I'm Convinced

Bing Yekong waited quietly to the side, keeping an eye on the Feng Family's movements. After all, the Creation Mystic Soul Pill was far too precious; if outsiders happened upon it, trouble would be inevitable. Fortunately, Feng Tianlin had gone to the City Lord's Manor early that morning for a meeting, and the other members of the Feng Family did not ask questions when they saw Bing Yekong arrive.

Two hours later, the light around Feng Xiaotian's body suddenly flared before drawing back into him.

He opened his eyes, a sharp gleam flickering within them. The fluctuations of soul power around him had clearly risen by an entire level.

"Level forty-six..." Feng Xiaotian lowered his head to look at his hands, his voice trembling. "Three levels in one go... This, this..."

Bing Yekong cut off his shock. "All right, all right. Now that you've broken through, it's time for business. Didn't you want to spar? Come on, let me see how far you've trained your Gale Demon Wolf's Thirty-Six Slashes."

Only then did Feng Xiaotian come back to his senses, blazing fighting spirit igniting in his eyes.

"Fine! I was just looking for someone to test my moves on!"

The two moved to the training grounds specifically used by the Feng Family's younger generation for sparring. This place was much more spacious than the rented venue in Element City, and its floor was paved with granite reinforced by soul power, enough to withstand the aftershocks of battles at the Soul Emperor level.

Feng Xiaotian was the first to release his martial soul. The phantom of the Gale Twin-Headed Wolf appeared behind him, while two yellow and two purple Soul Rings slowly rose beneath his feet.

He drew a deep breath, with no intention of holding back. As his soul power surged, fierce winds erupted around him, and the pair of cyan wings behind his back suddenly spread wide.

"Third Soul Skill, Gale Twin Wings!"

Feng Xiaotian shot into the air and hovered overhead. Then his aura began climbing steadily, soul power circulating through his body at high speed as the shape of those wings gradually changed, becoming increasingly solid and razor-sharp.

Gale Demon Wolf's Thirty-Six Slashes began charging.

Bing Yekong remained where he was, simply watching him calmly. Only when Feng Xiaotian had charged to the very instant before launching his attack did he raise a hand and summon the Heavenly Frost Sword.

The instant the Heavenly Frost Sword appeared, biting cold swept across the entire training ground. Immediately afterward, a deep yellow, a bright purple, a dark purple, and an inky black Soul Ring rose beneath his feet.

Suspended in midair, Feng Xiaotian's breathing stopped for an instant when he saw that Soul Ring configuration.

Yellow, purple, purple, black.

His first ring was eight hundred years, his second thousand years, his third thousand years, and his fourth ten thousand years.

Such a Soul Ring arrangement was enough to rank among the greatest in the entire history of Soul Masters. For a moment, Feng Xiaotian could not think of any legendary genius who had ever possessed such a configuration.

Yet after the shock passed, the fighting spirit in his heart only burned fiercer.

To fight an opponent like this was an honor for Feng Xiaotian!

"Take this!"

Feng Xiaotian roared as he dove from the sky like a cyan cannonball. Fierce winds wrapped around his rapidly spinning body, while dozens of wind blades trailed from the edges of his cyan wings, slicing through the air like invisible blades.

First Slash!

Bing Yekong shifted slightly to the side and held the Heavenly Frost Sword level, raising its tip. He did not use any Soul Skill; he merely condensed supreme sword intent upon the blade and thrust his sword forward.

"Clang."

The sound of metal striking metal rang out as Feng Xiaotian's first slash was precisely blocked, its force completely dispersed. Startled, he had no time to think and twisted his body through the air, sending down the second slash immediately afterward.

Bing Yekong turned his wrist, and the Heavenly Frost Sword traced an arc. As sword intent surged and receded, he easily neutralized the attack again.

Third slash, fourth slash, fifth slash...

Feng Xiaotian's strikes grew faster and fiercer. More and more wind blades gathered upon his cyan wings, and the power of every slash continued to stack. Veins bulged across his forehead as his soul power was driven to its limit, his entire body seeming to transform into a cyan blade.

Yet Bing Yekong remained in place, not retreating even a single step.

His swordsmanship seemed plain and unremarkable, merely a casual combination of basic sword techniques. Yet every time he thrust his sword, it carried an invisible sword intent. It was as though that intent had predicted where each of Feng Xiaotian's slashes would land, neutralizing them precisely with the least possible effort.

The longer Feng Xiaotian fought, the more alarmed he became.

He had already reached the twenty-fifth slash. Even a Soul King would have to take such power seriously. Yet Bing Yekong's expression had barely changed. A faint, satisfied curve lingered at the corner of his lips, as though he were admiring a work gradually taking shape.

"Still not enough," Bing Yekong said. "Your charging rhythm is still a little sluggish. After the twentieth slash, you clearly slowed by a beat. Keep going."

Feng Xiaotian gritted his teeth and roared, forcing all his remaining soul power into the wings behind his back.

Twenty-Sixth Slash! Twenty-Seventh Slash! Twenty-Eighth Slash!

The cyan wind blades had expanded from dozens to over a hundred. Feng Xiaotian seemed wrapped in a storm, and the power of every slash was approaching the level of a Soul King's full-force strike.

Twenty-Ninth Slash! Thirtieth Slash!

"Crack."

A thin fracture appeared on Feng Xiaotian's cyan wings. He was nearing his limit, but he clenched his teeth and endured.

Thirty-First Slash! Thirty-Second Slash! Thirty-Third Slash!

Bing Yekong's sword intent began to rise as well. What had initially been casual swings now required more concentration with every strike. Even so, he stood firmly in place, his feet not shifting an inch.

Thirty-Fourth Slash! Thirty-Fifth Slash!

Feng Xiaotian's entire body trembled. His eyes were bloodshot, his teeth clenched tight, and traces of blood had seeped from the corner of his mouth. Yet his eyes shone like two burning stars.

Thirty-Sixth Slash!

As the final slash descended, Feng Xiaotian transformed into a pillar of cyan light, carrying the accumulated force of the previous thirty-five slashes as he crashed toward Bing Yekong like a falling meteor.

A trace of approval flashed through Bing Yekong's eyes.

He moved.

"Profound Ice Dragon Soar."

The instant the words fell, an aura of absolute chill erupted from Bing Yekong's body. Frostlight blazed from the Heavenly Frost Sword as an ice-blue dragon-shaped phantom condensed around him, roaring as it shot into the sky.

But Bing Yekong restrained its power.

He deliberately suppressed the Ice Dragon King's pressure, using only the Heavenly Frost Sword's Ultimate Ice and sword intent to form that ice dragon. The dragon phantom was not massive, only about ten feet long, yet it carried sword intent and frost as it met Feng Xiaotian's thirty-sixth slash head-on.

"Boom!"

Cyan and blue soul power collided violently in midair, erupting in blinding light. Violent shockwaves spread in every direction, crashing against the training ground's protective walls and making the entire venue hum.

Feng Xiaotian was sent flying backward by the aftershock. He flipped through the air several times before barely stabilizing himself and landing on the ground. He staggered a few steps before finding his footing, his martial soul already having automatically withdrawn as he gasped for breath.

Bing Yekong stood where he was. The Heavenly Frost Sword had already been put away, his hands folded behind his back and his expression unchanged.

Feng Xiaotian stared at him for a long while, then let out a long sigh mixed with unwillingness and admiration.

"I'm convinced."