Douluo:Peerless Tang Sect: Douluo of Peaceful Heaven

After leaving Cai Meier's office, Zhu Ziyang checked the time. It was almost time for the core team's training session, so he didn't linger in the Outer Court and headed straight for the Inner Court's sparring arena.

By the time he arrived, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and the others were already present—only he and Jiang Nannan were missing.

"Xiaotao-jie, Yaoheng-ge, I'm here," Zhu Ziyang greeted as he arrived.

"Ziyang, where were you? Why so late?" Ma Xiaotao asked with a smile.

"I heard that three Soul Elders appeared among this year's freshmen, so I went to the Outer Court to look into it," Zhu Ziyang replied with a smile, then looked at Dai Yaoheng. "Yaoheng-ge, your little brother got into the academy this year, didn't he?"

"Mm, judging by his age, it should be this year," Dai Yaoheng nodded indifferently. Growing up in the White Tiger Duke's household, he didn't particularly care about sibling ties.

While the two chatted, Jiang Nannan and Zhang Lexuan arrived together. Zhang Lexuan was today's opponent for the official team's training session.

"Everyone's here now, so let's not waste time," Zhang Lexuan said directly. "Today's combat drill is simple: Nannan and I on one side, the six of you on the other. A two-versus-six match."

"Lexuan-jie, just the two of you? You may be a Soul Douluo, but isn't that underestimating us a bit?" Ma Xiaotao frowned. "Why don't you pick someone else to join you? Otherwise, this might end before it even starts."

The others nodded in agreement, but Zhu Ziyang looked thoughtful. He remembered Jiang Nannan enthusiastically telling him something not long ago. If that was true, then Zhang Lexuan and Jiang Nannan together might be more than a match for all six of them.

So he said, "Xiaotao-jie, let's go along with it for now. If the match ends up being too one-sided, we can adjust then."

"Uh…" Ma Xiaotao thought it over and looked at the others.

"Let's go with Ziyang's suggestion," Dai Yaoheng said. The others nodded in agreement.

"Alright then, Lexuan-jie, we accept. Let's begin," Ma Xiaotao said.

"Make sure to give it your all!" Zhang Lexuan said with a smile.

"That's right, Brother, Lexuan-jie and I won't be holding back!" Jiang Nannan added cheerfully, visibly excited.

The battle was on. Zhu Ziyang, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, Ling Luochen, Gongyang Mo, and Chen Zifeng formed a standard triangle formation. As a Soul Emperor and the team captain, Ma Xiaotao stood at the front. Dai Yaoheng (Rank 59) and Zhu Ziyang (Rank 53) stood side by side in the center. Gongyang Mo (Rank 55), Ling Luochen (Rank 51), and Chen Zifeng (Rank 52) positioned themselves in the rear.

Across from them stood Zhang Lexuan and Jiang Nannan, shoulder to shoulder.

"Take out Nannan first, then we'll deal with Lexuan-jie together!" Ma Xiaotao gave the order.

She launched the opening strike, her Phoenix Martial Soul instantly activated. Giant wings of flame carried her into the air as she spat out a torrent of crimson fire toward Jiang Nannan. Dai Yaoheng and Zhu Ziyang followed, releasing their martial souls and soul skills. Dai Yaoheng cast three soul-boosting buffs and launched a searing beam of light. Zhu Ziyang, wielding his Requiem Scythe, activated his second soul skill. The golden weapon transformed into a brilliant vortex of light aimed at the two women.

Behind them, Ling Luochen and Gongyang Mo supported with buffs and control skills. Gongyang Mo enhanced their strength and speed with his first two soul skills. Ling Luochen used control techniques to hinder Zhang Lexuan, preventing her from assisting Jiang Nannan. Chen Zifeng was assigned to protect the support team from any sudden strikes.

Facing such a fierce offensive, Jiang Nannan didn't dare slack off. Her martial soul activated instantly. After boosting her speed with her first soul skill, she did something unexpected—she easily dodged Ma Xiaotao's phoenix flames, slipped past Dai Yaoheng's light wave, and even escaped the pull of Zhu Ziyang's yin-yang cyclone.

Instead of attacking, she rushed straight toward Zhang Lexuan.

