Soul Pressure descended from above and ahead like a thick plastic film, bearing tremendous force as it covered Xu Zi's head, shoulders, back, waist, and spine...
It squeezed his entire body downward from every direction, leaving no blind spots.
This was a testing method exclusive to high-ranking Soul Masters, intended to screen and assess lower-ranking Soul Masters.
Moreover, it targeted only the "designated" Soul Master, having almost no effect on anyone else.
For instance, the waiter bringing a tray to the table merely felt a hot breeze brush his face. Having just endured smoke and scorching heat in the kitchen, he was not particularly sensitive to this warmth.
After setting down a bowl and two plates, the waiter lowered his head toward Xu Zi with a smile. "Please enjoy."
Ling Yuan interjected at just the right moment. "You can back out of the wager at any time. His Holiness is willing to give you this opportunity and mediate to have Jin Yu agree to cancel the Soul Fighting match, but your token will be taken back."
"Make your decision sooner rather than later."
"All right, thank you." Xu Zi nodded at the waiter with a smile, took two chopsticks from the holder, and picked up a slice of twice-cooked pork, eating it with his rice without concern for anything else.
Ling Yuan's red eyes widened. She wondered whether she was imagining things, or whether her control over her Soul Power was still unfamiliar after her recent breakthrough.
Thus, she instinctively lowered her index finger, doubling the Soul Pressure until it reached a level only a high-level Soul Ancestor could withstand.
In an instant, a heat wave struck Xu Zi's face, and his fluffy purple hair visibly flattened.
Seeing this, Ling Yuan could confirm that there was nothing wrong with the intensity of her Soul Pressure.
Yet facing pressure that only a high-level Soul Ancestor qualified to withstand, Xu Zi merely paused when it increased, then picked up three stalks of greens and continued shoveling rice into his mouth.
Ling Yuan was dumbfounded. As a Titled Douluo, she could naturally see clearly at such close range: the tiny, visible hairs on Xu Zi's face and hands had all been pressed flat against his skin by the Soul Pressure.
Xu Zi handled it without betraying anything, for this was a silent examination.
Had this happened that morning, he could still have withstood the Soul Pressure, but definitely not with such ease. Only after adding his third ring had his physique truly reached its starting point.
"You..." Ling Yuan began, then stopped.
She silently increased the Soul Pressure until it reached a level only a level-50 Quasi-Soul King qualified to endure.
Ling Yuan really wanted to test where this overseas visitor's limits lay, and exactly what level of Soul Pressure would force out his Martial Soul.
For this was Bibi Dong's second command.
Compared with the previous order to interrogate him, this was clearly a secret order, intended to accomplish what Huang Ying had failed to do-probe his depths.
The heat wave from above and ahead intensified again. Xu Zi's movements paused once more, and he silently set down his bowl and chopsticks.
Facing Soul Pressure beyond his rank, he lacked Tang San's technique of "moving a thousand pounds with four ounces," so he could only resist with brute strength.
By his estimate, his physique had already reached the limits of a Defense System Soul Ancestor. Combined with his level-36 Soul Power, which bore only a small share of the pressure...
He could probably withstand Five-Ring Soul King-level Soul Pressure without exposing his Martial Soul.
This strength already exceeded the limits of what Tang San at the same rank could achieve using his Martial Soul, External Soul Bone, and various force-control techniques.
Meanwhile, seeing that Xu Zi showed little reaction beyond stopping his meal, Ling Yuan was slightly shocked.
But as a Titled Douluo, how could she admit that a level-30 Soul Grandmaster had awed her?
Her slender index finger turned, releasing Soul Pressure that only a high-level Soul King could withstand.
Waves of scorching air stirred, compressing downward in front of her.
At this moment, the hair over Xu Zi's forehead blew upward, and a faint scorched smell, like fabric baking in the summer afternoon sun, rose from his clothes.
Not only that, but the fragrant wooden tabletop beneath his hands even gave faint creaks under the residual force of the Soul Pressure.
That showed how much pressure he was bearing.
Xu Zi was no longer sitting. He had left his seat and was half-squatting in a horse stance in the same spot.
He feared that under such heavy pressure, the chair would be crushed to splinters along with him.
Three breaths passed, and everything remained as before.
At the distant counter, the owner saw the two people at the table sitting motionlessly opposite each other. In particular, the diner had put down his bowl and chopsticks after just three mouthfuls. Alarmed, the owner hurried back to the kitchen to inspect that evening's dishes.
"How is that possible?" The moment the words escaped Ling Yuan, she realized she had lost her composure.
She finally put away the flippancy in her eyes, brushed aside the bangs over her right eye, and carefully studied the youth before her.
"How did you do that?"
As a fellow member of the Pope Hall, Ling Yuan had naturally attended the previous night's meeting and knew the information concerning the person before her.
Xu Zi suppressed the restlessness of his Purple Sun Martial Soul, but wisps of brilliant purple light still rose from his pores.
