Huangdou vs Shrek, Peak Showdown 3

"Mubai! Zhuqing!"

Tang San's roar exploded across the arena, his voice hoarse yet carrying an unquestionable majesty.

"Martial Soul Fusion Skill!"

The entire arena fell silent for a beat.

Dai Mubai and Zhuqing exchanged a glance.

Both retreated simultaneously, widening the distance between them.

Dai Mubai pulled back to a position slightly left of the arena center, the golden light of his White Tiger Vajra Transformation surging across his skin.

Zhuqing used the force of one of Shi Mo's tortoise shell impacts to spring away, her figure turning into a black streak as she darted toward the right flank, the aura of the Hell Spirit Cat surging wildly from her body.

The two were about ten meters apart, the optimal distance for the resonance of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

But to reach this distance, Zhuqing had circled to the flank of the battle, putting her only six meters away from Yu Tianheng.

She did not notice.

Her entire focus was on Dai Mubai; a Martial Soul Fusion Skill required complete soul resonance and allowed for not even a shred of distraction.

Yu Tianheng saw it.

His heart gave a violent jolt.

As expected!

He had guessed it long ago; when the White Tiger and the Hell Spirit Cat appeared together, any family with knowledge of martial soul history would think of that legend.

And his own Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family happened to have detailed records of all martial souls under heaven.

But he had been waiting.

Waiting for Tang San to reveal it.

Because a trump card is only truly terrifying when it hasn't been played yet.

Once it is revealed, it is just a card.

"This is the moment I've been waiting for."

Yu Tianheng's voice was very soft, so soft that only he could hear it.

His gaze locked onto Zhuqing.

Zhuqing was emerging from the shadows, the aura of the Hell Spirit Cat surging frantically around her.

She was positioned on the left flank, about ten meters from Dai Mubai—the optimal distance for the Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

The execution of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill required about three seconds of resonance, and during those three seconds, the casters were at their most vulnerable.

She was only six meters away from Yu Tianheng.

Six meters—for a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon soul master, this was a distance that could be covered in an instant.

Purple lightning exploded within his body, not from his arms, not from his entire frame, but from his legs.

The soul power of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon was squeezed to its limit; he wasn't just using it, he was overdrawing it.

All his energy was channeled into his feet, and in that moment, the blue electric light was completely swallowed by purple.

His figure vanished from in front of Tang San.

Zhuqing saw it.

Her pupils constricted, and she unleashed the full speed of the Hell Spirit Cat, attempting to dodge.

But it was too late.

Yu Tianheng's speed reached its limit at that moment.

Purple lightning exploded beneath his feet, leaving two charred footprints on the bluestone floor where he had stood, and his body struck out like a true bolt of purple lightning toward Zhuqing.

His right claw, carrying the final trace of purple lightning, slammed into Zhuqing's chest.

Not her shoulder, not her arm, but her chest.

Zhuqing's body flew out like a kite with a broken string, crashing into the guardrail at the edge of the arena, which snapped upon impact.

She rolled twice and collapsed on the ground, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the floor, unable to stand again.

The entire arena was deathly silent!

The gasps of twenty thousand people merged into a single wave of sound that struck the dome and bounced back, making everyone's eardrums ache.

Dai Mubai froze.

His hands were still held in the posture for resonance with Zhuqing, but the halo of the Martial Soul Fusion Skill flickered out at his fingertips, like a flame being pinched out.

"Zhuqing!"

His voice was hoarse, and the golden light of his White Tiger Vajra Transformation trembled violently.

Yu Tianheng stood where Zhuqing had fallen, the purple lightning on his right claw completely extinguished, reverting to a dim blue that flickered twice before vanishing entirely.

His arm was trembling, his soul power nearly drained, but he did not fall.

He had bet correctly.

But he had no time to celebrate.

If Tang San hadn't shouted about a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, if Zhu Zhuqing had been two meters further away, if his purple lightning had been even a fraction weaker—if any single variable had gone wrong, he would be the one lying on the ground.

Yet he had gambled anyway.

Because he was the captain, and because Huangdou could not lose!

He turned around and looked at Tang San.

"Your trump card,"

His voice was very calm, "I knew about it all along."

Tang San's face turned deathly pale.

He knew that Yu Tianheng was telling the truth.

