[Volume One] The Dragon Soul Awakens Chapter 72: Uncontainable Power

As soon as Lin Ao finished speaking, his entire body dissolved into black particles and vanished in midair.

Only Xia Ningxin and Little Moonshadow remained in the corridor.

"Meow~" Little Moonshadow called out.

"Let him go," Xia Ningxin waved a hand. In truth, she could easily keep pace with Lin Ao, but the most urgent matter now was this very Shenzhou. It had to be brought back to proper operation!

All those riddles—Lin Ao’s sudden appearance, the employer’s true identity, hidden infiltrators—were set aside for the moment. First, she needed to find that little rascal, Mo Xing.

Elsewhere.

Mo Xing stared in surprise at the Shenzhou’s shield stained red, yet the whole vessel had recovered its original stable trajectory, flying even faster than before—something he hadn’t anticipated.

"They did it!" Mo Xing exclaimed in admiration.

"Not quite," Shiyan shook her head and pointed to a window still flashing a red warning light nearby. "The alert hasn’t been lifted yet, and the engine room hasn’t been repaired. We need to go down and help."

"Trying to leave?!" A furious shout erupted from the deck below just then. Both of them looked down—it was Gou Ge! His face was so red with anger it was nearly emblazoned with the word itself.

"Gou Ge, maybe we should just let it go—" Ai Ji beside him ventured.

"Let it go, my ass!" Gou Ge cursed, spitting on the deck. "Today, I’m going to teach these two junior brats a lesson, show them what real power means!"

"Heavenly Dog Devours the Moon!"

Breaking free from Ai Ji’s restraint, Gou Ge unleashed his crimson spear, leaping into the air with a trail of afterimages behind him.

Shiyan frowned slightly, raising her twin pistols. She was about to unleash an attack when Mo Xing stepped in front of her, saying,

"This time, let me handle it!"

"A freshman wants to play the hero?" Gou Ge roared, brandishing his spear, thrusting toward the pair.

Mo Xing raised his weapon, the Frostless Blade of the Gods, gathering water elements and sending several curved blades of ice toward Gou Ge in midair—

Chilling Waters: Spiral Strike!

"This move again!" Gou Ge bellowed, his afterimage-laden body weaving through the air. His spear shattered the ice blades, clearing all obstacles in front of him, closing the distance between himself and Mo Xing by another half meter.

Sensing danger, Shiyan prepared to intervene, but Mo Xing was one step ahead: a surge of powerful ice energy gathered in his hands, the surrounding temperature dropping several degrees in an instant.

"Useless—" Gou Ge pressed forward, when suddenly his hands were frozen by a layer of ice. In the blink of an eye, his entire body was encased, the thick ice weighing him down and hindering his aerial movement. With less than a meter to go, gravity dragged him from the air.

"What the—? What kind of move is this?!"

In an instant, Gou Ge crashed onto the deck below, utterly disheveled.

"This move is called—A Thousand Li of Frozen Land!"

Mo Xing smiled. Adding "A Thousand Li" to the [Frozen Land] technique gave it a much grander sound.

"Nicely done," Shiyan gave a thumbs up, clearly approving of Mo Xing’s move.

"It’s nothing," Mo Xing scratched his head, embarrassed.

"Time’s short, let’s head to the engine room," Shiyan beckoned, heading for the stairs.

"Alright," Mo Xing followed.

Moments later.

Guided by the map on their rings, Mo Xing and Shiyan ran all the way to the engine room door.

"What… what’s this?" Mo Xing was shocked to find the entrance blocked by a wall of bronze-colored metal.

"Most likely Wu Danze put up this wall to prevent interference," Shiyan frowned. "It’s probably a metal element skill called [Impenetrable Wall]."

"Should I call him and ask him to open up?" Mo Xing swiped at his Titan’s Ring, a blue-white holographic screen appearing with the words "Calling…"

"The magnetic field here’s been altered; communication may be disrupted," Shiyan shook her head.

"So what do we do?" Mo Xing grew anxious as no one answered his call.

"Break down the door."

A cold voice sounded behind them. Mo Xing turned to see Xia Ningxin, Little Moonshadow in tow.

"Meow—" Little Moonshadow flicked her tail.

"You’re here…" Mo Xing scratched his head. Since boarding, after Xia’s cold war with Shiyan, she had kept to herself, not even joining in for lunch or conversation. Only now did she reappear.

Shiyan turned away, standing to the side, clearly unwilling to look at her.

"So… how exactly are we supposed to break it?" Mo Xing asked, confused. "That wall looks to be several dozen centimeters thick…"

"Step aside, I’ll handle it," said Xia Ningxin, waving a hand.

"Meow—" Little Moonshadow quickly scampered out of the way.

"What is she doing?" Mo Xing hurriedly stepped aside as well. He saw a blue-white longbow appear in Xia Ningxin’s hands, its elegant shape adorned with several golden halos.

Holy Emperor: Dawning Moon!

Concealing the soul of the dragon, gathering its breath, transforming into a dragon’s visage—a single swing could repel enemies for a thousand li!

Suddenly, a cyan gale whipped up, nearly knocking Mo Xing off his feet.

"Gather!"

