Lin Mo raised a hand and summoned Huo Yuhao, who instantly vanished from where he stood and landed securely in his arms.
That large hand grabbed nothing but air.
When Lin Mo saw who had attacked, the corner of his mouth could not help twitching.
Well, then.
After Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong'er, and Xiao Xiao, he had added another two members of the Shrek Seven Monsters to his collection-
Xu Sanshi, and Jiang Nannan behind him.
"You're asking to die!"
Xu Sanshi roared in fury. With a sweep of his right leg, he kicked the grill over, sending sparks flying. Then he took another stride forward, his large hand wreathed in black-and-red soul power as he reached for their heads.
A cold gleam flashed through Lin Mo's eyes, and his martial soul instantly possessed him.
A pair of dark azure wings unfurled from his back with a whoosh, one above and one below, folding forward to shelter them both.
At the same time, a layer of azure flame flared to life across the wings.
Xu Sanshi's hand seized the wings, and he immediately felt a chill burrow from his palm straight into his marrow. The pain made his entire body stiffen.
The next instant, the azure flames surged, and an enraged Mystic Bird's cry pierced the sky.
Xu Sanshi felt a boundless pressure slam into his soul like Mount Tai crashing down upon him. His hands and feet turned icy, and an indescribable suffocation enveloped him as he staggered backward.
But Lin Mo had no intention of letting him off.
Casually tossing Huo Yuhao aside, Lin Mo turned into a streak of azure light and instantly closed in on Xu Sanshi.
The first soul ring beneath his feet suddenly lit up, and an azure-gold talisman feather sank between his brows-
First soul skill, Azure-Gold Blessing!
Then he raised his leg and kicked viciously at Xu Sanshi's chest.
Still trapped in the Mystic Bird's intimidation, Xu Sanshi had no time at all to defend himself. Lin Mo's kick struck him squarely in the chest.
Bam!
Xu Sanshi went flying backward.
Everyone around them stared, dumbstruck.
That was Xu Sanshi, famed for his "invincible defense," yet a freshman had sent him flying with a single kick?
Lin Mo gave a derisive laugh.
If this had been the Xu Sanshi from his previous life, whose martial soul had evolved into the golden Xuanwu, he really would have had to weigh his options. But this Xu Sanshi had not even fully awakened his Black Tortoise bloodline, and he dared bark like a dog in front of him?
His azure flames had another name-
Soul fire.
As the name suggested, these flames specifically attacked a person's soul. Ordinary defenses could not stop them; a soul skill akin to purification was needed to break free.
Seeing Xu Sanshi in such a sorry state, Jiang Nannan recovered from her brief shock and said coldly:
"Serves you right."
Her reaction surprised Lin Mo somewhat.
Because, as he remembered it, these two had apparently been a couple. But judging by the situation now, not only were they not a couple, there was quite a conflict between them. Tsk, tsk, tsk...
Looking away, Lin Mo shook out his wrists, cracking his knuckles.
Whether in his previous life or this one, Xu Sanshi was nothing but a reckless hothead in his eyes. He, on the other hand, had truly crawled out of the mountains of corpses and seas of blood in the Holy Spirit Church.
He generally did not hold grudges. He settled every score on the spot.
Lin Mo walked forward, step by step.
Only now did Xu Sanshi brace himself with his arms and climb off the ground, but his soul was still trembling incessantly. Clearly, he had yet to recover.
One step.
The aura around Lin Mo suddenly grew heavy.
Another step.
A murderous chill slowly spread through the air as though it had substance. The spectators surrounding them felt as if an invisible mountain had descended upon their heads. Their backs bent inch by inch, their chests tightened, and even breathing became a struggle.
Then there were Lin Mo's eyes-
His normally round pupils were slowly contracting and elongating, finally settling into azure-gold diamonds.
No one dared move.
Even the third- and fourth-year students could not help retreating a little.
As they stared at the freshman before them, their legs actually felt an uncontrollable urge to kneel.
Azure flames poured spontaneously from Lin Mo's body, flowing along his forearms until they all gathered in his palm.
The flames churned, and a straight saber slowly took shape in his hand.
Its blade was long and thin, azure flames flowing over it. Facing the daylight, its edge gave off an icy chill.
Lin Mo raised his hand and lifted the saber.
Without the slightest hesitation, he slashed straight down at Xu Sanshi's head!
"Young brother, show mercy!"
Clang!
The straight saber descended, but instead of striking Xu Sanshi, it slammed into a dragon claw covered in scales.
Flames and lightning exploded at once.
Azure soul fire intertwined with golden lightning, producing an unbroken barrage of crackling explosions.
Lin Mo narrowed his eyes.
Another member of the Shrek Seven Monsters.
This time, it was Mu Beibei, the captain of the Shrek Seven Monsters himself.
The two separated after that single clash.
Beibei lowered his wrist slightly, steadily bracing against the straight saber, a measure of gravity already appearing on his face. He placed himself in front of Xu Sanshi and gave Lin Mo a slight nod.
"Young brother, he was in the wrong here. Please calm down and let me handle this. Would that be all right?"
Before Lin Mo could answer, two voices rang out one after the other.
"Beibei! Why are you stopping him? You should let him give Xu Sanshi a thorough beating! That guy deserves it!"
The girl's voice was clear and bright, her delight in his misfortune utterly undisguised.
"Lin Mo, he really is my eldest senior brother! I'm not lying!" That was Huo Yuhao, his voice filled with anxiety. He was terrified that the two would start fighting.
Lin Mo turned toward the voices.
When he saw that Tang Ya was among the arrivals, his eyelid twitched violently.
I was wondering who it was. So the Blue Silver Holy Maiden has arrived~
In his previous life, the Blue Silver Holy Maiden had blithely abandoned the darkness for the light and run off with Beibei, while he had been left running around cleaning up her mess. After returning, he had even received a scolding from his superior, Dark Crow.
At the thought, Lin Mo's anger shot upward.
Expressionlessly, he turned his gaze back and stared coldly at Beibei, who stood in his way. He uttered only two words:
"Move aside."
Beibei did not move.
Lin Mo continued, "The academy has a rule that upper-year students may not attack lower-year students. Not only did he violate school rules, he attacked a second time. If I hadn't been strong enough, I'd be the one lying on the ground right now."
His voice was icy, every word distinct.
"Now, let me return one blow, and we'll call this settled."
"Otherwise-"
A dim gleam flashed through Lin Mo's azure-gold eyes.
"I'll see you at the academic affairs office."
After those words, Beibei remained silent for a long while. Finally, he slowly shook his head, sighed, and stepped aside.
Xu Sanshi had only just managed to catch his breath.
The next instant, an azure saber gleam slashed straight toward his face.
The saber light struck him. It did not split his skin or flesh, but an agonizing pain reaching straight into his soul suddenly exploded deep within his mind.
As the azure flames scorched his soul, Xu Sanshi gave a muffled grunt. His legs gave way, and he dropped to his knees again with a thud.
Lin Mo casually withdrew his martial soul. The straight saber and wings vanished entirely, leaving only a few azure sparks drifting in the wind, flickering for an instant.
He looked down at Xu Sanshi and said indifferently, "Don't worry, senior. He won't die. Tell me, why insist on being a dog instead of a perfectly good human being?"
"Oh, no, that's wrong. He simply doesn't know how to be human."
With that, Lin Mo walked away.
Huo Yuhao instinctively moved to follow, only for Tang Ya beside him to grab him.