Mantis VS True Dragon (2)

"Aren't you quite arrogant? What's the matter, too afraid to take my lightning?"

Facing Yu Tianheng's provocation, Xing Tian did not take the bait, continuing to dodge using the Nine Deaths Footwork.

Seeing this, Yu Tianheng immediately unleashed his second soul skill, Thunderous Force, "Let's see where you run this time!"

Countless serpentine bolts of electricity coiling around Yu Tianheng's body expanded simultaneously, transforming in the next instant into a barrage of lightning arrows that flashed violently in every direction.

BOOM—

The blue-purple lightning arrows slammed into the floor of the Soul Fighting Arena, instantly blasting out charred pits three inches deep. Shrapnel mixed with sparks flew everywhere, and the air grew thick with the pungent scent of ozone as the onlookers gasped in succession.

Had the Soul Fighting Arena not been shielded by a protective barrier, the students in the front row would have been caught in the crossfire. No one had expected a duel between two second-ring Soul Grand Masters to be this intense right from the start.

Xing Tian wove through the electric light, his feet tracing the Nine Deaths Footwork.

Although he possessed mental fortitude and physical attributes far exceeding those of his peers, Yu Tianheng's second soul skill was an area-of-effect attack. Combined with his powerful Overlord Dragon martial soul, the assault was airtight, leaving Xing Tian's black robes scorched with several small holes from the residual lightning.

"You rat, only capable of hiding!"

Yu Tianheng roared, his lightning surging once more as blue-purple currents coiled around his arms like living snakes.

"If you have the guts, take my Thunder Dragon Claw!"

Before the words had even faded, Yu Tianheng lunged forward like an arrow released from a bow, his dragon claws crackling as he struck directly at Xing Tian's face.

"I have a rough idea of your strength now; you'll do just fine for a warm-up..."

Xing Tian's body began to sway, appearing as if he were about to fall, while his hands shifted into the tricky posture of a Mantis's forelimbs. A ghostly green Yama Force instantly coated his hands, flowing along his arms until the surrounding air grew cold and decaying.

"What kind of movement is that?"

"What a strange stance."

"It's neither a fist nor a claw."

"What's the point of all that swaying?"

The crowd murmured as they watched Xing Tian's bizarre movements.

As a Spirit Douluo, Meng Shenji saw the technique for what it was and remarked to Zhilin, "It seems Xing Tian is mimicking a Mantis."

Zhilin nodded in agreement, "Indeed. And his body—it looks unsteady, but in truth, his waist and upper limbs are fluid while his stance below the hips remains rock-solid. Branches swaying while the roots hold firm. Marvelous, truly marvelous."

Xing Tian reached out like a pair of pincers, mimicking a mantis catching a cicada, and precisely clamped onto Yu Tianheng's wrist.

BANG—

The Yama Force and the lightning erupted at the moment of impact. Cyan-black and blue-purple light intertwined as if a mantis were shaking a dragon, causing the arena floor to tremble.

Yu Tianheng felt a chilling force surge through the dragon claw, forcibly dissipating thirty percent of his lightning's power, while his wrist bone ached under the pressure of the pincer-like grip.

"What is this power?"

Yu Tianheng was shocked, his pupils trembling as if caught in an earthquake.

The greatest pride of a True Dragon was possessing the most powerful physique of any race, rivaled only by power-specialized soul beasts like the Titan Giant Ape, Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff, Diamond Baboon, or Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.

Yet now, Xing Tian—who possessed an insect martial soul and was currently in a state of Martial Soul Semi-Mimicry—was suppressing Yu Tianheng with pure strength.

Panic set in. Yu Tianheng hurriedly channeled his soul power, attempting to use the raw, savage strength granted by his True Dragon Martial Soul Possession to shake Xing Tian off.

However, the essence of Mantis Fist lies in striking with the opponent's momentum, finding gaps, attacking in the void, and striking both on the advance and the retreat; it is a style where offense is defense, characterized by heavy, crushing blows.

