First Kill: High-Level Soul Elder

"Hmph, courting death."

Hu'er Han slammed his right foot into the ground, and three yellow Soul Rings rose beneath him.

"First Soul Skill, Demon Bear Stomp!"

His foot crashed down, making the earth tremble and sending shards of stone bursting forth.

The stone fragments had sharp edges and flew at extreme speed. Getting hit by them would surely result in serious injuries.

"Nothing impressive!"

Wu Qi sneered. The Azure Luan Wings behind him beat rapidly, whipping up fierce gusts that formed a wall of wind and blocked the flying stones.

"I underestimated you."

Hu'er Han rushed forward and swung a heavy fist at Wu Qi.

The attack power of a Power Attack-Type Spirit Master was not something an Agility Attack-Type Spirit Master could withstand.

In his eyes, Wu Qi had given up his aerial advantage and chosen to fight on the ground. He had already chosen his own death.

With freedom seemingly within reach, Hu'er Han unconsciously put even more force into his punch.

The Azure Luan Wings spread before Wu Qi, taking the punch head-on.

The strength of a high-level Soul Elder was not to be underestimated, and Wu Qi was forced back several steps.

"As expected of a strength-type Soul Master. In that case, I'll try this move."

As a disciple of the Azure Luan Douluo, he had long since begun studying his master's signature techniques.

The Spirit Luan Martial Void Art was a close-combat Soul Skill created by the Azure Luan Douluo himself.

He had come here to train and test the power of his Self-Created Soul Skill, so naturally, it was part of his training.

Blades sprang from Wu Qi's fingertips as he reached out with one hand.

Hu'er Han laughed wildly. "Good! You want to fight me at close range? Who's afraid of who!"

"Second Soul Skill, Demon Bear Roaring Fist."

Power gathered in his right fist, poised to strike.

As a high-level Soul Elder and a strength-type Soul Master, the force behind this punch was unquestionably formidable.

For Wu Qi, who was only a low-level Soul Elder, the best choice now would have been to use his aerial advantage and evade the attack.

But confident in the power of the Spirit Luan Martial Void Art, he took the punch head-on.

Hu'er Han had been blinded by the prospect of freedom. How could he have spared any thought for the trick behind it?

Just as the fist was about to land, Wu Qi swiftly leaned back, wrapped both hands around Hu'er Han's arm, and beat his wings rapidly to disperse the force of the punch.

Then he locked around his opponent's arm, explosively tensed the muscles of his waist and abdomen, and hurled Hu'er Han heavily to the ground.

Deflecting force was an ability of the Azure Luan Spirit. Using it to create a fighting style allowed him to contend head-on with ordinary strength-type Soul Masters without falling behind.

Moreover, Hu'er Han had taken no defensive measures. It would have been difficult for Wu Qi not to succeed.

On the other side, the Coiling Dragon Staff in Qian Gu Changkong's hands blossomed with every strike, beating A Ming until he cried out in pain.

A Ming's Martial Soul was also a weapon, but the suppression in techniques left him unable to raise his head at all.

Hu'er Han kept suffering losses in close combat at Wu Qi's hands, and he was furious.

"For a low-level Soul Elder to force me this far, you truly are a genius of Spirit Hall. Unfortunately, you should never have blocked my path to freedom."

"I'll give you one last chance. Hand over the Gold Badge, and I'll spare your life!"

Wu Qi chuckled. "Oh? You don't seem to understand the situation. I already have the advantage, so why should I surrender?"

Hu'er Han's gaze was fierce. "Very well. You brought this upon yourself."

"Third Spirit Skill, Wild Instinct!"

His entire body entered a berserk state, increasing both his attack and defense by fifty percent.

In terms of strength, he was now no weaker than a low-level Soul Ancestor.

"Then let me help you wake up!"

Wu Qi leaped into the air, his Azure Luan Wings beating furiously as the second Soul Ring beneath his feet suddenly lit up.

His second Soul Ring was no ordinary hundred-year Soul Ring. There were traces of purple upon it, and it was an astonishing nine hundred years old, already exceeding the absorption limit for a second Soul Ring.

Thanks to Spirit Hall's resources, his body was no weaker than that of a strength-type Soul Master of the same rank. When he absorbed his second Soul Ring, he had clearly still had room to spare!

It could be said that nine hundred years was not his limit, but the limit that the Azure Luan Douluo could safely allow him to absorb.

"Second Soul Skill, Wailing Wind."

The Soul Ring from the Mystic Sound Parrot granted a Soul Skill corresponding to another ability of the Azure Luan Spirit—sound waves.

Sound-wave attacks were also a type of Spirit Attack.

Having entered a berserk state, Hu'er Han had temporarily lost his reason. Yet the sound-wave attack restored his clarity, causing his berserk Soul Skill to collapse on its own.

"How is that possible? What Martial Soul do you have?"

As the strength in his body ebbed away like the sea tide, Hu'er Han had long lost his earlier arrogance.

As a Soul Elder, the sound-wave attack did not affect him much, but his lackey A Ming was not so fortunate.

His perception and mobility were completely paralyzed, turning him into little more than a wooden post.

Qian Gu Changkong used his second Soul Skill, leaving him to die on the spot.

Hu'er Han panicked, but he had not actually been injured and still had the strength to fight.

Crane Cloud Wings emerged behind Wu Qi, overlapping with the wings of his Azure Luan Spirit without causing any visible change in appearance.

The Crane Cloud Wings could transform into wing blades, enhancing Wu Qi's combat power.

His wings spread wide, gleaming with cold light as the feathers at their tips turned into sharp blades.

"Die!"

His wings spun, stirring up a storm as he shot forward.

Hu'er Han steadied himself amid his panic and tried to block the attack.

The twin wings struck with incomparable ferocity, cutting open numerous wounds across his body.

Seeing that he could not win, Hu'er Han began to think of retreating.

He admitted defeat today. Once he gathered more men again, it would be the other side's death day!

With his identity as a trainee exposed, how could Wu Qi possibly let him leave?

"Wing Blade Slash!"

A Self-Created Soul Skill Wu Qi had developed on his own using the sharpened wings of the Crane Cloud Wings.

The wing blades slashed out, shattering man and mount alike!

Hu'er Han's body was massive, so he was merely grievously injured rather than killed.

Wu Qi immediately cut off both his legs, eliminating any possibility of escape!

About three minutes later, Hu'er Han's body collapsed limply into the rainwater, completely losing all signs of life.

Qian Gu Changkong ran over with a face full of excitement. "Wu Ge, you're amazing! That counts as defeating an enemy above your rank, doesn't it?"

Then he said guiltily, "If Grandpa finds out, he'll probably compare me to you again."

Wu Qi was somewhat exhausted.

Killing a high-level Soul Elder in this environment had still been too much of a strain. If it had been a windy day, it should have been much easier.

"Your Innate Soul Power is as high as rank nine, yet you're only a rank twenty-eight Soul Grandmaster now. That is indeed a little low."

Qian Gu Changkong protested, "It's not like I've been slacking off! My cultivation speed just won't improve. What can I do?"

His words made Wu Qi think of something.

The greatest problem on the Douluo Continent was that Soul Masters lacked a complete cultivation method.

Although Tang San's Mysterious Heaven Skill came from a low-martial world, it was absolutely ahead of every Soul Master on the Douluo Continent.

If not for the Mysterious Heaven Skill, Tang San's talent would probably have been ruined by Yu Xiaogang long ago.

Wu Qi had no way to change the matter of cultivation methods either. Even if he wanted to create one, it would take decades.

After a pause, he urged, "Cultivation cannot be rushed. Don't be too anxious."

"Let's collect the badges first. Before night falls, we'll enter the inner city."