He answered in a low voice, "First, my Martial Soul has two aspects, dragon and sun. Its tool aspect is the sun, possessing extremely high light and fire attributes."
"And since you've only just broken through to Titled Douluo, your control over your Soul Power isn't particularly precise, causing your Soul Pressure to carry this heat. But after adapting to my Sun Martial Soul over a long period, I no longer fear intense heat, so I'm immune to the heat in your Soul Pressure."
"A dual tool-and-beast Martial Soul like Elder She Long's?" Ling Yuan nodded in understanding, looking at her index finger as she murmured, "So that's it. Still, I did neglect control over my Soul Power in order to reach my current achievements sooner."
As Ling Yuan withdrew her index finger, the high-level Soul King Soul Pressure vanished.
She had just seen purple light rising from Xu Zi's body, and from this deduced roughly where his limits lay. Thus, her assignment from the Pope could be considered complete.
Of course, if she actually forced his Martial Soul to burst out in such a public place, she would thoroughly offend him.
Having become a Titled Douluo, Ling Yuan could hardly lack that small measure of shrewdness.
As the Soul Pressure vanished, Xu Zi's waist sprang backward like a spring, and then his entire body returned to normal.
Ling Yuan continued, "You said 'first'-the fire attribute in my Soul Pressure made you immune to part of it. Then what was the second reason?"
Xu Zi picked up his bowl and chopsticks again, answering as he took some food. "I absorbed the Golden Crocodile His Holiness bestowed on me. It greatly strengthened my physique, and together with the Soul Power I'd previously accumulated at the level-30 bottleneck, let me charge straight into high-level Soul Elder in one push."
One through four counted as low-level, above five as high-level, and nine as peak-level. This set of standards had initially been used to distinguish Titled Douluo, Super Douluo, and Peerless Douluo.
On the "Douluo" Continent, these standards quickly spread downward from the Douluo rank, dividing every major Soul Power cultivation rank into low, high, and peak levels.
"Oh? Is that so..."
Ling Yuan understood everything. As a senior member of Spirit Hall, she could not possibly be unaware that a Golden Crocodile Soul Ring could greatly strengthen a Soul Master's physique. This was the primary reason Xu Zi had withstood her Soul Pressure.
But upon thinking it over carefully, Ling Yuan Douluo finally realized that Xu Zi's cultivation had advanced astonishingly fast!
She could not help clicking her tongue and asking, "You charged straight into high-level Soul Elder? Just how long were you stuck at the level-30 bottleneck?"
Xu Zi answered while eating, "Not long. Just under half a year. The Golden Crocodile was the main reason it happened so quickly."
"You're too modest." Ling Yuan raised a thumb, generous with her praise. "Being able to withstand level-55 Soul Pressure already puts you at the level of the Golden Generation's core members. Unfortunately, I'm not His Holiness. Otherwise, I'd definitely put you on the team to gild your credentials and make you its fourth core member."
"Hahaha." Xu Zi smiled modestly. "You flatter me, Elder Ling Yuan. My cultivation is still far from the threshold for a substitute. I wouldn't dream of it."
He suddenly slapped down a Gold Soul Coin and called, "Owner, I'd like to order."
Then Xu Zi turned to Ling Yuan Douluo. "Here, have something to eat too."
Ling Yuan Douluo waved her hands repeatedly, declining with a smile. "No, there's no need. His Holiness the Pope hasn't retired yet. I have to hurry back and report."
But the very next second, her movements froze. Disbelief appeared on her face as she exclaimed softly, "Wait, did you just say-"
"You absorbed the two-thousand-one-hundred-year Golden Crocodile as your third Soul Ring?"
Ling Yuan's voice cracked a little, like a startled kite.
After all, she was a newly promoted senior member of Spirit Hall, and this Golden Crocodile's age was the latest point of contention between the Pope Faction and the Worshipper Faction. She could not possibly be unaware of it.
"Yes," Xu Zi admitted freely, for this limit-surpassing figure represented only half his true capability.
Ling Yuan Douluo, however, remained frozen in place, her beautiful red eyes staring blankly at Xu Zi's face, unable to speak for a long while.
Only when a waitress came to take their order did she recover.
Her red eyes swept over the two plates in front of Xu Zi, and Ling Yuan raised her index finger. "The same dishes. One serving."
This time, only after the waitress left did Ling Yuan Douluo ask, "Could I... see your Soul Rings?"
Xu Zi stopped chewing. After looking around, he shook his head. "Here... wouldn't be very convenient, would it?"
Unwilling to give up, Ling Yuan Douluo pressed, "Where would be convenient?"
"I can wait. I can report to His Holiness tomorrow."
"My place would be convenient." Xu Zi showed no reservations.
"All right." Ling Yuan nodded decisively.
Although she could roughly sense from the intensity of his Soul Power fluctuations that Xu Zi was telling the truth.
Seeing was believing. She wanted to witness this existence that far surpassed the historical record's limits with her own eyes.
When the server arrived with the tray, all that remained were two plates, a bowl, and two Gold Soul Coins.
