Bei Bei weathered Light of the Butterfly Goddess. His Second Soul Ring suddenly lit up, and blue-violet lightning serpents coiled around his Dragon Transformation right arm shot forward, their flashing light dazzling.
With Thunderous Might empowered by Thunder Fury, Bei Bei poured all his Soul Power into the attack, hoping to win with a single strike.
The blue-violet lightning serpents shattered Light of the Butterfly Goddess, and the savage Dragon Claw followed close behind, attacking from both sides in a deadly pincer.
Bai Cai neither dodged nor evaded. Kirlia locked onto Huo Yuhao, and her Second Soul Ring lit up once more. "Myriad Manifestations of the Forest: Black Tortoise Displacement!"
As a three-ring Soul Elder, Kirlia could currently copy up to three Soul Skills with Myriad Manifestations of the Forest.
Before the Soul Fighting even began, Kirlia had already copied Light of the Butterfly Goddess. Xu Sanshi carried out a beheading strategy, so Kirlia then copied Black Tortoise Displacement.
Using a Martial Soul Fusion Skill to overcome the strong despite being weak: that was the first layer of strategy.
Using a beheading strategy to dismantle a Martial Soul Fusion Skill: that was the second layer.
Pretending the beheading strategy had worked, when in fact it was meant to lure Bei Bei into giving his all and striking Huo Yuhao with everything he had: that was the fifth layer.
Outmaneuvering the enemy, circling around to attack from behind, and splitting their forces apart—when it came to tactics, Xu Sanshi and Bei Bei had undoubtedly fallen far behind.
Bai Cai and Kirlia vanished in a flash. Huo Yuhao appeared in their place, his face full of confusion. Exhausted from fending off three Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons, he had no time to think about why he had suddenly appeared there.
The blue-violet lightning serpents and savage Dragon Claw were right on top of him. With Huo Yuhao's meager Soul Power and frail body, facing a Soul Skill unleashed at full strength, even a brush would wound him, and a direct hit would kill him. Bei Bei made a snap decision and gritted his teeth as he withdrew his Soul Power.
The lightning lost its brilliance. The blue-violet serpents drooped, their fearsome might reduced to less than a tenth, and Thunderous Might collapsed in an instant.
It was hard to take back water that had been poured out—let alone a fully unleashed offensive Soul Skill.
His violent Soul Power was like molten lightning, surging backward through his meridians in an instant and seeping into his internal organs. It was as if the legendary hellfire of ancient tales were scorching his entire body, burning him inside and out.
Waves of intense pain crashed over him, but Bei Bei's expression didn't change. The shoulder and elbow joints of his Dragon-Transformed left arm crackled as his muscles twisted and contracted, forcibly halting Thunder Dragon Claw.
Even with the referee keeping a constant watch on both sides of the Soul Fighting match, Bei Bei still chose to endure the backlash himself rather than let it spill over onto Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao came back to his senses and crossed his arms to block the savage Dragon Claw, bitterness welling up inside him.
His Soul Power Level was not only inferior to that of his peers, but his Spirit Eye Martial Soul was also of the mental type. Even though it counted as a Body Martial Soul, the boost it gave his physical body was negligible.
If only I'd inherited the White Tiger Martial Soul of the White Tiger Duke's Estate... Huo Yuhao's thoughts ran wild.
The savage Dragon Claw came to a halt just short of him, stirring a wisp of wind. Bei Bei's movements were stiff, and his voice hoarse. "Yuhao, I'm sorry."
Once an offensive Soul Skill had taken shape, withdrawing Soul Power midway meant that for every ten parts of its power, three would dissipate and seven would rebound on the user.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon was not a defensive Martial Soul. Even with only seven-tenths of the backlash, and even with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's excellent resistance to lightning after possession, Bei Bei was still badly hurt by Thunderous Might empowered by Thunder Fury.
On top of that, forcibly stopping Thunder Dragon Claw placed a considerable strain on his body. The two injuries compounded, and Bei Bei was no longer able to fight.
"Senior Brother Bei Bei! Senior Brother Bei Bei!"
Forget that the Soul Fighting match was still underway, Huo Yuhao called out to the referee. "Teacher, please help Senior Brother Bei Bei!"
The referee had been keeping a constant watch on both sides, but he hadn't expected Bei Bei to take the backlash himself to protect Huo Yuhao. He didn't dare intervene on his own.
If the referee made a mistake and either side lodged an objection, the academy would investigate. He would not only lose that month's pay but also jeopardize his professional evaluation.
The benefits and treatment of junior, intermediate, and senior teachers differed enormously, so of course the middle-aged referee proceeded cautiously.
