Myriad Phenomena's First Night of Consecutive Wins

Three days later, the Soto Great Soul Arena was packed.

A sign announcing Myriad Phenomena's consecutive-win challenge hung above the main Dueling Platform.

Twelve years old.

A level fifty-five Soul King.

A God-given Spirit Ring.

Those words had already spread throughout Suotuo City.

Some people didn't believe them.

Some had bought tickets just to watch him make a fool of himself.

Others had bet everything on Myriad Phenomena winning three in a row, and they shouted louder than anyone.

The Shrek group sat in the waiting area.

Ma Hongjun craned his neck to look outside.

"That's a lot of people."

Oscar said, "A lot of money, too."

Flender sat nearby, wearing an unusually kindly smile.

Yuan Yu glanced at him.

"Dean, please don't smile like that. You're scaring me."

Flender said, "Just fight well."

"And the prize money?"

"We'll talk after the fights."

Yuan Yu sighed and headed down the passage with his Sun Wheel Blade on his back.

Tang San called after him.

"Don't show your hand too early in the first match."

Yuan Yu looked back.

"You're sounding more and more like a captain."

Tang San paused.

Xiao Wu immediately said, "Tang San would make a good captain."

Dai Mubai smiled without arguing.

Yuan Yu waved and stepped onto the Dueling Platform.

The host's voice rang through the arena.

"First match of the Soul King Division consecutive-win challenge: Myriad Phenomena versus Mountain-Splitting Rhino!"

His opponent was a level fifty-three Soul King.

His martial soul was Mountain-Splitting Rhino. He was tall and powerfully built, with a layer of dark gray soul power forming hornlike armor over his forehead.

After stepping onto the platform, he looked at Yuan Yu with a sour expression.

"Kid, don't think a few cheers from the crowd make you the best in the Soul King Division."

Yuan Yu drew his blade.

"I don't."

Mountain-Splitting Rhino sneered.

"Good."

The host dropped his hand.

"Begin!"

Mountain-Splitting Rhino charged at once.

He wasn't fast, but every step landed heavily.

The Dueling Platform shook beneath his feet.

Yuan Yu didn't move yet.

A Rock Pattern flashed across his blade.

When Mountain-Splitting Rhino closed in, Yuan Yu brought his blade across to block.

Bang!

The back of the blade met the soul power around the rhino horn.

Yuan Yu slid back half a step.

Mountain-Splitting Rhino's eyes lit up.

"Is that all you've got?"

His second Spirit Ring lit up. Soul power swelled across his shoulders and back, and he charged again.

This time, Yuan Yu didn't block.

A Water Pattern lit up.

He turned sideways, slipping past the charge as his blade swept along the edge of the rhino horn.

"Water Breathing: Third Form."

"Flowing Dance."

Watery blue blade-light curved around Mountain-Splitting Rhino's shoulder and struck three joints in quick succession.

Mountain-Splitting Rhino's movements seized up.

Before the audience could make out what had happened, Yuan Yu was behind him.

He gave him a light tap with the sheath.

Mountain-Splitting Rhino stumbled forward two steps and nearly went off the platform.

The arena fell quiet for a moment, then laughter broke out.

Mountain-Splitting Rhino's face reddened.

"You're toying with me!"

Yuan Yu said, "No. I'm conserving my strength."

That was even more infuriating.

Mountain-Splitting Rhino roared, and his fifth Spirit Ring lit up.

Dark gray horn armor spread from his forehead across his shoulders and back.

He lowered his whole body, then charged with far more force than before.

Yuan Yu's gaze sharpened.

He couldn't take this one carelessly.

A Wind Pattern lit up.

He pivoted, his body gliding along the edge of the charge.

The instant Mountain-Splitting Rhino rushed past, Yuan Yu swept the back of his blade upward.

"Stone Breathing: Second Form."

"Heaven-Surface Shatter."

A dark golden stroke slammed into Mountain-Splitting Rhino's rear shoulder.

Boom!

Mountain-Splitting Rhino was driven to one knee.

Yuan Yu stopped his blade tip before the man's eyes.

"Want to keep going?"

Mountain-Splitting Rhino panted, his expression shifting several times.

At last, he gritted his teeth.

"I concede."

First match: Myriad Phenomena won.

Cheers immediately surged through the stands.

