"Ruthless Beauty"

Seeing Yu Xiaoya's spirited figure in the arena, Hals slowly straightened up, nodded to Song Gongran, and walked into the ring.

He walked at an unhurried pace, one step at a time. His aura, originally ordinary and harmless, even faint, suddenly grew stronger by degrees. By the time Hals reached the arena, the presence behind him was like a tiger before the hunt, domineering and ferocious, its wild gaze fixed on the prey before it.

A bead of sweat slid down Yu Xiaoya's smooth, fair forehead.

"Yu Hun, Level 82 Power Attack System Battle Soul Master. Martial Soul: Soul Flame. Please, instruct me."

Yu Xiaoya almost let out a curse. Her mind was full of one thought: Old Man, you set me up!

Honestly, if she'd known that this strange Yu Hun was a Soul Douluo, she never would have volunteered to test him. But now she was in a bind, and could only give it her all.

Her thoughts raced, but her hands never stopped moving. She bent her long, slender legs and leaned forward at the waist, every muscle in her body taut. She crossed her jade-white hands in front of her chest. Martial Soul Possession! Soul Rings appeared behind her—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, purple, black, black—a perfect configuration.

Not daring to be careless, Yu Xiaoya launched her Soul Skill first. Her first, third, and fifth Soul Rings lit up. A flash of jade-green light passed over her hands, and her fingernails grew a little longer. The muscles in her thighs suddenly bulged, straining her already form-fitting jeans until they creaked.

Facing Yu Xiaoya's movements, Hals showed no sign of being on guard. He didn't even reveal his Soul Rings. He simply kept his right hand hidden beneath his robe, slowly extended his left, and held it upright like a blade.

Seeing Hals act so "carelessly," a flash of anger passed through Yu Xiaoya's eyes. Even if you're a Soul Douluo, I'm a Spirit Saint just a step away from reaching that rank. Do you really look down on me that much?

Fury in her heart, Yu Xiaoya attacked. Her leg muscles tightened, then burst into action. She became a rapidly moving line, zigzagging toward Hals in a Z-shaped path, leaving a long trail of afterimages behind her.

Hals still didn't react as Yu Xiaoya charged at him. He simply stood there, dazed.

Yu Xiaoya moved at an astonishing speed. In an instant, she was behind Hals. Seeing all the openings in his stance, a trace of disdain flashed through her eyes. So this is the so-called genius? He doesn't seem like much. Looks like all those years traveling were just wasted. He has no real combat experience at all.

As those thoughts crossed her mind, her hand kept moving. She thrust out her right hand, fingers pressed together like a blade, aiming straight for Hals's back.

As her fingertips drew closer, a smile appeared on Yu Xiaoya's face. Got him!

But before her smile could fully form, it froze.

Just as Yu Xiaoya's fingertips were about to touch Hals, he suddenly turned to the right and narrowly dodged her attack. That wasn't all. As he turned, he seized Yu Xiaoya's wrist with his left hand, then slammed her hard into the ground!

Yu Xiaoya felt as if her internal organs had been knocked out of place. Waves of nausea rose in her, but she couldn't bring anything up.

After subduing Yu Xiaoya with a single move, Hals's expression beneath his hood didn't change in the slightest. His voice held no inflection as he lightly tapped the ground with his toes and drifted backward, coming to a stop only after floating about ten meters away.

Yu Xiaoya was curled up like a shrimp, dry-heaving again and again. Hals showed no change in emotion. His voice was flat, hoarse, and deep.

"Get up. Again."

To Yu Xiaoya, Hals's words sounded utterly cold and merciless. She was so furious. She had been the one testing him—how had it suddenly turned into him testing her?

Still full of resentment and anger, Yu Xiaoya felt a little better and nimbly flipped back to her feet. She warily watched the man before her, his entire face hidden beneath his hood and impossible to read.

They remained locked in a standoff. Yu Xiaoya didn't move, and neither did Hals.

After a long while, anger and indignation finally drove Yu Xiaoya to attack once more.

"Ha!"

