Yu Zhentian stood in midair, his purple robes snapping in the wind. With his hands clasped behind his back, his voice boomed like a great bell:
"Liu Erlong, on behalf of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's Council of Elders, I'm giving you one last chance..."
"Get lost!"
Liu Erlong roared, cutting Yu Zhentian off.
Yu Zhentian's expression darkened. There was no point saying more—he attacked at once!
Two bolts of purple lightning fell from the sky!
Liu Erlong struck one apart. The other hit the enormous iron cage Chu Men had prepared.
Purple lightning flickered and crackled across the specially made cage, warping it slightly from the heat, but doing little else.
[Holy crap, that's a Faraday Cage, right? The streamer's incredible!]
[The streamer's awesome!] ×999
[Science beats magic, beautiful! By the way, that cage of the streamer's looks kind of... questionable...]
Chu Men cursed inwardly.
That old coffin-filler won't even spare me, a mere Soul Ancestor. Fine, then don't blame me for fighting dirty!
An eye for an eye!
He put away the Gatling. Against a Soul Douluo-level expert, it was good for kicking someone when they were down, but a direct assault wouldn't do much and would only draw more aggro.
Chu Men replenished his Soul Power with the Soul Power Battery, summoned his Martial Soul, the Inversion Pen, and watched as its four Soul Rings blazed brightly.
He didn't use its inversion abilities on the two people in the air. The gap in Soul Power Level was too great; the effects would be weak, and he might even suffer a backlash.
He'd start with the environment!
The Inversion Pen glowed purple as it slipped from his hand and flew straight into the sky.
First: Invert Air Resistance.
The properties of the air around Liu Erlong and Yu Zhentian shifted. Some of the air resistance became air thrust, enough to disrupt their movements if they weren't careful and leave them at a disadvantage in the fight.
Liu Erlong had the dragon wings on her armor to help her, so it didn't affect her much.
As for the old man Yu Zhentian, if he lost his balance and fell out of the sky, that would save Chu Men some effort.
Second: Invert Light Reflection.
This was the same move he'd used against Liu Erlong earlier.
She'd already seen it, so now it was time for the old geezer to get a taste.
Third: Invert Sound Propagation.
Experts relied heavily on their awareness of the surrounding environment, listening for things like the sound of something cutting through the air or of shifting currents. Now, all of that was inverted!
Though Liu Erlong had been the one training Chu Men over the past three months, hadn't Chu Men, with his Inversion Pen Martial Soul, been training her as well?
Now, Liu Erlong sensed only the faintest change in her surroundings, yet immediately realized that Chu Men's support was in place!
After unleashing two bolts of lightning, Yu Zhentian didn't stop.
Purple-black lightning surged wildly around him. The clouds that had blotted out the sun turned completely black.
Violent bolts of lightning darted through the clouds, as if he'd turned the whole sky into his domain!
"You lack the most basic manners. Allow me to teach you a lesson!"
Yu Zhentian's voice was devoid of emotion. He slowly raised his right hand, and his Seventh Soul Ring suddenly lit up.
"Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, Martial Soul Avatar!"
Before the Martial Soul Avatar of the greatest Beast Martial Soul under heaven had even fully formed, Yu Zhentian threw back his head and let out a roar that shook the skies.
The lightning in the clouds seemed to hear his command and began gathering.
"Dragon Transformation!"
Yu Zhentian's body swelled rapidly. Purple-black scales burst through his skin, covering him in the blink of an eye.
Every scale was like polished amethyst, brimming with powerful Soul Power that fed countless bolts of wild lightning leaping between them.
Thick dragon horns sprouted from his head, their tips flashing with deadly electricity.
His hands became razor-sharp dragon claws, far more powerful than Yu Songtao's Dragon Transformation!
In just two breaths, Yu Zhentian had become a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon dozens of meters long!
Its enormous dragon eyes fixed on Liu Erlong as though a god were looking down upon an ant. Its terrifying dragon might poured out without restraint.
Liu Erlong's expression was grave, and even Xiao Wu in the distance clutched her flag tightly. She stopped cheering.
Chu Men narrowed his eyes, his fighting spirit surging!
