Victory

The middle-aged man tried to halt his steps, bending sharply at the waist and planting both hands on the ground. At a glance, he looked like a real brown bear.

His hands pressed hard against the ground, all ten claws digging deeply into the earth and plowing furrow after furrow.

He forcibly stopped at the edge of the pit, a trace of relief appearing on his face.

However, in the next second, two stone pillars suddenly rose beneath his feet and sent him flying.

After a forward flip, he fell straight into the pit. The rapidly spinning rocks firmly held him in place, and the immense pressure made him feel as if he were suffocating.

"Ahhh!!!"

"Fourth Soul Skill: Thunder Domain Explosion!"

The immense pain made him let out an earth-shaking roar. The ground beneath his feet slowly lit up as terrifying lightning rapidly spread, followed by a thunderous boom.

Like the explosion of a cannonball, it blasted countless stones into the air. Struck by the blast, the vortex was forcibly halted for several breaths.

Seizing the opening, he endured the intense pain and leaped straight out of the pit.

Before he could steady himself, countless earthen spikes and chains surrounded him from every direction. Shi An lightly snapped his fingers.

The chains suddenly slid forward, like brown venomous snakes coiling toward him.

The middle-aged man repeatedly leaped and dodged among the chains, unaware that this was precisely what Shi An wanted.

As Shi An curled his right hand into a loose grip, the chains instantly tightened, producing a clattering scrape of metal.

The chains swept up from beneath his crotch, under his arms, and over his head, tightening and forcibly suspending him in midair.

He tried to break free, but hanging in the air, he had nowhere to exert force. He tried blasting them with lightning, but earth inherently resisted lightning.

He could only twist his body desperately in midair, letting out helpless roars.

"Admit defeat. If I wanted to, those earthen spikes would have already turned you into a pincushion."

Shi An slowly walked to a spot not far in front of him and stopped, speaking calmly without the slightest fluctuation in his tone.

Shi An had never regarded him as an opponent. He was too weak; Shi An barely needed to do anything.

"I... admit defeat." The middle-aged man was helpless. His eyes were filled with unwillingness, but after gritting his teeth, he still spoke the words of surrender.

He released his martial soul possession, and Shi An lowered him to the ground.

He staggered a step before steadying himself. The crushing pressure from the massive stones still left intense pain throughout his body.

He glanced at Shi An once, then left the spirit arena platform without looking back.

The spectators' stands immediately erupted with cheers that resounded into the sky.

It was not unheard of in the history of Douluo Continent for a Soul Elder to defeat a Soul Ancestor.

But hearing about it and seeing it firsthand were entirely different. After watching today's match, they would have something to boast about for quite some time after going home.

They were tremendously excited. Cheers, shouts, and applause formed wave after wave of sound that echoed throughout the Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena.

When Shi An returned to the private room, everyone else looked at him with awe and admiration.

Of course, Yu Tianheng was different. His gaze toward Shi An was filled with fighting spirit.

But he also knew that he was no match for Shi An, so he urged himself in his heart to work harder and harder still.

Shi An paid no attention to their gazes and walked straight over to sit beside Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing knew how strong he was, so she was not overly emotional. Still, she looked at him with sparkling eyes full of affection.

Chen Kui was also somewhat surprised as he looked at Shi An.

The opponent he had arranged for Shi An was no weakling even among Soul Ancestors.

Yet Shi An had still defeated him, and it seemed no different from his spirit fights against others. He had not even used his martial soul, ending every battle easily within just a few exchanges.

This made Chen Kui even more curious. Just how far could Shi An's true strength go when fully unleashed? Why did he possess such power at such a young age?

"Very good!" Chen Kui's voice broke the silence in the private room. He looked at Shi An, his eyes full of appreciation.

"Defeating a Soul Ancestor proves that your combat strength has already surpassed that of a Soul Ancestor."

"But you must not become arrogant because of this. You should cultivate even harder. Perhaps in the future, you may become a Titled Douluo revered by everyone across the continent."

"Keep it up!"

When Chen Kui finished speaking, it was as though a small stone had been dropped into everyone's hearts, sending ripples spreading outward.

They looked at Shi An, complicated emotions shining in their eyes.

"Yu Tianheng, prepare for the next match. Your opponent has already been arranged."

Chen Kui did not give them a chance to talk. Instead, he turned to Yu Tianheng and spoke slowly.

"Yes!" Fighting spirit rose in Yu Tianheng's eyes. If Shi An could defeat a Soul Ancestor, why could he not do the same?

He was the most gifted disciple of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect. He would not lose to anyone.

He stood and headed out of the private room, glancing at Shi An before he left.

When he saw that Shi An was not looking at him at all, but was instead chatting animatedly with Zhu Zhuqing, he snorted coldly in his heart.

If you can defeat a Soul Ancestor, it doesn't mean I can't!

However, imagination was rich, while reality was cruel.

Yu Tianheng's opponent was a control-type Soul Ancestor.

Although Yu Tianheng possessed explosive power, under the relentless control and battlefield suppression, he ultimately could not avoid defeat.

He returned to the private room looking utterly dejected. No one spoke, and Chen Kui said nothing either.

With Shi An's dazzling performance before him, this direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect seemed somewhat overshadowed.

Yu Tianheng looked toward Dugu Yan, only to find that she did not even spare him a proper glance. He immediately felt even more dispirited.

One spirit fight after another came to an end. Aside from Shi An, only Dugu Yan managed to defeat a tool martial soul master by relying on her poison attribute.

Zhu Zhuqing was not bad either, but she had faced a control-type Soul Ancestor.

Without revealing her trump card, the external spirit bone, they ultimately both left the arena and were judged to have tied.

Other than Ye Lingling, everyone participated in one-on-one spirit fights.

Chen Kui looked at the records in his notebook, his brows deeply furrowed.

Their strengths varied greatly. The strong were strong, the weak were weak, and they had no combat technique whatsoever. They only knew how to fight using soul skills.

"How exactly did your previous mentor teach you? Other than your passable soul power, everything else is a complete mess!"

Chen Kui spoke with a frown. His voice was rough and booming, carrying an oppressive force.

Everyone shrank their necks, silently cursing Qin Ming in their hearts. Damn it, he led us astray!

"Starting tomorrow, there will be an additional two-on-two spirit fight at night. All of you will properly hone your combat abilities."

"If you are still this terrible, then I'll have to consider sending you somewhere else to train."

"Enough. Dismissed. Go do whatever you need to do!"

After saying that, Chen Kui was the first to leave the private room, leaving everyone looking at one another.

"Zhuqing, let's go home." Shi An took Zhu Zhuqing's hand and headed out of the private room. There was nothing else to do by staying here, so they might as well go home and explore the mysteries of life.