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Huo Yuhao's challenge—"Who else?"—had already infuriated Zhang Peng.
Even under the protection of five Invincible Shields, Lu Genggeng had still been brutally slain. Huo Yuhao's actions were clear: he was deliberately targeting and humiliating the Holy Spirit Cult.
Yet, the audience unanimously approved of his behavior.
Even the people from Shrek and the Tang Sect couldn't deny it—what Huo Yuhao did was incredibly satisfying.
Against evil soul masters, this was the only way!
"You—come and meet your death!" Huo Yuhao looked toward the waiting area, raising his right hand to point directly at a member of the Holy Spirit Cult's team.
The one he pointed at was Tang Dai, the wielder of the Skull King martial soul. Aside from being less adept at ranged attacks, his martial soul was considered one of the strongest.
Yet at this moment, Tang Dai hesitated.
Huo Yuhao's sheer dominance was terrifying—he had outright slaughtered four Soul Emperor-level evil soul masters. And Tang Dai knew exactly how strong those four had been.
The fact that Huo Yuhao had killed them so effortlessly, in such a direct and violent manner, made it painfully clear—Tang Dai wasn't his match.
His only hope lay in Huo Yuhao's current state.
Taking a deep breath, and under Zhang Peng's sharp gaze, Tang Dai stepped onto the stage.
Huo Yuhao's actions had deeply displeased the national advisor—who was also the leader of the Holy Spirit Cult. He had already issued a command: no matter the cost, even if they all had to die, Huo Yuhao must be eliminated.
Even if this meant a direct conflict with Jing Hongchen, the Hall Master of the Sun Moon Empire's Sun-Moon Hall, he no longer cared.
Previously, they had avoided clashing with Jing Hongchen out of concern that he might obstruct the Holy Spirit Cult's expansion. But now, Huo Yuhao's blatant slaughter of their members, coupled with his open provocation, made it clear where Sun-Moon Hall stood. At this point, even if the Holy Spirit Cult backed down, Jing Hongchen likely wouldn't allow them to expand unchecked.
Since that was the case, there was no reason to hold back.
As for the loss of their seven young prodigies?
It was insignificant.
The true foundation of the Holy Spirit Cult lay in its most powerful members. Whether or not future generations would struggle to fill their ranks was not something Zhongli Wu needed to concern himself with.
With the Holy Spirit Cult's influence spanning the vast Douluo Continent, as long as their power remained strong, they would always find exceptionally gifted evil soul masters.
And even if someone didn't possess an innate evil martial soul, they could always be guided toward corruption, transforming into the most formidable of evil soul masters.
Tang Dai stepped onto the stage with a heavy heart.
The oppressive aura of two hundred-thousand-year spirit rings and four spirit rings from savage beasts bore down on him, making his heart grow even heavier.
The sheer pressure of this aura—it was undeniably real.
Once Tang Dai was in position, the Unbreakable Douluo wasted no time, immediately announcing the start of the match.
"Extreme Ice Battle Armor—Fusion!"
Huo Yuhao finally unleashed the power the Holy Spirit Cult feared most.
Battle Armor!
And not just ordinary battle armor.
Unlike the standard fusion method for primary-level battle armor shown in previous tournaments, this time, there was no fluctuation from any storage soul tool on Huo Yuhao's body.
Each piece of his battle armor seemed to emerge directly from the depths of his martial soul, seamlessly attaching itself to his body.
Everything came together with an eerie, natural harmony.
"What kind of technology is this?" Fan Yu gasped in shock. He was certain—there had been no activation of a storage soul tool.
Which meant that the entire battle armor had been integrated into Huo Yuhao's body.
What kind of soul tool could achieve such a feat?
If this was truly possible, then the last minor imperfection of primary-level battle armor would be completely resolved.
"At the very least, this is a full set of seventh-tier soul tools forming a complete suit of battle armor," Fan Yu concluded after carefully analyzing Huo Yuhao's Extreme Ice Battle Armor, though his voice was filled with disbelief.
Seventh-tier soul tools!
A full set of seventh-tier soul tools!
And if this battle armor's amplification matched the level displayed by Xiao Ping and the others in their duel, then how terrifying would that be?
A Soul Saint wearing such armor—could they reach the peak strength of a Soul Douluo?
After all, when Xiao Ping and the others donned fifth-tier soul tool battle armor, they had reached the pinnacle of the Soul Emperor level. By that logic, a seventh-tier battle armor should elevate a Soul Saint to Soul Douluo-level combat power.
But Huo Yuhao had already been monstrously strong even before wearing his battle armor—strong enough to shatter a five-tier Invincible Shield by force.
"Could he… already have the strength of a Titled Douluo?" Xiao Xiao murmured, her voice filled with disbelief.
Yet, despite the sheer incredibility of Xiao Xiao's words, no one refuted her.
Even Su Tong, a Soul Saint with Ultimate Ice, who theoretically possessed the combat power of a Titled Douluo, would not dare claim she could defeat Huo Yuhao in his current state.
