Just as the two of them were letting their imaginations run wild.
A rough-featured man in a black robe came down the aisle and stopped to the right of Xiao Yan and Yu Tianming.
The man chuckled softly. "Don't overthink it, you two. Our intermediate Soul Master arena has His Majesty's approval and is a perfectly lawful and proper place for competition. Here at the Son of Heaven's feet, how would we dare tolerate those wicked Soul Masters!?"
Yu Tianming narrowed his eyes. "And you are!?"
"I am Li Xian, one of the organizers of this intermediate arena!"
Xiao Yan asked, "Brother Li Xian, may I ask what exactly is going on with Qing Keke!?"
"Just a poor fellow with neither father nor mother."
Li Xian sat down in an empty seat beside them and said softly, "Qing Keke is an orphan I took in. Not just him; many of the Soul Masters who fight in the intermediate arena are much the same."
"Scarlet Demon Teng is the Martial Soul he innately awakened. It has nothing at all to do with his character."
"I believe a person should be judged by the person himself, not written off because of his Martial Soul. If his entire life were condemned just because of his unfortunate Martial Soul, wouldn't that be far too hasty and heartless!?" Li Xian looked at Xiao Yan and Yu Tianming and spoke helplessly.
Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes. "But he cultivated such a wicked Martial Soul to its current level and even became one of your arena defenders!"
Yu Tianming stared into Li Xian's eyes and said slowly, "You saw what happened just now. He was absorbing Dai Mubai's blood and turning it into his own strength!"
"If that's not an Evil Soul Master, what is!?"
Li Xian shook his head. "That's only in the arena. In the arena, any method is a way to win. It doesn't count as some wicked method!"
He paused, then added, "In ordinary life, Qing Keke has never done anything that offends heaven and harms others!"
"Let's hope so."
The battle on the stage was at its height.
Qing Keke wore a frenzied, intoxicated expression as he attacked wildly.
The original five Scarlet Demon Vines had increased to seven, sealing off every corner as they attacked Dai Mubai, blotting out the sky and covering the earth.
Dai Mubai didn't dare meet them head-on. Those vines were too bizarre; there was no way he could withstand them by force.
His only option was to dodge.
But dodging was definitely no long-term solution!
The spikes shoot out of the Scarlet Demon Vine at around three meters. Does that mean I have to keep a safe distance of three meters!? Dai Mubai analyzed and assessed the Scarlet Demon Vine's effect.
He raised his head and roared, a tiger's roar shaking the stage.
Qing Keke smiled strangely, then lunged forward, preparing to attack again!
Ten meters, eight meters.
Finally, Qing Keke stopped at a distance of about six meters and directed the vines into another round of attacks.
"At this distance, no matter how many vines you have, you can't do anything to me!" Dai Mubai laughed, thinking Qing Keke was nothing special.
Qing Keke sneered. "Kid, though you're strong, your actual combat is far too weak..."
"What did you say!?"
Several vines jerked violently, sending tens of thousands of spikes whistling through the air.
Qing Keke laughed. "I said you're too weak!"
They were like hornets swarming from their nest, locusts sweeping across the land, dark clouds pressing down on a city about to fall.
Scarlet Demon Teng's spikes could do more than attack passively!
This was an active attack!
A sheet of black overwhelmed every other color, seemingly ready to swallow Dai Mubai whole!
The unexpected strike made everyone's hearts leap into their throats!
"Sure enough, the fourth round is the end of the road. No one's made it past this round in two years, have they!"
"Dai Mubai still falls a little short in the end!"
"Once that strike lands, even a three-ring Soul Elder might be defeated!"
At that moment, everyone realized just how powerful Qing Keke was.
The defender of this fourth round was a true powerhouse!
"The last person to get past this round was a renowned prodigy of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan..." someone said, feeling both regret and pity for Dai Mubai.
"That was Yu Tianheng! The strongest of the entire Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's younger generation!"
"Dai Mubai really can't compare to Yu Tianheng."
It wasn't that Dai Mubai was too weak, but that Qing Keke was too strong!
After all, Dai Mubai was far younger right now!
"Old Yu, do you think Dai Mubai will lose!?" Xiao Yan turned to look at Yu Tianming, whose expression had grown very unnatural when he heard Yu Tianheng's name.
"Hard to say. After all, the last person to pass was Yu Tianheng." Yu Tianming shook his head.
Xiao Yan smiled. "Oh? Looks like you know him, Old Yu."
A shadow crossed Yu Tianming's brow. "He's just someone from Yu Xiaogang's branch. No matter how formidable or accomplished he is at such a young age, what does that have to do with me!?"
Xiao Yan blinked. "If I run into him next time, I'll be sure to teach him a lesson for you!"
He turned back toward the stage and said softly, "As for now... I don't think Dai Mubai will lose."
Xiao Yan had imagined what it would be like if he were the one facing Qing Keke.
No more than two moves!
That was all Xiao Yan would need to put that fellow flat on his back where he belonged.
Ultimate Fire would clear the field in an instant. That kind of wood-type Martial Soul was practically a piece of firewood.
After that, a casual kick would settle everything!
As for Dai Mubai right now...
At the center of the arena, black spikes whistled through the air like a dark storm.
If they hit him, the only possible outcome was a crushing defeat!
"Look, what's that!?" someone suddenly cried out.
The instant the storm was about to sweep over Dai Mubai, an intense white light burst forth and swept across the center of the arena.
"First Soul Skill: White Tiger Protection Barrier!"
A white dome of light blocked everything.
As Qing Keke stared, dumbstruck, the muscles all over Dai Mubai's body swelled again. He charged out of the white light like a fierce tiger descending a mountain, an unstoppable force!
"So you were holding something back after all!" Qing Keke gritted his teeth.
"Second Soul Skill: Vine Bite!"
The seven vines moved like the shadows of snakes, trying to trap the charging Dai Mubai like pythons coiling around a pillar and swallow him whole!
"As if I'd let you succeed!" Dai Mubai roared.
A howl shook the entire arena!
"Second Soul Skill: White Tiger Fierce Light Wave!"
A milky-white ball of light shot from his mouth like a tailed-beast bomb shell.
The vines shattered, unable to withstand the power of the light wave, and turned into wood chips.
Boom!
Brilliant milky-white light filled the air, tearing through the scarlet vines and bursting out of the dark storm, breaking through everything in its path.
Finally...
It reached Qing Keke.
Qing Keke murmured, "How is that possible..."
The next moment...
Boom!
White light exploded!
Countless people sprang to their feet, staring blankly at the arena.
The White Tiger Fierce Light Wave struck Qing Keke in the chest. With a puff, his sleeves burst apart, and he flew more than ten meters before landing at the edge of the arena, foaming at the mouth...
Dai Mubai tucked his hands into his trouser pockets and strolled lazily over to him. "It's true that my Soul Power is lower than yours, but you forgot that Soul Power differs in quality too. My Soul Power is far more concentrated than yours."
"That's also why your vines couldn't stop me!"
"You lost!"
Dai Mubai kicked Qing Keke out of the match.
Fourth round: Dai Mubai wins!
(Normal updates will resume tomorrow, and the pace will pick up too. Brothers, please keep supporting me.)
(With the New Year, updates were scarce and the schedule was erratic. This book has also flopped quite a bit. I'm crying.)
(End of chapter.)