Chen Xuan's strength was plain for all to see.
What could something he called a "secret technique" be, if not extraordinary?
"And what if we lose?" Dai Mubai asked.
It was Dugu Yan who spoke. She stepped forward, her expression haughty.
"If you lose, you'll admit that Shrek is trash, not worth a fraction of Blue Silver Academy."
"Fine!"
Dai Mubai agreed at once.
As far as he was concerned, aside from Dugu Yan, the Soul King, the others posed no threat at all.
As for the woman named Ah Yin, though her presence was imposing, he couldn't sense even a trace of Soul Power from her. Perhaps she was just putting on a show.
"Which match first?" Tang San asked, his gaze fixed on Ah Yin the entire time.
"How about... we start with an appetizer?"
Chen Xuan's gaze fell on Ah Yin.
"Ah Yin, you're up."
At his words, Ah Yin stepped forward and slowly walked into the arena.
With every step she took, the Blue Silver Grass at her feet swayed gently, as if paying their highest respects to their empress.
"Individual match, first round."
Chen Xuan's voice was not loud, but it carried clearly to everyone present.
"Who's coming?"
The Shrek students looked at one another.
Tang San drew a deep breath and stepped forward.
"I'll go."
He had to find out what had happened.
"Third Brother, be careful!" Xiao Wu called out anxiously.
Tang San nodded to her and walked to face Ah Yin.
"...Senior."
Tang San forced himself to change how he addressed her.
"Is there some misunderstanding between us?"
Ah Yin did not answer.
She merely raised a hand, and a stalk of Blue Silver Grass quietly sprouted from her palm.
It was an utterly ordinary stalk of Blue Silver Grass, but in the next instant, its leaf edges were gilded in dazzling gold.
An unrivaled, razor-sharp aura burst forth!
Tang San's pupils contracted sharply.
This aura...
"Thief."
Ah Yin finally spoke. Her voice was ethereal, yet carried the chill of the abyss of hell.
"Give me back my child's life."
The instant the words fell, she moved.
No, she hadn't moved at all.
The ground of the entire Martial Arts Arena had!
"Shhk! Shhk! Shhk!"
Countless stalks of Blue Silver Grass glimmering with golden light burst from the earth like sharp swords, stabbing wildly toward Tang San from every direction!
Every blade of grass carried an aura capable of cutting through anything.
"First Soul Skill, Entanglement!"
Tang San reacted swiftly. His First Soul Ring lit up, and countless tough vines of Blue Silver Grass surged from the ground in an attempt to block them.
But the control Soul Skill that had always served him so well looked laughable now.
The golden blades of grass merely swept across.
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"
The Blue Silver Grass Tang San had summoned was like fragile tofu, instantly sliced to pieces!
The golden sea of grass did not slow at all. It continued closing in around Tang San at its center!
"Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track!"
Tang San's expression changed drastically. His figure became a series of afterimages as he darted through the dense formation of grass blades, narrowly evading them.
But he soon realized it was useless.
The entire Martial Arts Arena had become Ah Yin's domain.
No matter where he dodged, new golden blades would thrust up beneath his feet, sealing off every escape route.
"Fourth Soul Skill, Blue Silver Prison!"
Tang San shouted as his Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring suddenly lit up.
A huge cage formed from Blue Silver Emperor vines descended from above, enclosing Ah Yin.
This was his most powerful single-target control Soul Skill!
Ah Yin simply lifted her eyes and glanced at the cage overhead.
"Break."
She uttered the word softly.
"Clang—!"
A sharp ring like metal striking metal rang out.
The supposedly indestructible Blue Silver Prison abruptly halted in midair.
Then, to everyone's horror, countless fine golden cracks spread across its surface.
"Boom!"
The Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill, Blue Silver Prison, shattered instantly into a shower of glowing fragments!
"Pfft!"
Tang San took a heavy blow and spat out a mouthful of blood. His face went deathly pale.
Having his Soul Skill broken so effortlessly had dealt him a serious backlash.
But he had no time to recover.
A golden stalk of Blue Silver Grass had appeared silently before him at some point, its pointed tip pressed against his throat.
Its razor-sharp aura stung his skin.
He had no doubt that if she willed it, his throat would be pierced in an instant.
The entire arena fell silent.
Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun all stood there with their mouths agape, unable to say a word.
Tang San was so strong, yet he hadn't even touched the other woman's clothes before being completely suppressed!
How was this possible?!
Who was this woman?!
Tang San's knees gave way, and he dropped to one knee, panting heavily.
He raised his head and looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar face before him, his eyes filled with confusion and pain.
"W-why..."
Ah Yin looked down at him, not a trace of pity in her blue eyes.
"This is only the beginning."
She withdrew the Blue Silver Grass pressed against Tang San's throat, turned around, and slowly walked out of the arena.
"The debt you owe my child—I'll make you repay it, bit by bit."
The Martial Arts Arena was utterly silent.
Tang San knelt on the ground, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth and splashing against the stone slabs like a small red plum blossom.
He looked up at Ah Yin's resolute back, confusion and pain nearly overflowing from his eyes.
A thief?
Repay her child's life?
What did that mean?
He desperately searched through his memories, from his father's stories to what he himself had sensed.
Nothing. There was nothing.
There wasn't a single clue that could explain the bone-deep hatred before him.
"Third Brother!"
Xiao Wu was the first to react. She darted forward, about to rush to his side.
"Stop."
A figure stepped into her path.
It was Dugu Yan.
She crossed her arms over her chest, her emerald eyes sweeping over Xiao Wu's anxious face, her expression indifferent.
"The individual match isn't over."
"Can't you see Third Brother has already lost?" Xiao Wu snapped.
"Oh?"
Dugu Yan raised an eyebrow.
"Did he admit defeat himself?"
Xiao Wu was momentarily at a loss for words.
It was true. Tang San had been defeated, but he hadn't said the words "I admit defeat."
"This isn't fair!"
Dai Mubai had finally recovered from his shock, and anger surged through him. His evil eyes were fixed on Chen Xuan by the edge of the arena.
"She isn't even a Soul Master! And she didn't use a Soul Skill! What kind of match is this?"
In his eyes, Ah Yin had no Soul Rings to speak of. Her ability to control plants out of thin air seemed more like some strange innate talent than the orthodox power of a Soul Master.
Chen Xuan sat in a stone chair and picked up the tea already set out on the stone table beside him. He gently blew on it.
He didn't even look at Dai Mubai.
"Yanzi."
Chen Xuan spoke in an even tone.
"Teacher, I'm here," Dugu Yan replied respectfully.
"Tell them what the rules are."
Before you continue