News that Lin Chen had utterly defeated Mo Feng, a level forty-one Agility Attack System Soul Ancestor, and stormed into the New Student Elite Tournament finals swept through the entire arena of the Heaven Dou Royal Soul Master Academy.
What had originally been an internal academy tournament had set the entire crowd ablaze thanks to Lin Chen's heaven-defying record of crushing opponents above his rank. Even Xue Qinghe, crown prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, had come to watch from the raised platform, surrounded by senior imperial officials and academy leaders. Every gaze was fixed on the youth at the center of the arena.
A level twenty-three Soul Grandmaster had defeated Soul Elders and Soul Ancestors in succession, fighting his way into the finals. His record had already shattered every precedent since the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's founding, becoming a legend unheard of through the ages.
In the arena, Lin Chen stood quietly with his eyes closed, regulating his breathing as pale green Life Soul Power circulated slowly around him.
His fierce battle with Mo Feng had ignited all the soul power accumulated within him. The ocean of soul power in his dantian surged relentlessly, battering the barrier to the Soul Elder realm again and again. The signs of loosening grew ever clearer. All he needed was an opening to break through his shackles completely.
Su Qingyuan and Yue Huaxi stood at the edge of the arena, watching him with resolute eyes. Soul power circulated around them as they remained ready to safeguard Lin Chen in the finals. After so many battles, they were no longer women who could only provide passive protection, but companions who could stand beside him.
"Lin Chen has already grown this powerful. Even against me, he would be capable of putting up a fight."
On the raised platform, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe held a feather fan, his expression gentle. Yet a barely perceptible flicker of surprise crossed his eyes. His gaze held some appreciation for Lin Chen, along with a trace of unfathomable scrutiny.
Beside him, the academy dean, a level seventy Soul Saint, nodded with a smile. "This boy's talent far surpasses his peers. Even across the entire Douluo Continent, he would rank among the finest prodigies. There is no limit to his future achievements."
With the entire crowd watching intently, the opponent for the final finally appeared.
A figure clad in golden robes walked slowly into the arena. Every footfall carried powerful fluctuations of soul power that shook the grounds. Four Soul Rings—two yellow, one purple, and one black—shone around him. The imposing aura of a level forty-three Power Attack System Soul Ancestor swept through the arena, leaving many students in the audience struggling to breathe.
He was Jin Hao, the strongest veteran student at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy. A member of a collateral branch of the imperial family, he possessed the supreme beast martial soul, the Golden Flame Lion, and exceptional cultivation talent. He had won the previous Elite Tournament and was the foremost guardian of the Life Spirit Deer Soul Ring in this competition.
Jin Hao stood opposite Lin Chen, his eyes proud and blazing. Golden-red flame soul power burned fiercely around him, filling the air with scorching heat. He declared harshly, "Lin Chen, reaching the finals as a Soul Grandmaster is something you can be proud of, but this is where it ends. I won't underestimate you like the Blood Demon Soul Ancestor or Mo Feng. In this final, I'll unleash my full strength and defeat you completely. You don't deserve this Life Spirit Deer Soul Ring!"
He had long regarded the five-thousand-year Life Spirit Deer Soul Ring as already in his pocket. He would never allow anyone to shake his position, much less let an outsider who was merely a Soul Grandmaster seize the opportunity that belonged to him.
"Whether I deserve it will be clear once we fight."
Lin Chen opened his eyes, green light flaring within them as his fighting spirit soared toward the heavens. He felt no fear whatsoever. Instead, his opponent's strength had fully awakened the competitive spirit in his bones.
He knew perfectly well that Jin Hao was far stronger than any opponent he had faced so far. A level forty-three Power Attack System Soul Ancestor with a supreme beast martial soul could unleash enough power to rend heaven and earth. This would be his most dangerous battle since transmigrating.
But he had no path of retreat. The Soul Elder realm lay right before him, and his conviction to protect those beside him meant he could only advance, never withdraw!
