"What are you?"
"Could it be Tang Hao?"
Lin Yan held Wen Ruan as they hovered in midair, his heart beset by an indescribable unease.
Could it be that despite doing his best to avoid clashing with Tang San during the day, he had still managed to upset Tang Hao?
That guy was far too petty.
"Hmm? No, wait!"
"A Spirit Saint?"
Once Lin Yan steadied himself, the figure who had just attacked came into view.
Beneath a smooth, pristine black robe, yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black! Seven Soul Rings revolved slowly, radiating the pressure unique to a Spirit Saint.
[Seventh Soul Skill: Martial Soul Avatar!]
Seeing that his first strike had failed, the black-robed Spirit Saint immediately used his Martial Soul Avatar.
In the blink of an eye, a massive azure demon wolf apparition took solid form.
"A Gale Demon Wolf?"
"I've never heard of anyone like that. Who is this guy?"
After recognizing the other's Martial Soul, Lin Yan immediately completed his Martial Soul Possession as well.
[First Soul Skill: Fire Demon God Spear!]
Lin Yan had no time to comfort Wen Ruan. He released the girl, then charged straight at his opponent with his spear.
Purple-red and azure light swiftly intertwined.
Facing a Spirit Saint, Lin Yan felt not the slightest fear.
After all, his opponents had always been people like She Long and Ci Xue.
Although Lin Yan couldn't truly defeat a Titled Douluo, when it came to combat techniques and the mechanics of Martial Soul skills, there really weren't many people on the continent who could surpass him.
His spear shot forth like a dragon!
With the Gale Demon Wolf Spirit Saint yet to use his trump card, Lin Yan almost felt as though he had seized the initiative.
He could even tell that the man before him didn't seem intent on killing him. If anything, he seemed more like he was... passively going along with the fight.
"What's going on? Who is this guy?"
"He doesn't seem to be testing my strength, but he isn't trying to take my life either. So why did he attack?"
As they fought, Lin Yan gradually began to figure out his opponent's style.
The man's passive dodging, defense, and countering kept either of them from gaining a clear advantage or falling into a losing position.
Lin Yan was even more baffled.
He decided to slow his attacks for a moment and probe his opponent's intentions.
But the instant he failed to link his attacks together perfectly, the Spirit Saint seemed to seize his chance.
The Soul Power around him surged, and the Sixth Soul Ring beneath his feet suddenly blazed with dazzling light.
[Sixth Soul Skill: Spirit Skill: Demon Wolf Shadow Kill!]
Several azure blades of light, wrapped in wind, swept toward him. Their might was more than enough to kill an unprotected Spirit Saint of the same level.
Fortunately, Lin Yan had deliberately exposed an opening and was already prepared.
He spun to build momentum, swinging his spear in a full moon arc. With one strike, he shattered the blades of light.
"Hmm? No, wait!"
The sensation that traveled back through the shaft felt unreal, as though the blades were supposed to break apart.
His spearhead had merely sped up the process.
Sure enough, the blades that followed confirmed Lin Yan's suspicion.
The three blades of light in the air suddenly split apart. Instead of striking Lin Yan, they swept around him...
"Damn! His target is my junior schoolmate!"
[Spirit Bone Skill: Teleportation!]
The instant the fragmented blades skirted around him, Lin Yan guessed the Spirit Saint's true aim.
His "Teleportation" skill, granted by his evolved External Soul Bone, Dragon Wings, activated. Lin Yan flashed to Wen Ruan's side, seized her, and shot toward the sky.
Rumble!
Several blades of light slammed into the ground, setting off a series of explosions.
The remaining blades that missed the ground curved around and continued chasing them.
[Third Soul Skill: Spirit Skill: Dragon Breath!]
The Third Soul Ring beneath Lin Yan's feet flared. Flames surged from his mouth.
Roar!
A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill against a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill, an area attack against an area attack.
The flames quickly engulfed the remaining blades, dispelling the weakened attacks after they split apart.
Only then did the two of them escape danger.
Rage surged through Lin Yan. He couldn't believe this man's target had been Wen Ruan.
He raised his spear at once, ready to unleash everything and finish off his opponent.
But... seeing that his attempt on Wen Ruan had failed, the black-robed figure, wreathed in azure Soul Power, turned into a streak of light and fled toward the horizon.
"What? He ran?"
Lin Yan was stunned and furious.
But reason told him he couldn't pursue.
He still didn't know whether the other man had accomplices, or whether his target had been Wen Ruan or Lin Yan himself.
Acting on impulse would only leave him at a disadvantage.
At just that moment, the Guard Army in the city came rushing over after hearing the commotion.
So Lin Yan had no choice but to let it go for now. He carried Wen Ruan and flew toward Shrek Academy.
Late at night.
The dormitory reserved for Shrek Academy.
After what had happened, Lin Yan was in no mood to book a room with Wen Ruan at a hotel in the city. He simply returned to Shrek Academy. At least Flender and the other Spirit Saints were there to hold down the fort.
In the room, Lin Yan held Wen Ruan close as her delicate body continued to tremble.
"Are you all right, junior schoolmate?"
The girl looked up at him, unable to hide the fear in her eyes.
"Lin Yan, who was that?"
"Why did he try to kill us?"
Wen Ruan had grown up in an ordinary family. Her experience was limited, and she was timid to begin with. On top of that, Lin Yan had deliberately kept her away from conflict...
After narrowly escaping death today, her mind had gone completely blank with fright.
Lin Yan held Wen Ruan and gently comforted her.
"It's all right. This has nothing to do with you. I'll deal with it."
As he spoke, he tightened his arms around her.
At the same time, Lin Yan began quietly reviewing what had happened.
"An Agility Attack System Spirit Saint personally carried out an assassination!"
"That means the force behind him has at least one Soul Douluo-level expert."
"He chose to attack when Flender and Zhao Wuji were away."
"That means his side knows how strong Flender and the others are."
"And his target was Wen Ruan..."
Lin Yan furrowed his brow.
"Did I bring this danger upon Wen Ruan?"
"But who would benefit from Wen Ruan's death?"
"Qian Renxue?"
"Impossible!"
Lin Yan believed that Qian Renxue's character would never lead her to do something like this. Besides, the Spirit Saints sent by Spirit Hall didn't include anyone like this.
"Then was it Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling?"
"No, that doesn't add up either. The two of them don't even know Wen Ruan exists. And even if they did, their personalities wouldn't drive them to attack directly."
"But... only those few people know where I am, and only they have the backing to send a Spirit Saint on an assassination mission."
"If it wasn't them, then who was it?"
For all his confidence in his own intelligence, Lin Yan had no idea who was behind the plot.
After all, he had kept a low profile and never gone looking for trouble in recent years.
At Heaven Dou Academy, only a handful of people even knew his Soul Ring Configuration.
So he couldn't have made enemies of any major powers in the open, and there was no way he had done anything to warrant another faction wanting him dead.
"Lin Yan, I'm scared."
While his thoughts churned, Wen Ruan suddenly began to cry in his arms.