Chu Meng staggered back to his feet, face twisted with humiliation.
Losing to a kid is simply utter humiliation…
His eyes darkened.
Oh right! His soul power hasn't even reached 1-Star Bronze Rank!
A cruel grin spread across his face.
I can use my soul power to bombard his soul realm!
Huan Lanruo's expression changed instantly.
"Chu Meng! Stop it!"
But Chu Meng had already raised both hands.
"GO TO HELL!"
Blue soul power surged violently from his body, gathering into a massive sphere that crackled with pressure.
Nie Li's eyes sharpened.
Forcing all my soul power into his soul realm… It will definitely explode!
The energy roared forward.
You can forget about being a demon spiritualist for the rest of your life!
A brilliant sphere of soul power engulfed Nie Li.
The crowd gasped.
So much soul power… does he intend to cripple me?!
Nie Li planted his feet firmly.
The difference in soul power is too big… point break is useless here!
He crouched slightly.
I can only use my soul sea to hold out… Come!
The sphere slammed into him—
CRACK.
CRACK.
Haha! Has Nie Li given up? He hasn't released any soul power! In that case—GO DIE!
The orb pulsed violently.
Nie Li gritted his teeth.
"AAAH!"
Sweat rolled down his face.
My soul sea cracked… I have to quickly repair it!
Inside his consciousness—
Hold tight to the universal origin… Empty the self of ego… The Realm of Law is unnoticed… Heavenly God Technique…
The shattered soul sea began to repair—
REPAIR.
EXPAND.
The sphere swelled.
Chu Meng frowned.
"Weird. Every time it's about to explode, it feels like there's a little more to go."
He poured in even more power.
"EXPLODE!"
Blue energy spiraled wildly around them.
At that exact moment—
Ye Ziyun stepped forward instinctively.
"Stop this!"
Before anyone else could move—
Karma casually raised a hand.
He didn't shout.
He didn't smile.
He simply flicked two fingers downward.
The crowd froze.
A subtle pressure rolled outward—gentle, but absolute.
It wasn't crushing.
It wasn't painful.
But it made everyone instinctively stop.
Like prey sensing something higher on the food chain.
"Ah, ah, ah" Karma said lightly, though his eyes were bright with childlike excitement. "No interference."
He gestured lazily at the spectators.
"This is the final round. Let the men finish their ego battle."
Several students felt their backs stiffen slightly, unable to step forward.
Ye Ziyun paused mid-step, blinking.
It wasn't aggression.
It was control.
Behind Karma—
Shisui's eyes narrowed slightly.
He felt it clearly.
Controlled pressure.
Perfectly measured.
Chen Linjian also glanced at Karma.
Karma, however, wasn't looking at them.
He was staring at the clash of soul power with the curiosity of a child watching fireworks.
Goggles slightly tilted.
Whistle hanging from his neck.
Excited.
Focused.
Completely unwilling to let anyone interrupt his "game."
Shisui sighed internally.
Chen Linjian folded his arms.
Neither interfered.
Because they understood.
If Karma truly didn't want interference—
There wouldn't be any.
Meanwhile—
Inside the storm of blue energy—
Nie Li's aura subtly changed.
The cracked soul sea stabilized.
Then expanded further.
The pressure shifted.
And Chu Meng's confident grin began to falter.
The blue sphere trembled violently around Nie Li
Inside the storm of soul power, his eyes snapped open.
"Open."
The sphere pulsed again—
CRACK.
But instead of shattering—
REPAIR.
EXPAND.
Outside, Ye Ziyun's fingers tightened in worry.
Huan Lanruo's brows furrowed.
Chen Linjian watched intently.
Within the storm—
"Thanks to the Heavenly God Technique," Nie Li thought calmly, "I managed to hold out… On top of that—"
The energy surged outward.
"My soul realm wasn't destroyed by Chu Meng… it expanded even more than 30%."
Chu Meng's confident expression faltered.
"What's going on? He seemed unharmed after I slammed all my soul power into his soul sea!"
A faint blue aura ignited around Nie Li's body.
"With the practice of soul power, the soul sea will gradually become bigger… He clearly hasn't reached One-Star Bronze Rank."
Chu Meng blinked.
"My soul power?"
Nie Li exhaled lightly.
"Since you've decided to come at me… don't give up now."
Then—
He closed his fingers.
A sealing motion.
"He is sealing off his soul sea?!" Chu Meng's eyes widened.
"S-shit! I've got to quickly retrieve all my soul power!"
SHUUUU—
The blue energy reversed direction, surging violently between them.
