Immediately, a look of obvious surprise flashed across the girl's face.
She felt a wave of warmth wash over her.
Was this the effect of the other person's domain?
Although it couldn't directly help her restore her soul power, it significantly reduced the consumption and power of her soul techniques.
But why would he do this?
Just then, Feng Xiaotian, who was flying high in the sky, made a move.
The light and shadow of the two-headed wolf behind him gradually merged with his body—this was his second soul skill, "Dual Wolf Possession." With this enhancement, his attack, defense, and agility would all be greatly boosted.
Combined with his third soul skill, "Gale Wings," this had already elevated his condition to its peak.
It was only with the support of these two Soul Skills that his self-created Soul Skill could be fully unleashed.
With a long howl, Feng Xiaotian sprang into action. His body plummeted from the sky like a meteor chasing the moon, making not a sound throughout the entire descent. The surrounding blue light completely receded, and his body and wings merged at a perfect angle.
Empowered by the Wind element, he had already identified the most optimal descent path at that moment.
The sharp tips along the edges of his wings glowed with a faint, eerie blue light in the sunlight; the so-called "Thirty-Six Consecutive Slashes of the Gale Demon Wolf" were unleashed from the very edges of these wings.
In the blink of an eye, the light wings slashed through the air, clashing with Su Cheng's longsword for the first time.
"Clang—"
Amid the echoing clang of metal, Feng Xiaotian used the momentum to take flight again; his body spun in midair as his right wing slashed down once more.
Su Cheng continued to block horizontally with his sword, and just as he had promised earlier, he did not use any Soul Skills to interrupt the attack, carefully controlling his force in perfect coordination.
Feng Xiaotian spun around and sprang upward once more, using the momentum in an extremely subtle and masterful way that made Su Cheng nod in silent approval.
This soul skill was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. At the very least, in terms of conceptualization, it already surpassed the vast majority of talented soul masters.
Su Cheng himself was a master in this area and was well-qualified to speak on the matter.
His very first self-created soul skill—the Sword Stance and Charged Slash, both evolved from basic sword techniques—had even allowed him to defeat Qian Renxue, who at the time surpassed him in soul power, martial soul, and domain.
Feng Xiaotian's attack speed was extremely fast; before long, he had already executed five attacks, and the force of his "Light Wing Slash" was gradually increasing.
Throughout this process, he continuously used the wind to alter his movement trajectory.
This self-created Soul Technique wasn't particularly powerful; its main feature was using speed and gravity to continuously boost his attack power, but it was far too easy to interrupt—it fell far short of the Haotian Sect's "Chaotic Wind Hammer Technique."
Still, Feng Xiaotian was young after all, and having reached this level already demonstrated considerable talent.
Su Cheng glanced at Feng Xiaotian, who was relentlessly attacking from midair, then shifted his gaze to the support-type Soul Master across from him, whose expression betrayed his surprise at receiving the boost from the Domain.
"Use every support skill you've got on him—otherwise, he won't make it to the end."
As soon as his words fell, a stir of commotion swept through the audience.
The spectating players from other teams exchanged glances, their feelings mixed.
"..."
Only then did the girl realize why he had been boosting her stats, and she couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Still, she didn't refuse; three soul rings lit up in quick succession, working at full capacity to enhance Feng Xiaotian's physical condition.
In fact, Su Cheng was feeling a bit speechless inside right now.
When Feng Xiaotian's first strike landed, he already had a pretty good idea of what was going on.
Given his current physical condition and soul power reserves, there was absolutely no way he could hold out long enough to complete the soul technique on his own.
He thought to himself that Feng Xiaotian was truly a peculiar fellow, squandering his talent without even realizing it.
He clearly has the potential to achieve the rank of Titled Douluo, but instead of focusing on his training, he's gone off on a tangent creating his own soul techniques—which would be one thing—but in the end, the soul technique he developed is meant for team battles and can't be fully utilized by him alone.
The clash between the two continued unabated.
By the time the slashes reached twenty, an incredibly terrifying, razor-sharp soul power had erupted around Feng Xiaotian's body.
