“Oh? Your highness actually dared to come. I had believed that you would secretly run away to the palace.” Xu Lin mocked with a smile as he watched Zhou Yuan, who had walked to his front.
Zhou Yuan gently arranged his sleeves as he said, “Looks like you are very confident in yourself.”
“I never imagined that even someone like your highness would act so rashly for a pretty girl. This seems to be rather unwise.” Xu Lin shrugged his shoulders. It was clear that he believed Zhou Yuan’s rash behaviour was to gain Su Youwei’s favor.
“Let’s begin.” Zhou Yuan had no intentions of continuing this nonsensical bantar. His legs slid away from each other and seemed to tightly root themselves to the ground like an old tree, before he beckoned to Xu Lin. “I’ll allow you to attack first.”
The moment these words were said, the numerous youths surrounding the platform looked to each other. They did not understand what Zhou Yuan was thinking. He was clearly the weaker party, yet he still acted so wantonly.
“Since your highness cannot wait to be humiliated, I’ll have to oblige.” Being looked down upon by Zhou Yuan in this manner caused rage to rise in Xu Lin’s heart. With a sneer, his foot powerfully stamped on the ground, and his body shot out like an arrow. Five fingers were tightly clenched into a fist as a punch flew towards Zhou Yuan.
Xu Lin’s punch was full of power and accompanied by a stream of air. If it hit a rock, a crack would form.
Zhou Yuan watched the powerful punch fly towards him and made no movements to dodge. He merely crossed his arms before him in a defensive posture.
However, when the crowd below say this stance of his, they could not bear to continue watching. With Xu Lin’s two channel opened body, this punch would likely break Zhou Yuan’s bones.
Under the nervous gazes of the crowd, Xu Lin was akin to fierce tiger. He held nothing back as his overbearing punch heavily slammed into Zhou Yuan’s arms.
Dong!
A muffled sound rang out. Next, the crowd was unsurprised to see Zhou Yuan’s feet draw two several meter long trails on the ground before he managed to stabilize his body.
Ah!
A miserable cry erupted.
However, the cry had not erupted from Zhou Yuan but Xu Lin.
Everyone was dumbstruck as they watched this scene. Xu Lin screamed miserably as he hugged his fist. His fist was entire red, as if it had been smashed onto hard steel.
Xu Lin howled at Zhou Yuan, “You! What did you hide in your sleeves?! Despicable!” Xu Lin was in so much pain that even tears were about to flow from his eyes.
The surrounding gazes looked towards Zhou Yuan in astonishment. Could his highness have used some petty trick?
Under the crowd’s apprehensive gazes, Zhou Yuan slowly pulled back his sleeves. Subsequently, the crowd discovered a complicated rune of light on his arms. The rune emitted faint black light that spread and covered Zhou Yuan’s arms. At a glance, it seemed as if his skin had turned to incomparably hard black metal.
“This…”
Numerous students were shocked as they gazed at this complicated rune. In the end, some suddenly cried out, “That is the Metal Skin Rune that the lecturer had taught previously!”
A flash of understanding struck everyone. It was a Genesis Rune!
Su Youwei’s tense heart relaxed at this moment. She breathed a sigh of relief as she said, “So his highness is already able to draw a Genesis Rune on his body.”
Xu Lin came back to his senses as he stared at the black Genesis Runes on Zhou Yuan’s arms and said in disbelief, “You, you actually drew a Genesis Rune on your body?!”
Although Xu lin had seen Zhou Yuan draw a Metal Skin Rune in the lecture hall previously, it had only been drawn on a jade tablet. To draw it on the body, one needed to be proficient in the locations of the acupuncture points and meridian channels of the body. Only then would one be able to prevent the Genesis Rune from harming the body. Hence, drawing a Genesis Rune on the body was far more challenging than drawing it on a jade tablet.
Yet, while they were still unable to draw Genesis Runes on jade tablets, Zhou Yuan had already started to learn and even use it… this gap was not small.
“Did you really believe that I would be powerless just because I have not opened my channels?” said Zhou Yuan with a smile.
Xu Lin’s face was steely green, and had a look of anger from being toyed with as he coldly said, “Do you really believe that you will be able to beat me by relying on a Metal Skin Rune?”
