Huyan Yu's Martial Soul was the Diamond Mammoth, one of the top-tier beast Martial Souls.
Ten thousand years ago, Huyan Zhen, the sect master of the Elephant Armor Sect who possessed this Martial Soul, had once taken the Poseidon Trident head-on.
Though he became a laughingstock, it also indirectly proved the extraordinary defensive power of this Martial Soul.
Even among all defense-type Martial Souls, the Diamond Mammoth could be considered one of the very best.
What was more, this Martial Soul not only possessed physical defense that could drive Soul Masters of the same rank to despair, but also terrifying strength to match.
Relying on this Martial Soul, during the team battle two days ago, even Zhang Lexuan, whose Soul Emperor cultivation made her the strongest on the field, had needed to put some thought into dealing with him.
Moreover, as an academy of the Heaven Dou Empire, Canglan Academy naturally rejected Soul Tools.
But Huyan Yu was different. Though he was not a traditional Soul Engineer, he did not resist using Soul Tools in the slightest.
What he was most proficient with was the Soul Guidance Thruster.
The fifth-grade Soul Guidance Thruster directly compensated for his originally weak speed, granting him terrifying charging ability that matched his defense and strength.
In fact, Huyan Yu was very likely the strongest at the Soul King stage in this tournament.
In a one-on-one battle, it would be quite difficult for any of the other six members of Shrek's main team to defeat him.
At that moment, Huyan Yu activated his Soul Guidance Thruster.
Dark blue Soul Power flames suddenly lit up behind him, emitting a deep energy hum.
Ssssh—!
The air was brutally torn apart!
Huyan Yu's enormous body, which had appeared somewhat cumbersome due to the characteristics of his Martial Soul, turned into a blurred afterimage.
In almost an instant, he crossed dozens of meters and abruptly appeared before Xia Ming!
At that moment, the two purple Soul Rings beside Xia Ming lit up simultaneously.
Boom—
The two clashed fist against fist!
A visible ring-shaped white shockwave exploded outward, and the blast swept every speck of dust off the competition stage.
Xia Ming's feet plowed deeply into the stage as he was forcibly pushed back more than ten meters before barely steadying himself, leaving behind only two clear furrows.
Huyan Yu, on the other hand, merely swayed and took half a step back. The stage beneath his feet cracked, but his overall stance remained as steady as a rock.
Yet the expected storm of follow-up attacks did not come.
Huyan Yu stood frozen in place, maintaining his punching posture.
The muscles on his rough face twitched slightly. The blazing fighting intent in his bell-like eyes had been replaced by sudden confusion and stabbing pain.
Xia Ming looked up at him and smiled faintly.
This was the first person in the tournament who could suppress him in terms of strength.
Of course, that was with him keeping his strength at the Soul Ancestor level.
Even so, his opponent's strength was enough to earn a sliver of his recognition.
However.
Doesn't feel good, does it? Xia Ming thought.
The reason Huyan Yu had not pressed his advantage was naturally not because he lacked interest in victory.
It was because his mind had suffered an invisible heavy blow!
The Diamond Mammoth Martial Soul's defense was indeed formidable. With his current Soul Power Level of 58, even ordinary Soul Emperors would find it difficult to break through his defenses.
However, tremendous physical defense and spiritual power were two entirely different things.
Perhaps in terms of strength, he far surpassed Xia Ming, who was deliberately restraining his power.
But mentally, compared to Xia Ming, who could rival spiritual-type Soul Masters of the same rank, Huyan Yu was equally far behind.
Xia Ming was not a spiritual-type Soul Master. The reason he could use spiritual attacks was naturally thanks to Reign Over the World.
The consecutive fierce battles of the round-robin stage had not merely accumulated victories and losses for him; they had also served as an excellent whetstone.
By now, his control over Reign Over the World had reached the point where he could wield it as he pleased.
There was no need to deliberately build momentum. Every strike naturally carried that crushing spiritual pressure and impact.
In that seemingly plain fist clash just now, a vast and mighty spiritual shock had followed the collision of their fists like an invisible sharp awl, viciously drilling into Huyan Yu's sea of consciousness!
At that moment, Huyan Yu only felt his mind buzzing as his consciousness briefly blurred.
Xia Ming gently rolled his wrist, and his gaze shifted from calm to restrained sharpness.
He took a step forward and launched the attack.
Invisible pressure spread outward, locking onto his opponent.
"You'd better be ready for the next punch!"
Before his words had even faded, Xia Ming's figure swept forward like a golden bolt of lightning tearing through the air.
Before Huyan Yu could recover, his vision was filled by Xia Ming's fist.
Bang—!
The punch struck Huyan Yu squarely in the chest.
Amid a dull thud, Huyan Yu's mountain-like body shook violently, and the stage beneath his feet cracked once more.
But his feet seemed rooted in place, firmly nailed to the ground without retreating even half a step.
The Diamond Mammoth's physical defense was once again displayed to the fullest.
Xia Ming's punch, powerful enough to split stone and shatter monuments, seemed to do no more than make the diamond luster on Huyan Yu's body ripple slightly, causing no injury whatsoever.
But on the spiritual level, Huyan Yu's injuries were steadily accumulating.
The tearing pain suddenly intensified, as if countless fine needles were churning inside his mind, plunging his vision into darkness.
"Roar—!"
The intense sense of danger finally broke through the mire in his mind. Huyan Yu let out a deep roar from the depths of his throat, like the howl of a wounded beast.
Bloodshot veins appeared in his bell-like eyes. Relying on a tenacious will that was nearly instinctive, he forcibly gathered his nearly scattered consciousness once more.
This can't go on!
If he continued standing there as a punching bag, passively enduring this barrage of attacks carrying terrifying spiritual assaults.
His spiritual defenses would sooner or later collapse completely, and then even the strongest physical defense would be useless.
Suppressing the tearing pain in his mind, Huyan Yu almost activated the Soul Guidance Thruster through sheer willpower.
Ssssh—boom!
Under the powerful thrust, his enormous body retreated violently in a somewhat staggering manner, instantly widening the distance between himself and Xia Ming to several dozen meters.
After steadying himself, Huyan Yu panted heavily, cold sweat already seeping from his temples.
He raised a hand and wiped away the trace of blood that had somehow seeped from the corner of his mouth. The way he looked at Xia Ming was filled with unprecedented solemnity, and even a barely perceptible hint of alarm.
At this rate, he really might lose!
His opponent's ability to directly shake the mind completely countered his defense.
Without being able to focus his mind effectively, his advantage in strength was also greatly diminished.
Yet he had no solution whatsoever.
The Diamond Mammoth Martial Soul granted him unparalleled close-combat offense and defense, but it also limited his methods of attack.
He had no reliable long-range Soul Skills and could not wear his opponent down through maneuvering.
What he excelled at had always been closing the distance and crushing his opponents with absolute strength and defense.
But now, getting close meant continuously enduring that terrifying spiritual shock, and his consciousness would not be able to hold on for long.
It was as though he had fallen into an unsolvable vicious cycle.
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