Chapter 206

: Scorpion Tiger Douluo
Huo Yuhao shook his head vigorously, but he couldn’t hide the excitement on his face. Sea God’s Pavilion! That’s the Sea God’s Pavilion! Not in his wildest dreams did he ever think he could enter the Sea God’s Pavilion so quickly.
The truth was that when the Sea God’s Pavilion’s Elders were discussing this issue of allowing Huo Yuhao into the Sea God’s Pavilion, nobody questioned the decision, even though Huo Yuhao was only seventeen years old.
Huo Yuhao’s entry into the Sea God’s Pavilion had nothing to do with Elder Mu. This happened because of his contributions to the academy, and he was rewarded accordingly.
One thousand three hundred and seventy-six blueprints – this was Huo Yuhao’s contribution to the academy. This meant he had sent the academy the blueprints to construct one thousand three hundred and seventy-six different soul tools. These blueprints had given the Soul Tool Department a great boost.
Shrek Academy didn’t lack for money. The most important limiting factor for the three native empires of the Douluo Continent to developing soul tools was the lack of precious metals. Shrek Academy’s situation in this aspect was comparatively better, and one reason for that was because of their financial power, while another was because of Shrek Academy’s inner structure.
Shrek Academy bore the weight of Shrek City on its shoulders. They had their own powerful trade association, which had already reached into the Sun Moon Empire. Precious metals had substantial strategic importance and were difficult to purchase, but that didn’t mean nothing could be done.
Over the past two years, as Huo Yuhao continuously had sent back blueprints, Shrek Academy’s Soul Tool Department had seen exponential advancements. Even though they still couldn’t compare to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, Huo Yuhao had managed to help them save a lot of time and effort in research.
The blueprints that Huo Yuhao had toiled and wracked his brains to draw were now in the Library of the Sea God’s Pavilion, and the original drafts were safely stored away. They had become a part of Shrek Academy’s history that would be there for a long time to come, and Huo Yuhao had been written into the academy’s history as a hero.
Xian Lin’er smiled and said,
You deserve this, Yuhao. It’s better if only you know about this, and we haven’t announced it to the academy yet. For one, we can protect you this way, and another reason is because you’re still a student at the academy. You will officially graduate from the inner courtyard after the next Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament.

Huo Yuhao was stunned momentarily, and protested,
But I haven’t completed my reconnaissance tasks.

Yan Shaozhe chortled and said,
What you have done carries ten times more worth than those reconnaissance tasks. Our teacher talked to me about your future path before he passed away – the academy cannot hold you back, and we can only support you and be something that you can fall back on. The Tang Sect has been established, no? That should be your platform for further development. However, you still have to win the championship during the big competition, and we strongly believe you have the ability to do so. You haven’t overlooked your cultivation while you’ve been toiling over soul tools, have you?

Huo Yuhao said confidently,
I already have five soul rings.

Yan Shaozhe looked astonished as he said,
Five? You already have five soul rings? So fast?

For normal students, reaching Rank 50 at the age of seventeen was considered extremely fast. Furthermore, Huo Yuhao was a soul master with an Ultimate martial soul. Cultivation was far more difficult for Ultimate martial souls, but he still managed to reach Rank 50 in just a little over two years! This was a great pleasant surprise for Yan Shaozhe.
Xian Lin’er giggled and said,
I think you can almost be the academy’s mascot now, Yuhao.


Why?


Because you’re a little monster! You’re the one among all the students that I’ve seen that fits that description the best.

Yan Shaozhe said,
Let’s go. We should grab something to eat too before we start travelling. Returning to Shrek Academy safely is the most important thing right now.

Yes, returning to Shrek Academy safely was of the utmost importance!
They had a simple lunch, and Fan Yu followed Yan Shaozhe’s instructions to take He Caitou, Ye Xiaosheng, and the other students to travel ahead. Yan Shaozhe and Xian Lin’er took Huo Yuhao and rested for a while longer before they sauntered out of Mapleleaf city and walked towards Shrek Academy. They took their time and walked slowly, so that they could distance themselves from the group in front of them.

If we are ambushed, you will protect Huo Yuhao and I will take the offensive.
Xian Lin’er said to Yan Shaozhe.
Yan Shaozhe frowned and said,
Lin’er! The older you get, the more stubborn and hardheaded you become. You still want to fight me over something like this?

Xian Lin’er raised an eyebrow and said,
You think I’m old? Take a look at yourself.


