"What... is this?!"
Bei Bei instinctively stopped and raised his Dragon Transformation right arm in front of himself. His Purple Demon Eye activated as he warily watched You Jie and the light beside him.
When something abnormal happened, there was always a reason. This never-before-seen ability of You Jie's had to be his true trump card.
"Brother Bei Bei, this is my true power!
"Gathered stars, awaken the power of new life and become a path of dazzling light!
"Appear, Junk Warrior!"
With You Jie's declaration, Junk Warrior appeared at his side.
Looking at the figure floating above You Jie's head, legs spread wide and white scarf fluttering, Bei Bei couldn't help widening his eyes.
The aura radiating from it, that of a Soul King-level powerhouse, made Bei Bei's eyes widen even further.
"A Soul King-level summon?! You Jie, is this your true strength?"
Bei Bei stared at You Jie in shock and couldn't help asking.
The gap between a Soul King and a Soul Elder was enormous. Even Bei Bei didn't think he could easily defeat a Soul King.
And looking at You Jie's confident expression, Bei Bei had a premonition that besides this Soul King-level Junk Warrior, You Jie must have other trump cards ready.
But now that things had come to this, Bei Bei couldn't keep backing down. Besides, he believed that with his Martial Soul and the Tang Sect Secret Arts, he might be able to hold his own against a Soul King for a while.
What's more, since this was You Jie's Soul Skill, Junk Warrior's stamina could only be shorter than that of a normal Soul Elder.
He only needed to hold out for a little while. Once You Jie no longer had enough Soul Power to support Junk Warrior, Bei Bei would win!
And while Bei Bei was keeping the Soul King-level Junk Warrior occupied, he could also unleash the power of his Martial Soul and Soul Skills, letting their effects reach You Jie. Even if he couldn't attack You Jie directly, he could still make You Jie expend far more Soul Power and shorten Junk Warrior's time in battle.
After settling on a strategy, Bei Bei's third Soul Ring lit up. Thunder Fury activated, greatly amplifying the lightning around him.
However, just as he was about to activate another Soul Skill and combine it with the Tang Sect Secret Arts to fight the charging Junk Warrior, You Jie's second Soul Ring lit up.
"My foolish onīsan, accept the Iron Fist punishment from your dear otōto!
"Second Soul Skill—Scrap Iron Fist!"
The phantom of a green card flashed behind You Jie, then transformed into two beams of light that landed on Bei Bei and Junk Warrior.
The moment the light fell on Bei Bei, the third Soul Skill he had already activated vanished without a trace. Even the first and second Soul Skills he was preparing to use failed to activate.
Then, flames suddenly burst from the two pipes on Junk Warrior's back. A layer of golden light covered its outstretched right fist, and it punched straight at Bei Bei.
His Soul Skill had suddenly been disrupted, and he couldn't activate it again. Panicking, Bei Bei's Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track became unsteady, and all he could do was watch as the golden fist grew larger and larger in his vision.
The next moment, Junk Warrior's Scrap Iron Fist slammed squarely into Bei Bei, sending him flying backward like a cannonball.
Just as Zhang Lexuan started moving to use a Soul Skill, Bei Bei had already crashed into a large tree not far from the training grounds. He slid down the trunk and came to rest beneath it.
"Sister Lexuan, Brother Bei Bei needs treatment right away. Could you bring a healing-type Soul Master over to give him emergency treatment?
"My second Soul Skill, Scrap Iron Fist, deals double damage to its target.
"I didn't have Junk Warrior use its full strength, but it looks like Brother Bei Bei's body is even less durable than I expected..."
Seeing Bei Bei slumped unconscious against the tree, You Jie hurried over with Zhang Lexuan to check on him.
When he saw that Bei Bei was in even worse shape than he'd expected, You Jie quickly made his suggestion to Zhang Lexuan.
Zhang Lexuan nodded and immediately went to find a healing-type Soul Master.
Watching Bei Bei unconscious, You Jie already had a pretty good idea what had caused this. A hint of mockery appeared in his eyes.
"Good thing I didn't activate Turbo Warrior's effect or find a way to pull out a few more monsters to activate Junk Warrior's effect.
"If I'd stacked even more attack power onto Junk Warrior, I might've punched Bei Bei to death.
"But could it be that Bei Bei's already been with Tang Ya? Otherwise, I can't think of any reason why his body would be less durable than I expected...
"Looks like you're not even as good as Turtle Xu. At least after Turtle Xu walked into the wrong room once, it seems he never did anything like that again."
Before long, Zhang Lexuan returned with a healing-type Soul Master.
You Jie knew this Soul Master too. Their Martial Soul was the Tree of Life, and their cultivation had even reached the Soul Saint level.
As the Soul Saint activated their Soul Skill, several emerald-green leaves fell onto Bei Bei and melted into his body. His complexion visibly improved, and his injuries began healing rapidly.
Soon, Bei Bei regained consciousness and slowly opened his eyes.
Realizing that he'd lost—and lost rather badly—Bei Bei couldn't help standing up with a bitter smile.
Losing to a younger brother wasn't shameful, but when he thought about the somewhat arrogant mindset he'd had earlier, which now seemed all too clear, Bei Bei felt too embarrassed to face anyone.
"All right, Brother Bei Bei, you should go rest and recover, then work hard on your cultivation...
"By the way, could it be that you and Sister Tang Ya got a little too carried away, and your physical strength didn't keep up?"
You Jie patted Bei Bei's shoulder, then whispered in his ear.
"I didn't! That's not it! Xiao Ya and I are very..."
Bei Bei had just started to protest, but when he saw Zhang Lexuan nearby, he immediately shut his mouth.
Judging from the slightly menacing smile on Zhang Lexuan's face, though, Bei Bei had reacted a little too late.
"You Jie is right, Bei Bei. You have been slacking a little lately."
Mu En's elderly voice rang out, startling everyone present.
They quickly turned toward the source of the voice and saw Mu En, stooped over and leaning on his cane, slowly approaching.
Before anyone could react, Mu En waved a hand to show them there was no need to make a fuss.
Then he slowly walked up to Bei Bei and You Jie, studying them both before letting out a soft sigh.
"Bei Bei, your goal now is to break through to the Soul Ancestor level before the next academic year begins.
"Although I asked you to help Tang Ya, you've been slacking too much. Soul Power is the foundation of a Soul Master, and your Soul Power Level is still a little low."
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