Since It's a Performance, the Audience Must Be Protected

Rasengan!

The Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze's genius creation, a hand-signless ninjutsu that required no Chakra transformation at the outset.

It was a ninjutsu with an extremely high ceiling and a far-from-low floor.

Naruto had forcibly blasted his way through the finale with this very move.

Using this hand-signless ninjutsu required extremely precise Chakra manipulation and control. Those with poorer ability even needed a Shadow Clone nearby to assist them.

As the initiator and fellow researcher of this technique, Su Chen naturally did not need to go through so much trouble.

A deep-blue vortex continuously brewed in his hand, gradually gathering into something the size of a soccer ball before beginning to grow unstable.

Su Chen could feel that this was probably the limit of his control.

Mm.

Sure enough, he couldn't become fat in a single bite.

Su Chen, who had wanted to directly use the advanced version of the Rasengan, the Great Ball Rasengan, shook his head and waved away the gathered energy.

He stretched, his entire body crackling like popping beans. The youth rolled his neck, deciding to greet Chrysanthemum Douluo and the others first.

Awoo!!!

A long wolf howl came from all directions, and the youth's advancing steps halted.

At some point, several gray wolf beasts had surrounded him.

"Ah, I really got carried away. Even my vigilance dropped."

The youth was slightly annoyed. The joy of obtaining a Soul Ring and studying his Soul Skill had made him forget to survey his surroundings, and he had not even noticed the wolves approaching.

That was a grave taboo. He could not make the same mistake again.

Silently committing this to memory, Su Chen shook his head. His black eyes swept over the growing number of blood-red eyes around him, and he saw the undisguised greed in them for both himself and the Soul Beast corpse.

"Were you drawn here by the energy fluctuations? You really are bold."

Su Chen chuckled and fixed his gaze on the wolf beast at the front, which was clearly a size larger than the others.

Unlike the other wolves, whose eyes were filled with greed, this wolf beast was not only larger, with sleeker and glossier fur, but its gaze also held a hint of cunning and intelligence.

"A Thousand-Year Soul Beast? You came at just the right time."

A Thousand-Year Soul Beast already possessed strong instincts for seeking benefit and avoiding danger, but the scent coming from here was simply too enticing.

Grrr—!

It let out a low growl and lowered its body. The wolves around it seemed to receive some command and howled in unison, green light gathering in their mouths before they all spat out wind blades!!!

Dense wind blades surged toward Su Chen. Though they were mostly Ten-Year Soul Beasts, with only a few Hundred-Year Soul Beasts mixed among them, even ants could bite an elephant to death. What was more, each strike could slice an ordinary Soul Master in half!!

"Watch out!!"

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo set aside their complicated emotions and immediately intended to act, only to stop in unison.

Because they saw the youth wave his hand.

"Kid, don't get too cocky. There are Hundred-Year Soul Beasts among them!!"

Chrysanthemum Douluo was furious. He understood that the youth had just improved and wanted to test his Soul Skill.

But was this really a suitable target for practice?

This was a pack of Ten-Year Soul Beasts along with Hundred-Year Soul Beasts, and there was even a Thousand-Year Soul Beast leading them!!

"Forget it, forget it. Let's watch for now. We'll intervene if anything goes wrong. Don't forget, he just absorbed a Thousand-Year Soul Ring."

Ghost Douluo grabbed him and shook his head.

Yue Guan immediately fell silent.

That was right, a first Soul Ring that was a thousand years old—this was something unprecedented.

Even they did not know how powerful it would be.

Then Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo witnessed another scene that overturned their understanding.

Countless dense wind blades enclosed the youth from every direction, nearly cutting off every possible route of escape.

The wolf leader was not stupid. To survive in a place like this, it could not be some simple creature. Therefore, it had unleashed a full-force, thunderous attack from the start.

Yet it saw no fear whatsoever on the human youth's face at the center of its attack. He still wore the same calm smile as before.

Then the wolf leader saw the youth's eyes abruptly turn a sinister, blood-red crimson.

Bang bang bang!!!

Before it could think about what that change was, the attacks had already arrived in an instant.

Dirt flew everywhere, dust scattered, and great amounts of white smoke spread from Su Chen's position.

Though he knew the boy must have been confident if he did not need their help, Chrysanthemum Douluo's heart still tightened at the sight.

However, when the dust settled, the wolf leader, Chrysanthemum Douluo, and Ghost Douluo all widened their eyes.

The ground had been shredded into a complete mess by the wind blades, but where the youth had originally stood, he was nowhere to be seen. In his place was a splintered piece of wood.

He disappeared??

"Hey, look over here."

The soft chuckle drew the attention of the two men and the beast. Only then did they see that the youth had somehow already appeared atop a large tree behind them.

"High-speed movement, or something else?"

Chrysanthemum Douluo frowned. "It can't possibly be teleportation, can it?"

"It's a combination of the two."

Ghost Douluo pondered slightly, a trace of astonishment flashing through his eyes. "He used an instantaneous burst of speed to leave, then replaced himself with a piece of wood."

"What an exquisite design. If used in battle against Soul Masters, this move could be incredibly effective."

As a Titled Douluo known for speed, Gui Mei naturally could analyze the principles behind it.

That instantaneously explosive speed was beyond the reach of ordinary Soul Grand Masters and even Soul Elders. As for the replacement, caught off guard, even Soul Ancestors would be unable to figure out the trick.

It was an extremely practical Soul Skill for both offense and defense.

"Should I say it's worthy of being a first Soul Skill from a thousand-year Soul Ring? It truly is extraordinary."

He sighed with emotion.

Compared to the two men's amazement, the wolf leader was somewhat terrified at that moment.

Not only had its sure-kill attack been easily evaded, it could not even tell how that human had done it. And—

Though it had only lasted an instant, it had sensed the terrifying auras emanating from the two people watching from afar!

Should it retreat?

It struggled as it looked at the Linwu Silkworm's corpse on the ground and the white-haired youth. If it ate them, it would have a chance to break through into a Ten Thousand-Year Soul Beast!

A Ten Thousand-Year Soul Beast—then, even in this forest, it would absolutely count as a regional overlord!

If Su Chen knew what it was thinking, he would definitely tell it, Kid, you're far too naive.

An entry-level Ten Thousand-Year Soul Beast was not even worth calling an overlord. In this forest, it would at most be a slightly larger cannon fodder.

Little did it know that even Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts guarded the entrance to the core region.

Its eyes shifted as the wolf leader looked toward the followers waiting for its command, a vicious glint flashing through its blood-red eyes.

As long as it could become a Ten Thousand-Year Soul Beast, some sacrifices were acceptable.

Roar!

It raised its head and let out a long howl. The wolf pack immediately stirred and split into two groups. Half went to surround and attack Su Chen, while the other half charged toward Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo.

"This—"

The sudden change caught all three of them slightly off guard.

With a turn of his thoughts, Su Chen understood the wolf leader's plan.

"So you want to use the lives of these small fry to distract Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo, then focus on me?"

The youth shook his head with a smile.

"A clever approach. Unfortunately."

Boom!!

Green energy erupted from the youth's body, sending dust flying. A faint red hue spread across his bare upper body, while his white hair was driven upward by the violent energy fluctuations. His blood-red eyes also filled with fierce fighting intent.

"Whew."

The youth exhaled a scorching breath, clenched his fists, tilted his head, and looked at the wolf leader, whose fur stood on end.

"Since this is a 'performance,' I can't let the audience be disturbed."

Eight Inner Gates Formation—the Third Gate, Gate of Life, open!!