Huangdou and Shrek, the Peak Duel 1

As Doudou's voice faded, the air above the main Soul Fighting Arena tightened abruptly. Two distinct waves of soul power pressure collided with a boom, and invisible shockwaves swept wildly toward the surroundings, using the center of the ring as a boundary.

The roar of twenty thousand spectators nearly blew the roof off, while the warm glow of the red crystals bathed the bluestone ring, casting the figures of the youths on both sides in sharp relief.

Doudou's voice echoed beneath the dome, "Huangdou Team—Yu Tianheng, level 39! Shi Mo, level 38! Shi Mi, level 38! Yu Feng, level 37! Osler, level 37! Ye Lingling, level 36! Tian Xuan, level 33!"

Every time a number was announced, the spectator stands erupted.

"Level 39? How are they supposed to fight that?"

"Isn't the highest on the Shrek side only level 37?"

"Huangdou is clearly here to end Shrek's winning streak."

Doudou's voice continued, "Shrek Team—Dai Mubai, level 37! Tang San, level 32! Xiao Wu, level 31! Oscar, level 31! Ma Hongjun, level 28! Zhu Zhuqing, level 28! Ning Rongrong, level 27!"

This time, the crowd's volume dropped significantly, replaced by a heavy, stunned silence.

Seven people, four Soul Elders, two at level 28, and one at level 27.

Yet, their opponents were all Soul Elders!

"This... the gap is just too big, isn't it?"

As the words fell, both sides retreated half a step simultaneously. Their martial souls and soul rings ignited around them, and the pressure instantly swept across the entire arena.

"Team soul battle, begin!"

The moment Doudou's word "begin" struck their eardrums, Yu Tianheng's soul power had already burned to its peak, and he was the first to strike.

The phantom of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon opened its massive jaws behind him. Blue lightning spread from his spine to his shoulder blades, then branched out, surging toward his right arm.

His right hand underwent rapid Dragon Transformation, his fingertips turning into sharp dragon claws. Blue electricity condensed at the tips, faintly revealing a purple edge.

Meanwhile, his left arm was covered only by a thin layer of blue lightning, his fist clenched tight.

The peak pressure of a level 39 soul master rolled over the ring like a giant boulder, causing the front-row spectators to lean back instinctively.

Across from him, Dai Mubai did not retreat.

The pale golden luster of the White Tiger collided with the blue lightning of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon in the center of the ring. The shockwave kicked up a fierce wind, making their robes snap violently.

Yu Tianheng's right claw slammed into Dai Mubai's crossed arms. The lightning exploded upon contact, the blue electricity suddenly shifting to purple, erupting with several times its normal power.

The current crawled up the opponent's skin, only to retract half a second later, like a viper striking and retreating instantly.

Opposite him, Dai Mubai let out a muffled grunt. He didn't budge an inch, but two charred claw marks appeared on his arms.

"Tough bones."

Yu Tianheng felt a slight chill in his heart, but he did not panic.

His peripheral vision swept across the field—an instinct of his role as the temporary captain. Even in a head-on clash, he had to maintain control over the entire situation.

Shi Mo and Shi Mi were on the left and right flanks, the ink-colored shells of their Black Tortoise martial souls already spreading to their shoulders and necks.

Yu Feng was in mid-air, the wings of his Wind Bell Bird shimmering with a glazed light.

Tian Xuan was in the back row, Azure Vines spreading from his palms toward the ground.

Ye Lingling was at the very back, the pink-white soul power of her Nine-Heart Begonia quietly dispersing.

Tang San stood about five meters behind Dai Mubai, his Blue Silver Grass already spreading from his feet like a web in the making, connecting everyone on the field.

That's the one!

Yu Tianheng's pupils contracted slightly.

He recalled what Chen Jieqi had told him before the match, "The biggest threat in Huangdou isn't Dai Mubai; it's that Blue Silver Grass soul master named Tang San.

