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Chapter 17: Erlong's Visit (Part 2) – Tremor of the Dragon Soul
The air on the training ground seemed to freeze.
On one side was the Level 78 Power Attack System Battle Soul Saint Liu Erlong, with two yellow, two purple, and three black rings rotating slowly beneath her feet. Surging deep-red spirit power, like burning fire, rose around her, the scorching aura distorting the air. The fire dragon phantom behind her was majestic and violent, its eyes wide open, radiating a berserk pressure.
On the other side was the Level 43 Agility Attack System Battle Soul Ancestor Zhu Zhuqing. Two yellow, one purple, and one black ring also hovered quietly beneath her feet; that deep black fourth ring looked exceptionally piercing among the yellow and purple rings. Her spirit power fluctuations were far less grand than Liu Erlong's, but they were exceptionally solid and cold, carrying a sharp sense of penetration. Her gaze was as sharp as a blade, and her entire aura seemed to merge with the shadows, ready to explode with a lethal strike at any moment.
"Begin," Mo Bai's calm voice broke the silence.
The moment the words fell, Zhu Zhuqing moved.
Without warning, her figure vanished from the spot like a ghost, leaving only a faint afterimage. In the next instant, she appeared to Liu Erlong's left, her right hand's five fingers forming a claw, fingertips wreathed in cold deep-blue spirit power, stabbing straight for Liu Erlong's ribs!
So fast! Liu Erlong's pupils shrank, but she was battle-hardened and reacted extremely quickly. Her body shifted slightly, her left arm covered in a layer of scorching fire dragon scales to parry.
Screech—!
The sharp claws collided with the dragon scales, producing a piercing friction sound. Liu Erlong felt a sharp stinging pain in her arm; that deep-blue spirit power actually carried an eerie penetrative quality, passing through the dragon scale defense and seeping into her skin, bringing a wave of icy cold.
"First Spirit Skill: Hell Stab!" Zhu Zhuqing shouted low, her figure vanishing again.
Liu Erlong snorted coldly, her second spirit ring lighting up: "Second Spirit Skill: Flaming Dragon Breath!"
She opened her mouth and spat out a wave of scorching fire dragon breath, covering a large area in front of her to force Zhu Zhuqing out. However, Zhu Zhuqing's figure moved like a fish through the gaps in the flames, and her black ten-thousand-year fourth spirit ring suddenly lit up!
"Fourth Spirit Skill: Hell Shadow Clone!"
Three identical Zhu Zhuqings appeared in the field instantly! The three figures pounced toward Liu Erlong from different directions, their movements perfectly synchronized, their auras indistinguishable!
Liu Erlong was startled—a ten-thousand-year spirit skill! She dared not be negligent, her third and fourth spirit rings lighting up simultaneously: "Third Spirit Skill: Dragon Flame Body Protection! Fourth Spirit Skill: Explosive Dragon Claw!"
Deep-red flames exploded from her body, forming a layer of protective dragon flame, while her hands transformed into claws covered in scorching dragon scales, carrying berserk power as they snatched toward the left and right clones.
Poof! Poof! The two clones were crushed by the dragon claws, dissolving into black smoke. But the third Zhu Zhuqing, the real body, had taken the chance to get close, her second spirit ring lighting up: "Second Spirit Skill: Hell Hundred Claws!"
Dozens of cold claw shadows poured down like a storm onto Liu Erlong's protective dragon flame! What alarmed Liu Erlong even more was that these claw shadows were mixed with threads of eerie shadow energy carrying numbing and corrosive effects! That was the "Shadow Poison" trait Mo Bai had integrated when he modified her spirit rings; though not as domineering as Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphor Serpent poison, it was more hidden and difficult to deal with!
Crack! The dragon flame protection developed cracks under the dense claw attacks!
Liu Erlong roared, her fifth spirit ring—the first black ten-thousand-year ring—suddenly lighting up! "Fifth Spirit Skill: Raging Dragon Flame Prison!"
Centering on her, berserk flames swept out in all directions like a volcanic eruption! The temperature of the entire training ground soared, and even the bluestone ground was scorched red! This was a large-area attack skill, intended to repel Zhu Zhuqing.
However, Zhu Zhuqing's figure vanished again. Just before the flames swept over her, her third spirit ring (purple thousand-year) lit up: "Third Spirit Skill: Hell Slash!"
She did not resist head-on; instead, she condensed spirit power into her hands, transforming it into two crossing deep-blue crescent moon slashes, cleaving through the flames ahead to open a brief path for herself. Her figure moved like an arrow from a bow through the gap in the fire, instantly closing the distance with Liu Erlong again!
Close combat! The best strategy for an Agility Attack system against a Power Attack system was close-quarters fighting, limiting the release of their broad-sweeping spirit skills!
Liu Erlong had not expected Zhu Zhuqing to be so fearless and reactive. She was forced to withdraw part of her external spirit power and turn to hand-to-hand combat. Her Fire Dragon martial soul granted her immense strength and defense, and she was equally strong in close combat.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Fist and claw collided, the muffled sounds of spirit power impact popping like firecrackers. Liu Erlong's strength was clearly superior; each collision made Zhu Zhuqing's arms go numb and her figure sway slightly. But Zhu Zhuqing's speed and flexibility far surpassed Liu Erlong's; her figure was like a butterfly fluttering through flowers, constantly circling Liu Erlong as cold claw shadows struck from tricky angles, targeting joints and acupoints where defense was weakest.
What frustrated Liu Erlong even more was that the shadow corrosion effect in Zhu Zhuqing's spirit power was slowly penetrating her protective spirit power and dragon scales, bringing waves of soreness and stinging pain, interfering with her spirit power circulation. Meanwhile, her own fire attacks were always cleverly avoided or neutralized by Zhu Zhuqing's eerie movement techniques and the clones produced by that ten-thousand-year fourth skill.
"This little girl... her skill effects are too eerie! Speed, explosion, clones, and this corrosive shadow energy... is this really the capability of a Level 43 Soul Ancestor?" Liu Erlong became more shocked as the fight went on. She found herself actually being forced into a bit of a mess by a Soul Ancestor! Although she hadn't used her sixth or seventh spirit skills yet, the opponent likewise hadn't gone all out, and that black ten-thousand-year fourth skill clearly had more variations!