“I’ll let you have a good look at the gap between a Channel Opening stage practitioner and one that has yet to open any channels!”
“Channel open!”
As Xu Lin roared, faint lines of flowing light emerged around his body. The dust under his feet swept outwards as Genesis Qi poured into his body in sync with his breathing.
Huu huu.
Even his clothes started to flutter at this moment.
The surface of his skin began to glow, and everyone could feel Xu Lin’s aura rapidly soar at this moment.
The expressions of the many students slightly changed. There was now Genesis Qi flowing within Xu Lin’s body. Genesis Qi circulating within his meridian channels would undoubtedly cause his power and speed to rise sharply.
Under the numerous grim gazes of the students, Zhou Yuan stared at Xu Lin as he muttered to himself, “Opening two channels huh…”
“Since I let you attack first, it is now my turn.”
The instant these words were spoken, Zhou Yuan’s foot had already stamped on the ground as his body charged straight at Xu Lin.
“Arrogant. Your speed, power and the innate quality of your body is now not even a tenth of my own. You still dare to attack?” Xu Lin sneered when he saw Zhou Yuan charging towards him.
“Is that so?”
The corners of Zhou Yuan’s mouth seemed to form a smile.
In the next instant, faint light suddenly surfaced at his ankles, and one could vaguely see runes of light spreading on them.
Rustle!
Zhou Yuan’s body seemed to become much lighter at this moment, and his speed sharply increased as he pounced forward like a cheetah.
“That is… that is the Light Body Rune!” Someone with good eyesight immediately cried out when he saw the light runes on Zhou Yuan’s ankles.
While this cry rang out, Zhou Yuan had already closed in on Xu Lin. With a sudden jerk of the former’s shoulder, a faint glow emerged from inside his sleeves. Although it was not clear, everyone could clearly feel that Zhou Yuan’s fist was now filled with rampaging power.
“Rampaging Bull Rune!” Another piercing cry was heard. As Zhou Yuan neared Xu Lin, the former’s arm suddenly jerked as a faint glow spread from under his clothes. Although it was barely discernible, everyone could clearly feel the rampaging power that filled Zhou Yuan’s flying fist.
Metal Skin Rune, Light Body Rune, Rampaging Bull Rune!
At this time, even Su Youwei could not help but cover her tiny mouth while disbelief filled her pretty face. In a short span of several breaths, Zhou Yuan had activated three Genesis Runes in succession.
This also meant that the three Genesis Runes taught by the lecturer had already been mastered by Zhou Yuan and even used on himself.
Bang!
Under both the watching eyes of the crowd and Xu Lin’s horrified eyes, a fist containing domineering power had already slammed into Xu Lin’s body in an incomparably swift and violent manner.
Dong!
With the aid of these three Genesis Runes, the current Zhou Yuan’s speed, power and innate body quality was clearly not inferior to Xu Lin. Hence, when this punch landed, Xu Lin felt a giant surge of force. His body was directly blown away, before smashing onto the ground outside the practice arena.
The originally noisy surroundings of the platform turned deathly silent at this moment. Numerous youths stared at Zhou Yuan in disbelief.
No one could have imagined that the fight would end in such a w
ay.
Atop the platform, Zhou Yuan slowly withdrew his fist. The runes of light on his arms swiftly faded as if they had used up all their power.
He massaged his wrist, jumped off the platform and fished out a piece of jade from Xu Lin’s clothes. It was the participation token for the newcomer exam.
“Can’t even beat a person who has yet to open a single meridian channel. It's best that you miss this year's newcomer exam to avoid losing face.” Zhou Yuan merely smiled in response to Xu Lin’s death stare.
Upon hearing these words, Xu Lin once again felt the mocking gazes around him. A miserable feeling filled his heart, and he could not help but vomit a mouthful of fresh blood. The scene before his eyes turned to darkness as he fainted.
He knew that starting tomorrow, he would become the newest laughing stock of the many the Great Zhou Institute students...
Chapter 5 Qi Yue and Liu Xi
“Alright, the show is over, everyone can scatter now.” Zhou Yuan tossed and caught the jade piece in his hand before smiling at the numerous spectators.
