985 A Bewildered Stare

A total of eight golden dragons arose this time. The golden dragons arose with the Bluesilver Emperor vines akin to a myriad of stars surrounding the moon. The Golden Dragon Soars to the Heaven had just exploded with a loud bang and transformed into an airflow. The violent energy that shocked the competition arena set off a rushing gale.

The eight golden dragons flew off in all directions. Tang Wulin suddenly roared in rage to unleash the Golden Dragon Roar.

A massive golden dragon head that was three times bigger than the Golden Dragon Soars to the Heaven appeared valiantly. The golden dragon head was about two meters tall initially but grew to four meters following the infusion of countless Bluesilver Emperor vines.

The terrifying soundwave shook the entire competition arena violently. Tang Wulin did not realize that he had unleashed the Golden Dragon Roar toward Long Yuxue in the distance.

They were a hundred meters apart but Long Yuxue could feel the gush of incomparably hot aura blowing against her face furiously. The terrifying soundwave and spiritual assault together with the purple electric current unleashed from the giant dragon's eyes caused her mind to go blank.

Her body quivered once before she tumbled to the ground.

In the next moment, her virtual body burst into pieces before she completely vanished from the competition stage.

The Golden Dragon Roar was at its peak now. Tang Wulin's long, continuous practice with his spear at the center of the competition stage previously had enabled him to channel the powerful aura produced from the fusion of his martial soul and bloodline power into the Golden Dragon Roar.

The entire space was shaken from the roar earlier. Long Yuxue was caught off guard such that she did not even have the chance to react to the situation before she left the competition arena.

If it had happened outside, her battle armor would protect her body when set off by a stress response. In a simulated world, the battle armor would not appear without her initiating the deployment.

"Victory: Little Tang!"

Tang Wulin was still excited from the battle, yet he was transferred out again in the next moment.

'I… I've won?'

He looked at the Golden Dragon Spear in his hand as his memories flashed back in his mind. He recalled the scene where Long Yuxue's body exploded when he had directed the Golden Dragon Roar into the distance at the final moment.

'Oh no…"

Tang Wulin logged out from the battle network and exited the Star Dou Cabin quickly. He changed his attire at once before he ran outside.

He had never died in the simulated battle network before. So, he was not sure how it felt to die in this place and whether it would bring about profound feelings similar to the spirit ascension platform.

There was no doubt that Long Yuxue would experience agonizing pain when she was blasted into pieces earlier. He was worried for Long Yuxue's health if the attack was not attenuated by the network.

Thus, he left the living quarters in a hurry and dashed straight in the direction of the army's rest area.

The snow was being blown into the air wherever he passed such that everyone cast a look at him.

Within a few minutes, he had dashed into the army's rest area where the Star Dou Cabins were located. The place was already packed to the brink with a large crowd gathering on the outside as well.

Tang Wulin was about to squeeze his way in when he was immediately stopped.

"What are you doing? Jumping the queue? Don't you have any ethics?" A tall man with a huge physique blocked the path in front of Tang Wulin.

Tang Wulin was so anxious at present. He felt as if he had returned to Shrek Academy. Subconsciously, he grabbed the person's shoulder and tossed him away.

He was at least a hundred kilograms, yet he was akin to a blade of grass in Tang Wulin's grasp.

The rest area which was bustling just a while ago quieted down. No one dared stop Tang Wulin from squeezing his way in. He pushed through the crowd, and in a short while he was on the inside. At first glance, he found Long Yuxue.

Long Yuxue's face looked pale as she was walking out from the inside. The Star Dou Cabin came with an attached dressing room which would be disinfected before a user entered it.

"Are you okay?" Tang Wulin took a step forward and held her shoulder in an attempt to sense whether her blood essence fluctuation was disturbed.

Long Yuxue was startled when Tang Wulin held her shoulders. She looked up to find that it was Tang Wulin. Although she was surprised, she felt the warmth in her heart at the same time. The rage in her heart was gone.

She shook her head gently. "I'm fine."

Tang Wulin was relieved. "Did it hurt when you were injured in the simulation cabin? Does one suffer the same agonizing pain when one dies in the simulation just like the Spirit Pagoda's spirit ascension platform?"

