As for the dueling spot, Xie Xie had still chosen East Sea Park.
Following his memory, he made his way to a clearing in the woods deep inside the park. He glanced around and nodded with satisfaction. "This'll do. It's pretty nice."
Tang Wulin stopped too, standing opposite Xie Xie.
Just as they were about to start, Xie Xie suddenly drew a blank.
How did you summon your Martial Soul again?
After thinking for a moment, he spread his hands and tentatively called out, "Martial Soul Possession?"
The next second, a gold and a silver dagger appeared in his palms: the Light Dragon Dagger and Shadow Dragon Dagger he'd seen in his dream the night before.
The instant the two daggers appeared, Tang Wulin tensed and went on guard. However—
"Holy crap, holy crap, these are so cool!!"
Xie Xie showed no sign of attacking. He was too busy turning the daggers over in his hands, completely enchanted. His eyes were practically sparkling.
Tang Wulin didn't rush him. He just stood where he was and patiently waited.
After playing with the daggers for quite some time, Xie Xie happened to glance at Tang Wulin, who was still standing there. Only then did he suddenly remember what he'd invited the other boy here for.
He hurriedly wiped the lovestruck look off his face and struck a solemn pose. With a twist of his hands, the Light Dragon Dagger and Shadow Dragon Dagger spun in a neat flourish around his fingers.
"Ahem, well, Tang Wulin, let's do this!"
Tang Wulin nodded. Blue Silver Grass quietly spread from his palm, its leaves glowing faintly.
Xie Xie took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and slowly guided the Soul Power inside him toward his feet.
The instant he opened his eyes again, Xie Xie shot forward, even leaving a string of golden Mach rings in his wake. A Yellow Soul Ring, a Hundred-Year Soul Ring, pulsed beneath his feet.
The sight of the yellow Soul Ring startled Tang Wulin.
But Tang Wulin quickly reacted, sending out a swarm of slender, vine-like strands of Blue Silver Grass.
As the Blue Silver Grass swept toward him, covering a wide area, Xie Xie's muscle memory took over. He threaded his way through the gaps between the vines, closing in on Tang Wulin.
When he realized that holding them back wasn't working, Tang Wulin quickly drew in the Blue Silver Grass, concentrating the vines in front of himself.
But in the blink of an eye, Xie Xie had already closed the distance.
Without hesitation, Xie Xie thrust the blade of the Light Dragon Dagger toward Tang Wulin's shoulder.
With the blade less than ten centimeters from his shoulder, Blue Silver Grass suddenly shot from Tang Wulin's palm, like a green serpent, and wrapped precisely around the arm holding the dagger.
The supple yet sturdy grass stalks wound around his arm layer upon layer, tightening.
Xie Xie felt his arm constrict. His strength was instantly locked down, his wrist and arm unable to move. The dagger couldn't advance another inch.
"I've still got another hand!"
As he spoke, his right hand, gripping the Shadow Dragon Dagger, slashed toward Tang Wulin.
"Funny," Tang Wulin said with a smile. "So do I."
With his left arm bound by the Blue Silver Grass, Xie Xie's movements were blocked, stripping the Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master of his greatest advantage. Tang Wulin's Blue Silver Grass easily wrapped around Xie Xie's right hand, the one holding the Shadow Dragon Dagger.
Normally, Blue Silver Grass shouldn't have been able to catch Xie Xie.
Ordinary Blue Silver Grass was incredibly fragile. Xie Xie only needed to give it a light tug or let the blade pass over it, and it would snap with ease.
But Tang Wulin's was a mother's own entanglement.
Noticing the faint golden light glowing along the veins of the Blue Silver Grass, Xie Xie knew the Golden Dragon King was at work.
Xie Xie was so angry he laughed.
Damn it! What the hell!
Golden Dragon King, you son of a—! Couldn't you have just blown yourself up like a good little dragon? Why'd you have to leave behind the Golden Dragon King Divine Core and all that blood essence for that blue-haired, middle-parted freak?!
Look what you've done! You indirectly made my other half fall in love with her enemy's son!!
Damn it, couldn't you at least make it longer so I could stab it in there?!!
Xie Xie was raging inside, putting every ounce of strength into both hands. But no matter how strong he was, could he really overpower the Golden Dragon King? A single one of the Golden Dragon King's scales could crush him.
