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Chapter 73: Azure Crystal
The ten-thousand-year soul beast seemed to sense that its opponent was no ordinary foe. Instead of rushing forward, it stepped back to the side and pressed itself against the cave wall.
Elder Ma snorted coldly and extended his hand.
A massive warhammer appeared in his grip.
His martial soul was the Iron-Arm Giant Ape. Although it shared a simian form like Ma Rulong's martial soul, the two were fundamentally different. Ma Rulong's martial soul belonged to the support system, while Elder Ma's was a pure assault-type martial soul.
Because of that, his greatest strength lay in close-quarters combat.
The hammer in his hand was his proudest weapon—an eighth-grade soul tool, one of the best among its class. Combined with his terrifying physical strength, very few people in the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy could defeat him in a melee fight.
With a powerful leap, he shot through the air like a meteor and brought the hammer crashing down toward the soul beast.
There was no doubt—if that attack landed directly, the beast would be killed instantly.
That was, of course, if it actually hit.
Faced with the incoming Soul Douluo, the ten-thousand-year soul beast made a move that no one present had expected.
It burrowed straight into the cave wall.
"Eh?"
BOOM!
The hammer smashed into the ground, sending dust and debris flying everywhere.
But the soul beast had vanished.
Elder Ma stood up and scanned the surroundings cautiously, trying to locate it.
At that moment, a flash of purple light flickered in Bai Chen's eyes.
Without hesitation, he kicked Xiao Hongchen away, then grabbed Meng Hongchen and Ning Tian and rolled to the side.
"What the hell are you—"
Xiao Hongchen tumbled across the ground after being kicked. Just as he was about to curse, the words froze in his throat.
Several long crystal spikes erupted from the ground where they had just been standing.
If Bai Chen hadn't kicked him away in time, he would have been seriously injured.
That said—
"WHY WAS I THE ONLY ONE YOU KICKED?!"
Hearing Xiao Hongchen's noisy complaint, Bai Chen rolled his eyes in annoyance and shouted,
"Senior Sister! Senior Brother! I'll leave it to you!"
"Hmph, we've got it!"
A bright voice rang out.
Purple smoke spread around Bai Chen's position as Jing Ziyan's whip lashed through the air, shattering every crystal spike that tried to approach.
Meanwhile, Ji Juechen stood in front of Xiao Hongchen like a silent guardian. Without a word, he raised his sword, cutting down every incoming attack with precise strikes.
"Well done."
Seeing the two talented students protecting Bai Chen and the others, Elder Ma finally relaxed.
He took out a disc-shaped soul tool and shouted,
"Hold on a little longer! I'll find that beast right away!"
All signs indicated that the soul beast possessed an ability to blend into the surrounding environment.
Inside a complicated, enclosed environment like this mine, such an ability was extremely troublesome.
Its attack power wasn't particularly strong—Jing Ziyan and Ji Juechen could easily block the strikes.
But the problem was its unpredictability.
If they didn't eliminate it here, leaving the cave without injuries would be very difficult.
"Beep… beep…"
"Found you!"
The disc-shaped soul tool emitted a faint signal. Elder Ma spun around and swung his hammer toward a nearby wall without hesitation.
BOOM!
"ROAAAR—!"
A painful howl echoed through the cave.
The crystal attacks immediately stopped.
A black soul ring slowly rose into the air.
The beast was dead.
"Is it… over?"
Bai Chen let out a sigh of relief.
But when he looked down at the two girls in his arms, his heart suddenly tightened again.
During the attack just now, he hadn't had time to check their condition.
Only now did he realize—
Meng Hongchen was gazing at him with sparkling eyes filled with emotion.
Meanwhile, Ning Tian was staring at Meng Hongchen with clear displeasure.
Bai Chen coughed awkwardly and quickly released them.
"Sorry… that happened too suddenly."
"It's fine, it's fine!"
Meng Hongchen waved her hands quickly.
"I should be thanking you. If it weren't for you, I definitely wouldn't have dodged that attack."
"But how did you notice it?"
"Just luck," Bai Chen replied casually.
"Oh… luck?"
"So it was fate, then?"
"Huh?"
"Ah—nothing, nothing!"
Looking at Meng Hongchen's obvious excitement, Bai Chen suddenly felt a strange suspicion rising in his mind.
Wait… don't tell me…
He had absolutely no idea just how powerful that moment had been for her.
She had already had a good impression of him.
And his actions just now perfectly matched the image of a "prince charming" in her mind.
Of course—
If he had only been holding her alone, it would have been even better.
At that moment, Xiao Hongchen suddenly walked up to Bai Chen.
Bai Chen raised an eyebrow.
"What is it?"
Throughout the journey, Xiao Hongchen had been giving him plenty of cold looks.
And Bai Chen had just kicked him earlier.
Did he come to—
"Thank you."
"…?"
Bai Chen tilted his head in confusion.
"What?"
"N-nothing!"
Xiao Hongchen suddenly raised his voice and turned away with a loud huff.
Watching his retreating back, Bai Chen couldn't help but chuckle.
Although it had been quiet—
He had clearly heard Xiao Hongchen say thank you.
Maybe this arrogant kid wasn't completely hopeless after all.
Elder Ma soon walked over.
"Thank you for your help."
"I'll report your excellent performance to the academy's dean. Once we return, you will surely receive rewards."
Bai Chen raised his hand.
"Elder Ma, could I purchase some of these crystals?"
"This…"
Elder Ma hesitated.
After all, these crystals were meant for Xiao Hongchen's cultivation.
How could he casually give them away?
Before he could answer, Xiao Hongchen suddenly spoke coldly.
"If he wants some, give him some."
"Our academy isn't that stingy."
"Exactly!"
Meng Hongchen quickly agreed.
"If Bai Chen hadn't brought Senior Jing and Senior Ji with him, we wouldn't have won this battle so easily."
"He's our benefactor!"
"Fair enough."
With the approval of the two young masters, Elder Ma finally relaxed.
He smiled kindly.
"In that case, you may take some."
"Thank you, Elder Ma."
"Hey! What about me?"
Seeing Bai Chen only thanking Elder Ma, Meng Hongchen pouted and tugged on his sleeve.
"You're forgetting someone."
Bai Chen laughed helplessly.
"Thank you as well."
"Hehe!"
Meng Hongchen immediately smiled brightly.
"Then you'd better prepare to treat me well when we get back to the academy!"