Enemies Meet, Eyes Red with Hate, Yuhao Beats Dai Huabin

On the morning of the third day, Group C's final round-robin match began.

Huo Yuhao stood at the edge of Arena Three, his hands hanging at his sides as he calmly watched the three people approaching from across the field.

His expression did not change, but Wang Dong keenly noticed that the fingers at his sides had tightened slightly.

The three opponents were another team from within Class One.

The boy at the front stood half a head taller than his peers. His features were cold and stern, and an innate arrogance lingered between his brows.

The collar of his school uniform hung open, revealing a faint white tiger tattoo on his neck—the bloodline mark that came with the awakening of a White Tiger martial soul.

Dai Huabin.

A boy and a girl followed behind him. The girl was slender and cool-faced, her steps light and soundless like a cat lurking in the shadows. She was Zhu Lu, whose martial soul was the Netherworld Spirit Cat.

The other boy was broad and sturdy. His martial soul was the Great Strength Vajra Bear, making him a defense-type Soul Master.

Dai Huabin's gaze crossed the crowd and landed on Huo Yuhao. A teasing smile curled at the corner of his lips.

"Huo Yuhao." He spoke softly, yet his tone carried an air of condescension. "What a coincidence. We ran into each other in the final round."

Huo Yuhao did not answer. He merely looked at him calmly.

Dai Huabin stepped forward twice and lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear. "I heard you're doing pretty well now. Living the good life with that uncle of yours? Makes sense. You've latched onto a high branch, so naturally you're different from ordinary people like us."

His tone was openly mocking, but Huo Yuhao still did not get angry. He simply replied, "Are you done?"

Dai Huabin narrowed his eyes and was about to say more when the referee's voice rang out at just the right moment. "Final round of Group C. Both sides, take your positions. Prepare to begin."

Standing beside Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong asked in a low voice, "You have a grudge with that guy?"

"Mm." Huo Yuhao did not explain further. He only said, "Let me handle this one."

Wang Dong paused. "By yourself?"

"Mm." Huo Yuhao's voice was calm, but it carried an unquestionable firmness. "I'm enough on my own."

Wang Dong stared at him for two seconds, then shrugged. "Fine, your call. But if you can't hold on, say so. Xiao Xiao and I won't just stand around and watch you get beaten up."

Xiao Xiao nodded as well. Though she was worried, she chose to trust him.

The referee raised his right hand. "Begin!"

The instant his words fell, Dai Huabin moved.

The White Tiger martial soul possessed him in an instant. White fur burst from beneath his skin, tiger stripes surfaced across his body, and his hands transformed into sharp tiger claws.

He was incredibly fast. With a fierce kick off the ground, he shot forward like a streak of white lightning, pouncing straight at Huo Yuhao's face.

He intended to crush Huo Yuhao immediately.

Huo Yuhao did not retreat.

Golden light lit up in his eyes as his Spiritual Eyes opened. In his perception, Dai Huabin's movements slowed several times over.

He could clearly see the sequence in which his opponent's muscles exerted force, the trajectory of his tiger claws, and even predict the next variation in his attack.

But he did not dodge.

He raised his right hand.

An utterly different aura erupted from within him.

It was an ultimate cold—not ordinary ice-attribute soul power, but a chill that seemed capable of freezing the soul itself, an icy presence from the depths of the underworld.

A phantom of an entirely ice-blue scorpion emerged behind him.

Its body was more slender than that of an ordinary Ice Jade Scorpion, its carapace covered in dark golden patterns that radiated an ancient, profound aura.

Most striking of all was its tail. Rather than a single stinger, it possessed nine long icy tails, each emanating a different fluctuation of law.

Myriad Calamity Cold Prison: Nine-Tailed Ice Nether Scorpion.

The entire arena fell silent.

The referee froze. The students watching froze. Even Dai Huabin's attack involuntarily paused for an instant.

What kind of martial soul was that?

Dai Huabin reacted quickly. Though shocked inwardly, his offensive did not stop. His tiger claws, wrapped in fierce soul power, slammed brutally toward Huo Yuhao's chest.

Huo Yuhao neither dodged nor even raised a guard.

His first soul ring lit up.

First Soul Skill: Nether Ice Pincers.

Two enormous crystalline ice pincers condensed before him. Each was as large as a millstone, translucent and gleaming as they radiated bone-piercing cold.

Dark golden patterns covered the surface of the pincers, identical to those on the Nine-Tailed Ice Nether Scorpion's carapace.

Dai Huabin's tiger claws slammed fiercely against the crystalline ice pincers.

Clang!

A heavy boom rang out like metal striking metal. Dai Huabin felt an immense force surge back through his tiger claws, numbing his entire arm.

Even more terrifying, a bone-chilling cold invaded his body through his tiger claws, instantly freezing the meridians in his right arm and bringing the circulation of soul power in that hand to a complete halt.

Dai Huabin's expression changed drastically. He hurriedly retreated several steps and shook his right arm, only to discover that the chill had stubbornly entrenched itself in his meridians and could not be expelled anytime soon.

"Your right arm is temporarily useless," Huo Yuhao said calmly. There was no mockery or triumph in his tone, only a statement of fact. "Are you still going to continue?"

Dai Huabin's expression turned exceedingly ugly.

He was the dignified son of the White Tiger Duke. Since childhood, when had he ever suffered such humiliation? In front of so many people, his right arm had been crippled in a single move by an illegitimate son he had always looked down on?

