"Ruthlessly Destroying Beauty"

Watching Yu Xiaoya's spirited presence in the arena, Hals slowly straightened his body, nodded to Song Gongran, and stepped inside.

He walked slowly, step by step. His originally ordinary, harmless, even faint aura suddenly grew stronger with each stride. By the time Hals reached the center of the arena, the aura behind him was like a tiger before the hunt—domineering, fierce, and wild, its eyes fixed on the prey before it.

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

"Yu Hun, eighty-second level Assault System Battle Spirit Master, Spirit Soul Flame. Please enlighten me."

Yu Xiaoya nearly let out a curse. Her mind was filled with one thought: Old man, are you setting me up?

To be fair, if she had known that this strange Yu Hun was a Spirit Saint, she would never have stepped up to test him herself. But now, with no way out of her predicament, she could only give it her all.

Thoughts raced through her mind, but her hands moved without pause. Her long, slender, beautiful legs bent slightly. She leaned forward, her entire body tensed, her jade-like hands crossed before her chest. Her martial soul manifested, and spirit rings appeared behind her—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black—a perfect configuration.

Without underestimating him, Yu Xiaoya struck first. Her first, third, and fifth spirit rings flashed. A faint jade-green luster shimmered over her jade hands, her fingernails lengthened slightly, and her thighs thickened noticeably, straining her already form-fitting jeans until they creaked in protest.

Faced with Yu Xiaoya's movements, Hals did not react as if facing a great enemy. He didn't even manifest his spirit rings. He simply tucked his right hand beneath his robe and slowly extended his left hand, palm upright like a blade.

Seeing Hals's "underestimating" display, a flash of anger flickered in Yu Xiaoya's eyes. Even if you're a Spirit Saint, I'm a Spirit Saint myself, very close to that level. Do you look down on me that much?

Furious, Yu Xiaoya struck with all her might. Her leg muscles tensed, then exploded with force. Her entire body turned into a rapidly moving "line," zigzagging toward Hals, leaving a long trail of afterimages behind her.

Watching Yu Xiaoya charge at him, Hals still didn't react. He just stood there, dazed.

Yu Xiaoya's speed in motion was terrifying. In an instant, she appeared behind Hals. Seeing him full of openings, a flicker of disdain crossed her eyes. So this is the so-called genius? Doesn't seem like much. Looks like those years of traveling were just a waste—no combat experience at all.

Her thoughts churned, but her hands didn't stop. Her right hand shot forward, fingers together like a blade, aiming straight for Hals's back.

As her fingertips drew closer, a smile spread across Yu Xiaoya's face. Hit!

But before her smile could fully bloom, it froze.

Just as her fingertips were about to touch Hals's body, he suddenly turned to the right, narrowly dodging her attack. And that wasn't all. As he turned, he used the momentum to extend his left hand, grabbing Yu Xiaoya's wrist, and then—slammed her hard into the ground!

Yu Xiaoya felt as if her internal organs had been knocked out of place. Waves of nausea surged up, but she couldn't vomit a thing.

Having subdued Yu Xiaoya in one move, Hals's expression beneath his hood didn't change at all. His voice was equally flat. He lightly tapped the ground with his toes, and his body drifted backward gently, stopping only after floating about ten meters away.

Looking at Yu Xiaoya, who was curled up like a shrimp and dry-heaving continuously, Hals showed no emotional fluctuation. His voice was flat, hoarse, and low:

"Get up. Again."

To Yu Xiaoya, Hals's words sounded utterly cold and ruthless. She was furious. Wasn't I supposed to be testing him? How did it suddenly become him testing me?

But her heart was filled with indignation and anger. Feeling a little better, Yu Xiaoya agilely flipped back to her feet, her eyes warily fixed on the man whose entire face was hidden beneath his hood, impossible to read.

They stood there in a stalemate. Yu Xiaoya didn't move. Hals didn't move either.

After a long while, the anger and unwillingness in her heart finally drove Yu Xiaoya to attack again.

"Ha!"

