you can crush me from a distance?

If it weren't for the sudden appearance of outsiders claiming to know about the psychic energy node, Norm wouldn't have shared the information about the node with Ira and asked for his help.

"One-on-one duel! Dare you?"

Norm, with a sturdy and short stature, spoke Mandarin with a strong accent, his expression filled with arrogance. The psychic energy node was his lifeblood! Once exposed, without the node's cultivation, who would respect him? He never forgot that he used to be the most insignificant, often ridiculed person.

Dirk and his companions, who knew about the node, had become targets in Norm's eyes.

Unable to bear it any longer, Arnold shouted, "Damn it! Will it ever end? Do you surrender only if we kill you?"

"A duel, huh? Fine! I'll take you on!"

With drawn swords and loaded crossbows, the atmosphere in the conference room tensed instantly. The dance major, who was just an ordinary person, cowered to the side, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire.

Norm looked back, confirmed that Ira would intervene, and sneered.

"Rock God's Summons: Giant Spirit God!"

With the strength of the Second Tier instantly exploding, a phantom of a giant spirit god enveloped Norm's body. The virtualized giant spirit god's image overlapped with Norm's stout figure, turning him into an invincible humanoid fortress.

"Die!"

Norm roared, summoning a shield in one hand and an axe in the other, slashing straight toward Arnold's head. The weapon covered by the giant spirit god's phantom seemed incredibly powerful, and the axe's gleam was right before Arnold's eyes.

"Bear Transformation!"

Arnold activated his skill without hesitation, transforming into a fierce black giant bear in an instant. With one paw, he swatted at Norm.

"Boom!"

The giant bear and the phantom of the giant spirit god collided, the shield blocking the swipe. A loud thud echoed as flesh and metal clashed. The black bear instinctively sensed that most of its power had been mysteriously absorbed by the peculiar shield. Unable to evade, the axe struck the bear's shoulder, causing a burst of blood mist.

"F**k you!"

Ignoring the wound on his shoulder, Arnold's expression turned fierce as he launched a powerful punch.

"Let's see if your turtle shell is harder, or my fist!"

The left fist of the black bear radiated a destructive aura and, faster than anyone's reaction, slammed towards the shield.

"Boom!"

Bending over with the shield, Norm's sturdy body tried to hide behind it. Under this destructive force, he was forcefully pushed back ten meters.

"Crack!"

The shield, gleaming with a bronze luster, cracked.

However, the punch was ultimately blocked. Norm's eyes were filled with mockery. He had inquired about Arnold's skills beforehand and deliberately absorbed a large amount of psychic energy to reinforce the shield.

Blocked? Arnold was slightly stunned. He could only unleash two powerful punches with his current psychic energy level, and he had already used one when he defeated Lenny earlier in the day. He didn't know who this Norm was, but he could actually block this punch.

Trouble was brewing...

The momentum of the attack stalled, and the two momentarily stood still.

Seeing this, Lynn reacted in an instant but hesitated. Arnold probably didn't have enough psychic energy to launch another powerful punch unless she activated psychic sharing. However, if she intervened, forming a two-against-one situation, the students might not accept it.

Yet, the next second, just as Lynn was hesitating...

"Boom!"

Two consecutive explosive sounds reverberated from near the entrance of the academy, flames soaring into the sky.

What's that? Dirk instinctively sensed something was wrong. The explosions came from their temporary camp!

Inside the meeting room, everyone's expression changed as they heard the loud noises. It was a signal they had arranged secretly, indicating that the awakening students were attacking the temporary camp.

Why would they attack at this moment?

No time to think. Norm, who had been cautiously defending, suddenly roared and lifted his giant axe, crazily charging towards Arnold.

"Attack!"

"All focus on him, kill the black bear!"

"Psychic Slash!"

Ira, the man in white who had been observing, immediately attacked. His psychic energy spread out, forming an invisible mental impact aimed at Arnold.

After a moment of hesitation, the other students also joined in. They knew they would eventually have to fight, and the timing seemed right.

"Flame Impact!"

"Withering Curse!"

"Thunderbolt Shot!"

The not-so-large meeting room was filled with various skills, and intense and concentrated psychic energy fluctuations all targeted Arnold's massive body.

Arnold gritted his teeth, preparing to curl up and withstand the onslaught. However, his body suddenly stiffened. Ira's psychic impact ignored his defense and directly struck his consciousness, causing dizziness.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Blood mist exploded as a series of colorful skills hit the massive black bear, tearing apart half of its body.

With Norm's full-force strike, the axe light flashed, piercing through the chest of the black bear.

"Arnold!"

Dirk, filled with shock and anger, had to use his skills to appear in the corner of the meeting room due to the residual effects of the skills.

"Splash."

Swaying unsteadily, the body of the black bear, now completely destroyed, slowly fell to the ground, life or death uncertain.

Seeing the strongest force, the black bear, fall, the students in the meeting room were ecstatic.

"Capture them!"

"Kill the one who can turn invisible first!"

Lynn, with a pale face, couldn't help but let out a bitter smile. Everything happened too quickly, and if they were captured, even Clark's arrival wouldn't make a difference.

Dirk's face was full of regret. With Clark present, their strategy had always been to stand firm and not initiate an attack unless the opponent was in a weak position. Even if they decided to attack, Arnold could have held on until Clark arrived. But who would have thought that the opponents had a psychic awakening!

Norm's face twisted into a sinister grin as the axe light aimed at Lynn.

"Now that idiot is gone, let's see how you'll stop me!"

Unlike other awakened individuals who wanted to capture Lynn alive, Norm had a deadly intent towards the remaining two. The information about the psychic energy node must not be revealed at any cost. As expected, the individuals assigned to the base had already silenced all the surviving outsiders.

"Die!"

Norm didn't hesitate and charged at Lynn again, the sharp axe light slashing through the air.

"9 hours and 9 minutes."

Outside the door, Clark stood calmly in place, his voice icy.

The sudden announcement caught the attention of all awakened individuals in the meeting room. Norm's charge came to a halt, and he looked warily at the unexpectedly appearing Clark.

"What does 9 hours and 9 minutes mean?"

Before anyone could contemplate the question, Clark nonchalantly extended his arm, pointing a finger at Norm's head, as if squashing an ant.

A breeze stirred up dust on the ground, but there was no other movement. The crowd was puzzled, and some scoffed at Clark's seemingly childish gestures.

Some among them had encountered Clark before, and now he looked like a child making imaginary gestures in the air. Was he crazy? Did he think this would save his companions?

Norm tilted his head, sneering at Clark.

"Fool, do you think you can crush me from a distance?"

"God Pierce."

Clark calmly spoke, gently tapping his fingertips.

"Bang."

In an instant, a blossom of brain matter exploded, brilliantly dazzling.