What Do You Mean a Sparring Match Can Also Be an Item Match?

Xiao Hongchen could tell that the humanoid Fierce Beast across from him had not even used a soul skill. It had merely wrapped itself in a layer of Soul Power, ignored his attacks, and charged straight at him.

Although having three legs looked somewhat ridiculous, toad-type Martial Souls generally possessed explosive power that was among the best of all Martial Souls.

Especially as the owner of the Three-legged Golden Toad Martial Soul, a top-tier Martial Soul with Divine Beast bloodline, the leg behind Xiao Hongchen's rear was even more powerful than his two actual legs.

With all three legs working together, even without any speed-enhancing ability, he darted around the Arena at high speed in a comical posture. From time to time, he would catch Chen Ming off guard by firing two shots at him, trying to hold him back.

But it was useless. The gap in their stats was simply too vast. Xiao Hongchen maneuvered around for a long time, jumping and firing rays until he had expended more than half his Soul Power, yet Chen Ming still did not have a single wound on him. Other than his upper clothes being blasted apart, he was completely fine.

When facing Xiao Hongchen's attacks, Chen Ming usually neither dodged nor blocked, letting the other party scrub him down. Only when attacks were aimed at his face or lower body would Chen Ming actively block them.

It was not because they could break through his defenses or anything. It was simply because getting hit in the face looked bad, while getting hit below the waist could blow holes in his underwear. Neither was very elegant.

But in Xiao Hongchen's eyes, Chen Ming's actions clearly carried an entirely different meaning.

"Ha ha, I get it! I finally get it! Big guy, your defense is very strong. Few can rival you among Soul Masters at this level, but I've still seen through your weakness!"

Xiao Hongchen put away his dual guns and desperately leaped across the Arena with all three legs, narrowly avoiding Chen Ming's pursuit. Although his face had turned bright red from the massive expenditure of stamina and Soul Power, he still wore an expression as though everything were under his control.

"Weakness?" Chen Ming tilted his head in confusion. Without even activating any skills, he had blocked all of Xiao Hongchen's attacks with nothing but his basic stats. After chasing Xiao Hongchen around for so long, he had used less than Twenty Percent of his stamina and Soul Power.

A weakness? How did he not know he had one? Why had no one ever told him he had a weakness?

Was it because he was relatively slower than Xiao Hongchen, so Xiao Hongchen believed his weakness was speed?

Chen Ming was confused, but he also looked forward to Xiao Hongchen finding a weakness in him that even he himself could not see. At the same time, his body did not pause.

As Soul Power flowed into them, the Level 2 Soul Tool Dragon Pattern Boots beneath Chen Ming's feet, which he had always worn as odor-resistant shoes, finally served their purpose as Soul Tools in battle for the first time.

The inner lining tightened around Chen Ming's calves, and the boots changed in shape and size, fitting the contours of his feet more closely.

Golden patterns slowly lit up one after another. The formation within activated, beginning to strengthen Chen Ming's leg explosiveness and foot strength.

The Dragon Pattern Boots did not provide much enhancement to the legs and feet, only around Thirty Percent. Their effectiveness would also greatly weaken once the user reached Soul Elder, but they were still an exceptionally useful Soul Tool.

Unlike Soul Tools that purely enhanced speed, the Dragon Pattern Boots strengthened the legs themselves. While increasing speed, they also further boosted the user's strength.

Soul Power surged through Chen Ming's body as he reappeared before Xiao Hongchen at a speed more than Forty Percent, nearly Fifty Percent, faster than before. His sandbag-sized fist swung in a full arc through the air and smashed heavily toward Xiao Hongchen.

Even though he had held back, if Chen Ming's punch landed on an ordinary Soul Grandmaster-level Soul Master with a Beast Martial Soul, it could easily knock them out of the fight.

There was not the slightest bit of technique in this punch. There were only stats.

"Come on, then! Let me show you my strongest move!" Xiao Hongchen shouted proudly, then pulled a small spherical object from his Storage Soul Tool and hurled it at Chen Ming.

Although Chen Ming tried to dodge with a quick sidestep, his huge body and the brief recovery time prevented him from escaping this obviously strange object in time. He could only raise his arm to block it directly.

But Chen Ming, who had prepared himself to defend, had not expected that Xiao Hongchen's so-called strongest move was not an offensive item at all.

"Bzzzt—"

The small sphere suddenly exploded, instantly releasing an intense burst of light. Chen Ming had never expected Xiao Hongchen, a Gold Attribute Soul Master and Soul Engineer, to use a Flashbang in a sparring match, and his eyes were directly blinded.

Even reinforced by Soul Power, his vulnerable eyes still began to water involuntarily, and the movements of his hands slowed as well.

Seeing this, Jing Hongchen sighed. A trace of anger rose in his heart as he lamented Xiao Hongchen's lack of restraint.

It was only a sparring match. Neither side had used their true strength, precisely to prevent things from escalating into True Fire and making future interactions awkward.

Hadn't he seen that the other side had not even activated a soul skill, directly taking attacks with his face? Even when throwing punches, he had held back his strength. Why could his own child not grasp that sense of restraint?

Everyone else was having a friendly match, so why were you the one getting serious? Did you think only you had moves like this available?

Although the prepared Xiao Hongchen was inevitably flashed by his own Flashbang as well, his rhythm did not slow. With a sweep of both hands across his waist, he pulled out several ceramic jars and smashed them directly onto the ground.

The jars were filled with a slightly viscous liquid. It was made by mixing bodily fluid extracted from certain water-type Soul Beasts with water and various materials in a specific ratio, and was specially used to process materials for water-type and ice-type Soul Tools.

The materials in a single jar cost more than two hundred Gold Soul Coins. Under normal circumstances, one jar was enough for seventeen or eighteen Level 1 or Level 2 Soul Tools.

Xiao Hongchen smashed five of them at once. In an instant, the small patch of ground was nearly covered in the viscous liquid. This was true pay-to-win combat.

Then Xiao Hongchen flicked his hand and pulled out an ice-type Soul Tool gun, beginning to shoot at the liquid on the ground.

The liquid already conducted ice and water attribute energy, and under the effects of the ice-attribute Soul Tool Rays, it rapidly froze. Together with the shattered ceramic fragments, it formed an uneven sheet of ice across the ground.

"Is this a new tactic developed specifically for low-level Soul Engineers?"

"..."

"This is a pretty expensive way to fight."

Chen Li was somewhat puzzled. He felt that this tactic was neither that of a Soul Master nor a Soul Engineer. However, since Jing Hongchen's cultivation was equal to his own and his Soul Tool expertise was greater, Chen Li could only mutter his confusion.

In response, Jing Hongchen simply covered his face.

Xiao Hongchen, having consumed more than Sixty Percent of his Soul Power, panted heavily as he put away his Soul Tool gun. He then quickly lowered his center of gravity, using the awkward posture of two legs in front and one behind to maintain a position that was almost sitting on the ground without actually sitting down.

Then Xiao Hongchen pulled a metal staff from his Soul Tool—who knew why it had been stored there—and swung it directly at Chen Ming's knee.

Xiao Hongchen's thinking was perfectly normal. Any normal Soul Master was bound to have things they excelled at and things they did not.