The two of them stood at opposite ends of the Martial Arts Arena, facing each other from afar.
Ling Xiao had very little Soul Power left.
Hu Liena had also stopped attacking, and her spirit slowly faded.
She looked at Ling Xiao, her expression complicated.
She waved at him and panted, "Forget it! Forget it! I'm done!"
"Thank you for going easy on me, Senior Sister." Ling Xiao put away his spear.
"What do you mean, going easy on you?"
Hu Liena's face fell, her voice full of dejection.
"I'm level 29, and you're level 19. There's a full ten-level difference between us, and I still couldn't beat you. We ended in a draw. What's there to thank me for?"
She was his senior sister and four years older than Ling Xiao, with ten more levels of Soul Power.
For someone as proud as her, this was undoubtedly a massive blow.
Ling Xi came over with water and handed a cup to each of them.
Seeing Hu Liena's downcast expression, she quietly tried to comfort her.
"My lady, you're already incredibly strong. Boss is... he's a monster to begin with. You don't need to compare yourself to him."
"Exactly. Even I think that kid's a monster."
Zhao Qing came over too, trying to console Hu Liena.
"Saintess, don't sell yourself short. That kid's spear skills are among the best in his age group throughout all of Spirit Hall."
Their attempts to comfort her didn't cheer Hu Liena up. If anything, they made her feel even worse.
She crouched down, hugged her knees, and buried her face.
"Am I just too stupid?"
"I can't even beat my junior brother."
"I'm such a failure as a senior sister. How will I ever face Master again?"
The more she said, the more aggrieved she sounded, and she looked ready to burst into tears.
All this past year, she had trained desperately because she was afraid Ling Xiao would surpass her and she would lose face as his senior sister.
Now she had reached level 29, and still couldn't beat Ling Xiao.
A crushing sense of defeat swallowed her whole.
Looking at his senior sister crouched on the ground, drawing circles, Ling Xiao shook his head helplessly.
He walked over and crouched in front of Hu Liena, then gently poked her arm.
"Senior Sister, if you keep saying things like that, I won't know where to put myself."
Hu Liena lifted her head, her eyes red-rimmed, and glared at him.
"What do you have to feel embarrassed about? You're the impressive one."
"I only managed to draw with you because you pushed me so hard, didn't you?" Ling Xiao said with a raised eyebrow and a smile.
"When we first started sparring, you beat me black and blue."
"If I hadn't worked hard at training with my spear, wouldn't you have kept pinning me to the ground and pounding me?"
"Besides, you weren't even giving it your all today, were you?"
Ling Xiao's tone grew a little more serious.
"If we'd really gone all out, I'd have run out of Soul Power and lost sooner or later."
Hu Liena was his senior sister. This was only a spar, and she had never intended to go too hard. She had held back at every turn.
Ling Xiao, on the other hand, had gone all out and used every trick he had.
With one holding back and the other giving it his all, they had ended up in a draw.
Hu Liena froze, seeming somewhat convinced.
"Really?"
"Of course."
Ling Xiao spread his hands and continued in a joking tone.
"Besides, Teacher Zhao puts me through demonic training every day."
"If you trained with Teacher Zhao every day too, not only would we not end in a draw, I wouldn't even last ten moves against you."
Zhao Qing joined in to reassure her.
"That's right! If you trained with me too, you'd definitely be no worse than Ling Xiao!"
Watching the two of them chime in one after the other, Hu Liena couldn't help but burst out laughing.
She stood up, brushed the dust off herself, and gave a huff.
Her usual proud look returned.
"Fine, you make a fair point! That's right, I'm your senior sister. How could I possibly lose to you?"
Seeing her finally back to her old self, Ling Xiao let out a sigh of relief.
Just then, the Soul Power inside Ling Xiao suddenly began to stir.
The all-out fight had loosened the bottleneck holding him at level 19.
He looked at Hu Liena and said, "Senior Sister, there's something I wanted to discuss with you."
"What is it?" Hu Liena asked curiously, wiping the corner of her eye.
"After that spar just now, I feel like my Soul Power has improved a little. I've already touched the threshold of level 20."
"I should be able to break through to level 20 before long. When I do, I'll need to hunt for my second Soul Ring."
Ling Xiao smiled.
"Aren't you stuck at level 29 too, and about to break through to level 30?"
"Why don't we go to the Star Dou Forest together to hunt for Soul Rings? We can look out for each other."
Hu Liena's eyes lit up at that.
"Really?!"
She grabbed Ling Xiao by the arm and asked excitedly.
When it came time to obtain her Soul Ring, her master would certainly make arrangements for her, but she wanted even more to go out and test herself.
Getting to go with Ling Xiao would be perfect.
"Of course." Ling Xiao nodded.
"Once I break through to level 20, I'll ask Master for permission. Master will definitely agree."
Hu Liena nodded vigorously, her face alight with excitement.
"Good thing you've got a conscience, thinking of your senior sister!"
"Don't worry. Once we're in the Star Dou Forest, I'll protect you!"
Seeing her come back to life, Ling Xiao couldn't help laughing.
Qinghui Hall.
Ling Xiao sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, his eyes tightly shut.
Faint ripples of Soul Power swirled around him, while the phantom of the Demon Fruit Tree slowly unfurled behind his back.
Its branches and leaves swayed gently, drawing the surrounding energy of heaven and earth toward him without pause and funneling it into his dantian.
Two weeks had passed since his one-on-one spar with Hu Liena.
During those two weeks, Ling Xiao had stopped training with his spear and devoted all his energy to breaking through in Soul Power.
The bottleneck at level 19 had already loosened during that spar.
Two weeks of calm meditation had refined his Soul Power, making it purer and more condensed.
All he needed was the right moment to break through the shackles.
Now, his mind had sunk completely into his body, and he was circulating the Heaven Origin Soul Art to its utmost.
Soul Power flowed through his meridians in endless cycles. With every circuit, it grew a little stronger.
Again and again, it battered the level 20 bottleneck.
"Bzz—"
The level 19 bottleneck shattered with a crash!
Surging Soul Power swept through his entire body.
Deep in his spiritual sea, the Demon Fruit Tree gave a delighted shudder.
Its sturdy branches stretched wildly, and new patterns appeared across its dark purple bark.
Ling Xiao slowly opened his eyes. A flash of brilliance flickered in them and vanished, while the Soul Power rippling around him gradually subsided.
Level 20. He'd made it!
"Boss!"
Ling Xi, standing guard outside, quickly sensed the change in his aura.
She immediately pushed open the door and hurried inside, her face filled with delight and excitement.
She rushed up to him. "Congratulations, Boss! You've broken through to level 20 and become a Soul Grandmaster!"
Ling Xiao looked at her and gave a slight nod, his voice gentle.
"You've worked hard during this time. You can focus on meditating and improving your Soul Power now."
Ling Xiao rose from the meditation cushion and stretched his limbs.
"Get me something to eat, and bring over the list of second Soul Ring targets we screened earlier."
"Now that I've broken through, it's time to plan my second Soul Ring properly."
"Yes, Boss."
Ling Xi replied at once and hurried off to prepare everything.
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