Fang Yuan vs. Tang Wulin (Seeking Collection, Seeking Follow-up Reads, Seeking Updates)

"Come at me, then. If you lose, don't start crying. I'm not your mom—I can't comfort you."

Gu Yuena covered her mouth and chuckled, her tone carrying a hint of teasing.

Her palm opened slightly, and a pearly white light gathered in it, A plain white spear slowly took shape, its shaft perfectly straight, its tip gleaming coldly.

Her martial soul was the Silver Dragon Spear, separated from her original body.

"You're the one who's going to cry! I won't go easy on you just because you're a girl!"

Xie Xie gave a low shout, and both daggers lit up at once.

He gripped two short daggers in his hands, one gold and one black—the Light Dragon Dagger and the Shadow Dragon Dagger.

An inch longer meant an inch stronger.

The spear controlled the distance; the short daggers couldn't get close at all.

For an agility-type soul master facing a long weapon, the greatest taboo was charging head-on.

Even with the anger he had been holding in all morning, once the fight truly began, he still kept his emotions in check and did not lose his form.

Soul power poured into his legs, and he pushed his speed to its peak, turning into two afterimages, one bright and one dark, circling Gu Yuena.

His toes tapped lightly against the grass, his figure so fast it dragged out faint traces in the air.

"You overestimate yourself."

Gu Yuena gave a cold snort.

She gripped the spear with both hands and took her stance, a hundred-year soul ring floating quietly beneath her feet.

She stood rooted in place, not moving, only turning her wrist slightly with Xie Xie's movements, the spear tip always locking onto his position.

"All bark and no bite. Watch my first soul skill—Light Dragon Blade!"

Seeing that she was not moving, Xie Xie made up his mind.

With a fierce shout, he charged forward, both daggers blazing with golden light as he slashed straight at her face.

Gu Yuena lifted her wrist, bringing the spear across to block, the shaft knocking toward the daggers.

In the instant before spear and daggers collided, Xie Xie twisted his waist and, using the force of his charge, forcibly changed direction, sliding along the spear shaft to the side and circling behind her in one step.

The frontal assault had all been a feint.

"Fell for it, didn't you!"

Xie Xie's heart leaped with joy, and he drove both daggers forward at once, slashing toward the center of her back.

He had calculated that turning with a long spear would be slow. This strike was guaranteed.

Gu Yuena had her back to him and did not even turn her head.

The yellow soul ring beneath her feet lit up.

"First soul skill, Death Decay."

Her wrist rolled along the spear shaft, and power surged from her waist and abdomen, driving the spear into a tricky arc—a classic returning-thrust.

The angle sealed off every route of evasion.

The plain white spear tip was wrapped in a faint gray aura; if it touched him, even the flow of his soul power would slow by half a beat.

The spear tip cut through the air, stabbing straight toward Xie Xie's lower abdomen.

"What! Her spear technique is this solid!"

Xie Xie's heart lurched, and every hair on his body stood on end.

The spear came too fast. He could not pull back the force of his forward rush, and he could only watch helplessly as the spear tip grew larger in his vision, with nowhere to dodge.

I'm done, I'm done.

He instinctively shut his eyes, but the pain he expected never came.

The spear tip stopped in front of his lower abdomen, so close that he could feel the chill through his school uniform.

Before he could recover, Gu Yuena tapped the ground lightly, spun with the motion, and kicked him hard in the stomach.

"Urgh!"

Xie Xie let out a muffled groan and flew backward, sliding three or four meters before his back slammed heavily into a tree trunk at the edge of the field, shaking leaves down with a rustle.

He clutched his stomach and slid down to sit beneath the tree roots, his face scrunched up, his back numb, his stomach churning violently. His twin daggers had long since dispersed, and his arms were so weak he could not lift them; even breathing hurt.

"Do you admit defeat?"

Gu Yuena put away her spear and stood with her arms crossed, her tone filled with disdain as she looked at him.

"I don't!"

Xie Xie gritted his teeth and slowly pushed himself up against the tree trunk, clutching his chest and sucking in cold air. "I was just careless for a moment! If you've got the guts, fight me again!"

"Stop when the point is made. Winner, Gu Yue."

Wu Zhangkong's voice came from the side, flat and leaving no room for discussion.

Tang Wulin hurried over and grabbed his arm, helping him catch his breath.

"Enough, Xie Xie. A loss is a loss. Her level was higher than yours to begin with, so it's not embarrassing."

