045. Virtual Battle Arena

Situ Woye led Lu Wu on a tour around Windrider Academy.

“This is the academy’s experimental field for spiritual herbs.”

“This is our Metal Beast Research Lab. Our academy’s research into metals is the best in the surrounding region.”

“This is the library.”

“This is the Martial Arena. The elite class should be inside right now.”

Lu Wu gazed at the massive building before him, reminiscent of a basketball stadium. “The Martial Arena?”

Situ Woye explained, “Though it looks small from the outside, it’s actually an advanced facility equipped with a highly sophisticated virtual network system.”

“Go inside and see for yourself.”

Situ Woye led Lu Wu inside.

Lu Wu said, “Hold on, Teacher Situ, I wanted to ask: where can I buy the kind of phone you have?”

“Phone?” Situ Woye looked down at his hand in confusion. “You mean this mobile interface?”

“You don’t need to buy this—it’s just an external device for the academy’s main virtual network station.”

“You can buy a virtual bracelet instead.”

Lu Wu understood. “So it’s just a display device?”

“Display device? That’s a pretty accurate description. Yes, you could call it a display apparatus.”

Situ Woye continued, “The school sells virtual bracelets. They’re not expensive—a good one costs about a hundred Sacred Capital coins.”

Lu Wu did a quick calculation—apparently, the buying power of Sacred Capital coins was much higher than the Chinese yuan.

That meant he was something of a wealthy man now!

Currently, Lu Wu had sixteen thousand in cash on his card, plus three thousand in vouchers for training resources and equipment materials.

Situ Woye took Lu Wu into the Martial Arena.

Inside, Lu Wu soon arrived at the main hall.

At the center stood a gigantic metal machine covered in all sorts of runes and formations.

The building itself was comprised of many rooms.

Beneath the machine, a crowd had gathered.

A 3D projection was playing a scene.

As they drew closer, Lu Wu saw it was a battle scene.

“High tech!” he exclaimed.

Lu Wu soared for a better look and saw that beneath the projection was a capsule, inside which a cultivator lay.

One of the fighters in the projection looked exactly like the person in the capsule.

What was this?

Situ Woye introduced it with pride: “Most mid-level academies don’t have this equipment.”

“Our students can use this device to simulate battles in all kinds of environments as preparation for the advanced academy entrance exams.”

“Look, this student has chosen to fight in a desert setting.”

On the screen, two people were locked in fierce combat when suddenly a gigantic scorpion beast burst from the ground, its tail stinger whipping toward the challenger.

The challenger failed to dodge in time and was instantly defeated.

On the projection, the word FAILURE flashed in blood-red letters. The light faded from the capsule, and the person inside climbed out.

“Failed again,” someone remarked.

A nearby instructor was taking notes. “Sixty percent completion—not bad. With a final sprint this month, if you can reach eighty-three percent, you stand a chance of getting into an advanced academy.”

Situ Woye stepped forward. “Teacher Qin Mo.”

The instructor, Qin Mo, turned around with a smile. “Vice Dean, things have been going well lately.”

Situ Woye nodded. “Good work. I hope at least half of your thirty elite class students get in.”

“By the way, Teacher Qin Mo, you have a new transfer student.”

Qin Mo looked around. “Where?”

Lu Wu floated in front of him. “Here. Hello, instructor. My name is Lu Wu.”

Before Qin Mo could reply, the students around them erupted in excitement. “That’s the Zerg beast from the forum post—the one who defeated a Sky Soaring Realm beast across ranks!”

“He’s joining our class? But we train in human cultivation arts!”

“Whoa, it really is him—I remember his face!”

Qin Mo looked at Lu Wu. “You’re skilled in swordsmanship. Why not join the sword class?”

Lu Wu replied, “Not interested.”

Qin Mo regarded him for a moment. “Very well, our class has gained another student.”

“What cultivation technique do you practice?”

“Beast Codex.”

Qin Mo was speechless.

Situ Woye said, “Don’t bother trying to teach him. He cultivates only the soul. Just consider him enrolled in name—he’s sure to ace the advanced academy exam.”

Qin Mo hesitated, then relaxed. “True. If he could defeat a Sky Soaring Realm beast, there’s nothing left for me to teach.”

Lu Wu pointed to the capsule. “I’d like to try that.”

Everyone gathered closer. “Let’s watch.”

Many students sent messages to their friends. “Remember that forum post about the overpowered Zerg beast? He’s joined our class and is about to take the virtual simulation exam!”

“Hurry to the Martial Arena—this is breaking news!”

Qin Mo wrote Lu Wu’s name in his roster. “Since it’s your first time, let me explain.”

“This machine will scan your data and create a virtual avatar for combat.”

“It uses soul energy... Oh, but your soul strength should never run dry, so there’s no danger of injury.”

