Behind the Mask, the Chains Were Torn Away

His tone suddenly grew harsher,

"You need to understand that the path of a Soul Master is long and arduous! What does a momentary humiliation or setback amount to? Those who achieve great things do not fuss over trifles!"

He avoided Tang San's eyes, which had instantly filled with disbelief and crushing disappointment. His gaze drifted toward the window as though he were reciting some doctrine:

"Anger and revenge are the behavior of the weak! A true strong person must learn to endure! Turn this humiliation into the motivation that drives you forward!"

"When you stand at the summit someday and possess the power to crush everything, today's humiliation will naturally be repaid a hundredfold! Acting rashly now will only damage your foundation and delay your future! Listen to your godmother and endure this for now! For the sake of the future!"

Every word was like a poison-tipped needle, viciously piercing Tang San's battered heart.

The fingers clutching Yu Xiaogang's sleeve slowly, bit by bit, loosened and slipped down limply.

The eyes that had just burned with a plea for help went completely dark.

The deepest despair did not come from an enemy's cruelty, but from the moment your dearest loved one pushed you into the abyss and offered not a rope, but a grand speech about "enduring humiliation for a greater cause."

Tang San's body went completely limp, sinking once more into that deathly cold silence.

He closed his eyes, and two streams of scorching, soundless tears once again broke through the dried tracks on his face and poured down.

So... even his godmother... had abandoned him.

Seeing Tang San look so utterly heartbroken, Yu Xiaogang abruptly stood up and practically fled.

"You... you get some rest! Your godmother... your godmother will get you something to eat!"

He stammered out the words, then staggered from the room steeped in despair. He slammed the door shut behind him as if he could completely shut out that suffocating weight.

The dull thud of the door closing was the final straw that broke Tang San.

Inside the room, only suppressed, broken sobs echoed hopelessly through the dead silence...

It was soon time for Lin Jiang and Ning Rongrong's 2v2 Soul Fight...

Lin Jiang and Ning Rongrong walked side by side through the passage leading to the Soul Fight platform.

Cut off from the frenzied stands, the passage contained only their clear footsteps and Ning Rongrong's slightly hurried breathing.

"The thing I told you to do," Lin Jiang asked in a low, calm voice without the slightest ripple, "did you do it?"

Ning Rongrong's steps paused almost imperceptibly. Beneath her mask, her cheeks instantly burned as though they were on fire.

Her fingers at her sides unconsciously twisted the hem of her skirt. Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, trembling uncontrollably. "Master... I... I did it. And... I'm not wearing anything underneath..."

Lin Jiang turned his head. His gaze behind the mask swept over her tense body, and his lips curved into a smile only she could sense.

"Very good. There are a lot of people here today."

His meaning was obvious.

Ning Rongrong felt a strange current shoot up her spine and into her scalp, mixed with immense shame and a secret excitement that had been ignited.

The mask concealed her expression, but it could not hide the flush rapidly spreading across her neck. "...Mm." She practically squeezed out the sound from her throat.

Shrek's masks concealed their identities, yet they seemed to tear away some invisible restraint.

When the host's impassioned voice announced the entrance of the "Azure Vine Team," Lin Jiang and Ning Rongrong were greeted only by scattered applause mixed with boos.

Two unknowns who hid their faces were clearly incapable of stirring the audience's enthusiasm.

Only Ning Rongrong herself knew that every step she took on the hard floor of the Soul Fight platform, every faint tremor and occasional brush of fabric, sent an electric shiver through her.

Tens of thousands of invisible gazes, like tangible searchlights, pierced through her thin dress,

making her instinctively squeeze her legs together as a hot current mixed with shame and unhealthy excitement surged wildly through her body.

"Now! Let us welcome their opponents with our loudest cheers—the Wind-Rock Team!"

The host's highly rousing roar instantly ignited the entire arena,

"Four consecutive victories! They are only one step away from entering the glorious Central Soul Fight Arena! Will they make history, or fall just short? Let us wait and see!"

Amid thunderous applause and whistles, two figures, one tall and one short, stepped onto the Soul Fight platform with an air of disdainful superiority.

The tall, thin one had eyes as sharp as an eagle's, while the short, fat one was as solid as a boulder.

Their gazes swept over the opponents wearing ridiculous masks. The tall, thin man gave a distinct snort of laughter. "Heh, hiding your faces and playing mysterious!"

"Eleventh Soul Fight Arena, two versus two, second match—begin!" The host fiercely swung down his arm.

"Shriek—!"

The tall, thin man let out a piercing cry. He spread his arms, and blue-gray feathers instantly covered his skin as his hands transformed into sharp eagle claws,

while one white and one yellow Soul Ring lit up beneath his feet.

Martial Soul: Wind Eagle!

"Roar!"

At the same time, the short, fat man gave a low growl. His already sturdy body swelled further, and rough, rock-like patterns surfaced across his skin,

as a layer of earthy yellow light enveloped his entire body. He too possessed one white and one yellow Soul Ring.

Martial Soul: Rock Turtle!

Their team name came from precisely this.

Lin Jiang and Ning Rongrong released their soul power at the same time.

Seven-colored light flowed across Ning Rongrong's palm as the exquisite, crystalline Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda appeared. Two yellow Soul Rings rose and fell around it, radiating pure supporting light.

Lin Jiang, meanwhile, appeared far more "ordinary."

Azure Vine crept out from beneath his feet, emerald green and resilient. Two Soul Rings rose—one white and one yellow.

Using Soul Ring Disguise, he perfectly concealed the purple color of his thousand-year Soul Ring.

Watching from below, Flander's brows twitched. "Didn't he have two purple Soul Rings? How did they become one white and one yellow?"

"A control-type plant Martial Soul and a support-type tool Martial Soul?"

The contempt in the Wind Eagle man's eyes nearly overflowed. He grinned savagely at his Rock Turtle companion.

"Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda? Heh, what a waste to pair it with a useless vine!"

The Wind Eagle Soul Master's mocking laugh was especially piercing above the noisy Soul Fight Arena.

He violently flapped his wings, and the white Soul Ring beneath his feet lit up.

"First Soul Skill—Wind Eagle Spreads Wings!"

His blue-gray figure instantly shot into the air, circling above the Soul Fight platform amid fierce winds,

his sharp eagle eyes fixed on Lin Jiang and Ning Rongrong below like a bird of prey that had locked onto its quarry.

At the same time, the short, fat Rock Turtle Soul Master let out a dull growl as his earthy yellow soul power blazed brightly.

An enormous phantom turtle shell covered in rock patterns enveloped his body. Like a moving fortress, he raised that heavy Rock Turtle shield

and advanced steadily toward them, each step carrying a crushing sense of pressure.

Even the ground seemed to tremble faintly beneath his feet.

Lin Jiang's eyes narrowed as he instantly saw through their tactics.

"One defensive Soul Master on the ground draws the fire, while one flying Soul Master waits in the air for an opening to attack! No wonder they won four straight matches!"

He shielded Ning Rongrong tightly behind him, his mind racing—he had to pull out the nail in the sky first!

However, the one to strike first was unexpectedly the seemingly clumsy Rock Turtle!

"Second Soul Skill—Rock Turtle Impact!"

The short, fat man roared, and the yellow Soul Ring beneath his feet blazed with dazzling light!

His massive body erupted with a speed utterly disproportionate to his size, like a huge stone cannonball fired from a barrel.

With the heavy Rock Turtle shield before him and a dull blast of wind pressure around him, he charged fiercely at Lin Jiang!