"Second Soul Skill, Sun True Fire!"
Shen Nanxun released his second Soul Skill without hesitation. Sun True Fire fell with his sword, crashing down from above!
The high-temperature holy flames condensed from Angel Divine Power were a natural nemesis to all Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Masters. Once they were touched by it, their defenses were utterly useless.
He threw himself to the left with all his might, but Sun True Fire covered too wide an area. Golden flames poured down like a waterfall, swallowing him whole. The Wind-Chasing Falcon's phantom shattered inch by inch in the blaze, and he didn't even have time to cry out. A figure suddenly darted out from the referee's stand and pulled him off the arena just before he was completely eliminated.
One sword, one instant kill. The hundred thousand spectators in the stands held their breath at once. Lan Wei's voice cracked as she shouted, and the entire stadium was stunned by that heaven-shaking sword strike.
Two against seven!
The first one eliminated was actually a Shrek Academy contestant.
Shen Nanxun was certainly strong, but Zhou Min's biggest problem here was that he'd gotten carried away. An Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master shouldn't have gone head-to-head like that. The safest approach was to wait until other Battle Spirit Masters on his team had tied up their opponents, then launch a sneak attack from the flank.
But as students of Shrek Academy, they were far too proud, daring to charge straight at their opponents. They hadn't expected Shen Nanxun to fly, and he'd met their attack with Sun True Fire.
Just then, a sharp sword light soundlessly stabbed in from the flank. Ye Xinglan had made her move. She chose the moment after Shen Nanxun's sword strike, before he'd fully raised his guard, and swept the Stargod Sword through a perfect arc.
Shen Nanxun turned his sword to block. The Angel Holy Sword and the Stargod Sword crashed together in midair, golden and star-blue Soul Power exploding into a circular shock wave. They were both forced back half a step, then steadied themselves at the same time. Their gazes met at such close range that they could almost see their reflections in each other's pupils.
"So it really is you." There was no hostility in Ye Xinglan's voice, only a feverish fighting spirit.
"You are?"
Shen Nanxun pretended to be confused.
But that attitude only angered Ye Xinglan. Her heroic face, with its sword-shaped brows and star-bright eyes, showed a flash of shame and fury.
What did this mean?
It meant she'd considered him a potential rival for half a year, only for him not to care about her at all—not even to remember her.
That was harder for her to accept than losing to him in swordsmanship. She gripped the Stargod Sword tightly and took a deep breath, forcing down her surging emotions. Then she tightened her hold on its hilt and raised her head again, her eyes burning with nothing but pure, fierce fighting spirit.
"Shrek Academy. Ye Xinglan. Remember it."
The Stargod Sword stabbed out again. Her swordplay was even more ferocious than before, each strike trailing a sharp, star-blue sword aura.
Shen Nanxun said nothing more. Golden holy flames ignited on the Angel Holy Sword, and he met her attacks one after another. The two streams of sword light wove together into a net of interlacing gold and blue across the arena. Every clash burst in dazzling sparks.
Yet Ye Xinglan could feel the force rebounding through her hilt growing heavier and heavier. Each of his strikes hit harder than the last.
It wasn't that Shen Nanxun was deliberately putting more force into his attacks. Ever since the Dragon Prince bloodline had awakened within him, his strength, speed, and Soul Power had all been growing across the board at an unreasonable pace.
Ye Xinglan's swordsmanship might not have been inferior to his, but a battle wasn't just a contest of swordsmanship.
If this continued for a few more exchanges, Ye Xinglan might reveal an opening and be defeated with ease. Naturally, the other members of Shrek had noticed as well.
Mo Li's Star Dream Zither swept over in a streak of dark-purple light, while Nan Muchen's Nether Sparrow dived down from the left.
Shen Nanxun clenched his left hand into a Nine-Colored Dragon Claw and punched out, meeting the Nether Sparrow head-on. Dark gold and dark purple Soul Power—two utterly different forces—exploded in midair, bursting into a dazzling shock wave.
The sword in his right hand swept across, forcing back Ye Xinglan's thrust. Golden sword energy and star-blue sword light locked together in midair for several breaths before both shattered.
At the same time, Mo Li's mental amplification had silently spread into an invisible web of zither notes. But Shen Nanxun didn't even turn his head. His golden wings of light snapped open, and pure, righteous divine energy spilled from their edges. The web of zither notes shattered the instant it touched his wings.
With a god-level Soul Spirit, Shen Nanxun was leagues ahead in spiritual power. He had no fear of spiritual attacks, especially those from Soul Masters of the same rank.
"First Soul Skill, Nether Vermilion Bird Flame!"
The Nether Sparrow behind Nan Muchen spread its wings, sending purple flames shooting toward him. The flames also carried a measure of corrosive power.
The Dragon Transformation state on Shen Nanxun's left hand had yet to fade. He reached out with the Nine-Colored Dragon Claw, fingers slightly spread, and grabbed directly at the mass of dark-purple corrosive flame.
Nan Muchen's pupils contracted. Was he insane? Nether Vermilion Bird Flame was corrosive enough to eat through a Soul Ancestor's protective Soul Power, and he was trying to grab it with his bare hand?
