So He Was an Evil Soul Master

"Ji Hui is eliminated!"

The referee's voice rang out in time, but Ji Tongxuan could no longer hear it. Red light spread from his wings across his entire body, even turning his eyes scarlet. The cry from his mouth went from loud to hoarse, until only a low growl remained in his throat.

When the light faded, the wings on Ji Tongxuan's back had grown more than twice as large as before, their color changing from gray to blood-red.

Spreading his wings, Ji Tongxuan rose into the air and looked down at Wang Nan from above.

Ji Hui had already passed out in his hand. Ji Tongxuan shot him a disgusted glance before tossing him aside.

The nearby referee noticed that something was wrong with Ji Tongxuan and was about to stop the match, but suddenly paused. Seemingly having heard something, the referee casually swept his gaze across the stands, then changed direction and instead sent Ji Hui off the arena.

With a beat of his wings, Ji Tongxuan dove toward Wang Nan. His right hand curled into a claw as he reached for Wang Nan's throat.

Wang Nan raised the Coiling Dragon Staff before him, but the blow still sent him staggering back several steps.

This was the first time Wang Nan had been overpowered head-on by an opponent. In previous matches, he had faced strength-oriented opponents like Yu Chenyu, but with Gongyang Mo's support, he could even fight the Dragon-Transformed Yu Chenyu.

Yet the strength of the man before him was excessive to an absurd degree.

"Speed!"

Unable to clash with him directly, Wang Nan retreated several steps and called out to Gongyang Mo.

Whether his opponent had used some additional skill or secret technique, there was no way an Agility Attack Type Soul Grandmaster could maintain such a tremendous increase in strength indefinitely. Wang Nan intended to keep maneuvering around him until his burst of power ran out.

His wings beat continuously as Ji Tongxuan took to the air again. With his aerial advantage, he quickly caught up and reached for the back of Wang Nan's neck. From afar, it looked rather like an eagle catching a rabbit.

Wang Nan was well aware of his role as the "rabbit." He viciously drove the Coiling Dragon Staff into the ground on his right, using the recoil to topple left and evade the fierce strike.

When his attack missed, Ji Tongxuan grabbed one of his own wings with his left hand and swung it sharply. At the same time, his Second Soul Ring lit up, and the edge of that wing slashed toward the left like a blade.

Wang Nan quickly adjusted his stance and was about to turn and dodge again when he felt his body suddenly grow heavy. Looking back, he saw that Ji Tongxuan's teammate, Song Chang, had already reached Gongyang Mo.

Even though Gongyang Mo was a three-ringed Soul Elder, his Martial Soul Characteristic meant he could not contend with an Assault Type fighter like Song Chang. Under Song Chang's relentless attacks, he had no choice but to interrupt his support for Wang Nan.

Without the amplification of Gongyang Mo's thousand-year Soul Skill, Wang Nan seemingly could not match Ji Tongxuan's current speed with his own alone.

In the blink of an eye, Wang Nan had made his decision.

Then he would go all out. At worst, he would lose.

Wang Nan's consciousness connected with his Spiritual Sea once more. Unlike before, the Luminous Orb that had almost never shown any activity now seemed to have come alive. It continuously flickered with white light as though breathing, while the lake representing his Spiritual Power rose and fell along with it.

He had no time to inspect the changes in his Spiritual Sea. He gripped the Coiling Dragon Staff with both hands at his waist, then thrust it forward in an instant.

Staff met wing, and Wang Nan's Spiritual Power poured forth through the Coiling Dragon Staff. To both their surprise, Ji Tongxuan's Soul Power rapidly receded as if it had encountered its natural predator, and the wings behind his back vanished as well.

Ji Tongxuan, who had been brimming with confidence just moments ago, lost all his strength in an instant. The sound of bones breaking came from his left arm, traveling from his fingers all the way to his shoulder.

"Wang Nan's Team wins!" Du Weilun's voice rang out from the platform.

Just as he had arrived, Yan Shaozhe silently left the platform. Du Weilun finally called the match to a halt as well.

As Du Weilun stepped onto the arena, the noisy new students around them gradually fell silent.

"The champions of the New Student Elimination Round are Wang Nan's Team. I assume no one has any objections?" With the strength of an eight-ringed Soul Douluo, Du Weilun's voice carried a great distance.

No dissent came from the stands. The sound of Ji Tongxuan's bones continuously breaking would likely remain with these new students for a long time. Naturally, no one questioned who deserved the championship.

"Now, everyone is dismissed. All new students are to gather at Shrek Plaza in two days for class assignments. Teachers responsible for the entrance assessment and all Head Teachers, come to my office for a meeting."

After Du Weilun left the assessment area, Wang Yan on the platform hurried over.

"You weren't hurt, were you?"

"I'm fine, Second Uncle. But what happened?" Wang Nan sensed that something was off. Even if it was only the New Student Assessment, it should not have ended so hastily, should it?

"You'll cover this in your future classes." Wang Yan looked around as he spoke. The new students were already filing out of the assessment area. "Come, let's talk as we walk."

"Do you know what Evil Soul Masters are? Our Martial Souls can be anything. Because of that diversity, Martial Souls possess all kinds of different characteristics. Some Martial Souls grant tremendous power while also having extremely harmful effects on the Soul Master themselves or on others around them."

"If those Soul Masters can control their Martial Souls and suppress those characteristics, they are no different from ordinary Soul Masters. But once they cannot suppress the characteristics of their Martial Souls, or deliberately indulge the evil side of their Martial Souls out of desire for easily obtained power, they fall into becoming Evil Soul Masters."

"Teacher Wang, does that mean Ji Tongxuan is an Evil Soul Master?" Gongyang Mo asked. This was the first time he had encountered the concept of Evil Soul Masters.

"That's right. Ji Tongxuan's Martial Soul is called Blood-Crying Chirp, mutated from another avian Martial Soul. Before I explain this Martial Soul, I need to tell you a story. There is a kind of bird that lays its eggs in the nests of other birds. Once its chicks hatch, they steal the food of the other chicks to ensure their own survival."

"The Blood-Crying Chirp Martial Soul is like that bird from the story. It can grow stronger by absorbing the Soul Power of other avian Martial Souls, while transferring the damage it suffers onto them. If this characteristic is used properly, a Blood-Crying Chirp Soul Master assisted by several avian Martial Souls can reach a truly terrifying level of strength."

"So Ji Tongxuan made it all the way to the Final Match using this method?"

"Yes. A Blood-Crying Chirp Soul Master can possess such power when supported by other Martial Souls. Unfortunately, in the final match, Ji Tongxuan still failed to suppress his Martial Soul's nature. Absorption, plunder, greed—once the characteristics of Blood-Crying Chirp fully erupted, what happened just now was inevitable. Ji Tongxuan lost control, and Ji Hui was drained until he passed out."

"I see." Gongyang Mo nodded, then changed the subject. "But Xiaonan, I really didn't expect it. Such a powerful Evil Soul Master, and you knocked him out with one strike of your staff."

"Well..." Wang Nan sensed the sudden huge increase in his Spiritual Power and recalled how unusually active the Luminous Orb in his Spiritual Sea had been just now. "I'm not really sure either. It just felt like Ji Tongxuan suddenly wasn't that strong anymore."

Hearing this, Wang Yan revealed a mysterious smile. However, he had no intention of explaining. Instead, he patted Wang Nan on the shoulder. "All right, don't think too much about it. For these next two days, just enjoy the joy of being champions."