Upon hearing his words, the crowd smiled back and left. However, there was an additional trace of amazement in their gazes when they took one final look at Zhou Yuan before they left. This was because the fact that Zhou Yuan was unable to open his channels was long known by everyone in the Great Zhou Institute. Thus, many people believed although this prince of theirs had a high status, he did not have any power.
However, the scene today made them completely drop this belief.
Zhou Yuan was indeed temporarily unable to open his channels, but he wielded another kind of power; Genesis Runes. With Genesis Runes, even someone like Xu Lin, who had opened two meridian channels, was not the former’s match.
In this world, status was admittedly also a kind of power. However, the power that was most easily acknowledged by others was undoubtedly still one’s own power that had been gained through the culmination of one’s efforts. Because this kind of power would not be changed by one’s status or position.
“Hey, don’t lose it again alright.” Zhou Yuan tossed the jade piece at Su Youwei who had walked over. A breeze blew past, causing her uniform to hug her body, accentuating the fine and exquisite curves of a young lady that could cause one to have rather wild thoughts.
Su Youwei was a little embarrassed as she bit her red lips. Her clear eyes stared at Zhou Yuan as she said, “Are you okay?”
Girls were after all very attentive. She could see how Zhou Yuan’s hand seemed to tremble slightly.
“Heh heh, you’ve discovered it huh.” Zhou Yuan chuckled. He lifted his hand, and one could see that it was very red. This had been brought about by the ferocious punch from before.
“Without any channels opened, the innate quality of the body is after all a little lower.” Zhou Yuan sighed. Although he had borrowed the powers of the Metal Skin Rune, Light Body Rune and Rampaging Bull Rune to temporarily boost his strength, speed and toughness of his skin, the interior of his body was still too weak. A tiny bit of the backlash had invaded his body, causing him to feel rather terrible.
“Instructor has said that there are some Genesis Runes that can temporarily strengthen one’s entire body. If you manage to learn them, you will not be hurt by the backlash of power.” Su Youwei said after mulling for a while.
Zhou Yuan nodded. “The grade of such Genesis Runes is not low.”
It was said that Genesis Runes were divided into nine grades. However, the ones Zhou Yuan had used were only of the elementary level and could not even be considered grade one. Hence, he was not able to learn such Genesis Runes for the time being.
Su Youwei bit her red lips and said in a worried manner, “Then you’ll have to work hard. In the newcomer exam next month, unless you are able to draw a grade one Genesis Rune, it is unlikely that you will be able to achieve the top ten rankings.”
If Zhou Yuan did badly in the newcomer exam, bad rumors would surely spread.
Zhou Yuan massaged his hand as he replied, “Don’t worry, I know what I have to do.”
His eyes slightly narrowed. At this time, he could only hope that the trip to the ancestral grounds two days later would be able to help him solve the major issue of his eight meridian channels not appearing. If not, the only thing left would be to invest all of his energy into Genesis Rune study.
It was just that he really could not resign himself to solely studying Genesis Runes.
When Su Youwei saw Zhou Yuan fall silent, she knowingly changed the topic. Her eyes seemed to twist in thought as she beamed. “Your highness, shall I help you apply some ointment?”
“Forget it, if I accept such a great gesture from a pretty girl, I’m afraid that someone would see and surely employ some underhanded tactics against me.” Zhou Yuan playfully smiled in response. After all, Su Youwei was rather popular in the Great Zhou Institute.
Su Youwei unhappily rolled her eyes at him. “Since you are so timid, I’ll not bother with you any further. I still have to go to the library to tidy up the books.”
This was a part-time job she had found for herself to earn a little income. After all, her family situation was not good and she still had a grandfather to care for. Thus, she usually found some work to do in the Great Zhou Institute during the school term.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuan hesitated a little before saying, “There is only a month left till the newcomer exam, and time is of the essence. I feel that you should spend more time on opening your meridian channels. If needed, I…”
“Your highness.”
