First Battle

Semifinals.

Spirit City, at the center of Spirit Hall—the grandest, most magnificent Soul Fighting Arena.

At the highest point of the stands, Pope Bibi Dong sat upon her throne. Today, she wore her iconic brilliant gold gown, the Nine-Curve Purple-Gold Crown gleaming beneath the sunlight, while her scepter lightly tapped against the ground.

"Contestants from both sides, enter the arena!" someone shouted.

The eastern gate slowly opened, and the seven members of Heaven Dou Imperial Academy filed out. Walking at the front was their captain, Yu Tianheng, a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul master and the eldest grandson of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect's leader.

His face was solemn as his gaze swept toward the entrance opposite him.

The western gate opened as well.

Seven figures entered the arena.

Leading them was Qian Ren Duo, nineteen years old, a fifty-third-rank Soul King whose martial soul was the Sacred Angel. Behind him came Xie Yue, Hu Liena, and Yan in turn, every one of them wearing a confident, composed smile.

Then came Wang Qiu'er.

Her golden hair dazzled beneath the sunlight, while her red eyes were calm as still water. She walked in the middle of the team. Though slender, she radiated an aura no one could ignore. Behind her, Qian Ren Jun and Huo Yuhao walked side by side.

The seven took their positions on the stage.

"Martial souls, unleash."

Qian Ren Duo's voice was soft, but the instant his words fell, all seven released their martial souls at once.

Soul Rings rose from beneath their feet.

Four sets of the optimal configuration—two yellow, two purple, and one black Soul Ring—rose into view.

Four Soul Kings.

Whether there would ever be another such team was unknown, but there had certainly never been one before.

Yu Tianheng stood rooted to the spot, the color gradually draining from his face. Though he had long known there would be four Soul Kings on the other side, hearing about it and actually seeing it for himself were entirely different matters.

He stared at the four five-ringed figures opposite him, at the black ten-thousand-year Soul Rings shining beneath the sunlight, and suddenly felt his legs go weak.

Forty-third rank.

He was a forty-third-rank Soul Ancestor.

Yet even Huo Yuhao, the weakest member of the opposing team, was already a forty-second-rank Soul Ancestor.

His teammates fell silent as well. No one spoke, no one moved. They simply stared blankly at the four Soul Kings opposite them, as if they were four mountains impossible to surmount.

Yu Tianheng's lips moved. He wanted to say something, to encourage his teammates, to tell them, "We still have a chance."

But he could not say a word.

Because even he did not believe it.

His gaze swept across Spirit Hall's seven members before finally landing on the golden-haired girl in the middle of their formation.

Forty-ninth rank.

She looked only twelve or thirteen, yet she was a full five ranks above him.

Despair.

Deep, profound despair.

It surged over him like a tide, drowning him completely.

Tang San stood at the very back of the team.

His expression shifted constantly, dark clouds rolling across his face.

Four Soul Kings.

He remembered clearly that, in the memories of his previous life, Spirit Hall's team for this tournament had only possessed three Soul Kings—Xie Yue, Yan, and Hu Liena.

Qian Ren Duo? Tang San had never seen him. He guessed that in the original timeline, Qian Ren Duo must have already died, killed in Spirit Hall's internal strife. There was no way he should have appeared in the tournament.

Yet now he stood there alive and well, at fifty-third rank, one rank higher than both Xie Yue and Yan.

Who was that golden-haired girl?

Tang San stared at Wang Qiu'er, at her exquisite face, at those blood-red eyes. She seemed strangely familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.

Wang Qiu'er noticed his gaze.

She raised her head and looked at him.

Their eyes met, and she actually bared her teeth in a smile so sinister that Tang San shuddered.

There was not a trace of warmth in those blood-red eyes. There was only coldness, like ten-thousand-year ice from the Far North—cold enough to make one tremble from the depths of the heart.

Tang San's pupils suddenly contracted.

He remembered who she was.

Those eyes.

Those blood-red eyes.

They belonged to—

The Emperor Auspicious Beast.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

Something seemed to explode inside his mind.

Damn Huo Yuhao! How did he get involved with the Auspicious Beast again?!

He cursed madly in his heart.

He knew what this meant.

The Emperor Auspicious Beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, was the child of fortune of the Star Dou Great Forest, the most noble existence in the entire soul beast world. She should not have appeared here, should not have taken human form, and should not have stood among Spirit Hall's team.

