"Hmph, however arrogant you act, you wouldn't dare attack head-on until I thrust my snake lance, would you?"
Snake Lance Douluo snorted softly, a cold gleam flashing in his eyes.
An inch longer meant an inch stronger; an inch shorter meant an inch more danger.
At this distance, the danger went both ways.
He knew Ghost Leopard Douluo was waiting to strike second but land first, winning through surprise.
Nevertheless, Snake Lance Douluo attacked.
Once he pinpointed Ghost Leopard's position, his snake lance shot out with incredible speed, like a spirit snake darting from its den.
"How is he so fast?!"
"He's at least thirty percent faster than before... what the hell?"
Suddenly, Ghost Leopard Douluo's startled cry rang out from that seemingly empty space.
A dull impact followed immediately.
Bang!
A mass of black shadow tumbled out of that empty space.
Then the shadow rolled across the ground and, with another flicker, appeared ten meters away.
It was none other than Ghost Leopard Douluo.
Ghost Leopard Douluo glanced at his torn black clothes, wariness flashing in his eyes.
He couldn't help asking, "How did you do that? Your attacks are much faster than before!"
Ghost Leopard Douluo was genuinely shocked.
After all, to be safe, he had intended to strike second but land first.
Yet Snake Lance Douluo's speed had left him no time to react.
"What if I told you this was the benefit I bought with a million gold soul coins?"
"Do you still think I wasted my money?"
Snake Lance Douluo grinned.
Seeing the old rival who had suppressed him for years suffer such a setback filled him with indescribable delight.
"A benefit bought with a million gold soul coins?"
"Don't tell me you... took drugs?"
Ghost Leopard Douluo froze at first, then soon sneered despite himself. "Right, only drugs could be absorbed... but I'd advise you to face reality. Taking drugs might feel good for a while, but they'll also leave serious problems lurking in your body."
"Old She, I never thought you'd pay such a steep price just to beat me. Why put yourself through that?"
What?
At those words, Snake Lance Douluo looked stunned. "You're saying I took drugs?"
"Do you think I'm stupid?"
"Without drugs, could you unleash that much fighting power?"
Ghost Leopard Douluo believed his guess was correct.
Snake Lance Douluo must have taken drugs that overdrawn his potential.
"But I didn't."
"You absolutely did. Stop trying to hide it." Ghost Leopard Douluo was utterly convinced of his theory.
"..."
Snake Lance Douluo was speechless. He hadn't expected things to turn into this sort of misunderstanding.
The next moment, he charged at Ghost Leopard Douluo with his snake lance in hand.
"Drugs might feel good for a while, but unless you keep taking them, there's no way you can beat me."
"Myriad Phantoms!"
As Ghost Leopard Douluo spoke, his fifth soul ring lit up.
The next moment, he split into several black shadows that darted away in every direction.
In fact, this was a soul skill that combined offense and defense.
After dodging, the black shadows attacked from all directions.
"Thunderous Shattering Strike!"
Snake Lance Douluo didn't hesitate either. His fifth soul ring suddenly erupted with brilliant light.
Arcs of golden lightning shot out.
"Instead of using your seventh soul skill, Martial Soul Beast Transformation, to withstand me, you're actually trying to counter my ten-thousand-year soul skill with your thousand-year fifth-ring soul skill?"
"Has your brain short-circuited?"
"Any one of my shadow clones can take Thunderclap head-on without being destroyed."
All the black shadows Ghost Leopard Douluo had created spoke, their voices overlapping.
Then several shadows charged straight into Thunderclap without the slightest fear.
Bang, bang, bang!
Something unexpected happened.
Not a single black shadow made it through Thunderclap's blockade. Every one was blasted to pieces by Thunderclap.
"Awooo..."
Even Ghost Leopard Douluo's real body let out an unearthly howl as he was sent flying backward.
"What the hell is this? How did your soul skill become so much stronger?"
"It's clearly a skill from a thousand-year soul ring, yet it can rival a ten-thousand-year soul skill!"
