The Battle Raged On

The onlookers, led by Laikenasi, assumed that the Ninth Prince and the Cardinal were arguing over "Blue Silver Rice." They stood on the first floor.

Xue Ye and Salas believed that their struggle was for control of the discourse between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Spirit Hall, and that "Blue Silver Rice" was merely a contributing factor. They stood on the third level.

Qian Xunji saw through the true meaning of "Blue Silver Rice" at a glance. If guided by someone with a purpose, it would mean the power of faith for a large part of the billions of people in the Douluo Continent for thousands of years to come.

In this wave, Qian Xunji believed he was standing on the atmosphere!

As for Ling Yi, he's widely recognized as a smart man. Some believe he's on the second level, an observer and a passive beneficiary.

Some people are more certain of his wisdom, believing that he can see through the true intentions of Xue Ye and Salas, but he is limited by his own strength and power and can only go with the flow. He is physically in the second layer but mentally in the third layer.

Of course, it will take decades or even centuries for the people of the Douluo Continent to understand exactly where Ling Yi stands.

Ultimately, time will tell.

If Ling Yi is willing.

"Heaven Dou City", Great Soul Fighting Arena, Main Arena Number One Soul Fighting Arena.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!..."

The strings were plucked repeatedly, and transparent ripples appeared instantly. Starting from Cai Wenhao's fingertips, they broke through the air and shot straight to Ah Yin and Yang Shelly, who were five zhang away.

"Cold Moon Zither" Second Soul Skill: Sonic Wave Slash!

Facing the dense sonic blades raining down like banana leaves, Yang Shelly stepped forward, her jade-like face calmly blocking Ah Yin's path. She swung her "Soul-Breaking Hooked Scythe Spear" in her hand, creating a series of afterimages, and annihilated all the incoming Sonic Wave Slash slashes two meters away from her.

At that moment, Xi Tai, in his Martial Soul Possession state, hunched over, his hands, nearly half the length of an ordinary person's, transformed into ten foot-long blades. He stomped his feet on the ground, transforming himself into a cannonball, following closely behind the Sonic Wave Slash, and charged straight at the two women.

Just a second before Yang Shelly extinguished the last sonic blade, Xi Tai was already two meters in front of her, his left hand already raised. He took another step forward, and five claw-shaped blades, each a foot long, slashed fiercely down towards Yang Shelly's face.

The air was sliced apart, emitting a shrill whistle. Even before the blade arrived, Yang Shelly's delicate skin already felt a faint stinging pain.

Clearly, if that claw strike landed, it's hard to say whether the person would die, but they would definitely be disfigured.

Compared to the "Soul-Breaking Hooked Scythe Spear," which is over two meters long, its claw blades are only about a foot long, perfectly illustrating the saying "an inch shorter, an inch more dangerous." If Yang Shelly wanted to use the scythe blade of the "Soul-Breaking Hooked Scythe Spear" to counterattack at this moment, she would be a beat too slow. The only option was to grip the handle and use the shaft at the end to block horizontally.

However, just as Xi Tai was secretly preparing to change his move at any time and activate his "Third Soul Skill - Velociraptor Assault" to break through Yang Shelly's blockade at a faster speed, he did not expect that Yang Shelly had no intention of defending at all. Instead, she gripped the "Soul-Breaking Hooked Scythe Spear" with one hand, suddenly pulled the spear back, and the incomparably sharp crescent scythe blade slashed from Xi Tai's side and rear, aiming directly at Xi Tai's heart.

What?!

Xi Tai was instantly shocked. Had this woman gone mad?

Is this a trade of injury for life? Or a trade of life for life?

Not to mention Xi Tai, even the spectators watching from the sidelines widened their eyes at this moment, not daring to blink, for fear of missing even a single detail.

"Damn! Is this the fighting style of the Yang Clan family of the [Breaking Clan]? They're absolutely insane—!"

One audience member couldn't help but swear.

"Don't spout nonsense if you don't know! This woman is even crazier than those members of the [Breaking Clan]!"

These are viewers who have had dealings with the [Breaking Clan].

It's no wonder these people lost their composure. As bystanders, they could clearly see that because of the length of Yang Shelly's "Soul-Breaking Hooked Scythe Spear" and the hasty exertion of force, the speed at which the scythe blade attacked Xi Tai's back was slightly slower than the speed at which Xi Tai's five-finger blade slashed down!

If this trend continues, it's highly unlikely that Yang Shelly's scythe will strike Xi Tai first; instead, she herself will likely have her delicate features sliced off by the claws. The plan to attack where the enemy must defend, or to relieve the siege of Wei by attacking Zhao, will be futile.

Fortunately, this is not a one-on-one single-player Soul Fighting.

"Clang--!!!"

A metallic clang rang out about a foot above Yang Shelly's head.