But in the next instant, the moment the Nine-Colored Dragon Claw touched the Nether Vermilion Bird Flame, the dark-purple flames trembled violently, as though they'd met their natural enemy. Nine-colored patterns flowed across the Dragon Claw's surface. The Nether energy within the flames broke down into the most primitive Soul Power particles as soon as it touched the nine-colored light, leaving not a trace of its corrosive power behind.
Shen Nanxun curled his fingers and crushed the dark-purple flames out in his palm. Only a few wisps of smoke drifted between his fingers.
Nan Muchen's face turned deathly pale. His first Soul Skill hadn't even managed to scratch his opponent.
How were they supposed to fight this?
"Fall back!" Ye Xinglan shouted. She could see that Nan Muchen's fighting spirit had collapsed; continuing to fight would only get him eliminated. But Shen Nanxun didn't pursue Nan Muchen. He beat his wings of light, tracing a golden arc through the air, and aimed the Angel Holy Sword straight at Ye Xinglan.
She wanted him to remember her name. Then let her remember this sword strike.
Ye Xinglan's pupils contracted. She hurriedly raised her sword to block, but the moment their blades met, terrifying force traveled down the sword and into her palm, making her entire arm go numb.
The force drove her to one knee, and cracks spread through the ground beneath her feet.
As Shen Nanxun suppressed three opponents at once, Gu Yue was doing the same on her side. Her Elemental Storm never let up. Yu Chen was like a ferocious beast caught in a tempest before her. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's lightning surged left and right through the flood of four elements, every sweep of its dragon claws accompanied by a deafening roar. Lightning and flames collided, bursting into a rain of light across the sky.
He wanted to break through head-on, to tear open a gap in the Elemental Storm with sheer force. But Gu Yue gave him no chance. Wind blades sealed off his left flank, ice spikes blocked his right, fireballs barred his path, and earthen walls cut off his retreat.
Ning Yu's Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda kept channeling its amplification into Yu Chen, maintaining his speed and the strength of his lightning element so he wouldn't be completely suppressed. Xu Lizhi frantically stuffed buns into Yu Chen's mouth, replenishing the stamina and Soul Power he was burning through in their sustained, high-intensity clash.
With both of them supporting him, Yu Chen was barely able to keep resisting Gu Yue's Elemental Storm.
"Does this girl ever run out of Soul Power?"
The longer the fight went on, the more alarmed Yu Chen became. A high-intensity elemental combination like this should consume a tremendous amount of Soul Power and spiritual power. Yet Gu Yue still managed to suppress him single-handedly, even with two people fully supporting him.
And Xu Lizhi and Ning Yu were rapidly running low on Soul Power, too. Once their reserves were gone, the three of them had no chance against Gu Yue, who was unleashing her full firepower.
Shen Nanxun was even more outrageous, easily suppressing three opponents all by himself as he darted about like a swimming dragon.
If this continued, Shrek was sure to lose!
They had to break through!
On the other side of the arena, Nan Muchen and Mo Li exchanged a glance. The Nether Sparrow's Martial Soul had dimmed, and the Star Dream Zither had only just shaken off the suppression of Shen Nanxun's divine wings of light. But Mo Li's amplification was still active. She hadn't given up.
She had naturally noticed the situation on the field. Ye Xinglan was being forced to one knee by Shen Nanxun's sword, while their captain was still struggling in the Elemental Storm. Even the girl named Gu Yue hadn't yet used her real trump card.
They couldn't wait any longer. If they did, they'd be picked off one by one. They had to use that move and gamble on a chance.
They both raised their hands and clasped them together.
The Star Dream Zither spun rapidly in Mo Li's palm, the star patterns on its body lighting up one after another. The Nether Sparrow Martial Soul behind Muchen let out a clear, ringing cry.
Dark-purple light erupted from both of them at once. Zither notes and the Nether Sparrow's cry intertwined in midair as the Star Dream Zither's spiritual amplification and the Nether Sparrow's Nether energy fused wildly, forming a huge dark-purple vortex around them.
Space at the vortex's edge warped slightly. Within it, the faint shape of a Nether Sparrow could be seen circling. The phantom was several times larger than when Nan Muchen summoned it alone. Dark-purple Nether flames and star-blue patterns of spiritual light coiled around its body, and its eyes shone with a soul-stealing light.
"Martial Soul Fusion Skill, Nether Star Realm!"
A hundred thousand spectators gasped at once. A Martial Soul Fusion Skill—and one from Shrek Academy at that—was spectacle enough.
Inside the VIP viewing room.
Shen Yi, who was watching the match, furrowed her brows. Even she hadn't expected two people alone to push the seven-member team to this point.
And now they were going to use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
The Martial Soul Fusion Skill of these two was extremely powerful, and the stronger a Martial Soul Fusion Skill was, the greater its side effects. A normal Martial Soul Fusion Skill could be used flawlessly at rank thirty or forty, with almost no side effects. But these two needed at least the strength of a rank-fifty Soul King to use theirs perfectly.
And what they had now was only an incomplete version, with severe side effects.