But she had appeared.

She had taken human form.

She stood beside Huo Yuhao.

Even earlier than in his previous life.

And Huo Yuhao—

Tang San shifted his gaze to the inconspicuous youth at the back of the team. Black short hair, deep-blue eyes, a handsome face that still carried traces of youthfulness, plain clothes, standing in the corner like an ordinary support-type soul master.

But Tang San knew he was not.

That was Huo Yuhao.

The person who had made him lose everything in his previous life.

And at this moment, that person stood beside the Emperor Auspicious Beast, just as he had in the previous life.

They had a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. Tang San had known that in his previous life. Huo Yuhao and Wang Qiu'er possessed a powerful Martial Soul Fusion Skill called Dragon's Cry of Destiny.

Now, both of them were here.

Four Soul Kings.

Two Martial Soul Fusion Skills.

How the hell were they supposed to fight this?

Tang San's mind raced, trying to find even the slightest chance of victory.

Tang San slowly clenched his fists.

His nails dug into his flesh, bringing sharp pain.

But he did not feel it.

He only felt as though he stood at the edge of a cliff, with a bottomless abyss beneath his feet and countless pursuers behind him.

There was nowhere to run.

Within the shadows of a distant tower, Qian Daoliu stood with his hands tucked inside his sleeves, calmly watching the scene below.

Beside him, Golden Crocodile Douluo said in a low voice, "The people from Heaven Dou have gone pale."

Qian Daoliu said nothing.

He merely watched that inconspicuous figure at the back of the team, watched those deep-blue eyes.

Huo Yuhao stood there. From the beginning of the match until now, he had not said a single word.

But Qian Daoliu knew what he was thinking.

He was watching that person.

The one surnamed Tang.

Tang Hao's son.

Qian Daoliu withdrew his gaze and looked toward the figure seated upon the throne in the opposite stands.

Bibi Dong was watching the arena below as well.

The two met each other's eyes across the entire arena for an instant before looking away.

"The match begins," Bibi Dong announced.

Without any suspense.

The match ended in a crushing rout.

From the moment Heaven Dou Imperial Academy's seven members stepped into the arena, the outcome had already been decided. Four Soul Kings and two Soul Ancestors against two Soul Ancestors and five Soul Elders—this was not a match at all. It was a massacre.

But no one had expected the disparity to be so absolute that not a single one of the four Soul Kings even needed to make a move.

Huo Yuhao had initially stood at the back of the formation. One second after the match began, he ran forward and embraced Wang Qiu'er.

Rose-gold light erupted and enveloped them. When the golden radiance faded, only Wang Qiu'er remained, clad in iceflower-gold battle armor.

Martial Soul Fusion Skill, Dragon's Cry of Destiny.

Wang Qiu'er moved.

Golden radiance burst from her body. She did not wait for her teammates, did not coordinate with any tactics, and did not even spare her opponents another glance. She simply charged forward alone, rushing toward all seven members of Heaven Dou Imperial Academy.

Golden scales emerged from her skin, her hands transformed into dragon claws, and a golden spear appeared in her grasp. She was as fast as a streak of golden lightning.

Yu Tianheng's response was already swift. His Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul instantly possessed him, lightning coiling around his body as his fourth soul skill gathered power. At the same time, his teammates reacted as well—defenders defended, attackers attacked, and support masters provided support.

But it was useless.

At the instant Wang Qiu'er's attack landed, Yu Tianheng finally understood one truth—

Before absolute power, every tactic was a joke.

With a raised hand and a single punch, she sent the two defense-type soul masters at the front flying. They flew backward like kites with severed strings, crashing into the railings of the stands and losing consciousness on the spot.

She flicked her golden spear, shattering the two incoming soul skill attacks. Lightning and wind blades all collapsed before that golden force, dissolving into specks of light that filled the air.

Her second punch sent Yu Tianheng flying back thirty feet, the scales on his arm shattering. His Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul wailed, his arm trembled, and his chest felt as though it had been struck by a massive hammer as he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Tianheng!"

A girl from their team cried out. In the next instant, purple light flared around her body. The Jade Phosphor Snake behind her raised its head and let out a silent hiss at the sky, spewing purple toxic mist from its mouth toward Wang Qiu'er.