Ma Hongjun slapped his thigh.

"That was way too fast!"

Dai Mubai, however, was watching Yuan Yu's footwork.

"He wasn't going all out."

Tang San nodded.

"He was testing the platform and seeing how the Spirit Arena had arranged the matches."

The second match began soon after.

His opponent was Gale Leopard, a level fifty-six Agility Attack Soul King.

As soon as he stepped onto the platform, he began circling Yuan Yu.

He was fast.

And he never attacked head-on.

Ning Rongrong frowned as she watched.

"Is he trying to counter Yuan Yu's speed?"

Zhu Zhuqing said, "His blade, too."

Gale Leopard fought craftily.

He refused to clash directly, waiting for Yuan Yu to miss a swing before darting in from the side.

Yuan Yu stood at the center of the platform, his right hand resting on his sword hilt.

Gale Leopard circled him three times.

On the fourth circuit, he suddenly stopped to Yuan Yu's left, and his figure split in two.

The audience gasped.

The sixth Rosy Cloud Pattern on Yuan Yu's blade glimmered faintly.

Of the two figures, one made footsteps that were too light.

Unnaturally light.

Yuan Yu closed his eyes for an instant.

The next moment, he drew his blade.

"Thunder Breathing: First Form."

"Thunderclap and Flash."

Purple-white lightning streaked across the Dueling Platform.

Gale Leopard's real body had only just reached Yuan Yu's back when the flat of the blade touched his chest.

His claws froze in midair.

The entire arena went silent.

The host paused, then shouted, "Second match: Myriad Phenomena wins!"

Gale Leopard looked down at the mark the blade had left on his chest.

"How did you tell?"

Yuan Yu sheathed his blade.

"Your shadow wasn't breathing."

Gale Leopard's face stiffened.

What kind of answer was that?

In the stands, Tang San's eyes flickered.

Tang San said nothing.

Yuan Yu made it sound simple, but that trace of rosy light was probably what had truly prompted him to draw.

For an instant, the rosy light on Yuan Yu's blade had brightened.

Behind the waiting area, the Spirit Arena's manager looked displeased.

He had wanted the first match to last a little longer.

Mountain-Splitting Rhino was tough. Against an ordinary Soul King, he would have lasted at least half an incense stick.

But with only a few changes of position and two blade techniques, Yuan Yu had completely neutralized Mountain-Splitting Rhino's strength.

This wasn't the "hard-fought victory" the Spirit Arena had wanted.

It was a clear message to the audience: even the Soul King Division couldn't stop him.

Flender, however, was delighted.

Sitting in the waiting area, he had already begun asking a staff member how the prize money would be calculated after the second match.

The staff member looked troubled.

Oscar watched from the side and sighed.

"Dean doesn't waste a second."

Ma Hongjun said, "That's called being professional."

Ning Rongrong said, "That's called being stingy."

Xiao Wu nodded.

"I think Rongrong's right."

Tang San didn't join in their joking.

He kept watching Yuan Yu.

Yuan Yu had won quickly, but he hadn't shown everything.

He had used water, wind, and rock.

Lightning had flashed only for an instant at the end.

The Flame Pattern hadn't stirred.

Tang San had a good idea of what was going on.

Yuan Yu was on guard against the third match too.

Between the second and third matches, the Spirit Arena deliberately stalled for time.

The host filled the delay with polished words.

Someone in the stands started chanting for Myriad Phenomena to win three in a row.

The louder the chanting grew, the quieter the waiting area became.

Flender lost the look he'd worn while calculating the money.

Zhao Wuji stopped joking too.

The Spirit Arena was holding them back. It had to be waiting for something.

It was waiting for someone.

Yuan Yu stood at the tunnel entrance, listening to the chants outside.

He did not rush them.

At a time like this, he could not afford to grow impatient.

If he did, they would know what he feared.

He rested the Sun Wheel Blade on his shoulder and smiled instead.

The Thunder Pattern did not light up fully. It flashed once near the hilt.

Tang San grew even more wary of the coming fight.

He said nothing more.

An attendant hurried over and whispered in the supervisor's ear.

The supervisor looked toward the VIP seats.

A middle-aged man in black sat there, tapping his fingers on the armrest.

After a moment, he spoke flatly.

"Pass it on."

"For the third match, send in Blood Scythe."