"Let the final begin!"
The officiating instructor's voice rang through the arena. The ultimate showdown had officially begun!
"Golden Flame Lion Roar, first soul skill—Flame Claw!"
Jin Hao did not test the waters at all. He opened with a soul skill, condensing golden flames into razor-sharp claws that slammed toward Lin Chen with heat capable of burning everything to ash. The flames scorched the air with crackling sounds, and even the arena floor dried and cracked beneath the heat.
"Life Domain, fully unleash!"
Lin Chen dared not hold anything back. He instantly unleashed his full strength, expanding the pale green radiance of his life domain to its utmost limit until it covered the entire arena. Pure Life Force became his strongest suppressive power, while his own soul power and physical strength rose across the board!
[Life Domain triggered: enemy soul power suppressed by 50%, martial soul strength weakened by 45%, flame resistance maximized!]
Even so, Jin Hao's Flame Claw remained astonishingly powerful. After all, it was the full-force attack of a level forty-three Soul Ancestor, whose reserves of soul power exceeded Lin Chen's several times over!
"Qingyuan, Azure Lotus Protection! Xi'er, Moonlight Amplification!"
Lin Chen shouted sharply, and the two heroines immediately coordinated their moves.
Su Qingyuan's third soul skill erupted, and an enormous Azure Lotus Shield appeared out of thin air. Layer upon layer of petals protected Lin Chen, infused with Life Soul Power that sent its defensive strength soaring. Yue Huaxi applied her third soul skill, Moonlight Power, enveloping Lin Chen in silver light and greatly enhancing his speed and the power of his soul skills!
"First soul skill—Life Entanglement!"
Lin Chen struck first. Countless strands of Blue Silver Grass imbued with the radiance of life burst from the earth, transforming into long green dragons that swept toward the Golden Flame Lion's claws. Pale green light flowed over the grass, leaving it utterly fearless even before the burning golden flames.
Bang!
The flaming claws and Blue Silver Grass collided with a thunderous crash. Flames scattered in every direction as shock waves of soul power swept outward. The arena floor exploded, sending fragments of stone flying.
Lin Chen staggered back several steps, his arms faintly numb. At that moment, the gap in soul power between a Soul Grandmaster and a Soul Ancestor was laid bare.
"Nothing more than this!" Jin Hao sneered, instantly unleashing his third soul skill. "Golden Flame Lion Roar Wave!"
Golden-red flames condensed into an enormous shock wave that bore down on Lin Chen with a heaven-shaking lion's roar. Its power far exceeded the earlier Blood Demon Heaven-Splitting Claw, burning even the air to nothing wherever it passed.
"Second soul skill—Life Suppression!"
Lin Chen roared. His five-thousand-year Soul Ring blazed with dazzling brilliance as he poured every drop of his soul power into his strongest soul skill. An invisible mountain of life crashed into the flaming shock wave.
The two mighty soul skills collided with a deafening explosion. The entire arena shook violently, and billowing smoke obscured everyone's vision.
Jin Hao shot out of the thick smoke, his fourth soul skill poised to strike. "Fourth soul skill—Golden Lion Burns the Heavens!"
The supreme beast martial soul's ultimate killing move erupted. A spectral Golden Flame Lion dozens of yards long rose into the air, opening its enormous jaws to spew a sea of fire across the sky, intent on swallowing Lin Chen whole!
This strike was powerful enough to kill an ordinary Soul Ancestor instantly. It was Jin Hao's trump card!
Everyone outside the arena held their breath. Su Qingyuan and Yue Huaxi turned deathly pale. On the raised platform, Xue Qinghe and the academy dean both rose to their feet, tension written across their faces.
The sea of fire descended. There was nowhere to dodge!
At the center of the flames, Lin Chen's clothes snapped in the scorching heat, and waves of searing pain coursed through his flesh. His soul power drained rapidly, nearing exhaustion, yet his gaze only grew more resolute.
