The instant Wang Jinxi was sent flying, a shadow silently circled around Tang Wulin and rushed straight at Gu Yue, wrapped in a dense aura of darkness.
It was Zhang Yangzi's second Soul Skill—Shadow Clone.
This clone contained a full fifty percent of Zhang Yangzi's strength. The power of darkness clung like a bone-deep parasite; once it hit, it would frantically erode Soul Power, making it steadily dissolve and disintegrate.
At the critical moment, Xie Xie almost instinctively pulled Gu Yue into his arms, turning his back without hesitation toward the Shadow Clone hurtling their way.
"Pfft—!"
The instant the Shadow Clone touched Xie Xie, it crumbled away.
Darkness as thick as ink surged wildly into his body, darting around like a venomous snake and ruthlessly eroding his meridians and Soul Power.
Xie Xie's body jolted. His eyes closed, and his brow furrowed.
"Xie Xie!" Gu Yue's face changed dramatically. Holding him, she staggered back a step before managing to steady herself.
Seeing that Xie Xie had been hit, Zhang Yangzi, hidden within the Dark Canopy, laughed smugly. "Hahaha! That hit you! Now you're done for!"
"Your Soul Power will be slowly eroded away, and even your body will suffer the same fate!"
"Xie Xie?!"
When it came to speed and combat techniques, Tang Wulin was far inferior to Xie Xie. The shadow had appeared so suddenly that Tang Wulin hadn't even reacted in time.
Seeing Xie Xie's condition, Tang Wulin's eyes filled with unmistakable anger, and a golden gleam flashed past.
The next moment, he poured out all his Soul Power. Strands of Blue Silver Grass suddenly surged up, dancing through the dark curtain.
Like whips, the Blue Silver Grass lashed straight at Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi.
Zhang Yangzi had relaxed a little after his successful sneak attack, and one strand of Blue Silver Grass struck him, leaving a bloody welt.
Looking at Xie Xie, who was limp against her, a flash of blood flickered through Gu Yue's usually purple eyes.
She said nothing, simply placing her left hand on Xie Xie's hair in a soothing gesture.
Then Gu Yue raised her right hand. Red, blue, and green light swirled around it as fireballs and Ice Spikes shot toward the three of them in a sweeping barrage.
At the same time, the green light around her grew brighter and brighter, and her eyes shone more vividly.
After the first volley of fireballs, both of Gu Yue's hands had turned completely ice-blue. The Ice Spikes shattered in midair, then merged into the green light.
"Ice and Snow Storm—"
With a crisp shout, a massive ice tornado suddenly took shape.
The Gale roared across the arena like a beast, ice blades whirling within the storm as every inch of air froze solid.
The blizzard, carrying a thousand troops' worth of ice blades, slammed toward Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi.
Zhang Yangzi did have some skill, but he just had to keep taunting people in the middle of a fight. And now he'd gone and drawn Tang Wulin and Gu Yue's bloodlust.
No, make that all three of them.
Even Wu Zhangkong, watching from outside the arena, frowned.
When she saw Gu Yue use Ice and Snow Storm, she didn't think there was anything wrong with it. If anything, she thought Gu Yue had gone easy on them.
Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi's expressions changed at the same time.
Wang Jinxi took the lead at the front, while Zhang Yangzi hurriedly gathered Soul Power to shield himself.
At that point, there was no way for them to dodge.
The wind element in Ice and Snow Storm exerted a pull of its own, cutting their speed in half. There was no way they could escape the storm's reach.
Long Hengxu was dumbstruck on the competition platform.
Another combination of elements—and it was as powerful as a thousand-year Soul Skill!
Ye Yingluo's eyes had gone vacant.
"Heh heh... an elemental combination skill... heh heh..."
After being hit by Shadow Clone, Xie Xie could clearly feel his Soul Power being steadily melted and dissolved by that strange force of darkness.
Even his limbs and bones were gripped by waves of icy numbness and stiffness.
But that discomfort lasted only an instant.
The moment the arrogant, rampaging power of darkness invaded his body, it was fiercely caught, devoured, and crushed by a violent force of Shadow Dragon energy!
The power of darkness didn't even have room to struggle before Shadow Cub. In the blink of an eye, it had been devoured without a trace.
Shadow Cub smacked its lips twice, its dragon eyes filled with obvious disdain.
At nearly the same moment, Light Cub gently unleashed its power of light.
Warm, gentle golden light slowly flowed through Xie Xie's body, softly enveloping his meridians and soothing the sting left by the darkness. His sluggish Soul Power soon flowed smoothly and evenly again.
In less than half a breath, the two dragon cubs had completely dispelled the corrosive force that could have dissolved Soul Power.
Just as Xie Xie felt almost recovered, a chill suddenly ran down his back, making him sneeze. The moment he opened his eyes, the scene before him startled a curse right out of him.
"Holy crap, what's going on?!"
Staring at the enormous Ice and Snow Storm, Xie Xie's brain completely froze.
To stop Gu Yue from going berserk and force Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi to use their Martial Soul Fusion Skill, he had deliberately taken the Shadow Clone attack in Tang Wulin's place.
But why had this little menace gone berserk again?!
Xie Xie's thoughts were a tangled mess. The raging Ice and Snow Storm before him filled almost his entire field of vision, while the roar of the wind and the shriek of ice blades tearing through the air filled his ears.
But the next second, Gu Yue's body suddenly went limp in his arms.
Her usually cool little face turned as pale as paper, even her lips losing their color as the elemental light around her abruptly dimmed.
Driving such a vast elemental combination skill as Ice and Snow Storm had instantly drained even the exceptionally gifted Gu Yue of all her Soul Power. Her body swayed, on the verge of collapsing to the ground.
"Gu Yue!"
Xie Xie's pupils contracted. His mind, frozen just moments ago, cleared at once.
Almost without thinking, he tightened his arms and held her securely against him.
One hand firmly supported Gu Yue's lower back, while the other gently cradled the back of her head, carefully shielding her against his chest.
Off to the side, Tang Wulin's eyes flickered slightly at the sight.
He hurried forward, stepping in front of Xie Xie and Gu Yue as he warily watched Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi, battered within the Ice and Snow Storm.
The raging Ice and Snow Storm continued to wreak havoc at the center of the arena, its ice blades slicing through the air with a relentless howl.
The Ice and Snow Storm lasted a good ten seconds before it gradually dissipated.
Wang Jinxi's body was covered in frost beneath his bone armor. He shivered uncontrollably, his Soul Power nearly spent.
Zhang Yangzi was in even worse shape. His black eagle wings were slashed open in several places by ice blades, and he had multiple patches of frostbite. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and all his earlier arrogance and smugness had vanished from his eyes.
"Hey, are you still alive?"
"Hello, can you hear me? If you're alive, squeak once."
"Did you really croak? Need me to get you a Resurrection Armor? Special price, 2,080 Federal Coins each."
"..."
Looking at Gu Yue, who hadn't moved for a while in his arms, Xie Xie couldn't help but chatter away.
Gu Yue, who only wanted some quiet to recover her Soul Power: ...
Gu Yue's head was pounding from all the noise. She slowly opened her eyes, looked up, and snapped, "Can you shut up?"
Xie Xie's eyes lit up. "She's alive, she's alive! Tang Wulin, look! Gu Yue's alive!"
"I never died!"
Even if I had, you'd have pissed me back to life!!
If she hadn't used up so much Soul Power, Gu Yue would already have lobbed a fireball at him.
Before you continue