Long Yuxue shook her head. "How can the federal government ever produce something as perfect as the Spirit Pagoda? The pain sensation is lowered to twenty percent, so there's no danger. However, it's still quite painful for me. You're a scoundrel. Are you even human for treating me so?"

Long Yuxue suddenly sensed that the surrounding ambiance felt different at this point. She raised her head subconsciously and looked up at her surroundings. She found a group of people staring at her in bewilderment.

There were hundreds of people queueing, yet every single person's gaze was fixated on them at present. A number were staring in bewilderment while a few had their mouths agape in surprise. Yet, others had peculiar expressions on their faces.

"What's going on? What are you all looking at?" said Long Yuxue shyly, her charming face blushing scarlet.

Zhang Huanyun was in a bad mood at present.

He had been feeling rather cheerful initially. He had personally tried out the Star Dou Battle Network developed by the Federation. He had heard of the battle network from the report by the scientific research department when he attended a meeting in the Federation's capital, Mingdu City. At the same time, he had given it a go and found the simulation quite impressive. As compared to the simulation devices in the past, the Federation had not only developed artificial intelligence which was included in the network but more importantly, it was user-friendly as well. Even lay people could use it. It was particularly helpful in elevating the caliber of the army.

As the Federation's general and current regimental commander of the Blood God Army, he held a prestigious status in the army. The Blood God Army's influence was somewhat alike Shrek Academy's influence in the soul masters' world. A number of important personnel in the army were the military officers promoted after ten years of service in the Blood God Army. Thus, his position amongst the military superiors was absolutely distinguished as the Blood God Army's regimental commander.

Thirty Star Dou Cabins were provided for everyone's use regardless of military rank, but one must join the queue to wait for one's turn. The contestants were given priority to use the cabins according to the competition schedule. These rules were set by the regimental commander.

Being the authority on the rules, he knew very well how to boost the morale of his subordinates. Hence, he showed up today to participate in the use of the Star Dou Cabins as well. Actually, he already had one of those cabins in his office.

He chatted with the Blood God Army's officers and men as he joined the queue. He enquired about how they felt when they were engaged in the abyssal tide earlier. He acted friendly with his men and was in a jovial mood.

Just when he was feeling rather good for himself, a second lieutenant suddenly charged into the place like a hot-headed bull and began squeezing his way in till he reached the end of the queue. The youth was rather strong as he pushed through a number of people who did not manage to stop him.

As the regimental commander, he thought he could use his body to block the second lieutenant's path in jest.

As he was about to enquire why the youth who was in such a hurry, that he was breaking the rules, he had not expected the young scoundrel to grab his shoulders and toss him aside without even uttering a single word.

Being a rank-98 Title Douluo and a four-word battle armor master, who was one of the few people at the peak of the world, Zhang Huanyun had not expected to end up in such an embarrassing situation. The youth had acted too rashly. Coupled with his own lack of preparation for the situation, Zhang Huanyun had never expected that a second lieutenant would attack him. He took a beating and was immediately tossed outside.

However, the youth acted with a sense of propriety. He withheld his strength so Zhang Huanyun was not seriously injured despite falling on the ground. Nonetheless, as the regimental commander and the highest commanding officer of the entire army, how could Zhang Huanyun be in a good mood when he was tossed out by a second lieutenant under the keen eyes of the watching crowd?

At this moment, the general with three stars pinned on his shoulders had his arms akimbo as he watched a pair of youngsters showing great concern for each other. It suddenly struck him that he recognized the young maiden. Was she not his second-in-command, Long Tianwu's daughter?

Out of the blue, Long Yuxue also noticed the regimental commander's presence. She could not help covering her mouth with her hands. Zhang Huanyun was not present earlier when she came, so she had not expected to meet him.

"Senior officer!" She stood at attention and saluted.

Tang Wulin was startled by Long Yuxue's sudden action. He hastily loosened his grip on her shoulders as he turned around and looked surprised.

'Wow, a three-star general just like Blood One!' He had a hunch about the person's identity even if it was just a wild guess. He stood at attention and saluted immediately following Long Yuxue.

However, an ominous foreboding arose in Tang Wulin's heart as he was saluting. He suddenly recalled something at present. Besides, he felt that this person was rather familiar.

Zhang Huanyun raised his brows and, with his attention on Tang Wulin, hollered, "Your name!"