A Draw Counts as a Win

The scorched smell of his hair stung Lin Beiya's nose, and a bead of cold sweat quietly slid down his forehead.

He had come within a hair's breadth of being swallowed by the Endless Fire Pillar. This was the first time he had experienced such a heart-pounding battle. He had to admit that his opponent truly deserved her reputation as a Soul Elder with a super Martial Soul. She had put immense pressure on him.

"Miss Lei Ying is very strong too. If you hadn't gone easy on me before the fight began, I'd probably already be down."

"Haha, it's not too late now. Take this!"

Though the Blazing Lion Martial Soul wasn't known for its speed, Explosive Flame Possession made it as fast as an Agility-type Soul Grandmaster.

Wrapped in blazing flames, Lei Ying launched her first attack at Lin Beiya. In the blink of an eye, she had closed the distance between them.

Lin Beiya didn't panic. He raised one hand, and a box formed from the Crystal Wall trapped Lei Ying inside.

That was right. The Crystal Wall could be used not only for defense but also to trap an enemy. Lin Beiya had gotten the idea from Shion's battle against Mino, one of the Underworld's Three Giants, in the LC myth.

Lei Ying's charged claw struck the wall, but couldn't overload it with damage. After rippling for a moment, the wall settled back into stillness.

"Kid, if I can smash that move once, I can smash it a second time!"

"Third Soul Skill: Endless Fire Pillar!"

A towering blaze erupted once more. The Crystal Box trapping Lei Ying shattered again, its fragments vanishing into the air.

But Lin Beiya had expected this. The moment he released the Crystal Wall, he had burst forward at astonishing speed and circled behind Lei Ying. He had noticed that when she released her Third Soul Skill, the blaze briefly blocked her line of sight, preventing her from tracking her enemy's movements.

Taking advantage of that fleeting opening, Lin Beiya had slipped into the blind spot behind Lei Ying and aimed both hands at her back.

"Starlight Extinction!"

The energy surging behind her nearly made Lei Ying's soul leave her body. She never would have guessed that this was Lin Beiya's plan.

But by the time she noticed, it was too late. The concentrated beam of starlight struck her squarely in the back, sending her flying. She tumbled across the ground for dozens of meters before finally coming to a stop.

In the distance, astonishment filled the eyes of both Qian Daoliu and Third Offering Mighty Lion Douluo.

"Brother, this child is extraordinary—not just in talent, but in his battle instincts too."

"Mm."

Qian Daoliu nodded in approval. At the same time, he felt a touch of exasperation toward his granddaughter. Faced with an opponent she couldn't overcome head-on, Lin Beiya had been able to think things through and find a way to fight that favored him.

But Qian Renxue, who possessed an Angel Martial Soul, had only tried to smash through the Crystal Wall by brute force.

"To hold her own against Xiao Ying at the Soul Master level is impressive indeed."

"Looks like Yingying still has a long road ahead of her!"

Mighty Lion Douluo sighed softly. Though he didn't care about the outcome of this fight, Lei Ying's failure to win still left him feeling a little embarrassed.

Qian Renxue was just as surprised. She gazed at Lin Beiya with sparkling eyes, while a trace of annoyance stirred within her.

That rascal held back when he fought me.

"Ptooey."

Spitting the dust from her mouth, Lei Ying slowly got to her feet. When she looked at Lin Beiya again, there wasn't the slightest trace of relaxation in her gaze.

At first, she had only wanted to vent Little Angel's frustrations. Now, she simply wanted to prove her strength in front of the two of them.

"Flame Accumulation!"

Under Lin Beiya's wary gaze, flames of astonishing heat suddenly erupted across Lei Ying's body, then swiftly sank into her.

Her aura began to surge at a terrifying rate, climbing to a level that came infinitely close to Soul Ancestor.

"If this had been a year ago, before I learned my family's inherited Soul Skill, I might really have had no way to deal with you. But in this state, you're no match for me."

As she spoke, the muscles in Lei Ying's powerful calves bulged, unleashing tremendous force. Even the high-quality paving stones of the Training Ground cracked like a spiderweb.

That astonishing strength brought terrifying speed with it. With his current eyesight, Lin Beiya could see only a faint afterimage—and that was only because his vision had improved over the past few days.

Relying on instinct, he raised his arms and crossed them over his chest. The next moment, Lei Ying's flaming fist struck.

"Bang!"

The terrible force sent Lin Beiya flying. He only stopped when he crashed into a stone pillar at the edge of the Training Ground.

He touched the corner of his mouth. A thread of crimson made his brows knit tightly. His vision wasn't good enough to track Lei Ying's movements.

Fortunately, his other senses had developed far more than his sight.

Under Lei Ying's mocking gaze from across the field, Lin Beiya slowly closed his eyes. A strange sensation rose within him. With his other senses heightened, he could now track Lei Ying's presence.

This surprised Lei Ying. He couldn't manage it with his eyes open, so he thought he could do it with them shut?

Whatever the case, she had to defeat Lin Beiya to uphold a Soul Elder's dignity.

Lei Ying unleashed another burst of terrifying speed and aimed her right fist straight at Lin Beiya's chest. But to her surprise, her fist didn't feel as though it had struck anything solid.

When she turned around, Lin Beiya was standing there with his eyes tightly closed, facing her.

That was right. Even though he hadn't opened his eyes, she still felt as though he couldn't miss a single one of her movements.

"What is this?"

The corner of Lin Beiya's mouth lifted. He was very pleased with how much his senses had improved.

"Relying on your vision to track an enemy's movements isn't wrong. But when your vision can't help you dodge an attack, you often fall into despair, and your fighting spirit vanishes in an instant."

"But as luck would have it, my other senses are stronger than my sight. Your movements stir the air."

"And the air currents tell me what you're about to do, letting me prepare my body to respond."

Astonishment filled Lei Ying's eyes. She understood everything Lin Beiya had said, but could a person really do that?

Either way, she decided to test it again. She wouldn't let a few words from Lin Beiya frighten her.

Her flaming fists rained down toward Lin Beiya's face. But just as he'd said, Lin Beiya kept his eyes shut and moved his head from side to side as if he were a prophet, dodging every one of her lightning-fast punches.

When Lei Ying finally stopped, she froze at the sight of the rippling Crystal Wall in front of her.

Though she was extremely reluctant to admit it, she really had no way to do much to Lin Beiya now.

"I lost. Xiao Xue's loss wasn't undeserved either."

Opening his eyes, Lin Beiya saw Lei Ying withdraw the energy from her body. He smiled and dispelled the Crystal Wall as well.

"No, Sister Lei Ying. I think we should call it a draw. I can dodge your attacks, but that's all. I don't have a way to defeat you."

"Haha, a loss is a loss. You're only a Soul Master, while I'm a Soul Elder. I was already bullying you by challenging you to a Soul Fighting match. It'd be shameless of me to make excuses too."

Lei Ying wasn't a sore loser. After she insisted several times, Lin Beiya accepted his victory.