Sparring with Liu Erlong

Yu Hong smiled and shook his head, remaining silent.

Liu Erlong looked at Yu Hong, a flicker of defiance flashing in her eyes.

"Yu Hong, I want to spar with you!" Liu Erlong suddenly declared.

"Spar?" Yu Hong was somewhat surprised.

"Yes!" Liu Erlong nodded. "I want to see just how strong you really are!"

She knew she certainly couldn't beat Yu Hong, but she simply wanted to try.

She had never been one to admit defeat since she was a child; the stronger the opponent, the more she wanted to challenge them.

Yu Hong looked at Liu Erlong's stubborn expression, fell silent for a moment, and then nodded.

"Alright."

"Great!" Liu Erlong jumped for joy, then quickly walked to the other side of the Martial Arts Arena, putting some distance between herself and Yu Hong.

"Yu Hong, you are not allowed to go easy on me!" she shouted loudly.

"Rest assured, I won't," Yu Hong said.

Liu Erlong took a deep breath, and in the next second, she activated Martial Soul Possession.

"Come on!" Liu Erlong let out a loud cry and launched the first attack.

Her first soul skill was Fire Dragon Breath; Liu Erlong opened her mouth and spewed a stream of scorching flames, which swept toward Yu Hong.

The flames were fierce and the temperature was extremely high; an ordinary person would be severely burned if they were even grazed by them.

But Yu Hong just stood where he was, motionless.

Before Liu Erlong's Fire Dragon Breath could reach him, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon had already appeared.

The massive white dragon looked down at the flames below, a hint of disdain flashing in its azure eyes.

It opened its mouth and let out a low dragon roar.

The next moment, an invisible pressure erupted from the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, enveloping the entire Martial Arts Arena.

Liu Erlong's breath was easily blocked by the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

Not only that, but Liu Erlong felt the suppression of her own martial soul.

"What?!" Liu Erlong was shocked.

She was actually being suppressed by his martial soul—how could this be possible?!

Before she could react, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon had already opened its mouth.

A dazzling white light condensed within its maw; it was the Blue-Eyes White Dragon's signature attack, Burst Stream of Destruction.

"Wait—" Liu Erlong wanted to call for a stop, but it was already too late.

The white light erupted from the Blue-Eyes White Dragon's mouth with astonishing speed.

Liu Erlong had no time to dodge and could only watch helplessly as the beam of light flew toward her.

Just as the white light was about to strike her, Yu Hong appeared by Liu Erlong's side and pulled her out of the way of the attack.

Yu Hong truly hadn't expected Liu Erlong to be caught off guard.

"Are you alright?" Yu Hong asked with concern, looking at the stunned Liu Erlong in his arms.

Liu Erlong leaned against Yu Hong's chest, still unable to recover from the destructive white light she had just faced.

Her eyes were wide open and her chest heaved violently; in that instant, she had truly thought she was going to die.

Yet, at the most critical moment, a warm, powerful hand had wrapped around her waist and pulled her back from the brink of death.

She slowly raised her head to look at Yu Hong's face.

Sunlight spilled down from the dome of the Martial Arts Arena, landing on Yu Hong's profile and outlining a clean, sharp silhouette.

His expression was calm; there was no look of triumph, nor any sign of blame, just a sincere concern for whether she was injured.

Liu Erlong felt her heartbeat suddenly skip a beat.

Then, her heart began to beat wildly, as if it had lost all control.

Thump, thump, thump.

Each beat was so forceful that she could clearly hear the vibration within her own chest.

This feeling was completely different from the boiling blood of battle; it was a flutter she had never experienced before, one that left her somewhat flustered.

"I... I'm fine!" Liu Erlong pushed Yu Hong away and took two steps back.

Her face turned red to the tips of her ears, and even her neck was flushed a faint pink.

She kept her head down, not daring to look into Yu Hong's eyes, and not knowing where to put her hands, she simply clasped them tightly behind her back.

"You—your attack just now was too ruthless!" she stammered, her voice an octave higher than usual. "I almost died!"

Yu Hong raised an eyebrow slightly, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness: "You were the one who said not to let you win."

"I—" Liu Erlong opened her mouth, realized she had indeed said those words, and was instantly rendered speechless.

She turned her head away, pouting, her long black hair whipping through the air in an arc.

Liu Erlong's heart was still racing, so fast that she began to wonder if she had contracted some strange illness.

She pressed firmly against her chest, trying to calm that disobedient heart, but the more she tried, the more pronounced that tingling, numbing sensation became.

"Are you really alright?" Seeing her face flushed red, Yu Hong assumed she had been affected by the shockwave of the previous attack. "Do you need to rest?"

"No need!" Liu Erlong practically roared, then realizing her reaction was too intense, she lowered her voice and added, "Really, no need."

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.

Recalling the scene where she was completely crushed, Liu Erlong said, "Yu Hong, you... you just wait. One day, I will definitely defeat you!"

Yu Hong was stunned for a moment, then began to laugh.

"Fine, I'll wait."

Watching Yu Hong's smile, Liu Erlong felt a bitter taste in her heart.

She knew that Yu Hong was just humoring her.

Given the gap between them, she would likely have to wait until the end of time to ever defeat him.

But she would not give up.

Liu Erlong had never been one to admit defeat since she was a child; the more unbeatable the opponent, the more she wanted to challenge them.

"Yu Hong, from today on, you are my goal!" Liu Erlong said earnestly. "I will cultivate with everything I have, and one day, I will catch up to you!"

Yu Hong looked at Liu Erlong's serious expression and nodded.

"I believe you can."

Liu Erlong's face turned slightly red, and she quickly turned her head away.

"Hmph, you just wait and see!"

Though her words were defiant, a trace of admiration for Yu Hong had already taken root in her heart.

Yu Hong was too strong—so strong it was despair-inducing.

But precisely because of that, she wanted to catch up to him even more.

"Oh, right, Yu Hong." Liu Erlong suddenly remembered something and turned to ask, "What was the meaning of those words you chanted when you summoned your Martial Soul earlier?"

"Oh, that?" Yu Hong smiled. "That was the incantation to summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Chanting it makes the Blue-Eyes White Dragon a bit stronger."

It was purely his own chuunibyou; there was no other reason.

"Really?" Liu Erlong's eyes lit up. "Does my Fire Dragon Martial Soul have an incantation too?"

"This... I'm not quite sure." Yu Hong shook his head. "The incantations for every Martial Soul are different; you can try to come up with one yourself."

"Alright! I'll try it when I get back!" Liu Erlong said excitedly.

Watching her excitement, Yu Hong shook his head helplessly.

This girl really was simple-minded.

"Let's go, I'll take you around the family grounds," Yu Hong said.

"Okay!" Liu Erlong nodded happily.

After the two left the Martial Arts Arena, Yu Hong began to show Liu Erlong around the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family.

Yu Hong introduced Liu Erlong to the Library, the Cultivation Room, and other locations within the family.