A dull thud echoed, like a heavy hammer striking a drum! The Diamond Bear Soul Elder felt a terrifying force—immense, condensed to its extreme, and utterly unstoppable—erupt from the opponent's seemingly unremarkable fist. It instantly shattered his Soul Power defense and surged violently up the bones of his arm! With a pained groan, his massive body staggered backward uncontrollably. His entire right arm grew numb and sore, losing all sensation in an instant, his eyes filled with disbelief and horror! He possessed the Martial Soul known for its strength and defense—the Adamantine Bear! Yet, in a direct clash of power, he had been forced back by a single punch from someone who hadn't even released their Martial Soul?!
All of this happened in the blink of an eye! Within the confined space surrounded by seven attackers, Marco moved as if strolling through a tranquil garden. Relying solely on his body's instinctive reactions, along with exquisitely refined movement and control of strength, he effortlessly defused the first wave of their perilous combined assault! His motions flowed seamlessly, without the slightest hint of exertion, as though he were not engaged in a life-or-death struggle but performing an elegant dance.
Luo Zhan's pupils contracted sharply. The contempt in his heart had long been replaced by shock and gravity. The opponent hadn't even used Soul Power! He had achieved this with mere physical strength and combat insight?! How was that possible?!
"Don't stop! Keep going! Wear him down!" Luo Zhan roared, suppressing the astonishment within him, knowing they absolutely could not give the opponent a moment to catch his breath. The third Soul Ring at his feet suddenly blazed with a piercing violet light!
"Third Spirit Skill, Giant Hammer Earthshock Wave!"
Swinging his Adamantine Giant Hammer with both hands, he smashed it fiercely into the ground! A visible dark-gold shockwave spread rapidly forward in a fan-shaped arc. Wherever it passed, the sturdy stone slabs of the arena cracked and splintered, carrying powerful tremors and disorienting effects that covered a large area in front of Marco! This was an area-control Spirit Ability, aimed at disrupting the opponent's rhythm and creating an opportunity for a decisive strike!
Simultaneously, a glint flashed in the eyes of the Army Soul Battle Flag Soul Ancestor. He brandished his battle flag once more, and his third Soul Ring lit up!
"Third Spirit Skill, Unyielding Battle Will!"
Another dark-red aura spread, this time not enhancing strength or speed, but enveloping his own team members to form a faint layer of mental protection. It subtly bolstered their willpower and resisted mental assaults. He had keenly sensed that the opponent's unnervingly calm demeanor was itself a form of intangible mental pressure that had to be countered.
Meanwhile, the two Blood-colored Halberd Soul Ancestors who had just been forced back regrouped. Their third Soul Rings simultaneously ignited, their halberds blazing with crimson light—clearly, they were activating stronger Spirit Abilities as they fearlessly charged forward once more. The two Diamond Bear Soul Elders also roared, activating their third Spirit Abilities. Their skin took on a true dark-gold hue, greatly enhancing their defense as they pressed in like two mountains, again constricting Marco's space.
The most dangerous threat, however, was the Remnant Blood Dagger that had been lurking in the shadows all along! Just as Luo Zhan unleashed the Earthshock Wave and the frontal assault reached its peak intensity, an almost imperceptible dark-crimson streak—like a venomous snake striking—shot silently from the blind spot behind Marco. It aimed at an extremely tricky angle, stabbing straight for the vital point of his heart! The timing, angle, and stealth were all executed flawlessly! This was the assassin's lethal strike!
Seven individuals united, staking their lives on a single strike! Strong assault, control, support, assassination—layered and advancing relentlessly, holding nothing back! The ferocity and resolve of War Academy were displayed to their fullest extent at this moment!
In the VIP seats, Xue Qinghe slightly furrowed his brows, Ning Fengzhi's eyes flashed with a trace of surprise, while Chen Xin's gaze remained calm. On the Star Luo Empire's side, many had already clenched their fists, their eyes revealing anticipation. Faced with this combined assault, any Soul King would likely be thrown into disarray, perhaps even injured!