They probably wouldn't have used their Martial Soul Fusion Skill if they hadn't been pushed this far.
Gu Yue's Elemental Storm abruptly subsided. Without hesitation, she turned and darted toward Shen Nanxun, four elements trailing behind her in four streaks of brilliant light. She landed beside him, breathing slightly hard, and looked at him with dark, sunken eyes. Then she said something that nearly made Shen Nanxun drop his Angel Holy Sword.
"I think we have a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, too."
Shen Nanxun froze for a moment. A Martial Soul Fusion Skill wasn't something any two Soul Masters could use. Their Martial Souls had to be highly compatible, their Soul Power had to resonate perfectly, and most importantly, they had to trust each other without reservation.
He and Gu Yue had known each other for how long? They'd fought once and fought side by side once, and now she was saying they had a Martial Soul Fusion Skill?
Gu Yue didn't explain. She simply reached out and took his hand. A pure, powerful stream of Soul Power flowed from her palm into his body. It was the Soul Power of half the Silver Dragon King, warm and mighty, seeking to resonate with his bloodline.
Shen Nanxun didn't resist, though his expression turned a little strange. In midair, the Nether Sparrow phantom was already diving toward them. Dark-purple Nether flames and star-blue patterns of spiritual light wove together into a deathly net covering the sky, drawing closer and closer.
The Soul Power Gu Yue had poured into him began to tremble violently. The Silver Dragon King Bloodline tentatively touched Shen Nanxun's meridians.
But in the end, there was a muffled thump, and Gu Yue's hand was flung away.
The rejection was unmistakable. Gu Yue looked down at her palm, then raised her eyes to Shen Nanxun, astonishment on her face.
To put it nicely, the fusion had failed. Put less kindly, she'd been rejected.
Shen Nanxun yanked Gu Yue, still stunned, out of the way and stepped forward.
"There's no time to hesitate!"
Gu Yue, pulled behind him, lifted her head with difficulty and looked at the young man before her. Two different powers suddenly appeared around him.
One half brilliant gold, the other half a dazzling nine colors!
"Self-Fusion Soul Spirit Skill, Angel Dragon King Break!" Shen Nanxun gave a low shout, and the aura around him surged violently.
The Six-Winged Angel's bloodline and the Dragon Prince's bloodline weren't on the same level. But the advantage was that these two forces weren't separate within him. They were both a part of him.
So he could just barely unleash a fusion skill.
It was just that a small portion of the Dragon Prince bloodline was working together with a large amount of Six-Winged Angel power. The Six-Winged Angel therefore led this fusion skill.
The Angel Holy Sword re-formed in his hand, and utterly different attributes began to resonate under the drive of the same heart. The golden wings of light behind him slowly changed color, shifting from pure angelic gold into the interwoven colors of the Dragon God. All six wings spread wide: half were the holy, imposing gold of an angel, and half the deep, ancient colors of a dragon god.
He suddenly swung his sword at the approaching Nether Star Realm!
Angel Dragon King Break.
A flood of intertwined nine-colored and golden light surged skyward from his body, meeting the enormous Nether Sparrow phantom head-on. Nether energy, divinity, and nine-colored light exploded together at the moment of impact. Layer upon layer of circular shock waves spread outward, each one more violent than the last.
Then a dragon's roar rang across the entire arena. The Nether Sparrow let out a clear, plaintive cry, and countless cracks appeared across its phantom. Nine-colored light blasted through those cracks. The entire Nether Sparrow shattered in midair into a storm of light, becoming a sky-covering rain of brilliance that drifted down over the arena.
The force sent Nan Muchen and Mo Li flying backward at the same time. They slammed into the protective formation at the edge of the arena and both spat out a mouthful of blood. Forcing out a Martial Soul Fusion Skill had already injured them to the core, and now it had been forcibly broken apart. They both fainted on the spot.
The lingering force of Angel Dragon King Break swept Yu Chen and the others away as well. Only Ye Xinglan, her sword planted in the ground and one knee on the floor, avoided being swept off the arena.
But at this moment, she was in a sorry state, her mind hazy. The thing she believed in seemed to shatter with a thunderous crash before her eyes!
The entire arena fell silent.
The ten-thousand-year-old Shrek had lost, and in a two-against-seven match.
Only when the smoke cleared did the spectators see the young man at the center of the arena, pointing his golden sword and sweeping his haughty gaze across the crowd.
The moment they saw him, cheers crashed over them like a mountain collapsing into the sea!
At first, Shrek's loss had been so far beyond their expectations that they'd been stunned. But after that brief pause, cheers erupted.
That was right. Their Skysea Alliance had won!
It didn't matter whether the contestants were actually from Tianhai Soul Master Academy. They represented Tianhai Soul Master Academy—and the face of the Skysea Alliance!
In the VIP viewing room, Shen Yi slowly stood up. She lightly pressed her fingers against the glass of the floor-to-ceiling window. The teacher leading the Shrek Academy team wasn't as disappointed or angry as one might have expected.
On the contrary, she was practically bursting with excitement.
Only after a long pause did a few words slip from her lips. "This boy belongs in Shrek!"
Before you continue