Soul Ancestor vs. Soul Emperor

The next day, Lin Ye arrived at the training grounds on time with Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing.

The members of the Imperial Fighting Team had already arrived and were waiting for Qin Ming.

"Hey! Over here, newcomers!"

The sharp-eyed Osler spotted the three of them as soon as they entered and immediately dragged Yu Feng over.

Yu Feng stumbled under his tug and grumbled in annoyance.

"Osler, you brute, easy! You almost messed up my hair!"

He hurriedly straightened his hair.

Osler ignored Yu Feng's complaints outright, his eyes burning as he looked at Lin Ye.

"Bro Lin! Bro Lin Ye! Hehe, what we saw yesterday was incredible!"

Yu Feng crowded closer too, staring at Lin Ye with curious eyes.

"Exactly! A Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring! How did you do it? Come on, tell us!"

The two flanked him like a pair of curious children, their voices brimming with flattery and admiration.

Lin Ye glanced at them.

These two had been minor characters with a fair amount of screen time in the original story. They were not particularly capable, but they did not seem to have done anything especially revolting either.

At least he found them much more agreeable than the likes of Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun.

Lin Ye gave a slight nod and said casually, "I picked up a soul beast along the way."

Osler and Yu Feng gasped theatrically.

"Hiss—"

"P-picked one up? You can just pick up a ten-thousand-year one?"

Ning Rongrong secretly covered her mouth and laughed beside him.

Zhu Zhuqing remained expressionless, standing quietly at Lin Ye's side.

Not far away, Yu Tianheng spoke calmly with Dugu Yan and the Shi Brothers, though his gaze occasionally flicked over with a hint of coldness.

Lin Ye did not notice. Even if he had, he would not have cared much.

A mere Yu Tianheng was nothing to worry about.

In a corner, Ye Lingling stood quietly. Her gaze slipped toward Lin Ye and lingered on his face for a moment before darting away.

As Lin Ye dealt with the two chatterboxes, a cough suddenly sounded behind him.

"Ahem!"

He turned and saw Qin Ming striding into the training grounds.

Seeing him, Lin Ye led the two girls into formation. The two chatterboxes also returned to their places when they saw Qin Ming.

Everyone fell silent and straightened up at the sight of Qin Ming.

"Everyone's here. Good."

Qin Ming scanned the group, his gaze settling on Lin Ye and the two girls.

"First, let us once again welcome our three new members, Lin Ye, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing, to the Imperial Fighting Team!"

A round of applause rose from the team, with Osler and Yu Feng clapping particularly enthusiastically.

The soul rings Lin Ye had revealed yesterday had thoroughly won them over.

Who could reach Soul Ancestor at twelve and obtain such outrageous soul rings? They probably could not find another even if they scoured the entire continent.

His strength spoke for itself.

"Your arrival will give our team a powerful boost!"

Qin Ming continued, "To help you settle into the team and become an effective fighting force as soon as possible, I need to understand your actual combat abilities."

He looked at the three and pointed to a lit incense stick at the edge of the grounds.

"We'll follow the usual rules. The three of you will spar with me together for the time it takes one incense stick to burn."

"Huh?" The other members froze at Qin Ming's words.

He was having Lin Ye and the girls fight Teacher Qin? Was he serious?

Noticing their astonished looks, Qin Ming smiled. "Don't worry. I'll hold back appropriately."

Hearing that it was this method again, Lin Ye could not help twitching the corner of his mouth.

The same old Shrek routine.

Qin Ming certainly lived up to his upbringing under Flender and the others.

But fighting Qin Ming?

He was level forty-two now. Passing a Soul Emperor's test really would not be a problem.

When he had fought Zhao Wuji, he had only been level thirty-nine.

The problem was that if he went all out against Qin Ming, Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing would probably struggle to demonstrate their true abilities from the sidelines, defeating the purpose of the test.

Lin Ye stepped forward and spoke calmly.

"Teacher Qin, how about this? Let me fight you first."

"The two of them can fight you afterward."

Qin Ming paused.

"You alone? Against me?"

Lin Ye nodded.

"Yes. Just you and me."

Seeing this, the two girls could not help recalling what had happened at Shrek.

Although Zhao Wuji had not used his full strength during that day's test, Lin Ye had still battered him into a sorry state with repeated uses of Heavenly Fire: Unleashed.

Was Lin Ye planning to recreate that battle?

Excitement immediately lit up their eyes. They wanted to see his magnificent performance as he challenged someone above his level again.

Yu Tianheng's brows drew together slightly.

"This guy's that arrogant?"

Teacher Qin was a Soul Emperor!

Qin Ming studied Lin Ye's calm yet confident gaze, recalling the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring he had revealed yesterday.

An ordinary soul master could not bridge such a vast gap in cultivation in battle. Had obtaining a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring gone to Lin Ye's head?

Very well. As his teacher, he would correct him before it was too late.

At that thought, fighting spirit surged in Qin Ming's eyes.

"You've got guts! Then let me see your full strength!"

"I couldn't ask for more."

Lin Ye also walked to the center of the grounds, his white paper martial soul appearing in his hand.

"Blazing Fire Wolf, possess!"

Qin Ming's aura erupted. Flames rose and his muscles bulged as he transformed into a werewolf wreathed in fire.

Then six soul rings slowly rose!

Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, purple, black!

The powerful pressure of a Soul Emperor enveloped the grounds, and everyone watching immediately held their breath.

"Watch out!"

With a low shout, Qin Ming shot toward Lin Ye like a cannonball, his fiery-red figure trailing scorching heat at astonishing speed!

Lin Ye's gaze sharpened, and he beckoned into empty air.

"Condense!"

Vast amounts of cold instantly gathered. In a flash, an ancient-looking, ice-blue longsword appeared in his hand.

Cold mist curled around the blade, which was formed entirely from ice crystals.

This was Jingliu's Ephemeral Sword, which Lin Ye had created through Manifestation using his memories of a game from his previous life!

The longsword settled into his grip, and a flash of steel burst forth the next instant!

The ice-blue blade cleaved through the air with a bone-piercing chill, meeting Qin Ming's flaming claws with unerring precision!

Clang!

Ice and fire clashed, the cold and flames colliding furiously in a burst of hissing detonations!

In an instant, great clouds of white mist billowed upward!

The two figures separated the moment they met, only to collide again a heartbeat later!

The ice sword in Lin Ye's hand was incomparably fierce. His swordplay flowed without pause, carrying a chill that could freeze all things, its speed equally astonishing!

The longer Qin Ming fought, the more alarmed he became. This boy's swordsmanship was truly exquisite and seasoned. Should he say that he lived up to being that person's disciple?

Every swing of Lin Ye's sword carried a powerful, icy sword aura. That cold pierced through Qin Ming's fiery battle aura, seeping into his body in thin threads and forcing him to divide his attention to resist it.

What he did not know was that this was the effect of Lin Ye's fourth soul skill. As they fought, Lin Ye had already used his freezing sword moves to apply a debuff within his body.

When several exchanges yielded no results, Qin Ming immediately pulled back and launched an even more powerful attack.

"Fifth Soul Skill, Heaven-Scorching Flames!"