Chapter 17: Tactical Game Deep Within the Arena, the Thousand Chance Umbrella and the Frost Sword's Wild Prelude at the Peak of Winter
Before Dean Feng Rusong's words, "The timer begins," had even faded from the massive obsidian arena, the previously imprisoned air was instantly torn apart by five hundred restless soul energies. This was not merely an entrance exam; it was more like a wild festival prematurely detonated. Five hundred proud and arrogant youths, like five hundred young wolves locked in an iron cage, instantly turned bloodthirsty on the edge of survival and elimination.
The light of soul skills flickered wildly between the dark gray stone walls, crimson, dark purple, ice blue, and brilliant yellow—a vast web of death and hope intertwined. The once spacious arena instantly became incredibly crowded; every breath was filled with the heavy thuds of flesh colliding and the roars of spirits activating. In this chaotic melee, the weak were brutally kicked out of the arena immediately, while the clever ones sought their own territory.
Ye Feng stood on the edge of the chaos, his expression as cold and stern as a marble statue. Unlike other hot-blooded youths who rushed into the center to display their strength, he didn't. In the top-tier tactical system of "Glory," this kind of chaotic melee with no clear direction was the riskiest action. His gaze was deep and rational, rapidly sketching out every variable on the battlefield in his field of vision.
"Shaotian, stand against the wall and occupy the group of stone pillars in the southeast corner." Ye Feng's voice was steady and powerful, piercing through the noisy shouts of battle. "Don't take the initiative to attack. Let's play a 'positioning battle'."
Ye Shaotian was flushed with excitement, and the Frost Sword in his hand was humming due to the surge of soul power. He chuckled, nimbly leaping behind Ye Feng, and the two quickly retreated to the edge of the arena. Behind them was an impregnable obsidian wall, with three thick stone pillars on the flanks serving as natural cover. This terrain was a typical "defense and counter-attack" advantage in the Arena of "Glory".
"Boss, do you think these guys are stupid? They're just swarming around and randomly attacking, do they think soul power is free?" Ye Shaotian kept a wary eye on the front while launching his trash talk. "Hey, you arsonist, you almost burned your teammate's butt! And that guy with the turtle spirit, do you think you can get accepted just by hiding in your shell? Are you here to study or to hatch an egg?"
It must be said that Ye Shaotian's interference tactics were extremely effective. Several teenagers who were already angry during the melee were instantly diverted from their hatred by his sarcastic remarks. Three freshmen dressed in tight-fitting clothes, whose martial souls were Iron Horned Rhinoceros and Two-Headed Wolf respectively, exchanged glances, tacitly abandoned their opponents, and roared as they charged towards Ye Feng.
"This is the 'hatred value' guidance, Shaotian, well done." Ye Feng's lips curled up slightly, and the Thousand Chance Umbrella in his hand was now in its most restrained long staff form.
The Iron-Horned Rhinoceros youth charging at the forefront possessed a soul power of approximately level fourteen. His entire body was covered in a layer of grayish-white keratin, and each step he took caused a dull thud in the ground. He roared, and his enormous fist, carrying the force to split mountains and shatter rocks, hurtled straight towards Ye Feng's face. This kind of pure power attack was the mainstream in the Douluo Continent, but in Ye Feng's eyes, this flawed charge was practically in slow motion.
Ye Feng didn't retreat, nor did his expression waver in the slightest. Just as his fist was about to touch the tip of his nose, his body tilted to the left at an incredibly precise 15-degree angle. At the same time, the long staff form of the Thousand Chance Umbrella gently slipped under his opponent's armpit.
"Circle Stick!"
It wasn't a simple impact; Ye Feng applied a subtle circular force to the umbrella handle. Utilizing the flexibility granted by the Flowing Silver Ice Python and the vibrational energy from the Dragon Subduing Staff Technique taught by his grandmother, Ye Feng actually managed to shift the center of gravity of the two-hundred-pound boy. Then, with a sudden flick of his wrist, using the leverage principle of the staff, Ye Feng forcefully swung the boy towards the two-headed wolf soul master charging from the side and rear.
"Bang!"
The two figures collided heavily, producing a sickening cracking sound. Ye Feng didn't even turn around to look at their gruesome fall; his body instantly completed a "Z" shaped movement. This was the most basic yet most demanding movement technique in "Glory," and with the support of his soul power, he seemed to become a blur in the air.
"Sky Strike!"
The long staff shot out again, this time transforming into a streak of light, precisely striking the chin of the last enemy. The youth hadn't even had time to unleash his soul skill before being lifted into the air by an irresistible force. At that moment, the Thousand Manifestations Umbrella in Ye Feng's hand emitted a crisp mechanical click.
"Click—click-click!"
To the astonishment of all the onlookers, the ordinary black stick transformed itself in a fraction of a second. The canopy retracted, the barrel extended, and the dark muzzle gleamed with a cold blue light.
