Little San, Your Footwork's a Bit Slow

"Come on, make your move." Tang San had barely finished speaking when the person before him vanished. Ling Yun took just one step forward, and his whole body skimmed more than ten meters across the water.

So fast. Tang San's Purple Demon Eye barely caught a blue-black figure.

"First Soul Skill: Entanglement!"

The Blue Silver Grass hidden along the ground erupted at once, cutting off Ling Yun's escape routes from several directions. Tang San did not panic at Ling Yun's speed. No matter how fast someone moved, he still needed somewhere to set foot. If Tang San blocked his path in advance...

Got him! Ma Hongjun was about to cheer when Ling Yun, bound by the Blue Silver Grass, suddenly dissolved into water and splashed across the ground.

Tang San's expression changed.

"A Clone? You guessed right." Ling Yun's voice came from behind him.

Tang San did not even have time to turn before someone tapped his shoulder. He activated Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and shifted sideways, while his Mysterious Jade Hand reached back for Ling Yun's wrist.

The sequence was almost instinctive in its speed, but Tang San's hand closed on empty air.

Ling Yun leaned back at an uncanny angle, his feet seemingly stuck to the water as he slid several meters away. Tang San changed direction again and again, yet for the first time, he felt an awkwardness he could not put into words.

No matter how he changed direction, Ling Yun kept up.

Ling Yun followed him, his mouth still busy. "Little San, it's been seven years. Your footwork really is much better than when you were little."

Tang San was about to put some distance between them when a hand suddenly reached toward his shoulder. He spun around, only to find nothing there again.

Ling Yun was already on his other side. "Too bad it's still a little slow."

Laughter burst from the Blue Tyrant Academy side.

Ma Hongjun's face darkened, but Dai Mubai said nothing. He had already seen the problem. Tang San was not slow; Ling Yun was too fast, especially in this stretch of water. Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track relied on shifts in footwork, but Ling Yun gave Tang San no chance to use them to shake him off.

Tang San clearly realized it too. If he could not shake Ling Yun off, he would restrain him. Masses of Blue Silver Grass surged in from every direction. This time, Ling Yun did not dodge. His Second Soul Ring lit up, and a rapidly spinning Water Shuriken formed in his palm. A second and third followed, pinning the Blue Silver Grass attacking from both sides to the ground.

Tang San's gaze grew graver, but Ling Yun had already slipped through a gap in the Blue Silver Grass. The distance between them closed again.

Three meters.

One meter.

Tang San immediately brought up his Mysterious Jade Hand and advanced instead of retreating, striking at Ling Yun's chest. At Close Combat range, he still had Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon. He only needed to catch Ling Yun once.

Smack!

Their hands collided.

Tang San was about to exert his strength when something pink suddenly looped around his wrist.

A tongue scarf?

Before he could react, the long tongue behind Ling Yun's shoulder, which had looked like a scarf, had wrapped around his wrist.

Ling Yun spun sharply. "Who told you Greninja could only use water?"

A powerful tug threw Tang San off balance. He reacted quickly, slapping his free hand against the ground to flip himself over, but Ling Yun gave him no chance.

Tang San was yanked straight back.

Ling Yun raised his knee. Thud. It struck Tang San squarely in the stomach.

Tang San's face went pale. As his body doubled over, Ling Yun seized his shoulder and hurled him into the water with a clean shoulder throw.

"Brother!" Xiao Wu instinctively stepped forward.

Yu Xiaogang frowned deeply too. "Something's wrong."

Flender looked at him. "What is?"

Yu Xiaogang did not answer. Nearly every choice Tang San had made so far was sound: using Blue Silver Grass to restrict an Agility Attack System Soul Master's movements, using Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to create distance, then pairing Mysterious Jade Hand with Close Combat techniques to find a chance to counterattack.

None of those judgments were wrong. The problem was that Ling Yun had countered every one of them.

On the training ground, Tang San sprang back to his feet. His breathing had grown noticeably labored.

Ling Yun stood several meters away without pressing the attack. "Little San, what else have you got? Keep going."

Tang San's gaze darkened.

Since the fight began, Ling Yun had not even used his Soul Power Level to overpower him.

His First Soul Skill had broken Entanglement, his Third Soul Skill had suppressed Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, and his tongue scarf had disrupted the Close Combat rhythm of Mysterious Jade Hand and Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon.

It was as if Ling Yun meant to prove one thing: Whatever you can do, I can counter.

Tang San exhaled slowly. "Second Soul Skill: Parasitic!"

The Blue Silver Grass seeds Ling Yun had cut apart and stepped on began to grow. Vines sprang up all over him, binding his limbs in an instant.

The Shrek side finally perked up.