From the very beginning, Yu Tianheng had been waiting for this moment, waiting for him to stake all his hopes on the Martial Soul Fusion Skill, only to shatter it in one strike.

But worse things were yet to come.

In the very instant that everyone in Shrek was distracted, in the very instant that Dai Mubai turned his head to look at Zhu Zhuqing, in the very instant that Tang San froze, in the very instant that Ma Hongjun forgot to breathe fire, Osler lunged from the shadows. Without a sound, without a trace of killing intent, the Ghost Leopard Soul Elder's figure shot straight toward Ning Rongrong.

She was the core of Shrek's buffs; as long as she fell, Shrek's combat effectiveness would instantly drop by thirty percent.

At the same time, Shi Mo moved as well.

The Black Tortoise shell acted like a moving wall, slamming into Xiao Wu from the side. Xiao Wu's ankles were entangled by Tian Xuan's Azure Vine, leaving her no time to dodge; she could only take the hit head-on.

Two directions, two targets, the exact same moment.

Ning Rongrong saw Osler's ghost claws, her pupils shrinking sharply as the light of her Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda trembled violently.

But she was too slow; how could an auxiliary-type Soul Elder ever outrun an agility-type?

"Rongrong!"

Oscar had seen it the moment Osler launched his attack. He had been staring at the shadows in that direction, and his body moved before his brain could process it, throwing himself forward.

A figure blocked the path in front of Ning Rongrong.

Oscar, the food-type Soul Elder and the weakest combatant on the team, used his own body to shield Ning Rongrong from Osler.

Osler's ghost claws pierced through Oscar's shoulder, and fresh blood splattered onto Ning Rongrong's face.

Oscar let out a muffled groan, his entire body knocked backward by the force of the claws. The intense pain made his vision go black, but he gripped Ning Rongrong's arm with a death grip, refusing to let her be exposed to Osler's second strike.

"Oscar!" Ning Rongrong screamed.

Oscar gritted his teeth, his right hand reaching into his robes to pull out a sausage—not an ordinary one, but a pink, slightly shimmering one.

It was the Flying Mushroom Sausage.

He shoved it into Ning Rongrong's hand.

"Eat... eat it... fly away..."

Tears streamed down Ning Rongrong's face, but she did not hesitate. She bit into the sausage, and a warm current surged from her throat into her limbs.

Then her body felt light. Butterfly-like wings unfurled from her back, her feet left the ground, and she rose into the air.

"Damn it!"

Osler gritted his teeth, looking up at the ascending Ning Rongrong.

Yu Feng saw Ning Rongrong's figure flying in mid-air and his eyes lit up. As an auxiliary-type Soul Elder, she was a sitting duck in the sky.

But he didn't rush in immediately.

A thought flashed through his mind: Ma Hongjun was still down below, and that fat guy's Phoenix Fire Line had been waiting for him to make a mistake.

However, Ye Lingling's face was already as white as paper. If he let Ning Rongrong stay up there for even one more second, her buffs would land on Shrek again, and the team's advantage would slowly slip away.

He gritted his teeth. Forget it.

Yu Feng's Wind Bell Bird wings flapped, and he lunged toward Ning Rongrong. His wind blades were already primed; as long as he got within five meters, he could cut her down.

"Don't even think about it!"

Ma Hongjun's roar came from below.

Yu Feng looked down and saw the fat guy's phoenix flames reigniting beneath his feet, condensing into an incredibly thin Phoenix Fire Line.

Ma Hongjun had been waiting, waiting for the moment Yu Feng became impatient.

Yu Feng's speed was too high, too fast to change direction. His body slammed straight into the line of fire, while at the same time, the wind blades he had been preparing shot toward Ning Rongrong.

"Ah!"

The Phoenix Fire Line burned through his Wind Bell Bird wings, seared through his lapels, and scorched into his skin. It was no ordinary fire, but a flame carrying a wicked nature.

Yu Feng screamed, swaying in mid-air before finally crashing onto the arena floor. He rolled twice, half of his body scorched by the flames.

His clothes and skin fused together, emitting a charred, foul-smelling smoke, yet he lay on the ground, gasping for air as he tried to push himself up.

"Rongrong!"

Oscar's voice was hoarse, but his shoulder had been pierced by ghost claws, leaving him unable to move.

