Convinced

Xiao Chen's performance drew exclamations of admiration from the four watching.

Normally, releasing the same spirit skill required a cooldown interval, but Xiao Chen's skill release had no such restriction.

Every arrow he fired was imbued with a spirit skill, and he could even release the same skill consecutively.

"Brother, if it were you, could you break through Xiao Chen's arrow blockade?" Hu Liena asked.

"With great difficulty," Xie Yue said. "But even if I could get through, Xiao Chen isn't slow. If he used that acceleration skill, combined with the arrow harassment, I definitely couldn't get close to him!"

Xie Yue had personally witnessed Xiao Chen use 'Shadow Step Dash'. Under normal circumstances, Xie Yue was confident he could keep up.

But a few days ago in the Star Dou Forest, when Xiao Chen burst forth with that final wave of speed to shake off Lei Wen, Xie Yue knew in his heart he absolutely couldn't match it.

"With distance opened up, Xiao Chen's lethality is just too great! Thank goodness he's our teammate now!" Xie Yue said with great relief.

As a member of Spirit Hall's Golden Generation, Xie Yue had always been arrogant, never deigning to regard the young prodigies from major academies across the continent.

But ever since meeting Xiao Chen, that innate pride in his heart had been largely tempered.

He understood all too well that since Douluo Continent could produce a monstrous genius like Xiao Chen, there might be many other top-tier talents hidden away, no less formidable than himself.

Hu Liena felt the same.

Xiao Chen's appearance was like an alarm bell, waking the Golden Generation of Spirit Hall from their long-held sense of superiority.

The once arrogant Spirit Hall prodigies, who looked down on their peers, had now shed their pride and no longer dared to underestimate anyone their age.

The battle between Xiao Chen and Yan continued.

Yan knew that dragging things out would only let Xiao Chen wear him down, so he directly activated his first spirit skill—Hell Lava Rush.

Scorching lava enveloped Yan's body, the ground heating up from the high temperature. Yan transformed into a violent crimson torrent, carrying a wave of searing heat as he charged straight at Xiao Chen.

Xiao Chen's arrows collided with the surging lava flood. The moment they touched, they were instantly scorched by the terrifying heat, melting and disintegrating without causing even the slightest obstruction.

Yan's first spirit skill had a limited attack range and couldn't threaten Xiao Chen from over a hundred meters away, so Xiao Chen saw no need to waste spirit power by meeting it head-on.

Yan used his first spirit skill to successfully advance over forty meters. The moment the skill effect ended, an arrow imbued with 'Brute Force', 'Piercing Wound', and 'Speed Boost' was already upon him.

Xiao Chen's timing was impeccable. Yan had no time to react, so he could only activate his second spirit skill—Granite Rock—to endure the arrow.

Relying on his rock armor, Yan continued his charge, determined to break through by sheer defense.

The thick, heavy granite armor, combined with the inner layer of high-temperature molten lava energy, meant that even if Xiao Chen used a Spirit Skill Fusion, he couldn't breach its defense.

Moreover, Yan's second spirit skill provided full-body coverage, leaving no gaps.

However, in exchange, maintaining the rock armor significantly reduced Yan's speed, and the spirit power consumption was enormous. In this state, even without external interference, he could only sustain it for three to five minutes at most.

Bibidong had forbidden Xiao Chen from revealing Spirit Ring Sharing in front of anyone, so his current attack methods truly couldn't break Yan's defense.

Yet, although the rock armor was full-body coverage, the key protected areas were naturally the head, neck, heart, and other vital spots, meaning weak points still existed.

Once he identified the weak points in Yan's armor, Xiao Chen didn't hesitate. He fired five arrows in rapid succession, each imbued with the dual forces of Brute Force and Piercing Wound, precisely targeting the armor's vulnerable spots.

These five arrows weren't enough to tear through the rock layer and break the defense, but their powerful penetrating impact could continuously shake the armor, forcing Yan to expend extra spirit power to stabilize it, thereby increasing his spirit power drain and shortening the armor's duration.

Yan knew his rock armor had weak points—a trade-off to conserve spirit power—but he hadn't expected Xiao Chen to pinpoint them so quickly.

Fortunately, he could still circulate his spirit power, dynamically shifting the rock armor's defensive focus to compensate for the weaknesses in various areas.

However, what surprised Yan was that every time he adjusted the defensive weak points, Xiao Chen would quickly lock onto them again.

Originally, by enduring Xiao Chen's arrows head-on, Yan could have maintained his rock armor for at least three minutes, but it was forcibly shortened to just one.

The moment the rock armor dissipated, Yan was only about eighty meters from Xiao Chen. He immediately used his first spirit skill again—Hell Lava Rush—closing the distance by another thirty-plus meters.

Now, he was only about fifty meters from Xiao Chen, still not within his optimal attack range.

But Yan could no longer afford to care. He directly activated his third spirit skill—Hell Flame.

He stomped hard on the ground, which instantly cracked. Red flames erupted from the earth, forming a vast sea of fire that spread toward Xiao Chen.

With this move, Yan wasn't trying to attack Xiao Chen but to block his vision with the flames, using the smoke and dust as cover to steadily close the distance.

Once Xiao Chen entered the range of his fourth spirit skill, Yan activated it without hesitation—Lava Surge.

He slammed both fists into the ground, channeling his spirit power into the earth. Crimson lava erupted from the surface, instantly enveloping Xiao Chen.

Yan only intended to trap Xiao Chen with the surging lava, but he suddenly realized that Xiao Chen's figure had somehow distanced itself again, just barely escaping the Lava Surge's coverage.

Only then did Yan remember Xie Yue mentioning earlier that Xiao Chen was fast.

"I never thought I'd use all four of my spirit skills and still not even touch Xiao Chen's clothes!" Yan shook his head with a bitter laugh, then dispelled his fourth skill.

"I'm done. I concede!" Yan said decisively. Though he still had strength left, he knew clearly that even going all out, he couldn't get close to Xiao Chen.

Having such formidable power yet being unable to reach his opponent—the fight was just too frustrating.

"You yield," Xiao Chen said, stepping forward with a cupped fist salute.

Yan waved his hand. He was thoroughly convinced by this battle.

"No wonder His Holiness the Pope made an exception to take you as her disciple," Yan said, looking at Xiao Chen.

"Just luck," Xiao Chen replied with a smile.

"Don't be modest. You really are more suited for Nana than I am. Her charm skill combined with your long-range attacks—working together, you could probably rival the Spirit Fusion Skill she performs with Xie Yue!" Yan suddenly seemed to let go of something.

Then he added, "But I won't give up. We'll compete fairly."

Xiao Chen quickly explained, "Brother Yan, don't misunderstand. Senior Sister and I are just fellow disciples—nothing more!"

No sooner had he finished explaining than Hu Liena's voice came from the side: "Little junior brother, what do you mean by that? Are you looking down on your senior sister?"

"Uh..." Xiao Chen was awkward, and Chrysanthemum Douluo and the others immediately burst into laughter.

"Hehe... Little junior brother, I'm just teasing you. But you have to promise me this—once you figure out the trick to that Spirit Skill Fusion of yours, you must teach it to me first!" Hu Liena said with a smile.

"No problem!" Xiao Chen nodded.