This stone was incredibly hard, enough to withstand a full-power strike from an ordinary Level 40 Soul Ancestor without suffering the slightest damage.
Su Ming's eyes snapped open, a flash of black light passing through them.
"Third Soul Skill, Evil Phoenix God-Slaying Slash."
Su Ming barked the words, and the deep purple five-thousand-year Soul Ring beneath his feet suddenly blazed with dazzling light.
The Soul Power within his body erupted in an instant, yet his body did not shift in the slightest.
His right arm trembled faintly in midair. With a movement of his wrist so minute it was nearly impossible to see, he completed a high-speed twist.
Boom!
In a flash, the energy within his body was compressed to a tremendous degree and set spinning at high speed.
A two-meter-long blade of deadly light shot through the air.
Unlike the previous slash of light that had cut straight downward, this black slash was now spinning at a terrifying speed.
From a distance, it looked less like a slash and more like a saw blade running wild, hungry for death!
In the blink of an eye, the rapidly spinning slash slammed into the enormous Defensive Black Stone.
"Shhk! Shhk! Shhk! Shhk! Shhk!"
A grating, skin-crawling sound of friction and grinding rang out.
Before the rapidly spinning Evil Phoenix God-Slaying Slash, the Defensive Black Stone—powerful enough to withstand a Soul Ancestor's full-force strike—was no better than paper.
The instant the spinning slash touched the stone, its brutally potent armor-piercing effect erupted.
The black slash became a blade of destruction, punching straight through the stone's face and slicing it cleanly in half!
Su Ming lowered his right hand and slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.
Looking at the test stone torn into two pieces on the ground, he smiled.
After more than two months of tireless attempts and fine-tuning, the armor-piercing ability and physical tearing power of his third Soul Skill had made a qualitative leap. They were now several times stronger than before.
Su Ming left the Mimicry Cultivation Room. After a quick wash, he headed straight for the Great Soul Arena in Spirit City.
He needed to test the third Soul Skill's effectiveness in real combat.
He took out his badge and registered for a match.
Before long, the singles match results were in.
Su Ming made his way to the 14th Sub-Arena. His opponent was renowned throughout the Soul Elder division.
Though not for anything good!
His opponent was named Qian Shan. He was already thirty years old, and his Soul Power had reached the peak of Level 40.
He was a classic level-capping menace. To keep raking in the winning streak bonuses at the Great Soul Arena, he deliberately stayed at Level 40 instead of hunting for a fourth Soul Ring.
With an overwhelming advantage in level and far more Soul Power than Soul Elders in their thirties, he had dominated Soul Elder matches for years, wearing down countless opponents.
And that wasn't all. Qian Shan also had a trump card: a thousand-year defensive Soul Bone.
When Qian Shan saw the slender, youthful-looking Su Ming step onto the platform, he burst out laughing.
"Are there really no other Soul Elders at the arena? They've sent a kid out here. That's just handing me free money! Ha ha!"
The spectators in the stands also erupted in a wave of boos.
"How did they end up with a kid? Did the arena make a mistake?"
"No mistake. I know that kid. He's a Level 39 Soul Elder. He's only fought once, but he's strong—he took down Tie Lei in one hit."
"Taking down Tie Lei in one hit won't help him. His opponent's Qian Shan, the infamous menace of the Soul Elder division!"
"Ugh, I don't want Qian Shan to win. The prize money isn't even enough to cover the fee."
In everyone's eyes, the kid named Su Ming was destined to lose today!
Against a Soul Master at the peak of Level 40, he had no chance of winning.
Meanwhile, in another corridor of the Great Soul Arena,
Yan, Hu Liena, and Xie Yue were walking side by side after finishing their respective singles matches.
Yan was shamelessly clinging to Hu Liena's side, grumbling nonstop. "Nana, the deadline for the doubles assessment at the Great Soul Arena is coming up, and that kid Su Ming hasn't shown his face once in over two months."
"I'd say someone like him has no sense of responsibility to the team. Why are you still waiting for him?"
"Just team up with me now. With our chemistry, we'd have had ten straight wins already."
Hu Liena's expression was cool, and she ignored him completely.
Yan was about to keep badmouthing Su Ming when Hu Liena's lovely eyes shifted slightly. Her gaze settled on the combat display screen near the 14th Sub-Arena.
"There he is," Hu Liena said coolly, cutting Yan off.
Yan and Xie Yue followed her gaze. Sure enough, Su Ming, dressed in black, was already standing in the center of the platform.
Xie Yue's brows furrowed slightly. He often visited the Great Soul Arena and recognized the other person onstage at a glance.
His expression grew grave. "Su Ming's in serious trouble this time. His opponent is Qian Shan, an Iron-Armored Black Tortoise Soul Master. Knowing he wasn't talented, that guy deliberately capped his Soul Power at the peak of Level 40 to collect winning streak bonuses."
"On top of that, he's fused with a Thousand-Year Solid Rock Left Arm Bone. When it comes to defense alone, even an ordinary Four-Ring Soul Ancestor would have a hard time dealing with him."
Hearing Xie Yue's words, Yan's gloomy expression turned to a sneer.
He crossed his arms over his chest and gave a derisive laugh. "Peak-Level-40 defense? And a thousand-year Soul Bone? That kid's walked straight into a firing line."
"Nana, just watch. He's bound to lose this match! Levels gained in a greenhouse won't hold up against a seasoned veteran."
At Yan's taunt, a flicker of irritation crossed Hu Liena's eyes.
The corners of her lips rose slightly as she turned a cold gaze on Yan. "Yan, since you're so sure, want to make a bet with me?"
Yan paused, then asked, "A bet? What are we betting on?"
Hu Liena pointed at Su Ming, her expression cold, a hint of mockery in her eyes. "We'll bet on whether Su Ming wins or loses this match. If he wins, you'll keep your mouth shut at the academy from now on, and never mention teaming up with me again."
Yan didn't rush to answer. Instead, he asked eagerly, "And if Su Ming loses?"
Hu Liena gave a cold laugh and replied crisply, "If he loses, I'll give you a hundred Gold Soul Coins. And you'll still keep your mouth shut and stop bringing up teaming up with me."
At this airtight bet that trapped him either way, Yan's smile froze solid. He felt so aggrieved, it was as if he'd swallowed a dead fly whole.
Win or lose, he wouldn't be allowed to bring up teaming up with her again. It was a no-win trap.
He was furious. How was he any worse than Su Ming?
Seeing Yan get put in his place, Xie Yue's mouth twitched. He barely managed to keep from laughing out loud.
By then, the fight had already begun on the platform in the 14th Sub-Arena.
The referee raised both hands, then brought them down sharply. "The match begins!"