Chapter 113: The Twin Stars Erupt, Elder Xuan Dumbfounded
The wind sweeping across Star Luo Plaza seemed to freeze.
In the dead center of the massive arena, two teams representing the absolute apex of the continent's younger generation stood locked in a tense standoff.
Deep within Liu Yuan's Double Pupils, a phantom emerald light bloomed. The very moment that eerie glow manifested, Xiao Hongchen gasped. A bone-piercing chill drove straight into his marrow. It was a terrifying mental deterrent, a suffocating pressure unlike anything the young genius had ever faced. His breathing hitched, his vision blurring for a fraction of a second.
But that suffocating sensation lasted less than a heartbeat.
Resting against Xiao Hongchen's chest, a dark blue gemstone suddenly flared with brilliant light. This was the Soul-Calming Shield, a Class 6 mental defense soul tool carefully engineered by the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy specifically to counter top-tier mental-type Soul Masters.
As the sapphire gemstone pulsed, a highly condensed barrier of mental force instantly enveloped Xiao Hongchen's brain. The biting, invasive chill was rapidly neutralized by the gentle, resilient fluctuations of the shield. Xiao Hongchen's mind cleared. The color returned to his pale cheeks.
"Phew..." Xiao Hongchen exhaled a long, shaky breath. Feeling the absolute stability provided by the Soul-Calming Shield, he blinked in momentary surprise before his lips curled into a sneer dripping with disdain.
"Liu Yuan, is this the parlor trick you are so proud of?" Xiao Hongchen raised a hand, his fingertips lightly tracing the gemstone on his chest. His voice dripped with mockery. "If your mental force is only at this pathetic level, then I advise you to surrender right now. In front of my Soul-Calming Shield, those freaky eyes of yours are nothing more than useless decorations."
Seeing his teammate recover his bearings, Captain Ma Rulong did not waste a single breath. He threw his arm forward in a sharp, decisive arc.
"Sun Moon team, full coverage fire! Suppression formation!"
At Ma Rulong's command, the remaining six members of the Sun Moon Imperial team moved with terrifying synchronization.
A harsh, mechanical cacophony of clashing metal echoed across the plaza. Heavy metallic plating shifted and locked into place. Rows of soul cannon barrels and rapid-fire launchers flipped outward from their shoulders, forearms, and waists, gleaming with cold, lethal intent.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A dense, suffocating barrage of soul tool fire poured out like a torrential rain of destruction. Beams of multi-colored soul power and high-explosive stationary shells tore across the arena, detonating violently against the Heavenly Soul team's vanguard position.
The blinding flash of consecutive explosions swallowed half the stage in a sea of fire and smoke. The sheer kinetic force of the shockwaves battered the arena's protective barrier, causing the energy shield to hum and ripple violently.
Right as the deafening roar of the cannons reached its peak, a streak of dark gold tore through the thick curtain of smoke.
Long Aotian launched himself forward like a heavy artillery shell fired from a siege cannon. Every muscle in his body coiled tight, bulging with explosive power, while a distinct, indestructible metallic sheen coated his skin. He knew exactly how fatal it would be to remain pinned down in the enemy's kill zone. His only path to victory lay in closing the distance, dragging the soul engineers into brutal close-quarters combat, and shattering their formation with his bare hands.
"Trying to break our formation? Too simple." Ma Rulong's expression remained perfectly stoic. He did not reach for an offensive soul tool. Instead, he exchanged a fleeting, knowing glance with Meng Hongchen.
Moving in perfect unison, the two of them reached into the empty air. Two highly specialized soul tools materialized and hovered above the arena.
The first was a massive, heavy metallic ring radiating a dense, earthy yellow light. It was known as the Gravity Quagmire.
The second was a complex metallic sphere that instantly spewed out thousands of shimmering silver threads. This was the Void Binding.
Just as Long Aotian closed the gap to a mere ten meters, the stone tiles beneath his boots seemed to collapse into a swamp. A terrifying, crushing gravitational force slammed into his back. His charging figure sank abruptly, his knees bending under the sudden weight, his lightning-fast movements grinding to a sluggish crawl.
Before he could adjust his footing, the sky filled with a torrential downpour of silver threads. They tracked him like living vipers. Possessing extreme tensile strength and a sickening stickiness, the threads rapidly coiled around Long Aotian's arms, legs, and torso, pinning him firmly in place.
Long Aotian roared, his muscles bulging as he fought against the bindings. But no matter how much raw physical force he exerted, the silver threads simply vibrated, absorbing and dispersing his kinetic impact. He was completely immobilized, trapped in a suffocating dilemma.
High up in the VIP stands, Emperor Xu Jiawei of the Star Luo Empire narrowed his eyes at the unfolding scene. He leaned back in his gilded throne, a low sigh escaping his lips.
"It appears the Heavenly Soul team has been thoroughly researched and perfectly countered."
Sitting gracefully to his side, Princess Xu Jiujiu gave a slight nod. Her beautiful features were set in a solemn expression. "This is exactly what makes the Sun Moon team so terrifying, Royal Brother."
She kept her eyes locked on the arena, analyzing the tactical layout. "The sheer variety and function of the soul tools in their arsenal are staggering. After observing Long Aotian and Liu Yuan's abilities throughout the round-robin matches, they simply reached into their armory and selected the absolute perfect countermeasures for this specific deployment."
