Chapter 58: Saving Lives * 2

Heavy panting came from Xiao Xiao, who had just unleashed a fierce barrage, a glint never seen before igniting deep within her pupils.

Acting as the obedient good girl in front of her family for so many years, and cultivating so diligently at the academy...

Now, the moment of liberation had finally arrived!

At this very instant, for the first time in her life, Xiao Xiao felt something coursing through her veins, burning as hot as fire.

"Whoosh—"

Among the recovering crowd, various colored lights suddenly burst forth. As expected, they temporarily set aside their differences and aimed their hostility squarely at her.

Before more than a dozen counter-attacks could arrive, Xiao Xiao spoke once again.

"Wang Dong!"

Swish—

A blue streak of light shot out in response, reaching out to grab her by the collar and soaring straight up into the high altitude. The Prime Origin Heavy Cauldron split into three in an instant, orbiting beneath their feet to intercept three soul skills capable of pursuing them.

"You're being too reckless..."

Wang Dong beat his wings furiously, continuing to gain altitude with a helpless expression as he looked down at Xiao Xiao. "You consumed more than half your soul power in just a single move. What do you plan to do next?"

That previous wave of attacks was certainly powerful, but the only ones instantly swept away were those who hadn't yet advanced to the second ring. Its actual significance wasn't as great as one might imagine.

It even managed to instantly draw the full aggro of everyone present...

The Soul Combat Arena had a height limit after all!

No matter how well Wang Dong could fly, there would always be a time when he couldn't dodge long-range blockades.

"Hehe! I just have to test my current abilities~ I'm planning to give Huo Yuhao a surprise when he gets back!"

Xiao Xiao waved her fist excitedly.

Huo Yuhao...

Wang Dong, who had been somewhat distracted, suddenly snapped to attention, unconsciously murmuring, "Indeed... He should be returning after a little while longer."

By then, he—whose combat prowess was already astonishing—would become even stronger due to his second soul ring.

"True."

Wang Dong's somewhat lazy gaze regained its vigor, and he suddenly understood Xiao Xiao's intention. "We can't afford to fall behind."

The blue butterfly wings behind him were subsequently touched with a golden radiance.

A terrifying aura gradually brewed within his body.

"As long as you understand!"

Xiao Xiao's lips curved upward as she suddenly hooked her hand. The Soul-Suppressing Cauldron, previously operating smoothly under her control, seemed as though it had been injected with life, moving to the dance of her hands in flawless operation.

Controlling Crane and Catching Dragon.

"Low-altitude gliding!"

Directing Wang Dong to sweep across the entire arena, Xiao Xiao simultaneously waved her fists wildly. The doubly-controlled Triple Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons rose and fell in mid-air, launching a mad bombardment against the students on the ground like detached fists.

Those below the fourth ring could not shatter it, and those below the third ring could not blow it away.

The hardness and weight of the Triple Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons were pushed to the absolute limit at this moment. Even when battered into chaotic tumbling in mid-air by someone who occasionally burst forth with power, Xiao Xiao could rely on the backup third cauldron to rotate and substitute, retrieving the out-of-control cauldron for later use.

A horizontal roll all the way, a secondary sweep, a tertiary bombardment, and a fourth round of rest...

"Is... is this really considered a fight?"

Wu Feng, who had just eliminated an opponent, raised her head in a daze. The dragon fire attached to her body dimmed in intensity along with her low spirits.

Why did she always feel that...

—This was simply not combat on the same level at all?

"Annoying pests!"

Dai Huabin, having cleared the enemies around him, swung his claws to blast the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron away and targeted Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao. "White Tiger Fierce Light Wave!"

The power of a soul skill unleashed by a third ring far surpassed others. Wherever the scorching white light passed, even the air distorted, instantly overwhelming all attacks aimed upward in sheer momentum.

"Him? That third-ring White Tiger?"

A warning bell flashed in Xiao Xiao's mind, and she started, waving her hand in response.

The Triple Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons instantly lined up in the path of the light wave, colliding with it head-on amidst a hidden, unreleased hum.

Naturally, a single cauldron could not block Dai Huabin's attack. Propelled by the fierce light wave, the cauldrons crashed into each other layer by layer, vibrating out a series of ghostly glows.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

At the very last moment before hitting the bottom, the three heavy cauldrons merged into one amidst the ghostly radiance, and Xiao Xiao's long-brewed first soul skill was subsequently released.

The scorching light wave, its power weakened layer by layer, burst apart into a flurry of light specks under a subtle tremor.

"Damn it!"

Dai Huabin swung his claws bitterly, beating back a sneak attacker and cursing why his White Tiger martial soul didn't grow a pair of wings, leaving him with no choice but to harass the opponents with the Fierce Light Wave.

"If you have the guts, fight me head-on on the ground! I don't believe you can beat me!"

The two flying high in the air naturally wouldn't know the full extent of Dai Huabin's grievances, but Wang Dong, who had been constantly accumulating energy, suddenly opened his eyes.

"—It's about time."

Xiao Xiao caught on immediately.

Judging by the Butterfly God Light Slash Wang Dong had previously unleashed, a single strike would almost drain all the soul power in his body. The skill he was using now required an even longer charge time than before and would likely be even more terrifying.

"Speaking of which, I should also try out a new trick..."

As Wang Dong let go, Xiao Xiao brought the third Soul-Suppressing Cauldron down from the sky, her meager remaining soul power barely mustering up a single move.

'She's going to unleash that attack again?'

Not only the dozen or so remaining people on the field, but even the three nervous observing teachers tightened their expressions, staring intently at her movements.

"Everyone, fall back!"

Dai Huabin was the first to recover, stamping hard on the ground and leaping backward.

Judging from the earth-shaking blast at the opening, the maximum range of Xiao Xiao's move was less than twenty meters, and the distance capable of injuring someone at the second ring was even less. As long as they retreated beyond ten meters before the heavy cauldrons crashed down, they would be safe.

However...

"Humph~"

Xiao Xiao reached out, and instead, the Triple Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons instantly dispersed into a triangular formation more than ten meters apart. Earth-yellow halos radiated outward layer by layer, and the two soul rings she carried shone with brilliance simultaneously.

"Heavy vessels of the state..."

The cauldrons scattered in three directions roared in unison. The ripples transmitted from the three sides crossed and overlapped, blanketing down from the upper air wrapped in a thick suppressing force, smashing face-first down upon everyone's heads.

"Cauldrons suppress three lives!"

Clang—

The remaining students on the field felt as if a chaotic great bell was ringing in their minds. The soul power within their bodies became dissociated and out of control under the three vibrational forces, leaving them standing foolishly in place with chaotic consciousness, unable to move.

"Large-scale heavy crowd control!"

Wang Yan froze in place instantly. His long-term study of martial souls had never taught him that martial souls and soul skills could be developed and repeatedly mined for value in such a manner.

"But the duration is very short. Some people are already waking up after just two or three seconds."

The Soul Saint who was about to move withdrew his left foot, his brows furrowing slightly. "Then what is the point of her pulling off that control—"

The next moment, all doubts were answered.

Wang Dong, lingering in mid-air, suddenly unleashed the power of light. A golden light butterfly with a wingspan twice as wide enveloped him, and the specks of light surging on the butterfly wings transformed into slashes amidst the flashing soul rings, raining down from the sky like droplets.

"My goodness... Ancestor Tang San..."

The Soul Saint's eyes trembled, his expression moved.

Not because he saw some future where Shrek was about to flourish, but because those people on the field...

Were genuinely going to be slashed to death.

"Someone save them—!!"