Even though Xing Tian's version of the Mantis Fist was a modified derivative of the Evil Fist Path, it shared those core principles, and he was never going to give Yu Tianheng an opening.

Xing Tian immediately leveraged the momentum to press forward, his other hand driving outward with the Yama Force. His fingertips glowed with a cyan-black light, aiming straight for Yu Tianheng's heart!

CLANG—

A crisp sound like metal striking metal echoed across the arena. The Yama Force exploded, causing the dragon scales on Yu Tianheng's chest to cave in slightly, with a trace of blood seeping from between the gaps.

He groaned, stumbling back several steps as a chilling force seeped into his body, causing his blood to churn and his breathing to turn ragged.

Yu Tianheng stared in disbelief, "How is this possible!"

Although he was not yet a Soul Elder and could not use the Dragon Transformation Secret Technique, his Martial Soul Possession alone allowed his physical body to withstand a full-force strike from an average Soul Grand Master's second soul skill. Yet now, he had been injured by a single punch from Xing Tian.

Before Yu Tianheng could steady himself, Xing Tian's legs suddenly erupted with power.

He used his legs as if they were hands, unleashing a series of kicks in the Tricky Leg Awakening-of-Insects Style. With Yama Force coating his legs, every strike whistled through the air, dense as a rainstorm and imposing as spring thunder.

Yu Tianheng was forced back repeatedly; had he not relied on his Thunder Dragon Claw to parry and his formidable physique, he would have been crippled by Xing Tian's kicks long ago.

Though he hadn't suffered a critical injury, his body was wracked with cold, stinging pain, as if a frigid chill were burrowing through his pores and into his bones.

Dugu Yan exclaimed in admiration, "What an incredible fist technique! Yu Tianheng is being completely crushed by Xiao Tian in close quarters! But when did Xiao Tian learn this?"

"Damn it!"

Driven to a rage, Yu Tianheng roared, his lightning surging wildly, "Let's see how you dodge this! Thunderous Force!"

Countless blue-purple lightning arrows erupted from his body, even denser and more violent than before.

"It's over—with lightning that dense, Xiao Tian won't be able to dodge it at all!"

Just as everyone assumed Xing Tian was doomed, he suddenly ceased his legwork and began to spin at high speed, using his own body as an axis while the Yama Force surged frantically.

A cyan-black cyclone rapidly surged around his body, and the incoming lightning arrows, upon striking the cyclone, were forcefully rebounded by more than half.

Yu Tianheng's pupils constricted; he had never seen anyone capable of rebounding his lightning Soul Skill using only physical techniques.

How could Yu Tianheng know the wonders of the Xing Tian Mantis Fist? This move, named Spinning Rejection Yellow Sparrow, was specifically designed for defensive counterattacks.

Xing Tian did not give him time to be shocked, rushing toward Yu Tianheng like a spinning top, his fists alternating as a barrage of rapid strikes poured out, the cyan-black fist shadows resembling a swarm of mantises hunting for prey.

The arena floor was pitted and scarred by the pair's footsteps, the sounds of collision ringing out incessantly.

Although Yu Tianheng was bolstered by his True Dragon Martial Soul, he was caught off guard by these rapid strikes, and even his thunderous power faltered for a moment.

He roared and swung his dragon claws to counterattack, but was always parried by Xing Tian's tricky fist paths; the Yama Force, infused with Xing Tian's dark-attribute soul power, could even seep through the gaps of their collisions to continuously erode his soul power.

"This Xing Tian's fist technique is extremely tricky; every move precisely catches Yu Tianheng's openings."

Meng Shenji stroked his beard, his eyes filled with amazement: "The cyan-black aura on his hands is cold and domineering, even capable of eroding lightning; this shouldn't be something an ordinary dark element could achieve."

Meng Shenji remained somewhat puzzled: "And why would it be cyan-black? Could it be that his second Soul Ring has imbued him with some additional attribute?"

Zhilin said in a deep voice: "That should be the case, but what is even more rare is that his soul power is five levels lower than Yu Tianheng's, yet he is able to overcome the superior with the inferior."