Soul Grandmaster, Apprentice Rank Four

"Fire Lion Raging Flame!"

Seizing the opportunity, Shi Yao's fourth Soul Ring finally lit up. A beam of fire compressed to the limit burst from his mouth, its scorching aura blasting straight toward Yan's back.

At the same time, Mu Hua once again controlled the Ghost Vine. Like a green tide, it surged in from all directions to bind Yan. A dark gleam flashed at the vine tips—the faint light of the venom secreted by the Ghost Vine.

At the same time, Iron Wall and Yu Ziyun closed in again.

With a slight thought from Yan, scarlet light flickered across the fire armor surrounding him. Empowered by Burning Flame, the heavy fire armor radiated a dangerous aura.

"Explode!"

Yan shouted deeply, and the fire armor around him instantly erupted. Blazing fire elements transformed directly into a fiery storm, engulfing everything around him.

A moment later, the scorching waves in the training ground slowly dispersed, leaving only heavy breathing and the faint hum of the Gold-Splitting Rings.

Yan stood where he was. The Earth Flame Lizard Dragon Armor covering his body had vanished, revealing his lean, powerful physique beneath, soaked in sweat and covered in old and fresh scars.

He panted softly, his chest rising and falling. He looked somewhat disheveled. Clearly, under the combined assault of four Soul Ancestors while bearing the Heavy Pressure of the Gold-Splitting Rings, Yan was beginning to struggle.

"Alright, this practical combat training ends here."

Mu Ming, who had been closely observing the battle from beyond the field, called a halt. As the Gold-Splitting Rings on Yan's limbs dissolved into golden light, the four Soul Ancestors also put away their Martial Souls one after another.

"Thank you, four teachers."

Yan bowed to the four Soul Ancestors in turn.

"Not at all. Assisting Young Master Yan with his training is simply our duty."

Shi Yao, the leader of the four Soul Ancestors, hurriedly stepped forward and returned the gesture.

The astonishment in his eyes had never faded.

The four of them had been selected by Spirit Hall to serve as Yan's practical combat instructors and sparring partners for nearly half a year.

They could be said to have watched with their own eyes as this youth transformed and grew stronger at an unimaginable pace through day after day of almost self-destructive, high-pressure practical combat.

Half a year ago, any one of the four of them could have gained a clear upper hand against Yan when he activated his Martial Soul.

Three months ago, Yan had needed to activate his Soul Skills just to barely endure the four of them attacking together for a while.

Then, half a month ago, Yan acquired his second Soul Skill, Burning Flame. With two Soul Skills empowering him, he could even trade blows with them evenly.

In today's battle, even while restrained by the Gold-Splitting Rings, he had forced them into such an embarrassing state.

How could such a rate of progress not shock the four of them?

Even Shi Yao, who had initially been somewhat arrogant and unruly, had changed the way he addressed Yan from "kid Yan" to the current "Young Master Yan."

After the four spoke with Yan for a while, Mu Ming opened his mouth.

"Alright, that's enough for today." Mu Ming clapped his hands.

"You four have also expended quite a bit. Go back and rest, regulate your breathing, and recover properly."

"Teacher Mu Ming."

After the four Soul Ancestors left, Yan came before Mu Ming, heat and a faint smell of blood still rising from his body.

"Time really flies, Yan. Two years have passed in the blink of an eye."

Mu Ming looked at the youth before him, now half a head taller than himself, his eyes filled with emotion.

The child who had first shown his edge at the academy two years ago, and who still required Mu Ming to carefully control the Gold-Splitting Rings in the training ground, had now grown to the point where even Mu Ming had no choice but to take him seriously.

Yan nodded without speaking.

Two years. More than seven hundred days and nights had been spent almost entirely in a cycle of training, practical combat, medicinal baths, and meditation.

The scars on his body had increased, his bones and muscles had hardened, and his cultivation had grown stronger.

Over the past two years, Yan had broken through to become a Soul Grandmaster ahead of Xie Yue and Hu Liena, and had obtained the thousand-year second Soul Skill, Burning Flame.

Burning Flame could greatly enhance the quality of flames and Soul Power Level. It came with bone-clinging and flame-piercing effects, and could also increase the effects of fire-attribute Soul Skills by a percentage based on the amount of Soul Power used.

Furthermore, the piercing and bone-clinging traits carried by Burning Flame could also empower fire-attribute Soul Skills, allowing them to burn through an opponent's Soul Power defenses more easily and inflict greater, sustained damage.

The reason Yu Ziyun's Wind Shield had been broken so quickly in the previous battle was not only due to the formidable power of the secret technique Flame Fall. Another important reason was that Burning Flame's power had been added to the fist technique.

After two years of cultivation, Yan's flame quality had already become extremely high. With the enhancement of the Burning Flame state, it could even reach the level of half-Ultimate Fire.

That was also why Shi Yao had repeatedly suffered at his hands. Ultimate Fire naturally suppressed all flames.

Yan's Soul Power had now also reached Level Twenty-Three.

Besides the improvement in Soul Power, Yan's Martial Artist strength had also reached Apprentice Rank Four over these two years.

After Yan's continuous research over the past two years, he had also roughly calculated the comparison between the strength of Soul Masters in the Douluo World and Martial Artists in Swallowed World.

Apprentice Rank One through Three corresponded to the Warrior Rank of Earth during the Swallowed World era. Their punching force generally ranged from nine hundred to eight thousand kilograms, though exceptionally gifted individuals could possess greater punching force.

For example, when Luo Feng was Apprentice Rank Three, his punching force could already reach twelve thousand kilograms.

Converted to the Douluo World, that was physical strength at the level of Soul Masters through Soul Kings.

Of course, physical strength in the Douluo World was not the standard for measuring final combat power. More emphasis was placed on Soul Power Level and the combination of Soul Rings and Soul Skills.

As for Apprentice Rank Four, it had already touched the threshold of physical strength at the Soul Emperor level. Yan's current Martial Artist strength was precisely Apprentice Rank Four.

Relying on his powerful physical body, Yan could still trade blows with the four Soul Ancestors even while bound by the Heavy Pressure of the Gold-Splitting Rings.

Without the Gold-Splitting Rings, if he fought the four Soul Ancestors at his peak, then unless it was a fight to the death, Yan would be the only victor in an ordinary sparring match.

In a life-and-death battle, however, Yan would most likely be the one to die.

This was not because Martial Artist strength was weak, but because Soul Masters possessed all kinds of Soul Skills. Without first understanding the effects of an opponent's Soul Skills, even someone stronger than their opponent might stumble in the gutter.

Of course, Swallowed World possessed all sorts of martial techniques and secret arts. Some high-level secret arts, when cultivated to great depths, could even crush Soul Skills.

However, cultivating martial techniques required a great deal of time. Aside from a movement technique, the only martial technique Yan cultivated was the Yan God Clan Fist Technique secret technique, Flame Fall.

Most of his energy still had to be devoted to improving his own strength.

Both Soul Power and Martial Artist strength required vast amounts of training time, so naturally he spent much less time cultivating martial techniques.

Moreover, for Yan, most enemies could be completely crushed through physical strength alone. Further cultivating martial techniques would be entirely superfluous.

In the Douluo World, taking the path of breaking all techniques with strength alone was enough—the simplest and most direct approach.

In Yan's estimation, if he could cultivate to Apprentice Rank Six, then relying solely on physical strength, he would be able to contend with some weaker Title Douluo.

As for who counted as weak, Yan said nothing.