After a few seconds, Yu Feng struggled to crawl up, his half-burned body trembling in pain, yet the corners of his mouth curled upward.

"One!" he said.

Osler's figure swept past Yu Feng; this time, his target had shifted to Ma Hongjun.

Ma Hongjun's Phoenix Fire Line had completely extinguished. His soul power had been drained dry by that single strike, and his legs went weak, nearly causing him to collapse to his knees.

He saw Osler charging toward him and wanted to dodge, but his body's reaction could not keep up with his brain's commands.

Osler's ghost claws slammed into Ma Hongjun's chest. The power of the Ghost Leopard Soul Elder was revealed in that moment; Ma Hongjun's body flew out like a cannonball.

He slammed into the railing at the edge of the arena, snapping it upon impact. After rolling twice, he lay on the ground, spat out a mouthful of blood, and lost consciousness.

Osler retracted his ghost claws and turned to look at Yu Feng.

"Two," he said.

Yu Feng grinned, but the smile tugged at his burns, making him wince in agony.

On the other side of the battlefield, the scene of Xiao Wu being sent flying by Shi Mo happened simultaneously.

The power of the Black Tortoise could not be neutralized by soft techniques. Shi Mo's shoulder slammed into Xiao Wu's waist, and her body flew out like a falling leaf, crashing onto the arena and sliding four or five meters away.

She struggled to stand up, but the sharp pain in her waist made her gasp, her face turning as pale as paper.

A trickle of blood spilled from the corner of her mouth, dripping onto the bluestone floor.

"Xiao Wu—!"

Tang San's voice had changed.

It was not anger. It was not anxiety.

It was fear!

He saw the blood at the corner of Xiao Wu's mouth, saw her clutching her waist unable to stand, and saw her face as white as paper.

His eyes began to turn red.

It was not the purple of the Purple Demon Eye, but a murky, beast-like crimson surging from the depths of his pupils.

"Xiao... Wu..."

His voice became hoarse, as if squeezed from the depths of his throat.

His breathing grew heavy and rapid, his chest heaving violently like a bellows, each inhalation carrying a low, inhuman whimper, like a provoked beast.

In the spectator stands, Chen Jieqi had been watching Tang San from the very beginning.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, a knowing arc forming at the corners of his mouth.

Tang San's eyes had turned completely red.

Those were no longer human eyes.

They were the eyes of a soul beast, the eyes of a predator, the eyes of a beast that had lost its reason after seeing Xiao Wu get hurt.

"Roar—!"

A roar that sounded nothing like a human erupted from Tang San's throat.

The Eight Spider Lances burst open behind his back—six, seven, eight, extending in sequence.

The blue-purple spider lances glinted with a cold, eerie light under the spotlights. Dark purple patterns emerged on the surface of the lances, resembling veins, meridians, and some ancient, ferocious totem beginning to awaken.

He had been hiding this trump card all along. From the start of the battle until now, even when being suppressed by Yu Tianheng, even when his Blue Silver Grass was countered by lightning, he had not used the Eight Spider Lances.

But now, his reason had been burned away by rage.

Chen Jieqi pursed his lips slightly and muttered to himself, "A born killer, indeed. He loses his mind the moment Xiao Wu gets hurt..."

His gaze landed on Tang San's extended Eight Spider Lances, and his brow furrowed.

"Worthy of being a child of destiny; not only is he capable in a fight, but he can endure and hide. Someone like this is truly difficult to deal with."

The entire arena was in an uproar!

"What is that thing!"

"A spirit bone! It's an External Spirit Bone!"

"That brat from Shrek actually has an External Spirit Bone!"

The gasps of twenty thousand people nearly blew the roof off the arena, the warm glow of the red crystals shining upon the Eight Spider Lances and refracting a cold, eerie light.

Countless eyes were locked onto the youth on the stage who had unfurled the spider limbs; some were shocked, some greedy, and some fearful.

In the VIP seating area, several middle-aged men dressed in luxurious attire stood up in unison.

The black-robed elder in the lead muttered to himself, a sharp glint flickering in his eyes.

"An External Spirit Bone... to think such a thing would appear on a Soul Elder."

His companion beside him lowered his voice, "Check his background."

"No rush,"

The elder slowly sat back down, though his gaze never left Tang San.

"Let's first see... if he can control it."