She gestured lightly toward the struggling dark gold figure. "No matter how overwhelming Long Aotian's physical strength might be, facing soft-control soul tools specifically engineered to absorb and dissipate kinetic force is like punching a mountain of cotton. He cannot break free with brute force alone."
"Indeed. The Heavenly Soul team is in deep trouble now," Emperor Xu Jiawei murmured, shifting his gaze toward the back of the arena, where Liu Yuan still stood quietly in the rear guard.
Meanwhile, over in the Shrek Academy preparation area, the atmosphere was entirely different.
Elder Xuan was grinning so hard his yellowed teeth were fully exposed. The greasy hand that had been white-knuckling his beloved wine flask finally relaxed. His wrinkled face flushed with an ugly, vindictive satisfaction.
He was ecstatic.
Watching the supposedly invincible Long Aotian get tied up like a helpless beast, watching the arrogant Heavenly Soul team get suppressed under a relentless barrage of soul cannons... it sent a thrill through his old bones that felt better than if Shrek had won the match themselves.
He leaned forward, his eyes wide, practically salivating at the prospect of seeing Liu Yuan blasted off the stage by a bunch of cold, lifeless steel parts.
"Well played! Blast these arrogant Body Martial Soul freaks to pieces!" Elder Xuan barked out a loud, grating laugh, completely abandoning any pretense of a Super Douluo's dignity. His voice dripped with a sick, vengeful pleasure.
He turned his head slightly, sneering in the direction of the Body Sect's viewing area. 'Du Busi, are you watching this? Is this your so-called ultimate successor? In the face of absolute soul technology, those ancient ancestral skills of yours aren't worth a single damn!'
Elder Xuan's mind was already racing ahead to the aftermath of Liu Yuan's humiliating defeat. He was literally rehearsing his posture, deciding exactly how he would sit and look down his nose when Du Busi was forced to step down and deliver his loud, groveling kowtow.
As long as Liu Yuan lost here today, Shrek's tarnished reputation would be preserved, and this monstrous youth who made his instincts scream in warning would be utterly destroyed.
But Elder Xuan's wild, barking laughter was destined to be short-lived.
Just as the entire stadium held its breath, fully expecting the Heavenly Soul team's defensive line to collapse, the dynamic on the stage violently shifted.
Long Aotian, still buried under the crushing weight of the gravity field, and Liu Yuan, standing perfectly still at the rear, moved simultaneously.
A trace of absolute, freezing killing intent bled into Liu Yuan's Double Pupils. He had initially planned to dismantle these opponents using conventional methods, but the Sun Moon team's highly targeted tactical deployment had indeed exceeded his initial estimates. He cast a calm glance at the trapped Long Aotian, then swept his gaze over the layered mental defense barriers protecting the soul engineers.
"Senior Brother, stop holding back," Liu Yuan's voice rang out. It was cold, carrying a piercing frequency that bypassed the explosions and exploded directly inside Long Aotian's ears. "These guys are a bit tough and came well-prepared. Let's go all out and tear them apart."
A thunderous roar ripped from Long Aotian's throat.
The dark gold soul power that had been suppressed by the gravity field suddenly erupted like an active volcano.
Long Aotian's physical body began to expand rapidly. His muscles swelled, tearing at his uniform, radiating a terrifying, suffocating pressure. This was the ultimate physical boost brought forth by the Secondary Awakening of his Body Martial Soul. He clenched his fists. The sheer, destructive purity of his raw strength caused the supposedly unbreakable silver threads to emit a harsh, grating screech of straining metal.
"Break for me!"
Long Aotian slammed his heavy boot into the cracked stone tiles, forcibly straightening his spine against the terrifying gravitational crush. He threw his arms wide.
Snap! Snap! Snap!
Every single silver thread wrapped around his body violently snapped. The massive kinetic backlash ripped through the air, completely shattering the metallic Void Binding sphere hovering above him, reducing it to a shower of useless scrap metal.
At that exact same moment, Liu Yuan made his move.
He did not bother launching another mental shock that could be absorbed by a defensive tool. Instead, he took a single, measured step forward. He pressed his right middle and index fingers together, carving an incredibly deep, ancient mark into the empty air.
"Qilin Precious Technique — Quake!"
This was no simple mental assault. This was a devastating physical strike, converted and amplified through the complex magic circuits taught to him by Electrolux, perfectly fusing his vast mental force with his surging soul power.
A massive, blinding streak of dark purple light erupted from the tip of Liu Yuan's fingers. Its velocity was so absurdly fast that the Sun Moon team's high-tier targeting detectors completely failed to register the energy spike. This beam carried not only the overbearing, tyrannical nature of the Double Pupils but also the suffocating, primordial pressure of an ancient Vicious Beast.
A Sun Moon team member, who was currently screaming while frantically outputting maximum firepower, bore the absolute brunt of the strike.
His Class 5 protective soul shield activated, flaring brightly. But against this primordial power, the barrier was as fragile as wet rice paper. It did not even last a fraction of a second before shattering into a million glowing shards.
The soul engineer didn't even have the time to draw breath for a scream. The majestic, unstoppable force slammed into his chest, launching him backward in a violent arc. He crashed heavily into the ground far outside the arena bounds, his body tumbling like a broken ragdoll, his life or death completely unknown.
A dead silence fell over the entire stadium. The audience was paralyzed with shock.
On the Shrek Academy bench, Elder Xuan froze. The ugly, vindictive smile remained plastered on his face, completely stiff. His fingers went slack, and the beloved wine flask slipped from his grasp, hitting the wooden table with a dull, heavy thud.
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