Her skill relied on the flexibility and toughness of her body to maximize her strength.
The biggest drawback of this skill was that it was vulnerable to being overpowered—if the opponent's strength far exceeded hers. But otherwise, even if the opponent was somewhat stronger, they would only end up defeated by this move.
However, she underestimated Jiang Chen. Even without transforming or using his Martial Soul, the sheer power of his physical body, combined with the boost from his soul energy, was something Xiao Wu could hardly imagine.
Xiao Wu wrapped her legs tightly around Jiang Chen's neck, her hands pressed against the ground, using every ounce of strength she had—like a baby nursing—but she just couldn't shake him off.
At that moment, Jiang Chen felt like a mountain to her. How could a little rabbit like her possibly throw off a mountain?
Xiao Wu's face turned bright red with effort, but Jiang Chen just stood there, unmoving.
After a while, Xiao Wu finally gave up, relaxing her legs and flipping down.
"Are you even human?!" Xiao Wu glared at Jiang Chen, her face flushed with embarrassment. As the leader of the dorm, she had just lost face in front of all her followers.
Jiang Chen glanced back at her with a smile. "Nice waist, your butt's got good elasticity, but your strength is a bit lacking."
"You... bastard!" Xiao Wu had never been teased like this before. She was furious and wished she could tear Jiang Chen apart.
But even after using her strongest move, she couldn't harm him. Thinking of this made her even more frustrated and anxious.
Jiang Chen ignored her and went to the far end of the room to find a bed and set down his things.
There were many beds in the dorm. Most others slept toward the front, but he chose one at the very back, far away from everyone else.
Just like in Saint Soul Village, he didn't really fit in with these kids, so he preferred the quiet at the back.
As soon as he lay down, Xiao Wu suddenly appeared in front of him. "Hey, you're the leader of our dorm now."
Seeing Xiao Wu's flushed, frustrated face, and her clear unwillingness to accept this, Jiang Chen laughed. "You didn't beat me just now, and I didn't beat you either. We're even. Besides, I don't want to be the leader, so the leader's still you."
"Really?" Xiao Wu's angry expression instantly turned into a look of surprise and delight.
"Really. Now go back, leader," Jiang Chen waved his hand.
Just then, another person walked into the dorm—the same Tang San who had just come back from the Master's dorm.
He immediately saw Jiang Chen and Xiao Wu inside.
"Jiang Chen, you're here." Tang San hurried over.
"Yeah, just arrived."
"You two know each other?" Xiao Wu asked, surprised.
Tang San nodded. "Yeah, we're from the same village."
Then Tang San pulled a paper-wrapped package from his body and handed it to Jiang Chen. "This is for you."
"What's this?" Jiang Chen took it curiously and unwrapped it.
To his surprise, inside was a chicken leg.
"This is from the teacher. I saved one for you," Tang San said.
Jiang Chen felt touched but said nothing. Instead, he reached behind and pulled out a large paper box, handing it to Tang San.
"What's this?" Tang San took it out, and a rich aroma immediately filled the air—it was a huge roast goose.
"I went out for lunch. This is for you," Jiang Chen said calmly.
Tang San stared at the roast goose, eyes shining strangely, his heart unsettled.
Jiang Chen didn't hesitate and grabbed the chicken leg, starting to eat.
"What are you standing there for? Hurry and eat. If you can't finish it, share it with the others," Jiang Chen urged.
Tang San nodded. Such a big goose was definitely too much for him alone, so he took it to the front.
Xiao Wu sneaked a glance at Jiang Chen, licked her lips, then hurried after Tang San...
After a while, in the front of the dorm, voices kept sounding out, praising how good the food was.
"Jiang Chen, thanks for the goose!" many shouted toward him.
Jiang Chen only smiled and nodded.
Less than ten minutes later, the goose was completely devoured by the kids, and everyone began looking at Jiang Chen with genuine kindness.
After a moment, Tang San came back. "I'm heading out tomorrow. The teacher's taking me to get my first soul ring."
"Mm," Jiang Chen narrowed his eyes and replied calmly.
"So, these next few days, the chores will be up to you and Xiao Wu. I've already told her," Tang San said apologetically.
"Don't worry, leave it to me." Jiang Chen yawned. "I'm going to sleep now."
Tang San looked at him speechless. It was still afternoon, with several hours before night, yet Jiang Chen was already going to sleep.
He didn't bother Jiang Chen any further and went back to lie down on his own bed.
By evening, Jiang Chen woke up punctually. The others in the dorm were already deep in meditation, cultivating their soul power.
Tang San was eating the coarse bread he had brought from home. Jiang Chen's own supplies also included some, so he took out two pieces, eating as he walked out of the dorm.
Night was approaching, and he planned to find a quiet place to train.
After all, his method of cultivation was somewhat special, and he preferred not to be seen by others.
After wandering around the school grounds, he finally came to a small grove—a secluded, peaceful spot rarely visited by anyone.
After searching for a moment among the trees, he bent his legs and leapt onto a large branch, settling cross-legged.
From here, he had an unobstructed view of the moon in the night sky.
In truth, he could have trained inside his room, but there was always a feeling of restriction there that annoyed him. He preferred the freedom of the open air, basking in the warm moonlight without any barriers.
...
Early the next morning, Jiang Chen returned briefly to the dorm and found Tang San had already left.
That day was the opening ceremony of Notting Academy. Jiang Chen didn't wander off; after the ceremony, he returned to the grove and resumed practicing his Lightning Fist and Three Thousand Thunder Moves.
He had basically mastered the Lightning Fist by now—no longer falling awkwardly during execution—and its power was immense, rivaling even his first soul skill at peak condition.
When he unleashed it, faint arcs of electricity flickered around his fists. These sparks came from the corpse pill inside him and seemed to carry a mild paralyzing effect.
As for the Three Thousand Thunder Moves, his control over the techniques was becoming increasingly skilled, but he still hadn't grasped the speed aspect, which frustrated him.
Though he possessed a millennium's worth of memories from a zombie, they weren't much help. The zombie's cultivation path was entirely different, relying mostly on bloodsucking.
Moreover, the advanced zombie had developed terrifying innate abilities—instinctual powers Jiang Chen could never hope to learn.
Thus, besides his soul skills, his strongest assets remained the Lightning Fist and Three Thousand Thunder Moves.
"Jing Wuming isn't inside the academy. He's probably spying on that Matthew guy now," Jiang Chen thought, gazing in a certain direction—the same way toward the Martial Soul Hall.
Suddenly, a small black sparrow flew over and perched on Jiang Chen's shoulder.
It was a low-level corpse puppet—soulless and driven only by instinct. Jiang Chen relied on its eyes to keep watch on his surroundings.
"Go," he said.
The little black sparrow took off toward the Martial Soul Hall. Jiang Chen wanted to see what that old man Matthew was up to.
ps: read advance chapters visit at https://www.patreon.com/c/Seraphim777