He is the core of Shrek's formation. To break the formation, you must break the point. As long as you pin him down, Shrek's system will collapse."

Break the point to break the formation.

It was exactly as Chen had said.

He suddenly understood why Shrek had managed an eleven-game winning streak with a lineup whose average level had only just reached the Soul Elder stage.

It wasn't because Dai Mubai was exceptionally strong, nor because Ma Hongjun's flames were fierce; it was because that person named Tang San had stitched the entire team together.

The Blue Silver Grass was the thread, and Tang San's hands were the needle.

As long as Tang San remained on the field, Shrek wasn't seven individuals—they were one.

Yu Tianheng took a deep breath, the lightning in his palm slowly extinguishing.

Dai Mubai frowned, "What? Getting cold feet?"

Yu Tianheng did not answer.

He turned his head and whispered a sentence that only his own teammates could hear, "Shi Mo, you go restrain Dai Mubai.

Shi Mo, you coordinate with Tian Xuan to suppress Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing.

Yu Feng, keep your eyes glued to that fatty; don't let him provide support."

"Boss Yu?"

Shi Mo was stunned for a moment.

"Do as I say."

Yu Tianheng's voice was soft, yet brooked no argument.

"I'm going to deal with the one using Blue Silver Grass."

Shi Mo was silent for a heartbeat, then nodded heavily.

The ink-colored shell of the Black Tortoise grew three parts thicker on his body as he stepped forward, blocking the path between Yu Tianheng and Dai Mubai.

The next second, lightning exploded once more, but not toward the front—it surged to the side.

Yu Tianheng's figure vanished from the main battlefield.

Dai Mubai's roar came from behind: "Stop him!"

But Shi Mo's shell had already sealed his path.

The defense of the Black Tortoise was not something Dai Mubai could break through in a minute or two; Yu Tianheng had sufficient confidence in his teammate.

His footsteps produced two dull thuds on the arena floor, leaving clear indentations on the bluestone tiles where he landed. Wrapped in blue lightning, he struck toward the core of the Shrek formation like a bolt of lightning.

On a thirty-meter-square arena, a power-type Soul Elder only needed two to three seconds to sprint from one end to the other at full speed.

Tang San's eyes met his.

Those eyes were purple...

No, not purple; they were a deeper, more profound color, as if they could see through all falsehoods.

Yu Tianheng saw Tang San's pupils contract slightly, and even saw the corner of his mouth hook into a curve.

It was the instinctive reaction of a genius facing a challenge.

He wanted to try.

He wanted to see if he could use speed and technique to entangle a power-type Soul Elder who was seven levels higher than himself.

Yu Tianheng sneered.

Then let me let you try.

Purple lightning condensed in the palm of his right claw—the mark of him compressing his soul power to the limit—while his left fist was tucked at his waist.

He didn't need to use lightning with both hands; the explosive power of one Dragon Transformation claw was enough, while the other was reserved for defense and restraint.

A purple lightning snake darted from his right claw, heading straight for Tang San's face.

Once the lightning snake left his hand, it no longer consumed soul power, exploding in mid-air to seal Tang San's front.

Tang San dodged to the side, and Blue Silver Grass surged from the ground, attempting to entangle Yu Tianheng's ankles.

Too slow!

Yu Tianheng's blue lightning exploded beneath his feet, erupting the instant it touched the Blue Silver Grass, burning the entangling blades into charred ash; the lightning flash vanished as quickly as it appeared.

He didn't stop, his right claw already smashing toward Tang San's face, the purple lightning at the tips of his claws flickering.

Tang San's Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track operated at full capacity, his figure leaving three afterimages on the arena.

Yu Tianheng's left fist shattered one of them, using no lightning, relying purely on the explosive power of his physical body.

The other two afterimages circled to his left and right flanks, hidden weapons flying from between his fingers to seal Yu Tianheng's front and right side.

But Tang San's Blue Silver Grass—those blades that should have surged from the ground to ambush him from behind—

Were sent scattering by the residual blue arcs of electricity on Yu Tianheng's body.

