At the other end of the arena, the silver-haired avatar suddenly changed tactics.
The twelve nine-leaf daggers combined into a rotating metal lotus, pressing down toward Ye Xinglan.
Ye Xinglan's eyes flashed sharply as her Star God Sword erupted with starlight. A supremely condensed sword qi slashed through the metal lotus, aiming directly for the avatar's throat.
Just as the sword qi was about to strike, the silver-haired avatar revealed a mysterious smile. His grin was chilling—skin-deep but not heartfelt—as his body rippled like water. The sword qi passed through him without causing any harm.
Heartless Blade Intent.
Heartless for Heartfelt. When an enemy experiences emotional fluctuations, it can link with the first soul skill to nullify their attacks by phasing out.
In a sense, this was an insight inherited from the main body—a capability the silver-haired avatar did not possess before the Ancient Gold Tree meditation.
Inside the observation room, Shen Yi abruptly stood up. "Is this… a spatial attribute?"
Wu Zhangkong's brow furrowed. "It seems we still know too little about this junior."
---
The combat style of the Jade Green Banyan Tree avatar was completely different. With each step he took, green vines sprouted from the ground.
The ever-growing vines were nearly outpacing Gu Yue's destruction.
"Three martial souls?" Xie Xie appeared in the observation room at some point, his voice trembling slightly.
He had just awakened from his egg-shaped pod and happened to witness the astonishing sight of the willow-leaf dagger avatar simultaneously controlling eighteen flying daggers in a blade array.
Wu Zhangkong glanced at Tang Wulin behind Xie Xie and shook his head lightly. "No, it's three completely independent martial soul systems."
He pointed at the Jade Green Banyan Tree avatar. "That one should be the innate martial soul, but…" Before he could finish, the avatar's skin suddenly glowed with a green luster, and when it blocked Gu Yue's spatial slash, only a faint white mark was left behind.
Shen Yi sucked in a sharp breath. "I've never heard of an innate martial soul being able to withstand spatial slashes."
Tang Wulin and the others stared in disbelief as Gu La unleashed his full might.
Regardless of how shocked outsiders were, it didn't affect Gu La from continuing to test the capabilities of his avatars.
He had no intention of hiding their abilities. After all, in the coming years, he would need them to handle tasks and learn at the Secondary Profession Association.
The battle in the arena raged on, while in a corner, the lightning panther Soul Ancestor cowered at the edge of the battlefield, trembling like a sieve. The figure of Gu La reflected in his brown pupils, appearing as if a demon god had crawled out of hell. Sweat soaked through his leopard-patterned outfit, pooling into a small puddle beneath his feet.
Gu La suddenly turned his head and gave him a smile.
"Ghost!"
The lightning panther Soul Ancestor let out a piercing scream, kicking up dirt with his legs as they scrambled backward. He flailed his arms wildly, his nails having transformed into claws that left trails of cold light in the air. "Don't come closer! Please!"
His voice was choked with tears, clearly terrified by the inhuman battle unfolding before him.
From the smoke, the final avatar stepped forth, his black robes fluttering without wind. His pale face bore a strange smile, the curve of his lips precise as if measured with a ruler. His voice pierced like an icicle into the bone marrow. "Congratulations, you're getting the hang of answering questions."
This avatar's complexion was almost translucent, revealing bluish-purple veins beneath the skin. When he released his martial soul, the temperature in the nearby forest plummeted ten degrees, and black mist spread.
A three-meter-tall ghost king apparition appeared behind him, its hair and beard writhing like living creatures. The dense yin energy condensed into tangible black fog, spreading outward. Most terrifying of all were the pair of blood-red eyes, capable of peering directly into one's soul.
Ghost-type martial souls were often innate or spirit-based, commonly found among evil soul masters. The Ghost King represented the pinnacle of yin energy concentration, becoming an elite martial soul close to the ultimate yin attribute.
Its yin energy possessed corrosive properties. As the black mist swept across the ground, rocks and plants emitted a hissing sound of corrosion.
Even the stars above seemed to flicker dimly. If one looked closely, they would notice their shadow writhing uncontrollably.
Moreover, the Ghost King avatar inherited the parasitic abilities of the Ghost King Vine and the main body's parasitic seeds. It excelled at planting spiritual and yin-energy seeds, turning enemies into puppets to control both mind and body—an unavoidable threat.
The Ghost King avatar had a mischievous streak. He elegantly raised his right hand, a dark green seed condensing at his fingertips.
When the seed embedded itself in the lightning panther Soul Ancestor's forehead, his golden pupils instantly clouded over.
Slap! The crisp sound of a slap echoed throughout the arena as he slapped himself uncontrollably with both hands, quickly leaving his cheeks red and swollen.
The most horrifying part was that he remained fully conscious—tears mixed with blood streaming endlessly from his wide-open eyes, his throat emitting muffled whimpers.
Gu La silently shook his head. Each avatar had its own personality, and the Ghost King avatar was clearly more malicious. However, as long as it didn't disrupt his plans, he wouldn't interfere.
"Stop, I surrender…"
The Ghost King avatar raised a finger to his lips, shushing softly. "Don't spoil the fun. Surrender isn't allowed."
---
Outside
"Senior Brother, should we end the battle?" Shen Yi suddenly spoke. "There's no need to continue this match. Gu La's advantage is far too great. Moreover… this has already exceeded the scope of a teaching demonstration."
"No need." Wu Zhangkong shook his head. "I understand Gu La. He knows his limits and won't leave lasting trauma."
He pointed at the red markers in the data stream. "Look here—he's precisely controlling his soul power and skills. Progress like this is rare."
"He's likely testing the effects of his soul skills. We shouldn't waste the resources of this arena session. Let him finish his experiments undisturbed."
Thus, the two teachers and the group of students who had exited early watched what resembled a "superhero movie" from the observation room.
However, Gu La's side felt more like the villain faction—and they held the upper hand, ultimately defeating their opponents and securing victory.
"As expected, Gu La won," Tang Wulin sighed.
Tang Wulin unconsciously wore a self-deprecating smile. He muttered, "Four perfectly coordinated combatants at the Soul Ancestor level…" Turning to Xie Xie, he added, "And he even held back when fighting us."
Luo Guixing's face went blank. "Holding back? That was practically letting the ocean flood in. I thought his first martial soul was terrifying enough—how could I have imagined his second martial soul would be even more outrageous?"
"What's going on with his soul skills? Summoning four soul masters to fight together—how is such an overpowered soul skill fair? How are others supposed to compete?"
Xie Xie voiced his complaints, and Luo Guixing nodded vigorously beside him. Exactly! He wanted to file a real-name report about someone cheating!
---
Gu La stood alone in the arena, the forest deathly silent. He reflected on the insights gained from the four avatars during the battle and the inspiration for developing his own martial soul.
While everything was still fresh in his mind, Gu La logged out, slowly awakening from the metallic pod. He pushed open the hatch and stood up.
Cai Yue'er, who had been invisible until now, materialized.
"Child, come with me to the Sea God Pavilion."
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