Streaks of green light shot out; even the wind pressure around him was as sharp as blades, with the impact of the aftereffects rivaling that of a Soul Master, while its direct frontal power was already approaching that of a Soul King.
However, even under this fierce, storm-like onslaught, Su Cheng remained rooted to the spot like a rock, not moving even half a step.
In contrast, Feng Xiaotian's wings—which were fused to his arms—had been shaken to the point of near-total numbness.
He was utterly horrified, thinking to himself that this Su Cheng was truly terrifying. If it weren't for that little girl, Qingyu, constantly bolstering him with her soul techniques from behind, he himself would have already found it impossible to hold on any longer.
"Twenty-three… twenty-four…"
The spectators in the stands were now watching intently, silently following the subsequent developments of Feng Xiaotian's soul technique.
"Twenty-eight… twenty-nine…"
The other members of the Shenfeng Academy team, who had been knocked off the stage, silently cheered on their captain.
"...Thirty-six!"
Finally, amid Feng Xiaotian's piercing scream, the decisive blow that marked a qualitative shift came crashing down.
At that moment, Su Cheng keenly sensed that his opponent's aura had changed.
The power of this strike had even slightly surpassed the peak of the Soul King realm, approaching that of a Soul Emperor.
"..."
Su Cheng felt a bit disappointed.
He'd gone to such great lengths, taken such huge risks, and spent so much time gathering power—all while his body had suffered severe damage in the process—just for that final strike. And this was the result?
It wasn't that he looked down on Soul Emperor-level attack power.
This had nothing to do with the strength of his own abilities.
It's just that the cost-effectiveness of this self-created Soul Technique is far, far too low.
Originally, he had thought that by charging his power to this extent, he might achieve some kind of qualitative change—perhaps even resonate with the laws of the universe, harnessing the elemental forces of his surroundings to unite with the power of heaven and earth.
But nothing of the sort happened.
A qualitative change did occur, but it was far too slight.
He sighed silently to himself.
Su Cheng swung his sword in a diagonal slash.
The green blade aura, condensed to its limit, shattered instantly.
Immediately afterward, Feng Xiaotian collapsed to the ground, his face deathly pale.
This sword strike hadn't injured him in the slightest; it was simply that, after unleashing this soul skill, his soul power had been completely depleted.
"Whoosh—"
As the referee declared the battle over, thunderous applause instantly swept through the arena. The audience cheered excitedly, marveling at the spectacular nature of the fight.
Yet, the VIP section remained completely silent at that moment.
Chen Xin, Saras, Ning Fengzhi, and the others wore solemn expressions.
The two attacks had actually completely canceled each other out!
How is this possible?
They weren't surprised that Su Cheng could unleash such a sword strike.
The power of that sword strike on the first day was far greater than this.
What was truly terrifying was this astonishing level of control—executed with such precision that it meant Su Cheng had expended almost no energy in this battle.
"Soul Saint-level combat power…"
The group thought to themselves in unison.
"Do you know how old I am?" Su Cheng said indifferently, looking at Feng Xiaotian, who was sitting on the ground, gasping for breath.
"I'm not even fifteen yet."
"… …" Feng Xiaotian's heavy breathing paused abruptly, and he looked up in astonishment.
"I beat you today without using a single Soul Technique—I'm simply ten levels higher than you. It's that simple.
"You should focus on what's appropriate for your current stage. Trying to create your own soul techniques just to prove your talent is nothing but gambling away your future.
"Because your talent doesn't lie here.
"Having high innate soul power only proves you're a genius at cultivation; neglecting the fundamentals to chase after trivialities is rather foolish."
Upon hearing this, Feng Xiaotian fell silent, momentarily at a loss for how to respond.
Although he possessed extraordinary talent, he was not an arrogant person.
Feng Xiaotian came from a modest background, and his "Gale Demon Wolf" was merely an above-average martial soul; it was only because of a mutation in his martial soul that he possessed the innate talent of full soul power from birth.
But in his view, such talent had always been merely a gift from heaven—it proved nothing.
