Chapter 178: Can You Dodge This Attack?

The fifth battle had concluded.

To be honest, Huo Yuhao had gained quite a bit from it.

He wasn't fighting for something as abstract as "Shrek's glory." His main reason for participating in the Continental Elite Young Soul Master Tournament was twofold: first, to complete more achievement tasks, and second—more importantly—to hone his combat skills against soul masters of the same level and master the various applications of his Spirit Eye's soul skills.

Particularly the Spirit Eye's soul skills and the innate ability, Moment.

Huo Yuhao had also realized something.

The reason he hadn't been able to delve deeper into the Spirit Eye's domain was partly due to his lack of actual combat experience with it.

This was especially true for the time and space attributes that had evolved after the Spirit Eye's advancement.

To fully grasp the essence of his martial soul and unlock its latent potential, he needed comprehensive exploration and development.

The spiritual attribute was manageable—he had used the Imitation soul skill the most and had a profound understanding of it.

But Teleportation and Moment, especially the latter, were abilities he rarely utilized.

This wasn't entirely his fault.

The truth was, Ultimate Ice was just too convenient.

Especially after developing the Ice Soul Sword Domain, Huo Yuhao could achieve greater effects with less soul power expenditure.

It had special effects, raw power—everything he needed.

The Continental Elite Young Soul Master Tournament had gathered the most talented young soul masters across the continent. These individuals were the perfect whetstones for his growth!

Just witnessing the variety of martial souls and soul skills had already benefited him immensely.

Take Tang Xiaolei's Purpleflower Bow from the previous match, for example. His method of utilizing a one-time soul ring had inspired Huo Yuhao.

And so, Huo Yuhao had quietly used his fourth soul skill Spiritual Engraving to replicate it.

Though it was a one-time soul skill, the experience left a deep impression on him.

Of course, the immediate priority was to end today's individual elimination match first.

The penultimate contestant from Zhengtian Academy was a female student with delicate features and lustrous golden hair.

But what truly stood out was her martial soul.

A pair of radiant white wings burst forth from her back, bathed in a soft golden glow. The sacred aura they exuded only enhanced her already striking appearance.

Compared to Tang Xiaolei, who had fought earlier, this girl—Yu Mengdi—was far more popular.

After all, her beauty naturally drew favor.

Moreover, Yu Mengdi's strength was nothing to scoff at.

Five soul rings—two yellow, two purple, and one black—hovered behind her, marking the optimal soul ring configuration.

A ten-thousand-year fifth soul ring!

This was the hallmark of a true genius.

Achieving the perfect soul ring ratio was no simple feat.

Huo Yuhao's own popularity stemmed from the same reason. With his peerless looks, monstrous talent, and the backing of Shrek Academy, he had become the most talked-about competitor in this tournament.

While the soul master world ultimately respected strength above all, Huo Yuhao's youth led most spectators to overlook that principle.

The key was his limitless potential!

However, after his performance in today's individual elimination matches, the audience finally witnessed the true extent of this prodigy's power.

It was nothing short of astonishing!

Adding to the excitement was the extremely rare one-versus-seven scenario unfolding in this round-robin tournament.

Thus, while Yu Mengdi received cheers upon her appearance, many of them came from… let's just say, enthusiastic admirers and those rooting for the underdog.

No one actually believed she stood a chance.

Huo Yuhao's one-versus-seven sweep was already seen as an inevitability!

This treatment left Yu Mengdi seething.

Since when had a genius like her ever been dismissed so easily?

Her cultivation was second only to the team captain, Ye Wuqing, and in terms of future potential, she surpassed even him!

Her martial soul was an Holy Angel—albeit only a two-winged one—but it was still an immensely powerful martial soul. Her rapid progress was largely due to this innate advantage.

Naturally, she had always carried a subtle sense of superiority.

With a top-tier martial soul like the Holy Angel, she had been arrogant since childhood.

This was the first time she had ever been looked down upon.

Even if… it was the undeniable truth.

Before the match, even Zhengtian Academy had held no expectations for her.

Under the team leader's instructions, Ye Wuqing was already warming up!

This was what her teacher had told her: "Mengdi, just do your best. If you can force the opponent to reveal his soul skills, making it easier for Wuqing to secure victory in the end, half the credit will still be yours."

Who did they think she was?!

She was a Soul King with an Holy Angel martial soul!

She even possessed a ten-thousand-year soul ring!

Victory wasn't set in stone yet!

Besides—While it was common for Shrek's geniuses to defy conventional logic, they still couldn't outright violate the fundamental rules of soul masters.

The higher one's soul power cultivation, the deeper their reserves.

And right now, Huo Yuhao was only a Soul Ancestor—a full rank below her.

After five consecutive battles, there was no way he hadn't expended a significant amount of soul power.

How much longer could a mere Soul Ancestor hold out?

There was still a chance!

She had to admit, Huo Yuhao was strong.

The aura he emitted the moment she stepped onto the stage was oppressive.

But from the previous five battles, Yu Mengdi had also learned a few things.

Huo Yuhao relied on three key factors: Overwhelming mental strength, exceptional physical prowess and bizarre spiritual-type soul skills.

Thus, her first move was to create distance immediately.

Do the opposite of what others had tried.

While Huo Yuhao was formidable, spiritual attacks had range limitations.

The competition stage was shielded by a semicircular soul barrier, but its highest point reached nearly 100 meters above the ground.

Yu Mengdi refused to believe Huo Yuhao's soul skills could cover such an expanse.

'I have the high ground!' With that thought, Yu Mengdi flapped her angelic wings and soared into the air.

Her first soul ring flashed, and a golden longsword materialized in each of her hands.

"First Soul Skill: Divine Dualsword"

It was a unique weapon-type soul skill.

Once activated, any subsequent soul skill she executed with these swords would stack with the first skill's effects.

Yu Mengdi's strategy? Defend and counterattack!

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao was momentarily stunned.

Then it hit him—

'This is just a moving target.'

'Perfect. Tang Xiaolei, I'll carry on your legacy!'

This was the third senior's challenge to the second senior!

"Fourth Soul Skill: Spiritual Engraving!"

As the black ten-thousand-year soul ring behind him lit up, an ethereal purple bow materialized behind Huo Yuhao.

A mark on his soul ring faded away.

Huo Yuhao moved like lightning.

He didn't even need to draw the bow.

The Spiritual Engraving perfectly replicated all the prerequisites of the original soul skill.

And the cost? Basically nonexistent.

After this attack, Huo Yuhao could still reuse Spiritual Engraving, unlike Tang Xiaolei, who was restricted to one soul ring per short period.

Of course, Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Engraving originally had three daily imprints.

Once all three were expended, the imprints on his black soul ring would temporarily deactivate until they naturally regenerated over time.

But even if all three were used up, Huo Yuhao could still rely on the Blue Water Field solidified on his fourth soul ring.

Such was the power of Spiritual Engraving!

However, replicating the Purpleflower Bow's soul skill consumed a substantial amount of soul power.

Despite his deep reserves, this single attack drained nearly a quarter of Huo Yuhao's soul power.

Thankfully, the Tianyuan Baolian Gu quickly replenished the loss.

The outcome was inevitable.

Enhanced by the ten-thousand-year soul ring, Huo Yuhao's arrow was several times stronger than Tang Xiaolei's triple-shot earlier.

Its power had reached the Soul Emperor realm!

A pitch-black streak, wreathed in dark flames, tore through the air.

The surrounding space warped under its force!

Huo Yuhao: Can you dodge this attack?!

When Huo Yuhao's ten-thousand-year soul ring flared, the distant audience collectively held their breath.

This was the first time a ten-thousand-year soul skill had been displayed in the tournament, and everyone was eager to witness its might.

Sharp-eyed observers quickly recognized it—This was Tang Xiaolei's martial soul and soul skill!

The same one Huo Yuhao had faced in the previous match.

Confusion rippled through the crowd.

