First the Fire Wolf Falls, Then the Greatsword Strikes

His Martial Soul was a Fire Demon Wolf, and heat radiated from his body. He had clearly come prepared to counter Shui Bing'er's Ice Attribute.

When he saw that Shui Bing'er was not the one who had stepped up, he paused, then gave a vicious grin.

"Another little girl? Fine. Makes no difference."

Yao Zi ignored his taunt. She stood quietly and summoned her Martial Soul—the Dragon Mark Thorn. Five Spirit Rings, two yellow, two purple, and one black, shone beneath her feet.

At the referee's command, the battle began.

The Soul King attacked at once.

He knew his advantages lay in strength, speed, and fire. If he got close, this frail-looking girl would be no match for him.

He became a streak of flame and charged at Yao Zi.

But just as he neared her, his feet suddenly caught.

Countless thorny vines surged wildly from the ground, filling the area within ten meters of Yao Zi in an instant.

The Soul King found himself trapped at their center, with more thorns closing in from every direction.

His expression changed. His Spirit Rings flashed beneath him as he desperately unleashed a fire Soul Skill, trying to burn through the thorns.

His flames could indeed burn through them.

But they were too slow. For every thorn he burned away, ten more surged in.

Worse, his flames did not seem to damage these thorns nearly as much as they should have.

Their resistance to fire far exceeded anything he had imagined.

What he did not know was that Xiao Yun had awakened Yao Zi's Wood Spirit Body, transforming her completely. Xiao Yun had also evolved her Crimson Flame Thorn into the Dragon Mark Thorn. Though it had lost its fire attacks, her Martial Soul had become far tougher and gained strong resistance