Ahem. In front of the child?
Yan Shaozhe muttered awkwardly.
Xian Lin’er grunted and said,
What child? Yuhao is your junior brother, and that means we all belong in the same generation. Age should never affect seniority in the hierarchy.


I can’t out-talk you. You can take the offensive, then. I will support you from the side, is that alright?
Yan Shaozhe’s black-bellied attitude would always be greatly affected in front of Xian Lin’er.
Xian Lin’ier said,
That’s more like it. I haven’t been active for a long time. I hope Jing Hongchen sends a powerful force to ambush us, so that I’m not all excited for nothing.

Huo Yuhao felt amused as he listened from the side. The two Deans didn’t seem nervous at all; this was the result of solid foundations and abilities. He had never even seen them in battle before. He didn’t know who Jing Hongchen would send after them – powerful soul masters? Long-range cannons? With the two Deans’ perception of danger, long-range cannons would probably not be a threat at all unless Class 9 stationary cannon shells were used. Furthermore, that would be too conspicuous. The Illustrious Virtue Hall wouldn’t want to antagonize Shrek Academy, at least not on the surface. Both parties didn’t have any deep-seated grudges or conflicts. Jing Hongchen would probably give everything he had if this were the Body Sect, but this was Shrek Academy.
After another hour or two, Yan Shaozhe glanced at the sky and said,
It’s about right. Let’s pick up the pace.

The three of them unleashed their flying-type soul tools and soared into the sky toward Shrek Academy. Huo Yuhao felt much more relaxed and comfortable flying with his Deans. He didn’t have to deal with air resistance, as Yan Shaozhe released his soul power and enveloped the three of them inside it. The propulsion force was released by their flying-type soul tools at the same time, and they flew at a breakneck speed. Both Deans were Titled Douluo; they would be back at Shrek Academy in less than four hours.
Huo Yuhao thought to himself that he couldn’t let himself be a burden in the battle that was to come.
—
Time continued to pass, and they came closer and closer to Shrek Academy. They were deep inside the Heavenly Soul Empire’s territory after another hour.

Are they not coming at all? If that’s the case, we will have wasted our efforts,
Xian Lin’er said with a tinge of regret in her voice.
Yan Shaozhe snapped,
Isn’t that a good thing? Returning to Shrek Academy safely is the most important thing. You have never corrected your belligerence, Lin’er.

Xian Lin’er rolled her eyes at him and said,
Have you forgotten my title?

Yan Shaozhe laughed and said,
How can I forget? You’re the Valkyrie Douluo. You’re the only person that dares to call yourself that. The Valkyrie that soared through the skies left such vivid memories for many back in the day.


Just not with you, yes?
Xian Lin’er grunted.
Yan Shaozhe said,
Don’t be like this, Lin’er. We are both people with families, and you’re still so merciless and unforgiving. We’re already so old – why can’t we just live harmoniously with each other?

Xian Lin’er turned around and muttered,
Can’t be bothered with you anymore.

Their expressions suddenly changed while they chatted. Huo Yuhao could feel two frightening soul power undulations rippling nearby, and he automatically gazed into the distance.
The weather was clear today, and the skies were blue for endless kilometers ahead. However, at this moment, the skies had transformed in the distance, and a tremendous patch of dark clouds was drifting toward them rapidly – the dark clouds seemed to be expanding continuously, and it felt like they were bearing down on them and threatening to overwhelm everything.
Xian Lin’er grunted coldly, and stepped out of Yan Shaozhe’s protective circle with a single movement. Her flying-type soul tool slowed in the sky, and she hovered in midair.

Stay behind me,
Yan Shaozhe said to Huo Yuhao,
All you have to do is watch.


Yes.
Huo Yuhao acknowledged.
The dense and gloomy clouds were coming faster and faster, and they were able to see exactly how vast they were when they got closer. The dark clouds gradually took form in the sky, and actually transformed into the appearance of an enormous tiger’s head. A thick voice that resembled rolling thunder could be heard, saying,
Do you still remember your old friend, Yan Shaozhe?

Yan Shaozhe’s eyes squinted faintly.
You’re still alive, Zhang Peng! Are you preparing to let me finish you today?


Your mouth is still so dirty, Yan Shaozhe! I want to see who will finish who today!