It wasn't as if no one had ever said anything like this to him before, but his natural talent was so exceptional that even when he spent a great deal of time creating his own soul techniques, he could still far outpace his peers in terms of level—he simply didn't realize that this approach was inefficient.
Being able to create his own soul techniques had originally been a source of great pride for him.
Su Cheng looked at him and pondered for a moment before saying, "You've got great talent. I'll reserve a starting spot for you on my team. If you don't make it to the finals, or if you do make it and want to go for the championship, you can come find me anytime."
Hearing this, Feng Xiaotian's eyes widened slightly. He didn't even have time to dwell on the distracting thoughts that had just crossed his mind, and he exclaimed in astonishment, "You—"
"Don't rush to answer. Wait until you've composed yourself and thought it through."
After saying this, she paid no further attention to Feng Xiaotian and turned her gaze to the support-type soul master from the Shenfeng Academy team, who had also exhausted his soul power.
"What's your name?"
"Feng Qingyu."
The girl's eyes were clear; aside from a hint of curiosity, she showed no sign of disappointment after losing the match.
She's exceptionally talented and still very young; the next major tournament will be her time to shine.
She came along as a reserve this time mainly to take this opportunity to see the world and gain some experience.
"Your Martial Soul is the Shadow?"
Although Su Cheng phrased it as a question, his tone was extremely certain.
Feng Qingyu was even more surprised upon hearing this.
Since the wind is naturally silent and formless, and the Shadow Martial Soul is extremely rare and difficult to detect, she hadn't expected Su Cheng to see through it so easily.
She didn't deny it; she simply nodded slightly.
"Yes."
"If I recall correctly, Blazing Fire Academy also has a Shadow Martial Soul user—though theirs is fire-attributed, and they've developed in the control-type Soul Master direction," Su Cheng thought to himself. "Different attributes for the primary Martial Soul? That's quite interesting. "However, that person from Blazing Fire Academy has slightly less natural talent. As for Feng Qingyu here…"
With that in mind, he gave Feng Qingyu a slight nod and said, "You're welcome to join our team as well—you'd be a starter in the finals."
Having said that, he prepared to turn and leave the arena.
"Alright."
"What?"
A crisp, pleasant voice rang out, causing Su Cheng to pause in surprise.
"I said sure—didn't you say I could join your team?"
Feng Qingyu blinked, looking at him with an innocent expression.
Su Cheng immediately grew suspicious.
What's going on with this girl? She just agreed to it like that?
He turned his head to look at Feng Xiaotian.
Seeing this, Feng Xiaotian gave the girl a wry glance and explained to Su Cheng, "She's the dean of our academy's granddaughter. She can do whatever she wants."
"…All right." Su Cheng was naturally happy to oblige. "But even if you've made up your mind, if you want to compete, you'll have to wait until the finals."
That's how the tournament rules are set up.
Before the preliminary rounds began, each academy had already submitted its roster. Only after the finalists were determined—and the teams from each academy traveled to Wuhun City for the finals—could they resubmit their lists of participating students.
Moreover, by that time, Feng Qingyu would have to be temporarily transferred to the Tiandou Royal Academy.
"It's fine," Feng Qingyu said casually. "Can I go check out your team first?"
"Suit yourself," Su Cheng shrugged indifferently.
Her arrival was actually convenient, as it would allow him to start researching her Soul Power sooner.
"Captain, I'll be heading out now. Take care of yourself."
Feng Qingyu said to Feng Xiaotian without a shred of sincerity.
She then followed Su Cheng off the stage.
Feng Xiaotian, who had sat on the ground to recover somewhat, sighed helplessly and waved his hand.
His mood was growing increasingly gloomy.
"Damn it! This is the first time I've used my self-created soul technique in public, and I've lost so badly—it's such a disgrace. I wonder how Huo Wu will look at me from now on."
If Su Cheng had heard Feng Xiaotian's inner thoughts, he might just have turned around and stabbed him with a sword.
In the VIP section.
Upon hearing Su Cheng's remarks challenging opponents, Ning Fengzhi was initially surprised, then felt a sense of helplessness.
