Zhao Wuji's seventh soul ring suddenly rose, blazing with a dazzling black light.
Without warning, his entire body shot into the air. His Vajra Bear Martial Soul Avatar instantly possessed him, transforming him into a mountain-like giant bear. He swung his razor-sharp bear claws and ruthlessly smashed them toward Zhou Man's head at close range!
"The show begins."
A cold smile curled across Lin Feng's lips. Four gold coins at his fingertips shot out like arrows loosed from a bow, splitting into two streaks of light as they flew toward Zhao Wuji and Flender!
At the same time, a yellow hundred-year soul ring rose.
"Blue Sentinel Power!"
"Red Sentinel Power!"
The coins moved so quickly that only afterimages remained. In the blink of an eye, they sank into the two men's bodies.
The enhancement from two Thornmails instantly swept through their bodies, causing their already formidable physiques to surge explosively like erupting volcanoes.
A 90% increase in strength, a terrifying 600% increase in defense, and a 140% increase in maximum health—it was like draping the two Soul Saints in indestructible steel armor.
Immediately afterward, red and blue rings appeared around them, and every limb and bone overflowed with inexhaustible, surging Soul Power.
The entire sequence flowed as smoothly as moving clouds and running water, completed in less than half a breath.
Lin Feng did not linger for even a moment. He turned and entered the hidden passage that had long been prepared behind him, his figure vanishing into the darkness.
His task was complete. The rest depended on the two academy heads.
Zhou Man was, after all, a Soul Douluo-level powerhouse. Even though most of his attention had been on the wooden box, he sensed something was wrong the instant the fist wind struck.
But the distance was too short. He had no time to activate a high-level soul skill and could only instantly possess his Martial Soul. The ferocious phantom of a Three-Headed Blood Wolf erupted behind him as he crossed his arms over his head and desperately channeled Soul Power in front of himself.
"Bang!"
The muffled boom shook the entire building, and Zhou Man was instantly sent flying backward.
He smashed through brick walls and stone pillars all the way, sending wood splinters and shattered bricks flying everywhere. His body crashed straight through the rear wall and disappeared into the billowing dust.
Flender's gray-black wings spread open as he rose into the air.
Feeling the endless torrent of Soul Power coursing through his body, the Fourth Soul Ring beneath his feet flashed wildly.
"Air Blade!"
"Air Blade!"
"Buzzz!"
Piercing whistling sounds exploded one after another as hundreds of wind blades bombarded Chu Shao and the other three Soul Saints.
Every wind blade carried the full power of his Fourth Soul Skill. They densely filled the sky, slicing the air until it emitted a piercing hum.
Seeing the overwhelming wind blades crashing down upon them, Chu Shao and the other three felt their scalps go numb. They did not dare take the attack head-on and hurriedly dodged, utterly unable to understand what Flender was doing.
He was wasting so much Soul Power in one go—and with a thousand-year soul skill, no less.
"Rumble—"
Deafening collapses rang out in succession. Solid brick walls and sturdy wooden beams were easily sliced apart and shredded like tofu beneath the sharp wind blades.
The entire Soul Recovery Pavilion was carved into flying fragments of wood and brick. Dust shot into the sky and blanketed the whole street.
Hovering in the air, Flender watched Zhao Wuji plunge into the crowd of soul masters below and begin slaughtering them. He frowned and shouted.
"Old Bear, what the hell are you doing? Don't get dragged into this. Leave!"
Just then, a level sixty-three Power Attack System Soul Emperor in the crowd spotted the opening in Zhao Wuji's back, and a vicious gleam burst from his eyes.
The arm gripping the Beast Fire Blade bulged with veins as a black soul ring suddenly lit up.
"Eagle Drop!"
Berserk purple Soul Power surged wildly along the blade. His whole body instantly turned into a purple flame afterimage, crossing a hundred meters in an instant as he viciously slashed at Zhao Wuji's muscular back.
"Clang—"
A shrill clash of metal rang out as purplish-red sparks burst through the dust.
The expected sight of Zhao Wuji being cleaved in two never appeared. The Beast Fire Blade, infused with all of the Soul Emperor's Soul Power, only left a shallow bloody mark across Zhao Wuji's back muscles before being violently bounced away.
The Soul Emperor's pupils shrank as he froze in place, his face full of disbelief. He lowered his head to look at the ground.
Purple flames still blazed within the hundred-meter ravine carved out by the blade's residual force. That had been his all-out strike, yet it had only broken the other man's skin?
