Successor to the Commander!

"Principal!"

Jiang Xuan's heart skipped a beat, his dark brown eyes slightly trembled, staring at the figure walking out of the Void Realm.

That was Principal Shen Zongtian, but not entirely.

The Principal was still in a suit, still with a tall, muscular physique that filled out the suit, but something new adorned his face.

A mask.

It was a strange mask, like a Rakshasa demon or an Asura Heavenly God; the left half was made of gold, and the right half was crafted from bronze.

Wearing this mask, the Principal gave off an aura that was neither ghost nor demon, yet both human and divine, incredibly powerful, as if he belonged to a different dimension than everyone present, even the Martial Saints.

Jiang Xuan instinctively discerned that the current Principal was hundreds, even thousands of times stronger than a strand of the remnant soul of a splintered incarnation of the centaur god...

"Vice Commander! You... your strength has recovered?"

Principal suddenly exclaimed in surprise, looking at Shen Zongtian with a mixture of astonishment and wild joy on his face.

Shen Zongtian looked over, glanced at him, then his gaze, from beneath the gold and bronze mask, swept over his three-meter-long mechanical arm. He spoke in a deep voice:

"Yes, I was blessed in disguise. While fighting with this thing, I suddenly had a Breakthrough. But what about you? After everything you've been through, are you still willing to step forward and protect the students?"

It was only then that everyone noticed Shen Zongtian was holding a semi-transparent shadow in his hand. The shadow was struggling desperately, emitting waves of vast and astonishing Qi, but it was firmly suppressed by him.

It was precisely a strand of the remnant soul of a splintered incarnation of the centaur god!

This entity, which was originally powerful enough to make a Martial King Rank Prodigy faint and become a vegetable just by looking at it, was now like a helpless chick in the Principal's hand.

The next moment, a voice, as if overlooking the Universe and reigning over the eight directions, emanated from a strand of the remnant soul of a splintered incarnation of the centaur god.

"How dare you..."

Bang!

Shen Zongtian tightened his grip slightly, directly and nonchalantly crushing it, interrupting its words.

a strand of the remnant soul of a splintered incarnation of the centaur god thus transformed into specks of starlight, dissipating into the air.

Saint Laurel, who was fleeing, witnessed this scene, and his eyes almost popped out, as if he had seen something utterly unbelievable.

He suddenly stopped fleeing, halting in mid-air, trembling all over. It was a shiver born of extreme fear, and the weapon in his hand fell because he couldn't hold it steady.

He seemed to have given up resistance.

Shen Zongtian glanced at him from afar, casually waved his hand, and a streak of starlight shot out.

Whoosh!

The starlight flashed and instantly appeared before Saint Laurel, then immediately disappeared into his body. Saint Laurel's body thus dissipated inch by inch in the air.

Both Jiang Xuan and the other students present were utterly astonished. What kind of Ultimate Skill was this? To be able to casually erase a Martial Saint!

However, thinking that Principal Shen Zongtian had casually crushed a strand of the remnant soul of a splintered incarnation of the centaur god, everyone felt relieved.

At this moment, Shen Zongtian seemed to react to something and asked curiously:

"Where is Demon Wing Xuan of the Demon Wing Clan?"

Principal and Lian Tushan flew over. Both the three-meter-long mechanical arm and the six fiery wings like a Seraphim disappeared instantly. The Qi on both of them began to rapidly decline, instantly dropping to the level of only a Ten-Star Martial Venerable.

As their Qi was about to continue plummeting, Shen Zongtian suddenly reached out and placed his hands on their necks. The blood vessels in his palms suddenly lit up, suffused with starlight, and surged towards their necks.

"It's a pity. Even though I've had a Breakthrough now, I can't help you two return to the Ten-Star Martial Saint Realm. I can only temporarily stop your decline and help you recover the uses of Saints Ultimate Skill and Divine Descent Art a few more times."

Shen Zongtian spoke, his tone filled with regret and self-reproach.

Principal, however, laughed heartily:

"Vice Commander, why talk about that? Old Xu, I don't expect to recover in this lifetime. But since you've had a Breakthrough, and you're protecting us, what do we have to fear? Not to mention, since you can help us recover our uses, the next time something like this happens, we can temporarily return to the Martial Saint Realm at any time, even if it's only a One-Star Martial Saint, that's usually enough."

Lian Tushan, who had been silent, now spoke:

"Commander, the one who killed Demon Wing Xuan was an eighteen-year-old high school student."

Compared to the boisterous and informal Principal, Lian Tushan was clearly much more emotionally intelligent. At the very least, he understood that when addressing a superior, a Vice Commander should be referred to as the Commander. At the same time, he was direct, pointing out what the Principal was concerned about, unlike Principal who beat around the bush.

As soon as these words were uttered, Shen Zongtian's tall body trembled slightly, and his gaze beneath the bronze-gold mask appeared somewhat dazed:

"Xiao Lian, are you... are you not joking? I'm an old man, I can't handle such a fright."

Lian Tushan shook his head, saying very seriously:

"It's true, Commander. If you don't believe me, ask the students present; they all witnessed it with their own eyes."

Shen Zongtian had always known his subordinate's Heart-Nature; he was definitely not the type to joke. Hearing this, his eyes burst forth with pure joy, but because the matter was too significant, a hint of worry was hidden within that joy, as if he feared such a pleasant surprise would fall through.

"Good, I'll see for myself."

After saying this, Shen Zongtian wiped with one hand, and a crack suddenly appeared in the Void Realm before him, through which countless images flashed.

Jiang Xuan saw clearly that it was precisely the scene of his battle with Demon Wing Xuan!

"Time reversal? This...!"

He was somewhat numb. What Realm had the Principal broken through to? This method, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was comparable to a Heavenly God!

The next moment, Shen Zongtian wiped with one hand again, and the images and the crack in the Void Realm disappeared together, but his gaze beneath the bronze-gold mask was utterly ecstatic!

"Hahahahaha! Good! Excellent! I didn't expect that after waiting so many years, I was almost about to give up, but finally, a Heavenly God-level potential seed has appeared!"

He turned around, his gaze fixed on Jiang Xuan, his eyes full of admiration and delight:

"Lu Renjia, you, you are excellent! Your potential is indeed rarely seen throughout the ages, second only to the Martial God, and you, under the circumstances of three Saint-level beings from various clans appearing simultaneously, were still willing to step forward to protect these students, to protect our Human Race residents. This Heart-Nature is truly invaluable!"

After a slight pause, Shen Zongtian uttered words that made all the Prodigies present incredibly envious.

"Lu Renjia, are you willing to join our Shock Supernova Legion? If you are, you will directly become the Commander's successor!"