Although there was nothing particularly wrong with those words—and he did, after all, have the final say over the Second Squad—there was really no need to say them out in the open like that. It wouldn't do to give people the wrong idea.
Glancing at the Snow Night Emperor beside him, he said with a smile, "Your Majesty, Xiao Cheng is still young after all; he doesn't always measure his words carefully. Please don't take it to heart."
The Snow Night Emperor, however, waved his hand. "Sect Leader Ning, this is a good thing. To be honest, we both know full well the true strength of the Martial Soul Hall. Let him arrange the Second Squad as he sees fit."
Though he said this, he actually had other thoughts in mind.
Namely, the Divine Wind Academy.
Especially after just learning of Feng Qingyu's identity, Emperor Xueye was filled with delight.
Although the Five Elements Academy is affiliated with the Tiandou Empire, there is still a layer of separation in their relationship; it is not subject to the Empire's control and enjoys a high degree of autonomy.
The imperial family has had its sights set on these academies for quite some time, but it has remained nothing more than a desire.
After today, perhaps he could use this opportunity to build closer ties with those powerful Elemental Academies—a development he would certainly welcome.
On the other hand, the buzz in the spectator section of the participating academies was much louder at this moment.
In particular, Su Cheng's public attempt to recruit members from the Divine Wind Academy left a bitter taste in people's mouths.
They weren't overthinking it—it was mostly just envy and jealousy.
"…Damn, that Su Cheng from Tiandou Royal Academy is such a show-off."
Suddenly, someone muttered to themselves, and the remark immediately sparked a chorus of agreement.
"You're so right—I had that same feeling just now."
"And he's still talking about leading them to a championship? He makes it sound so easy, as if all it takes is a pair of hands to win."
"Um, I don't think there's anything wrong with what he said. It's still easier than what we're going through…"
"..."
Over at the Tianshui Academy team's area.
Unlike the atmosphere at other teams, things here seemed a bit livelier.
Plus, since this academy only admits beautiful girls, they're often the subject of secret admiration from many people.
"So cool…"
The speaker was an oval-faced girl standing at the very front of the crowd of spectators. She was petite with a childlike face, but her short, dark green hair made her look very lively.
As she spoke, she turned to look at another girl behind her with long aqua-blue hair cascading down her shoulders. "Sis, do you think he'll invite me to join their team too? Should I accept if he does?"
After saying that, she suddenly fell deep in thought, her pretty face flushing slightly. No one knew what she was thinking about, leaving the others feeling a bit exasperated.
Here we go again.
"Seventh Girl, stop daydreaming. Even if they were inviting someone, it'd be the captain—it's not like it's your turn."
At that moment, a red-haired girl standing next to them teased her.
"All right, stop messing around."
"..."
For a moment, laughter and cheerful chatter filled the air, and a lively atmosphere permeated both inside and outside the group, making the other trainees watching them look on with envy.
Soul City, the Pope's Palace.
Bi Bi Dong was reviewing the latest intelligence she'd received from Saras, her expression complex.
"A Soul King under the age of fifteen, possessing two thousand-year soul rings and two ten-thousand-year soul rings.
"A self-created Soul Skill that, even without the support of Soul Ring skills, possesses attack power comparable to that of a Soul Emperor.
"Xiao Xue even went out of her way to meet him in person.
"Su Cheng, so it really is you…"
Just then, someone suddenly came forward to report.
"An Elder's token, and the cultivation level of a Grand Soul Master?"
Upon hearing this, Bi Bidong was taken aback.
She then expanded her perception and instantly detected the figure currently sitting quietly in the council hall.
Her eyes flickered slightly. "Xiao Gang?!"
Her slender, fair fingers tightened instantly, crumpling the paper in her hand into a series of creases.
She immediately looked down at the stack of documents again.
The scenes from that dream several years ago had not only failed to fade with the passage of time—they had, in fact, become even more vivid.
Perhaps due to the mental torment of the Rakshasa Divine Exam, a constant battle raged within her between the divine and the demonic, causing her emotions to grow increasingly extreme.
Those jarring words seemed to echo in her ears at all times.
_______________
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