The burly teacher glared at Ling Yun. Before the match, he'd told both sides to go all out. He hadn't expected Ling Yun to slap him in the face so quickly.
"Teacher Yang, one of the students at Arena Three is injured. Come quickly!"
Less than five breaths after he called out, a female teacher appeared on the arena. She looked to be about thirty, with light green hair, emerald eyes, and a deep green outfit.
"What happened? You should've been keeping an eye on them. He's badly hurt!"
Teacher Yang had a lovely voice. Hearing the reproach in it, the burly teacher flushed with embarrassment, his face burning red.
"It was an accident! Just an accident!"
Teacher Yang released her Martial Soul, and an Evergreen Vine appeared. Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black—five Soul Rings rose from beneath her feet.
The next moment, her First Soul Ring lit up. The vine swept over Osler, and green Soul Power brimming with vitality became specks of light that sank into his body. The lights, like warm little hands, brushed over his wounds. In just a few breaths, they had scabbed over and healed, leaving only faint red marks.
"Rest for a day and recover your Soul Power. You'll be fine."
"Thank you, Teacher Yang!" Osler stood and bowed respectfully. Then he turned to Ling Yun. "A genius with a thousand-year Second Soul Ring truly lives up to his reputation. Can you tell me how much of your strength you used?"
"One-fifth!"
"I understand. Thank you for going easy on me." Osler drew a deep breath. Before the fight, he'd thought the gap between himself and Ling Yun wouldn't be very large. He hadn't expected that to be nothing but wishful thinking.
Before stepping off the arena, Osler glanced at the burly teacher, his expression full of reproach. He'd never trust a referee's word again.
If the burly teacher hadn't said he'd step in at the critical moment, Osler would have fled the instant he realized he couldn't block the Light Needles.
Painful! That lesson had hurt.
From then on, Osler put the burly teacher on his blacklist.
Teacher Yang gave Ling Yun a close look, then left the arena and went straight to the spectator area.
She had a feeling she'd be busy today.
Soon, Ling Yun's second opponent stepped onto the arena. The burly teacher repeated the same words. "Use your full strength. I'll step in at the critical moment."
After speaking, the burly teacher fixed his eyes on Ling Yun. He refused to believe he couldn't react in time.
"Li Hao, class leader of Heavenly Grade Class Two. Martial Soul: Dragon Pattern Blade. Level 27. Please advise me."
"Ling Yun, Heavenly Grade Class One. Martial Soul: Yin-Yang Mirror. Level 28. Please advise me."
Li Hao's pupils contracted, and his expression turned serious. He hadn't expected Ling Yun to be a level above him.
"Begin!" the burly teacher announced.
Li Hao instantly slashed out three streaks of blade light in a triangular formation, sending them toward Ling Yun. They arrived in a flash, but Ling Yun made a slight adjustment to his stance. The three streaks skimmed past him and struck the Soul Power barrier around the Soul Fighting Arena.
Li Hao followed with another three streaks of blade light. Each time he swung, he closed the distance between himself and Ling Yun.
His plan was simple: strike first. What he hadn't expected was how sharp Ling Yun's eyes were. Every time, Ling Yun could predict the path of his blade light.
After fifteen streaks, Li Hao had advanced to within three meters of Ling Yun. At that moment, his Second Soul Ring lit up.
"Try this! Dragon Shakes the Wild!"
The blade in his hand turned crimson. The dragon patterns on it seemed to come alive, and its edge blazed with light. A dragon's roar rang beside Ling Yun's ears, its sound even shaking his mind.
Li Hao sneered inwardly. What kind of genius was this? Under his fierce assault, Ling Yun was nothing special after all.
He brought his blade down toward Ling Yun's chest, a triumphant smile on his face.
But the blade met no flesh. At some point, Ling Yun had shifted a meter to the side, and Li Hao's weapon slammed into the arena.
A mark more than a foot deep and several yards long appeared in the platform.
This was Black Tortoise Stone, hard as rock. If the blow had landed squarely on a person, it could easily have split them in two.
The next instant, the force rebounding from the blade numbed Li Hao's arm. He reacted swiftly: if his hand was numb, he'd use his foot. His powerful sweeping kick whipped up a gust of wind. Ling Yun was only a meter and thirty-five centimeters tall, and Li Hao's kick aimed straight for his left ribs.
Ling Yun thrust out a palm, force flowing through it. His right hand blocked Li Hao's right leg, and he retreated with the momentum. His feet traced an arc before he came to a stop, rooted like a great tree. Then he pulled and pressed with his hand, seized Li Hao's ankle, and twisted hard.
Feeling the enormous force at his ankle, Li Hao planted his blade in the ground. He pushed off with his other foot and spun through the air in the direction Ling Yun was twisting him.
After a full rotation, he wrenched himself free of Ling Yun's grip. His blade planted in the arena once more. Just as he was about to attack again, Ling Yun seized the opening and delivered a high kick to his left ribs.
The blow was powerful enough to crack bone. At the sound, Li Hao's right hand clenched around his blade on reflex, his knuckles turning white. He gritted his teeth and swung once, then braced the Dragon Pattern Blade against the ground and clutched his ribs with his other hand, dropping to one knee.
Ling Yun shifted his feet to avoid the blade and kicked again. Only then did the burly teacher's Soul Power arrive, late as ever, blocking Ling Yun's attack.
Ling Yun stopped with his foot just before it struck the Soul Power barrier. The force of the blow hit it, sending ripples across its surface.
Teacher Yang promptly stepped onto the arena and treated Li Hao.
After healing Li Hao, she shot the burly teacher a fierce glare. "Look at you. You're late every single time."
"Getting hurt in Soul Fighting is hard to avoid, but it's better not to get hurt if we can help it. You're a Battle Soul King. Can't you react faster?"
The burly teacher was thoroughly embarrassed. Then he glared at Ling Yun. He refused to believe he'd fail to react in time during the next match, too.
"Li Hao, don't participate in Soul Fighting for the next three days. You don't want to aggravate any hidden injuries."
"Understood, Teacher Yang."
"Ling Yun, you let your guard down near the end. This time, I'll admit you're better!"
After tossing out those words, Li Hao strode off the arena without looking back. In the eyes of the spectators, he looked rather battered.
"Ling Yun, I've noticed that your control over Soul Power is extraordinary. By rights, you could have defeated Li Hao without injuring him. Couldn't you have gone easier on him?"
"Teacher Yang, I already held back. When he swung his blade at me, he didn't hold back at all. Besides, isn't the point of Soul Fighting to hone our combat skills and improve our practical fighting ability?"
"If I can win at a smaller cost, why hesitate? Defeating someone without injuring them takes a lot more effort."
"Er... I suppose you have a point." Teacher Yang was at a loss for words. She returned to the Soul Fighting Arena and continued watching the matches at Arena Three.
Ling Yun's next opponent hadn't taken the stage yet. Over at Arena Five, the foul-mouthed flying Soul Master had been electrocuted by Yu Tianheng and toppled onto the platform, coughing black smoke.
Yu Tianheng was about to seize the opportunity and finish him off when Qin Ming called a halt and declared Yu Tianheng the winner.
Teacher Yang hurried over to Arena Five and treated the flying Soul Master, then gave Yu Tianheng some treatment as well.
Once she had finished, she returned to Arena Three. Yu Tianheng and the flying Soul Master had only suffered superficial injuries. The trouble here was more serious.
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