The Body Sect, Martial Arts Arena.
The hard green granite floor was covered with traces interwoven from old and new, a silent testament to countless fierce battles witnessed by disciples over the years. At this moment, two figures clashed at incredible speed, unleashing dull roars and dazzling bursts of soul power.
One of them was Chen Yi. His whole body brimmed with soul power, and under his feet shone three purple and one black soul rings—four in total, their brilliance surpassing ordinary understanding. He wielded no weapons; his fists were his most direct means of attack. Each punch howled with wind, crackling faintly with thunder, and every blow carried explosive power, as if tearing the very air apart.
His opponent was Xie Xiaoqing, reborn and more composed than before. She stood tall and straight, her red hair like flames, and beneath her feet spun two yellow, two purple, and four black soul rings—the optimal total of eight, slowly rotating and exuding the oppressive aura of a Soul Douluo. Most striking was her eighth soul ring, which faintly glowed blood-red in the darkness.
Chen Yi's boxing was fierce and sharp, but Xie Xiaoqing—pride of her generation, like Chen Zhen and Hong Yue—possessed combat experience, willpower, and mastery of self-developed soul skills far beyond anything Chen Yi had faced before. Her movements seemed simple, yet she easily defused his ferocious assault and countered with precision and force from the most subtle angles.
Fists and legs collided with the sound of clashing metal, sending waves of air and dust swirling across the ground. Yet amid this seemingly intense battle, Chen Yi was actually struggling. Strengthened by Nirvana, Xie Xiaoqing's Heart Martial Soul was incredibly sensitive and domineering; its heavy, rhythmic heartbeat was more than a sound—it was an unseen assault that pierced the viscera. Every beat hammered his energy and blood, causing his internal flow to surge and even making his soul power stall at times. He was forced to spare part of his focus just to suppress this restlessness.
At this moment, Chen Yi had nearly exhausted his trump cards. Not only his boxing skills, but even his innate domain was quietly released—lightning and radiance coursed over his body, disrupting Xie Xiaoqing's rhythm, barely allowing him to hold his ground and maintain a stalemate.
Meanwhile, Xie Xiaoqing grew ever more valiant, her movements wide and forceful, exuding a warrior's dominance with none of a typical woman's frailty. She seemed like a Valkyrie traversing the battlefield. Deep crimson soul power wrapped her fists in flames, and each blow carried the force to shatter mountains and rocks.
"Boom!"
Another fierce yet unadorned exchange. Xie Xiaoqing's punch, the mark of her crimson fist, was solid as steel, clashing directly with the thunder-wreathed fist of Chen Yi. A wave of overwhelming force sent Chen Yi skidding back a dozen steps, leaving clear footprints in the hard granite. His arm went numb for a while.
Xie Xiaoqing did not pursue. She stood with fists clenched, breathing a little heavily as she looked at Chen Yi, eyes full of gratitude, and laughed loudly.
"Good boy. With your current combat strength, it's no wonder the whole sect calls you a little monster. An ordinary Soul Sage, without their Martial Soul True Body, truly wouldn't be your match."
"A Soul Sage with four rings—who could believe it?"
Her voice was clear, filled with the joy and heroism of rebirth.
Chen Yi took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the swirling energy and blood in his chest, remaining silent. It was obvious Xie Xiaoqing hadn't used her full power in this fight—at the very least, her terrifying eighth soul skill remained unused. His eyes grew cold as he spoke in a low voice.
"Seventh Aunt, be careful!"
Before the words fell, the deep black fourth soul ring under Chen Yi's feet suddenly erupted with dazzling light!
"Fourth Soul Skill: Tyrant's Thunderblade!"
"BOOM—!"
Instantly, the atmosphere around the arena changed color, as if thousands of thunders roared at once. Fierce purple-gold electric snakes exploded from Chen Yi's body, accompanied by a deafening roar. The thunder in the sky rapidly condensed and compressed in his right hand, finally forming a long spear—simple in form, wrapped in purple-gold lightning, about six feet long, engraved with mysterious runes, and exuding both sanctity and destruction.
At the same time, more thunder and lightning coiled around Chen Yi's body like living things, transforming into a suit of thunder armor. Electric serpents slithered across the armor, making him look like the God of Thunder incarnate.
