Greninja Masters Ultimate Ice and Water!

As the dust cleared, the referee had blocked the Aura Sphere.

Tang Xiaolei had been eliminated too.

The referee was still shaken. Lucario's Extreme Speed had been so fast that he had barely seen it. If it happened again, he might not be able to protect the contestants.

Chi Hong looked away and turned toward his side.

Yan'er, whose Martial Soul was a fireball, was charging at him.

"Sorry, you're strong, but this time, we win. Flame Cage!"

Confidence filled Yan'er's eyes. If she defeated the summoner, those two troublesome Soul Beasts surely couldn't remain.

Victory would belong to Zhengtian Academy!

That was how she imagined it.

That was how they had designed Plan B, too.

Flames sprang up around Chi Hong. Pillars of fire linked together, forming a massive cage.

Chi Hong barely felt a thing.

After all, these flames were cooler than the fire on Charizard's tail when he used it for barbecuing.

"Give up! Otherwise, my flames will only make you suffer."

Yan'er offered him the warning.

A jade-green light flashed in Chi Hong's eyes as he glanced at her.

"Who are you talking to?"

Whoosh—

A bitter wind gathered in an instant. The surrounding Blizzard seemed to have found its master, surging toward Chi Hong.

"Whoooo—"

Cold wind swept into the cage. In the blink of an eye, every flame went out.

The Soul Power inside Yan'er slowed to a crawl. Her fireball Martial Soul was completely suppressed, its glow as feeble as a lightbulb filament.

"No, that's impossible. You actually... have Ultimate Ice..."

Yan'er stared at the phantom Ice Jade Scorpion behind Chi Hong. Her spirit crumbled.

Her teammates had fought desperately to hold back two monstrous Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, only to fall one after another in seconds.

Now she had finally broken through every obstacle and reached the opposing summoner. Victory had been almost within sight.

And then she discovered that the summoner had Twin Martial Souls. Worse, his second was the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion, a top-tier beast Martial Soul with Ultimate Ice.

"You Shrek people are all monsters."

Yan'er made her peace with it. There was no shame in losing to three monsters.

"Greninja, come feel what true Ultimate Ice is with me."

Chi Hong spoke softly.

"Grenin."

Greninja answered calmly.

It had noticed Yan'er the moment she approached Chi Hong and had rushed over at once.

As for how it had evaded Yun Mengdi's Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill?

Substitute was simply a useful technique.

"Come on. Let's show them our combination attack. Ice Emperor's Wrath!"

Chi Hong drew on the power the Ice Empress had given him. He bent his knees, turned sideways, and raised a fist. Ice-blue light enveloped him as countless icy flakes swirled through the air.

Greninja mirrored his stance. Standing shoulder to shoulder, they pressed their fists together.

At that moment, their powers of Ultimate Water and Ultimate Ice collided and blended.

Water carried the ice crystals in a swirling current, like an ice-blue ribbon winding through the air.

Their minds resonated, and their powers became one.

Chi Hong already possessed the Splash Plate and Ice Pillar Plate, so he gained little new insight.

But Greninja's understanding of Ultimate Ice rose rapidly, drawing ever closer to Chi Hong's.

It also sensed the emotion within Chi Hong's technique: the Ice Emperor's anger, the emotion best suited to controlling ice.

At last, Greninja understood.

Without a word, they threw their punches together.

A fierce wind and rushing water swept countless ice crystals forward along the path of their fists.

Yan'er felt strangely calm. She had accepted what was coming.

She just didn't understand why the man and the frog had taken identical stances before punching at her together.

She couldn't beat either of them alone.

Did they think she was so ugly that they both had to knock her away?

Clearly, Yan'er was no longer thinking straight.

Brilliant ice-blue light burst from Chi Hong's and Greninja's fists and slammed toward Yan'er.

It sent her flying. She became a soaring ice sculpture and fell out of the arena.

"Huh. Looks like we didn't hit her."

Chi Hong sighed in regret. He hadn't expected the force of their punches to blow her away before their fists could touch her.

Then again, Yan'er had given up all resistance.

Chi Hong turned toward the other side and smiled.

"Only you two are left. Your choice: two against two, or three against two?"

Yun Mengdi and Ye Wuqing exchanged a glance. Resolve flashed in both their eyes.

"Even if we lose, Zhengtian Academy will fight to the very end!"

Ye Wuqing spread his hands. The dark clouds overhead parted, and golden light illuminated the entire battlefield.

"Face my strongest Soul Skill! Golden Leaf Dance!"

Golden leaves drifted down amid points of light, filling the sky above Chi Hong and his two companions.

Yun Mengdi said nothing. She poured out all her remaining Soul Power and unleashed her Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill for the second time: Angel God-Sealing Slash!

Her two divine swords merged into one enormous golden holy sword, blazing with Sacred angelic light.

"Luca!"

Lucario cracked his knuckles, eyes bright with excitement. He looked eager to take the attack head-on.

But Chi Hong shook his head.

"Today is Greninja's turn to shine."

Lucario returned with his ears drooping and looked over.

Greninja's eyes were closed, but its aura was climbing wildly.

The chill of Ultimate Ice and the flow of Ultimate Water intertwined within it. The two utterly different powers finally reached a balance.

The corners of Chi Hong's mouth lifted.

"It finally mastered Ultimate Ice and Water!"

Greninja opened its eyes, its gaze sharp and steady.

It crossed its hands before its chest, compressing the powers of water and ice between its palms.

It raised both hands. Above it, a huge Water Shuriken over two meters across took shape.

Ice crystals and flowing water intertwined, pushing the Frost Water Shuriken's power to a whole new level.

"Go!" Chi Hong shouted.

Greninja leaped and whipped both arms forward.

The Frost Water Shuriken flew from its hands, slicing through the air with a piercing shriek toward the golden leaves raining from the sky.

Ye Wuqing's Golden Leaf Dance had already taken shape.

Thousands upon thousands of golden leaves fell from the clouds, gleaming so brightly they blotted out the sky. The entire Soul Arena lay beneath that golden downpour.

The Frost Water Shuriken plunged into the rain of leaves.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Golden leaves exploded one after another. Bursts of light rippled across the sky like golden waves.

The referee's expression changed. He channeled his Soul Power into a defensive Soul Skill, shielding the spectators from the spreading shockwaves.

Then—

The Frost Water Shuriken tore through the golden sea of fire. Every golden leaf in its path was destroyed.

At the same time, Yun Mengdi had finished charging her Angel God-Sealing Slash.

Gripping her sword with both hands, she brought it down hard on the Frost Water Shuriken.

Gold and ice-blue collided head-on in midair.

Boom!

A shockwave erupted from the point of impact.

"You've got to be kidding me. Again?"

Cursing under his breath, the referee cast another defensive Soul Skill, his nerves stretched taut.

Crack—crack—

A splitting sound rang out. What finally broke through was ice-blue!

The shuriken had destroyed every attack and flew straight toward Yun Mengdi and Ye Wuqing, unstoppable.

"I'm begging you two. That frog has unleashed two ultimate attributes! Can't you just surrender? Do you have any idea how hard a referee's job is?"

Looking thoroughly miserable, the referee stepped in front of them and blocked the Frost Water Shuriken.

[Battle won. Greninja and Lucario gained a massive amount of experience.]

[Greninja and Lucario's ages have reached 9,999 years.]

[Greninja's bond has risen to 90 (of one mind). Lucario's bond has reached 85 (close).]