The vast dark clouds in the shape of a tiger’s head released a deafening roar, and terrifying pressure erupted in the next moment that barreled toward the three of them like a tidal wave.
Xian Lin’er made her move at this moment. She howled into the sky, and soared upwards in a flash. Scorching green flames burst from her body. Xian Lin’er body was growing larger, and it didn’t take more than a few seconds before she was more than five meters tall, and a set of green armor appeared on her.
This suit of armor covered her entire body like scales. Huo Yuhao didn’t know Xian Lin’er’s actual age, but he could tell from her conversation with Yan Shaozhe that she must be quite old. But as he watched Xian Lin’er release her armor, and two yellow, two purple, and five black soul rings rose from beneath her feet, her enlarged frame made her seem younger, as if she were a young girl in her twenties. She had a valiant and heroic demeanor that was full of fighting will.

The Valkyrie Douluo, Xian Lin’er?
The deep voice suddenly became a little strange.
I thought the two of you broke up? How are you still with Yan Shaozhe, this hypocrite, this false gentleman?


Enough bullshit.
Xian Lin’er was infuriated, as he’d touched a sore spot. She reached into the sky with her right hand and a pillar of green flames erupted, following which a pike appeared in her hands.
A soul tool! Huo Yuhao instantly realized that the pike was a soul tool, and a close-combat soul tool at that.
It was a Class 8 close-combat soul tool!
Xian Lin’er pointed the pike forwards, and a deafening draconic roar burst forth from her mouth. Green flames instantly exploded from her, transforming into an enormous dragon head before barreling towards the dark clouds.
A large mass of dark clouds vanished within the green flames; the green dragon head held an absolute advantage.

‘The Valkyrie Soaring Through the Skies’—impressive.
A deep voice growled. As the dark clouds dissipated, a human figure appeared in their place. He curled his right hand into a fist and then sent it barrelling through the sky.
The dragon head quickly dissipated amidst several violent booms. When it did, Xian Lin’er gazed into her adversary’s eyes in the distance.
Her adversary was an elderly man dressed in black who was standing on a patch of dark clouds. His skin was extremely tanned, while one of his eyebrows was, peculiarly, a bit higher than the other. A large ‘King’ character was written in black on his forehead. He had a small, stocky frame that didn’t match up with his voice, and looked tiny compared to Xian Lin’er, who was currently more than five meters tall.

You still dare to appear in the world, Zhang Peng? Have you already forgotten how Elder Mu showed you mercy back then?
Xian Lin’er pointed her pike at him as she angrily asked.
The elderly man lowered his voice and replied,
Of course I remember. Elder Mu gave me a chance, and I will always remember the favor and mercy he showed me. I didn’t reveal myself to the world the entire time that Elder Mu was alive, but now that Elder Mu has passed, that vow no longer applies. That favor has taken away so many years of freedom from me—nobody else will ever restrain me like that again. Of course I’m going to show myself to the world once more. I won’t harm you or Yan Shaozhe because we were once acquainted—the two of you can go. However, you have to leave that little fella behind.

Yan Shaozhe smiled and said,
Zhang Peng, you seem to get more and more messed up the older you get. You’re actually in cahoots with the Sun Moon Empire; seems like you’ve found a nice boss.

The black-robed elderly man retorted angrily,
Nonsense, nonsense! I don’t know anything about the Sun Moon Empire, nor anything about the Illustrious Virtue Hall. Hand him over! The two of you can piss off.

