Several bolts whizzed through the air, breaking through the Soul Power defense and plunging straight into Zhu Zhuqing's abdomen.
"Zhuqing!!!"
"Zhuqing!"
Oscar rushed over without a second thought, his eyes brimming with worry and fear.
A ruthless glint flashed through Tang San's eyes. He took another Godly Zhuge Crossbow loaded with bolts from the Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night.
Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger. The bolts flew in a volley, aimed squarely at killing Oscar and Zhu Zhuqing.
After all, the Soul Fighting match wasn't over yet!
Oscar quickly spread his arms and shielded Zhu Zhuqing, his whole body blazing with Golden Light.
The bolts struck the light, sending sparks flying. They couldn't pierce it outright, but their force still penetrated, leaving Oscar in pain.
Tang San's Godly Zhuge Crossbow was tremendously powerful. At its strongest, it could even kill a Soul King or Soul Emperor.
After that volley, Oscar had suffered internal injuries, and a trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
Yet he didn't retreat a single step. Lan Minghua had once taught him to dodge if he couldn't block an attack.
But Zhu Zhuqing was behind him—his junior sister. No matter what, he would never abandon her.
Zhu Zhuqing's face was as pale as paper, her long lashes trembling slightly. At that moment, Oscar seemed impossibly tall in her eyes.
Since the day she was born, no one had ever risked their life for her like this.
Compared to Dai Mubai, Oscar was like heaven and earth.
Tang San grinned viciously and took out another Godly Zhuge Crossbow loaded with bolts.
"I refuse to believe you can block this one too!"
Oscar said nothing. He merely raised his right hand and gave Zhu Zhuqing a thumbs-up over his shoulder.
"Zhuqing, I'm counting on you!"
Zhu Zhuqing's gaze was resolute. She swallowed the Sausage and Dried Sausage Oscar had handed her in that split second while shielding her.
"Leave it to me. I won't let you down!"
In an instant, Soul Power surged through her like an erupting volcano, and the bolts lodged in her body were flung away.
The body injured by the Godly Zhuge Crossbow burst forth with even more astonishing speed.
Tang San hurriedly pulled the trigger. Several bolts shot through the air.
But Zhu Zhuqing was too fast, like a black bolt of lightning.
Even the Purple Demon Eye couldn't make out her figure; at most, it caught a blurry afterimage.
Tang San had recently overexerted himself by rushing his cultivation, and he was still in a weakened state.
He tried to dodge, only to find his body felt as heavy as lead.
Zhu Zhuqing appeared before him almost as if she'd teleported, her eyes glinting with icy light.
Her fingers turned black. It was the Nine Yin White Bone Claw from the Nine Yin Manual.
"Die!"
She swiped at Tang San's chest. Her claws cut through the air with a sharp whistle, as if they could tear it apart.
Tang San couldn't mount an effective defense. With a sharp hiss, the claw struck him squarely.
Blood sprayed everywhere, and even the stark white of his bones showed through the wound.
Zhu Zhuqing had grown up in an oppressive environment, and she'd long since learned that those who killed would be killed in turn.
Tang San had tried to kill her and Oscar, so she could kill Tang San too.
The strike nearly ripped Tang San open. He was sent flying.
Xiao Wu, bound by Blue Silver Grass, was carried along as Tang San hurtled away.
The two crashed out of the Soul Fighting Arena, kicking up a cloud of dust and losing the match.
The audience was deeply shaken. The turnaround had happened so quickly that the arena fell silent.
Then, as if on cue, thunderous applause erupted for the winners of the match: the Oscar-Zhu Combination!
Zhu Zhuqing didn't celebrate their victory. She rushed toward Oscar.
Tang San's bolts had pierced Oscar's Golden Light.
"Oscar, are you all right?!"
She ran over and caught Oscar just as he was about to fall, holding him in her arms.
"Thank goodness. We finally won."
Oscar's weak voice reached her. Before he lost consciousness, he shakily held out a Little Sausage to Zhu Zhuqing.
"The bolts are poisoned. Eat this to counteract the poison!"
He spent the last of his strength saying those words, then passed out completely.
Zhu Zhuqing ate the Little Sausage, bit her lip, and did something that left the entire arena speechless.
She lifted the unconscious Oscar in a bridal carry and slowly walked out of the Soul Fighting Arena.
It was strange for a woman to carry a man in a bridal carry, but not a single spectator laughed at Oscar.
If he hadn't taken the fatal blows for Zhu Zhuqing at the last moment, or given her the Sausage and Dried Sausage to help her recover, Tang San might have won the match with his Hidden Weapons.
How many people present could have done what Oscar had?
What right did they have to mock a true hero?
Zhao Wuji sat in the stands with a look of satisfaction and led the applause.
The rest of the audience joined in, and soon the whole Great Soul Arena rang with applause.
That thunderous applause was for the winners of this match alone: the Oscar-Zhu Combination.
As for Tang San and Xiao Wu's Sanwu Combination, the audience had already forgotten them.
The victor was king; it was as simple as that.
Outside the Soul Fighting Arena, Zhao Wuji had been waiting for a long time.
He took Oscar from Zhu Zhuqing and said gently, "You're both badly hurt. Come with me."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded, her eyes worried. "Teacher Zhao, Oscar will be okay, won't he?"
"Don't worry. The Great Soul Arena has stood for many years. Its healing methods are naturally good."
Without Healing Soul Masters, who knew how many Soul Masters would die or be left crippled?
Besides, healing was another source of income, and the Great Soul Arena wouldn't pass it up.
Zhao Wuji looked at Zhu Zhuqing like a proud father. She grew a little embarrassed, and a faint blush appeared on her cheeks.
"Teacher Zhao, p-please take Oscar and me to get treated."
"All right, all right. I'll take you there now."
Zhao Wuji smiled and led Zhu Zhuqing off for treatment, thinking to himself, Oscar, you lucky kid.
Zhu Zhuqing hadn't said anything, but the old man could read between the lines.
A woman's blush was worth more than a thousand words.
As for Tang San and Xiao Wu, they were no concern of Zhao Wuji's.
Anyone who went so far as to kill their fellow academy members deserved to die.
Besides, he'd managed to pry the true identity of the black-robed man from Flender.
Together with Lan Minghua's inexplicable remark to him, everything finally made sense.
Tang San was the black-robed man, Tang Hao's son.
If Tang Hao had been the one to test them that day, he would have been the target—not Lan Minghua.
After all, Zhao Wuji didn't have the strength to defeat a Titled Douluo like Lan Minghua could.
Only in the past few days had he truly understood what Lan Minghua meant by a calamity.
For him, it had been a life-saving kindness!
Of course, in the original story, Tang Hao had only given him a brutal beating.
But that night, Zhao Wuji had seen nothing but Tang Hao's brutality and cruelty.
And Tang Hao had lost an arm and a leg to Lan Minghua, leaving him crippled; he might even be dead.
So Zhao Wuji felt no burden about treating Tang San as harshly as he pleased.
He would leave the whole mess to Flender to worry about. After all, he was the dean.
Before you continue