Wang Qiu'er snorted coldly. Golden light blazed from her body as she swept her spear, scattering the Jade Phosphor Purple Poison. The girl frowned and increased her output. Thick purple mist still enveloped Wang Qiu'er.

Dugu Yan felt a surge of joy and let out a breath of relief. She no longer cared whether the poison would seriously injure the other side; she was only glad that she had managed to stop Wang Qiu'er.

The next second, a golden figure tore through the poisonous mist and appeared again.

And then there was no more after that.

All seven members of Heaven Dou Imperial Academy were already sprawled across the ground. Some had fainted, some wailed in pain, and some struggled to get back up, only to find themselves unable even to stand steadily.

No more than ten breaths had passed.

The stands were deathly silent.

Wang Qiu'er stood on the stage. When the final member of Heaven Dou Imperial Academy fell from the competition platform, she and Huo Yuhao ended their Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

Her golden hair shone brilliantly beneath the sunlight. Her breathing was steady, and her face bore no expression, as though those few attacks had merely been a warm-up.

She turned and walked off the stage.

The seven filed out of the arena.

As they descended the steps, they passed Shrek Academy's resting area.

Tang San stood at the very front of his team.

His gaze fell upon Spirit Hall's seven members as he watched them pass before him. Qian Ren Duo, Xie Yue, Hu Liena, Yan, Qian Ren Jun—one after another, they walked past without looking at him.

Then came Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao approached.

His gaze met Tang San's.

Within those deep-blue eyes was something that made a chill rise from the depths of Tang San's heart.

Gloom.

Like the sky before a storm, like a bottomless abyss, like hatred buried for ten thousand years.

That gaze rested on Tang San's face for only an instant, but that instant made his breathing stop for a beat.

Then came Wang Qiu'er.

She walked behind Huo Yuhao, her golden hair dazzling beneath the sunlight. As she passed Tang San, her gaze swept over his face.

Beneath the calm in those blood-red eyes burned the fiercest flames.

The seven of them walked away.

Tang San remained where he was, lost in thought.

His brows furrowed tightly as his mind raced.

Huo Yuhao.

Wang Qiu'er.

Why did they look at him that way?

Tang San knew that neither Huo Yuhao nor Wang Qiu'er should be reincarnators like himself. Even if they were, they should not have retained their memories. Otherwise, considering all the calculations he had made against them in his previous life—that Tang Wutong whose divine consciousness he had torn apart, that Wang Qiu'er whom he had treated as a tool, that Huo Yuhao whom he had tightly chained with a pink-and-blue dog collar.

If they knew all that, they would have rushed over and beaten him to death long ago.

They would not have merely looked at him like that.

So they were not reincarnators.

Then what was it?

Tang San thought for a moment, then suddenly understood.

Spirit Hall.

Tang Hao.

Clear Sky Sect.

Over those seven years, his father, Tang Hao, had slaughtered several Spirit Hall branch halls, killing hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of people.

Huo Yuhao was one of Spirit Hall's people. He had grown up in Spirit Hall since childhood. His hatred for Tang Hao, for the Clear Sky Sect, for anyone with the surname Tang—it was only natural.

That was why his gaze toward him had been so gloomy.

Because his surname was Tang.

Because he was Tang Hao's son.

As for Wang Qiu'er—

Perhaps it was because she and Huo Yuhao shared the same enemies.

Tang San understood.

He let out a breath of relief.

It wasn't reincarnation.

It was merely Spirit Hall's hatred for the Clear Sky Sect.

That made things easier.

Bibi Dong stood calmly atop the high platform, watching the Spirit Hall Academy Team depart, her eyes brimming with amusement.

But Tang San knew what she was thinking.

She was thinking of how to kill him.

Just like when she had sent people to intercept and kill him a few days ago.

Only, they had failed.

"Third Brother, what's wrong?" Xiao Wu's voice came from beside him.

Tang San turned and saw Xiao Wu looking at him with concern.

He smiled and took her hand.

"Nothing," he said. "I was just thinking about how to beat them the next time we meet."

Xiao Wu looked at him, her eyes filled with trust.

"You definitely can."

Tang San nodded.

He looked toward the figure that had already gone far away, the corner of his lips lifting slightly.

Huo Yuhao.

Just you wait.

I have a huge surprise for you.