With a sharp cry, the tightly bound hair on Yu Xiaoya's head snapped its hair tie and floated in the air. Her seventh spirit ring blazed with light. Her lithe body leaped into the air. A flash of light passed, and when she landed, Yu Xiaoya had vanished. In her place was a sleek, muscular female leopard.

Martial Soul True Body!

A hint of human intelligence gleamed in the leopard's eyes. Its mouth curled into a faint smile. On all fours, it suddenly pounced. Transformed into her Martial Soul True Body, Yu Xiaoya's speed had increased significantly. She became a yellow lightning bolt, circling Hals continuously, searching for an opening.

There!

Yu Xiaoya fixed her gaze on Hals's right hand. He had never extended it, nor had she ever seen it. She suspected it was a severed arm. So that's the weak point!

With that thought, Yu Xiaoya didn't hesitate. Using the momentum of her running, which had only increased her speed, she turned into an arrow, shooting straight for Hals's right arm.

But some things don't go as planned. Just as Yu Xiaoya was sure this would hit, Hals moved again.

He flicked his robe, briefly blocking Yu Xiaoya's vision. The next moment, what came into clear view was a long leg swinging viciously toward her with a piercing whistle.

"Bam! Bam! Bam!"

Hals showed no mercy whatsoever. His kick landed squarely on the abdomen of Yu Xiaoya's leopard form. The next instant, she flew back even faster than she had come, bouncing twice on the ground before finally crashing into the surrounding wall and stopping.

This time, Hals didn't stand still. He walked slowly, step by step, toward Yu Xiaoya. His low, hoarse voice came from beneath his hood.

"You know, you're an Agility Attack type, and I'm an Assault type. By nature, you should have had an advantage over me. But you chose an extremely foolish way to attack me." Hals stopped slowly in front of Yu Xiaoya.

"Martial Soul True Body. For me, or for anyone with rich combat experience, the human form is the one with the most variables. When you abandoned your human form and used your Martial Soul True Body to fight me, it meant you gave up your other advantages to enhance your speed. Even though Agility Attack types rely on speed to gain an edge against Assault types, what can actually damage an Assault type are your bizarre, countless attacks that are impossible to parry in time."

Yu Xiaoya had already reverted to her human form, lying there dazedly. Her clothes were slightly torn, her eyes vacant. It was unclear if she was listening, but Hals didn't care. He continued speaking to himself:

"In battle, you use an assassin's fighting style—strike once and retreat far if you miss. That means an Assault type doesn't need to frantically parry your many attacks. They just need to focus their mind and concentrate on blocking that one incoming strike."

He glanced at Yu Xiaoya, who seemed to have come back to her senses, and continued: "Speed is power. But the reason Agility Attack is called Agility Attack is because its strength is speed, not power. The power you gain from speed can never match an Assault type's. Do you understand?"

Lying on the ground, Yu Xiaoya nodded with difficulty. Though unwilling, there was also a hint of admiration and a flash of realization in her eyes. She tried to push herself up off the ground, but found her whole body sore and weak, without an ounce of strength. After a moment's hesitation, a blush crept onto her dust-stained pretty face. She reached out a hand, her voice as faint as a mosquito's: "Can you... give me a hand..."

Hals was stunned for a moment. Then he slowly bent down and extended his right hand—a green, translucent one. Both Yu Xiaoya's and Song Gongran's gazes, who had been watching silently from outside the arena with a smile, were drawn to that arm.

This is...?

Hals's voice continued: "You were misled by your opponent's deliberate actions, leading you to make a wrong decision."

He paused for a moment, then went on: "I do have a hand. It's just... a prosthetic."

Looking at Hals's right hand extended before her, Yu Xiaoya unconsciously reached out and grabbed it. Hals exerted his strength and easily pulled her up. After a moment's thought, he carried her on his back and walked toward Song Gongran.

Lying on Hals's back, Yu Xiaoya's face flushed slightly. This was the first time she had been this close to a man. Her mind couldn't help but wander in a daze.

In her confusion, Yu Xiaoya thought she heard Hals say one more thing.

"Most importantly, I'm a Spirit Saint."

A Spirit Saint, huh... Yu Xiaoya's mind was still a mess. So this is the genius the old man was talking about...