The answer to Xiao Xiao's question was already self-evident.
If Huo Yuhao was this powerful… then what about Su Yu?
A deep sense of despair settled in Yan Shaozhe's heart.
Could it be that Shrek was about to lose the Continental Soul Master Tournament again?
The last tournament's loss could be attributed to an unforeseen accident. But this time, if they were defeated, it would be a crushing loss—a complete suppression in terms of raw strength.
And yet, Shrek had gone all out in preparation for this tournament.
Battle Armor!
They had to obtain battle armor technology!
That was the true reason why Shrek had grown apprehensive before even facing the Sun Moon Imperial Battle Team.
The amplification provided by battle armor was simply too overwhelming.
If only Shrek's students had access to battle armor, the so-called Sun Moon Imperial Battle Team would be nothing.
It was all his fault—he had stifled Qian Duoduo's Soul Tool Department too much.
Yan Shaozhe now deeply regretted his past mistakes.
But it was too late.
The prime of Qian Duoduo's passion and enthusiasm had already passed. Even though he was still at the peak of his life, even though his abilities had not declined, the external circumstances had already shaped him in ways that could not be undone.
---
"Well? Do you feel it?"
After completing his battle armor fusion, Huo Yuhao did not attack immediately. Instead, he gazed at Tang Dai and spoke softly.
At this moment, Huo Yuhao resembled a true villain, looking down on his opponent with utter disdain—an opponent he could slay effortlessly.
"Do you feel it? The pain and despair of those you slaughtered?"
With a single beat of his skeletal wings, Huo Yuhao's body shot forward, skimming just above the ground. In the blink of an eye, he reached the center of the stage.
Tang Dai snapped to attention, activating all of his defensive soul skills. Yet, even that did not make him feel safe—he immediately deployed three fifth-tier Invincible Shields.
Boom!
Huo Yuhao's hands had already transformed into enormous, ice-blue Ice Empress' Pincers.
With terrifying speed, combined with the power of his soul skills, his strike was unimaginably destructive.
Tang Dai's body slammed downward, embedding into the arena floor. The stage, made of rare metal, now bore a half-meter-deep crater, with spiderweb-like cracks spreading in every direction.
The tournament's specialized arena was a soul tool, designed to autonomously repair itself using soul power and energy flow.
But the devastation Huo Yuhao had caused was so overwhelming that the repair process was nearly imperceptible.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
All three Invincible Shields shattered instantly.
The dark-gold protective barrier around the colossal Darkgold Skull King flickered violently before finally stabilizing.
Just as Tang Dai let out a relieved breath, Huo Yuhao's left fist came crashing down.
Boom!
The Skull King's dark-gold protective layer shattered.
A second punch followed immediately.
Another defensive layer broke apart—cracks spread across the Skull King's body, and even his soul skills that amplified his condition failed to mitigate the damage.
Boom!
A third punch landed.
Gritting his teeth, Tang Dai activated a sixth-tier Invincible Shield, hoping to use the brief invulnerability window to surrender.
Fifth-tier shields had been shattered outright—what about a sixth-tier one?
Even with the amplification of battle armor, Tang Dai was confident he could get a single word out before being struck down.
But just as he thought he had a chance—an unexpected disaster struck.
Huo Yuhao sneered coldly and uttered a single word:
"Explode."
A terrifying force suddenly surged within Tang Dai's body.
His eyes widened in horror. He opened his mouth to say something—but it was already too late.
Inside the supposed safety of his Invincible Shield, Tang Dai's entire body detonated like a bomb.
Boom!
The Invincible Shield blocked the explosion from spreading outward, containing all the destructive force within.
---
Waiting Area.
Zhang Peng's right fist clenched tightly.
His killing intent toward Huo Yuhao had reached its peak.
He had his own bottom line, his own aspirations—but none of that changed the fact that Scorpion-Tiger Douluo Zhang Peng was an evil soul master.
When Elder Mu had captured him back then, he had not yet killed anyone. And after Elder Mu's death, he had remained in seclusion, still without a single kill to his name.
But that did not change his nature as an evil soul master.
Under Shrek's relentless pursuit and the prejudiced eyes of the world, Zhang Peng had no chance of ever becoming a normal soul master.
His personality was inherently extreme, and in his eyes, human lives were as insignificant as weeds.
Joining the Holy Spirit Cult had been his choice—his own pursuit of power and ambition. And for that goal, he was willing to commit any act of cruelty.
"You. Step up and accept your death!"
Huo Yuhao spoke again, his finger pointing directly at Gu Yu—the last remaining Soul Emperor of the Holy Spirit Cult, aside from Yan Feng, the Soul Saint.
Gu Yu's heart was gripped by fear.
As an evil soul master, he had always taken pleasure in tormenting others. Yet now, he found himself trembling under Huo Yuhao's cold, emotionless gaze.
But Zhang Peng's sharp stare and the decree of their cult leader were not things he could defy.
Gu Yu slowly stepped onto the stage.