"Ice Phoenix Spear - Floating Bullet!"
A soul-powered bullet, radiating a chilling aura, struck the boy in mid-air with pinpoint accuracy. The blue light exploded, the powerful impact not only halting his descent but also propelling him even higher into the sky, where he finally arced through the air and landed in the buffer zone outside the arena.
"That's too fast... What kind of attack frequency is that?" In the stands, an older student couldn't help but stand up. He rubbed his eyes, hardly believing what had just happened. In the boy's hands, the martial spirit seemed to have lost its form limitations; attack, control, and movement were completed in the blink of an eye.
Ye Feng remained unmoved by the gasps of surprise around him. He knew very well that the real challenge had only just begun. As the number of people in the center of the arena dwindled rapidly, the previously chaotic battle began to clear. Some scions of powerful families or formidable seeded fighters had already cleared out the surrounding weaklings and were advancing towards the center.
Among them, the most eye-catching is Huyan Li of the Elephant Armor Sect.
At this moment, Hu Yanli was like a walking tank. His already towering two-meter frame had become even more exaggerated after his martial soul was activated, his skin covered with a thick, diamond-like layer of skin. That was the defensive enhancement of the Diamond Mammoth. Every punch he threw produced a muffled explosion in the air. No one around him could last three rounds; most of the freshmen were tossed out of the arena like trash.
Huyan Li's eyes were fierce and manic as he frantically searched the battlefield for the silver-haired figure. The fight at the school gate had been a great humiliation for him, and for a proud descendant of the Elephant Armor Sect, it had to be washed away with blood.
"Ye Feng! Get out here!" Hu Yanli roared, and the first yellow spirit ring under his feet suddenly shone brightly.
"First Soul Skill - Mammoth Stomp!"
Hu Yanli slammed his powerful right foot into the ground, causing the entire Obsidian Arena to shake violently. A strong, earthy-yellow shockwave emanated from him, spreading rapidly in a ring outwards. Dozens of freshmen who were locked in fierce combat were caught off guard, letting out screams as their legs went numb and they collapsed to the ground.
The shockwave, carrying a heavy sense of oppression, swept towards Ye Feng. Ye Feng's eyes darkened; he could sense the thickness of this soul power. Hu Yanli's soul power level was at least level eighteen, and its attributes were pure, far surpassing that of ordinary Great Soul Masters.
"Shaotian, fly!"
Ye Feng let out a low shout, and the Thousand Chance Umbrella instantly transformed back into its umbrella form, its canopy opening. He grabbed Ye Shaotian's collar with one hand, and propelled himself into the air using the wind. At the same time, two tiny jet nozzles suddenly popped out from the end of the Thousand Chance Umbrella's handle.
"Soul Power Jet - Levitation!"
The two of them were lifted three meters into the air just before the shockwave arrived. This sight even made Dean Feng Rusong in the stands adjust his glasses, a strange look flashing in his eyes. Utilizing the design details of their martial souls to circumvent ground control was beyond the ordinary understanding of martial souls by most soul masters.
Seeing that Ye Feng had actually dodged his fatal control, Hu Yanli's eyes blazed with murderous intent. He moved like a giant meteorite, dragging his heavy body as he forced his way through the chaotic crowd, heading straight for the southeast corner.
"You can dodge the ground, but you can't dodge my fist!" Huyan Li roared, his massive body suddenly bursting with a speed that was completely disproportionate to his size. This was a charging technique secretly passed down by the Elephant Armor Sect, called "Brute Force Charge".
Ye Feng remained calm as he plummeted through the air. He had already figured out Hu Yanli's fighting style—extremely high defense and terrifying strength, but relatively poor agility and overly straightforward attack intentions. Among professional players in "Glory," this type of opponent was known as a "clumsy meat shield."
"Shaotian, go around behind him and deliver a few frost sword energies to his heels." Ye Feng gave the order in a low voice the moment he landed.
"Yes, boss! Brother Elephant, take this!" Ye Shaotian moved like the wind, using the blind spot created by Ye Feng, and slid almost touching the ground to Hu Yanli's flank.
Ye Feng faced Hu Yanli head-on. The Thousand Manifestations Umbrella in his hand transformed into a spear once more, its two-meter-long tip gleaming with a blinding cold light in the afterglow of the setting sun. He knew very well that if he took Hu Yanli's fist head-on, his arms would inevitably be temporarily paralyzed by the enormous impact.
The best way to deal with a powerful opponent is not to block, but to "parry" and "deflect".
Just as Hu Yanli's iron fist, the size of a sandbag, was about to strike Ye Feng's chest, Ye Feng's body executed a difficult backward somersault. The Thousand Chance Umbrella, in its spear-like form, did not aim for Hu Yanli's vital points, but instead precisely positioned itself at the fulcrum of Hu Yanli's arm.
"Circular Dance Sticks - Variation, Force Dissipation!"
