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Soto City, Ye Lan's residence.
Ye Lan sat cross-legged in the center of the lawn. The yard's grass was lush and dotted with various flowers and plants, all growing exceptionally well.
All of these flowers and grasses leaned inward toward Ye Lan at the center, as if they were the subjects of the golden-haired young man.
Within the Blue Silver Consciousness, apart from the massive central star, there were also numerous smaller stars of various colors surrounding it.
These small stars seemed to be absorbing the sunlight, gradually growing larger.
While Ye Lan was still immersed in martial soul mimicry cultivation, suddenly, the northern group of colorful stars turned blood-red and sent out a warning to the central star.
Sensing the change within his consciousness, Ye Lan immediately opened his eyes.
"Who's there?!" Ye Lan shouted.
As soon as he spoke, two masked black-clad figures leapt into the courtyard.
One was large and muscular, while the other, although smaller, had broad shoulders and a stocky build, clearly someone accustomed to physical labor.
Tang San remained silent, afraid Ye Lan would recognize him. Zhao Wuji, on the other hand, had no such concerns—he didn't know Ye Lan personally.
Besides, he was a seven-ring Soul Saint. There was no need to show any courtesy to a Spirit Grandmaster.
"Didn't expect to find you in the courtyard. Saves me the trouble of searching the house," the burly figure said in a gruff voice.
"What do you want?" Ye Lan asked, a flash of golden light passing through his pupils.
Through Ye Lan's true vision, he saw that the smaller figure posed no threat—his black soul power indicated he was only a Spirit Elder.
But the large one had immense golden soul power—Soul Saint level!
Did I offend any Soul Saints recently? No.
Could it be because of the publication on the "New Core Competitiveness of Martial Souls"? Did I threaten someone's interests?
Cold sweat began to form in Ye Lan's palm. His "Eight-Faceted Exquisite Heart" activated fully, rapidly analyzing the situation.
With his current strength, he had no chance against a Soul Saint.
Unless he created a big enough commotion to draw the attention of Soto City's guards or high-level soul masters from the Great Spirit Arena.
"It's nothing major. No harm in telling you—we've come to take your soul bone," Zhao Wuji said casually.
"Oh? I have a soul bone? That's news to me," Ye Lan replied, confident that his "Ancient Beast's Touch" had never been exposed.
Unless something went wrong with the old fisherman, but Ye Lan trusted his integrity—he would never reveal the existence of the soul bone.
"Don't play dumb, kid. You know exactly how you got your thousand-year second soul ring. Without the support of a soul bone, it would be suicide to absorb a thousand-year ring," Zhao Wuji said, his golden soul power flashing as he charged at Ye Lan.
Zhao Wuji didn't plan to activate his martial soul—doing so would expose his identity.
The Vigorous Vajra Bear was a very recognizable martial soul at the Soul Saint level.
Instead, Zhao Wuji relied solely on the physical boost granted by his soul power to seize Ye Lan and extract the bone.
Ye Lan let out a breath of relief after hearing his explanation.
Thankfully, nothing happened to the old man. This was merely a reaction to his thousand-year second soul ring attracting the wrong attention.
But Ye Lan found it strange—why had it taken so long for someone to come after him because of the second ring? Were these soul masters new arrivals to Soto City?
The "Eight-Faceted Exquisite Heart" began operating at full capacity. As Ye Lan thought, his Golden Eyes locked onto the charging Soul Saint.
This Soul Saint hadn't released his martial soul or soul skills.
Even so, relying solely on his soul power, his speed was astonishing—on par with an assault-type Soul King!
Ye Lan immediately gathered his soul power into his legs, boosting his speed by 130%!
In an instant, Ye Lan's speed reached that of an agility-type Spirit Elder, though still slightly inferior to an assault-type Soul King or agility-type Soul Sect.
Oh? Zhao Wuji was surprised at how quickly Ye Lan's speed exploded. No wonder Tang San and Xiao Wu lost to him.
But Zhao Wuji wasn't one to admire talent mid-fight. Since he had decided to take the bone, he would see it through to the end.
The word "half-hearted" wasn't in Zhao Wuji's dictionary.
In mere moments, Zhao Wuji was right on top of Ye Lan.
His right hand turned into a claw, aiming a ferocious grab at Ye Lan's shoulder.
Inside Ye Lan's Blue Silver Consciousness, various stars continuously turned blood-red.
These crimson paths allowed Ye Lan to sense the Soul Saint's movements without relying on his eyes.
If he retreated directly while facing the Soul Saint, he'd be completely overwhelmed by the man's speed.
Just when Zhao Wuji thought he had the situation under control, Ye Lan suddenly vanished, leaving behind two deep craters in the ground.
Ye Lan reappeared five meters away in another location.
Zhao Wuji no longer underestimated him. That move—was it a self-created soul skill? Only true geniuses could create their own techniques.
His eyes sharpened instantly, locking onto Ye Lan. He decided to get serious.
Zhao Wuji's speed increased again, and in the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Ye Lan.
Boom!
Echoing Step activated, and Ye Lan appeared fifteen meters away.
Feeling the speed of the Soul Saint, Ye Lan knew he could no longer afford to stall. If his opponent activated his martial soul, Ye Lan would be defeated instantly.
He needed to cause a major disturbance—otherwise, he might die here.
Golden light surrounded Ye Lan, and thick Blue Silver Grass surged from his body.
The Blue Silver Grass emitted a dazzling blue-gold glow. Tang San stared at Ye Lan's martial soul, momentarily entranced.
So beautiful.
Ye Lan was unaware of Tang San's thoughts. As the Blue Silver Grass emerged, a purple soul ring glowed brightly.
"Blue God Prophet!"
Thirty strands of Blue Silver Grass transformed into ten Blue Silver Priests. These eighteen-meter-tall priests rose from the ground, surrounding the Soul Saint in the center.
Without a verbal command from Ye Lan, the priests responded to his subconscious will and simultaneously struck at the Soul Saint.
The ten vines, like massive tentacles, layered upon one another and swept toward their target.
A single Blue Silver Priest was as strong as an assault-type Spirit Elder. Ten combined could rival a top-tier Soul Sect.
Zhao Wuji looked up—the sky seemed to go dark!
He didn't want to test the strength of those vines with his unprotected body.
Golden soul power surged across his body as he dashed straight into the oncoming Blue Silver Vines.
Boom!
The impact of the ten vines on the ground was deafening. Nearby houses even began to shake.
Tang San gulped, shocked by the sheer power of Ye Lan's vines.
During their last match at the Great Spirit Arena, Ye Lan definitely hadn't used his full strength. If those vines had hit him, his meridians would've been shattered.
Despite the massive impact, Zhao Wuji hadn't been caught in the center.
Two of the Blue Silver Priests in front of Ye Lan were suddenly smashed aside by a golden figure, half of their bodies shattered.
A flood of green Blue Silver debris surged toward Ye Lan, and the moment they struck him, the fragments transformed into green energy that was absorbed into his body.
Following the debris was the golden figure who had broken through the encirclement—its oppressive aura was immense.
Ye Lan activated his flash step again, but this time, it felt like the Soul Saint had locked onto him.
The moment Ye Lan used flash step, the Soul Saint adjusted and followed his new location instantly.
Ye Lan gave a bitter smile internally—was this the pressure of facing a Soul Saint?
(End of Chapter)