He hadn't deliberately maintained the lightning, but the lightning attribute inherent to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul meant that weak currents always lingered on his skin, making it impossible for the Blue Silver Grass to get close.

Tang San's expression changed.

He finally realized a problem: his Blue Silver Grass could not control Yu Tianheng.

When a plant-type martial soul encountered the lightning attribute, it was like paper meeting fire; most of the Blue Silver Grass would be burned to ash the moment it touched the lightning.

Even if a few blades managed to wrap around, they would be shattered by the arcs of electricity on his skin before they could tighten.

Tang San gritted his teeth, his Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track accelerating again as he tried to put some distance between them.

But his peripheral vision swept across the entire field.

Zhu Zhuqing was being suppressed on the left flank by Shi Mo's Black Tortoise; every time she turned invisible, she was shaken out by the shockwaves of the shell, unable to find an angle to cut in.

It wasn't that she hadn't tried to target the back row.

Three seconds ago, Zhu Zhuqing's figure had briefly broken free from Shi Mo's suppression, turning into a black line as she lunged straight for Ye Lingling.

If she could just knock out the Huangdou healer, the tide of the battle could be turned.

However, the tortoise shell of Shi Mo acted like a moving wall, cutting in when she was still five meters away from Ye Lingling, the air pressure at the edge of the shell knocking her off course.

Tian Xuan's Azure Vine surged from the ground simultaneously, sealing off all her paths of retreat, forcing her to abandon the surprise attack and retreat back to the left flank.

Xiao Wu was entangled by Tian Xuan's Azure Vine; those vines surged in from all directions like living creatures, and although she could still dodge, she was unable to break free to support anyone else.

She was also looking for an opportunity, but Tian Xuan had clearly studied her teleportation.

The first time, Xiao Wu's third spirit ring lit up and her figure vanished from its original spot, only to be forced to materialize three meters behind Ye Lingling.

The Azure Vine had long since woven itself into a net at that exact location, and the moment she collided with it, her ankle was ensnared.

The second time, she grew smarter and chose the area above Ye Lingling's head as her teleportation target, but Shi Mo's tortoise shell had been raised overhead in advance.

Like a giant umbrella shielding Ye Lingling, Xiao Wu's kick slammed into the shell, leaving nothing but a white mark.

After two failed surprise attacks, Tian Xuan's vines never gave her another chance to break free; one coiled around her ankle, one blocked her retreat, and one hung in mid-air, waiting for her teleportation landing point.

It wasn't that Xiao Wu didn't want to use teleportation, but every landing point was being sealed off in advance.

Shrek's two attempts to cut to the backline were both blocked by the Huangdou defensive system.

Tian Xuan's Azure Vine attempted to flank from the side several times, the emerald-green vines slithering like snakes, coiling toward Xiao Wu's ankles and waist.

But Ma Hongjun's Phoenix flames always managed to burn through the most lethal vines at the critical moment; orange-red tongues of fire licked across the vines, and a charred stench filled the air as the Azure Vine curled, carbonized, and shattered within the flames.

Tian Xuan gritted his teeth and channeled his spirit power, new vines growing continuously from his palms, but every vine that reached out was precisely intercepted by that line of evil fire.

"Damn fatty..."

Tian Xuan cursed under his breath, his forehead covered in beads of sweat; his spirit power was depleting rapidly, but his hands did not stop.

As long as he kept outputting, Ma Hongjun had to divert his attention to intercept him—this was his value.

As for Dai Mubai, he was being held fast by Shi Mo.

The halo of Ning Rongrong's Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda had dimmed significantly, and the strength of her buffs was declining; although the golden light of the White Tiger Vajra Transformation remained, Shi Mo's defense was like a bottomless pit—every punch that landed added a crack to the tortoise shell, but Shi Mo simply would not fall.

He could not retreat.

Tang San gritted his teeth, yet his feet did not move a single inch.