Tang Hao's Passive Defense

Qian Renxue did not waste words; she exerted force through her toes, and Inch Step was instantly activated.

"Thump, thump, thump—" Dull, rhythmic sounds exploded in succession. The ground seemed to be hammered repeatedly, collapsing in a chain reaction and leaving over a dozen deep pits in an instant.

Each pit held a lingering afterimage of her, blurring the line between reality and illusion, making it impossible to discern her true form.

Tang Hao's pupils contracted sharply. Years of combat instinct caused him to throw a punch subconsciously, the force of it fierce and accompanied by a sharp whistle that tore through the air.

Yet, his fist passed straight through Qian Renxue's figure—it was an afterimage!

Where is she? Alarm bells rang in Tang Hao's heart, and a chill crept up his spine.

He scanned his surroundings, but just as he turned his head, he felt a fierce gust of wind strike his face from behind. He hurriedly crossed his arms to protect his head.

"Bang!"

Qian Renxue's leg landed precisely on Tang Hao's arms. The force was so heavy that the ground beneath Tang Hao's feet instantly cracked, spiderweb-like fissures spreading in all directions.

A shockwave exploded from the center of the two, causing the surrounding leaves to rustle violently.

Tang Hao felt a fierce, rigid force invade his body, immediately followed by a cunning, hidden energy.

He could clearly feel his blood surging, his meridians going slightly numb, and even the circulation of his soul power becoming sluggish.

"Not good!" He made a split-second decision, intentionally letting his feet go limp to dissipate the force, allowing his body to be sent flying by the kick.

Had he tried to resist it head-on, allowing this continuous, layered force to invade his internal organs, his combat capability would have been severely compromised.

Qian Renxue's figure flickered as she activated Inch Step once more, chasing after Tang Hao like a shadow.

Her figure left a trail of afterimages in mid-air as she alternated between punches, palms, elbows, and knees, each strike carrying the explosive power of Inch Power.

Unable to find leverage in mid-air, Tang Hao could only block passively. Every time his arms were struck, a "muffled thud" echoed, and his blood was shaken into a frenzy time and time again.

He tried to curl his body to minimize the surface area of impact, but Qian Renxue caught him in the side with a spinning kick, sending him flying diagonally until he crashed through several large trees and barely came to a stop.

"This... how is this possible?" Tang San stood in the distance, his face deathly pale.

His father was a rank 95 Title Douluo; even without using his martial soul, he shouldn't be suppressed like this!

Was Qian Renxue's physical strength truly terrifying to this extent?

"Brother Hao!" Tang Xiao clenched his fists tightly.

He could see that although Tang Hao was being suppressed, he was using his deep reserves of soul power to protect his vital points, avoiding serious injury—after all, as a rank 95 Title Douluo, his soul power reserves far exceeded the average person, and he could hold on for now.

"Damn, this is a total one-sided beatdown!" Li Taibai watched from the side, clicking his tongue in astonishment, and shouted, "Big Sister, go for it!"

Inwardly, however, he muttered to himself: With Qian Renxue this strong, it would likely be even harder for him to get ahead in the future; he had to earn points to improve his strength as soon as possible.

"Ah—" Tang Hao let out a low roar, and his soul power erupted suddenly. A powerful shockwave spread from his center, forcibly interrupting Qian Renxue's offensive rhythm.

Qian Renxue's eyes narrowed slightly as she retreated several yards, watching him vigilantly and guarding against a potential counterattack.

Tang Hao took the opportunity to fly to a height of over ten yards above the ground, panting heavily.

In just half a cup of tea's time, he had already consumed ten percent of his internal soul power.

He had to force his energy to push back Qian Renxue—this woman's attacks were too bizarre, her force continuous and unending; could it be a soul bone skill with no cooldown?

But even if it were a soul bone skill, there should be an interval.

"Tang Hao, as a Title Douluo, don't you feel ashamed to flee from battle and use your flight advantage to hide in the sky?" Qian Renxue looked up at him, her eyes cold and mocking.

Tang Hao snorted coldly, "I am a Title Douluo; flight is my ability. Where is the shame in that?"