Oscar clenched his fist. "He can't get away this time, can he?"

Tang San showed no trace of delight.

Because Ling Yun was smiling.

"Not bad. Now it's getting interesting."

His First Soul Ring lit up, and the body trapped by the Blue Silver Grass dissolved into water again. At the same time, three Ling Yuns charged out from different directions. Tang San pushed his Purple Demon Eye to its limit and immediately picked out the real one. All his Blue Silver Grass converged on the figure in the middle.

Smack!

The vines locked around it. It turned to water again. Tang San froze. All three were fakes? Then where was the real one?

"Above you," Ning Rongrong said softly.

Everyone looked up at once. Somehow, Ling Yun had reached midair.

The tongue scarf behind his shoulder was wrapped around a wooden post beside the training ground, and he had used it to swing himself more than ten meters high. In the next instant, the tongue let go and he dove. Tang San hurriedly raised both arms.

But just before landing, Ling Yun changed his move and planted a foot on Tang San's crossed arms. The tremendous impact drove Tang San's legs downward.

Before Tang San could steady himself, Ling Yun sprang back into the air off that step. He twisted in midair and swept his right leg across. Thud! The kick slammed into Tang San's shoulder.

Tang San flew sideways and rolled twice across the ground. As he tried to push himself up, a Water Shuriken skimmed past his face.

Crack! The wooden post behind him was sliced clean through. Tang San stopped moving.

Ling Yun stood more than ten meters away, a mocking edge to his voice. "Little San, still want to fight?"

Tang San glanced at the severed post behind him and slowly stood. "I haven't lost yet."

Ling Yun laughed. "Fine. Then I'll send you out."

His Third Soul Ring flared. Wave Treading. This time, Ling Yun moved even faster than before.

Tang San drove his Purple Demon Eye at full strength. By the time he caught a blur, Ling Yun was already in front of him.

Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track. Tang San retreated rapidly, but Ling Yun was faster.

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

No matter how Tang San changed direction, the distance between them did not widen in the slightest. At last, Ling Yun could not even be bothered to chase him. The tongue scarf behind his shoulder snapped out.

Smack.

It wrapped precisely around Tang San's ankle. The instant Tang San looked down, his face changed.

Ling Yun gripped the tongue scarf with both hands. "Come back here."

With a sharp yank, he pulled Tang San off the ground.

Ling Yun turned with the motion, using the momentum to swing him through the air and fling him away.

Tang San traced a graceful arc overhead, cleared the boundary of the training ground, and landed hard in the grass beyond it.

For a moment, the Blue Tyrant Academy side fell silent. Then cheers nearly blew the roof off the training ground.

"Boss, you're incredible!"

"So much for Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track! He still got dragged back in the end!"

"I said not to compete with the boss in speed!"

No one on the Shrek side spoke. Tang San had lost, and thoroughly. From beginning to end, he had not landed a single real hit on Ling Yun.

Xiao Wu hurried over to help Tang San up. When she saw blood at the corner of his mouth, she grew anxious. "It was just a sparring match! Did you have to hit him that hard?"

Ling Yun shook the water from his tongue scarf and glanced at her. "Little rabbit, worried about him?"

Xiao Wu glared at him. Ling Yun beckoned toward the training ground. "Then come on. I'll let you avenge him."

Xiao Wu paused. She had seen it clearly: even Tang San's Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track could not shake Ling Yun. If she went in, she would probably be sent flying out too.

Just then, a hand settled on Xiao Wu's shoulder.

Dai Mubai stepped forward. "I'll do it."

He tossed his coat to Oscar and walked into the training ground.

Ling Yun raised an eyebrow. "An One-by-One Challenge?"

Dai Mubai did not take offense. "Dai Mubai, level thirty-seven Power Attack System Battle Soul Elder. Please show me what you've got."

The White Tiger Martial Soul possessed him in an instant. His muscles swelled, his hands became tiger paws, and three Soul Rings—two yellow and one purple—circled him.

Dai Mubai had clearly learned from Tang San's defeat.

He did not test the waters.

His Third Soul Ring lit up at once. "White Tiger Vajra Transformation!"

His presence surged, and his Second Soul Ring lit up right after it. "White Tiger Fierce Light Wave!"

A blazing white beam shot straight at Ling Yun. He stood where he was.

He did not even dodge.

His First Soul Ring lit up.

Five watery figures appeared across the training ground. The White Tiger Fierce Light Wave pierced the one in the center, but only a spray of water burst apart.

Dai Mubai's heart sank.

Ling Yun's voice came from behind him. "Dai Mubai, right?"

Dai Mubai whipped around. Ling Yun was already standing less than two meters away.

"You can take more of a beating than Little San. So I won't hold back."