With a sharp cry, Yu Xiaoya's tightly bound hair broke free of its tie and floated in the air. Her Seventh Soul Ring blazed brightly. She leapt into the air, and a flash of light passed over her. By the time she landed, Yu Xiaoya had vanished, replaced by a sleek female leopard with evenly proportioned muscles.

Martial Soul Avatar!

A glimmer of human intelligence shone in the leopard's eyes. Its mouth curled into a grin as it dropped to all fours and sprang forward. In her Martial Soul Avatar form, Yu Xiaoya's speed had increased considerably. She became a yellow bolt of lightning, racing around Hals as she searched for an opening.

There!

Yu Xiaoya focused on Hals's right hand. He hadn't taken it out once, and she'd never seen it. She suspected he'd lost an arm. That had to be his weakness!

Having made up her mind, Yu Xiaoya didn't hesitate. She continued building up speed as she ran, then shot toward Hals's right arm like an arrow.

But things didn't always go as one hoped. Just when Yu Xiaoya thought her attack was certain to land, Hals moved again.

He flicked his robe, briefly blocking Yu Xiaoya's view. The next moment, as her vision cleared, a long leg came whipping toward her with a sharp whoosh.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Hals showed no intention of going easy on her. He kicked Yu Xiaoya hard in the abdomen while she was in leopard form. The next instant, she flew away even faster than she had come, bounced twice on the ground, and finally crashed into the wall around the arena.

This time, Hals didn't remain where he was. He slowly walked toward Yu Xiaoya, his low, hoarse voice coming from beneath his hood.

"Do you know why? You're an Agility Attack System Soul Master, and I'm a Power Attack System Soul Master. You should have a slight advantage over me. But you chose an extremely foolish way to attack." Hals stopped before Yu Xiaoya.

"Martial Soul Avatar. Against me—or anyone with extensive combat experience—your human form gives you the most options. When you abandon your human form and use your Martial Soul Avatar against me, you give up your other advantages and boost your speed. Although Agility Attack System Soul Masters rely on speed to gain an advantage over Power Attack System Soul Masters, what can actually hurt a Power Attack System Soul Master is your strange, countless attacks that come too quickly to block."

Yu Xiaoya had already returned to her human form. She lay there in a daze, her clothes somewhat tattered and her eyes unfocused. It was hard to tell whether she'd taken any of it in, but Hals paid her no mind and continued on his own:

"In battle, you used an assassin's approach: if your first strike missed, you immediately retreated. That means a Power Attack System Soul Master doesn't need to frantically block all your attacks. They only need to focus and be ready to defend against that one attack you're about to make."

Seeing that Yu Xiaoya seemed to have come back to her senses, Hals continued, "Speed is power, but Agility Attack System Soul Masters are called that because their strength lies in speed, not power. The power you gain from boosting your speed can never compare to that of a Power Attack System Soul Master. Do you understand?"

Yu Xiaoya, lying on the ground, nodded with difficulty. Though her face showed some reluctance, there was also a hint of admiration and understanding. She tried to push herself up, but found that her entire body was sore and weak, without the slightest strength. After hesitating for a moment, a blush crept across her dust-smudged, pretty face. She held out a hand and spoke so softly her voice was barely audible. "Could you give me a hand...?"

Hals paused, then slowly bent down and extended the green, transparent right hand he had kept hidden. Yu Xiaoya and Song Gongran, who had watched with a smile without saying a word, both found their eyes drawn to it.

What was this...?

Hals's voice continued, "You let certain deliberate actions by your opponent distract you, and that led you to make the wrong decision."

After a pause, Hals continued, "I do have a hand. It's just a prosthetic."

Looking at the right hand Hals held out to her, Yu Xiaoya instinctively placed hers in it. Hals pulled her up with ease, then, after a moment's thought, carried her on his back and walked toward Song Gongran.

Yu Xiaoya, leaning against Hals's back, blushed a little. This was the first time she'd been so close to a man, and her mind couldn't help wandering.

Amid the confusion, Yu Xiaoya thought she heard Hals say one more thing.

"Most importantly, I'm a Soul Douluo."

A Soul Douluo...? Yu Xiaoya's mind was still a little muddled. Is this the genius Old Man was talking about...?