"Th-this is really a human?!"
Before he could recover from his shock, tearing pain suddenly erupted from his chest.
His body abruptly curled over as he sprayed out a mouthful of blood. Half his chest burned with stabbing pain, as if it were being scorched by invisible flames.
But he clearly had not been struck by any soul skill!
"Wh-why?!"
Zhao Wuji had long noticed the little trick behind him, but with two Thornmails on him, he could not be bothered to care.
He turned around and casually swung his fan-sized palm, carrying a force like a tidal wave. The Soul Emperor was sent flying before he could even scream, smashing hard into a broken wall and passing out on the spot.
A mere Soul Emperor dared to play dirty behind his back? Did he think a Soul Saint's perception was for decoration?
The harder one struck, the more viciously Thornmail's reflected damage retaliated. Not to mention a low-level opponent attacking someone of a higher realm—he was simply courting death.
After casually dealing with the little sneak attacker, Zhao Wuji glanced at the two seconds remaining on Thornmail's [Thorn] skill cooldown. Rather than following Flender's order to retreat and break out, he stomped his foot and charged straight at Chu Shao and the four Soul Saints.
"Treasure, treasure—my damn fists have plenty for you to eat."
He roared as his soul rings flashed wildly. With Blue Buff backing him up, his Soul Power recovery was absurdly fast. He ignored all consumption and unleashed soul skills as if they cost nothing.
"Fourth Soul Skill, Targeting Lock—get over here!"
"Second Soul Skill, Vajra Palm, palm, palm!"
Heavy palm winds pursued the four men in wave after wave. Chu Shao and the others were forced into a frantic scramble, growing more stifled and alarmed the longer they fought.
The four of them were genuine Soul Saints. Working together, even a Soul Douluo would have to avoid their edge. Yet Zhao Wuji was actually charging forward while forcibly enduring the soul skills of all four of them, without even furrowing his brow.
Chu Shao swung his Blood Axe with all his strength, and an all-out strike infused with a Ten Thousand Year Soul Skill came crashing down onto Zhao Wuji's shoulder.
It only cut three bloody marks, while Chu Shao himself was jolted until the web between his thumb and forefinger split open. His entire arm went numb and lost all feeling.
Even stranger, as the fight continued, their whole bodies began to ache faintly, as if invisible blades were repeatedly cutting them. They were clearly the ones attacking every time, yet they were always the ones getting hurt.
"Damn it, what the hell is this thing?"
Chu Shao watched Zhao Wuji charge at them again as if nothing had happened, and his scalp nearly exploded.
"With this defense and that ridiculous Soul Power endurance, is he really just a Soul Saint?"
Sun Shi's black combat outfit had long since been burned into charred tatters by the bizarre flames. Piercing heat burrowed through his flesh and into his bones.
He truly could not withstand those strange flames any longer. Enduring the aftershock of one of Zhao Wuji's palms, he staggered backward more than ten meters and stared at the flames still burning on his body.
Yet just two breaths after he withdrew from the battle, the strange flames that had clung to him for so long, flames that even Soul Power could not suppress, silently dispersed on their own!
Sun Shi's pupils contracted. He instantly realized what was happening and shouted at Chu Shao and the other two, who were still desperately holding on.
"Old Chu, there's something fucking wrong with this old bastard. Don't fight him up close. Stay away from him."
Chu Shao and the other two had already been left scrambling by Zhao Wuji, their blood and qi churning violently. Hearing this, they immediately used the force of their clashing Soul Powers to retreat together, opening up a safe distance of more than ten meters.
The four of them clutched their chests and gasped violently, coughing up bloody phlegm. Their eyes were filled with wariness as they looked at Zhao Wuji, and none dared charge forward recklessly again.
"Old Chu, this old bastard is too damn strange. As long as you fight him, a ball of fire suddenly ignites on your body, and even your speed slows down."
"Not just that!"
Another Soul Saint's face had gone pale, and even the hand holding his Martial Soul trembled slightly.
"Didn't you notice? However hard we hit him, our own bodies hurt just as much. It's like... like we're hitting ourselves."
Sun Shi was stunned. He raised a hand to wipe the blood seeping from the corner of his eye and stared at the others in astonishment.
"So it wasn't just me? Seeing all of you fighting so fiercely, I thought something was wrong with my body, that it was just an illusion. Then why the fuck didn't you say so earlier?!"
"You never asked!"
Before you continue