Yu Tianheng did not lose his head at Ling Yun's words. Instead, he said bluntly, "I'm here now. Show me your Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."
Ling Yun looked him up and down, then smiled. "Don't rush. It'll appear when the fight calls for it. You didn't come all this way just for me to put on a Soul Ring exhibition, did you?"
Ma Hongjun burst out laughing.
Yu Tianheng did not get angry. "Yanyan said you're strong."
Ling Yun glanced at Dugu Yan. "She's pretty objective."
"I only told him not to underestimate you," Dugu Yan immediately clarified.
"Same difference." Ling Yun smiled. "If the Imperial Battle Team's vice-captain specifically warned her captain to watch out for me, that's already pretty high praise."
Yu Tianheng felt something was off, but could not find any fault with it.
Qin Ming promptly brought the discussion back on track. "Since this is an exchange match, we'll make it seven against seven. Both sides must hold back. Anyone who loses the ability to fight or voluntarily concedes must leave the field."
At the words "voluntarily concedes," Xiao Wu's expression stiffened.
Ling Yun actually did not look at her this time, but that only made Xiao Wu feel worse. She had the nagging feeling that someone had already turned those words into his own personal running joke.
Qin Ming soon noticed Blue Tyrant's lineup. "Tang San isn't fighting?"
Tang San sat at the edge of the field without saying anything.
Ling Yun replied casually, "He's resting today. Learning while he's at it."
Although Qin Ming found that answer a little odd, he did not press the issue. The team had only just come together, and choosing the starting lineup was Blue Tyrant Academy's own business.
Both sides quickly took their positions.
On the Imperial Battle Team's side, Yu Tianheng stood at the very front, with the two Shi Mo brothers on either side. Yu Feng and Osler covered the flanks, Dugu Yan stood in the middle, and Ye Lingling, the Nine Heart Begonia Soul Master, held her position at the very rear.
Ling Yun surveyed them, then fixed his gaze on Ye Lingling. "You're the Nine Heart Begonia?"
Ye Lingling nodded lightly.
Ling Yun turned back to his own team. "Remember, everyone. Hit her first."
Ye Lingling: "..."
The Imperial Battle Team: "..."
Who announced their assassination target right in front of the opposing support before the match had even begun?
Yu Tianheng sneered. "You're welcome to try."
Ling Yun flexed his wrists. "That's why I'm telling you in advance. Saves you accusing me of a sneak attack when she's the first one out."
Dugu Yan could not help rolling her eyes. He talked as though everything he did was fair and aboveboard, but she had already seen just how underhanded he could be in a real fight at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
"Begin!"
At Qin Ming's command, both sides released their Martial Souls simultaneously.
As the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon possessed him, Yu Tianheng's right arm rapidly swelled. Blue-purple dragon scales covered it, and lightning crackled all around him. Three Soul Rings rose, two yellow and one purple, and the oppressive force of a top-tier Beast Martial Soul immediately made itself felt.
Ling Yun took one look and offered a serious appraisal. "Looks impressive."
Yu Tianheng nearly lost his composure.
Meanwhile, the two Shi Mo brothers had already completed their Black Tortoise Martial Soul possession. Almost simultaneously, they took half a step back, actually sheltering Ye Lingling between them.
Ling Yun was amused.
"I just casually said we'd hit the support first, and you're really all falling back to protect her?"
Yu Tianheng immediately realized the problem. "Shi Mo, stay with her! Brother, get back here!"
But Ling Yun had already moved.
Water swiftly spread beneath his feet as he activated Wave Treading. Rather than charging at Ye Lingling, he headed straight for Yu Tianheng's flank.
"Dai Mubai, pressure him head-on!"
Dai Mubai had been waiting for those very words. He instantly activated White Tiger Vajra Transformation and slammed into Yu Tianheng from the front.
White Tiger against Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. At the first collision of the two top-tier Beast Martial Souls, the shock of their soul power rippled outward.
Yu Tianheng was clearly stronger, but just as he prepared to press his advantage, a Water Shuriken came flying in from the side.
He had no choice but to turn and block.
The pressure on Dai Mubai instantly eased.
Ling Yun seized the moment with a grin. "Captain Yu, both turtle shells have gone back to guard the support. You look pretty lonely up front."
Only then did Yu Tianheng realize that Ling Yun's single remark about "hitting Ye Lingling first" had actually caused the Imperial Battle Team's formation to contract briefly.
Their opponent had done nothing but name a target, yet they had moved first of their own accord.
At the edge of the field, Qin Ming's gaze had already grown serious. This was not mere trash talk. Ling Yun was exploiting the Imperial Battle Team's need to protect the Nine Heart Begonia, forcing them to change their positions before he even attacked.
"Stop crowding around Lingling!"
Yu Tianheng immediately adjusted their formation. "Shi Mo alone is enough to protect her. Everyone else, stick to the original plan!"
"That's more like it."
Ling Yun still had time to talk as he dodged the lightning. "I say dive the healer, and five of you turn around. The Imperial Battle Team follows my orders so well, I almost thought I was captaining both sides today."
Ma Hongjun burst out laughing in the rear.
Dugu Yan could not stand listening any longer. Possessed by her Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul, she sent green poison mist rapidly spreading across the field. "Ling Yun, worry about yourself first!"
Ling Yun caught the scent of the poison mist, yet did not immediately retreat. "I study this poison every day when I mix medicine. Using it against me is a bit like testing the person who wrote the questions with the answer sheet, isn't it?"
Dugu Yan faltered. Why did that sound so familiar?
Of course, Ling Yun was not foolish enough to stand in the poison mist and breathe it in. He swiftly changed direction with Wave Treading, while his Water Shadow Clone plunged straight into the mist.
Unable to identify his real body, Dugu Yan could only expand the poisoned area.
But that expansion also restricted Osler's and Yu Feng's room to maneuver.
"Fatty, right side!"
Ma Hongjun immediately spat out a Phoenix Fire Line, but instead of touching the poison mist, it directly sealed off Yu Feng's descent.
Zhu Zhuqing was already waiting there. With Hell Stab, she forced Yu Feng back into the air.
At the same time, Xiao Wu used Teleportation to cut in from the other side. One of the Shi Mo brothers was just about to fall back and help when Ling Yun hurled a Water Shuriken, forcing him to raise his tortoise shell.
The Imperial Battle Team's once-intact formation began to be pulled apart, bit by bit.
Ye Lingling still had not been attacked, but everyone was guarding against an attack on her.
By this point, Qin Ming understood.
From the very beginning, Ye Lingling had not been Ling Yun's true target.
At least, she was not his first target. He had merely turned the Nine Heart Begonia into a rope. Whoever worried most about that healing Soul Master would be the first to be led along by it.
Yu Tianheng realized it too. "Ling Yun!"
He forced Dai Mubai back with a punch, and his third Soul Ring suddenly lit up.
Frenzied lightning instantly exploded from his body.
His third Soul Skill, Thunderous Fury!
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's already domineering aura surged once more. Yu Tianheng's entire right arm underwent an almost complete Dragon Transformation, while lightning relentlessly blasted the ground around him.
"Stop worrying about Lingling!"
He shouted at the Imperial Battle Team.
Then he stepped forward and charged straight at Ling Yun.
"Don't you like leading people around by the nose? Come on, take one of my attacks head-on!"
Watching Yu Tianheng approach wreathed in lightning, Ling Yun did not retreat.
Instead, he put away the Water Shuriken in his hand.
He rolled his shoulders and smiled.
"You could've just done this from the start. Let me see whether the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's fists are as tough as your mouth."
Before you continue