The evening wind high above brushed their cheeks.
Ling Yuan's pale, strong hands gripped Xu Zi's shoulders above his collarbones as she flew toward the academy's residential area.
Blazing wings swept across the night sky, leaving two faint red trails.
Xu Zi's gaze grew increasingly deep, though no one knew what calculations he was making...
Early the next morning.
With a long "Mmm," Xu Zi emerged from sleep and woke naturally.
The sheet stirred to his right. Ling Yuan Douluo also stretched out on the soft bed, using the thin white sheet to cover the two breathtaking curves of her chest.
Opening her red eyes, she combed the brown hair away from her face with her fingertips. Watching Xu Zi dress, Ling Yuan Douluo asked a question she already knew the answer to. "Getting ready to head to the Soul Fighting Plaza?"
"Yes." Straightening his collar, Xu Zi said, "Senior Huang Ying said yesterday that we'd gather this morning. Since I'm the one who initiated this, naturally, I can't be late."
"Then I'll come along too. As a Spirit Hall elder, I can back you up in front of the Golden Crocodile Family." Holding the white sheet, Ling Yuan Douluo sprang from the bed like a long-legged crane.
As expected of a Power Attack System beast Soul Master, the pain of losing her virginity had healed overnight.
As for how things had developed between the two of them last night, allowing them to swiftly reach such intimate depths...
That would be a long story.
But it could be summed up in one sentence: each had their own aims.
Xu Zi was a stranger in an unfamiliar land, and his strength was currently in its budding stage. Before gaining the ability to protect himself, he needed a hidden, loyal ally.
Ideally, this ally would have a voice at critical moments and be able to save his life in a crisis.
Among the top Soul Masters Xu Zi could currently reach, excluding Pope Bibi Dong, that unstable factor, Ling Yuan Douluo was the best choice for such a reliable ally.
Ling Yuan Douluo's thoughts were actually easy to guess as well.
To please Pope Bibi Dong, she would dare to charge blindly into the vanguard during the Soul Hunting Operation against the two Kings of the Forest several years later, throwing away her life.
That alone showed that this newly promoted Titled Douluo lacked a sense of security. Subconsciously, she was always seeking a backer to lean on.
That solid backer could be a powerful figure of high status, or a younger person with exceptional talent.
Especially a young man like Xu Zi, with the Sun Moon Empire behind him and potential that could shake the past and dazzle the present.
Thus, last night, after Xu Zi revealed his god-level Martial Soul and thousand-year second ring...
After a brief moment of shock, Ling Yuan Douluo had, unsurprisingly, tied up her hair and spent the night making an early investment.
Adding a formal, substantive layer of sexual progress to their relationship.
"Could you refrain from reporting everything you saw and heard last night, and everything I told you, to the Pope?"
After dressing, Xu Zi added another request. "At least until I reveal my cards myself."
"Mm, no problem." Still wearing her red clothes, Ling Yuan smoothed the bangs over her right eye and voiced her own concern. "But I also hope you'll carry on as usual and not reveal our relationship."
"At least until you become a high-ranking Soul Master, because..."
"You aren't from our Douluo Continent, while my status is there for everyone to see. I have to consider wagging tongues."
"Until I reach Soul Saint? All right!" Xu Zi nodded in agreement and headed downstairs and out first.
Ling Yuan Douluo stepped out through the window, flapped her blazing wings, and vanished into the faint morning breeze.
Like two birds sharing a wood, they each flew from their temporary love nest.
The red sun gradually turned white.
At Spirit Hall Academy's Soul Fighting Plaza.
The morning breeze grew warm under the rising sun. The Soul Fighting Plaza was unusually quiet that morning.
No Power Attack System or Agility Attack System students were training there, as though the grounds had been cleared beforehand.
By late morning, eighteen people had gathered at the very center of the plaza.
One wore red robes-naturally, the bishop on duty that week.
The other seventeen stood in two teams before the red-robed bishop, one ahead of the other, with seven in front and ten behind.
Among the seven in front, one valiant figure looked particularly familiar. It was the Golden Bird Soul Master, Huang Ying.
The identities of these seven were thus on the verge of revealing themselves-
Spirit Hall Academy's first team: four main members and three substitutes.
Huang Ying was the leading substitute among them, and in the plot, the team's hidden trump card who caught others off guard.
As for the ten standing behind them, whose bearing and posture were clearly a notch weaker, they comprised the entirety of Spirit Hall Academy's "second team."
In this Soul Master Tournament, the two imperial academies of Heaven Dou and the Star Luo Empire both had "second teams."
As the continent's foremost academy, Spirit Hall Academy could hardly lack a second team of its own.
"Good!"
The red-robed bishop counted the people with a glance, naturally overlooking the three who had not arrived.
He clapped his hands and announced to everyone, "Since everyone is here, I will now relay His Holiness the Pope's verbal decree."
At these words, all seventeen gazes sharpened. They stood solemnly in place, quietly awaiting what came next.
Please send monthly tickets and recommendation votes.