Chapter 104.2: Reaching the Semifinals
Dai Yueheng had a rather large frame, but compared to Qian Yuan, he still appeared to be dwarfed by a taller giant. In terms of size, Qian Yuan was significantly bigger than Dai Yueheng.
Following the judge’s instructions, the two of them retreated to their respective halves of the arena. The moment the battle started, the two Assault System Battle Soul Masters released their martial souls.
Qian Yuan roared into the air, and his sturdy frame started to expand rapidly. His terrifying muscles ripped his clothes, revealing a metallic grey body of muscles. Two muscular and thick arms expanded from both sides of his body, and from those hands sharp claws, two inches long, grew out. His upper body bent over slightly and his sharp claws reached the ground. Scraping gently across the ground, he was able to leave clear lines on it.
Dai Yueheng also released his White Tiger martial soul. While it did not look as muscular and strong as his opponent’s, it was extremely strong too. Light flashed in his devilish pupils. Two yellow, two purple and two black soul rings pulsed rhythmically around his body. He was no way weaker than his opponent.
Qian Yuan roared and attacked first. In terms of type, both Dai Yueheng and he were the same type of soul master. His soul skill specialized in increasing his own powers, and he was most apt at close combat. However, Ma Xiaotao, who was an Assault System Battle Soul Master too, was stronger in terms of ranged attacks. In close combat, Ma Xiaotao could not compare to them.
The almost three meters tall Terrorclaw Bear roared lowly. As his first soul ring flashed, a layer of gold light cloaked his skin. His shoulders expanded outward from his body. Suddenly, he lunged vigorously propelling himself towards Dai Yueheng.
While Dai Yueheng had tiger claws, he was still smaller compared to his opponent in every single aspect.
When the road was narrow, the braver of the two would win. Dai Yueheng did not retreat. A layer of intense white light burst forth from his body, and every single strand of hair on his body stood up. His speed increased exponentially as he turned into a ray of white light and flew straight towards his opponent.
The two sides appeared to have clashed in the center of the arena.
Qian Yuan’s two thick shoulders moved in mid-air. He stretched out with his claws, seemingly covering the area before him, giving Dai Yueheng no chance of escape.
However, in reality, Dai Yueheng had no intention of escaping. The tips of his feet touched the ground, and his speed slowed by a fraction of a second. His tiger claws slashed out, crashing against his opponent’s sharp claws.
“Clank, clank!” Two screeching sounds exploded. Sparks flew from the arena. Shockingly, Dai Yueheng, who was a soul emperor, was at a disadvantage.
Dai Yueheng’s body trembled for the briefest of instants. The attack from Qian Yuan’s sharp claws actually knocked him back. He was at a disadvantage in terms of strength.
Seizing the initiative, Qian Yuan did not relent. He roared once more, and instantly chased straight after Dai Yueheng. This time, his third and fifth soul rings lit up. His body, which had originally shone with a grey metallic light, turned bronze-green, and then silvery-white. His entire body continued to expand. When he reached Dai Yueheng, he was already more than 3.5 meters tall. The muscles on his body mutated crazily. One could no longer tell that he was originally human.
While Dai Yueheng appeared to be retreating, his body was changing too. His hair turned gold, like that of his opponent’s initially. His first, third and fifth soul rings started to shine. In quick succession, he used his White Tiger’s Shield, White Tiger’s Vajra Transformation and White Tiger’s Devilgod Transformation.
Just as Qian Yuan rushed before him, and just as his sharp, silver claws were about to come slashing down, an icy light flashed in Dai Yueheng’s eyes, and his entire body mysteriously disappeared.
That’s right. In that instant, his entire body disappeared completely from before Qian Yuan, causing Qian Yuan’s attack to strike nothing but thin air.
Did Dai Yueheng use a soul skill that allowed him to teleport? Of course not. As the 白虎魂师, he did not possess that ability. His body naturally did not disappear, but instead changed direction suddenly. Right before Qian Yuan caught up to him, he jerked his head downward forcefully and spat a mouthful of white light onto the ground. This allowed him to send his body flying into the air with his own powers.
All of this happened too quickly. Qian Yuan had already attacked, and could no longer pull it back. The moment his attack landed on thin air, he sensed that something was wrong. However, at that moment, Dai Yueheng was already above his head.
Dai Yueheng did not use his tiger claws to strike Qian Yuan directly. Instead, as he came crashing down, he slammed his knees into Qian Yuan’s shoulder.
“Thud!” A low grunt came from Qian Yuan’s mouth. His legs wobbled, and under this humongous pressure, he almost fell.
A pair of giant claws lashed upward as he tried to dismember Dai Yueheng. This time, Dai Yueheng did not try to dodge.
His tiger claws lashed out to his left and right side, trapping his opponent’s sharp claws. His palms were as sturdy as a monolith. No matter how much strength Qian Yuan used, he was still immobilized.
