Su Yuntao's Soul Fight: His Opponent Stood Still and Attacked

The mention of "someone who had proved the Grandmaster's theories" instantly caught the attention of everyone in the Soul Fighting Arena.

Over time, the Grandmaster's influence had taken deep root among Soul Masters. As his theories were proven effective one after another and produced remarkable results, his standing had risen to an unparalleled height.

A Thousand-Year Second Ring was something a few people on the continent had achieved in recent years, but those cases were mostly rumors. Many Soul Masters had never seen one for themselves. Now, Su Yuntao's appearance offered powerful evidence for the Grandmaster's theories.

Tang Shan and Su Haichao, who had not registered alongside Su Yuntao, stood among the crowd, somewhat dumbfounded.

Only now did they seem to grasp the true extent of the Grandmaster's influence.

"Shanzi, isn't this getting a little out of hand?"

Su Haichao lowered his voice as he asked Tang Shan.

Tang Shan had not expected Su Yuntao's Thousand-Year Second Ring to cause such a stir either.

"It's fine. The bigger the spectacle, the better. Once Brother Tao makes a name for himself, announcing that he's a Spirit Hall Soul Master will only help him."

Though the situation had slipped somewhat beyond Tang Shan's control, he quickly adjusted his plans.

First, the method for absorbing a Thousand-Year Second Ring had long since spread across the continent, so that was unlikely to put Su Yuntao in danger.

The remaining hidden risk was the exceptional talent supposedly needed to obtain a Thousand-Year Second Ring.

But that did not apply either—Su Yuntao was already eighteen and still only a Soul Grandmaster. The chance of anyone targeting him for his outstanding talent was virtually zero.

A method everyone knew, a future mid-level expert only slightly stronger than an ordinary Soul Master, the reputation he would build, and the backing of his Spirit Hall identity—

Tang Shan was fairly certain he had cleared away almost every threat his elder brother might face in the future.

"Let my brother take part in the Soul Fight as planned."

Having thought it through, Tang Shan said this to Su Haichao.

Su Haichao nodded slightly and used a secret voice transmission to tell Su Yuntao to continue with the Soul Fight.

Su Yuntao had been left bewildered by the crowd gathering around him. Only after hearing his father's instructions did he finally know what to do.

"I want to enter a Soul Grandmaster match."

The staff member recovered from the shock of seeing a Thousand-Year Second Ring and put her practiced smile back on.

"Please follow me."

With that, she took the lead. But her occasional glances at Su Yuntao made it clear that her calm was only skin-deep. Inside, she was still reeling.

"Did you hear? A Soul Grandmaster with a Thousand-Year Second Ring is about to fight?"

"Seriously?"

"Sounds like it. He just registered."

"Another genius, huh."

"Maybe not. He looks like an adult, but he's still only a Soul Grandmaster. Maybe he's an ordinary Soul Master who got lucky with his Thousand-Year Second Ring?"

"By that logic, could I train my body and try for a Thousand-Year Second Ring too?"

"Try losing that belly first."

Similar discussions sounded all around them. Tang Shan listened for a while. People were either marveling at the difficulty of obtaining a Thousand-Year Second Ring or praising the brilliance of the Grandmaster's theories.

"Let's go see how Yuntao does."

Tang Shan nodded at Su Haichao's suggestion, and they headed toward one of the secondary fighting stages.

It was a circular arena roughly fifty meters across. Long walkways led to opposite ends of the stage, while tiered rows of seats enclosed the entire venue.

The spectators were already seated, waiting for the Soul Fight to begin.

Layers of noise echoed through the relatively enclosed space. The excitement seemed to warm the very air.

"Neither fighter in this next match is ordinary. We're in for a clash of formidable opponents!"

Standing at the center of the stage with an Amplifying Soul Tool in hand, the host delivered his announcement with stirring enthusiasm.

The atmosphere grew even more feverish.

"Now, allow me to introduce the two fighters in this match."

The host raised his left hand and pointed toward the passage on that side.

"One fighter is just one victory away from advancing to Bronze Soul Fighter! He's won match after match, possesses two Hundred-Year Soul Rings, and wields the Iron Dragon Blade Martial Soul—Soul Master Dao Long!"

Roar!

A deafening cheer swept through the venue. Dao Long was clearly no unknown fighter at this Great Soul Arena.

Amid the cheers, a well-built middle-aged man with crisscrossing knife scars on his face slowly emerged from the passage. He spread his arms wide, basking in the crowd's attention.

"As for Dao Long's opponent, he's a newcomer."

The host paused, judging the crowd's mood to perfection. Before anyone could complain, he dropped the real surprise.

"A newcomer with a Thousand-Year Second Ring!"

The Soul Fighting Arena fell silent for an instant. Then a still greater wave of noise surged from the stands toward the stage.

Wearing a wolf-head mask, Su Yuntao walked step by step out of the passage to the host's right.

"Our fighter, Lone Wolf, possesses a Thousand-Year Second Ring and is living proof of the Grandmaster's theories! He has shown us that even someone of average talent can obtain a powerful Soul Ring through the Grandmaster's theories!"

Tang Shan did not know whether this man was the Great Soul Arena's star host, but his command of the crowd and ability to stir their emotions were eye-opening.

"And now, I declare the Soul Fight between Lone Wolf and Dao Long officially begun!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the host leaped backward off the stage.

Dao Long had been flamboyant on his entrance, but once the fight began, he became surprisingly calm.