A chilly light flickered in Xian Lin’er’s eyes.
Don’t you think that you’re being overconfident and unrealistic? I want to see just how you plan on chasing us away.
She roared into the sky once she’d finished speaking, and her body flashed through the air like a green lightning bolt. She appeared before the elderly man in an instant, and thrust her pike towards him. A deafening boom cracked through the sky like thunder, followed by the tremendous shadow of a green dragon, which flickered once before disappearing behind her back as the tip of the pike arrived before the elderly man.
The elderly man placed his hands together in front of his chest, causing a black sphere to immediately appear in the center of his palms as two yellow, two purple, and five black soul rings swiftly rose from his feet. His nine soul rings glowed alternately, while the black sphere blocked the tip of Xian Lin’er’s pike.
Space seemed to implode in that moment, at which point Huo Yuhao felt momentarily dazed and the sky suddenly turned dark.
Xian Lin’er and the black-robed elderly man had now become embroiled in battle.
Zhang Peng’s fists were his weapons. Dense black fog appeared with every strike he delivered. On the other hand, Xian Lin’er’s fighting style was a lot more savage and wild: Loud dragon roars could be heard every time she stabbed out with her pike and repeatedly forced Zhang Peng backwards in the sky.
Yan Shaozhe said,
Watch closely, Yuhao. A battle of this level is hard to come by, and will be extremely beneficial towards your cultivation. The man in black is called Zhang Peng, and his title is ‘Scorpion Tiger’. He’s an evil soul master who’s martial soul requires him to continuously consume animal blood to sustain and evolve itself. He’s not that bad compared to most evil soul masters though. Our teacher caught him some time ago, but since his martial soul’s evil aura wasn’t that dense, and since he’d never harmed anyone else before, our teacher let him go. It’s been many years since then, thus he’s probably a Transcendent Douluo now. He’s extremely difficult to deal with. Right now, he’s just testing Xian Lin’er’s abilities; he’s yet to reveal his abilities as an evil soul master. However, he’s managed to become a Transcendent Douluo solely because his martial soul wasn’t that evil. A Transcendent Douluo who was also a pure evil soul master would be a lot harder to deal with.

Zhang Peng, the Scorpion Tiger Douluo, was pushed back continuously, but he didn’t seem disoriented or panicky at all. The only thing he felt was a little astonished as he passively defended himself against Xian Lin’er’s hysterical onslaught.
Xian Lin’er cultivates both her martial soul and soul tools. She’s probably still quite far from Yan Shaozhe in terms of fighting ability, but since when did her offensive abilities become so powerful? Could it be that…?
How could Huo Yuhao let this opportunity go? He immediately voiced the doubts in his mind,
Dean Yan, the gigantic dragon conjured behind Dean Xian should be her martial soul, right? Her body has become so huge, and it looks a bit like she’s using her Martial Soul True Body. Yet, her martial soul seems like a dragon. What’s going on?
There was no way that he could address Yan Shaozhe as his senior brother, as Yan Shaozhe was more than a hundred years old. Thus, he respectfully addressed him as
Dean Yan
.
Yan Shaozhe replied,
All seven-ringed soul masters have a Martial Soul True Body. However, Martial Soul True Bodies can be mutable. Through years of research within the academy, we’ve discovered another method of unleashing our Martial Soul True Body once we become Transcendent Douluos. Even though this won’t increase its power, we’ll be able to maintain human form in battle. For soul masters that are more adept at close combat, being able to keep their human form can be quite beneficial. We call this battle technique ‘True Body Possession’.

Huo Yuhao felt his heart tingle after hearing Yan Shaozhe’s explanation. His martial souls were the Spirit Eyes and the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion. Even he himself had no idea what his Martial Soul True Body would be like once he broke through to rank 70. Would he transform into a scorpion for battle? As for his Spirit Eyes, would he actually become a pair of eyes? Only time would tell.

Dean Yan, are seven-ringed soul masters entirely unable to use the True Body Possession battle technique?
Huo Yuhao asked.
Yan Shaozhe replied,
Not necessarily. However, using the True Body Possession technique will divide a soul master’s concentration, thus the soul master must be extremely adept at manipulating their spirit. They’ll have to figure out the proper fusion between soul power and spiritual power, as well as the issues brought about by using the True Body Possession technique after revealing their Martial Soul True Body. Even if they’re able to achieve this, the duration that it can be maintained in battle will be reduced by two-thirds compared to using one’s Martial Soul True Body.

It’s strenuous and unrewarding. You’re a spiritual-type soul master, so spiritual manipulation won’t be a problem for you, but it remains to be seen how well you’re able to manipulate your spirit. Even if you can successfully use the True Body Possession technique, it might weaken your abilities, and the benefits might not make up for the losses. You’ll understand more when your cultivation reaches that stage and you can see for yourself.


Yes.

Huo Yuhao didn’t think too much about the issue of True Body Possession. His cultivation was still low, and his situation was drastically different from that of a normal soul master’s. His spiritual power was far stronger than anyone else at the same level, and he had twin martial souls, one of which being Ultimate Ice. Furthermore, the Snow Empress’ soul had also miraculously appeared, and he’d obtained four powerful soul skills just like that—even if one couldn’t be used.
This was the reason that Huo Yuhao could faintly feel that, once his cultivation reached rank 70, his situation would be even more different than a normal soul master’s. As such, he also felt that this True Body Possession technique might actually be useful for him after all.
The battle raging in the sky continued to become even more violent and epic. Xian Lin’er lived up to her name as the Valkyrie as she spiraled and waltzed through the sky. The sky crackled vigorously every time she struck with her pike, green flames transforming into air ripples that expanded outwards. As things continued, she repeatedly forced Zhang Peng back, and it felt as if Zhang Peng was barely holding on.