"It's like my hands and feet growing on my own body; you wouldn't expect me not to use them to fight you, would you? If you have the ability, you can fly up here and compete."

A trace of smugness appeared on his face—Qian Renxue's soul power hadn't reached the Title Douluo level, so she couldn't use her martial soul and thus couldn't fly. As long as he hid in the air to stall for time, the half-hour would pass quickly.

"Heh." Qian Renxue was so angry she laughed, though a cold glint flashed in her eyes. "Do you really think I have no way to deal with you?"

The muscles all over her body suddenly began to vibrate at a high frequency in a rhythmic pattern.

The surrounding space rippled like water in response to her muscle vibrations, and the air became increasingly dense and heavy.

"Vibration Dance."

This was an advanced technique of Inch Burst; not only could it compress the air to provide buoyancy comparable to water, but it could also interfere with an opponent's execution of soul power.

Qian Renxue activated Inch Step, stepping onto the compressed air as if it were solid ground, leaping upward step by step to close in on Tang Hao in the sky.

"What?!" Tang Hao's pupils shrank, and the smugness on his face froze instantly—this woman could actually walk on air?!

Qian Renxue exerted force in mid-air for a leap, her right hand gathering strength, her fist edge condensing a terrifying force: "Bounce Power!"

This was an advanced technique of Inch Power. Inch Power could instantly explode with full force without any external power amplification, but each layer of its force could ignore defense and act directly inside the enemy's body, requiring several times the force to neutralize. One layer of force was equivalent to ten percent of the output; five layers meant fifty percent.

Bounce Power used high-frequency muscle vibration to store energy, allowing for multiplied attacks, and the accompanying invasive force was even more overbearing than standard Inch Power.

Tang Hao dared not be negligent and threw a punch of his own, pouring his rank 95 Title Douluo soul power into his fist without reservation, causing the air to explode with a sonic boom.

"Bang!"

The two fists collided, and a terrifying shockwave exploded in the sky. Tang Hao felt a massive, overwhelming force surge through him, his arm instantly going numb, and he was sent flying backward by the impact.

Qian Renxue was also pushed down several yards by the recoil, but she used the downward momentum to activate Inch Step again, chasing him like a shadow and throwing another punch.

Tang Hao was forced to return his fists to defend, the muffled thuds of their colliding blows echoing through the forest.

He retreated continuously in mid-air, feeling his blood roil with every collision as that tricky force snaked up his arms, disrupting the flow of his spirit power.

He attempted to use his spirit power to disperse the force, only to find it clung like maggots to bone, requiring several times the amount of spirit power to neutralize.

Qian Renxue's attacks grew increasingly rapid; the combination of Inch Step, Vibration Dance, and Bounce Power allowed her to weave through the air with ease, her fist shadows raining down upon Tang Hao like a storm.

Tang Hao was left scrambling, barely able to protect his vitals as his clothes were shredded by the air currents, revealing purple-blue bruises emerging on his exposed skin.

After the two exchanged dozens of blows in the air, Tang Hao's breathing grew more and more chaotic, his combat strength already having dropped by twenty percent from his peak.

Anxiety flared in his heart—if this continued, he wouldn't be able to hold on for even half an hour.

A fierce glint flashed in Qian Renxue's eyes as she suddenly withdrew her fists, her internal blood surging violently to condense into a ten-foot-wide blood-colored palm print before her, the air around it warping as it radiated a heart-stopping pressure.

"Blood Qi Manifestation, Blood Fiend Seal!"

She slammed the palm print forward, and it hurtled toward Tang Hao with a breath-stealing aura.

Tang Hao's expression shifted drastically; he crossed his arms to protect his chest, his spirit power surging frantically to form a thick barrier.

"Snap!"

The Blood Fiend Seal struck the barrier squarely, shattering it in an instant.

Struck as if by a heavy hammer, Tang Hao vomited blood and plummeted from the sky, crashing heavily into the ground.

"Boom!"

Dust billowed, and after a few breaths, as the smoke cleared, a massive palm print ten feet deep appeared on the ground.

Tang Hao struggled to his feet, blood hanging from the corner of his mouth, his face pale as paper, his aura withered...