"An Lan, Martial Soul: Spear. Rank 33 Soul Elder."
Standing at the center of the battle arena, Ye Yu clasped his hands politely toward Huo Wu, responding in a slightly hoarse voice.
"You now have one minute to summon your martial souls!"
The host's voice echoed through the air as he raised a sound-amplifying soul device, announcing the standard pre-battle rules.
Ye Yu and Huo Wu each retreated to their respective ends of the platform.
Ye Yu activated Blue Silver Domain: Camouflage, and with a flick of his hand, summoned the Thunderhowl Infernal Spear from his Jade Dragon Bracelet.
On the other side, Huo Wu let out a clear cry, summoning her Fire Dance Martial Soul.
A crimson radiance exploded around her as a fiery projection—appearing like an adult version of Huo Wu, with flowing flame-red hair and a form made of pure fire—emerged and merged with her body.
Martial Soul Possession!
Though her appearance didn't change much physically, Huo Wu's aura surged dramatically as three soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple—rose at her feet and hovered around her body.
"First Soul Skill: Explosive Fireball!"
With her spirit possessed, Huo Wu charged forward. Her long, snow-white legs moved like the wind, while she hurled fireballs one after another toward Ye Yu.
In response, Ye Yu activated his two self-created soul skills, Thunderburst Step and Thunder-Magnetic Body. His body was instantly enveloped in surging silver-blue lightning.
At the same time, he swung the Thunderhowl Infernal Spear, either smashing or piercing through the fireballs hurled at him.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Each explosion sent a shockwave up the spear and into Ye Yu's arms, forcing him to take small steps backward.
A control-type effect?
Recognizing Huo Wu's nature as a Control-type Soul Master, Ye Yu quickly deduced that her Explosive Fireball had a built-in knockback or control mechanic.
By now, Huo Wu had already closed the distance.
As her second soul ring suddenly lit up, a phantom clone—another Fire Dance figure—split off from her form.
This phantom darted around like a ghost, zipping behind Ye Yu with incredible speed.
Facing Huo Wu's frontal assault, Ye Yu advanced to meet her head-on, executing spear techniques he had been training for months. His Thunderhowl Infernal Spear lashed out like a dragon.
Yet before his spear could strike, Huo Wu's figure vanished—replaced by the flame avatar.
His spear pierced through the illusion, causing no damage.
She used her second soul skill to swap places with the avatar!
Appearing behind him, Huo Wu launched a fierce flying kick toward Ye Yu's unprotected neck.
Seeing her target, a confident and victorious smirk flickered across Huo Wu's elegant, fiery features.
"Even with a helmet, the neck is one of the body's weakest points. If I hit this just right, he'll definitely suffer serious injury!"
Ye Yu had no time to dodge.
Instead, he surged soul power throughout his body and braced for impact.
BANG!
Her foot connected with his helmet rather than his neck, but the force of the kick transmitted through the helm and struck the vulnerable area beneath.
Ye Yu's body was sent flying.
However—
Thanks to the helmet's protection, his physically tempered body from the Icefire Body Refinement and Lightning Tempering, as well as his compressed Rank 48 soul power defense, the damage was minimal.
Not only that, but under the shielding effect of Thunder-Magnetic Body, his form was also surrounded by a high-intensity electromagnetic field and layers of crackling lightning.
The instant Huo Wu's foot touched the helmet, a burst of electricity surged through her leg, sending a numb shock across her entire body.
As Ye Yu soared back from the kick, he swiftly reversed the polarity of his Thunder-Magnetic Body's magnetic field.
Instead of repelling from the ground, it now pushed from the front, halting his momentum mid-air.
With a nimble twist, he flipped and landed safely.
He then once again reconfigured the magnetic vectors:
The Thunder-Magnetic Body now projected rearward.
The Thunderburst Step expelled downward.
Together, they turned his body into a living electromagnetic cannonball, shooting forward like a missile toward Huo Wu.
"Impossible!"
Huo Wu's eyes widened in disbelief.
Her full-force kick had done virtually nothing.
Before she could react, Ye Yu closed the distance in the blink of an eye.
Still slightly dazed from the electric shock, Huo Wu panicked.
She hurriedly reactivated her Second Soul Skill: Fire Dance Substitution.
But Ye Yu had anticipated this!
As she switched places with the flame avatar, Ye Yu redirected himself toward her new location and struck the moment she materialized—
BAM!
A powerful kick sent Huo Wu flying. She crashed hard into the ground, skidding over five meters before finally rolling to a stop.
"Xiao Wu!"
From the observation corridor, Huo Wushuang gripped the railing tightly, shouting in panic.
"This bastard—how dare he hurt her!"
Flat on the arena floor, Huo Wu clenched her teeth against the pain radiating through her body.
"You're not my match. Admit defeat."
Ye Yu approached calmly, his voice indifferent.
Honestly, Huo Wu's soul skill configuration wasn't bad—
But her damage output was simply too low.
If she couldn't injure him even with a surprise attack, she'd stand no chance moving forward.
"Forget it! I won't surrender!"
Eyes burning with frustration and unwillingness, Huo Wu staggered back to her feet.
Her hands clenched into fists, her red eyes brimming with both anger and pride.
No one's ever beaten me like this before!
I'm not weaker than anyone!
Driven by sheer pride and stubbornness, Huo Wu refused to yield. She charged again, launching another round of attacks.
She once again opened with Explosive Fireball, then used Fire Dance Substitution to get in close and attempt a sneak attack.
This time, realizing how durable Ye Yu was, Huo Wu's attacks turned nasty—
Kicks aimed at the groin, punches targeting weak spots.
She's going for low blows now?!
Ye Yu's brows furrowed in irritation.
"Fine. Since you're so determined to prove yourself… and since you're going to fight dirty…"
Don't blame me for returning the favor.
"I don't like hitting women. That's because I'm kind—not because I can't."
"I'm not your lapdog. I won't spoil you."
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin