He Tian's murderous intent was palpable.
He'd heard his sect leader's exchange with the Dugu family the day before and already formed his judgment: the Dugu were arrogant and disrespectful. The only thing left was to settle matters on the arena with raw power.
Everyone knew the Dugu clan's poison reputation—once poisoned, it was often incurable. He Tian had taken antidotes before stepping onto the stage. He also trusted his powerful first spirit technique; he was confident Dugu Feng would be vaporized in an instant.
"Evil Blade!" he roared.
Leaping into the air, He Tian's claws sliced twice. Dozens of black-and-blood-red tiger-claw phantoms erupted, radiating a grim chill as they slammed toward Dugu Feng. The phantoms moved a s if teleporting and they were gone in an instant.
That spirit skill fused wind's cutting force with evil's corrosive power, fully exploiting the Black Demon Tiger's nature. It was devastating. He Tian pictured Dugu Feng unable to cast anything back and just being one-shot killed.
In the stands, the Black Demon, who'd been sitting in the front row and Touba Xi of the Sacred Dragon Clan watched closely.
"Eighteenth rank…almost at top of spirit-master level. With Evil Blade, He Tian can crush anyone from the Six Families," the Black Demon declared confidently.
Touba Xi's eyes narrowed; a ruthless look flashing across his face. He Tian had attacked with killing intent. This wasn't a spirit duel, it was an assassination attempt. That was precisely what Touba wanted: with Spirit Hall's backing, killing someone on the stage would be a simple thing with other dying in vain.
Glancing at Dugu Shuo, he wondered that If the Dugu lost another man here, would their clan leader collapse?
He Tian felt the thrill. "Serve them a taste of their pride!" he thought coldly.
But both men's pupils dilated in the next moment.
As He Tian leapt, Dugu Feng had already completed spirit-manifestation.
Clouds move like dragons, wind like tigers—Dugu understood the Black Demon Tiger's attributes: fast, savage, and wrapped in evil. So when his spirit manifested, his soul-force flowed to his hands.
"Jade-phosphor Twelve-Fingers!"
Right hand over left, his eyes turning purple, Dugu Feng tracked every motion—every jump, every cut—clear as day. All that snake-gland bile hadn't been eaten for nothing.
Twelve jade-phosphor purple needles shot out and sealing off every trace of the Evil Blade as if they had eyes. And that wasn't the end—after twelve came another twelve. This time his left hand led, right hand followed, and the needles struck straight at He Tian.
"Let's up the difficulty!" Dugu Feng smiled.
When left-pinky and right-pinky shot an interlocking blast, the two streams collided and exploded into a cloud of violet mist, which quickly spread and blanketed the arena ahead.
He Tian's forward momentum was interrupted mid-air—he twisted his body and barely avoided being enveloped by the mist; his blades scraped sparks off the stage. He'd managed to avoid being entirely swallowed by the mist, but Dugu's speed had matched his own—he hadn't expected the boy to be that fast.
He Tian's face set. If speed couldn't win, he would reveal his true strength.
"Possess!" he cried.
A fierce grey aura cracked out, muscles bulged, and his body swelled—he grew past two meters, a killing machine soaking the arena in pure evil energy. The crowd gasped—such an aura shouldn't belong to a low ranked spirit master. He Tian now looked terrifying.
The spectators watched, eager to see how Dugu Feng would respond.
"Jade-phosphor purple poison!" Dugu Feng bellowed.
"Puuuk!"
"Over!"
He spat a thick mouthful of purple vapour. The mist billowed, swallowing the entire stage; Dugu Feng's figure vanished into that violet shroud.
In his own eyes, the fight was practically done. He'd already cast his primary technique: the jade-phosphor purple toxin pervaded the arena; the enemy had nowhere to hide. But Dugu Feng's gaze remained sharp. Victory was not enough—he wanted the kill. Killing He Tian would be the fiercest rebuttal to the Black Tiger Sect's greed for the Arena's profits.
He Tian did not give up. Enveloped in grey aura, he surged into the violet mist. Hissing and crackling came as the evil aura burned away, but he trusted he would locate Dugu Feng before his aura faded.
"I see you!" He Tian shouted. He unleashed another volley of evil blades—tiger claws now larger, determined to shred Dugu Feng to pieces.
Before he could savor the result, a tingling pain raced across his body. Looking down in disbelief, he saw dozens of tiny holes dotting his shoulders and arms. The jade-phosphor purple toxin had pierced into him.
"Pfft!"
His eyes went blank. Despite relying on evil-attribute defense, how could he be breached so easily?
He Tian's consciousness plunged into darkness; his body collapsed.
The blades he'd thrown trembled and then faded into nothing.
In a corner of the arena, Dugu Feng slowly withdrew his hands. His Jade-phosphor Twelve-Fingers, combined with the spread of jade-phosphor purple toxin, was utterly lethal among lower-rank spirit masters. Fired along the twelve meridians in his hands, the needles had the piercing power to break any defense; once they opened a gap, the lethal toxin slipped in—live or die, there was no cure in the instant that followed.
"We surrender! Heal him now!" the Black Demon screamed from below. He Tian was a talented member of their sect—they could not let him die like this.
Dugu Feng smiled coolly. "He's already dead. What's the point of detoxing?"
The Black Demon shot up to the stage, but in a blink He Tian's body was already rotting; the form was unrecognizable. Dugu Feng's father, Dugu Shuo, vaulted onto the stage to stand guard.
"This poison is vicious. This isn't a duel—it's murder!" the Black Demon hissed, hatred burning in his eyes.
His hatred met Dugu Feng and Dugu Shuo's disdain. They acted as though He Tian had never had murderous intent.
"Killer is killed in turn," Dugu Feng said coldly.