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*****
"Welcome to the Life-and-Death Arena. Only the death of one party can conclude this battle and grant exit from this space. Countdown beginning..."
A strange, ethereal voice echoed from every corner of the void.
The Life-and-Death Arena had reverted Su Wen's state to the exact moment before his Martial Soul had ever awakened, yet it couldn't be said that it had "locked" him into that state forever. Even if it had, Su Wen still possessed the means to mobilize his Origin Soul Power—though it would have been a far more tedious affair. For Su Wen, the fact that this was a regression rather than a permanent seal was the best news he could have hoped for.
"Have you ever actually witnessed the process of a Martial Soul awakening?" Su Wen asked, his eyes fixed on the Dark Devilgod Tiger.
The tiger, still bristling with indignation at Su Wen's lack of fear and his casual, conversational tone, responded only by baring its teeth in a vicious snarl.
"Back then, my own awakening was exactly like this."
Su Wen began to stir his Origin Soul Power, using it to stimulate his dormant Martial Soul. There was no external force, no ritualistic stones—only his own internal stimulation. Under his focused will, the Martial Soul that had been sealed deep within the "Martial Soul Space" finally broke its bonds.
A simple, unassuming gray book materialized in Su Wen's right hand.
The sensation was familiar, yet the perspective was entirely new. This time, Su Wen immersed himself fully in the feeling of the awakening, experiencing the process as if it were a beautiful, intricate melody.
"The awakening of a Martial Soul... is it not also the awakening of the Spirit Master themselves?"
Su Wen looked at the Dark Devilgod Tiger with genuine sincerity. "Truly, I must thank you. You've given me the chance to experience this process all over again."
The Dark Devilgod Tiger had completely lost its patience. At that moment, the countdown from the illusory voice finally reached its end. If there is no fear, then so be it, the beast seemed to think. This human is too annoying. Kill him! Kill him now!
As a peerless existence among soul beasts and a true overlord of the forest, the Dark Devilgod Tiger would never admit to the flicker of unease rising in its heart. In the history of this Life-and-Death Arena, no human Spirit Master had ever been able to mobilize soul power, let alone perform their own soul awakening within the arena's confines. It had a very bad feeling about this.
However, it was already too late.
Su Wen's perception delved deep into his Martial Soul Space. Following the awakening, his meager Origin Soul Power registered at only Rank 4. Fortunately, Su Wen's control over soul power was incredibly refined.
He partitioned off a tiny sliver of energy, allowing it to creep through the Martial Soul Space toward a specific destination. The remaining Origin Soul Power transformed into active soul power following the awakening, pushing him to Rank 5. Within the Martial Soul Space, that single thread of Origin Soul Power carried Su Wen's consciousness beyond the boundaries of his Mental Sea.
"Open!"
He didn't use the energy to batter the walls of his Mental Sea; its only purpose was to act as a bridge for his consciousness. It was a catalyst—a tool to help him sense his Mental Sea and the vast constructs within it.
His Mental Sea had been regressed, and his mental energy had been depleted along with it. But one thing remained unchanged: Su Wen's will. The "Visualized Heaven and Earth" he had forged through his own insights and mental discipline had not vanished.
While the visualization technique was originally built upon a foundation of mental energy, as time passed and Su Wen's understanding of the Well of Yin and Yang and the various landscapes of the continent deepened, the foundation of his mental world had shifted. Its true pillars were now the "Intent" he had realized. As long as the Intent remained, the Visualized Heaven and Earth would stand.
The mental world shook from within, and the Mental Sea was successfully forced open.
ROAR!
The massive black cat lunged at Su Wen. Despite its juvenile state, its five-foot-long body still carried a terrifying, predatory weight. Su Wen flipped a page in his book, and a ball of fire condensed instantly. Even without soul rings or specific spirit skills, the techniques within his visualization were still accessible. The only constraint was his soul power consumption.
Su Wen manipulated his energy with extreme precision, refusing to waste even a single drop of soul power. The fireball radiated a volatile, explosive aura before detonating, sending the Dark Devilgod Tiger tumbling backward.
Roar!
The tiger let out an indignant howl toward the sky, seemingly lodging a protest with the Life-and-Death Arena itself: "He's cheating!"
There was no response from the void.
Su Wen didn't rush to engage the beast again. Compared to the fight, he was more interested in studying the mechanics of the arena. This wasn't so much a soul skill created by the tiger as it was a spatial ability that allowed the tiger to transport itself and an enemy here.
Research, however, was secondary. The primary advantage was that the longer the time dragged on, the greater Su Wen's advantage became. The Life-and-Death Arena was indeed fearsome—it had even reset the fusion rate between Su Wen and his Martial Soul to its initial state.
But Su Wen could use his visualization to instantly complete the "Internal Skill" circulation, even in this newly awakened state. With the internal circulation established, his soul power wouldn't jump to a higher rank immediately, but his recovery speed became astronomical. By using the Visualized Heaven and Earth to refine the surrounding worldly essence, he was now recovering soul power almost as fast as he could spend it.
Having secured this advantage, Su Wen finally let out a long breath of relief. "Alright then. Be a good boy and turn into my soul ring."
He kicked off the ground, soul power erupting from his feet. A powerful current of air propelled him forward while stabilizing winds swirled around him to minimize resistance. Throughout the entire movement, his soul power remained constant—every bit spent was immediately replenished.
ROAR! (Unfair!)
The Dark Devilgod Tiger turned tail and fled. Facing a Su Wen who possessed soul power—and who seemed capable of squandering that power recklessly within the Rank 5 limit—it felt a genuine sense of dread. Having soul power versus not having it were two entirely different realms of existence.
The tiger fled; the boy pursued.
Su Wen's speed was relentless. He quickly caught up to the beast, a swirling sphere of air the size of a hen's egg gathering in his right hand: a Miniature Spiral Shuriken. His low soul power capacity prevented anything larger, but even at this size, the damage was lethal.
Su Wen whipped his hand forward, launching the sphere.
BOOM!
The tiger lunged to the side, but it was still caught in the blast radius. Its left hind leg was shredded by the storm of wind blades produced by the explosion. Su Wen immediately began condensing the next one. What started as a tiny bead of air the size of a fingernail expanded into an egg-sized orb as Su Wen continuously poured energy into it.
He threw it again.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Dark Devilgod Tiger turned to roar at Su Wen, but by now, it was a bloody, mangled mess. It finally stopped resisting. It had truly run into a brick wall this time; it accepted its fate.
BOOM!
One final Miniature Spiral Shuriken struck the tiger squarely in the head. Everything around them began to warp and distort. Space shattered, and an endless darkness rushed in as Su Wen's body vanished from the arena.
Back in the Star Dou Great Forest...
Dugu Bo, Chen Xin, and Ning Fengzhi stood guard around the area where the black hole had vanished, waiting tensely for the result.
Thud!
The massive corpse of the Dark Devilgod Tiger slammed onto the forest floor. Almost instantly, a strange, pitch-black bead shot out from the body, radiating an eerie glow of green and blue light.
(End of Chapter)