Tang San crouched by the edge of the Soul Duel Stage, ending this farce with a half-joking remark.
This could no longer be considered a match—it was completely one-sided domination.
Dugu Yan sat slumped on the ground, staring at the relaxed young man on the stage, too shocked to speak. Subconsciously, she murmured, "90, 60, 90."
Pfft—Tang San couldn't help but laugh as he jumped down from the stage. He extended a hand to help the fallen Dugu Yan up with gentlemanly grace, shaking his head. "I was just joking."
Without paying further attention to Dugu Yan, Tang San turned to Yu Tianheng and said, "The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon School wouldn't go back on its word, would it?"
Yu Tianheng gritted his teeth, his expression stiff, but in the end, all he could do was sigh. Excuses like higher Soul Power or luck in possessing a Spirit Bone were meaningless—the gap in strength was simply too vast to even warrant envy or resentment.
"I finally understand why the elders of my sect never speak of your father, Tang Hao. Every time I asked, they would only sigh. Unbeatable. I, Yu Tianheng, concede." Suppressing the pain in his right arm, he forced himself upright and asked, "What do you want to know? I won't break my word—as long as it doesn't involve sect secrets, I'll tell you everything I know."
"At least you're not completely disgracing the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon School. Don't worry, my questions won't involve your sect." Tang San continued, "Did you have a match against Shrek Academy's team?"
Hearing that Tang San was asking about the Shrek team, the others' expressions turned peculiar.
What was this? Mocking them outright? Poking at their sore spot!
Yu Tianheng nodded and answered truthfully, "Yes. A while ago, while training at the Sotou Great Soul Arena, we heard about an unbeatable team composed of Soul Masters ranging from the 20s to 30s in rank. We went to challenge them but suffered a crushing defeat. The team that defeated us was Shrek Academy's seven-member squad."
Tang San pressed further, "Who was on that team? Was Ning Rongrong of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School among them?"
Hearing Tang San inquire about Ning Rongrong, Dugu Yan's eyes narrowed with a hint of mischief, as if she'd stumbled upon juicy gossip. "I heard you and Ning Rongrong were engaged, but then the rumors say you destroyed the engagement. Oh heavens, are you regretting it now? Chasing after her in desperation?"
Tang San shot her an exasperated look. "It's not what you think. Ning Rongrong and I agreed to a duel due to the engagement dispute—a match at the Pan-continental Elite Soul Master Competition. I thought she would join your Heaven Dou Royal Academy, but instead, she joined Shrek and even defeated you all. I'm just gathering intel in advance, just in case."
"With your monstrous strength, you're afraid of losing?"
"Hard to say. That Shrek Seven Monsters team is quite strong. Back then, some of them were only two-ringed Great Soul Masters, yet they still defeated us. If we were at the same cultivation level, we would've lost even worse."
Realizing Tang San was here to learn about the Shrek team, Yu Tianheng recounted every detail of that battle.
Yu Tianheng said, "They call themselves the Shrek Seven Monsters , a team of seven. Their captain is the Evil Eye White Tiger, with the White Tiger Martial Soul and thirty-eighth rank Soul Power. He can perform a Martial Soul Fusion Technique with a twenty-eighth rank female Soul Master in their team who has the Netherworld Spirit Cat Martial Soul. That fusion skill is extremely powerful—if that female Soul Master reaches the thirtieth rank, its strength could rival a Ten Thousand Year Soul Skill."
"There are also two three-ringed Soul Elders. One has a Food-Type Martial Soul and calls himself the Sausage Specialist, with a sausage Martial Soul. His Soul Skill is unique, allowing teammates to fly, which caused us significant trouble. The other has a rabbit Martial Soul and calls herself the Soft Bone Charm Rabbit, with thirty-first rank Soul Power. Her combat ability is exceptionally high, almost single-handedly making up for the Soul Power gap among the other team members. Her practical combat skills surpass all of ours, completely unlike what you'd expect from a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl."
"Then there are two two-ringed Soul Masters. One is your fiancée, Ning Rongrong, whose Soul Power was twenty-seventh rank at the time—you already know about her Martial Soul. The other is a male Soul Master with a Phoenix-like Martial Soul, twenty-eighth rank."
When Yu Tianheng mentioned Ning Rongrong's Soul Power being only twenty-seventh rank, Tang San frowned slightly. He had assumed Shrek Academy's strength came largely from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's support abilities and had guessed Ning Rongrong would have reached at least the thirtieth rank by now.
However, Tang San wasn't overly surprised. Soul Power advancement depended heavily on opportunity. His own progress to the fortieth rank was largely due to his Innate Full Spirit Power and the boost from his Rakshasa Martial Soul awakening—otherwise, he'd probably be around thirty-second or thirty-third rank now.
"You said the Shrek Seven Monsters —that should mean seven people. There's still one more. Who is it?" Tang San counted and realized only six had been described.
At the mention of the seventh member, the members of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy exchanged uneasy glances, their expressions odd.
Yu Tianheng frowned. "The seventh one... we're not entirely sure. The registration form listed thirty-second rank Soul Power, with the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul."
"Huh? Blue Silver Grass?" Tang San's eyes filled with disbelief. Blue Silver Grass was inherently considered to have zero innate Soul Power—zero Soul Power meant one couldn't even become a Soul Master, let alone cultivate to the thirty-second rank.
Ye Lingling, standing nearby, spoke up. "That Blue Silver Grass Soul Master didn't stand out at first. She just used her Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul to interfere and block, like a traditional control-type Soul Master, so we didn't pay much attention. It wasn't until the very end, when I used my Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul to heal everyone's injuries and we prepared to counterattack, that she revealed her true strength."
"We didn't even see how many Soul Rings she used. The entire Soul Duel Arena was suddenly overgrown with Blue Silver Grass. These vines couldn't be destroyed—no matter if we used poison or lightning, they'd regrow instantly. Eventually, they covered our entire bodies, binding us all. We couldn't do anything, so we surrendered."
"I suspect... she has a Domain, just like you."
Hearing this, the others nodded in agreement and glanced at Tang San. Yu Tianheng said, "I was only suspicious at first, but now that I've seen you use a Domain, I'm certain that Blue Silver Grass Soul Master must possess a Domain. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been defeated so quickly. A Domain truly lives up to its reputation as a Soul Master skill said to rival a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring. It's utterly overwhelming."
At first, they hadn't believed that an Innate Domain could create such a vast difference. Now they were convinced—having a Domain and not having one were completely on different levels.
"A Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul with an innate Domain? What? Am I listening to a fairy tale?" Tang San grew increasingly confused, his face full of question marks. "You've completely overturned common knowledge in the Soul Master world."
"What's that Blue Silver Grass Soul Master's name?"
"The
registration form says: Lan Yin."
(End of Chapter)