Ling Yun was getting a little angry with these spineless students. His strikes were swift and decisive. So what if the referee had ordered them to release their Soul Skills?
If others could do it, so could he.
When the eighth opponent stepped onto the stage, Ling Yun stopped holding back. The Martial Soul Light shone upon him, and just like the student with the Bull Martial Soul, he saw a scene of Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts treating them like snacks.
The next opponents all met more or less the same fate.
Those who were fast managed to release their Soul Skills before the Soul Chain dragged them into the illusion.
Those who were slow were pulled into the illusion before they could release their Soul Skills. Ling Yun added, one by one, the powerful Soul Beasts he had encountered in Sunset Forest.
"How terrifying! A Man Faced Demon Spider—a huge Man Faced Demon Spider!"
"A Ten-Thousand-Year Lava Giant Lizard... Horrifying, so horrifying!"
"I was torn to pieces by a Ghost Tiger. It crushed my throat with its teeth. I'll never forget the agony of that death!"
"..."
After their matches, some students found others in the spectators' area who shared their misfortune and talked with them.
Terror still showed on their faces as they spoke. Some couldn't stop trembling halfway through their stories.
On the stage, the burly teacher could do nothing. Releasing one's mental power was a technique that Soul Masters with Mental Attribute Martial Souls could use; for everyone else, it was something they only began learning at the Soul Saint level.
Even Soul Douluos used their mental power clumsily. Only Titled Douluos could wield it as deftly as their own arms.
All the teacher could do was stare helplessly at Ling Yun's methods.
By the thirteenth round, a gutsy fellow finally appeared on Stage Three.
Like Osler, he had a head of golden hair and delicate features, almost like a girl's. If looks alone were enough to determine strength, he would have been among the very best. His eyes were brimming with pride.
"Yu Feng of Class Three. My Martial Soul is the Wind Bell Bird, and I'm a level 26 Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master. You're strong, but I won't be like those who came before me."
"I'll fight to the very end. I'll give you half a tea break to recover your Soul Power. Then we'll fight."
Ling Yun waved a hand. "I've used up some energy, but not as much as you think. Let's fight now! Otherwise, everyone else waiting to beat me will hold it against you."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. Do I look like I'm in poor shape?"
Yu Feng didn't put on airs. He nodded, though deep down, he didn't think he could beat Ling Yun either.
Ling Yun's invincible figure had already been branded into his heart.
"You have one minute to release your Martial Souls. The match begins after that!"
The burly teacher had stopped saying, "I'll step in at the critical moment." He had become a heartless machine.
After releasing his Martial Soul, a pair of medium-sized, brownish-yellow wings sprouted from Yu Feng's back. They looked as sharp as blades. His wings hadn't appeared out of thin air; they were his arms transformed. His legs had grown slightly thinner, though the change was barely noticeable.
He looked rather odd—not quite one thing or the other. A birdman? A man-bird? Neither description quite fit.
The minute passed quickly, and the familiar voice rang out.
"The match begins!"
As soon as the words fell, Yu Feng's first Soul Ring lit up. The front half of his wings grew as sharp as blades, gleaming with a metallic sheen. This was his first Soul Skill, Wing Blade.
He lightly tapped his foot, like a dragonfly skimming the water. The next moment, he soared into the air with a rush of wind. The airflow around him churned, forming a dense barrage of wind blades.
They poured down at Ling Yun on the stage, arriving in an instant. Ling Yun darted and weaved across the stage, slipping between the wind blades as they carved one mark after another into the floor.
Whenever Ling Yun's Martial Soul Light shone upon Yu Feng and the Soul Chain shot toward him, Yu Feng managed to dodge it.
A thin membrane had formed over his eyes, giving off a pale yellow glow. Through the red light, he could see the chains. Each one seemed ominous to him, and whenever one came within a meter of him, a bone-deep chill washed over him.
The chains were like living vines, relentlessly tracking him.
To the spectators, Yu Feng looked like a yellow shadow flickering through the air without pause.
"You underestimated me! I can actually see the Soul Chain!"
As he dodged the Soul Chain, Yu Feng lit up his second Soul Ring. "That's the advantage of my Martial Soul. I can see things other people can't. Second Soul Skill: Wind Fall!"
A point of green light appeared at the tips of Yu Feng's wings and spread across his body. In an instant, he was enveloped in a layer of green radiance.
He plunged toward Ling Yun, aiming the tips of his wings at him. Those blade-sharp feathers were his strongest weapon.
Ling Yun saw it coming and curled his lips into a smile.
Yu Feng noticed, too, and a sense of foreboding rose in his heart, but he had no time to react.
Just as his wings were about to strike Ling Yun, Ling Yun burst forward at a speed no slower than his own. He dodged the attack and grabbed Yu Feng's foot. Then he slammed him hard into the ground. Yu Feng's vision went black.
Teacher Yang was exhausted. She walked onto the stage and treated Yu Feng.
"My heavens! Is this Ling Yun truly unbeatable?"
"Lots of people signed up. I refuse to believe he can defeat them all before his Soul Power runs out!"
"..."
After another ten matches, Yu Tianheng had finally been defeated and retreated to the spectators' area.
Not long after, Shi Mo and Shi Mo joined Yu Tianheng there. Of the three, Yu Tianheng had eliminated six opponents, Shi Mo had eliminated five, and Shi Mo had gotten lucky and eliminated eight.
"Xiao Yun really was hiding his true ability. With a display like that, the three of us would have a hard time taking him down together."
"Yeah! It's the kind of strength that makes you jealous."
Word of what was happening in the spectators' area soon spread throughout the academy. More and more people poured in, and even Soul Grandmasters who refused to believe the rumors signed up to compete in Soul Fighting.
Someone even opened a betting pool, taking wagers on how many matches Ling Yun would win.
After yet another student fell on the stage, an important group arrived in the spectators' area.
"Look, the three members of the Education Committee are here!"
"There are three people in front of them. Heavens, am I seeing things? It's Sect Master Ning of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—and the Crown Prince! The old man to Sect Master Ning's left is Sword Douluo!"
A sharp-eyed student spoke up, and in an instant, the atmosphere in the Soul Fighting Zone reached an unprecedented fever pitch.
Ning Fengzhi and the Crown Prince led the way. Guided by Meng Shenji, the group of six made their way to the VIP viewing platform suspended in the air.
Word of what had happened at the Great Soul Arena yesterday soon reached Ning Fengzhi through members of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. The sect got to work, and it didn't take long to find out where Ling Yun was. He had come specifically to see him.
Xue Qinghe, who was actually Qian Renxue in disguise, had come for the same reason, though she had specifically followed Ning Fengzhi.
Since Ning Fengzhi was visiting the Imperial Academy, he had to notify the empire first.
When Qian Renxue found out, she worried that Ning Fengzhi might lure Ling Yun away, so she followed him to Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
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