Victory in Three Moves, Tang Yuehua's Impulsiveness

Too impulsive.

Lu Yan could not help shaking his head.

Qian Renxue's combat experience was far too poor. She had already suffered once, yet she still dared to charge straight in.

The sole, deep purple Soul Ring on her body suddenly lit up.

Third Soul Skill: Illusionary Dream Domain!

"Boom—!"

Butterfly wings spread, blooming with Seven-Colored Light.

An Eight-Thousand-Year Soul Ring—one that had even surpassed the Soul Ring limit ordinarily possible for a person's fourth ring.

At this moment, it granted Lu Yan unparalleled Spiritual Power.

Alarm bells rang in Qian Renxue's mind, yet she did not panic.

Her three Soul Rings lit up as well.

Third Soul Skill: Angel's Illumination.

Blinding, scorching golden light suddenly surged around her.

She was not afraid of a soul skill collision.

But... in the very next instant.

Qian Renxue's gaze turned hazy.

His vast Spiritual Power, powerful enough to almost affect reality, surpassed hers at that instant.

It had faintly reached the Soul Emperor realm.

How was that possible?

The seven-colored rosy clouds did not spread slowly. Instead, they condensed into a dazzling streak of light, as if crossing the distance of space itself.

At the speed of pure spiritual force, it ignored the physical speed she took such pride in and shot straight toward her brow.

Qian Renxue wanted to dodge, but her body could not keep up with her mind's reaction.

"Buzz—!"

The instant the streak of light entered her brow.

The angel's golden light suddenly vanished like a guttering candle in the wind.

Only the pair of golden wings behind her maintained her hovering posture through inertia.

"Where... am I?"

Qian Renxue's vision was blurred as she looked around in confusion.

It seemed to be a magnificent great hall, with two vague figures before her.

She blinked hard, but it was as though a thick layer of water mist veiled her vision, making it impossible to see clearly.

Yet she had not forgotten that she was currently fighting Lu Yan.

She had been hit. She must have fallen into his illusion.

She had to break through it immediately.

However, the moment she condensed her soul power, the "water mist" suddenly dispersed, and her vision became incomparably clear.

She saw those two people clearly at last.

Only for an instant.

Qian Renxue was struck by lightning. Her pupils rapidly contracted, and her breathing stagnated.

Those two were precisely the pair she least wished to face in this life—

Her mother, Bibi Dong, and Hu Liena, whom she envied and hated most.

Bone-chilling coldness from deep within her soul instantly swept through her entire body.

An invisible spiritual thought also sliced across her heart.

Her will, perseverance, boiling fighting spirit... all crumbled at this moment.

The will to resist she had gathered melted away completely, like snow and ice under the sun.

She sank into pain.

"Nana, well done.

"As expected of Mother's proudest daughter."

Bibi Dong wore a gentle smile she had never seen before, one that came from the depths of her heart.

She reached out and gently drew Hu Liena into her embrace, her posture intimate and indulgent.

At that moment, the "mother and daughter" seemed to notice her presence and turned their heads at the same time.

They remained in each other's arms, smiling.

Yet beneath those smiles lay undisguised ridicule and mockery, as if they were looking at a pitiful, superfluous outsider.

"No!"

The grievances, unwillingness, fury, and profound disappointment Qian Renxue had suppressed for more than a decade.

All exploded and magnified completely at this moment.

She let out the sharpest, most miserable scream of her life.

"Boom—!"

Angel Soul Power erupted uncontrollably along with her collapsing emotions.

Outside, three seconds earlier.

"Y-Young Master lost?"

Snake Lance Douluo stared in disbelief.

With her Martial Soul dismissed, Qian Renxue fell helplessly from the air like an angel with broken wings.

Lu Yan was close enough to catch her and land steadily on the ground.

However, the instant Lu Yan let go—

"No—!"

It was a scream not only within the illusionary dream, but in reality as well.

Even more terrifying and blazing Angel Soul Power surged out from her body like an erupting volcano.

The golden wings that had dispersed condensed and spread once more.

Their radiance was several times stronger than before.

This time, it was no longer the suppressed Soul Elder level, but all the soul power Qian Renxue possessed as a Soul King.

"Not good."

Lu Yan's expression changed.

He instantly pushed Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to its limit, his body retreating explosively.

Even so, he was still grazed by the edge of that berserk soul power.

His entire body was flung backward. Lu Yan twisted himself in midair, barely avoiding an undignified landing.

This was Qian Renxue's true strength.

