Blade of Attack and Defense, Clash of Minds

"Unfortunately, we're both Soul Grand Masters, but your attack power isn't as high as mine!" After saying that, Yuwen Tuo exerted force with his arm and slashed fiercely.

The Flame Kill Blade scraped against the Wing Guillotine, sending a series of sparks flying between them.

Yuwen Tuo did not move an inch, while Wang Dong was knocked back seven or eight meters.

"Damn it, that hurts!" Wang Dong looked at her wings. Not only were there bloody cuts from the blade, but parts of them had also been scorched. They burned and ached.

At the same rank, this was the first time she had ever been at such a disadvantage. Yuwen Tuo's soul ring configuration was identical to hers. The beyond-limit configuration she had once been so proud of gave her no advantage against him at all.

Wildfire Spreads the Plains Stance! Yuwen Tuo muttered inwardly as the flaming blade in his hand swept horizontally.

Across the arena floor, the blade edge charged toward Wang Dong in a burst of firelight.

At that moment, a huge bear leaped in front of Wang Dong just in time.

"Second Soul Skill, Bear Gang Bodyguard!" A layer of indestructible bear-hide shielding enveloped the bear's body. As expected of a defense-type soul master, this move could block most attacks below the Soul Elder rank.

Unfortunately, that applied to ordinary Soul Elders. With the dual enhancement of his Flame Kill Blade and the Ruyi Plate, how could Yuwen Tuo's attack power compare to that of an ordinary Soul Elder?

The blade tore a massive bloody gash directly across its chest.

"Xiong Gang, are you okay?" Wang Dong stepped forward to help him up. Only then did Yuwen Tuo learn that this person was called Xiong Gang.

The name suited him quite well.

His Martial Soul was a bear, and he was pretty tough too. He actually dared to use his body to take Yuwen Tuo's blade slash head-on.

"I'm fine... Watch out, he's coming again!"

Yuwen Tuo was not one of those inexplicable villains who waited for the protagonist's team to finish talking before attacking.

Now that Wang Dong and Xiong Gang were standing in the same spot, his first thought was to slash them both out of the arena at once.

Fortunately, Huo Yuhao's Mental Sharing support was still active. Xiong Gang reacted in time and shoved Wang Dong aside, allowing the two of them to narrowly evade the strike.

"First Soul Skill, Giant Bear Claw Strike!"

Xiong Gang extended his massive bear paw and clawed at Yuwen Tuo's shoulder.

At the same time, Wang Dong circled behind him for a sneak attack, her wings slicing toward his back.

Just then, the sound of a flute arose. Xiao Xiao played the Nine Phoenix Dancing Flute, slowing the two of them down.

At the same time, she was helping Yuwen Tuo find the rhythm for his attacks.

The blade dance appeared once more. It was as if Yuwen Tuo had eyes in the back of his head. He turned sideways and leaped up, calmly evading Wang Dong's wing strike. He raised his blade in his right hand to block, knocking aside Xiong Gang's bear claw as well.

Both of them had been slowed by Xiao Xiao, so it was not difficult for Yuwen Tuo to defuse their combined assault.

Yuwen Tuo's fighting style today was completely different from yesterday's. When he had fought Wu Feng and Nanmen Yun'er yesterday, his blade techniques had been broad and powerful, each strike heavy with force.

Today, although the style of his blade techniques remained the same, they felt completely different in execution. His strength had weakened, but his attack frequency had clearly increased.

Yet it was not simply fast. Sometimes, he would suddenly slow down, his force dropping to its lowest point, but he could still redirect the combined strength of Wang Dong and Xiong Gang's attacks.

If it had to be described, it was alternately fast and slow, movement and stillness combined, with attack and defense perfectly balanced.

"It's because of the music. Xiao Xiao isn't playing the same melody as yesterday. Yuwen Tuo is using Xiao Xiao's rhythm to perform a different blade dance," Ning Tian said with her arms folded.

Her guess was quite accurate. That was right, it was because of the music.