If Yang Shelly hadn't already mobilized her Soul Power to protect her ears and other senses, the thunderous roar alone would have been enough to rupture her eardrums and cause her to bleed from her mouth and nose.

It was a deep blue whip tip that bypassed Yang Shelly and struck Xi Tai's claw blade with lightning speed. The dark gold lines on the sapphire-like whip were even more eye-catching.

All I can say is that, at the crucial moment, Ah Yin fulfilled her responsibility as a teammate, albeit not much.

Yang Shelly, who was prepared in advance, also gave Ah Yin a certain amount of trust, although not much.

Many of those in the audience who were "in the know" breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this, but were also somewhat amused and exasperated.

It's already quite remarkable that these two ladies have such a 'tacit understanding,' so who can ask for anything more?

Xi Tai had no time to spare for the spectators. His offensive was interrupted by Ah Yin's sudden whip strike, and Yang Shelly's crescent-shaped scythe blade, which was retaliating, did not slow down at all and was still heading for his back.

Fortunately, you have teammates, and I'm not without them!

Besides, my teammates are more reliable than yours!

"Clang—! Clang—!"

Two crisp sounds rang out, less than a second apart. Unless one was Gao Qiang Soul Master or someone with naturally keen senses, one would think that the two sounds of clanging metal were heard at the same time.

Cai Wenhao held the zither upright with his left hand and pressed the strings with his right. His Martial Soul, "Cold Moon Zither," emitted a bluish-white light. In the rush, he once again used his "Second Soul Skill - Sound Blade Slash," which no longer resembled a torrential downpour but instead coalesced into a hard hailstone, causing Yang Shelly's scythe to miss its mark and fail to hit Xi Tai's back.

Having narrowly escaped death, Xi Tai slightly bent his knees, pushed off with all his might, and leaped backward several feet, returning to stand beside Cai Wenhao.

The exchange was swift and decisive, marking the end of the first round of probing. Both sides finally had a relatively clear understanding of each other's combined strengths.

Similarly, they also learned about the level of chemistry between the two members of the other team.

This is very important!

Unlike one-on-one Soul Fighting, where you only need to consider factors such as your own and your opponent's Martial Soul, Soul Power, Soul Skill, combat experience, and on-the-spot reactions, and integrate these factors to maximize your combat power.

In Soul Fighting, or even larger team battles, the level of teamwork among the players is also put to the test.

Teammates with good teamwork can often achieve a combined combat power greater than the sum of its parts. However, if two Soul Master with ulterior motives team up, they not only fail to unleash their full potential but are also likely to hinder each other, often resulting in the weak being defeated by the strong.

Clearly, through the recent test, Yang Shelly and Ah Yin can be said to be able to work together without holding each other back, and to the point that one plus one equals two.

This made Cai Wenhao and Xi Tai secretly happy.

Although their Soul Power was level 49, which was much higher than Yang Shelly and the other two girls' level 43, Cai Wenhao and Xi Tai knew that it would be quite a challenge to further convert their Martial Soul Power advantage into a victory, given the girls' terrifying battle record in Soul Fighting and the fact that they had already cultivated to the Soul Ancestor realm at such a young age.

On the Soul Fighting stage, the four stood on either side, all with calm expressions and eyes filled with fighting spirit as they stared at their opponents.

"Zheng—!"

It was Cai Wenhao again who plucked the strings first. The Weiyi purple Soul Ring under his feet lit up, making the other three Yellow Soul Ring look dim.

Fourth Soul Skill: Zither Music Forming Soldiers—!

A visible sonic wave exploded from Cai Wenhao's fingertips, and the air in front of him and Xi Tai began to distort and deform, turning into three sword-wielding warriors who were over two meters tall in the blink of an eye.

Xi Tai stepped forward. Although he was hunched over, after being possessed by his Martial Soul, he resembled a humanoid "Dreadclaw Dragon" and was also over two meters tall.

"Kill--!!!"

A loud shout came from Xi Tai's mouth, and in the blink of an eye he rushed several meters forward, attacking Yang Shelly and Ah Yin for the second time.

The difference this time is that Xi Tai is no longer alone. Three warriors formed from the sound of zither music follow closely behind him. On their skeletal faces, their pale jaws open, emitting a silent roar, like the howl of ghosts.

Facing the small formation of Xi Tai and Qin Yin's soldiers, Yang Shelly once again left Ah Yin behind, gripped the "Soul-Breaking Hooked Scythe Spear" tightly, and launched a counter-charge towards Xi Tai's side. Her snow-white face was tinged with a rosy blush full of fervent fighting spirit.

Although Yang Shelly tended to fight alone, Ah Yin kept in mind her duty as Control System Soul Master. The "Blue Silver Emperor" Martial Soul in her hand, which was like an art piece, shone brightly, and four Soul Ring, two yellow and two purple, lit up one after another under her feet.