“If you want to quit, just say ‘exit’.”

“Everything else will be guided once you’re inside.”

Lu Wu didn’t hesitate and entered the capsule.

The transparent crystal door closed, runes lighting up in succession.

Lu Wu felt darkness descend. His consciousness arrived in a white space.

Text appeared before him: “Soul: Sky Soaring Realm, First Level. Physical body: Untrained. Original power: Untrained.”

“Please select your desired battle terrain.”

Lu Wu chose the grassland without hesitation.

If he picked a forest or similar terrain, he’d have too great an advantage.

He decided to try the most disadvantageous open plains.

More text appeared: “Allow spectators?”

Lu Wu: “No.”

Another line: “Prohibiting viewers costs thirty Sacred Capital coins.”

Lu Wu: “Allow spectators.”

As soon as he made his choice, the scene shifted.

A vast grassland stretched to the horizon.

A black-clad Foundation Establishment cultivator strode forward.

Lu Wu watched warily, looking for tricks.

The masked virtual opponent drew a broadsword.

Then, moving slowly, he began to swing it.

Lu Wu was dumbfounded. Was this for real?

He activated the simplest soul secret art from the Beast Codex—the Soulshock.

The masked opponent had barely raised his sword before he collapsed on the spot.

Dead.

Outside, the crowd stared in disbelief. “What was that move?”

Qin Mo explained, “That’s a powerful soul secret art—he used soul energy to directly shatter the opponent’s soul.”

Then, everyone watched as Lu Wu stormed through the levels, killing each enemy with the same soul-shattering technique.

He didn’t move at all; virtual enemies kept coming, only to fall one after another.

A progress bar appeared before Lu Wu’s eyes, constantly updating.

1%

2%

15%

27%

When mid-stage Qi Gathering opponents appeared, his Soulshock could no longer instantly kill them.

Lu Wu summoned his soul totem: the Mosquito.

Outside, the crowd was stunned once more. “A clone? Is that a doppelgänger?”

“An external avatar? A kin?”

Qin Mo replied, “No, that’s a manifestation of soul energy... It appears to be a soul materialization.”

Soul materialization was a technique common to many soul cultivation arts.

The Beast Codex differed in that the materialized form was not oneself, but a soul totem.

No one recognized the mosquito as the Beast Codex’s soul totem.

Lu Wu, meanwhile, was curious to see how powerful the soul totem’s materialization really was.

The Beast Codex stated that a materialized soul totem possessed power equal to the summoner at the same level.

To be precise, it was slightly weaker than a true cultivator’s combined triple force at that level.

This was rather unique.

In other words, the materialized totem possessed both the physical body’s strength and primal power, transformed through the laws of the Beast Codex.

This might be why the Saintess of Nine Heavens had urged Lu Wu to study the Beast Codex.

After she discovered Lu Wu had mastered the Way of the Fly and the Way of the Bee, she immediately judged that the Beast Codex was the most suitable art for him.

And the soul totem summon provided a huge boost to Lu Wu, who only trained in soul arts.

After all, the Beast Codex was a formidable soul art with no fatal weaknesses.

By now, many students of Windrider Academy had arrived at the Martial Arena.

“How far has he gotten?”

“Is his swordsmanship really that strong?”

“Squeeze in! I can’t see!”

At the center, the elite class students were in shock.

The forum post about cross-realm combat had claimed Lu Wu’s specialty was swordsmanship.

But in today’s virtual battle, Lu Wu used only the Soulshock technique.

When mid-stage Qi Gathering adversaries appeared, he summoned a soul materialization to fight.

Qi Gathering level four, five, six, seven—each opponent was instantly slain by the mosquito totem.

Every defeat was a brutal rending.

Lu Wu was enjoying himself far too much.

For the first time, he experienced the thrill of physical combat. Controlling the materialized mosquito totem, empowered by various beast paths, he seized his enemies and tore them apart.

“Exhilarating! Let’s try the primal power.”

At the eighth Qi Gathering level, the mosquito totem radiated a wave of demonic energy.

Demonic essence surged out like a flood, instantly reducing the opponent to a skeleton.

No technique, no skill—just a direct, explosive outpouring of demonic essence that overwhelmed everything.

“Whoa! Is he really this strong? Wait, he’s only been at it for four minutes—could he clear the solo run?”

“Amazing! He just steamrolls... But then, he only trains soul arts. Maybe he’s never studied how to use primal demonic or spiritual power?”

“Is he really not going to intervene himself against a ninth-level Qi Gathering opponent? Let his soul materialized clone crush the final stage?”

“No way. The ninth Qi Gathering level is a whole different league from the eighth. There’s no way a summoned soul avatar could defeat it using an unfamiliar technique.”

“If he manages to do that, he’d be approaching Senior Brother Bai Lin’s level. That’s absolutely impossible.”