Unable to Compare
Facing such a serious Shen Ce, Yuhao naturally would not respond with a joking attitude.
So after the referee gave the order to start, Yuhao's eyes instantly turned a deep purple-gold, the signature glow of his Spiritual Eyes martial soul.
At the same time, his first soul ring quietly lit up.
Soul Shock!
Buzz——
A powerful spiritual shockwave erupted silently. The invisible mental attack struck in an instant, smashing directly toward Shen Ce's sea of consciousness.
But Shen Ce was not careless. As a core disciple of Thousand Spirit Academy, and a genuine Soul King, he had already made preparations against Yuhao's spiritual-type martial soul. Almost at the same time the match began, two of his soul rings flashed brilliantly.
When Yuhao's Soul Shock descended, Shen Ce had already thrown the Thousand Strike Spear in his hand.
Whoosh—
The Thousand Strike Spear tore through the air with terrifying sharpness, heading straight for Yuhao's face. Clearly, Shen Ce intended to force a mutual exchange. He knew Yuhao's spiritual skills were swift but believed that once Yuhao launched a mental attack, there would be a brief moment of stiffness.
Because Yuhao had just released Soul Shock and had not immediately dodged, it seemed too late to evade now.
From this alone, one could see Shen Ce's battle awareness.
Unfortunately, he still underestimated Yuhao.
In the next instant, Yuhao's body seemed to melt into the ground, transforming into a black shadow.
This was not the Golden Dragon Wing's ability, but rather the skill derived from his second martial soul—the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion—combined with his immense spiritual control: the Shadow-like evasive movement he had developed after multiple battles.
In the blink of an eye, the spear lost its target.
The dark shadow flickered and shuttled, reappearing behind Shen Ce.
Just as Yuhao leapt from the shadows to strike—
Shen Ce reacted instantly. With a flash of light, the Thousand Strike Spear returned to his grasp, guided by soul power.
Boom!
Yuhao's fist collided head-on with the spear's shaft.
Surprisingly, it was Shen Ce—the Soul King—who was forced backward.
"What terrifying physical strength!"
Shen Ce steadied himself, his palms numb.
Yuhao gave him no time to breathe. Stepping forward, he launched punch after punch.
There were no flashy techniques.
Only two qualities—speed and weight.
This was pure close-combat dominance forged through body tempering, soul bone nourishment, and the transformation brought by the Gold of Living Beings absorbed earlier.
Even for a carefully cultivated Soul King like Shen Ce, defending against such relentless pressure was difficult.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Each clash rang out like metal striking metal. Shen Ce retreated step by step, forced toward the edge of the arena.
Boom!
With another explosive step, Yuhao's fist tore through the air.
Shen Ce did not want to clash directly, but Yuhao's speed left him no choice. He could only parry again and again.
After several exchanges, Shen Ce was driven to the very edge of the ring. There was nowhere left to retreat.
"Is he really human?"
Looking at Yuhao—expression calm, arms faintly glowing with a pale golden luster—despair flickered in Shen Ce's eyes.
He now understood why Yuhao dared to clash barehanded against the Thousand Strike Spear.
Each time they collided, a layer of subtle golden radiance shimmered over Yuhao's arms.
This was the effect of his body being nourished and elevated by the Gold of Living Beings. Though far from a flawless golden body, his physique was already comparable to refined steel.
At this moment, Yuhao drew in a deep breath. The power of qi and blood surged within him.
Behind him, a faint golden dragon silhouette seemed to condense.
Self-created combat skill—
Golden Dragon Shock!
Roar!
With a dragon's roar echoing faintly, Yuhao punched forward.
The terrifying force caused Shen Ce's pupils to shrink. In his vision, all that remained was the massive dragon head formed from condensed qi and blood.
Even after activating his strongest defensive soul skill, Shen Ce was blasted backward.
He was sent flying off the stage.
The instant Shen Ce landed outside the ring, the arena exploded into cheers.
"A string of seven!"
"A string of seven!"
"It's not just that he achieved a string of seven—it's that he did it as a Soul Elder! And his opponents included two Soul Sects and a Soul King!"
"That's terrifying!"
...
When the referee declared Yuhao the victor, he finally let out a breath.
Seven consecutive battles.
Although none of the opponents could be considered top-tier monsters, maintaining such high-intensity combat still consumed considerable energy.
Ignoring the thunderous applause, Yuhao calmly stepped off the stage and said to Lang Ya,
"Elder Lang Ya, the match is over. I'll head back first."
There were still battles to follow, but he had no interest in watching.
"Go ahead," Lang Ya nodded.
Watching Yuhao's departing figure, Zhen Yue, Long Aotian, and Wei Na fell silent.
Even for Long Aotian, a true Soul King and the strongest among them, achieving a string of seven would not be easy.
Yet Yuhao—a three-ringed Soul Elder—had done it with apparent ease.
Lang Ya saw the expressions on their faces and spoke calmly.
"You may take the Young Master as your goal. But do not compare yourselves with him."
"He is destined to become someone all soul masters will look up to. Blind comparison will only damage your confidence."
If these words had been spoken earlier, Long Aotian or Zhen Yue would surely have objected.
But today's battle shattered their pride.
After a moment of silence, Long Aotian asked,
"Elder… in this life, are we truly unable to catch up to the Young Master? Are we not even qualified to stand behind him?"
Lang Ya sighed softly.
"You are all rare geniuses. But if you continue on your current path without change… perhaps you truly cannot match him. That is not my judgment. It is the Sect Master's."
The Sect Master of Noumenon Sect was not one to exaggerate.
Hearing this, their expressions changed.
But just as their confidence faltered, Lang Ya continued,
"However—if you can surpass yourselves, then perhaps you may stand behind him."
As he spoke, Lang Ya took out a Level Three soul tool.
It was one of the items obtained from the auction in Star Luo City.
After hearing Yuhao's insights about the future integration of soul masters and soul engineers, Lang Ya had discussed the matter at length with Jin Peng. They concluded that the fusion of martial souls and soul tools was indeed the future trend.
Although the Noumenon Sect began late in this field, they possessed a unique advantage—
Their original martial souls.
Thus, they decided to let Long Aotian and Zhen Yue attempt this path first.
Seeing the soul tool, the trio's expressions turned complicated.
The pride of traditional soul masters instinctively resisted soul tools.
Even Lang Ya himself once held such views.
So he repeated Yuhao's reasoning to them carefully.
After a long silence, Long Aotian and the others finally nodded.
They would try.
Seeing this, Lang Ya smiled faintly.
He understood clearly—
The reason these geniuses were willing to change was not persuasion alone.
It was the overwhelming pressure brought by Huo Yuhao.