The melody Xiao Xiao was playing today was the second of the Meng Chun Six Melodies: Rain Water Melody!

During the Rain Water season, the weather was unpredictable. It was one of the times of year with the most cold spells, abruptly cold and hot, briefly warm before turning chilly again.

Just like Yuwen Tuo's attacks at this moment, their speed varied unpredictably, shifting from offense to defense in an instant.

No, this Yuwen Tuo is too formidable. His blade techniques are too flexible and completely tailored to his opponents, Huo Yuhao thought.

Originally, with his Mental Sharing supporting Wang Dong and Xiong Gang, it did not matter how Yuwen Tuo wielded his blade. They would be able to see through every move completely.

Yet Yuwen Tuo could use blade techniques that they could do nothing about even after seeing through them.

When facing the faster Wang Dong, who could also fly, Yuwen Tuo's blade techniques slowed down. They became slow enough to be seen clearly even without Mental Detection, yet those slow techniques formed an unbroken defense without a single flaw.

Wang Dong could see them clearly, but she could not break through.

When facing Xiong Gang, however, Yuwen Tuo's blade techniques became incomparably fast, as forceful as rushing thunder. Even if Xiong Gang could see the path of the blade with Huo Yuhao's help, he was simply too slow. His eyes could see it, but his body could not keep up.

Even if he knew that he should defend the left side, the moment he raised his hand, Yuwen Tuo's blade had already cut through his flesh. That was a move that could not be blocked even when seen clearly.

"Wang Dong can't get through, and Xiong Gang can't keep up. If this continues, we'll lose badly." Huo Yuhao rapidly considered his options. As a control-type soul master and the team captain, he had to find a way to break the deadlock.

Actually, if he and Wang Dong could use their Martial Soul Fusion Skill at this moment, they would still have a chance of winning.

Unfortunately, their Martial Soul Fusion Skill had only just been completed, and they were not yet proficient with it. In Zhou Yi's words, it was still on cooldown. They would be unable to use it for at least three days and perhaps as long as seven, so they could only think of another way.

"It'll be too difficult to make a breakthrough through Yuwen Tuo. It looks like I'll have to start with the other two. Lian Yue is useful, but she isn't the key. As long as we defeat Xiao Xiao, Yuwen Tuo's blade dance rhythm will be disrupted without her music. The slowing effect on Wang Dong and Xiong Gang will also disappear, and we won't be fighting so passively anymore." Huo Yuhao made his decision.

Light swirled within his Spirit Eye.

"Soul Shock!"

He intended to stun Xiao Xiao unconscious.

This move could inflict massive mental damage on an enemy, and when combined with the Tang Sect's secret art, Purple Demon Eyes, its power would double.

With Xiao Xiao's Mental Power, she definitely would not be able to withstand such a surprise attack.

"No, Yuhao! When you use this move, your own Sea of Consciousness will be opened as well..." Sky Dream Ice Silkworm anxiously warned him.

Under normal circumstances, Huo Yuhao's strategy would not have been a problem. But Yuwen Tuo was on the other side.

Had Huo Yuhao forgotten what Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had told him? Yuwen Tuo's Mental Power was at least three times stronger than his.

For a soul master who was not from the spiritual-type to possess such powerful Mental Power, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm absolutely refused to believe that Yuwen Tuo had not cultivated some method for training the mind.

And such methods likely possessed techniques for capturing an opponent's Mental Power and counterattacking with it.

Opening up his Sea of Consciousness at a time like this was extremely dangerous.

Unfortunately, its warning came a step too late. Huo Yuhao's Mental Power had already been released.

While effortlessly dealing with Wang Dong and Xiong Gang, Yuwen Tuo still sensed that wave of Mental Power.

"Hehe, what an opportunity!"

Yuwen Tuo smiled faintly. Brown and blue light flashed in his eyes as a wave of mental fluctuations intercepted Huo Yuhao's Soul Shock and pushed his Mental Power right back at him.