He had already made up his mind—he would surrender the moment the match began.
The Holy Spirit Cult's grudge against Huo Yuhao, coupled with their pride, meant that Zhang Peng would never allow them to forfeit outright. But once on the stage, Gu Yu could still choose to admit defeat.
Even if it meant facing the cult's brutal punishment afterward, his priority was to stay alive.
"The match begins!"
At this moment, Unbreakable Douluo was filled with anticipation. He wanted to see Huo Yuhao execute this evil soul master with the same ruthless efficiency as before. Without any hesitation, he announced the start of the match.
One hundred meters apart. How do you plan to kill me?
As soon as Unbreakable Douluo's voice fell, Gu Yu opened his mouth to surrender.
Unbreakable Douluo watched him, feeling disappointed.
This evil soul master is way too much of a coward.
How could someone be this spineless?
Surrendering the moment the match starts—how is Huo Yuhao supposed to kill him now?
Clearly, in Unbreakable Douluo's mind, Gu Yu had a real chance of surviving.
Something's wrong.
One second passed.
And yet, Gu Yu's voice never reached anyone's ears.
Unbreakable Douluo immediately realized something was off.
Gu Yu's face was contorted in horror. His mouth was open, shouting the same three words over and over.
But his voice never spread beyond his lips.
Unbreakable Douluo's expression shifted. He released his spiritual power and sensed an overwhelming mental force sweeping across the battlefield—Huo Yuhao's spiritual energy.
"He can suppress sound using pure spiritual force?"
"No, this is a soul skill!"
At that moment, Huo Yuhao's martial soul had already switched to his first one—Spirit Eyes. A black soul ring, his fourth, flickered ominously.
"Fourth Soul Skill—Spiritual Mirage!"
The entire stage was now his domain.
Whatever the audience or even those within the illusion saw and heard was completely under Huo Yuhao's control.
Of course, soul masters with greater spiritual power than his could resist the interference, and those even stronger could shatter the illusion entirely.
But neither Unbreakable Douluo nor Gu Yu met that threshold.
In fact, they couldn't even avoid being influenced, let alone break free.
Huo Yuhao's already intangible spiritual power had become even stronger after merging with the Extreme Ice Battle Armor. Though it had not yet reached the level of true materialization, where spiritual power takes a physical form, it was close enough that escaping the influence of his soul skill was nearly impossible.
Soul Shock!
In the vast sea of his mind, the giant hammer formed by intricate spiritual patterns absorbed even more energy, synchronizing perfectly with his Spiritual Shock soul skill.
A colossal hammer, seemingly tangible, appeared before Gu Yu.
With the enhancement of his battle armor, the degree of his spiritual power's materialization had reached an entirely new level.
Boom!
The hammer fell.
Gu Yu met the same fate as Jili before him—his body was violently slammed into the ground.
To conserve his mental and soul power, Huo Yuhao did not alter much within the illusion. He merely concealed Gu Yu's mouth movements and suppressed his voice.
"Dead… he's dead?"
Just like that?
That was a Soul Emperor, an evil soul master who had once killed a Soul Saint.
"You're next."
Huo Yuhao turned his gaze toward the preparation area.
There was only one person left in the Holy Spirit Cult's team.
Yan Feng.
The third Soul Saint of this tournament—and an evil soul master with a record of slaying a Soul Douluo.
Yet, even he felt an overwhelming sense of fear in the face of Huo Yuhao.
He knew that this was all part of Huo Yuhao's psychological warfare. But knowing did not make it any easier to suppress the rising dread in his heart.
It wasn't just Yan Feng—even in the resting area, the members of the Shrek Academy team, Tang Sect team, and the seven members of the Body Sect all felt an indescribable pressure.
Huo Yuhao's strength was more terrifying than anything they had ever imagined.
At best, they had assumed that his Soul Emperor level power, when combined with a fifth-tier soul tool battle armor, would only elevate him to the level of Su Tong.
They were wrong.
Completely wrong.
The Sun Moon Empire's battle armor technology had long surpassed basic battle armor. They had already developed intermediate battle armor, with every component crafted from seventh-tier soul tools.
Yan Feng stepped onto the stage, his mind racing as he felt the oppressive spiritual energy filling the air.
Now, he understood.
He finally realized why Gu Yu had acted so strangely before his death.
And that realization only deepened his despair.
"Match, begin!"
Unbreakable Douluo eagerly awaited the moment when Huo Yuhao would complete his seven-kill streak.
Though he was technically the referee, responsible for enforcing the rules, there was no one who would question his inaction.
This was merely an exploitable loophole in the competition's regulations—one that no one would dare to challenge.
"Accidental deaths" did not warrant a ban from the tournament.
And most importantly—though Unbreakable Douluo wouldn't admit it, he knew deep down—he might not even be able to defeat Huo Yuhao himself.
If even I, the referee, can't be certain of winning against him… then it's perfectly reasonable that I might not be able to stop him from killing his opponent, right?
---
(End of Chapter.)