“Your strength is remarkable indeed. If you were at the same level as me, I wouldn’t be able to match your strength. Unfortunately, I’m a soul emperor, and you are just a soul king. Furthermore, while your martial soul is strong, it is not agile enough. Even if you became a soul emperor, you would still die in a deathmatch between you and me. If I wanted to kill you, you would already be dead.”
Dai Yueheng’s cold voice sounded next to Qian Yuan’s ear. In the next moment, he slammed his knees together on both sides of Qian Yuan’s head. Immediately, The muscles on Qian Yuan’s humongous frame contracted involuntarily as he fell to the ground.
Dai Yueheng somersaulted into the air as he leapt off Qian Yuan’s body.
This battle was extremely short. While it appeared to be a straightforward fight, the danger in it could be felt by both teams. Regardless of whether it was Dai Yueheng’s tiger claws or Qian Yuan’s terrifyingly sharp claws, a direct strike by either would have been be fatal. This had been a fight of pure power, and Qian Yuan had lost. He had lost in terms of his cultivation, and also in terms of experience. Dai Yueheng used the cleanest and most efficient method to obtain victory. His victory was set the moment he was ‘knocked back’ by Qian Yuan. As a soul emperor, and as someone with the White Tiger martial soul that specialized in physical strength, how could he lose to someone weaker than him? Tricking his opponent into entering a trap, and then finishing him off with a single blow, this was the power of Shrek’s Inner Courtyard!
Before the judge came over, Dai Yueheng had already lifted the unconscious Qian Yuan. He made an ‘it’s fine’ gesture to the judge, and then brought Qian Yuan over to the waiting area for contestants, which was at the side of the arena.
“Gu Zhujian, the competition is akin to a battlefield. I may have used too much strength, but it was to obtain victory. I believe that if it were you, you would have done the same. There’s nothing else to say. Catch,” Dai Yueheng said as he sent Qian Yuan out. Naturally, the members of the Dou Ling team caught him.
A bitter smile crossed Gu Zhujian’s face as he said, “Thank you for showing mercy, Senior Dai.” All of them were clear that the moment the Dai Yueheng suddenly appeared above Qian Yuan’s head in the blink of an eye, Qian Yuan had no chance of victory. If Dai Yueheng had used his tiger claws to strike his head, Qian Yuan would have died for sure. However, Dai Yueheng did not do that.
This was the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament, where deaths and injuries were commonplace. However, Dai Yueheng did not even severely injure his opponent. He had shown much mercy this time, which helped reduce the hatred the Dou Ling team towards him.
The second representative from the Dou Ling team was Han Ling’er, an Agility System Soul Master who was also soul king.
This round would be a battle of speed versus strength.
Han Ling’er’s attacks were extremely sharp, and her speed was unparalleled. Her martial soul was known as the 闪电貂, and among all Agility System Soul Masters, she was one of the fastest. Other than her inability to fly, very few soul masters could match her short, speedy bursts on land.
Faced with such an opponent, Dai Yueheng adopted a passive approach. Faced with his opponent’s attacks, all he did was remain stationary instead of retaliating. After a full minute, Han Ling’er’s soul power could not keep up. As her speed decreased, she was forced into a corner by Dai Yueheng, and had no choice but to admit defeat.
Through two consecutive rounds of competition, he was able to beat two soul kings. The crowd started to feel the power of a soul emperor. Dai Yueheng’s performance in these two rounds could be summarized with three words: he held back. This was evidently not his full strength.
There was not much excitement about the results of the third battle when Chi Hengyu, the soul master with the Vajra Shield as his martial soul, stepped up. While his defensive abilities were impressive, Dai Yueheng taught him a lesson in terms of raw strength. Compared to the second battle, the two sides switched roles. This time, Dai Yueheng attacked while Chi Hengyu defended.
However, the results were reversed too. Earlier, Dai Yueheng had used his immense strength to expend all of Han Ling’er’s soul power. This time, his attacks were like a flood as they slammed into Chi Hengyu’s Vajra Shield head-on. Finally, he was able to send him off the arena.
Battle after battle, 白虎战魂帝 Dai Yueheng showed off his immense power. By challenging and defeating three opponents, he was able to end the individual elimination round. At the same time, he ensured that Shrek Academy was ranked among the top eight. The 斗灵皇家高级魂师学院 could pack up and go home.
After getting scolded by Wang Yan that day, Ma Xiaotao was much more well-behaved. Off the arena, she wanted very much to act, but she kept her silence.
After this battle, the fame of Shrek Academy grew even more. Dai Yueheng and Ma Xiaotao, both soul emperors, had left a deep impression on everyone.
The crowd was like this. They would only like the strong ones. Huo Yuhao, whose performance was exceptional, was gradually forgotten. So what if you had twin martial souls? If your cultivation was not enough, no one would care.
Huo Yuhao delighted in this. Over the next few days, as long as he had time, he would train with Wang Dong. Their soul power increased exponentially with the help of the Haodong Power and the Golden Light Left Arm Bone.