Few could guess that this purely spiritual soul skill originated from the Silverbrave Beast, a soul beast so rare that even Shrek Academy's ten-thousand-year archives had only scant records of it.

As for Yu Mengdi, locked onto by Huo Yuhao's attack, she was already drenched in cold sweat.

'What the—?!'

'Isn't this Tang Xiaolei's soul skill?!'

Forget how Huo Yuhao could use it—

'Why is it so much stronger?!'

The pressure was unfathomable compared to what Tang Xiaolei had emitted.

Yu Mengdi felt suffocated, as if an unstoppable force was bearing down on her.

Too smart for her own good!

No time for shock or regret.

As her soul rings flared one after another, she unleashed everything she had!

Raising the Divine Dualsword above her head, her third soul ring activated first.

Golden flames surged, and the faint silhouette of a six-winged angel materialized behind her.

"Third Soul Skill: Angel Protection"

Then, her fifth soul ring ignited.

Fifth Soul Skill: Angelic Godsealing Slash!"

Her voice rang out, each syllable resonating with the swords in her hands.

By the final word—Slash!—the twin sword merged, transforming into a colossal golden light sword over ten meters long and three meters wide.

A sacred hymn echoed as the radiant slash hurtled toward the incoming arrow.

With this move, Yu Mengdi demonstrated the Angel martial soul's superiority.

For ordinary soul masters, stacking two soul skills required immense skill. The more skills combined, the harder it became, demanding perfect compatibility and masterful control.

This was considered an advanced technique even in Shrek's inner courtyard.

Yet Yu Mengdi's martial soul granted her a natural advantage—her first soul skill could stack with any other.

And the Angelic Godsealing Slash took it a step further!

This attack combined her first, third, and fifth soul skills, augmented by the Holy Angel martial soul's innate power.

Its might rivaled that of a Soul Emperor's strike!

The enormous light blade shattered against Huo Yuhao's arrow.

BOOM—!

The explosion shook the entire stage.

From a distance, the arena was now a blinding spectacle.

The protective barrier flickered from dark yellow to gold, and the 108 soul masters maintaining it wore grim expressions.

Two opposing forces—radiant gold and abyssal black—collided violently.

The stage crumbled under the shockwave.

The deafening roar echoed far beyond Star Luo Square.

Then—The black light prevailed.

Huo Yuhao's arrow was focused on penetration, and its terrifying force pierced straight through Yu Mengdi's Angelic Godsealing Slash.

The remaining soul power shot toward her!

The referee acted swiftly. The moment Huo Yuhao fired, he intervened, shielding Yu Mengdi with his Martial Soul True Body.

It was almost a decapitation.

Being a referee was stressful!

He wanted to quit.

As the light faded, the figure of a giant elephant emerged—the referee's True Body form.

A defensive Soul Sage, he had barely managed to block the lethal strike.

Yet even with his True Body, he was injured, and the wound was far from shallow.

This alone spoke volumes about the piercing arrow's power!

"Tang Xiaolei's soul skill really suits me," Huo Yuhao mused.

Meanwhile, Tang Xiaolei himself stood below the stage, jaw slack.

"Isn't that… my fourth soul skill?!"

"Damn! That's insane!"

This "bootleg" version was multiple tiers stronger than his original!

This was exactly how he envisioned it!

How could Huo Yuhao, after seeing it just once, replicate it so perfectly—And use it against his own teammate?!

Tang Xiaolei could already imagine the retribution awaiting him back at the academy.

As for Ye Wuqing…

His scalp was tingling.

Even if he were in Yu Mengdi's place, he wouldn't have fared any better.

Sure, he loved challenging the strong, but he wasn't fond of being crushed.

Still, there was a silver lining.

Huo Yuhao's soul skill seemed to share Tang Xiaolei's usage restrictions—he likely couldn't spam it repeatedly.

Plus, such a move had to drain a massive amount of soul power.

So maybe…

'…Maybe we could—'

'Nope.'

'Forget it.'

'Losing 1-7 to Shrek isn't the worst outcome…'

…

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