Ye Xuan's enhanced body was now nearly as strong as Yu Tianheng's while he was in Martial Soul Possession.
One kick sent Yu Tianheng flying and knocked his mouth crooked.
Ye Xuan had given him a taste of what it was like to be the Crooked-Mouth Dragon King.
"Bang!"
Yu Tianheng slammed into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The mocking voices that had rung out moments ago had all fallen silent.
Only Yu Tianheng's low groans and labored breathing remained.
But.
Ye Xuan had never claimed to be some paragon of virtue. He wasn't going to see his opponent injured and wait for him to recover.
His guiding principle was simple.
Once you stepped onto the arena,
there could only be one winner.
And that winner
could only be him!
"Thud—!"
Ye Xuan moved.
The instant his foot hit the ground, it cracked the hard marble arena and left a small crater.
That was enough to show just how powerful his body was now.
Yue Guan and the other influential figures standing nearby couldn't help but feel secretly alarmed.
Ye Xuan was only a One-Ring Soul Master, and he didn't even seem to specialize in strength.
Yet he'd stomped a crater into the arena with one step. They were so astonished they could barely process it.
At that moment,
Yu Tianheng had just come to his senses. The instant he saw Ye Xuan's rapidly approaching afterimage, he released his Soul Skill almost on instinct.
"Second Soul Skill: Thunderbolt!"
Terrifying blue lightning snakes instantly coiled around Yu Tianheng, sweeping across the half of the arena where Ye Xuan stood.
Seeing this, everyone felt a pang of sympathy for Ye Xuan.
In their eyes, forcing Yu Tianheng into this state was already something to be proud of.
But then—
Ye Xuan's next move left them questioning reality.
"Now's the time! Go, Haji Wu!"
Ye Xuan tossed a black-and-white Pokeball toward the area behind Yu Tianheng, where the lightning hadn't reached.
Anyone with sharp eyesight might also have noticed the gorgeous crescent moon etched into its black half.
Right after that,
as the crowd stared in stunned disbelief,
a pure white light burst from the Pokeball, then took the shape of a white-haired rabbit-eared girl who looked just like Ye Xuan.
"Xiao Wu, use Explosive Eight-Stage Throw!"
Hearing Ye Xuan's command, Xiao Wu mischievously stuck out her tongue at him.
Then she became a streak of shadow and vanished into thin air.
By the time everyone noticed the little girl he'd summoned,
they saw Yu Tianheng flying through the air again.
And then came Xiao Wu's solo performance.
With every slam of Explosive Eight-Stage Throw, the entire arena trembled.
But Xiao Wu's strength was tied to Ye Xuan's, so even as its creator, she could hardly perform the technique on her own.
Naturally, Ye Xuan helped Xiao Wu "behind the scenes."
Finally,
just as Xiao Wu was about to deliver the last slam,
Ye Xuan caught her hand in midair.
At his signal, the two of them kicked Yu Tianheng—dizzy and barely conscious—out of the arena.
Bang—!!!
As Yu Tianheng hit the ground outside the arena,
the healing-type Soul Masters accompanying him hurried over to treat his injuries.
That final blow—
Even Soul Masters with only halfway decent eyesight could tell
that Ye Xuan and the little girl he'd summoned had held back on that last slam.
Hu Liena was overjoyed to see her junior brother and Xiao Wu defeat Yu Tianheng, whose Soul Power was a whole major realm above Ye Xuan's, with such ease.
She knew full well that their teacher would be thrilled when she heard about this!
Ning Rongrong, standing beside Hu Liena, watched Ye Xuan defeat Yu Tianheng—one of the Blue Lightning Twin Stars—despite the difference in realms, and make it look easy.
Still,
more than the victory itself,
she was curious about the little girl Ye Xuan had summoned.
A Martial Soul that could summon an ally to fight alongside its user had never appeared in the history books.
"Yeah! We won, Xuanxuan!"
The instant she saw they'd won, Xiao Wu threw herself at Ye Xuan and gave him a tight bear hug.
She wrapped her two snowy-white hands around his neck and refused to let go.
Ye Xuan could only sigh helplessly.
He carried her down from the arena like that.
"Senior Sister, I've lived up to your expectations."
Seeing her junior brother win, Hu Liena's eyes crinkled with a smile.
"Mhm, I knew you could do it."
At Hu Liena's words, Xiao Wu finally jumped down from Ye Xuan.
"Hehe, we're really strong."
At that moment,
Ning Fengzhi and the others, watching this incredible scene from the other arena, could hardly stay in their seats.
Ye Xuan had just summoned a little girl.
It was the first time they'd seen such a strange Martial Soul.
And—
Ye Xuan had defeated Yu Tianheng, a Soul Grandmaster with a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul, while only being a Soul Master.
With talent and strength like that, it was impossible not to be interested.
Yue Guan was amazed, but he also kept an eye on the people from the other factions.
If any of them tried to approach Ye Xuan, he would immediately stop them.
"Big Brother Ye Xuan, who's this big sister?"
At Ning Rongrong's question, Xiao Wu noticed the little girl standing beside Hu Liena.
"Xuanxuan, who's she?"
Xiao Wu was confused, since she didn't know Ning Rongrong.
Ye Xuan patted Xiao Wu on the head.
"She's Ning Rongrong, the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. She's been with me and Senior Sister ever since we came here."
Xiao Wu was surprised by Ye Xuan's introduction, but she soon accepted it.
After all,
as long as Ye Xuan was safe, she was invincible.
With that in mind,
she walked right up to Ning Rongrong.
Ning Rongrong hadn't absorbed her First Soul Ring yet, so she was a little shorter than Ye Xuan and Ning Rongrong.
"Hehe, hello, little Rongrong! My name's Xiao Wu—Wu as in dance. I'm Xuanxuan's First Soul Ring, and his very best partner."
As she spoke, Xiao Wu kneaded Ning Rongrong's cheeks with her little hands.
The people watching from nearby were so frightened that they hardly dared to breathe.
Ever since Ning Rongrong was born,
not even her father, Ning Fengzhi, had dared to pinch her cheeks.
Ning Fengzhi watched, simmering with anger.
Just as he was about to retrieve his daughter, Gu Rong stopped him.
"Fengzhi, take it easy, take it easy."
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