The originally sturdy protective barrier was pierced as if it were made of paper.
Bei Bei's pupils contracted, his mind shaken with waves of shock.
If that attack had landed on him, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Even with dragon scales protecting his body, his body would probably have been pierced instantly.
Thinking of this, Bei Bei felt a wave of lingering fear.
He hadn't expected Huo Yuhao to have such a technique.
This move looked like a Tang Sect hidden weapon skill, but in reality, it was something completely different.
Where did Huo Yuhao learn such a terrifying ability?
Bei Bei's vigilance rose once again. This former little junior brother of his truly kept giving him surprises.
After missing that strike, Huo Yuhao's face turned pale.
He had already used a lot of soul power in the previous two rounds.
Now, after fighting Bei Bei for so long, his soul power was even further depleted.
With such little soul power, using the "Hundred Steps One Kill" from the Devouring Life Sutra was extremely taxing.
The terrifying power that could pierce the barrier came at a very high cost.
Huo Yuhao was now weak and couldn't unleash the same attack again.
With his rich combat experience, Bei Bei immediately saw Huo Yuhao's current state.
Seizing the opportunity, he launched an attack on Huo Yuhao.
Bei Bei's attacks rained down like a storm, and Huo Yuhao struggled to defend himself.
Gradually, the scales of victory tipped completely in Bei Bei's favor.
Bang!
Carelessly, Bei Bei's dragon claw struck Huo Yuhao, instantly drawing blood.
Blue-violet lightning raged through Huo Yuhao's body, causing him to convulse.
Gritting his teeth, Huo Yuhao's face twisted with resolve as he grabbed Bei Bei's dragon claw tightly.
At the same time, his sixth soul ring lit up.
Sixth soul skill: Spiritual Sacrifice.
The effect: For a short time, it rapidly boosts spiritual power, greatly amplifying the effects of other spiritual soul skills.
Without exaggeration, this was Huo Yuhao's trump card.
In this state, if Huo Yuhao unleashed his strongest single-target attack soul skill—Soul Shock—even a Soul Sage would be injured.
Even with Bei Bei's Sovereign's Descent, he wouldn't be immune to Huo Yuhao's attack.
Given Huo Yuhao's powerful spiritual power, Bei Bei would undoubtedly be seriously injured.
But just as he was about to unleash his soul skill, looking at Bei Bei's familiar face, Huo Yuhao hesitated, and his resolve unconsciously faded.
In the end, he couldn't bear to harm Bei Bei.
Yes, after all, this was his eldest senior brother, one of the few people in the world who truly cared for him.
How could Huo Yuhao truly bring himself to hurt him?
But it was this moment of hesitation that allowed Bei Bei to seize the chance.
Bei Bei's other dragon claw struck Huo Yuhao's chest hard, sending him flying.
Huo Yuhao spat out a mouthful of blood in midair, his body crashing to the ground ten meters away and skidding several more meters.
The violent shock made Huo Yuhao cough up another large mouthful of blood, and his chest was charred black.
He curled up in pain, his body trembling uncontrollably as lightning raged inside him.
Bei Bei's furious blow had seriously injured Huo Yuhao.
Looking at his dragon claw and then at the distant Huo Yuhao, a trace of confusion flashed in Bei Bei's eyes.
Just now, he seemed to sense hesitation in Huo Yuhao's gaze.
Did Yuhao hold back?
With this thought, Bei Bei looked at the struggling Huo Yuhao, and a pang of guilt rose in his heart.
No matter what, Yuhao was Yuhao—his former little junior brother.
Thinking of their time together, Bei Bei felt a mix of emotions.
Had he gone too far?
But Xu Sanshi...
Bei Bei thought of Xu Sanshi, his best friend.
Xu Sanshi's crippling was closely tied to Huo Yuhao; Bei Bei had to vent his anger for Xu Sanshi.
With all these thoughts swirling, Bei Bei's gaze became complicated.
He glanced at Huo Yuhao, then steeled himself and looked away.