This was the soul skill Chen Yi awakened by absorbing the Thunder Hell Prison Vine sacrificial soul ring and resonating with the God of Thunder in his spiritual sea—the mighty Tyrant's Thunderblade!
The thunder armor rendered him immune to most elemental attacks and offered powerful defense against physical ones. The Thunderblade ignored 50% of both physical and energy defenses! In Tyrant State, Chen Yi's attack power instantly increased by 200%, granting him the capital to challenge far stronger opponents across multiple levels.
Sensing Chen Yi's sudden surge, Xie Xiaoqing's relaxed expression vanished, replaced by solemnity. She dared not be careless; her sixth and seventh soul rings shone at her feet as she formed a strange hand seal over her chest. Red soul power surged within her like boiling magma, and a fierce cry echoed across the arena.
"Seventh Soul Skill: Martial Soul True Body, Nirvana Heart!"
"Sixth Soul Skill: Demon Phoenix Heart Flame!"
Boom!
An even hotter and more majestic aura exploded from Xie Xiaoqing, her vitality and soul power rising by several levels. Most shocking was the blood-red flame, both resplendent and sacred, that streamed from her heart's phantom, swiftly enveloping her. This blood flame was strange—burning neither clothes nor objects, but targeting life energy, qi, and blood directly. Even the space it passed through seemed to warp, radiating a terror as if it could burn all living things alive.
Chen Yi immediately recognized the danger. This was a special flame her Martial Soul obtained after Nirvana, specializing in burning qi and blood, rendering defense useless.
"Battle!"
Chen Yi roared and charged without hesitation. The ground cracked beneath his feet as his body turned into a streak of purple-gold lightning. The thunder in his hand tore through the air, striking at Xie Xiaoqing's head with the roar of a thousand thunders.
The thunder hadn't even landed, but the will that ignored defense and the surging attack power had already locked onto the target. Xie Xiaoqing's eyes glowed red. She didn't dodge or evade; her blood-flame-covered palm struck boldly at the incoming thunder and blade. Where her palm wind passed, qi and blood ignited, as if trying to set the thunder alight at the same time.
"CLANG—!!!!!"
It was not the sound of flesh and blood colliding, but rather like two divine weapons clashing boldly! Purple-gold thunder entangled with blood-red heart flame, and in an instant, a blinding brilliance engulfed both, as a terrifying shockwave of energy far greater than before swept out like a tsunami.
A few sect disciples watching the fight were forced back repeatedly by the resulting wind, faces pale with fear.
After a long time, the intense energy and dazzling light gradually faded. The dust settled. Chen Yi and Xie Xiaoqing had already suppressed their Martial Souls, their soul rings disappeared.
Chen Yi knelt slightly, both hands supporting himself on the ground, panting heavily, sweat beading on his forehead, his face a little pale. It was clear that his all-out strike had greatly drained him. He looked at Xie Xiaoqing, who was breathing only a little faster in the distance, her usual calm face unchanged. He couldn't help but smile bitterly. There was a gulf between Soul Sages and Soul Douluos—especially genius Soul Douluos—that could not be bridged.
Xie Xiaoqing calmed her qi and blood, disrupted by the thunder, and approached, her eyes full of gratitude. She reached out to pull up the youth and patted the dust off him, exclaiming:
"Good boy! My previous judgment was wrong. With the power of your last blow, even an ordinary Soul Sage with their True Body might not be able to take it steadily. Four-ring Soul Ancestor with the power to threaten a Soul Sage… truly terrifying!"
Hearing this, Xie Xiaoqing herself couldn't help but feel a little shocked. The boy before her wasn't even twelve years old yet!
Chen Yi simply smiled, saying little. In his heart, he knew that the inheritance of the God of Thunder, the Ice and Fire Alchemy's body, and the sacrificial soul ring of the super soul beast all contributed to this power… Without such opportunities, he could never have fought Soul Sages at the four-ring realm.
"Let's go."
Xie Xiaoqing reached out, gently ruffled his hair, pinched his still-childish cheek, and her tone returned to its usual gentleness.
"You're sweating. Go wash up. It's almost time to head to the Qi Blood Soaring Hall—no doubt the elders still have things to explain."
…