At this point, Lin Jie had grown thoroughly annoyed by the two enemy agility-type Spirit Masters harassing their backline. Turning to Ma Hongjun, he said, "You stay here and protect Rongrong. I'll handle those two."
Ma Hongjun nodded immediately. He knew full well how strong Lin Jie was—more than enough to deal with those two on his own. All he had to do was guard Ning Rongrong.
Honestly, Lin Jie could've taken care of them long ago. The only reason he held back was to observe the battlefield—or rather, to ensure Ning Rongrong's safety. But these two were becoming a nuisance, constantly darting in and out with cheap shots. Lin Jie had finally had enough.
Lightning flared around Lin Jie's body as he moved. In a flash, he appeared beside one of the two enemy Spirit Masters.
Meanwhile, Zhu Zhuqing faced off against the seductive spider-type Spirit Master. Though Zhu Zhuqing was classified as an agility-attack type, ever since acquiring her third Spirit Ring and her two Spirit Bones—her external Spirit Bone, Eight Spider Lances, and a four-thousand-year-old Thunder Spider Right Arm Bone—she had long surpassed the conventional limits of her role. Any talk of Control-type counters no longer applied to her.
The seductive woman made her move. Her first Spirit Ring lit up, and she launched a barrage of sticky spider silk from both hands toward Zhu Zhuqing.
Rather than dodging, Zhu Zhuqing decided to test the ability granted by her Spirit Bone. As the white threads approached, she raised her right arm. A purple glint shimmered from her hand, and a strand of deep violet silk shot out to meet the enemy's attack.
The moment they clashed, the purple strand corroded the white spider silk instantly and kept going, continuing toward its source.
The woman's eyes widened in disbelief. Not only could Zhu Zhuqing also use spider silk, but hers was so corrosive it destroyed her own with ease. She quickly responded—her second Spirit Ring flared, and her body was immediately cloaked in thick white silk. She twisted to the side, narrowly avoiding the oncoming strand. It hit the ground instead, producing a plume of black-purple smoke as it melted a portion of the hardened Spirit Arena floor.
The crowd erupted in excitement, cheering wildly from the stands. Meanwhile, in the viewing area, Flender, Yu Xiaogang, and Zhao Wuji were all visibly startled.
Flender turned to Yu Xiaogang. "Xiaogang, do you know what that purple-black spider silk Zhu Zhuqing just used was?"
Yu Xiaogang shook his head. "I know she absorbed a Man-Faced Demon Spider as her external Spirit Bone, but she never mentioned having this silk attack. Perhaps... Lin Jie knows more than we do."
As he spoke, his eyes drifted meaningfully toward Lin Jie, who had already taken down the two agility attackers with ease.
Zhu Zhuqing glanced at her right arm, marveling at the raw power her Spirit Bone granted.
The seductive woman, now noticing her last two teammates defeated, clenched her jaw. Her face twisted in frustration, but she refused to give up. She lunged at Zhu Zhuqing, unleashing another burst of spider silk—this time forming a net of over a dozen strands to block every possible escape route.
Zhu Zhuqing remained calm and composed. As the web closed in, her claws flashed into view. She slashed through the strands with a single, elegant sweep.
Not far away, Lin Jie noticed Dai Mubai almost get hit by Mad Xi's raging punch. Without hesitation, he lashed out with a lightning whip, pulling Dai Mubai out of harm's way. The White Tiger glanced at him, nodded silently, and then rushed back into the fray—but Mad Xi seemed to have gone berserk, forcing Dai Mubai into another tough battle.
Fortunately, Tang San and Xiao Wu had just finished dealing with the two antelope Martial Soul users. The moment they saw Dai Mubai struggling, they leapt in to assist.
Even with his experience and raw power, Mad Xi couldn't stand up to the three of them together. After a short but intense skirmish, he was defeated and collapsed.
Now, only one fight remained on the stage: Zhu Zhuqing versus the spider-wielding woman.
None of the others stepped in to help. They gathered near Ning Rongrong, watching with great interest. They all wanted to see just how strong Zhu Zhuqing had become.
Ma Hongjun whistled. "Wow... Zhu Zhuqing's actually that strong?"
Tang San nodded. "I didn't expect it either. She's facing a Control-type Spirit Master, which should counter an agility type like her... but clearly, that theory doesn't hold up today."
Dai Mubai's eyelid twitched. Watching Zhu Zhuqing's performance, he had to admit—even he might not be able to beat her now.
The seductive woman seemed to realize her team was finished, but she still didn't stop. Her spider silk lashed out wildly as she engaged Zhu Zhuqing in a desperate melee.
Suddenly, her purple Spirit Ring flared. The white silk around her surged and wrapped tightly around Zhu Zhuqing.
The onlookers gasped.
Tang San instinctively moved to help—but Lin Jie raised a hand to stop him.
"She's fine," Lin Jie said calmly. "That won't be enough to harm her."
Hearing that, Tang San and the others relaxed—but Dai Mubai gave Lin Jie a long, complicated look.
Inside the cocoon of silk, eight sharp, spider-like limbs burst out behind Zhu Zhuqing. With a single, powerful motion, she shredded the web from within. The spider legs quickly retracted before anyone in the stands could get a clear look.
All they saw was the web explode outward—and in the next moment, a blast of black-purple spider silk shot from Zhu Zhuqing's hand. It hit the woman dead-on, wrapping around her and paralyzing her instantly.
The woman's body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.
The host stared in disbelief, rubbed his eyes, then shouted:
"Victory goes to the Shrek team! Let's congratulate them on their complete team battle win!"
As the cheers erupted, Zhu Zhuqing retracted her silk, removing the neurotoxin from her opponent's body.
Ning Rongrong immediately ran over and hugged her. "Zhuqing, you were amazing!"
Zhu Zhuqing only smiled and shook her head modestly.
Later that evening, the entire team returned to their hotel and gathered for a meeting.
Yu Xiaogang addressed them. "You all performed well in today's spirit battles. A very strong start. Now—tell me, what did you learn from the experience?"
Everyone took turns sharing their thoughts. When the discussion ended, they headed off to celebrate. After all, this was their first major victory—it deserved a proper celebration.
Later, after Flender and the others had retired for the night, the students ordered food and drinks and partied hard.
Dai Mubai, already flushed from drinking, raised his cup and stumbled over to Lin Jie.
"Lin Jie," he said loudly, "I still don't like you. Never did. But today... I'm grateful. If you hadn't stepped in, I'd be in a hospital right now."
He downed the whole cup in one gulp.
"So I'll drop the grudge—for now. While we're at the academy, we work together. After that? Who knows, maybe I'll go back to finding you insufferable."
Everyone paused, surprised by the sudden outburst.
Lin Jie picked up his own cup. "I won't pretend to be magnanimous—but I agree. While we're classmates, I'll work with all of you. That includes you."
And with that, he downed his drink as well.
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin