Moses Parting the Sea

Roar!

Iron Hammer charged onto the platform with a roar, throwing his arms wide.

Yellow, yellow!

Two Hundred-Year Soul Rings rose around him. His muscles instantly swelled, thick black fur covered both arms, and his ten fingers turned as sharp as steel hooks.

A savage aura rushed straight at them!

The stands instantly erupted in thunderous cheers!

"Iron Hammer! Iron Hammer! Tear him apart!"

"I bet a hundred Gold Soul Coins on you! Don't let me down!"

Only after the cheers died down slightly did the host introduce him in a somewhat teasing tone.

"And his opponent is a newcomer making his first appearance! A mysterious... masked kid! Let's see his codename—oh, Chen Xing!"

"Let's see what this contestant Chen Xing is capable of... Hmm, a level-twenty Soul Grandmaster!"

The host drew out his words, his voice brimming with mockery.

Sure enough.

The stands first fell silent.

Then, laughter and jeers even fiercer than before erupted!

"What the hell? A level twenty actually dares challenge Iron Hammer?"

"Where'd this little brat come from? Is he here to serve himself up to Iron Hammer?"

"I bet he won't last ten seconds! No, five!"

"Give us our money back! This is just a slaughter!"

Amid the boos, Han Yuchen slowly stepped onto the Soul Dueling Platform.

He still looked slender and frail. He had not released his martial soul, nor had he summoned any soul rings.

He simply stood there in silence.

As though the ridicule around him had nothing to do with him.

The referee stepped forward and asked routinely.

"Are both sides ready? Soul dueling rules: no killing blows."

The way he looked at Han Yuchen was full of sympathy.

Iron Hammer grinned viciously and clenched his casserole-sized fists. His knuckles cracked loudly.

"Don't worry. I know my limits."

"At most, I'll leave him bedridden for the rest of his life."

The referee sighed and raised his hand high.

"Both sides, fall back!"

"Soul duel... begin!"

Before his words had even faded!

"Roar—!"

Iron Hammer let out a roaring howl and stomped down hard!

The solid stone arena floor was actually crushed into a shallow pit beneath his foot!

His burly body was like an out-of-control heavy truck, charging straight at Han Yuchen with a gale fierce enough to tear through the air!

First Soul Skill, Bear's Charge!

His enormous fist, carrying overwhelming force, shot straight for Han Yuchen's face!

Here it came.

Another one of those brainless brute fighting styles.

Pure strength counters me the hardest.

Mm, I know this script well. Time for my performance.

Ding!

[Origin Talent [Restraint] has been triggered!]

[Attack type detected: Pure physical impact.]

[Assessment: The host is 100% restrained!]

[Effect generated: This attack's damage is 100% nullified and reflected at 200% power!]

All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

In the eyes of every spectator.

Faced with that world-shattering punch, the silver-masked youth had been scared stiff.

He stood there without moving.

He did not even blink.

Just as Iron Hammer's fist, powerful enough to smash boulders, was about to touch Han Yuchen's mask.

Han Yuchen moved.

His movement was slow and light.

He merely raised his right hand.

Using one finger.

One fair, slender finger that did not seem to possess the slightest bit of strength.

He gently tapped the center of his opponent's fist.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment.

The entire world turned into slow motion.

In the stands, countless people had already shut their eyes in pity, bracing themselves for the next second's bloody spectacle.

In the VIP section, a blond, golden-eyed young man lazily swirled his wineglass, not even bothering to look at the arena.

Then.

Bang.

A soft sound.

It was not the sound of bones breaking.

Nor was it the sound of a heavy object striking the ground.

The sound was so faint, like a finger flicking someone on the forehead.

The next moment.

The savage grin on Iron Hammer's face froze.

A terrifying, irresistible force twice as powerful as his own attack surged back through that slender finger and blasted into his body!

Crack!

His thick arm gave a tooth-grating snap. The bones in his arm were shattered on the spot by the recoil, reduced to a pulverized fracture!

Before the agony could even reach his brain.

That force had already crashed into his internal organs like dry weeds before a storm!

"Pfft—!"

Iron Hammer let out a miserable, muffled groan. A mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs sprayed wildly from his mouth.

His massive body was like it had been struck head-on by an ancient beast. His eyes rolled back, and he flew backward even faster than he had charged in!

Boom!

He slammed heavily into the edge of the platform over ten meters away. His huge body twitched twice before he passed out on the spot.

The entire Soul Fighting Arena.

A Soul Fighting Arena packed with thousands.

Was silent as a grave.

Everyone stood dumbfounded, their eyes bulging as though they might pop out of their sockets.

The registration girl who had been waiting to see a joke gaped, the forms in her hands scattering all over the floor.

The spectators who had just been betting and mocking him all seemed to have been turned to stone, frozen in all sorts of ridiculous poses.

A gambler's wineglass slipped from his hand with a clatter and shattered on the ground. In the dead silence, the crisp sound was especially piercing.

The referee stood frozen for a full five seconds before suddenly coming to his senses and rushing over.

With trembling hands, he checked Iron Hammer's breathing.

He was still alive.

He had merely passed out.

But the meridians throughout his body had suffered severe shock, and who knew how many bones had been broken. He would not be getting out of bed for at least ten days to half a month.

The referee raised his head and looked at the silver-masked youth, who still stood where he was, slowly withdrawing his finger.

His eyes were filled with awe—and bone-deep... fear!

Han Yuchen withdrew his finger without saying a word.

Under the silent gaze of the entire arena, he turned and calmly walked down from the Soul Dueling Platform.

The crowd automatically parted before him like Moses parting the sea, opening a path.

Everyone looked at him as though he were a monster wearing human skin.

On the second floor of the Soul Fighting Arena, inside a luxurious VIP room.

Dai Mubai set down the wineglass in his hand.

For the first time, the frivolous laziness faded from his sinister golden eyes, replaced by intense interest.

He watched with great interest as the silver-masked figure disappeared into the shadows of the passageway.

"Go."

He gave the attendant beside him a casual order.

"Look into that kid called Chen Xing."

"Interesting."

That night.

A piece of news seemed to grow wings, spreading at a viral speed through every corner and every circle of the Soto Grand Soul Arena.

The silver mask, Chen Xing.

With one finger, he had instantly defeated the Iron Arm Bear, who had won ten consecutive matches.

That name, that legend, became famous overnight amid countless people's curiosity and speculation.