Zhou Yuan was interrupted before he could finish. He looked towards Su Youwei. The girl’s red lips were currently slightly pursed as she earnestly stared at him. Her voice was soft and gently, but it contained a strength that could not be ignored. “You’ve already helped me a lot. You brought me to this place where I can change my destiny, and I am grateful to you from the bottom of my heart. However… you’ve said before that we are friends, right?”
Zhou Yuan was taken aback as he gazed at the girl before his eyes. The depths of her glistening eyes seemed to hide something that would be difficult to sense for an outsider. It was that final shred of dignity at the bottom of her heart that needed to be preserved.
She knew that as long as she opened her mouth, Zhou Yuan would settle everything that she needed. However, if that happened, a certain change would occur in her relationship with him.
She had very carefully maintained the relationship between them since the beginning. Zhou Yuan was the prince of the Great Zhou Empire, a status that was high as could be, while she on the other hand, was a commoner. The gap between the two was too great, hence it very easily drew the criticism of others.
She was not afraid of such criticism, but she did not want to be looked down upon by Zhou Yuan.
Therefore, she put in her greatest efforts after she entered the Great Zhou Institute such that she would be able to become independent. She likewise worked hard in her cultivation to change the large difference of status between them.
She had been very successful. As the fastest channel opening genius ever since the founding of the Great Zhou Institute, everyone began to value her talent. So much so that even Zhou Yuan’s father, Zhou Qing, started to hear of her name.
“Alright then.”
In the fact of the girl’s stubborn gaze, Zhou Yuan was defeated in the end and could only hold up his hands in surrender as he bitterly smiled, “I will not interfere.”
Su Youwei’s eyes bent into a crescent moon when she heard this. Meanwhile, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief in her heart. She knew that if Zhou Yuan were to insist, she would not be able to reject. It was just, that would be a little disappointing.
At the very least, she knew that Zhou Yuan had respected her last bit of dignity till now. His choice to concede made a glimmer flash in her eyes as her heart filled with a peculiar kind of gratefulness.
“Don’t worry your highness, I will not slack off in my training. I promise
you that I will definitely obtain one of the top ranks in the newcomer exam and enter the A class.” Su Youwei smiled sweetly. Her bright and beautiful smile was filled with confidence.
There was a dozen classes in the Great Zhou Institute and the A class was naturally the strongest.
Zhou Yuan nodded. He pondered for a moment before suddenly taking out the Genesis Gathering Jade he had used as a wager in the fight against Xu Lin previously. Subsequently, he lifted Su Youwei’s fair hand and placed it on her palm.
“Don’t take this wrongly, I am not giving but lending this to you. I have yet to open any meridian channels and can’t make use of it for now.” Zhou Yuan immediately said when he saw that Su Youwei was about to reject it.
When Su Youwei heard Zhou Yuan’s words, she swallowed the words that were about to exit her mouth before giving him a glare. This fellow, how could he say it in such a manner!
“I’m leaving!” Su Youwei kept the Genesis Gathering Jade and with a soft snort, she brushed past Zhou Yuan.
“So defiant yet lovable…”
Zhou Yuan watched the graceful and slim figure of the girl as she departed and shook his head. Just as he was also about to leave, he suddenly sensed something. He raised his head and looked towards a building in the distance, only to find a figure in white was currently looking back at him with a gaze that was as sharp as a blade.
“Qi Yue.” As Zhou Yuan gazed at the figure in white, his eyebrows raised slightly.
The figure in white was the heir of Qi Manor, Qi Yue.
A slight smile surfaced on Qi Yue’s face when he felt Zhou Yuan’s gaze as the former cupped his fists together towards the latter.
Zhou Yuan coldly chuckled in his heart, but maintained a smile as he nodded his head, before turning to leave.
Atop the building, Qi Yue watched Zhou Yuan’s leaving figure. A playful look emerged on Qi Yue's face as he mumbled to himself, “I never imagined that his highness would unknowingly attain some proficiency in the Dao of Genesis Runes…”
A pretty figure walked out behind Qi Yue. It was a tall and slender girl whose looks were also very beautiful. The only flaw was her slightly thin lips which made her look a little unkind. Compared to Su Youwei, the former did lack some charm.
Dragon Prince Yuan c1-1251 Page 7