Ghost Leopard Douluo had been shocked numb by the lightning and couldn't help crying out in astonishment.
"Hahaha, there's something even more shocking to come."
"You wanted to see my Martial Soul Beast Transformation, didn't you? I'll oblige!"
In contrast to Ghost Leopard Douluo's frustration, Snake Lance Douluo laughed with sheer delight.
As his words fell, his seventh soul ring lit up.
Martial Soul Beast Transformation!
It was an ability unique to Snake Lance Douluo.
He tossed his snake lance into the air, and it immediately transformed into a giant two-headed python.
Gulp.
Ghost Leopard Douluo swallowed hard. "Good grief... that two-headed python's aura is at least thirty percent stronger than before..."
He was stunned.
Still, to be fair, he really wanted to know what drugs She Long had taken. He was starting to feel tempted himself...
Elsewhere.
A burly figure nearly two meters tall was approaching.
He had rugged features and dark skin, looking like a walking iron tower.
However.
Everyone he met along the way respectfully addressed him as Elder Demon Bear.
Without question, his standing within Spirit Hall was on the same level as Snake Lance Douluo and Ghost Leopard Douluo.
"Huh, there's some commotion up ahead. Is Snake Lance Douluo fighting someone?"
A flicker of fervor passed through Demon Bear Douluo's eyes.
He was extremely belligerent, the sort whose hands started itching if he went two days without a fight.
But.
He couldn't beat Chrysanthemum Douluo or Ghost Douluo.
That fellow Pufferfish was covered in prickles and used poison too. Fighting him was just asking for misery.
Ghost Leopard was incredibly fast, kiting him throughout the fight and occasionally attacking just to annoy him. The longer they fought, the more frustrated he became.
So he usually only sparred with Snake Lance Douluo.
He gave it the lofty label of "strengthening their friendship."
And today happened to be the third day. It was time to get some practice.
Pah.
It was time to strengthen their friendship.
No, I have to hurry over and stop them. If I get there too late and Snake Lance gets injured, there'll be no one left to practice with.
With that thought, Demon Bear Douluo made up his mind.
Boom, boom, boom.
He broke into a run, his strides shaking the ground like an earthquake.
At last, the training grounds drew near.
However, when Demon Bear saw what was happening there, he was instantly stunned. "Is that really Snake Lance Douluo?"
Isn't he a little too fierce?
The giant serpent produced by Snake Lance's beast transformation was at least a third larger than before.
It moved as swiftly as a raging gale, its attacks too fast even for Ghost Leopard Douluo to dodge.
Its ferocious attacks fell like a rainstorm, and every time Ghost Leopard Douluo was struck, he couldn't help crying out in complaint.
Even after activating his Martial Soul Avatar and transforming completely into a ghost-patterned black leopard, he couldn't withstand it.
Is this real?
Isn't this a little too terrifying?
Demon Bear Douluo hurriedly rubbed his bell-sized eyes hard with his palm-leaf-fan-sized hands.
He confirmed that his eyes weren't deceiving him.
It was real. Ghost Leopard Douluo was being thoroughly suppressed and beaten by Snake Lance Douluo!
At that moment.
His heart held nothing but shock upon shock.
Heavens!
What happened to let a bottom-of-the-pack fighter like Snake Lance Douluo ignore a one-level gap in soul power and thrash Ghost Leopard Douluo?
He simply couldn't understand it.
Just then, the battle in the training grounds was also nearing its end.
"She Long, stop! I admit defeat!"
Ghost Leopard Douluo truly had no strength left to resist.
"Heh, all right..."
Snake Lance Douluo smiled faintly.
Seeing his old rival lying at his feet and yielding left him with just one word in his heart: Fantastic!
In the distance, Demon Bear Douluo was even more shocked. That fellow Ghost Leopard had admitted defeat?
After all.
Even he couldn't have accomplished that!
Did Snake Lance take drugs? How did he suddenly become so fierce?