Sword Douluo's Shock

"How is this possible..."

Sword Douluo sensed his current Soul Power Level and stared incredulously at Ye Cheng, who stood opposite him with a Nine-Story Pagoda resting in his palm, looking as ethereal as an immortal. He exclaimed, "Even if Feng Zhi went all out, he could only barely let my Soul Power touch the threshold of Level 97. Yet you... directly allowed me to cross the boundaries of three levels and reach the supreme realm!"

On the Douluo Continent, once Soul Masters reached the realm of Titled Douluo, the difference between every level was as vast as heaven and earth. Especially after Level 95, even raising one level of Soul Power was an enormous improvement.

Generally speaking, exceeding Level 95 was the dividing line among Titled Douluo. Between Levels 91 and 95, while the gap in Soul Power was still significant, it could still be compensated for through superior Martial Soul quality, Soul Bones, Soul Skills, and the like.

However, if one of two battling Titled Douluo exceeded Level 95, the situation changed.

That was because a Level 96 Titled Douluo possessed twenty percent more Soul Power than a Level 95 Titled Douluo.

Do not underestimate that twenty percent. When applied in actual combat, it provided tremendous improvements in every aspect of a Soul Master.

Once Soul Power was twenty percent stronger, Martial Soul quality and ordinary Soul Skills or Soul Bones could no longer make up the difference.

Unless there was a fundamental gap between the two sides' Soul Skills, or one possessed Soul Bones of exceptionally high quality and age, a Level 96 Titled Douluo could completely suppress any Titled Douluo below Level 95.

After that, breaking through from Level 96 to Level 97 increased Soul Power by another thirty percent on top of the original amount.

From Level 97 to Level 98, it increased by another forty percent.

As for the final leap from Level 98 to Level 99, Soul Power rose by another fifty percent.

Calculated this way, Sword Douluo could feel that from Level 96 to Level 99, the Soul Power within him had grown to more than double, nearly triple, what it had been before.

What kind of concept was that?

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, the strongest known enhancement Martial Soul on the Douluo Continent, could theoretically provide at most a onefold increase.

Even so, within the worldview of the Douluo Continent, such an enhancement was already outrageously powerful. Ordinary support-type Soul Masters could only manage five or ten percent.

One could imagine how shocked Sword Douluo was when he realized that his Soul Power had been enhanced by nearly three times on the spot.

Ye Cheng's Martial Soul had an enhancement effect that completely defied common sense. It was simply too shocking.

You're already this surprised at nearly three times. If I told you my full enhancement is tenfold, wouldn't you be so excited you'd pass out? Ye Cheng silently mocked as he held the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, its divine enhancement light slowly fading.

Although all the enhancement Soul Skills of his Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda could reach tenfold at most, he could naturally choose the enhancement multiplier. Just as now, he had only raised Sword Douluo by nearly three times, stopping once he reached the realm of a Limit Douluo.

As for why he did not give him the full tenfold enhancement, there was naturally no need. Enhancing others consumed his own Soul Power as well, and the stronger the enhanced person was, the more Soul Power he had to expend.

Enhancing a Soul King and a Titled Douluo by tenfold might produce the same multiplier, but the amount of Soul Power he himself needed to consume was different.

With his current Limit Douluo strength, giving the Level 96 Sword Douluo a tenfold enhancement would consume no small amount of his own Soul Power.

Besides, once they started fighting later, if Sword Douluo became too powerful after being strengthened and he somehow suffered a setback and got killed instead, that would be a real joke.

If Ye Cheng's strength had truly been cultivated bit by bit, he naturally would not have had such concerns. But the key was that his strength had appeared out of thin air, and he simply lacked the confidence of a true powerhouse that matched it.

Of course, he chose the safer option.

"Please."

Ye Cheng withdrew his Martial Soul and stood with his hands behind his back. "Now that our Soul Power Levels are equal, let me see what splendor the famed Seven Kill Sword possesses."

The shock in Sword Douluo's eyes slowly faded.

Feeling the powerful Soul Power in his body, utterly incomparable to before, his confidence swelled to unprecedented heights.

Yet when he looked at Ye Cheng opposite him, calm and composed, who had not even summoned his Martial Soul yet, he frowned. "My level is now equal to yours, and you still will not summon your Martial Soul? Do you look down on me!?"

In the Soul Master World, Soul Masters generally summoned their Martial Souls and announced their Soul Power Levels before sparring or fighting. It was both a sign of respect for one's opponent and an unwritten rule.

Can I say I forgot?

Ye Cheng felt awkward inside. He had been too focused on acting cool and profound.

There was no helping it. He had ultimately been an ordinary person before and had never fought a Soul Master. Forgetting this unwritten rule in a moment of oversight was only human nature.

Damn it, what do I do now?

If I summon my Martial Soul now, won't that be too embarrassing?

No, I can only keep up the mistake.

Ye Cheng made his decision. He felt that even without using his Martial Soul, the powerful strength brought by his Persona might still be enough to defeat Sword Douluo.

Thus, he said nothing on the surface. He merely smiled faintly, his face filled with unfathomable mystery.

Yet in Sword Douluo's eyes, his expression conveyed only one meaning: dealing with you does not require a Martial Soul.

"Arrogant!"

Sword Douluo was finally enraged.

In his view, Ye Cheng was simply looking down on him too much.

And he was utterly arrogant!

After all, in this world, most of a Soul Master's strength rested upon his Martial Soul. Without using one's Martial Soul, one could not even use the Soul Skills most crucial to a Soul Master.

And if a Soul Master did not use Soul Skills, then even with abundant Soul Power and a powerful physique, how much of his strength could he truly display?

Sword Douluo admitted that Ye Cheng was strong, but wanting to defeat him without using his Martial Soul—especially when he himself had now been enhanced—was simply arrogant and ignorant.

Was his Seven Kill Sword really being looked down upon like this?

At that thought, Sword Douluo could no longer endure it.

Sword Qi erupted!

His entire body transformed into a sharp, piercing force, instantly tearing through the air. The Seven Kill Sword in his hand slanted downward as the first Soul Ring, transformed into a star, lit up. His Sword Qi surged explosively as he slashed at Ye Cheng.

Kill!

Terrifying Sword Qi shot through the air, cleaving space apart and revealing blackness. Ye Cheng stood right within that severed void.

Feeling the power behind it, Ye Cheng knew that this was not because Sword Douluo's sword alone was capable of slicing through space. It should have been the effect of his Martial Soul working in tandem with a Soul Skill.

If Sword Douluo's Seven Kill Sword could cut through space through its own power alone, or merely through Sword Qi, then not even a god could block a single strike from him. That would mean his realm in the sword path had already transcended the mundane and reached the utmost pinnacle.

That was clearly impossible.

Still, even so, faced with the sharpness of this sword strike, Ye Cheng naturally could not foolishly take it with his body. With a whoosh, he vanished from where he stood.

"!"

Sword Douluo was startled. He suddenly recalled the Soul Bones Ye Cheng had acquired after slaughtering numerous Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in the video he had seen earlier.

Clearly, his method of suddenly disappearing was most likely a Soul Bone skill.

It seemed that even without using his Martial Soul, Ye Cheng would be extremely difficult to deal with using Soul Bone skills alone.