"Wulin... I couldn't even take one move from her..."

Xie Xie looked like he wanted to cry but had no tears, his face falling as pain and frustration bottled up inside him.

"Watch me next. You go rest on the side first."

Tang Wulin supported him as they walked toward the edge of the lawn.

"Um... can the bet maybe not count...?"

Xie Xie sounded wilted, testing the waters in a small voice.

"No way."

Tang Wulin refused without even thinking and helped him sit down. "We already agreed. How could it not count?"

"I'm almost out of living expenses..."

Xie Xie drooped his head.

"That's what you get for betting blindly."

Tang Wulin shot him an annoyed glare. "If you're willing to bet, you have to accept the loss. What you said has to count."

"Fine, fine..."

Xie Xie gave a bitter laugh and leaned against the tree trunk, panting.

Watching Tang Wulin walk toward the center of the field, a slightly gloating thought popped into his mind.

If Tang Wulin lost to Fang Yuan, wouldn't the bet even out?

When the time came, he could bring up canceling the bet with him.

"Tang Wulin, are you ready?"

Wu Zhangkong spoke.

"I'm ready."

Tang Wulin answered and walked to the center of the field, cupping his hands toward Fang Yuan.

"Hello, little brother Fang Yuan. My name is Tang Wulin, a rank sixteen control-type battle soul master. My martial soul is Blue Silver Grass."

"Hello, big brother Wulin. I'm a rank fifteen assault-type battle soul master. My martial soul is the Super Energy Instrument. Please guide me."

Fang Yuan smiled and raised his wrist, the watch face gleaming with a metallic luster under the sunlight.

He felt a little troubled inside.

Ever since he had discovered Little Broken Watch's transformation ability, his mother had made him scan nearly all the high-level soul beasts on Douluo Continent.

Now, every bloodline stored in Little Broken Watch's DNA database was absurdly strong. Transforming into any one of them at random would be a dimensional-level beatdown.

After picking and choosing, only the Titan Giant Ape bloodline would not look too conspicuous if he brought it out.

That worked too...

The Titan Giant Ape's physical body could just withstand Blue Silver Grass's binding, and it would not be as flashy as a dragon bloodline. It was just right.

"Tang Wulin, if you dare hurt even one finger on little Fang Yuan, I won't mind making sure you end up on the missing-children news after school."

Gu Yuena's voice suddenly came from the edge of the field, chilly as a draft.

"Huh? That's not necessary, is it...?"

Tang Wulin's back stiffened, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

To threaten someone in broad daylight the moment she opened her mouth—only this girl would dare say that.

With talent like this pair of siblings had, he, someone from an ordinary family, really could not afford to provoke them.

"Gu Yue, shut up."

Wu Zhangkong frowned and glared at her. "Threatening a classmate in public? Do you want a disciplinary mark?"

Gu Yuena curled her lip, hugged her arms, and turned her head away without saying another word.

"Begin."

Wu Zhangkong announced in a deep voice.

"Big brother Wulin, go easy on me."

Fang Yuan smiled, and a little excitement stirred in his heart.

This was his first proper spar with someone since crossing over.

Tang Wulin's Blue Silver Grass was a mutated martial soul, extremely tough and somewhat capable of restraining the brute force of transformation types, so this was not entirely bullying him.

He had already made up his mind. In a moment, he would only use thirty percent of his strength and stop once the point was made.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

Tang Wulin nodded, and Blue Silver Grass burrowed out from his palm.

A ten-year soul ring slowly rose beneath his feet, and his expression turned serious as well.

He had originally been thinking that since the other party was young, he should hold back a little and not actually hurt him.

But in the next second, the expression on his face froze.

Fang Yuan twisted the dial and lightly pressed it down.

A green light burst from his body. Soul power flowed through the dial into his bloodline, activating the Titan Giant Ape DNA fragments.

When the light faded, the figure of the six-year-old child had vanished from the spot.

A five-meter-tall juvenile Titan Giant Ape stood in the center of the arena, its thick arms hanging at its sides.

Its fists were bigger than Tang Wulin's entire body.

Its dark fur stood out strand by strand, and its beastly pupils lowered, looking down at him from above.

"What?"

Tang Wulin's pupils widened. He froze in place, his mind going completely blank.

How was this the kind of martial soul strength a student from an intermediate academy should have?

Forget control—this guy could pin him to the ground with a single finger.