"The Soul Fighting Arena sure knows how to arrange a match. They put him against someone with two Hundred-Year Soul Rings right away. There's no way they didn't pick this man specifically for your brother."

Sitting in the stands and feeling the frenzy of the spectators around him, Su Haichao could not help complaining.

"How many years might pass before they see another Soul Master with a Thousand-Year Second Ring? Of course they'd seize the chance to build excitement."

Tang Shan was not surprised. He even suspected that, if they had had more time, they might have put Su Yuntao in the Main Soul Fighting Arena. If they could capitalize on this much attention, it would mean a fortune in Gold Soul Coins.

An iron-gray saber suddenly appeared in Dao Long's hand. A small snake coiled around its blade, and two yellow Hundred-Year Soul Rings rose beneath his feet.

Su Yuntao, who had also completed his Martial Soul Possession, froze for a moment. Wasn't his Martial Soul called the Iron Dragon Blade? Why was there a snake wrapped around it?

While Su Yuntao was distracted, Dao Long was just as stunned. He had received advance notice from the Great Soul Arena, but seeing the masked man's Soul Ring Configuration—one yellow, one purple—with his own eyes still left him momentarily speechless.

Dao Long recovered first. He poured Soul Power into his legs, suddenly accelerated, and rapidly closed the distance between them.

His First Soul Ring lit up. Two streaks of white Blade Qi burst from his Martial Soul and crossed in midair to form an X.

First Soul Skill—Blade Qi: activating the Soul Ring released Blade Qi to attack an enemy. Each breakthrough to a new rank added one more streak, up to a maximum of nine.

Rampage!

Facing the incoming attack, Su Yuntao activated his Soul Ring without hesitation. Feeling his speed and strength surge, he flashed aside from the Blade Qi, leaned forward, and lunged toward Dao Long.

He's fast!

Dao Long's heart tightened. He activated his First Soul Ring again and sent two more streaks of Blade Qi slashing out.

As Tang Shan watched the fight below, he gradually lost control of his expression.

Wait, is he really just going to stand there and slash? Move a little!

Su Yuntao dodged with ease again, but he too began to sense something was off. Why does he just stand there attacking? Why won't he move?

"You forced my hand."

Seeing that his Soul Skill could not hit Su Yuntao, Dao Long snorted, and his Second Soul Ring lit up.

Blades of energy several feet long appeared along the iron-gray saber and shot toward Su Yuntao.

They were smaller than the earlier Blade Qi, but otherwise looked much the same. Su Yuntao did not dare let his guard down—it was an attack from a Second Soul Skill, after all.

Does it ignore defenses? Explode after being compressed? Have a chance to kill instantly? Or is it guaranteed to hit?

Remembering his little brother's warning about the terrifying Soul Skills that followed special rules or carried unusual effects, Su Yuntao grew grim.

Coming to the Great Soul Arena to fight really was the right choice. I can sharpen myself here.

Soul Power raced through his body, strengthening him from head to toe.

Su Yuntao ducked beneath the Blade Qi without looking back to see what the attack actually did.

Victory or defeat in battle could be decided in an instant. Whether an opponent's Soul Skill was strong or weak, the first priority was to defeat—or even kill—them.

Keeping his father's teachings firmly in mind, Su Yuntao burst forward. His speed climbed again, claws extended from his fingertips, and he raked viciously at Dao Long's chest.

Bang!

His bones and sinews resounded as tremendous force slammed into Dao Long, who had instinctively raised his saber to block. Dao Long staggered backward.

Just as Su Yuntao was about to press his advantage, a chill rose behind him. He bent low and dodged on instinct.

Whoosh!

Streaks of Blade Qi swept over his head, then changed direction and attacked him again.

That's it? Su Yuntao felt he had been far too cautious. He gave Dao Long no more chances. Drawing on the Bright Force he had mastered after his breakthrough, he struck several times in quick succession and knocked Dao Long off the stage. As for the homing Blade Qi, Brother Tao only had to pay a little attention to dodge them.

Clink, clink! Clink, clink!

A hand tossed a gray cloth pouch up and down. Gold Soul Coins jingled crisply inside it.

"Hey, don't you think this money was a little too easy to earn?"

Su Yuntao felt the satisfying weight of the Gold Soul Coins in his hand.

Normally, an Iron Soul Fighter received only ten Gold Soul Coins for a victory. To his surprise, the Great Soul Arena had been exceptionally generous. Perhaps hoping to capitalize on the attention he had drawn, they had awarded him a hundred Gold Soul Coins.

"That just means they made even more."

Tang Shan rested his hands behind his head and answered casually.

"Today was special. In an ordinary Iron Soul Fighter match, the loser gets nothing and still loses the registration fee. The winner gets only ten Gold Soul Coins. They're basically handing the loser's fee to the winner, while everything from ticket sales and food is pure profit."

"Ten Gold Soul Coins isn't a small sum either. That's equal to a month of my current Soul Master allowance."

Su Yuntao gave little thought to how much the Great Soul Arena earned. That was their business.

"Oh, right, little brother. Why did my opponent feel especially weak today?"

P.S. Please bookmark, vote, and leave comments—any support is welcome. I read every comment and may use interesting ideas. Thanks to readers 20210424085153443 and Buenste for the monthly votes, and to readers 20190219152221283, DR True Red K, 52HERTZ929, Dou Erhuang, Tongkang, 20171027105446207, and 151124082510718.