The instant their eyes met, Su Qing's consciousness followed the other party's spiritual power and invaded Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness.
Electrolux was only a gray phantom at that moment, but the tone of his voice brimmed with confusion. This little fellow seemed to know of his existence. Moreover, though his spiritual power was not abundant, its quality was exceptionally high—even surpassing that of Electrolux, a necromancer.
"We'll meet again."
Sensing Electrolux's confusion, Su Qing didn't answer him directly. This wasn't the time to talk, after all. Those two outside had already embraced while he was distracted.
"Yuhao's secret weapon is so powerful! It actually managed to control Little Qing!"
Seeing Su Qing frozen in place, Xiao Xiao was utterly astonished. She had never seen him at a disadvantage before. With that thought, she turned her gaze to the two performing their Martial Soul Fusion Skill. Everything depended on this one move: could Huo Yuhao keep Su Qing under control until they finished performing it?
"Martial Soul Fusion Skill, Withering Amid Splendor—Golden Road!"
As their voices fell, the gorgeous phantom of a butterfly and a gigantic eye plunged from the sky, overlapping as a golden track surged toward Su Qing.
"That kid's mental attack is that strong? He can hard-control a Soul Elder two ranks above him for so long?"
Xuan Zi had nearly thought his eyes were deceiving him, but Su Qing's swift response soon put him at ease.
Before the golden track could touch him, the First Soul Ring beneath Su Qing's feet lit up. The next instant, he vanished from where he stood. A rush of wind later, he appeared behind Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao. Crimson Soul Power coursed around him, and several fireballs burst forth in a flash, gathering before him.
"Elemental Tide, A Single Breath Sets the Plains Ablaze—Nine Heavens Falling Fire!"
In an instant, the fireballs joined together, and a towering blaze erupted, shooting straight into the sky and punching a huge hole through the clouds overhead. Then a torrent of flowing crimson fire, like a waterfall, poured down over the entire arena. The surging sea of flames made every spectator's heart tighten.
Du Weilun's eyes nearly popped out of his head. His gaze kept darting between Xuan Zi and Yan Shaozhe. If those two didn't act soon, the three onstage would be roasted alive! And what was the matter with Su Qing? Weren't they all good friends? That move looked like he was out to kill!
"Du Weilun, stop gawking and go stop him!"
At Yan Shaozhe's command, Du Weilun froze. Wait, who exactly was gawking? Whose jaw had nearly hit the floor just now? That was a tough one to guess!
But now that he'd been given an order, protecting the students fell to him. To prevent an accident, he raced onto the arena without delay. Soul Douluo-level Soul Power immediately shielded the three youngsters, and he followed by using a Soul Skill to scatter the fiery waterfall.
"Yuhao! We nearly died! Your Brother Su is way too unreliable!"
Seeing Du Weilun come to the rescue, Wang Dong, still shaken, finally let out a breath. Thank goodness Director Du had arrived in time, or she would never have seen her fathers again! In truth, Su Qing hadn't gone all out to kill them. Even if Du Weilun hadn't come up, he wouldn't have let the flames hurt Huo Yuhao and the others. Xiao Xiao was there, after all, and this was only a competition.
"Wang Dong, Little Qing is amazing at controlling fire. Even if that teacher hadn't come, we'd have been fine. He would've made the flames avoid us."
Xiao Xiao had seen Su Qing use the Demon Flame to burn it away and help the injured in the forest, so she clearly wasn't as frightened as the other two. If he didn't want to hurt anyone, they could let the flames wash over them and still be unharmed.
"Huh? Is that so?"
Wang Dong looked utterly incredulous, as if she'd just learned something astounding. She had never seen anyone control the elements with such astonishing precision. Was Xiao Xiao pulling her leg?
"Of course! Let me tell you, back in the forest..."
Du Weilun felt utterly bereft. He'd rushed onto the arena to save them because he feared something might happen, and the people he'd rescued weren't even scared—instead, they were chatting right in front of him. What was this? Were they making a fool of their year director?
"Director Du, since you came up to save them, does that mean I win?"
Su Qing tilted his head and asked tentatively, looking at Du Weilun's expression, which was as ugly as if he'd swallowed a turd. Zhang Lexuan's kiss last night had made him care a great deal about winning or losing this match. He'd been completely on the back foot last night, after all. Winning this one would at least let him take back a little control.
"You brat! You nearly roasted your classmates alive, and you still have the nerve to ask whether you won?"
Du Weilun was looking for somewhere to vent his anger, and Su Qing's question had hit the bull's-eye. Still, he didn't give him too hard a time. After shooting him a glare, he took out a soul-guidance microphone and announced the results.
"The champions of the freshman assessment are the Su Qing team from Freshman Class Nine!"
Though his two teammates hadn't taken the field, the freshman assessment had been registered as a team competition. Calling them the champions wasn't wrong.
"Yay! Little Qing is amazing!"
Xiao Xiao jumped up excitedly. As expected of Little Qing! That last strike had been so cool!
"But we were his opponents in the final..."
Wang Dong was a little helpless. Su Qing was their good friend, but she couldn't exactly be happy about being used as a stepping-stone. After all, it was only the second time in her life she'd been beaten. The first, of course, had been when she fought Huo Yuhao.
"Oh, come on! We're good friends. There's nothing wrong with being happy for a friend! Right, Yuhao? Yuhao? What's wrong, Yuhao?"
Xiao Xiao had been overjoyed at Su Qing's victory, but when she turned around, she saw Huo Yuhao standing frozen with fright. He looked completely dazed. In the Sea of Consciousness, he and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm were each clinging to one of Electrolux's arms.
"That boy harbored no killing intent, so this old man did not intervene."
Electrolux spoke helplessly. These two, man and silkworm, were far too timid; they were hardly reassuring. Fortunately, his soul power was now strong enough that he no longer needed to sleep to maintain his stability.
"Next time, don't use a move that powerful on your classmates!"
After glaring at him, Du Weilun flew back to the viewing stand and told Yan Shaozhe about the power of that move. His Soul Power barrier had taken the full force of the fiery waterfall just now. If nothing else, it could have killed a Soul Ancestor below level forty-five.
Normally, after the match ended, each team should have returned to its class. But considering that Su Qing's performance would surely attract the dean's attention, Mu Jin gave him permission to stay away from class for a short while. Zhou Yi, however, wouldn't do the same for the others, so after Du Weilun announced the results, she led Xiao Xiao and the others back to class, her face dark as iron.
"Sister Lexuan!"
As the people on the field gradually dispersed, Su Qing saw Zhang Lexuan walking toward him, and a faint smile appeared on his face once more.