Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
“Wow, Seventh Master Xiao looks so cool!” Zesyr Night raised her eyebrow livelily, her eyes glistening in awe.
Sivatu, who was now standing next to her, frowned. “That may not be Xiaoxiao. The Xiaos are famous for being Soul Eaters. I’ve never heard of them having an ultimate movement technique like this. Besides, soul practitioner clans mostly focus on ranged battles, and the Xiao Clan is no exception. I don’t
think they’re the sort to spend a lot of time practicing close combat.”
Zesyr continued to watch foolishly as Xia Fei controlled Xiao Xing, absolutely unconvinced. “Every major clan out there will always have some hidden secrets, and who’s to say that the Xiao Clan doesn’t have a secret movement technique? Not any random person has access to this training center, so who
else could it be aside from Xiaoxiao?”
Sivatu decided not to make any further comments. He had a vague feeling that something was off here, but because he lacked any evidence to refute Zesyr’s assumption, he decided that it was best to just keep quiet.
“I’s about to begin! I’ve always viewed close-combat fighting as the coolest! To twist and turn in a small space, killing people without any trace, that’s just cool beyond cool,” Zesyr gushed excitedly.
Just like how women on earth enjoyed chasing after stars, the Alpha Universe’s ladies liked warriors with unusual potential, choosing to obsess over weapons rather than clothes. Zesyr was no exception, though what she enjoyed the most was close combat.
A tall and strapping warrior appeared across Xia Fei. This time, he did not launch a surprise attack. Using the same move too many times would reduce its effectiveness. Since this person had willingly paid 100 points just to challenge Xia Fei, he must have studied the battle logs of Xia Fei’s fights
yesterday, so he had to use some new tricks today.
From his opponent’s data, Xia Fei learned that this challenger was also an incognito account under the alias Qiandu and was currently using a rank 2 model.
Qiandu was slightly startled. He seemed not to have expected Xia Fei to remain so composed, neither taking the initiative to attack nor adopting a defensive stance. Instead, Xia Fei stuffed his hands in his pockets, staring at him with innocent-looking eyes.
“Fight already! Don’t tell me that you think you can’t beat me, so you’re planning to admit defeat and just take the points?” Qiandu demanded.
Xia Fei shrugged, unbothered. “Is that a bad thing? Earning 100 points by losing to someone once isn’t a bad trade.”
“That’s improbable! I won’t let you have it that easy!’ Qiandu cried inwardly, a stern expression on his face.
‘Those who watched Xia Fei’s battles yesterday would know that this smiling young man was actually a very sinister person; all one hundred one opponents had been killed by his hand, yet he was showing no signs of a will to fight today. There was surely a scheme afoot!
Qiandu could not help but feel nervous, wondering just what sort of tricks Xia Fei would pull to deal with him.
Suddenly, he looked at the countdown timer on his display and saw that there were only two minutes left!
At the exact moment when he raised his head, Xia Fei struck!
Indeed, time was money! It was Qiandu who had challenged a lower-ranked combatant, so if he failed to kill Xia Fei within three minutes, it would be considered his loss. Xia Fei had simply been stalling for time!
Since Qiandu had uncovered Xia Fei’s ploy, there was no sense for Xia Fei to keep on waiting anymore, which was why he leveraged on the moment when Qiandu was distracted and made his sudden move!
“Dragged Slash!”
*Swish*
His steps were light and strange. Xia Fei only took two steps and miraculously appeared in front of Qiandu. The sword’s position in his hand made it seem like he was about to sweep past Qiandu’s head. Instead, Xia Fei did a nimble flip in the air, then slashed at his opponent’s calf, and shrank his form like
a civet cat!
“Seventh Master Xiao sure is cunning!” Zesyr was surprised. She cheered, “First, he tried to stall for time. It’d be great if the enemy fell for it, but the moment it failed and while the opponent was distracted, he struck without warning. It’s really quite the comprehensive calculation!”
Zesyr Night cheered, but even more people had the color draining from their faces. They were shocked to see Xia Fei’s speedy transition from calmly standing on one spot to launching a powerful attack. It was truly difficult to guard against this sort of surprise attack. It was a typical style of cunning,
which meant that a fatal blow could be delivered any time and any place!
“Well struck!” Qiandu bellowed. “Soul Extinguishing Light!”
*Swoosh*
A circular arc of light suddenly soared upward, enveloping Qiandu and everything around him at that moment!
This was Soul Extinguishing Light, and Qiandu’s model right now was not a Soul Hunter but an even stronger Soul Eater, instead!
Xia Fei furrowed his brows slightly. There was no way for him to continue in the trajectory of his cleave anymore because his opponent had just unleashed Soul Extinguishing Light. Given how his sword was not a soul weapon, the best he could do was injure Qiandu; there was no way for him to ensure his
death.
His mind raced at superhuman speeds. Xia Fei barely had hundredths of seconds to think, for that was the time it would take for the Soul Extinguishing Light to explode! This move was not so simple as protecting Qiandu!
Using one-armed Xiao Xing, there would be no way for Xia Fei to block this large AoE attack, nor would it be possible for him to escape by relying on speed. The situation was not looking good for him!
suddenly, the comers of Xia Fei’s lips curved into a slight smirk; he then ducked to Qiandu’s back, reached out with his model’s left arm, and actually inserted it into Qiandu’s Soul Extinguishing Light!
“Oh, no! Xiao Fei’s arm is doomed!” The spectators gasped in horror.
Xiaoxiao tightened his eyebrows as he continued to soak in the bathtub. Meanwhile, Zesyr in the training room held her mouth with both hands in her fright!