"Referee, can the result be declared now?"
Bei Bei said calmly.
Douluo Zheng Zhan appeared, checked on Huo Yuhao, and then sent him off the stage.
"Next member of the Snow Demon Sect, please enter."
"Boss, let me go!"
Wang Yanfeng raised his hand, eager to fight.
Long Aotian glanced at Huo Yuhao, settled him to one side, and nodded.
Wang Yanfeng grinned and jumped onto the stage.
He was also a Soul Emperor, his martial soul being his hands.
He also had the highest soul ring configuration.
As a Body Sect member, Wang Yanfeng was strong and skilled in combat techniques.
The two sides clashed for dozens of rounds, but Wang Yanfeng was still suppressed by Bei Bei's Sovereign's Descent.
Frustrated, Wang Yanfeng unleashed his trump card: Second Awakening.
Bronze light shone everywhere, and the Body Sect's identity was completely exposed to the public at this moment.
"Bronze-level Second Awakening."
In the rest area, Su Yu muttered, eyes narrowing.
The Body Sect's Second Awakening comes in several levels: Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, and Gold.
A Black Iron Second Awakening boosts martial soul combat power by 30%.
Bronze Second Awakening boosts it by 60%.
Next is the rare Silver level.
Silver-level Second Awakening doubles martial soul combat power, and some with Silver Awakening can even advance one rank.
It's a terrifying ability.
But Silver Second Awakening isn't something most can achieve.
Only top-tier body-type martial souls have a chance at Silver Awakening during their second awakening.
So what counts as a top-tier body martial soul?
There's a simple way to judge: the more vital the awakened body part, the higher the level.
Hands and feet—if lost, a person can still live—so those martial souls are high-level at best.
That's why this person's second awakening is only Bronze.
For example, Shrek Academy's Lan Luoluo and Lan Susu's hair martial souls are not vital; losing hair does little harm, so those are at most Black Iron.
Eyes, as pure eye martial souls, are only Bronze.
Only vital organs like the heart, liver, etc.—parts vital for survival—may reach Silver.
Huo Yuhao's martial soul is the eye, but it's spirit-type, so it's the eye plus the brain.
With normal cultivation, Silver Awakening is likely, but whether he can reach Gold depends on effort.
As for Gold Awakening, so far only one person has achieved it—Du Busi.
This is Du Busi's greatest trump card.
But the stronger the awakening, the greater the cost.
Black Iron and Bronze are manageable; Silver Awakening's backlash is considerable.
Gold Awakening is only for desperate moments, and the price may be one's life force.
Gold Awakening is powerful, but only as a last resort.
In this way, the Body Sect still lags behind the Clear Sky Sect and Ice God Palace.
Clear Sky's Ring Detonation also has backlash, but not life-threatening.
Ice God Palace's Ice God Secret Art: Sublimation can perfectly raise one rank with minimal backlash.
So Su Yu feels Gold Awakening is somewhat unimpressive.
Of course, that's just his opinion. Gold Awakening is still a powerful trump card—Du Busi can resist even Ultimate Douluo with it.
That's no small feat.
"Body Sect, so it is them. Hmph, these guys hid in the Heavenly Soul Empire's team."
On the main platform, Xu Tiannan sneered as he watched the bronze light on the arena.
He had learned early on that the Body Sect had infiltrated to join the tournament.
As expected, the Body Sect disguised themselves and hid in the Snow Demon Sect.
Now, with the Second Awakening revealed, the Body Sect could no longer hide.
"Body Sect?"
Jing Hongchen squinted at the arena, a cold gleam in his eyes.
He still remembered the Body Sect's attack on the Illustrious Virtue Hall, and he couldn't help but hate them.
Jing Hongchen was not a forgiving person—he always sought revenge.
Now, seeing the Body Sect again, he wouldn't let things go.
"Hall Master, what do you think of the Body Sect?"
Xu Tiannan asked Jing Hongchen with a smile.
