Wuji, it was perfect. By using Positioning Tracking to instantly close the gap between himself and his opponent, his strength and attacks could be given maximum room to develop. To end the battle as quickly as possible, he had resorted to this skill.
A cold gleam blazed in Tang San's eyes. It seemed his plan would have to be moved up.
Seeing that there was no way to dodge Zhao Wuji's descending body, he simply stopped trying. As Zhao Wuji bore down on him, he immediately activated his second Soul Ring skill—Parasitism.
Earlier, when the Blue Silver Grass had blocked Zhao Wuji's advance, seeds of Parasitism had already been quietly planted on his body. Now the skill was activated, and the Blue Silver Grass that suddenly burst forth entangled the airborne Zhao Wuji completely.
Tang San's timing in activating Parasitism was perfect—right at the instant before Zhao Wuji hit the ground. This way, Zhao Wuji wouldn't be able to launch an attack the moment he landed.
Tang San raised both hands simultaneously. With the sharp ring of mechanisms firing all at once, six streaks of cold light shot from his sleeves. Powerful crossbow bolts pierced the air with piercing shrieks, heading straight for Zhao Wuji's face.
Although Zhao Wuji possessed formidable defensive power, the sudden volley of crossbow bolts still startled him. The Immovable Bright King Body activated in an instant. With a thunderous boom and a burst of golden light, he not only broke free from the Blue Silver Grass bindings but also deflected the six crossbow bolts fired at him.
What was Tang San's greatest expertise? At least so far, it was certainly not thrown-type Hidden Weapons, but rather the mechanical Hidden Weapons he had spent an entire lifetime researching in his previous life.
The sudden crossbow bolts broke into a cold sweat on Zhao Wuji. Although his Immovable Bright King Body had deflected them, the impact force of the bolts had scraped across his face, leaving it stinging—a testament to just how powerful the crossbow mechanisms truly were.
He simultaneously employed Crane Control Dragon Catch. Borrowing the momentum generated by Zhao Wuji's Immovable Bright King Body activation, Tang San's body leaped backward once more, evading the open-palm strike Zhao Wuji sent through empty air.
Drawing both arms inward, his chest muscles tensed, and a buzzing sound immediately emanated from his chest. A spray of glinting steel needles, carried by a thick mist, shot outward from Tang San's chest, meeting Zhao Wuji's pouncing body head-on.
Tang San could be considered a master of mechanical Hidden Weapons across generations. The mechanisms he crafted required no switches—mere muscle contraction was enough to activate them. They were utterly impossible to guard against.
(End of Chapter)