Zhang Lexuan didn't attack after summoning her martial soul. Instead, she stood in place, waiting for Jiang Nannan's move.

Seeing Nannan charge toward Lexuan, Zhu Ziyang suddenly realized their intent. He paused mid-action, anticipation flickering in his eyes. However, Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yaoheng didn't hesitate. Xiaotao launched Phoenix Howl to the Heavens, while Yaoheng unleashed White Tiger Meteor Shower.

Fiery pillars erupted from the ground as golden spheres of light fell from the sky. Jiang Nannan, bursting out from the fog of ice, rushed straight into the incoming attacks. Her expression changed slightly. She instantly activated her fourth soul skill, vanishing in a blink and leaving behind a silvery afterimage. In the next second, she reappeared ten meters ahead, outside the range of both attacks, right in front of Zhang Lexuan.

Silver Moon Blink Technique—a surprise-type soul skill that allows instant movement within a ten-meter range, with the ability to teleport back to her starting position within ten seconds.

After reaching Zhang Lexuan, the two women embraced. A massive silver moon materialized around them, enclosing them in a radiant light. A terrifying pressure burst forth, shaking the battlefield. Moments later, the two women vanished, replaced by a massive silver phantom.

The figure resembled both Jiang Nannan and Zhang Lexuan. She wore an ornate gown of gold and silver. Her long silver hair flowed down to her ankles, and behind her hovered a glowing golden full moon. She radiated a divine, pure aura—like the Goddess of the Moon herself!

"This is… a Martial Soul Fusion Skill!" Ma Xiaotao and the others were stunned. None of them had expected Jiang Nannan and Zhang Lexuan to pull this off. They could clearly sense that the aura of the Moon Goddess exceeded even that of a Soul Douluo—comparable to a Titled Douluo!

How were they supposed to win now? The team's morale plummeted.

Zhu Ziyang was also shocked. He hadn't expected the two of them to actually pull off a fusion skill. From the looks of it, its power really was on par with a Titled Douluo. He figured the Moon Goddess could probably match half of Yan Shaozhe's strength.

The Moon Goddess moved.

She stepped gracefully forward, her long gown brushing the ground. Raising her jade-white hand, she struck at Ma Xiaotao midair. Startled, Xiaotao tried to counter, but her defense was meaningless. The slender hand struck her directly, sending her crashing to the ground.

Next came Dai Yaoheng and Zhu Ziyang.

The goddess used both hands this time. Dai Yaoheng launched an uppercut in retaliation, while Zhu Ziyang teleported behind her, swinging his Requiem Scythe toward her neck.

But both efforts failed.

Dai Yaoheng's fist met her palm—and he was flattened within a second, joining Ma Xiaotao on the ground. As for Zhu Ziyang, the goddess simply lowered her head. Her golden eyes locked onto him, freezing him in place. Then she gently blew on him, and he was blown aside like a leaf.

The Moon Goddess continued her assault. After easily defeating Chen Zifeng, Ling Luochen and Gongyang Mo had no choice but to surrender.

With their victory secured, the silver illusion shattered, revealing Zhang Lexuan and Jiang Nannan. Zhang Lexuan stood calmly, holding an exhausted Jiang Nannan, whose pale face showed clear signs of soul power depletion.

"Lexuan-jie, that's not fair!" Ma Xiaotao got up and complained. "This kind of fight doesn't help us train at all!"

"Hehe, sorry! Nannan and I just wanted to test the strength of our fusion skill," Zhang Lexuan said with a soft laugh. "And clearly, it's pretty strong."

"Strong? That's an understatement. A fusion skill between a Soul Douluo and a Soul King—probably enough to overwhelm a regular Titled Douluo." Dai Yaoheng, from the White Tiger Clan, knew fusion skills well. His clan's Nether White Tiger fusion skill with the Zhu Clan had been passed down for generations. Too bad there was no Zhu girl his age—though in a way, that gave him the freedom to choose someone he truly liked.

"Zhang Lexuan, Nannan, what's your fusion skill called?" Zhu Ziyang asked.

"Fufufu~ Of course it's called Goddess of the Moon! Isn't it fitting?" Despite her exhaustion, Jiang Nannan couldn't hide her pride and excitement.

"Goddess of the Moon… Yeah, that's very fitting," everyone agreed.