Just then, something strange happened.
Light flowed across the Light Dragon Dagger, and the faint sound of a dragon's roar rang out.
That gentle yet irresistible golden light suddenly flared. The dagger extended on its own, growing longer in an instant.
Xie Xie didn't even have time to react. His arm, still locked in place by the Blue Silver Grass, didn't move a fraction.
Yet the blade, empowered by the dragon's light, slid forward with a gentle push and pierced Tang Wulin's shoulder just a little.
A tiny bead of blood appeared at once.
Now, not only Tang Wulin but Xie Xie himself was stunned.
Before Xie Xie could figure out what was going on with his Martial Soul, a sense of dread suddenly washed over him.
Golden light poured from the wound in Tang Wulin's shoulder where the Light Dragon Dagger had pierced him. Streams of golden light surged, trying to force the dagger out.
But at that moment, the Light Dragon Dagger seemed to take it as a challenge.
Golden light blazed across the dagger, and a low dragon's roar reverberated from its blade.
The dagger, which had only pierced the skin, seemed to come alive. It shuddered slightly and locked itself firmly in Tang Wulin's shoulder.
The more violently the golden light surged from inside Tang Wulin, the more fiercely the Light Dragon Dagger shone. Like a young dragon driven into a rage, it clamped down on its prey and refused to let go.
Xie Xie felt a warm force flow up the handle and into his arm. He couldn't even control the dagger's current state himself.
The Light Dragon Dagger wasn't forced out. Instead, it used the opposing golden light to sink firmly into the wound.
Golden light crashed against golden light in Tang Wulin's shoulder socket, intertwining and forming a dazzling ring of light.
Xie Xie stared in disbelief. "Holy crap, what the hell is this?!"
He looked at Tang Wulin, whose eyes were tightly shut. It seemed like he'd activated the Golden Dragon King Bloodline, sure, but...
Could this kid really be in trouble?!
As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Xie Xie forgot everything else. He planted his feet, gripped the handle, and yanked with all his might, trying to pull the Light Dragon Dagger out of Tang Wulin's shoulder.
"Come out! Come out already!"
"If Tang San, that old schemer, wakes up later, we're both done for!"
Suddenly, as if it really had understood his frantic blurt, the golden light on the Light Dragon Dagger trembled softly, and its dragon's roar turned much gentler.
The next moment, the dagger shrank slightly and obediently slid out of Tang Wulin's shoulder.
The Light Dragon Dagger's sharp gleam faded, and not a trace of its earlier defiance remained.
Before Xie Xie could enjoy the relief of getting the Light Dragon Dagger out, a deafening roar suddenly burst from Tang Wulin's mouth:
"Roar—!"
Fortunately, Xie Xie covered his ears just in time, saving his eardrums.
Immediately afterward, a golden blur came hurtling at him with terrifying force.
At the very last moment, his body reacted faster than his brain. He instinctively ducked down and covered his head.
A violent gust of air barely grazed his scalp, whipping the hair from his forehead. A bone-chilling blast of wind scraped across his head, making his scalp go numb.
After a moment, the violent gust gradually died away, and silence returned. Xie Xie stiffly straightened up.
He turned to look behind him and went completely blank.
A thick tree behind him had been blasted apart by the shockwave. Its bark had burst open, its branches snapped, and broken twigs and leaves littered the ground.
Xie Xie's heart pounded wildly.
Holy crap. If that punch had landed on me...
I'd have been lucky to come away in pieces!
Straight ahead, Tang Wulin lay on the ground, his face pale and his eyes tightly shut. He'd lost consciousness, and the wound on his shoulder still glimmered with golden light.
Xie Xie slowly crept over, picked up a little twig, and poked Tang Wulin's face with it.
Hmm, no reaction. He was probably out cold.
Xie Xie breathed a sigh of relief. Then he remembered how that golden light had nearly scared him to death, and the more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He lightly kicked Tang Wulin to vent his frustration.
"Pah! None of the Tang family ever give anyone a moment's peace!"
But the moment his foot touched him, Xie Xie suddenly felt something tighten around his ankle.
His whole body stiffened, his hair standing on end.
He looked down. Tang Wulin's eyes were still shut and his face was pale; he hadn't woken up. His hand had just reacted instinctively.
"Holy crap—he's turned into a zombie!!"
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