A Soul King with a God Level Martial Soul truly was not someone he could confront head-on at his current level.

Qian Renxue hovered in midair.

Her Angel Soul Power, originally bright and sacred, now carried a cold, baleful aura.

Her Golden Eyes were tinged red, with tears faintly glimmering within them.

Yet those tears contained boundless pain and hatred.

With the soul skill's effect gone, Qian Renxue regained her clarity.

Qian Renxue stared at Lu Yan, her gaze incomparably complicated.

Before the fight, she had even told Lu Yan to withstand fifty moves.

Yet in merely three moves, she had been dragged into an illusion by him and driven into an emotional breakdown.

She had even been forced to lift her soul power suppression before she could break free.

She had suffered a complete defeat.

Qian Renxue could not help thinking.

If they had fought at the same level, her fate likely would not have been much better than Yu Tianheng's back at the Soul Fighting Arena.

Spiritual Power was unlike soul power. It could not be resisted through technique or willpower.

"You won."

Qian Renxue's voice carried a trace of barely perceptible hoarseness.

"You let me win," Lu Yan replied.

"Pack up. We will set off for Spirit City as soon as possible."

Qian Renxue quickly reined in her emotions and resumed her usual cool, noble bearing.

"I want you... to utterly defeat Hu Liena."

Lu Yan frowned and asked the crucial question.

"If I defeat her, Your Eminence the Pope... won't personally make a move against me, will she?"

He still valued his life, especially when Bibi Dong was a madwoman with formidable combat power.

Qian Renxue flicked out a letter and a token engraved with an Angel Pattern.

"Don't worry. With me here, she won't touch you." Qian Renxue paused, then added, "Help me deliver this letter to the Elder Hall."

Lu Yan accepted the letter and token, then nodded in agreement.

Just as he turned to leave, Qian Renxue's voice came again, carrying an unprecedented solemnity.

"Lu Yan, I lost this time."

"I hope that one day in the future, you will possess the qualifications to make me... go all out."

"I'll work hard."

Back at Heaven.

Lu Yan recalled the battle just now and marveled at the power of Illusionary Dream Domain.

It had actually trapped Qian Renxue in an illusionary dream for several seconds.

Illusionary Dream Domain was a single-target control soul skill, formed by combining the traits of the Heart-Bewitching Butterfly and the Dream Butterfly Martial Soul.

It could make an enemy fall into an illusionary dream, where they would see the scenes they feared most, least wished to see, and were most vulnerable to in their life.

The terrifying part was this.

The Dream Butterfly would invade the victim's emotions. Even if the opponent knew they were inside an illusion, the surging tide of emotions would make it difficult for them to pull themselves free.

The duration of the control depended on the opponent's Spiritual Power and soul power.

Qian Renxue had relied on her Soul King-level soul power to forcibly break through Illusionary Dream Domain.

"Still... what exactly did she see back then?"

Lu Yan recalled Qian Renxue's scream, which contained endless pain, resentment, and unwillingness.

He could not help feeling a little curious.

The Next Day.

Tang Yuehua came uninvited.

The moment she pushed open the shop door, her gaze locked firmly onto Lu Yan, her eyes filled with undisguised longing and affection.

"Xiao Yan,"

Tang Yuehua's voice was so gentle it seemed almost able to drip with water.

"Aunt Yue... missed you very much."

She had realized that she was becoming increasingly unable to live without Lu Yan.

Even a brief separation left her restless, her heart filled with worry and concern.

Every night without him felt especially long and unbearable.

"Aunt Yue, I... missed you too."

Lu Yan looked at her.

A trace of "love," carefully suppressed with effort, appeared in his eyes at just the right time. His gaze was passionate, yet he could only hide it.

He wanted to step forward, yet stopped himself.

Tang Yuehua was incredibly perceptive. In an instant, she caught the deeply buried emotion in his eyes.

As well as his hesitant, conflicted appearance—wanting to draw close, yet not daring to.

Could it be...

In a flash.

Fragments of the past rapidly replayed in her mind.

Every focused look from the youth, every casual moment of protection, every shy retreat...

What she had believed to be care now seemed to connect into another answer.

Perhaps he, too, harbored the same feelings that crossed the boundaries between them?

The thought made Tang Yuehua's heart race. An immense joy and terror seized her at the same time.

She feared she was merely imagining things, and feared even more that if she made it clear, she would frighten him away and make him avoid her forever.

But surging emotion washed away the dam of reason.