Dean Yan, Dean Xian’s martial soul…

Yan Shaozhe slapped his forehead and said,
Oh, I forgot to tell you. Lin’er’s martial soul is very unique; it’s considered a mutant martial soul, thus that means she’s probably the only one in the entire world with her martial soul. She’s named her martial soul the ‘Greenflame Dragon’. If you think that her martial soul is a fire-type martial soul, then you’re extremely wrong. Her mutant Greenflame Dragon martial soul is actually wind-type. The green flames that you see are actually made up of extremely compressed air that’s constantly reverberating. They’re exceptionally destructive, and can cause disintegration.


Disintegration?
Huo Yuhao stared at the green flames in curious astonishment. No matter how he looked at it, he couldn’t tell that her martial soul was a wind-type martial soul.
Yan Shaozhe nodded and said,
Disintegration refers to the explosive power brought about when the winds are so compressed that their energies expand outwards once the winds erupt. Under such circumstances, anything that the winds touch will be damaged by this explosive power, and in turn will disintegrate. The explosiveness is possibly superior to the Fire Dragon martial soul, which is the reason that Lin’er is adept at frontal battles and breaking through lines. However, you can’t underestimate Zhang Peng, as he hasn’t revealed his true abilities yet. Even though he’s only considered a half-evil soul master, he’s still an evil soul master; he’s still quite difficult to deal with.

Zhang Peng finally couldn’t take it anymore as Xian Lin’er continued to force him back. The dark clouds suddenly contracted into the sky, and he roared as he punched out with both fists. A deep and coarse tiger roar echoed through the air, while the sound waves and air ripples knocked Xian Lin’er’s three continuous strikes away. Zhang Peng’s body rapidly expanded, and he instantly transformed into an enormous black tiger—his Martial Soul True Body.
The giant black tiger was more than fifteen meters long, while his tail was raised high into the air and now had a hook that flickered with dark light on the end. The dark clouds in the sky were now beneath his feet, and his purple eyes were bursting with hostility. He opened his mouth and roared, the intense sound waves permeating the skies as endless echoes reverberated through the air. Dark shadows were repeatedly released from the dark clouds beneath him, and they transformed respectively into soul beasts of all shapes and sizes as they wailed and howled shrilly and then pounced towards Xian Lin’er.

Zhang Peng is launching his powerful moves. That’s his Scorpion Tiger Martial Soul True Body. The Scorpion Tiger is born from an exceptionally powerful soul beast known as the Darkdemon Evil Tiger. However, it’s considered a subspecies, as it’s not as dark. Even though it’s not as formidable as the Darkdemon Evil Tiger, it also requires regular consumption of soul beast blood and spirit to sustain itself and evolve. What he’s releasing now are the spirits of soul beasts that he has absorbed and his own beast souls that are formed through the fusion of spiritual power and soul power. This is Zhang Peng’s signature move, and it’s incredibly hard to deal with. Beast souls are highly resistant to physical attacks, while they’re also equipped with both physical and spiritual offensive capabilities. The user, Zhang Peng, can also integrate himself into any beast soul for a sudden ambush at any time.