"Black Tortoise Shock!"
Xu Sanshi's First Soul Ring suddenly lit up. With no time to spare, he shook off Wang Dong, who had been harassing him with hit-and-run attacks, and went straight for Xiao Xiao, whose defense was wide open.
The three Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons were pinning down Huo Yuhao, leaving Xiao Xiao unable to return in time. Wang Dong's Soul Power was low, making close combat especially dangerous, and Light of the Butterfly Goddess could hardly deal any meaningful damage. Using it would only waste Soul Power.
Among defensive Soul Masters, Xu Sanshi had an unusually inventive approach. His four Soul Skills covered control, support, damage, and initiation, making him more suited to the role of a vanguard or team support.
His First Soul Skill, Black Tortoise Shock, knocked back foes in an area and briefly stunned them. His Second Soul Skill, Black Tortoise Shield Formation, provided group defense. His Third Soul Skill, Black Tortoise Power, added extra damage to his shield strikes. His Fourth Soul Skill, Black Tortoise Displacement, forcibly repositioned targets.
A frontline tank? More like an initiator!
Bei Bei was a mixed-damage fighter. Unless he faced a defensive Soul Master, activating his Third Soul Skill, Thunder Fury, gave him single-target damage with Thunder Dragon Claw and area damage with Thunderous Might. His damage was already more than enough; the only thing he lacked was survivability.
Xu Sanshi could both take and deal a punch. His defense was strong, and his offense was no slouch. With his Soul Power Level far higher, he was more dangerous than Bei Bei.
A sturdy lion might lose to a hungry pack of hyenas, but an enraged rhinoceros was enough to make them hesitate.
If Xu Sanshi defeated Xiao Xiao and joined forces with Huo Yuhao, they still had a chance at victory.
After all, to stop Xu Sanshi, Wang Dong had to keep using her Second Soul Skill. The thousand-year Soul Ring drained a tremendous amount of Soul Power, and she was nearly depleted.
During the new student assessment five months ago, Wang Dong had fought Wu Feng and taken out Nanmen Yun'er. She had used Light of the Butterfly Goddess twice and Wing Blade four times, already running her Soul Power down to the last drop.
Since Bai Cai disappeared, Wang Dong had never slacked off. In five months, she had raised her Soul Power by three levels. But Light of the Butterfly Goddess was a thousand-year Soul Skill, after all, and consumed a tremendous amount of Soul Power.
To stop Xu Sanshi, Wang Dong had used Light of the Butterfly Goddess three more times, leaving her Soul Power nearly depleted.
By contrast, Xu Sanshi had relied on his tough physique and abundant protective Soul Power not only to withstand three blasts of Light of the Butterfly Goddess but also to retain no less than eight-tenths of his full reserves.
The gap in Soul Power between a Soul Grandmaster and a Soul Ancestor was like a chasm no one could cross. Against a defensive Soul Ancestor, repeated blasts of Light of the Butterfly Goddess inflicted barely any damage.
Although Bei Bei had been badly hurt, he had forced Bai Cai to use her Second Soul Ring repeatedly, consuming a great deal of Soul Power. Without enough Soul Power, she couldn't use her ten-thousand-year Third Soul Ring, and it no longer posed a threat.
The only card Bai Cai Team had left in plain sight was their Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
Could one low-level Soul Elder with much of his Soul Power spent and one Soul Grandmaster with almost nothing left really unleash a Martial Soul Fusion Skill powerful enough to defeat Xu Sanshi?
Xu Sanshi kept his mind on his target and charged straight for Xiao Xiao. Kirlia and Bai Cai hurried to reinforce her.
However, apart from her ten-thousand-year Soul Ring, Kirlia lacked any offensive Soul Skills capable of dealing massive damage.
Thunder Fury was an enhancement Soul Skill, and Thunder Dragon Claw and Thunderous Might were both weaker than Light of the Butterfly Goddess.
Myriad Manifestations of the Forest had only one copying slot left. Unless she erased Light of the Butterfly Goddess and Black Tortoise Displacement, her damage output would surely fall short.
Yet at the same cultivation level, Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi were evenly matched. Xu Sanshi had become a Soul Ancestor while Bei Bei remained a high-level Soul Elder. In a one-on-one Soul Fighting match, Bei Bei would undoubtedly lose.
Even if Bai Cai copied every one of Bei Bei's Soul Skills, what could she do?
Wang Dong gazed at Bai Cai from across the arena, her eyes sincere. Five months had passed, yet she still remembered their new student assessment and the Martial Soul Fusion Skill they had unleashed in perfect harmony.
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