This was when something inexplicable happened! Xia Fei’s left arm, which was deep in the Soul Extinguishing Light, unleashed its own attack, and it was none other than the common soul art of Soul Hunters, Soul Shade!
*Rumble*
A half Soul Shade came out and directly penetrated Qiandu’s body! Meanwhile, the only left arm of Xia Fei’s model turned into ash thereafter!
Still, though Xia Fei’s model had lost his only arm, he had managed to exchange it for Qiandu’s life!
Xia Fei was drenched in sweat. Soul Extinguishing Light lived up to its name, alright. Forget the physical pain he felt from losing an arm, it even wounded Xia Fei’s soul deeply.
*Thud*
That sturdy body loudly collapsed on the ground, with a final shout escaping Qiandu’s lips.
“How?! How could it be?!”
The entire exchange had lasted no more than a second before the match was over!
*Hurrah*
The great hall erupted into tumultuous cheering. Those who knew what to look understood that Xia Fei had gambled with his life to secure the victory, while those who were none the wiser had still joined the buzz. No matter what, Xia Fei had still used the historically most useless model, Xiao Xing, to
beat a rank 2 Soul Eater combatant! It was something worthy of celebration nonetheless!
It was just that no one had expected that the sinister and cunning Xia Fei from yesterday could actually be so steel-hearted and wild!
*Bang*
In the bathroom, the expensive marble bathtub had been smashed into pieces by Xiaoxiao, and water streamed all over the place. He leaped up with a livid expression and shouted, “No way! I wish to experiment with it more! How was he able to use that trash Xiao Xing to beat a rank 2 warrior, while I
couldn’t even master it?! I’m unconvinced! I simply won’t resign myself to it!”
On the other side, Zesyr was first stunned before she cheerfully beamed.
“How cool! Xiaoxiao is so cool!”
Zesyr Night’s Uncle Sivatu, her chief bodyguard, was nowhere as excited as Zesyr. He was thinking, “That’s not like him at all. I really couldn’t tell that Xiaoxiao would be such a vicious person. Don’t most young masters of major clans cherish their lives a lot? To have put his life on the light without any
thought, how was that Seventh Master Xiao’s style? Have I really misjudged him?”
Those who had watched the fight reacted differently; some showed skepticism, others cheered, while the rest could not move on from their shock. As for the main protagonist, he was currently deep in thought. Xia Fei tilted his head slightly, seemingly unaware of his surroundings.
Speaking of shock, Xia Fei was far more shocked than others. This was because a voice had just sounded in his head right now: [The Tier 1 Soul Chain has been unlocked. Now entering the advancement process. ]
Immediately after, Xia Fei sensed his Xiao Xing model undergoing a surprising change. His originally injured body was being repaired, bit by bit. Furthermore, it seemed to have started transferring some power into his seventh brain region. Though this was just a simulation, the realism of it made Xia Fei
tongue-tied.
“May I know why I lost? Could you give me an honest answer?”
While Xia Fei was preoccupied, his body and Qiandu’s had already been restored to their original forms. Qiandu, who was sitting on the ground in his chagrin, had just asked for input with his head down.
Xia Fei came back to his senses, and seeing how sincere this man acted and how he was genuinely asking for advice, Xia Fei smiled and replied, “Because your instincts were geared toward defense.”
Qiandu was surprised at first, and then he asked solemnly, “Geared toward defense?”
“That’s right.” Xia Fei affirmed confidently. “When I attacked you, you could’ve used Soul Extinguishing Light to counterattack. That way, even with my ability or technique, you’d still be able to eliminate me without fail.
“Unfortunately, you’re not me. I dislike defending and often choose to prioritize attacking, so you’re the one who died.”
Xia Fei had stated that with great sincerity, and the man who went by the name of Qiandu shuddered.
Indeed, that was truly his instinctive response. When Xia Fei attacked, Qiandu instinctively chose to defend himself, and the more devious Xia Fei, who favored attacking, immediately chose to sacrifice his remaining arm just to unleash a powerful attack!
‘That was why he had lost!
‘With that said, Xia Fei moved to leave. This was because the changes in Xiao Xing were beginning to implicate his actual body, and that was both shocking and a pleasant surprise.
“Wait a minute!”
Qiandu shouted for him to stop as he asked loudly, “This is a simulated soul battle; if it were a real fight, would you still be as reckless with your life and attempt such a crazy attack?!”
With a smirk, Xia Fei answered softly, “To me, there’s no such thing as a simulated battle. As long as it’s a fight, then it’s to the death.”
*Whoosh*
After saying that line, Xia Fei immediately exited the system, leaving Qiandu and the spectators of this match mulling over his parting words.
“As long as it’s a fight, then it’s to the death? Xiao Fei is really strong! What an indomitable spirit!”
“Well said! None of us should treat these soul battles as mere simulations but should think of them as actual combat!”
The entire great hall was ebullient. All of The Mammoth was ebullient!
What did it mean to be a warrior with steel running through their veins? What did it mean to be crazy? That was it!
In the training center, Zesyr had sat on a chair and cheered loudly. “So cool! Seventh Master Xiao has such a distinct temperament! He’s the best!”
Everyone was greatly affected by Xia Fei’s steel-blooded mentality, but it was too bad that the instigator himself heard none of it.
Even after he had exited the soul battle simulation system, Xia Fei was still frowning. He hurried into his room and shut the door behind him. Fuchen had no idea what was going on and merely looked on, dumbfounded.
[Advancement complete. Proceeding with binding now.] He had already left the soul battle system, yet its mechanical voice still echoed in his mind! This was simply inconceivable!
Xia Fei’s expression slowly got more serious..
