Chapter 103: Diao vs. Qianling (Part 2)
It seemed that Qianling Academy didn't want to lose too disgracefully, so they sent their captain Shen Ce and the ice-controller An Lengye right in the first match. Both teams approached the platform from opposite sides, eyeing each other across the gap.
"Diao Academy, Captain Wei Feng," Wei Feng introduced himself, his expression calm.
"Qianling Academy, Captain Shen Ce," Shen Ce responded, his pressure somewhat lessened. As long as he wasn't facing Du Qianjue, it was manageable. A Soul King leading a Soul Ancestor could compete against a Soul Emperor, but fighting a Soul Sage was a whole different story—like getting one's head smashed in.
"The match begins!" The referee swung his hand down and then quickly ascended into the sky.
At the start signal, both parties released their martial spirits, and their soul rings appeared. Wei Feng gripped his right hand, and a dual-handed sword, nearly a meter in blade length and thirty centimeters in handle length, began to form in his grasp. The black and red blade shimmered with a blood-like aura, and several pale runes glowed at the handle—a design reminiscent of Aatrox's Blade of Torment from League of Legends.
Zanpakutō! Normally, the royal lineage of the Heavenly Soul Empire wielded the Snow Lotus as their inherited martial spirit, but Wei Feng was an exception. He inherited his mother's spirit with a mutation. Mutated spirits could be good or bad, and Wei Feng was one of those fortunate few—his Zanpakutō began with a ten-level innate spirit power! This rare mutation was why he could reach the level of Soul Emperor before twenty.
In the original story, if not for facing the Sun-Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, who relied on long-range soul devices and sneaky tactics, and lost before truly showing his strength, Wei Feng would have been a star of the tournament. His soul rings were two yellow, two purple, two black!
His accompanying team member shivered beside him; just a Soul Honor, he was utterly outclassed, shouting in awe from the sidelines.
Shen Ce and An Lengye also released their martial spirits promptly. Shen Ce's hands now held a spear over a meter long, not thick but slender and sharp, with two yellow, two purple, and one black soul ring coiling around it. This was his so-called Thousand Strikes Spear, also a mutated spirit. While normal spear spirits were melee weapons, Shen Ce's took a different path—it was a throwing weapon... like a javelin.
An Lengye's spirit was an ice bear, unlike typical beast spirits that fused directly with the user; hers summoned externally. The towering three-meter-tall ice bear roared silently behind her. Another rebel soul master—her bear spirit typically followed a control route instead of brute force, yet she managed to make it work successfully.
Wei Feng raised his Zanpakutō, holding it vertically in front of him. A fierce gleam flickered in his eyes as the fifth soul ring, a ten-thousand-year one, suddenly illuminated. The blade, originally black and red, turned pitch black, its deadly aura intensifying several times over.
"Third Soul Skill, Nightmare Assault."
Wei Feng's form blurred slightly, then he turned into a series of afterimages, charging at Shen Ce and An Lengye with a speed difficult to track with the naked eye. Both were long-range soul masters with inferior close-combat abilities, so his strategy was clear: engage them directly, surprise them.
An Lengye wasn't foolish; her ice bear roared again as her fourth soul ring lit up, and a series of ice prisons attempted to encase Wei Feng. But his speed was too much for her Soul Ancestor level to capture; at best, her ice could only delay him slightly.
That delay was enough.
Soul Ancestors typically stood no chance against a Soul Emperor, and An Lengye's plan was always to hold Wei Feng at bay, providing Shen Ce with an opportunity. Her soul rings flickered continuously as she hurled one skill after another at Wei Feng, not caring about her soul power consumption. Her mission was to stall Wei Feng, even if just for a second.
Shen Ce wasn't idle either. From the moment he summoned his martial spirit, he had been winding up for a throw. The five soul rings on his Thousand Strikes Spear lit up in succession, massive amounts of soul power pouring into the spear as Shen Ce also went all out, investing all his hopes in this one attack.
Under such circumstances, how could Shen Ce afford to conserve soul power?
As An Lengye nearly couldn't hold Wei Feng back any longer, Shen Ce's final ten-thousand-year soul ring finally activated, and the long-accumulated power burst forth. The Thousand Strikes Spear, transformed into a streak of black light, appeared instantly in front of Wei Feng.
Wei Feng was ready.
The moment Shen Ce's fifth soul ring lit up, Wei Feng's sixth ring illuminated almost simultaneously. The Zanpakutō instantly shifted to a crimson red, and the blade lengthened from 1.3 to 1.8 meters, nearly becoming a glaive.
"Soul Splitter: Slash!"
With a fierce cry, Wei Feng swung the blood-red blade down. The collision between blade and spear tip was imminent.
If Shen Ce's soul power level had been equal to Wei Feng's, the outcome of the match might have been uncertain. Unfortunately for Shen Ce, Wei Feng was a high-level Soul Emperor, a full rank higher in soul power.
Even with Shen Ce's extensive build-up and perfect execution of his strike, he was still outmatched by Wei Feng's full-powered assault.
"Slash!"
"Boom—"
After overpowering the peak burst of the Thousand Strikes Spear, Wei Feng forcefully swung down his Zanpakutō, shattering the spear into fragments that vanished into thin air. The blade's edge did not diminish in ferocity; after breaking the spear, it cleaved a three-meter-long trench into the platform.
"Pu—"
The backlash of his martial spirit breaking caused Shen Ce's face to pale, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. Although common for him due to a self-destructive attack inherent in his Thousand Strikes Spear, suffering a spirit wound was never pleasant.
An Lengye, with a pained expression, supported the staggering Shen Ce and turned her gaze to Wei Feng.
"You win, we concede."
Her voice, cool and slightly resigned, admitted their defeat. After all, Qianling Academy was just a notably superior advanced soul master academy, not comparable to a royal institution like Diao Academy. Losing was not a disgrace.
"Qianling Academy concedes. In the first round of the two-two-three battle format, Diao Academy wins!" The referee, after confirming An Lengye's intent, announced loudly.
"The second match will begin shortly. Please, contestants, take your positions!"
Returning to the prep area, Wei Feng and Du Qianjue exchanged a high five. Du Qianjue stood up, picked a pink accessory, and headed towards the platform. Representing Qianling Academy were the fire-controller Fei Yu Yan and a defensive soul master with the Lingxi Shield spirit.
"Diao Academy, Du Qianjue," he introduced himself with a nod.
"Qianling Academy, Fei Yu Yan."
For some reason, the fire-controller from Qianling Academy looked at Du Qianjue with a trace of fear.
(End of Chapter)