Creatures all across the forest began fleeing in every direction. Migrating animals even reached the academy's teaching grounds, causing a commotion.
[This Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon may be a bit underwhelming, but the pressure is off the charts!]
[Now this is a battle between top experts! Can Sister Erlong hold on?]
[Go, streamer! Don't you dare lose!]
Facing Yu Zhentian, transformed into a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, Liu Erlong showed no fear!
She took a deep breath, and her Seventh Soul Ring lit up as well.
Unlike Yu Zhentian's deep-purple Soul Power, dazzling crimson-gold light washed over her, like the blazing sun driving away the clouds!
"Mutated Fire Dragon, Martial Soul Avatar!"
The Heart of the Crimson Dragon in her Fire Dragon Battle Armor ran at full power. The armor's dragon wings seemed ready to merge with the Fire Dragon's phantom, while her crimson greatsword pointed straight at the blue-purple tyrant dragon before her!
She looked just like a dragon-slaying hero!
The instant Yu Zhentian's dragon claw slammed down, Liu Erlong moved.
Her dragon wings beat, and she shot forward like an arrow loosed from its bow, the Fire Dragon Greatsword wrapped in towering flames as she swung it hard at the claw.
"Clang—"
A deafening crash of metal rang out.
Crimson flames and purple-black lightning collided in midair, unleashing a massive shockwave.
Only after the wind died down did Chu Men cautiously poke his head out from beneath a reinforced riot shield.
He'd thought Liu Erlong would be sent flying by a single strike from a dragon claw so much larger than she was.
But the result stunned everyone.
Liu Erlong hung motionless in midair, her horizontally raised Fire Dragon Greatsword holding back the enormous claw.
The gigantic dragon that Yu Zhentian had become was actually knocked several feet backward!
A few nearly imperceptible hairline cracks had appeared in the scales on its claw.
The whole area fell silent.
Even the lightning in the dark clouds seemed to pause for an instant.
[That was insanely cool! Sister Erlong, what kind of god-tier power is this?!]
[No wonder we designed the Fire Dragon Battle Armor. That boost is just—two words: freaking amazing!]
[We can share in the glory! By a generous rounding-up, we're men who defeated a Soul Douluo too! Let's see who dares look down on us art students now!]
Yu Zhentian's enormous dragon eyes were filled with disbelief.
He couldn't believe that a mere Soul Saint had blocked his full-power strike while using his Martial Soul Avatar.
And actually knocked him back!
Could this girl really have reached the threshold of a Soul Douluo?
After suffering a setback at the hands of a junior, Yu Zhentian flushed with humiliation and rage. A torrent of retaliation followed!
In the air, lightning and crimson flames intertwined. Countless flaming blades and lightning blades, each brimming with terrifying Soul Power, scattered everywhere, tearing through the trees around them.
Everyone's attention was fixed on the earth-shaking duel in the sky.
No one noticed that Chu Men had silently vanished.
He used the smoke and trenches left by the shockwaves for cover, darting through the trees like a cheetah.
The Inversion Pen and Soul Power Battery glinted in turn as he planted high explosives and proximity mines across the ground below the battlefield.
"Reverse aura!"
The Inversion Pen flicked, and the bombs' presence completely blended into the aura of ordinary soil.
Yu Zhentian was flying in the air, and Chu Men didn't have many options. He could only interfere with him a little.
But the moment he landed, heh—there'd be plenty of special treats waiting for him!
The trap-setter's style was all about letting the enemy come to you, then striking when they least expected it!
Afterward, Chu Men used the Inversion Pen to apply subtle environmental inversion effects at several key spots around the battlefield he'd prepared.
"...A specially made neurotoxin. No idea if it'll work, but I might as well test it on the old geezer!"
Chu Men smeared some on a steel needle, then decided that was too much trouble and poured the whole bottle over it!
As a host, it was best to serve a generous helping!
[What's the streamer doing? We want to see the spectacular fight in the air!]
[Was that anesthetic in the streamer's hand just now? I'm pretty sure that one's prescription-only. Is he setting a trap?]
[I've got a feeling that cocky old man in the sky is about to get ambushed! Let's celebrate for three seconds! Hahaha!]
Before you continue