Yan Shaozhe’s live analysis gave Huo Yuhao a deeper understanding of this Scorpion Tiger Douluo. He felt a tingling in his heart as he watched the beast souls in the sky. For him, the status of Titled Douluo was still very far away, and he still had a long way to go to reach that level. However, he was most unafraid of spiritual attacks – after all, he was a student of the Calamity Necromancer, and the Divine Law of Necromancy had been imparted to him. In some sense, he was a necromancer himself, and it couldn’t get any easier for him to become an evil soul master if he wanted to. Of course, Huo Yuhao didn’t see himself that way, and neither did he want to become an evil soul master. What he wanted to do was kill evil soul masters.
Xian Lin’er could no longer maintain her previous advantage once Zhang Peng released his beast souls. The pike in her hands danced through the sky, and her onslaught continued like tidal waves, but the beast souls were exceptionally difficult to deal with. They were beast souls that Zhang Peng had cultivated over many years, and they also had his spiritual imprints. There were twelve main beast souls, and these twelve main beast souls made up Zhang Peng’s eighth soul skill – the Twelve Beast Envoys.
The Twelve Beast Envoys all had cultivations equivalent to an eight-ringed soul master. Even though they didn’t threaten Xian Lin’er, they had no problem entangling her. If these main beast souls were attacked, they could absorb the other normal beast souls around them to replenish themselves. Zhang Peng looked on from the side in his Scorpion Tiger form, and his body gradually became incorporeal while the dark clouds beneath his feet began to expand once more and permeate the entire battlefield.
Huo Yuhao was under the protection of Yan Shaozhe’s soul power, so he couldn’t feel how powerful the soul power undulations were outside. However, half the sky had turned black at this point, and green lightning flickered incessantly from time to time. It was even appropriate to describe the skies as filled with calamities and natural disasters.
Yan Shaozhe’s eyes suddenly looked in another direction, and he muttered,
Why hide yourself if you’re here? Come out. I knew that Zhang Peng himself wouldn’t have the confidence to take on both me and Xian Lin’er.


You live up to your name as the disciple of the Dragon God Douluo. Impressive senses.
An old voice rang out in the sky, and a crack suddenly opened in the air as a human shadow stepped out from within.
He was also an elderly man, but his appearance was much better compared to Zhang Peng. This elderly man was tall, and the silver hair on his head was combed as neatly as could be. His face was rosy like an infant’s, and his long eyebrows draped down from either side of his face as he placed his hands behind his back. He levitated in midair just like that, and didn’t release a single ripple of soul power at all. The soul power undulations released from the battle between Zhang Peng and Xian Lin’er dissipated when they came within ten meters away of him, and were unable to reach him at all.
Yan Shaozhe’s face became serious and solemn. It wasn’t because this elderly man directly mentioned Elder Mu when he appeared – it was also because he didn’t recognize this elderly man at all.
With Yan Shaozhe’s age and his status as Dean of Shrek Academy’s Martial Soul Department, he had seen most of Titled Douluo who had a reputation on the Continent. He could feel extreme danger and peril from this elderly man, but he couldn’t recognize him at all.
The elderly man smiled when he saw Yan Shaozhe’s wary eyes and said,
I haven’t left the mountain for quite some time, and most of my friends are probably gone by now. Even Elder Mu has passed away – what a waste. I’m here today for you, actually. I want to see whether Elder Mu’s disciple has inherited his abilities. My name is Long Xiaoyao, although I’m not sure if you remember me.

Long Xiaoyao? Yan Shaozhe shuddered when he heard this name, and a person’s figure surfaced in his mind. He blurted out,
You, you are the Dragon Emperor Douluo, Long Xiaoyao? You’re still alive?

Long Xiaoyao smiled and said,
Yes! I’m so old, but I’m still alive. It’s a pity that Mu En has passed before me.
A deep sentiment of grievance flowed within his eyes when he said this. Huo Yuhao was hovering beside Yan Shaozhe, and he could tell that this elderly man’s emotions were not false.
The relaxed expression on Yan Shaozhe’s face vanished completely. Not in his wildest dreams did he expect such a powerful being to be amongst the group that Jing Hongchen found to ambush them.
Who was Long Xiaoyao? He was the Darkness Holy Dragon, who shared a reputation with Elder Mu back in the day as the Twin Holy Dragons of Black and White!
The Dragon Emperor Douluo, Long Xiaoyao, and the Dragon God Douluo, Mu En.
Long Xiaoyao’s martial soul was the Darkness Holy Dragon. The Darkness Holy Dragon and Elder Mu’s Radiant Holy Dragon were the extremes of darkness and light among dragon-type martial souls, and their cultivation levels had rivaled one another back in the day. For some reason, Long Xiaoyao had suddenly vanished from the earth; Yan Shaozhe hadn’t even been born when Long Xiaoyao disappeared from the Continent. It was natural that he had never seen this powerful individual before.
Yan Shaozhe took a deep breath and forcefully suppressed the emotions in his heart. He bowed respectfully and said,
Greetings, senior Long. I never thought I’d be able to actually meet you one day.