"You want my life? You want to steal my opportunity? You're nowhere near worthy!"
"Life Blue Silver Grass, take my bloodline as your guide and awaken all your Life Force!"
Lin Chen threw back his head and roared. A speck of pale green light suddenly bloomed between his brows as the origin power of his Life Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul erupted in full. His nearly depleted soul power surged wildly in an instant. The strength of his domain soared once more, its suppressive power breaking straight through its limits!
The boundless sea of fire was actually forced back several inches by his Life Force!
At the same time, all his accumulated soul power, the Life Spiritual Energy absorbed during battle, and the power of his martial soul origin fused completely. Like floodwaters bursting through an opened gate, they battered the barrier to the Soul Elder realm!
Crack—
A faint sound of shattering rang out within Lin Chen.
The cultivation barrier that had troubled him for so long shattered amid this fierce battle of life and death!
Boom!
Soul power several times stronger than before surged skyward from Lin Chen's body. Pale green light shot into the clouds, and above his original two Soul Rings, the phantom of a third slowly took shape!
At that moment, the level twenty-three Soul Grandmaster broke through completely and entered the Soul Elder realm!
His soul power soared, his body ascended, and the range of his Life Domain expanded dramatically. Its suppression of enemies, the power of his soul skills, and his vitality all underwent a qualitative leap!
"What? He actually broke through during the final!"
Jin Hao's expression changed sharply, his eyes filled with horror. Under the pressure of Lin Chen's breakthrough, his Golden Flame Lion soul actually began to tremble, and even the power of his soul skill diminished drastically!
This was absolute domination at the level of martial souls!
Having broken through to Soul Elder, Lin Chen's gaze became even deeper, his aura as steady as a mountain. With a wave of his hand, boundless Life Blue Silver Grass grew wildly, becoming a green forest that swallowed the entire sea of fire in an instant and utterly dismantled Jin Hao's fourth soul skill!
"Impossible! I don't believe it!"
Jin Hao frantically drove all his soul power, trying to attack again, but Lin Chen no longer gave him any opportunity.
"Then feel the might of a Soul Elder for yourself!"
Lin Chen flashed forward, his speed increasing severalfold as he appeared before Jin Hao in an instant. Newly condensed Life Soul Power gathered in his palm, and he delivered a light palm strike.
It carried no earth-shaking spectacle, yet its power was irresistible.
Bang!
That single palm strike sent Jin Hao flying. He slammed heavily into the edge of the arena, his Golden Flame Lion martial soul wilting and the soul power within him scattering completely. Unable to stand again, he suffered a crushing defeat!
The entire arena fell deathly silent. A falling pin could have been heard.
In the next second, earth-shaking cheers erupted throughout the arena!
Driven into a desperate corner in the final, Lin Chen had broken through to Soul Elder, crushed Jin Hao, the strongest veteran student, with a single palm strike, won the New Student Elite Tournament, and secured the five-thousand-year Life Spirit Deer Soul Ring!
With a trembling voice, the officiating instructor announced loudly, "The champion of this Elite Tournament—Lin Chen!"
On the raised platform, the dean, Xue Qinghe, and the others rose to their feet, their faces filled with amazement and their gazes brimming with the deepest appreciation for Lin Chen.
At the edge of the arena, Su Qingyuan and Yue Huaxi wept with joy and hurried toward Lin Chen.
Lin Chen turned to them, a gentle smile lifting the corners of his lips. Having broken through to Soul Elder, he finally possessed greater strength, enough to protect those beside him.
Yet at that very moment, several sinister auras of soul power suddenly erupted beyond the arena. More than a dozen Soul Masters from Spirit Hall broke through the formation and charged inside. Their leader's eyes were venomous as he rushed straight at Lin Chen to kill him!
"Lin Chen, you humiliated our Spirit Hall. Today's final will mark the hour of your death!"
At last, in the moment of greatest chaos, Spirit Hall's hidden forces brazenly struck!
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