With the spear tip positioned below Hu Yanli's elbow joint, Ye Feng used the centrifugal force generated by his body rotation to forcibly alter the trajectory of Hu Yanli's fist.
"boom!"
Hu Yanli's heavy fist slammed into the stone pillar behind Ye Feng. The thick pillar was shattered into countless stone fragments by the punch, demonstrating the terrifying power of the blow.
At the same time, Ye Shaotian's sneak attack also arrived.
"Frosty Sword Qi - Shatter Ice!"
Ye Shaotian's Frost Sword erupted with a blinding blue light, and three sharp sword energies slashed in a fan shape at Hu Yanli's heel. Although it failed to cut through the Diamond Mammoth's defense, the extreme cold penetrated into Hu Yanli's ankle joint in that instant, causing his movements to slow down slightly.
"Damn little rat!" Hu Yanli roared as he turned around, wincing in pain.
"Your opponent is me."
Ye Feng's cool voice rang in his ears. Taking advantage of the moment when Hu Yanli turned his head, Ye Feng had already used the momentum to take off. The Thousand Chance Umbrella drew a perfect arc in the air, and its form instantly changed from a spear back to an Ice Phoenix Spear.
The almost miraculous frequency of the switching left the entire audience holding their breath.
"Dragon Fang - Rapid Fire!"
Ye Feng pulled the trigger in mid-air, using the recoil to maintain his airborne position for an even longer period. One after another, ice-blue energy bullets precisely struck the relatively weak gaps in Hu Yanli's neck defenses.
Hu Yanli let out muffled groans. Although his defense was extremely high, the high frequency and precision of the attacks were making him suffer terribly. Each explosion brought a chilling sensation, slowing down his movements.
By this time, the melee within the arena was drawing to a close. Of the original five hundred fighters, less than two hundred and fifty remained after the frenzied clashes. Dean Feng Rusong's gaze remained fixed on Ye Feng; he noticed that this young man was not only fighting, but also "guiding."
By maneuvering around Hu Yanli, he drew other freshmen who were trying to take advantage of the chaos into the aftermath of their fight. Hu Yanli's roars and stomping became the perfect "clearing tools," and those unfortunate students were blasted out of the arena by the shockwaves generated by their fierce battle before they even understood what was happening.
"What a cunning little fellow," Feng Rusong chuckled. "How could such a broad perspective appear in a six-year-old child?"
At this moment, Hu Yanli had completely lost his mind. His second yellow spirit ring began to flash, revealing his trump card skill – "Mammoth Protection". A semi-transparent dark golden light shield enveloped his entire body, further enhancing his defensive capabilities.
"Let's see how you fight back!" Hu Yanli launched another charge, this time abandoning fancy moves and relying purely on the weight of his body for a sweeping impact.
Ye Feng landed on the ground, his soul power mostly depleted. Looking at Hu Yanli charging towards him, he suddenly retracted the Thousand Chance Umbrella.
"Shaotian, are you ready for the final blow?"
"Ready, boss! We can send this elephant to hibernation anytime!" Ye Shaotian raised the Frost Sword not far away, his soul power fluctuations reaching their peak.
At the last moment, Ye Feng's Thousand Chance Umbrella opened to full capacity. However, he did not use it for defense, but instead tilted the umbrella towards the ground.
"Mechanical rotor - Full power acceleration!"
The umbrella spun wildly, generating immense wind pressure, but instead of lifting Ye Feng into the air, it propelled his body sideways at an extremely bizarre speed. In the instant he passed Hu Yanli, Ye Feng suddenly removed the umbrella, and the Thousand Chance Umbrella transformed back into a heavy long staff, slamming hard against Hu Yanli's already frostbitten ankle.
"boom--!!!"
Due to the immense momentum of his charge, Hu Yanli was unable to regain his balance this time. His mountain-like body lost its balance amidst the horrified gazes of the crowd and crashed heavily towards the edge of the arena, only coming to a stop after hitting the thick protective railing.
At the same time, a dull gong sounded in the center of the arena.
"Time's up! 200 people remaining!"
The referee's voice trembled slightly, but it brought an end to all the chaos.
The once bustling arena fell into dead silence in an instant.
Hu Yanli struggled to his feet, his face filled with shame, anger, and disbelief. In the center of the arena, Ye Feng calmly put away the Thousand Chance Umbrella, hoisting it back onto his shoulder, his silver hair gleaming coolly in the setting sun.
Beneath his feet lay not only the obsidian floor of this arena, but also the first step leading to the pinnacle of the entire Douluo Continent.
In the stands, Dean Feng Rusong stood up and slowly began to applaud.
"Excellent, very excellent. The ice and snow of the North… are truly boiling over."
Ye Feng turned to look at Ye Shaotian, and the two smiled at each other. This hellish entrance exam was merely the end of a warm-up for them, and the legend of "Happy" had already left its indelible first mark on this land of winter.