For a heartbeat, no one even breathed. Then the whispers exploded like a tidal wave.
"Is that… a black soul ring?""Impossible! He's only at Soul Ancestor level—how can he already have a ten-thousand-year ring?""Even some Soul Kings don't dare attempt a ten-thousand-year as their fifth soul ring!"
Several teachers stood up abruptly, their expressions shifting between disbelief and awe.
"Principal Shen Luo, that's—!" one instructor began, but his words died as Shen Luo raised a hand, eyes gleaming faintly.
"Yes," Shen Luo murmured. "A black soul ring… and his second ring is of deeper violet than Lin Yuan's. This child—this Jiang Mo—is a true monster."
Across the arena, Lin Yuan's confident smirk flickered ever so slightly. His spider limbs froze mid-motion, sensing instinctively the danger emanating from Jiang Mo's weapon.
The tension between the two young men became tangible, like lightning trapped between storm clouds.
From the stands, Jun Wuhen narrowed his eyes."Abyss Spider Emperor and The Heavenly Evil Breaking Cudgel…" he whispered under his breath.
The Refree's voice boomed across the arena:"Both sides ready…!"
Lin Yuan's spider limbs spread wide, scraping the arena floor with a metallic screech.
Jiang Mo adjusted his grip on the cudgel, his expression calm, the referee's arm dropped.
"Begin!"
Before the refree shouted, Lin Yuan was screaming internally, 'System, how is he able to absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring while I was not able to?!'
Ding!
[ Host... sigh... The absorption of a ten-thousand-year soul ring requires a level of mental will capable of contending with the dying consciousness of the beast. The pressure of the soul alone can destroy a weak spirit sea. ]
"System, you're saying the same rhetoric again—"
Ding!
[ Host, this is not the time to argue. You are in the middle of a fight. ]
Before Lin Yuan could respond, Jiang Mo had already closed the distance.
The ground trembled as Jiang Mo's figure blurred, appearing in front of him with the Heavenly Evil Breaking Cudgel raised high. The black-gold weapon whistled through the air, tearing through the surrounding pressure. Lin Yuan tried to dodge, but his movements suddenly felt sluggish — his legs heavy, as if shackled by invisible weights.
The moment the cudgel appeared, the space around Jiang Mo warped faintly, pressing down like the heavens themselves.
This was due to Jiang Mo's martial soul's Innate domain—Gravity Field.
The air groaned as Jiang Mo brought his weapon down. Lin Yuan barely reacted — his first soul ring flared violently, black light exploding from beneath his feet.
"First Soul Skill: Webshot!"
With a guttural shout, Lin Yuan spewed an eruption of black spider silk that spread like a net of death. The threads glittered faintly with metallic luster, slicing through the air as they covered half the arena in a matter of seconds. The sticky, life-draining strands coiled around, forming a terrain only he could navigate.
With a deft pull of one thread, Lin Yuan launched himself backward, flipping through the air to escape Jiang Mo's cudgel. He landed lightly, crouched like a true spider.
'His close combat power is terrifying. If I fight him head-on, I'll be crushed,' Lin Yuan thought, sweat trickling down his forehead.
Jiang Mo raised his cudgel and slashed through the sticky webs with brute force, each swing accompanied by a shockwave.
"This is disgusting," he spat coldly, shaking off remnants of web from his arms. "Your threads… they drain vitality, don't they?"
He wasn't asking — he was stating, his gaze unwavering.
Lin Yuan smirked, his spider-like eyes narrowing. "So what if they do?"
Then, he closed his eyes. A cold wave of spiritual power radiated outward from him, sweeping across the arena like a tide of darkness.
"Now that I've felt the weight of your domain…" His eyes opened again, glowing a deep violet. "Why don't you feel mine?"
The shadows beneath everyone's feet began to stretch unnaturally. The light dimmed, the air thickened, and a pale, ghostly aura filled the surroundings. The ground seemed to breathe.
"Innate Domain Skill — Pale Life."
An invisible pulse emanated from Lin Yuan, enveloping Jiang Mo in a dark field. Those caught inside could feel their vitality slowly ebbing away, feeding Lin Yuan's strength in return.
The exchange between them happened in a short interval that the audience were unable to react.
But when a few teachers registered what they saw , they stood up in disbelief.
"Domain?!" one exclaimed. "Two Spirit Ancestors with Domain skill—impossible!"
Even Shen Luo's calm face rippled with surprise before breaking into a grin. His laughter echoed through the stunned silence, because he also never knew that both of them had domains.
"Ha ha ha… It doesn't matter who wins now," he said, stroking his beard. "We have two diamonds in the rough — monsters who will make the Spirit Hall's future invincible."
---
The fight in the arena did not stop just because the audience was in shock.
The clashing sounds of metal, the hiss of web-threads, and the booming strikes of the black-gold cudgel filled the entire stage. Lin Yuan and Jiang Mo had already exchanged more than a dozen moves. Each time they collided, sparks and shockwaves rippled through the protective barrier that surrounded the arena.
Lin Yuan's movements were sharp yet cautious. He constantly shifted his position — leaping, rolling, pulling himself away with web threads, using every ounce of agility his eight spider limbs granted him.No matter how fierce his counterattacks appeared, he clearly avoided direct confrontation with Jiang Mo.
If not for those extra limbs aiding his balance and speed, Lin Yuan would have already been overwhelmed.