42. Ghoul, Armament Evil Soul Master

Front courtyard.

"Go to hell!" Lord Mo hurled Su Yuntao high into the air, his knees bending slightly before he shot skyward like a cannonball. "Fourth Soul Skill, Giant Lizard Fall!"

Just as Blind Douluo seemed destined for a glorious finale, a pitch-black figure flashed past. Four of the eight spider legs aimed squarely at Lord Mo's limbs. In a single exchange, Lord Mo spat a mouthful of blood and fell from the sky like a kite with a snapped string.

His trembling eyes fixed on the seven soul rings adorning that figure.

A Soul Saint!

This tiny Notting City Martial Soul Hall actually had a Soul Saint!

Su Yuntao breathed a sigh of relief, his martial soul already at its limit. His body was caught by Bibi Dong, who slowly descended to the ground.

"Leave the rest to us." Bibi Dong's beautiful eyes blazed with fury. Anyone who tarnished the Martial Soul Hall's reputation would be killed without mercy!

Outside the thatched hut, the Enforcers charged in as well. Bule and the others offered no resistance and were all arrested.

It wasn't that they didn't want to fight back—they simply didn't dare.

A seven-ringed Soul Saint, terrifying beyond measure.

In a single exchange, he had gravely wounded Lord Mo, the strongest here. Arresting them would take mere minutes.

Just then, a Black-Robed Elder leaped out from the rear courtyard. His gloomy eyes locked onto Bibi Dong. "Martial Soul Hall's Holy Maiden, Bibi Dong."

"Someone here actually recognizes me." Bibi Dong's eyes narrowed slightly as she waved her hand, dismissing the Enforcers. "All of you, withdraw. This one is mine."

The Black-Robed Elder extended a withered, bone-like hand. "I wish to see just how strong the Martial Soul Hall's Holy Maiden truly is."

Then he burst forward, seven soul rings materializing around him as a blood-red hook appeared in his hand.

Bibi Dong met him head-on, her eight spider legs converging into a single point and colliding with the hook.

Clang!

Sparks flew through the air.

The Black-Robed Elder landed lightly on the rooftop, the seventh black soul ring on his body gleaming. "The Martial Soul Hall's Holy Maiden—nothing special! Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul True Body, Blood-Draining Hook!"

He dropped behind one of his own men, driving the hook into his marrow.

The hook seemed alive, devouring the man entirely, leaving only an empty husk of skin on the ground.

"Evil Soul Master!" Bibi Dong's beautiful eyes narrowed, her crimson lips parting slightly. "Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul True Body, Death Spider Emperor, Annihilation!"

In an instant, the sky changed color, as if the underworld had descended. The air thickened with a deathly, chilling aura.

"Second Soul Skill, Soul Call."

Two Death Poison Spiders leaped onto the rooftop, baring their fangs at the Black-Robed Elder.

"I didn't expect an Evil Soul Master to be stirring up trouble." Bibi Dong fully manifested the Death Spider Emperor, pointing at the Black-Robed Elder. "On behalf of the Martial Soul Hall, I will slay you here!"

The Black-Robed Elder let out a sinister laugh, took a step forward, and charged at Bibi Dong.

The two collided in an instant. The hook pierced Bibi Dong's scales, carving a bloody gash as a trace of blood was swallowed into it.

"Fifth Soul Skill, Death Hundred-Split Slash!"

In a flash, Bibi Dong unleashed hundreds of slashes.

The Black-Robed Elder's pupils contracted. The hook couldn't withstand this thunderous strike. The white of his right eye turned pitch black, his dark pupils flushed crimson, and blood vessels spread around his eye sockets.

From below both shoulders, cyan spikes burst forth, blocking every single Death Hundred-Split Slash.

"Forcing me to use this—you're not bad for a Martial Soul Hall Holy Maiden." The Black-Robed Elder spoke darkly. "Witness my second martial soul, Cyan-Purple Armor Shell."

"Twin Martial Souls? No." Bibi Dong quickly distanced herself, her eyes fixed intently on the Black-Robed Elder. "An artificially formed Twin Martial Soul."

The Black-Robed Elder shed his robe, revealing two thick Cyan-Purple Armor Shells extending from his skeletal frame, along with seven soul rings on each shell. He sneered darkly, "Holy Maiden, this is only the beginning."

With that, he charged forward, the Cyan-Purple Armor Shells slicing toward Bibi Dong like twin blades.