"You're courting death!"

Dai Huabin roared as his second soul ring lit up. The White Tiger Fierce Light Wave gathered in his mouth before a blazing white beam shot forth, racing straight toward Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao still did not dodge.

His second soul ring lit up.

Second Soul Skill: Myriad Calamity Ice Nether Armor.

A suit of entirely ice-blue armor condensed around his body.

The armor was savage yet magnificent in design. Two curved ice spikes extended from its shoulder guards, while intricate samsara runes were engraved upon its breastplate. The entire suit radiated an ancient, imposing aura.

The White Tiger Fierce Light Wave slammed into the armor.

White light exploded, and surging shockwaves sent the dust at the center of the arena flying several meters into the air.

Yet when the smoke and dust dispersed, everyone sucked in a sharp breath.

Huo Yuhao stood where he was, completely unmoved. Not a single crack had appeared on the ice-blue armor, and it had not shifted even half an inch. Every bit of the White Tiger Fierce Light Wave's power had been completely absorbed by the armor.

Not only that, Dai Huabin suddenly let out a muffled groan and clutched his forehead.

A bone-piercing chill surged up from the depths of his sea of consciousness, as though countless ice needles had pierced his brain. The pain made his vision go dark.

That was the samsara backlash of the Myriad Calamity Ice Nether Armor. Any attacker would suffer frost poison and freezing injuries, damaging their sea of consciousness.

"I told you, your attacks are useless against me." Huo Yuhao's voice remained calm as he stepped forward.

The Ice Crystal Pincer condensed once more. This time, he did not defend. He took the initiative to attack.

Dai Huabin gritted his teeth and endured the intense pain in his sea of consciousness as he swung the tiger claw on his left arm, attempting to block.

But having lost the use of one arm, his movements had clearly become much slower.

The Ice Crystal Pincer easily broke through his defenses and slammed heavily into his chest.

"Puh—"

Dai Huabin spat out a mouthful of blood. Like a kite with its string cut, he flew backward and crashed hard onto the ground, sliding another seven or eight meters.

He struggled to get up, but the agony in his chest and the chill in his sea of consciousness made his entire body tremble. He could not stand at all.

"Dai Huabin has lost his ability to fight," the referee announced after confirming his condition.

An uproar broke out around the arena.

Less than three minutes had passed since the match began. Dai Huabin, the White Tiger Duke's son and one of Class One's acknowledged strongest assault-type soul masters, had been completely crushed by Huo Yuhao alone.

Zhu Lu exchanged glances with their other teammate. Both saw shock and hesitation in the other's eyes. Dai Huabin had already fallen—were the two of them still going to keep fighting?

Zhu Lu gritted her teeth. Her figure flashed, turning into a black shadow as she pounced toward Huo Yuhao.

She was an agility-attack-type soul master, and speed was her advantage. She intended to use it to find an opening.

But Huo Yuhao did not even turn around.

His Spiritual Eyes had remained active the entire time, and every one of Zhu Lu's movements was within his perception.

He tilted slightly to the side, avoiding Zhu Lu's claw strike. At the same time, the Ice Crystal Pincer gave a gentle sweep, pushing her toward the edge of the arena. His strength was controlled perfectly—not enough to hurt her, but enough to force her out of the fighting area.

Zhu Lu was pushed out of the arena and staggered several steps before regaining her balance.

She turned back to look at Huo Yuhao, her eyes filled with complicated emotions. She knew he had shown her mercy.

Seeing this, the other defense-type soul master decisively raised both hands. "I surrender."

After confirming both sides' conditions, the referee announced, "Final round of Group C: Huo Yuhao's team wins!"

The entire arena fell silent for a moment before bursting into fervent discussion.

"My god... he defeated Dai Huabin's whole team by himself?"

"What was that ice scorpion martial soul? That was ridiculous! Dai Huabin's White Tiger Fierce Light Wave didn't even affect it at all!"

"Isn't his martial soul the Spiritual Eyes? How does he have another ice-element martial soul? Twin martial souls?"

"It's more than just twin martial souls... The strength of that ice-element martial soul is simply beyond anything ordinary soul rings could compare to..."

Huo Yuhao ignored the discussions around him. He withdrew his martial souls and turned toward the side of the arena. As he passed Dai Huabin, his steps paused slightly.

Dai Huabin was half-kneeling on the ground, clutching his chest. He raised his head to look at Huo Yuhao, his eyes full of resentment and anger.

Huo Yuhao looked down at him and said only one thing. "I won't forget what you did to me before. But today is a competition. I won't use the arena to settle personal grudges. This match, I only wanted to win."

With that, he walked away without looking back.

Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao came up to meet him. Wang Dong looked him over from head to toe, only relaxing after confirming that he was unhurt. Then she could not help but ask, "That ice scorpion martial soul of yours... isn't it way too powerful? When did you awaken it? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I only awakened it a few days ago," Huo Yuhao said. "I hadn't had the chance to tell you yet."

"Already this strong just days after awakening?" Wang Dong clicked her tongue. "That talent of yours is completely unreasonable."

Xiao Xiao smiled with her lips pressed together. "As long as we won, that's what matters. Come on, let's rest first."

Huo Yuhao nodded and headed toward the rest area with the two of them.

He did not look back at Dai Huabin.

Yet Dai Huabin's gaze remained fixed on his retreating back until he disappeared into the crowd.