The pale blue ripples, originating from Ah Yin, spread out in a fan shape towards Yang Shelly, Xi Tai, the three Qin Yin warriors, and even Cai Wenhao, who was several feet away.

The next second, wherever the ripples reached, even though the stone slabs of the Soul Fighting Arena were as hard as iron, there were still small, pale blue grasses that broke through the stone slabs and sprouted tender shoots.

In the VIP box in the eastern section of the audience, Ling Yi and Laikenasi sat side by side on a large sofa, quietly overlooking the battle on the Soul Fighting stage below.

When Ling Yi saw Ah Yin activate all four of her Soul Ring and Soul Skill at the same time, Ling Yi knew that the outcome of this two-on-two Soul Fighting was already decided!

Inspired and influenced by Ling Yi, Ah Yin unleashed all four of her Soul Skill at once, transforming an area within a radius of tens of meters into a field filled with "Blue Silver Grass," comparable to a weakened version of Da Zhu's "Advent of a World of Trees."

Thus, with Yang Shelly's formidable offensive capabilities, it would be almost impossible for the eccentric "Heavenly Cripple" Cai Wenhao to reverse the situation back to its original state.

Ah Yin used this "scene card skill" to clearly tell Cai Wenhao that the combat path of Control System Soul Master is not the one he followed.

Even though the combination of Ah Yin and Yang Shelly is just one plus one equals two, when the "one" of the two is stronger than the individual combat power of Cai Wenhao and Xi Tai, then the "two" can still surpass the combat power level that the two can achieve when they join forces.

"Call--!"

Laikenasi breathed a sigh of relief. His strength was not weak. After becoming the director of the Heaven Dou Great Soul Fighting Arena, he had seen many Soul Fighting battles between Soul Master, and his knowledge was outstanding. He could also see who had the upper hand in the battle below.

The Great Soul Fighting Arena Alliance is backed by seven top-tier Soul Master families: three are located within the Heaven Dou Empire, three within the Star Luo Empire, and one within the Silves Kingdom.

In name only, the Great Soul Fighting Arena Alliance and the seven top Soul Master families behind it do not favor either of the two great empires; they stand neutral.

Of course, anyone with a normal IQ knows to just listen to this and not take it seriously; anyone who does is a fool.

After all, putting everything else aside, these seven top-tier Soul Master families are rooted in the territories of the two great empires, and naturally they have to deal with various forces in the surrounding area on a daily basis. Over the decades or even centuries, their various interpersonal relationships have become so intricate and complex that they cannot be severed or untangled.

The Menethil Clan behind Laikenasi naturally supports the Heaven Dou Empire. They've managed to make the Great Soul Fighting Arena in Heaven Dou City a resounding success. To say they have no connection with the royal Xue Family is an insult to one's intelligence.

Just like the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, one of the Upper Three Sects, since the sect is located within the Heaven Dou Empire, no matter how deep the Ning Family's foundation is, it is inevitable that they will have interactions with the royal Xue Family and various forces within the Heaven Dou Empire.

Similarly, there is the Clear Sky Sect within the territory of the Star Luo Empire.

If there's any difference, it's that the Clear Sky Sect is much stronger, even stronger than the equally strong White Tiger Dai Family!

Hearing Laikenasi exhale, Ling Yi turned to look at him, chuckled, and said, "Manager Laikenasi, didn't you already know the outcome of this Soul Fighting when you suggested it to the Third Prince? Why are you suddenly so nervous?"

"If the Third Prince next door knew you looked like this, I'm afraid..."

Ling Yi paused here, gently shook his head, and did not continue.

Upon hearing Laikenasi smiled somewhat awkwardly and subconsciously glanced at the closed door of the private room.

To avoid embarrassing Laikenasi, Ling Yi gave him a subtle reminder before turning his attention back to the Soul Fighting Arena below, where the clashes were still building.

Compared to Laikenasi's anxiety and uncertainty, Ling Yi was much more composed.

Although Ling Yi Ling Yi already knew the outcome of the bet between the Third Prince Xue Ye and Cardinal Salas, he made no attempt to inform Salas.

In addition, Ling Yi believed that Salas should have already known the outcome of the bet once it was set up.

The Martial Soul Temple Spirit Hall, established in Heaven Dou City, is not merely for helping eligible children awaken their Martial Soul.

"If everything went smoothly, ' Spirit City ' should have received the news by now, right?"

I wonder if I'll catch a big fish this time. I've done all I can; now it's up to luck.

"I'm lucky; this will save me at least five years."

"If we're unlucky, we can just spend another five years building it..."

I'll keep it as a two-in-one post for a few days to see how well everyone responds. I'll make adjustments based on your feedback in a couple of days.

Goodnight everyone~