"Fourth Soul Skill, Death Thousand-Strike Shield!"

The shield shattered almost instantly.

Bibi Dong seized the momentum to create distance.

The Bone Elder laughed maniacally as he pursued, swinging his blades. "What's wrong, Holy Maiden? Weren't you going to kill me? Why aren't you attacking!"

Bibi Dong seized an opening, severing one Cyan-Purple Armor Shell and tossing it to the ground. The Bone Elder didn't even flinch in pain; a new one regenerated almost instantly, nearly piercing through her scales.

Any living creature would feel pain upon being attacked, fear, or reveal a flaw—but the Bone Elder before her felt none of that.

Bibi Dong could only retreat again and again, unwilling to recklessly advance.

"Master, that's an Armor Shell. It's strong in close combat, but heavy and slow—hit it from range!" Su Yan, seeing his master locked in a bitter struggle from afar, hurried from the rear courtyard to the front.

"Xiao Yan, that Armor Shell regenerates. The Death Spider Web can't hold him." Bibi Dong dodged with ease, almost leisurely.

Su Yan thought for a moment, then shouted, "Master, it regenerates through the Shell Core inside its body—it won't recover that fast in the short term!"

Bibi Dong raised an eyebrow, a plan forming. "First Soul Skill, Death Venom!"

A glob of black liquid shot forth.

The Bone Elder rolled to dodge. "Holy Maiden, you dare to use an attack like that?"

Yet in the next second, two streams of venom suddenly sprayed from both sides onto the Cyan-Purple Armor Shell.

The two Death Poison Spiders that had been watching the show finally proved useful.

The venom continuously corroded the Cyan-Purple Armor Shell, and even as the Shell Core cells inside the Bone Elder's body kept splitting, they couldn't keep up with the venom's erosion speed.

"Master, his Armor Shell is restrained! Attack now!"

Bibi Dong flashed down and landed before the Bone Elder: "Fifth Soul Skill, Death Hundred-Split Slash!"

Hundreds of slashes struck the Bone Elder without deviation, completely robbing him of his combat ability.

"Third Soul Skill, Death Spider Web!"

The pitch-black Death Spider Web pinned the Bone Elder firmly to the ground, the toxins on it continuing to control him as he neared his last gasp.

"Speak, who sent you!" Bibi Dong landed on the ground and barked coldly.

"I won't tell." The Bone Elder gritted his teeth.

"Then I'll force it out of you!" Bibi Dong said in a low voice. "Annihilation!"

Instantly, countless deathly auras surged toward the Bone Elder, slowly devouring the life force stored within his body, starting from his limbs.

The Bone Elder could clearly feel parts of his body gradually dying.

His feet had already stopped obeying him.

Then came his calves, thighs, waist, chest, arms, neck...

He began to struggle, but it was already futile.

The deathly auras crept upward.

"Speak, I'll speak!" The Bone Elder begged for mercy through tears.

Bibi Dong withdrew her soul skill.

But in the next second, the Bone Elder suddenly shouted, "Long live His Majesty!"

Boom!

With a loud blast, the Bone Elder's head exploded into a cloud of blood mist, seeping through the gaps in the spider web and surging toward Lord Mo.

"Not good!" Bibi Dong retreated swiftly, and in the instant before the blood mist could claim Lord Mo's life, she slapped it apart with one palm.

Lord Mo's face turned deathly pale, and his trousers grew damp beneath him.

"Take them back for interrogation first!" Bibi Dong commanded.

The Enforcers all moved into action, escorting the survivors back to Martial Soul Hall.

Bibi Dong dismissed her martial soul and let out a deep breath.

Su Yan hurried forward: "Master!"

"Xiao Yan, this time I owe it all to you." Bibi Dong said, still shaken. "His martial soul was too peculiar—if you hadn't known something about it, I wouldn't have won so easily."

"I happened to know a little. As long as Master is safe, that's what matters." Su Yan pulled Yin Fang to the front. "Master, his name is Yin Fang, and he's also planning to join our team!"

"That's wonderful. Let's head back to Martial Soul Hall first." Bibi Dong said, then took the lead and walked out.

Su Yan glanced back at the spot where the Bone Elder had died; a piece of flesh remained.

He cautiously crept over to take a look, his eyes widening as he murmured, "It's actually a Shell Core!"

Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Su Yan took a cloth, wrapped up the Shell Core, tucked it into his belt, and walked toward Martial Soul Hall as if nothing had happened.