Chapter Forty-Four: 1V3

"Dai Huabin..."

On the tournament grounds, Huo Yuhao looked at his opponent with a slightly dazed gaze, staring at that glamorous son of the White Tiger Duke, and gently raised his hand to wave.

The two people behind him understood tacitly and took a step back out of the circle, leaving him alone to confront the opposing trio.

Although they had no idea what kind of grudge existed between Huo Yuhao and Dai Huabin, seeing the former's complicated and indescribable expression made it clear to these two deadweights that this was not a match they could participate in.

"Can the captain win? I heard those two can perform a Martial Soul Fusion Skill!"

"What are you afraid of..."

The girl crossed her arms. "Didn't we encounter a Martial Soul Fusion before? Didn't the captain still win?"

"..."

Can that be compared!

Control-type skills released by two second-ring soul masters, how could they possibly compare to the legendary Nether White Tiger?

"Both teams, please pay attention."

"After discussion and decision by the academy administration, contestants in the finals are permitted to use extreme methods and unleash their full strength. Should the match get out of control, powerful figures will step in to handle it, so there is no need to worry."

The referee's expression was somewhat solemn, evidently feeling immense pressure under these slightly peculiar rules. "The match, begin!"

"—White Tiger Possession!"

The instant the battle commenced, Dai Huabin cast aside his previous arrogant and cold demeanor, a pale-white pelt emerging alongside a startling murderous intent.

His arms extended and his chest swelled, powerful and intertwined muscles instantly tearing through his upper garments, making the air around his body turbulent.

"Roar!"

Faced with the mysterious methods of Huo Yuhao, Dai Huabin exercised sufficient caution. While activating his martial soul possession, he simultaneously launched the White Tiger Vajra Transformation bestowed by his thousand-year soul ring, pushing his attributes to their absolute limit.

The optimal choice that the Dai family had figured out since ten thousand years ago clearly yielded impressive results. Following the activation of the soul skill, an aura close to that of a Soul Ancestor erupted from Dai Huabin, who was merely a third-ring soul master.

"Evil-Eyed White Tiger."

Even though he had mental preparations beforehand, upon seeing this martial soul, Huo Yuhao still could not help but experience a constriction in his breath.

If the martial soul he had awakened back then had also been the White Tiger...

What kind of trajectory would his life have taken?

"—No movement?"

The fully armed Dai Huabin wore a somewhat bewildered expression.

Clearly, he had prepared himself to face a torrential storm of mental attacks, but who would have thought that his opponent would remain completely indifferent, looking almost as if he were—daydreaming?

He had assumed an expression of being miles away.

"Hmph! Then you have only yourself to blame!"

Dai Huabin's murderous intent gradually rose, feeling inexplicably that his pride had been pricked, and seized this opportunity to launch an assault.

A pale radiance instantly converged into a blazing beam of light that blasted forward, the formidable energy sending a series of distorted ripples through the air along its path.

White Tiger Fierce Light Wave!

"Annoying."

Interrupting his train of thought, Huo Yuhao cast a sideways glance, his feet tracing the guidance of Spiritual Detection as he stepped through layers of phantoms to dodge the attack sideways.

Yet as he cast his gaze, his line of sight also met a pair of mesmerizing eyes.

'Eye contact made...'

Cui Yajie swished her dazzling, fluffy fox tail, bestowing a bewitching smile upon Huo Yuhao as a wisp of slightly pinkish spiritual power spread outward along her gaze.

Charm!

"What is this thing?"

A flash of light crossed Huo Yuhao's eyes, and then he frowned.

Feeling the strange thing that had slammed with a soft thud and adhered to the exterior of his spiritual ocean, for a moment, he actually failed to realize that this was an attack originating from his opponent.

'It actually worked?'

Cui Yajie's expression instantly lit up with joy, never expecting that a tactic she had thought would be completely useless could actually produce a practical effect!

"Swish—"

The moment Huo Yuhao paused due to the Charm effect, a shadowy figure darted out from behind Dai Huabin, accelerating multiple times in rapid succession during her stride. Her figure moved so fast that it left trailing phantoms, reaching a realm where it was almost impossible for the naked eye to capture.

The two soul rings carried on her body flashed in unison as she accelerated, the phantoms leaving her body actually solidifying, locking onto Huo Yuhao in coordination with her attack.

"Slash..."

Huo Yuhao dodged at extreme speed, pushing Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to its absolute limit, yet the corner of his garment was still sliced open.

This could also be considered the very first individual to appear throughout the entire freshman tournament who forced him into a position where he couldn't dodge in time.

"High speed. If Xiao Xiao were standing here, she would probably have her defense bypassed and be knocked off the stage within a few minutes."

However—

Soul rings rose before Huo Yuhao, blocking the path of the frantically pursuing Zhu Zhu.

Spiritual Interference!

The surrounding light and shadows instantly distorted, the footwork amidst the phantoms suddenly faltering, yet it merely slowed her movements rather than causing her to lose balance.

"It seems Spiritual Interference doesn't have an obvious effect on individuals with relatively strong bodily control; at most, it can only be used to interrupt actions."

A flash of contemplation crossed Huo Yuhao's eyes, and then the light flashed once more.

Soul Shock!

With Spiritual Interference dispersing her focus, the completely unprepared Zhu Zhu at this moment could not resist this impact at all. She threw her head back as if struck by a heavy blow, going limp and collapsing to the ground.

"Zhu Zhu!"

Dai Huabin, who had just rushed to the vicinity, felt his eyes split with anger as his second soul skill activated once again. "You bastard!!"

In this battle, his absolute certainty of victory stemmed from the Nether White Tiger.

If Zhu Zhu were to lose her combat capability and regrettably leave the stage, the championship position would become uncertain.

"Young and impetuous!"

Yan Shaozhe on the viewing platform sighed with a hint of disappointment. "If he had just protected Zhu Zhu the moment he stepped onto the stage, perhaps they really would have had a chance to turn the tables... Facing a powerful opponent with unknown details, he actually dared to test the waters, dared to hold back, and dared to place a fragile agility-attack type into the thick of battle."

It didn't show much when bullying weaker opponents.

When facing truly formidable enemies, the tactical loopholes of Dai Huabin's trio were exposed without reservation.

Disjointed team coordination, insufficient adaptability, and reckless advancement...

They only knew how to follow a script in academy-style playing house, making it obvious at a glance that they had never participated in true, bloody battles.

"Heh~"

Qian Duoduo evidently was unwilling to let go of any opportunity to mock him, immediately twitching his features and making faces. "Dean Yan, didn't you think Dai Huabin had a higher chance of winning just a moment ago? Why did you suddenly change your mind now?"

"Hmph!"

Yan Shaozhe glanced at him sideways and returned his focus to the arena.

At this moment, Dai Huabin had successfully engaged in close-quarters combat with Huo Yuhao. Under the enhancement of the White Tiger martial soul, his palms and fingers were as hard as iron and gold, and every palm strike he delivered whipped up a violent gale with a terrifying momentum.

Yet facing this aggressive onslaught filled with murderous intent, Huo Yuhao appeared strangely excited.

The bizarre glint in his eyes even made Dai Huabin feel a creeping chill.

"Come on..."

His footwork suddenly halting, Huo Yuhao actually extended his Mysterious Jade Hands, meeting the tiger's palm amidst countless looks of surprise and incomprehension.

"Fool!"

Dai Huabin was stunned for a moment, and then a ferocious glint flashed through his eyes. The attack in his hands gathered virtually all of his strength, wishing nothing more than to execute the person before him on the spot.

'As expected—he doesn't remember at all.'

Huo Yuhao's eyes narrowed slightly.