But—
TEAR—
The flow ripped apart.
Chu Meng staggered back, coughing.
"How could this be?!"
His knees weakened.
"A demon spiritualist will know how to seal off their soul realm after reaching Silver Rank…"
"And yet—he isn't even considered a demon spiritualist…"
"…but he is able to seal off his soul realm. And at a shocking speed!"
Nie Li stood calm within the fading aura.
"Retained around 50% of his soul power. Not bad."
He rolled his shoulders lightly.
"Integrate a portion first."
The blue energy around him slowly stabilized.
—
From the side—
Karma slowly removed his goggles.
"…Oho."
He tapped his chin thoughtfully.
"He turned defense into expansion."
He glanced at Shisui.
"Did you see that? He basically told the attack 'thank you for the donation.'"
Shisui's eyes were sharp.
"Yes."
Chen Linjian's gaze hardened slightly.
Lanruo looked stunned.
Ye Ziyun's eyes sparkled with quiet pride.
Karma leaned forward slightly, whispering dramatically:
"Ladies and gentlemen… we are witnessing emotional damage at a spiritual level."
He raised the whistle slightly—
—but this time he didn't blow it.
He just smiled.
The blue aura around Nie Li slowly stabilized.
Across from him—
Chu Yuan staggered.
"Chu Meng has fallen!"
The crowd erupted.
"Unbelievable!" "Didn't I say Nie Li had some countermeasures?!" "So that day of the beating was all an act?! His strength has long exceeded Three-Star Bronze Rank!"
Nie Li stood calmly, blue soul energy faintly flickering around him.
Behind him, Shen Yue hissed bitterly, "Nie Li, you sly and despicable guy!"
Ye Ziyun clasped her hands together, eyes shining.
"Nie Li won! That's great!"
Karma raised both hands like an announcer.
"And that concludes today's episode of 'Ego vs Reality!'"
He blew his whistle loudly.
"Winner: Librarian Edition!"
Suddenly—
HUMMMMM—
BOOM!!!
Violent waves erupted from Nie Li's soul sea.
Energy spiraled upward like a vortex.
SHIIING—
The pressure rippled outward, forcing several students to shield their eyes.
Chen Linjian narrowed his gaze.
Shisui watched silently.
The blue aura condensed—
An eye opened within the swirling energy.
"One-Star Bronze Rank!"
Gasps spread through the crowd.
"The leftover soul power is enough for me to advance to Two-Star Bronze Rank…" Nie Li thought calmly.
He lowered his gaze slightly.
"I wonder what Shen Xiu would think of this?"
Karma stared dramatically.
"He leveled up mid-fight."
He turned to the crowd.
"This is illegal. Somebody nerf him."
Students whispered.
"Nie Li took Chu Meng's soul power head-on and still advanced!" "Does he really have a Red Soul Sea?"
Chu Meng forced himself upright, trembling.
"Nie Li… this isn't the end!"
He tried to stand tall—
But his knees wobbled.
Karma immediately appeared beside him out of nowhere.
"Oh right," Karma said cheerfully. "Almost forgot."
He leaned close, grinning widely.
"You gonna bark like a dog?"
The crowd froze for half a second—
Then burst into laughter.
Chu Meng's face turned red.
"Don't you go overboard! I didn't agree to the additional terms!"
Karma blinked exaggeratedly.
"Additional terms? Sir, that was the main contract."
He tapped his whistle.
"Three strikes. Loser crawls and barks. Signed verbally. Witnessed publicly."
He gestured to the crowd.
"Testimony available."
Even Huan Lanruo laughed openly now.
Ye Ziyun covered her smile.
Chen Linjian coughed to hide his amusement.
Shisui calmly looked away… though the faintest curve tugged at his lips.
Chu Meng gritted his teeth.
"Hmph!"
He turned sharply and began walking away stiffly.
Karma cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted after him:
"At least give us one 'woof'! Starter pack version!"
More laughter exploded behind them.
Chu Meng's shoulders stiffened—but he didn't turn back.
Karma sighed dramatically.
"Fine. We'll collect the barking debt with interest later."
Nie Li walked past him calmly.
"Let it go."
Karma slung an arm over Nie Li's shoulder.
"Of course. I'm very merciful."
He lowered his voice.
"…But if he ever brags again, I'm bringing a leash."
Shisui shook his head slightly.
Chen Linjian gave a faint smile.
The crowd slowly dispersed.
The team continues to progress.
As they resumed their journey—
Karma twirled his stick like a ceremonial staff.
"Next challenger," he muttered cheerfully, "please prepare your ego in advance."