Yet, at the very center of this deadly encirclement, within Marco's golden eyes, that hint of amusement grew even more pronounced.
"Now this… is starting to look interesting."
He murmured to himself, his voice barely audible.
The instant Marco's whisper faded, his figure—which had stood still as an abyss, relying solely on movement to evade and block—suddenly moved!
There was no earth-shattering eruption of Soul Power, no dazzling brilliance of Soul Rings—only a blurry afterimage so fast it nearly tore through the air!
"So fast!"
Countless spectators shared this thought simultaneously. That speed even surpassed the full burst of most Agile Attack-type Soul Ancestors!
Marco's target was precisely that assassin Soul Honour wielding the Remnant Blood Dagger, who had just completed a lethal strike and was about to vanish into the shadows! As if he had eyes on the back of his head, in that split second, he shifted his body by a hair's breadth, allowing the viper-like crimson line to graze past his waist, stirring a faint ripple in the air. Simultaneously, his right leg, like a steel whip coiled and ready, carved a fierce arc through the air with a low sonic boom, landing with pinpoint accuracy on the waist of the figure that had just begun to emerge from the shadows!
Thud!
A muffled impact. The look of shock on the assassin Soul Honour's face hadn't even fully formed before his entire body was sent flying like a soccer ball kicked with full force, shooting like a cannonball toward the edge of the arena! He didn't even have time to mount any effective defense or dissipate the force, only feeling an irresistible, terrifying power penetrate his body before darkness claimed his vision and he completely lost control.
"First."
Marco's indifferent voice seemed to still linger in the air as his figure vanished once more.
"Stop him!" Luo Zhan roared, his eyes nearly bursting with fury. Having just unleashed the "Giant Hammer Earthshock Wave," his old force spent and new force not yet gathered, he could only desperately swing his massive hammer, attempting to intercept as Marco darted like a phantom toward the flank of their formation. Two Diamond Bear Soul Elders also roared, their bulky bodies shifting sideways, trying to block Marco's path with their own bodies.
However, Marco's speed and agility far exceeded their expectations. With mysterious footwork, his body made an impossible turn amidst high-speed movement, slipping like a fish through the gap between the two Diamond Bear Soul Elders' encirclement, instantly arriving before the two Blood-colored Halberd Soul Ancestors who were gathering Soul Power, preparing to launch another attack.
These two Soul Ancestors were also battle-hardened; though startled, they remained composed. With a roar, their halberds—one left, one right—flared with a surge of bloody light as they simultaneously unleashed their strongest Third Spirit Skill—"Blood Halberd Sky-rending Slash"! Two intersecting crescent-shaped bloody halberd beams tore through the air, carrying a pungent bloody scent and razor-sharp cutting force, sealing off all of Marco's forward paths.
But Marco had no intention of meeting the attack head-on. Just before the halberd's gleam reached him, his forward momentum came to an abrupt halt. His body, as if defying the laws of inertia, shifted instantly from extreme motion to extreme stillness, then from stillness to an upward leap! In this way, he gracefully flipped over the gap between the two intersecting halberd gleams, like a swallow skimming the waves.
Mid-air, with nothing to push off from? No, for Marco, even the air seemed to serve as a stepping stone. He twisted his waist with incredible force, his body contorting impossibly in mid-air as his legs kicked out in a continuous, windmill-like motion!
"Thud! Thud!"
Two more muffled impacts, almost simultaneous. The two Blood-colored Halberd Soul Ancestors felt their vision blur as their chests were struck as if by a battering ram. Their protective Soul Power shattered upon contact, their sternums emitting a grating creak. The immense force sent them flying uncontrollably backward, tracing two parabolic arcs just like the assassin Soul Honour before them, before crashing heavily near the edge of the arena. They struggled briefly but found themselves unable to rise for the moment.