He disliked the Body Sect for their attack on the Royal Academy, which embarrassed the Sun Moon Empire.
As the prince, he naturally wasn't pleased.
He felt Jing Hongchen hated the Body Sect even more—as a direct victim.
Sure enough, Jing Hongchen said coldly, "The Body Sect is lawless, reckless, and holds great hostility toward the Empire."
"Such a sect is only the enemy of the Empire."
"Great minds think alike. I feel the same."
Xu Tiannan smiled, "The Body Sect has infiltrated Radiant City with ill intentions. For the Sun Moon Empire, they're a great threat."
"I've decided to join forces with the Holy Church to eliminate the danger and protect the Empire. What do you think, Hall Master?"
Jing Hongchen's eyes narrowed. He understood Xu Tiannan's hidden meaning.
He'd long suspected Xu Tiannan and Zhongli Wu were plotting a big operation.
Now Xu Tiannan's words confirmed his suspicion.
Eliminating dangers? Just an excuse.
Xu Tiannan's real target was not just the Body Sect.
Behind this gentle prince was a mad ambition.
He likely aimed to target all the teams from the original Douluo Continent.
At this stage of the tournament, only the strongest teams remained.
If...
Such ruthlessness.
What an appetite the prince had.
But after careful consideration, Jing Hongchen still agreed.
He didn't care who Xu Tiannan targeted, but he would never let the Body Sect go.
Not choosing Xu Tiannan, but a temporary alliance in special circumstances.
The damned Body Sect—they had to pay the price.
A trace of cruelty flashed in Jing Hongchen's eyes before he returned to calm.
"Your Highness is right. Radiant City is of utmost importance and we must be vigilant."
Xu Tiannan smiled, "Hall Master, your devotion to the country is admirable."
The two exchanged glances and laughed, each hiding their thoughts.
"Haha, let's watch the match. I'm curious—between Shrek Academy and the Body Sect, who's stronger?"
Xu Tiannan smiled meaningfully at the arena.
Jing Hongchen said nothing, just watching the arena as the match was reaching its end.
Facing Wang Yanfeng's Second Awakening, even Bei Bei dared not underestimate him.
The immense pressure forced Bei Bei to use his ultimate trump card.
Blue-violet lightning turned to gold, and golden thunder wrapped around Bei Bei, turning him entirely golden.
Sovereign Descent: Thunder Domain instantly expanded, and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon evolved into the Holy Bright Lightning Tyrant Dragon.
At the same time, his fifth soul skill, Dragon Emperor Evilbreaker, exploded forth.
The two clashed—Bronze Second Awakening versus Bright Holy Dragon Awakening.
It was a true head-on collision, shaking even the arena itself.
The barrier's light dimmed, flickering, while dozens of soul masters maintaining it trembled, faces pale.
The power unleashed by both sides undoubtedly reached the Soul Sage level.
Such a clash was rare even in the whole tournament.
Moments later, the golden thunder overwhelmed the bronze light, and a figure was sent flying.
This duel had ended.
The Body Sect's Bronze Second Awakening was defeated by Bei Bei's Bright Holy Dragon Awakening.
The clash ended—the arena fell silent.
Bei Bei's strength had conquered the audience.
Defeating two Soul Emperors in a row, Bei Bei's fame soared.
"Bei Bei won! Looks like the Body Sect's Second Awakening isn't all that impressive."
Seeing Bei Bei's victory, Wu Ming sighed in relief and grinned.
Shrek had lost two people; the Body Sect had also lost two. It looked about even.
Wu Ming finally let out his pent-up frustration.
Defeating two Soul Emperors in a row—Bei Bei pulled it off.
"This was only a Bronze Second Awakening—not as good as Bei Bei's Bright Holy Dragon Awakening—not surprising."
"But Bei Bei's win wasn't easy. The next match will be the real test."
Su Yu said calmly.
The Body Sect's overall strength was still much greater than Shrek Academy's.
Bei Bei was now spent; it would be difficult to gain any more advantage.