Long Xiaoyao heaved a sigh and said,
It was me who didn’t dare to see Mu En! I have let him down too much, and I wouldn’t show myself to the world easily if not for the fact that he has passed away. But I am full of regret now that he’s really gone – I’ve never really had the courage to stand before him to apologize…

Yan Shaozhe felt a tingling in his heart and said,
I remember teacher saying that the two of you were really good friends back in the day. Even though you have a Darkness Dragon martial soul, you are upright and plainspoken by nature. Today…

Long Xiaoyao shook his head and said,
Mu En didn’t tell you about what happened between us back then. He’s just trying to save me some face – forget it, forget it. I will leave you with your lives today out of respect for Mu En.

Yan Shaozhe didn’t understand why Long Xiaoyao would appear here as their enemy. However, he could tell from Long Xiaoyao’s demeanor that he seemed to have some hidden trouble that he couldn’t talk about. His eyes squinted a little, and he forced a laugh as he said,
Senior Long, are you really going to bully the young?

Long Xiaoyao said,
Somebody has entrusted this task to me, and I have to do it since I’ve promised him. I owe someone a huge favor, so I have no choice but to let myself be used by this person. How about we do it this way – you shall take three attacks from me, hand over the ring in that little fella’s hands, and then you all can leave. I will let the two of you live. However, that girl will have to remain.

Yan Shaozhe became extremely worried.
Senior Long, we…

Long Xiaoyao raised his hand, the air around them suddenly twisted vigorously, and Yan Shaozhe couldn’t voice the rest of his sentence. His eyes became chilly, and a layer of blue light sparkled beneath his pupils.
My decision has been made. There is nothing more to be said – watch out.

As he spoke, Long Xiaoyao raised his right hand without even releasing his martial soul and pointed in Yan Shaozhe’s direction.
Yan Shaozhe placed Huo Yuhao behind him in a flash, and a layer of extremely dense white light erupted from his body. Crisp phoenix calls resonated across the skies, and a golden phoenix hovered behind his back.
Yan Shaozhe formed a circle with his arms as he pushed out with both palms. The phoenix calls became incredibly shrill, and even though Huo Yuhao was under Yan Shaozhe’s protection, he still felt as if his spirit was about to be torn to pieces. The Eye of Destiny was automatically activated, and he released his spiritual power and covered himself with a layer of golden light; only then could he stabilize and reorient himself.
If the sky was an enormous balloon, then Long Xiaoyao’s finger seemed to have popped this balloon.
A gigantic black hole that was three meters in diameter appeared without warning before Yan Shaozhe. It was like a monster with its mouth wide open, and it was about to swallow both Yan Shaozhe and Huo Yuhao whole.
White radiance burst forth from Yan Shaozhe’s palms and surged into the black hole. A series of seventeen explosive sounds crackled through the sky, and his body trembled continuously from the force as he retreated one thousand meters away in an instant.

Radiant Phoenix – not bad, not bad. No wonder you could become Mu En’s direct disciple.
Long Xiaoyao didn’t pursue, but nodded towards Yan Shaozhe instead.
Yan Shaozhe’s expression was unbelievably solemn at this point. One could fake his or her name, but one definitely couldn’t fake his or her cultivation. The Dragon Emperor Douluo’s cultivation was definitely in the same realm as his teacher, and even the Body Sect’s leader Du Busi, who was also an Ultimate Douluo, was probably inferior to him.

Two more times.
Long Xiaoyao muttered.

Bullying us youngsters is no big deal at all.
At this moment, a crisp voice that tinged with anger could be heard. Long Xiaoyao was about to launch another attack, but he was stunned momentarily.
Huo Yuhao stepped out from behind Yan Shaozhe, and there was grief and indignation in his eyes. He glared at Long Xiaoyao and said,
You are not worthy of speaking my teacher’s name – you’re not even worthy of being my teacher’s friend. You don’t need to pretend with those three attacks of yours. You will never get the ring back even if you kill me today. Even if I have to send it into a different dimension, I will never give it you.

Yan Shaozhe hadn’t expected Jing Hongchen to be able to find such a powerful individual, and Huo Yuhao also didn’t expect he would bring such trouble for Yan Shaozhe and Xian Lin’er. He could tell from Yan Shaozhe’s tone that they were facing a formidable being of the same generation as Elder Mu, and his cultivation was probably similar to Elder Mu’s as well. Such a terrifying existence wasn’t something that they could defend themselves against. When Long Xiaoyao kept bringing up Elder Mu’s name time and time again and after he forced back Yan Shaozhe, Huo Yuhao couldn’t take it anymore, and he blurted everything out in a bitter rage.