The Melee That Never Happened

In Lang Ya's eyes, it seemed as though he had merely blinked. Though he had noticed Huo Yuhao use a Spirit Skill, he had no idea what effect it had.

At the start of the fight, just as Tao Yu's attack was about to hit Huo Yuhao, he activated the Spirit Genesis God's Spirit Skill and set its targets as himself and Tao Yu.

With the boost of thousand-year Soul Power and the experience he'd gained in his previous life controlling spiritual power with precision, Huo Yuhao managed to do just that, accelerating his own thoughts while slowing Tao Yu's.

With his thoughts slowed, Tao Yu saw Huo Yuhao move so fast that he couldn't sense him at all. Huo Yuhao was like the shadow of a wandering ghost, his movements impossible to catch.

Conversely, with his own perception accelerated, Huo Yuhao saw his opponent's attack move as slowly as a snail. Every twitch of muscle beneath Tao Yu's skin was laid bare before him.

Tao Yu's attack might have looked frightening if all you saw was that fist as big as a sandbag. But judging by the strength he'd shown and Lang Ya's assessment, Tao Yu was just an ordinary One-Ring Soul Master.

The power of a first Spirit Skill ultimately couldn't be so great that it was impossible to dodge, especially not for Huo Yuhao with his thoughts accelerated.

But to make sure he got completely clear of his opponent's reach, Huo Yuhao also used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, making his footwork even more unpredictable.

In less than the time it took to blink, Huo Yuhao had escaped Tao Yu's attack range and reached his blind spot.

Condense spiritual power into a spike... build up energy within it, then unleash it all in an instant! Huo Yuhao recalled the basic applications of spiritual power from his previous life. Though they were basic techniques, in this world, directing power at will to attack was a truly advanced skill.

The first time he'd seen this technique in his previous life... It seemed to have been in a fight sparked by jealousy, and he'd barely won.

But now, he only had to follow the steps and use the Mental Shock in the most reliable way to beat his opponent.

"Mental Shock." He silently murmured the words to himself. In the battle, Huo Yuhao dodged Tao Yu's attack and defeated him with Mental Shock—all in the time it took to blink.

Back in the present, Huo Yuhao gazed quietly at Lang Ya in the VIP seating area. His look seemed to remind Lang Ya that if he still wanted to fight, he could bring it on.

He saw the delight on Lang Ya's face. He knew he'd met the man's expectations—and then some.

The risk had been considerable, but it was all to raise his value in Lang Ya's eyes.

"How was that?"

Huo Yuhao turned toward Lang Ya and asked.

"Excellent, excellent, absolutely excellent!" Lang Ya repeated three times, barely able to contain his excitement.

He'd sensed that Huo Yuhao had used Spirit Skills resembling sensory delay and Mental Shock. Both were common Spirit Skills for Martial Souls of the spiritual type, but usually, Mental Shock didn't occupy a Spirit Skill slot on its own.

Generally, once a person's spiritual power reached a certain level, they could use pure spiritual power to unleash Mental Shock. It was an advanced technique that only Soul Masters of the spiritual type who'd reached a certain level could perform.

But unlike Mental Shock, sensory delay clearly wasn't an ability that could be performed directly with spiritual power alone. So Lang Ya judged that Huo Yuhao's first Spirit Skill could only be sensory delay.

In other words, Huo Yuhao's spiritual power had already reached the level where he could unleash Mental Shock on his own.

The thought I really want to take this child back to the Body Sect completely took over Lang Ya's mind. He leaped straight over to Huo Yuhao, while Tao Yu and the other children behind him obediently gathered together, like toys that had been strewn across the floor and then scooped into a pile.

Huo Yuhao couldn't help looking at them. Every one of them was just like Tao Yu had been: their Soul Power flowed steadily, but their eyes were vacant, not a trace of self-awareness in them.

Huo Yuhao had reason to suspect that all these children were puppets controlled by Lang Ya with his Soul Power.

"Aren't we going to keep fighting? I thought you'd have me fight them one after another." Huo Yuhao spoke. Hearing him, Lang Ya smiled and shook his head.

"You seem to have misunderstood me, Huo Yuhao. I said from the start that the purpose of this fight was simple: I just wanted to see how good you really were."

As he spoke, Lang Ya gestured excitedly with both arms:

"Of course, I really did plan to test you with a string of opponents at first. But after just one fight, I knew you weren't merely a genius. You're one in a billion, a once-in-ten-thousand-years super genius!"

Lang Ya gesticulated wildly as he continued to prattle on:

"Listen, Huo Yuhao. In my eyes, your talent in the field of the spirit is in no way inferior to anyone in the Body Sect. In fact, by comparison, your talent may even surpass that of our current sect master!"

"Huo Yuhao, I know you may still have some reservations. I can apologize for threatening you earlier, but you have to understand me. Without those threats, could you really have shown such strength? Clearly not. You'd have thought about stalling for time instead of ending the fight as quickly as possible. This helped you—and helped me avoid wasting time!"

"Look, under a threat that had nothing to do with you personally, you managed to show me your unparalleled talent in the spiritual field. Otherwise, you'd still have faced several more fights. Against these children I'd carefully 'trained,' I'm confident I could have worn you down until you were exhausted. By then, your companions would have been in danger too."

"What do you think? This is a deal with guaranteed profit and no loss. I haven't even caused any real harm to your teachers or classmates. It's a perfect win-win!"

The more Lang Ya spoke, the more excited he became. He even grabbed Huo Yuhao by the shoulders.

Huo Yuhao had wanted to break free, but Lang Ya was a Soul Douluo, and Huo Yuhao couldn't possibly match him in physical strength alone.

So even as Huo Yuhao twisted and struggled, all he could see was Lang Ya's increasingly excited, increasingly repulsive face.

"Come on, Huo Yuhao. I'll take you away right now. I'm confident that if you join the Body Sect, I can guarantee you'll become the next sect master... No, not just me. I'm sure the sect master himself would feel the same!"

Huo Yuhao wasn't surprised in the least... He couldn't believe a single word this man said. As expected, breaking promises came as easily to him as drinking water.

"You... liar!" Huo Yuhao glared at Lang Ya furiously. He was still fairly calm, actually. It was just that this was the look he needed to show.

Anger and resentment—he needed those emotions to keep Lang Ya's attention steady, so the man wouldn't notice the changes in their surroundings.

"Hahaha... Anything goes if it means bringing another genius to the Body Sect!" Lang Ya laughed maniacally. But in the very next instant—

He suddenly realized he'd lost all feeling in both hands. When he came to his senses, he saw that his bones had been cleanly severed, their cut ends wreathed in wisps of black aura.

"I believe I warned you, Lang Ya." A stern voice rang out from in front of Lang Ya. The person standing before him was no longer Huo Yuhao, but Long Xiaoyao, his expression grave and his face grim.