The two took deep breaths, Soul Power surging wildly around them as they activated their Martial Souls once more.
Although the pressure from Huo Yuhao's incantation weighed on their hearts like an invisible mountain, making it difficult for them to breathe, their eyes had turned red. All they wanted now was to kill him.
Ling Lan parted her red lips and called out in a low voice, "Third Soul Skill, Venomous Snake Bite!" As soon as she finished speaking, a massive green snake appeared out of thin air. Its body was a ghostly green, and its tongue flicked wildly as a cold light flashed. A foul wind accompanied it as it viciously lunged at Huo Yuhao.
Meanwhile, Xiao Ye refused to be outdone. A look of madness appeared on his face as he shouted, "Second Soul Skill, system, lend me a hand!" The system's voice rang out. "Would you like to consume another five years of blood essence to raise your rank to Soul Elder?" His eyes were red, blood vessels spreading at their corners, and he roared without hesitation, "Yes!"
In an instant, a vast force erupted from within him, raising him an entire rank. As his Soul Power increased, the sword in his hand rapidly grew larger, a strange light flickering across its blade.
"Greatsword Slash!" Xiao Ye roared. He raised the greatsword high with both hands and brought it down viciously at Huo Yuhao. It forcibly cleaved through the air with a hissing sound, while its Sword Qi carved a deep fissure in the ground.
Facing the fierce combined attack, Huo Yuhao's eyes darkened slightly, and a trace of melancholy flashed through them. As his Soul Power circulated, wisps of emotional power quietly spread from that melancholy. This power did not fall within the scope of ordinary Soul Skills; it was his alone-the Three Forms of Emotion.
These were three new moves that had continually evolved from the Hao Dong Three Ultimates through modification and transformation, carrying a soul-consuming melancholy.
"First form, Fist Strikes!" Huo Yuhao shouted in a low voice, thrusting his right fist forward. The wind from his punch howled as it met the skill the two had unleashed together, bearing the might to topple mountains and overturn seas.
A tremendous boom rang out like thunder exploding from the ground. The force of Huo Yuhao's punch actually drove their combined skill straight back at them.
Immediately afterward, Huo Yuhao's figure flashed, and he said, "Second form, Sword Falls!" A huge phantom sword slowly emerged in the sky, radiating fierce Sword Qi.
Ling Lan and Xiao Ye's faces turned deathly pale at the sight. They tried to dodge, only to find their bodies restrained by an invisible force, unable to move.
Their eyes widened, their faces full of terror. They could only watch helplessly as the greatsword fell straight down and smashed into them with a bang.
The two grunted and spat blood. They used up nearly all their Soul Power in an instant to defend themselves, but it was to no avail. Their bodies flew backward and crashed heavily to the ground...
"Lan'er!" Xiao Ye cried at the top of his lungs, his voice full of grief and despair.
He had watched helplessly as Ling Lan shielded him from the force of that fatal sword strike. Her body slowly fell like a withering petal, her life vanishing in an instant. He, however, had narrowly survived because she had sacrificed herself to protect him.
Xiao Ye raised his head and looked at Huo Yuhao, who was slowly approaching. His heart was full of fear and unwillingness. Coughing up several mouthfuls of blood, he spoke in fits and starts. "Cough, cough... Don't think you're a good person. Have you killed any fewer people than I have? You're nothing but a native of the Douluo Continent. Beneath the great wheel of fate, you'll never escape your predetermined course."
Yet behind those seemingly defiant words, Xiao Ye was in utter panic. No, I can't die yet. I have to make him die with Lan'er. I have to avenge her!
But Xiao Ye soon realized that, in his current state, he had no power to stand against Huo Yuhao. He forced himself to remain calm and squeezed a fawning smile onto his face, looking almost mad.
His legs trembled slightly, and warm liquid appeared in his pants. He had lost control of his bladder from sheer terror, but he could no longer concern himself with that.
"You probably don't know this, but you were originally this world's son of fortune," Xiao Ye said urgently. "A god king named Tang San from the Divine Realm is manipulating everything from behind the scenes. He wants to control your entire life.
"We were envoys sent by heaven to help you. We were possessed by a ghost for a moment, and that's why we had those crooked thoughts. As long as you let me go, I'll help you with all my heart, just like before. I have a system too. What do you say? As long as you spare my life, I can give you every reward I get from the system!"
As he spoke, Xiao Ye seemed to grasp at his last life-saving straw. He hurriedly pulled out a jade slip and held it out to Huo Yuhao, his voice trembling with urgency.
"Right, right, look! This is a reward I got. It's a priceless treasure-the Great Desolate Imprisoning Heavenly Finger. I spent ten years of blood essence to get it. I'm willing to give it to you, along with all the rewards, cultivation methods, and skills in the system. I'll give you everything, as long as you let me go."
Yet Huo Yuhao's expression remained cold, and he was unmoved. Seeing this, Xiao Ye grew increasingly agitated, nearly losing his mind. "You can't do this! I'm a transmigrator. I was destined to be this world's protagonist! How could I, how could I die here?!"
He screamed hysterically at the virtual screen only he could see. "System, save me! I don't want to die. Save me, now!" But the system was deathly silent, giving no response.
"The system you're talking about-is it this thing?" Huo Yuhao said coldly. He reached into the air and grabbed the system interface, which had existed only in Xiao Ye's consciousness, pulling it out to hover above his hand.
"You can see it? Impossible, impossible! How can you see the system?" Xiao Ye jolted in shock, his face showing extreme terror, as though he had seen the most terrifying monster in the world. "You're not Huo Yuhao. You demon, who are you?"
"Who am I?" Huo Yuhao's eyes were deep and muddled, like a bottomless, shadowy pool. "I am myself. That's all." With that, he closed his fingers and crushed the so-called system. With a crack, the system interface broke into countless fragments and dissolved into the air.
"What?" Beyond the terror in Xiao Ye's eyes, there was now a greater measure of confusion. His eyes wide, he stared fixedly at the scene in disbelief, murmuring, "Impossible, this is impossible..."
"No, Huo Yuhao!" Xiao Ye suddenly screamed in a frenzy, his voice shrill and mournful. "You're nothing but a dog raised by Tang San! Once a dog, you'll be nothing but a dog for the rest of your life!
"You can't kill me. I know everything about all of you. Don't you want to know what happens in the future?"
Huo Yuhao ignored his shouting. Dense Soul Power instantly coated the White Tiger Dagger in his hand, and a cold light flashed as it swept across Xiao Ye's throat like lightning. Xiao Ye's voice stopped abruptly. A faint gurgle came from his throat, and then he slowly fell, lifeless.
"Since you like transmigrating so much, I'll send you to the Hall of Yama. Consider it my fulfilling one of your wishes," Huo Yuhao said coldly.
But Huo Yuhao did not stop there. He frowned slightly and muttered, "There's no need for that. Even if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have searched your souls. The threat you pose is on the same level as Tang San's. I'd like to see where you really came from."
With that, he began chanting a divine Necromancy incantation. The power of Necromancy surged around him as he reached out and seized Xiao Ye's head.
As the Necromancy took effect, Huo Yuhao's consciousness slowly probed into the depths of Xiao Ye's soul and instantly examined the memories within it. It turned out that this man came from a blue-and-white planet. In his original world, he and the girl beside him had been childhood sweethearts.
By a chance opportunity, the two had both transmigrated to the Douluo Continent.