Chapter 157 - A Formidable Opponent
After a vigorous shake of his head, Tang Wulin realized how shocking his opponent was. They both had one ring. They both only had one ring! Yet, her combat prowess was so great!
He couldn’t let himself be shaken though. Taking a moment to compose himself, Tang Wulin waved his arms in flurry, sending Bluesilver Grass shooting toward the black cauldron. For now, he wanted to try binding his opponent’s martial soul.
Falling short of his expectations, the girl didn’t mind her martial soul at all. Instead, she chose to accelerate her charge at Tang Wulin.
She wants to fight me in close quarters?
Tang Wulin sucked in a deep breath as a wave of golden scales covered his right arm. He stood there, as steady as a mountain. He could tell from their previous exchange that her attack possessed tremendous power. Other than attacking with her soul power, she also seemed to have other tricks up her sleeve. Since Tang Wulin couldn’t beat her in speed, he chose to steady his person and meet her head on.
A subset of the Bluesilver Grass Tang Wulin had shot out split apart and returned to him, assembling protectively around his body.
The girl’s figure flickered again and then disappeared without a trace. This time, however, when she reappeared, she was everywhere around him. The only thing Tang Wulin could do to resist was to lash out with the few strands of Bluesilver Grass he had, trying to stop her.
Suddenly, a phoenix’s cry pierced the air.
A flute had appeared in the girl’s hands all of a sudden. The moment the harsh note attacked Tang Wulin’s ears, he felt as if his entire world had slowed down, which was clear from the sluggishness of his Bluesilver Grass. In his sluggish state, the cauldron was easily able to escape the entrapment of the grass as it soared high into the sky before crashing into Tang Wulin.
Bang!
Tang Wulin was felt a jolt which was promptly followed by numbness. He had been sent flying with greater force than before. Meanwhile, the girl had pulled apart his Bluesilver Grass defense using her jade-like hands. His defenses having been broken, the girl reached Tang Wulin in a flash before moving to attack his stomach, this time using both hands.
I’m finished!
Despite the intense threat he felt from the girl in that instant, only one thought occupied his mind. Twin martial souls. This girl has twin martial souls!
And she can even use them both at the same time! She doesn’t need to switch between them at all!
The moment her white-jade-like hands landed on his body, Tang Wulin trembled as a bizarre power rushed into him, washing away his numbness.
Tang Wulin only had enough time to sweep his right arm out in front of him.
Bang!
A bone-breaking force met his right arm, leaving it in tatters. It rebounded back into his chest, pushing him back even further.
This time, however, he didn’t fly too far back. As he crashed into the cauldron which was right behind him, darkness filled his eyes. Drawing strength from who knows where, the girl continued to chase after Tang Wulin. She struck out with her right hand which possessed some sort of attractive force, sending Tang Wuling flying back towards her, while her left hand curled into a fist as she punched towards his chest.
Although his right arm was in acute pain and Tang Wulin was being continuously beaten, this had actually roused his blood.
He let out a deep roar as his right hand transformed into the Golden Dragon Claw in a splendid burst of light. Meanwhile, he lashed out with a vine of Bluesilver Grass that Goldlight had slithered into.
This strand of golden Bluesilver Grass was just like a spear as it pierced into the ground. Using all the strength his body could muster, Tang Wulin suddenly changed directions and barely evaded the girl’s palm attack.
Taking advantage of the attractive force of the girl’s attack, he rushed toward her and soared over her head, taking this chance to grab her head with his Golden Dragon Claw.
This had been the first time since the start of the battle that he could launch a counterattack.
Another note of a phoenix’s cry rang out. Tang Wulin immediately froze in place while a wave of dizziness assaulted his senses.
As the girl descended from the air, she pointed one finger at Tang Wulin, commanding the black cauldron to smash him.
Tang Wulin forced his Golden Dragon Claw to move, brazenly smacking it into the black cauldron.
Bang!
The black cauldron was smashed into pieces, completely falling apart. The girl’s body was still swaying from the rebound when Tang Wulin descended.
At that moment, Tang Wulin had figured her out. As he withdrew his Golden Dragon Claw after smashing apart her cauldron, a strand of golden Bluesilver Grass shot out from the ground, propelling him forward and into the air like a bullet.
Haven’t thirty seconds passed yet? They should almost have.
The girl stared at him blankly for a moment. She charged forward in pursuit once again, but when she arrived before the golden Bluesilver Grass, she hesitated for a moment.
In reality, Tang Wulin wasn’t in a good condition either. He was already running low on soul power after using his Golden Dragon Claw and golden vine.
The Bluesilver Grass propelled him further away from her. Meanwhile, the golden Bluesilver Grass vanished as Goldlight returned to him.
He was currently maximizing his time airborne to open up the greatest distance he could between him and the girl.
“Thirty seconds have passed. First trial over.”
The long awaited voice appeared once more. He rolled when he landed to mitigate the force, then stood up and looked behind him.
“The second trial begins. Defeat your opponent or survive for another thirty seconds.” Tang Wulin was speechless at the ball-breaking objective the electronic voice announced.
Just before, he had been forced to use two-thirds of his soul power just to survive the short battle against her. Yet now, he had to survive another thirty seconds?
Seemingly unaffected by the electronic voice, the girl charged toward him once more. This time, however, she only wielded the flute.
What do I do?
Run? I’m nowhere near as fast as her. My footwork can’t compare with hers. I can’t run.
A battle of attrition?
If she really is only a one-ringed Soul Master, then there shouldn’t be a big difference between our soul power capacities. She’s a bit stronger with her twin souls, but using both their soul skills consumes a lot of soul power too. Assuming my guess is true, then I need to engage her as much as possible now. Even if I can’t beat her, I should be able to survive another thirty seconds.
Arriving at this conclusion, Tang Wulin turned around and ran. A second less spent in combat meant a second more of survival.
Though he was low on soul power, his physical strength was in no way affected. With every stomp of his feet, he shot forward like a cannonball. With this method, he was oddly quick.
Yet, the girl was still a bit faster than him. Fortunately, it wasn't that easy to catch up to him. With one fleeing and the other pursuing, ten seconds had soon passed. Just as the girl was about to catch up to him, Tang Wulin suddenly leaped with all his strength while summoning his two Thousand Refined Heavy Silver Hammers.
“Wu~”
Here it comes again…
Tang Wuling turned sluggish, and a sense of dizziness overcame him, so he hadn’t been able to fully turn his body as he wanted to. He had only managed to turn halfway when the girl arrived before him.
This time, she didn’t immediately attack him. She instead reached out and grabbed his right shoulder and pulled him toward her while kicking his calves with her right leg.
Tang Wulin was immediately thrown off balance, dropping onto the ground.
He waved his arms in an attempt to fight back, but the girl was jumping about like a fairy, dodging every single one of his attacks. Even while evading his attacks, she had somehow been able to land two more punches into his stomach.
Bind!
“Wu!”
Slowed!
Once again, his Bind soul skill was slowed down. In fact, the slow effect was so great that the girl grabbed a strand of Bluesilver Grass and threw him up.
All Tang Wulin could do now was go into a fetal position in an attempt to protect his head and vital organs.
Bang bang bang bang bang!
He was like a human punching bag, getting pounded from all directions.
After some time, the electronic voice appeared once more. “Thirty seconds has passed. Second trial over.”
Tang Wulin felt as if his whole body had lightened and the aching of his bones had been washed away.