The nine hundred or so freshmen watching all let out exclamations of amazement.
The towering golden Exquisite Pagoda shot up from the ground, its nine-layered dome emanating endless majesty; treasures glimmered, emitting a powerful aura.
Those closer to it could feel a sensation of weightiness slamming into them.
And Luo Yu had already disappeared from sight, completely suppressed within the Heavenly Profound Yellow Exquisite Tower.
"Too fierce, in the end, Li Zhenyue is still a notch above."
"No helping it, they've even brought out the Linglong Tower from ancient legends, who could beat that? Even if it's just a replica that captures a hint of its essence, it's not something ordinary people can handle."
"The gap between ordinary Ancient Spirits and God-Level Ancient Spirits is simply too vast. That Xia Luo is really strong, but it's impossible to defy fate by relying on a mere old farmer spirit; the gap between their heroic spirits is like comparing clouds to mud."
"Yeah, if Xia Luo doesn't admit defeat now, he will probably be suppressed very miserably. This Exquisite Pagoda probably isn't just for suppression, it likely has functions like refining as well."
Xu Baiday, known to possess a Demon Immortal Heroic Spirit, had a troubled expression on his face.
He had been quite confident in his own strength, but seeing Li Zhenyue bring out the Exquisite Pagoda, he felt a bit unnerved.
After all, his demon immortal couldn't compete with the great gods of the legendary Ancient Heavenly Court.
The gap was too large.
Beautiful Eyes Dajiuer also had ripples in her gaze as she murmured softly,
"Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing, huh? Impressive."
She turned her gaze towards the Linglong Tower.
"With such a formidable opponent, now, you should be able to force out his final trump card."
Huo Tongtian bared his teeth in frustration.
"Freak, how come I've met so many freaks upon entering university?"
"Xia Luo is already an exception, able to effortlessly take me down, but how is this Li Zhenyue ridiculously strong as well?"
Diao Lingluo ignored him, focusing her gaze entirely on the Linglong Tower.
Lyu Chan scoffed.
"What of a God-Level Ancient Spirit? My Lyu Bu, when cultivated to the extreme, might be able to battle the gods themselves."
"You too should take a good look at your own Marquis of the Champion."
Huo Tongtian felt a jolt when he noticed Lyu Chan's rebellious and determined expression.
He always thought that mortal heroic spirits were inferior to the gods, but was that really the case? If he lacked the confidence to challenge the gods, that would mean true defeat.
"The Marquis of the Champion became prominent in his twenties, who says I, with extreme cultivation, couldn't in my mortal flesh slay gods."
"Do your best." Lyu Chan shrugged; sometimes a hint was all that was needed to reawaken a fighting spirit.
Having taken numerous blows to his pride, Huo Tongtian had gradually lost his boldness, but for a martial artist, the spirit was of utmost importance. Now, his eyes reclaimed their firm resolve, and his aura was wholly different than before.
"Someday, I'm going to challenge them and knock them from their lofty perches," declared Huo Tongtian with lofty ambition.
At that moment, Li Zhenyue walked up to the Linglong Tower and rested a hand on it.
"Buzz—"
The Linglong Tower vibrated, and finally, the golden hue retracted, turning transparent and revealing the interior scene.
Within, various phenomena such as wind, fire, thunder, and lightning appeared, striking at Luo Yu's body relentlessly, leaving no sanctuary.
Luo Yu had no choice but to take the beating.
"Looks like, this Xia Luo is also defeated."
"Nothing to be done, there's no way to compete with such a move."
"Yeah, it's not even a battle on the same level."
Li Zhenyue called out loudly into the interior of the Linglong Tower:
"Xia Luo, right?"
"If you're willing to surrender now and join my ranks in the future, you can avoid this pain and I can spare your life."
Luo Yu spread open his Spiritual Power, forming a transparent protective shield around himself.
"Surrender?"
"You can forget about it."
"Don't think you've already won."
Li Zhenyue, unannoyed, scoffed, "I admire your arrogance."
"Just this thing, it still can't trap me. If it were the real Exquisite Pagoda of the day after tomorrow, then maybe. As for you, you're still not up to par." Luo Yu shook a finger at him: "You're not there yet."
The crowd was in an uproar, unable to believe that Luo Yu, even when cornered and at the mercy of another, could still be so bold as to taunt his opponent.
"Hmph! Since that is the case, there's no need for me to show any more mercy." Li Zhenyue's Spiritual Power surged, flowing through his palm that was resting against the tower's wall.
"Boom!"
The entire Linglong Tower exploded with power, transparent from the outside, as Li Zhenyue intended to use Luo Yu as an example.
Inside, the wind howled and the flames soared.
In such a dire moment, Luo Yu made an action incomprehensible to everyone: he deactivated his Human-Spirit Fusion.
The stooped, dark-skinned old farmer reappeared before everyone's eyes.
The surrounding students were perplexed.
"Huh?"
"Why deactivate Human-Spirit Fusion now? His combat power will decrease. Is he intending to surrender?"
"Wait, didn't Li Zhenyue deliberately deactivate his Human-Spirit Fusion earlier too?"
"That was to trigger Li Jing's second form, the divine form. Could it be, Xia Luo's old farmer also has a second form?"
"Don't joke, is his second form going to be planting rice?"
"Hahaha, you're so funny. Don't mock Student Xia Luo; his combat capacity is definitely second only to Li Zhenyue among our new students."
"Yeah, Student Xia Luo truly deserves our admiration. With an ordinary spirit to achieve such combat power is truly inspiring. He's only lost in terms of innate talent."