Xia Ningxin said coolly. The air around her swirled, coalescing in her right hand into a cyan arrow. This time, Mo Xing couldn’t remain standing; the fierce wind toppled him onto the deck.

"Break!"

Xia Ningxin released the bowstring, loosing the cyan arrow. Mo Xing was blown by the gale straight to the nearby railing.

Wind howled, clouds scattered!

The Impenetrable Wall shattered in an instant!

"Good lord! That’s almost excessive!" Mo Xing clung tightly to the railing, his body whipped about by the wind. He had never imagined Xia Ningxin was this powerful—was she really only at the Honglan rank?

"I’ll go on ahead," Xia Ningxin said coldly, then vanished from the deck. The gale ceased, and the air gradually returned to normal.

"Ouch, my poor back…" Mo Xing groaned, slowly picking himself up, his waist aching from the forceful gale—he felt like a flag tossed by the wind.

"Shiyan? Shiyan, where are you?" Mo Xing looked around, suddenly recalling that Shiyan had no defenses when the wind rose.

"Mo Xing, I’m here!"

Following the sound, Mo Xing saw a two-meter-wide, translucent orange sphere rolling toward him, Shiyan running inside it, Little Moonshadow at her heels—a scene reminiscent of…

A hamster ball!

"What… what sort of skill is that?" Mo Xing stared, dumbfounded.

"It seems to belong to this little cat," Shiyan pointed at Little Moonshadow.

"Meow—" Little Moonshadow looked up, and the orange shield vanished.

"That’s impressive…" Mo Xing scratched his head, recalling how, during training on the school lawn, his weapon had gone out of control and was about to strike him. It was Little Moonshadow’s quick shield that saved him.

Clearly… this was no ordinary cat…

"Enough talk." Shiyan pointed at the engine room door. "Let’s go inside and see what’s going on."

"Right," Mo Xing nodded.

They rushed in together, only to be greeted by a stream of complaints.

"Whose ultimate move was that just now?" Wu Danze, flustered, was repairing a breach in the fuel manifold above. "Not only startled me, but the freshly patched breach split open again!"

"It wasn’t us—it was Xia—" Mo Xing began, but his foot slipped in a puddle of sticky, pale yellow liquid. "What’s this stuff?"

"That’s star-energy fuel refined from crystal," Shiyan explained. "Wu Danze, can we help with anything?"

"Well…" Wu Danze was too busy to think, "Just keep an eye on that person over there!"

"Person? Where?" Shiyan looked around. Weren’t there only three people in the engine room?

Plus a cat…

"Huh? Over there, isn’t he?" Wu Danze looked toward the corner, only to find that the self-proclaimed handsome Zuo Zuo was already gone, leaving behind only a few out-of-place mechanical arms and an empty shield.

"Damn, he slipped away even like this?" Wu Danze was incredulous. Who was that guy, really?

"Brother Wu, do you think this spilled fuel can be put back in?" Mo Xing squatted to examine it. He hadn’t joined the earlier discussion, too focused on the pale yellow fuel.

"That’s a wild idea," Wu Danze shook his head. "But not impossible, if someone can control water elements."

"Control water elements…" Mo Xing said, "I can!"

"…"

Wu Danze blinked at him.

"He really can," Shiyan affirmed.

"Uh, well… I don’t know you that well," Wu Danze confessed.

"No worries, that’s what friends are for—getting to know each other," Mo Xing laughed. "So, what do I need to do?"

"Let me think…" Wu Danze paused.

"I have an idea," Shiyan interjected.

Meanwhile.

Two white motorcycles hovered in midair, their tails trailing pale blue gas, headlights crackling with lightning.

Titan Motorcycles!

Freely driven through the sky, they were one of Evolution City’s most iconic means of transport.

Lin Ao and Zuo Zuo each sat astride their own, gazing down at the floating ship below—Shenzhou.

"Shenzhou’s actually been stabilized," Zuo Zuo remarked, eyes widening at the swath of fire-stained shield below.

"Zhang Zhihao—he always manages to hold up the sky," Lin Ao said quietly.

"But it’s tough for him, doing it alone," Zuo Zuo shook his head.

"Not like you didn’t cause trouble. If you hadn’t, he wouldn’t be in this position," Lin Ao shot him a glance.

"Hey, it’s not my fault! If I hadn’t, there’d have been no way to flush out those undercover staffers!"

Zuo Zuo avoided Lin Ao’s gaze; those eyes could kill.

"Talk about bad luck—so many infiltrators from the Kalandis Sect on Shenzhou, and those students aren’t united at all. When trouble comes, everyone just flees," Zuo Zuo muttered.

"It’s not all so bleak. At least he still has a few trustworthy companions," Lin Ao paused, recalling the boy he’d met on deck that day.

The unyielding look in that sword-bearing youth’s eyes was one to remember.

"You’re right," Zuo Zuo shrugged. "But are we really just leaving Shadowflow Ming on Shenzhou like that?"

"I’ve told him—he’s to stick with the main group from the Sacred Sky Royal Academy for a while longer," Lin Ao replied coolly. "After all, we have a big contract to fulfill—"

"The Dragonfang Island mission."

——Idle Banter at the Pit’s Edge——

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