Yu Tianheng glanced at Li Si's attire, his travel-worn appearance, and the fact that he was accompanied by only one "servant."
Wasn't this the very definition of "suffering"?
Uncle, your entire outfit isn't even worth a single gold soul coin!
"Is his resentment that deep?"
Yu Tianheng thought to himself.
"Hmph! Even if we're related, you're not escaping a beating today."
Li Si smirked. What had happened earlier couldn't just be brushed aside.
Yu Feng's reckless actions were undoubtedly influenced by Qin Ming's teachings.
"Those who avoid trouble are useless!"
As a proud graduate of Shrek Academy, Qin Ming carried over some of its philosophies into his teaching.
While such rhetoric sounded inspiring, it was easy for young soul masters to be misled.
Experienced veterans would scoff at such ideas unless they were indoctrinated from a young age.
This kind of mentality was one reason why, thousands of years later, Shrek Academy became a scourge—a thorn in the side of the alliance.
Eventually, the alliance succeeded in dismantling Shrek Academy, though Tang San's scheming ensured that victory came at a cost.
The Emperor Team was dumbfounded.
"Wait… we're still fighting?"
"All of you, come at me. You reckless fools!"
Li Si's taunt echoed sharply.
Qin Ming froze briefly. The words felt eerily familiar, as if hearing the voice of the Shrek Academy dean from his student days.
Soul masters, especially young ones, were prideful and prone to anger.
Since Li Si refused to reconcile and insisted on fighting, how could they just stand there and take it?
After all, they were Heaven's favored children too!
The team released their martial souls one after another, preparing for battle.
With Qin Ming leading them, they still had a chance at victory!
"Martial Soul Possession!"
All members of the Emperor Team except Ye Lingling activated their martial souls, revealing their beast forms.
Their soul rings glowed in the optimal configuration: yellow, yellow, purple.
Yu Tianheng, still watching from the side, grimaced.
The power of the Golden Holy Dragon wasn't something Qin Ming or the others could fathom.
Besides, if Li Si truly was his uncle, raising a hand against him would be tantamount to courting death!
Dugu Yan was not present, and her replacement was another young woman, appearing to be in her early twenties.
Her martial soul was a fox, and her soul power was at Rank 35.
Shi Mo and Shi Mo, the twin brothers, possessed the Xuanwu Tortoise martial soul.
Ghost Leopard Oslo and Qin Ming completed the lineup.
Ye Lingling remained occupied healing Yu Feng and Yu Tianheng, so the three of them were excluded from the fight.
Facing five opponents, Li Si remained unperturbed. If anything, he looked slightly disappointed.
If it were a group of Soul Emperors or Soul Sages, this might have been entertaining.
But four Soul Elders and one Soul Emperor? Hardly worth his attention.
Shaking his head, Li Si's gaze sharpened. His figure blurred like a ghost as he charged straight at Qin Ming.
This was the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, a skill he had diligently cultivated after obtaining the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record.
As a former food-type soul master, Li Si had relied on Tang Sect techniques to prepare for dangerous situations.
A flash of purple light crossed his eyes as he activated the Purple Demon Eye.
Ever since absorbing the power of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Li Si's mental strength had reached the pinnacle of the Microscopic Realm.
He was only one step away from the Vast Realm.
Qin Ming was caught off guard by Li Si's strategy.
Instead of targeting the weaker Soul Elders first, Li Si went straight for the strongest: him.
"Hmph! A quasi-Soul Emperor? If you'd obtained your sixth soul ring, I might fear you."
Qin Ming sneered inwardly.
"But as you are now, you're still one ring short of me!"
Steeling himself, Qin Ming advanced instead of retreating. His first soul ring lit up.
"First Soul Skill: Cang Wolf Transformation!"
With his first soul skill activated, Qin Ming's body swelled further in size.
This ability, similar to Dai Mubai's White Tiger Barrier, enhanced his strength and defense by 30%.
Li Si showed no intention of using any soul skills.
As soon as Qin Ming "transformed," Li Si's left hand shot forward, gripping Qin Ming's shoulder.
In an instant, Qin Ming was encased in ice, transformed into a frozen statue.
"???"
Yu Tianheng was utterly baffled.
Since when did the Golden Holy Dragon have ice attributes?
He had already noticed that the dragon scales on Li Si's arms were peculiar—one red, one icy blue.
The Golden Holy Dragon's scales should be entirely golden.
Apart from his arms, the rest of Li Si's dragon-transformed features were as expected.
"Could it be… another mutation?"
Scratching his head, Yu Tianheng couldn't make sense of it. Still, this mutation seemed to have made the martial soul even stronger.
The others instinctively turned to Yu Tianheng, expecting an explanation.
Yu Tianheng twitched, spreading his hands in helplessness. He had no idea what was going on either.
The principle behind Li Si's attack was straightforward.
He had simply unleashed a burst of ice-element energy on Qin Ming.
After absorbing the Ice Dragon King's divine ring, divine bone, and bloodline power, Li Si had gained a unique ability:
Elemental Mastery—Water (Ice).
If Li Si unleashed his ice element, it would manifest as Ultimate Ice, far surpassing the so-called Extreme Ice of the Arctic's two Snow Emperors.
Even if the Ice God himself returned, he wouldn't dare claim his ice surpassed that of the Water Dragon King.
Between them, their ice abilities were evenly matched, though the Water Dragon King held a slight edge due to her superior cultivation level.
Glancing at the frozen Qin Ming, Li Si examined his hands and cursed inwardly.
"I've gained mastery over ice and fire elements, but I haven't bothered to develop them properly!"
"I could've been a ranged mage, but here I am, brawling like a brute…"
"I'm such an idiot."
Realizing this, Li Si backed off, creating distance between himself and the others.
His actions left the group puzzled.
At that moment, the ice around Qin Ming shattered, freeing him.
It wasn't that Qin Ming had the strength to break free.
Li Si had intentionally released him.
"Hiss…"
Even with his martial soul possession and first soul skill active, Qin Ming shivered violently.
The cold had penetrated to his very soul.
Qin Ming looked at Li Si with a mix of confusion and fear, his previous arrogance completely gone.
Only he understood the sheer helplessness of being frozen solid and the bone-deep cold that accompanied it.
And this was after considering that his martial soul, the Blazing Wolf, was inherently fire-aligned—a high-level beast martial soul.
Yet against Li Si's ice, he hadn't stood a chance.
"Teacher Qin, are you alright?"
Hearing this, Qin Ming shook his head.
He was fine—Li Si had clearly held back.
Just as everyone thought the battle was over, Li Si moved again…
(End of Chapter)