Chapter 98: Martial Virtue (Part 2)
"You insolent brats! You will pay the price for your arrogance!" The old man laughed in sheer fury; brandishing his bone staff, he unleashed the full, crushing pressure of an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo and charged at Jiang Bai and his companion!
"Golden Dragon Possession!"
"The Power of the Dragon!"
Jiang Li’er reacted with lightning speed, instantly completing her Martial Soul Possession.
Her arms became sheathed in a layer of fine, dense golden scales, while a faint, vertical phantom-mark materialized upon the center of her forehead. Yet she knew full well that, facing a Soul Douluo, her own strength was woefully insufficient; she could only serve to assist Jiang Bai in battle.
Instead of retreating, Jiang Bai surged forward, gripping his flaming sword tightly with his dragon claw as he moved to intercept the old man’s bone staff.
"Clang—!"
The fiery sword clashed against the bone staff, erupting in a deafening clang of metal against bone.
Jiang Bai was knocked back three steps, the ground beneath his feet cracking under the impact.
"What?!"
The old man’s pupils constricted sharply.
Although he hadn’t employed a Soul Skill with that strike, he had still channeled sixty percent of his power into it.
Any ordinary Soul Emperor taking such a blow would at the very least be sent flying backward, coughing up blood; yet this youth had merely taken three steps back?
"Fourth Soul Skill: Nether Realm Soul Lock!"
No longer underestimating his opponent, the old man thrust his bone staff into the ground, manifesting a pitch-black domain centered around himself.
Black mist billowed forth, spectral images of countless bones materialized upon the earth, and the air filled with the wailing of tormented souls.
"Within my domain, your Soul Power consumption rate is doubled, and your movement speed is drastically reduced!" the old man sneered.
"You two ignorant brats—today, this old man will teach you a lesson!"
The Ice Empress’s cool, crisp voice echoed in Jiang Bai’s mind: "Jiang Bai, shall we intervene?"
"Not yet."
Jiang Bai replied inwardly, a golden glint flashing in his eyes.
Behind him, the spectral image of the Glorious Sacred Dragon materialized.
"Like the Rising Sun!"
There was no earth-shattering fanfare; instead, a golden orb of light—approximately one meter in diameter—rose from Jiang Bai’s palm, hovering three feet above his head.
The very next instant, the orb of light burst forth with blinding golden radiance, shining like a true sun!
Pure, warm, and sacred golden light instantly dispelled the darkness.
The Nether Realm the old man had conjured melted away like snow beneath the sun; the black mist hissed and dissipated, while the spectral bones on the ground wailed in agony as they dissolved into wisps of smoke within the golden light.
In a mere three seconds, the pitch-black domain was completely obliterated!
"Impossible!"
The old man cried out in disbelief.
Although his Fourth Soul Skill was a wide-area control ability, its core attributes were Darkness and Death—elements that naturally suppressed Light and Life.
Yet the golden radiance emanating from the youth before him—its purity of the Light attribute—actually far surpassed that of his own Dark attribute!
"You brat! Die!"
Astonished and enraged, the old man hoisted his bone staff and lunged at Jiang Bai, moving with the speed and elusiveness of a wraith.
This time, he held nothing back; his sixth Soul Ring flared to life.
Jiang Bai called out to Jiang Li’er, who stood nearby: "You go handle those little minions over there; I can take care of things here."
Having learned her lesson, Jiang Li’er wisely chose not to attempt a head-on clash this time. "Alright—be careful!"
Seeing the bone staff bearing down right in front of his face, Jiang Bai hurriedly raised his sword to parry.
Pressing down with all his might, the old man sneered, "You fool! With death staring you in the face, do you really have the luxury to worry about others?"
Jiang Bai was just about to retort with a snide remark when, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of two streaks of purplish-black sword energy shooting in from behind him—striking the old man squarely in the back!
"Aargh!"
The old man let out a piercing, agonizing scream as his attack instantly lost all momentum.
The black robes on his back shredded apart, revealing two deep wounds cut right down to the bone.
The wounds did not bleed; instead, they continuously spewed forth wisps of purplish-black mist.
Seeing his chance, Jiang Bai immediately followed up with a kick, sending the old man flying.
"Who the hell was that?!" Enduring the searing pain, the old man spun around, his eyes bulging with fury.
"Where is your martial virtue?!"
Hovering in mid-air, the "Dark" Qian Renxue gently flapped her six black wings, suspended beneath the moonlight.
She tilted her head to the side, flashing a cheeky, mischievous grin.
"Martial virtue? What’s that? I’ve never heard of it."
As she spoke, however, her gaze settled upon Jiang Bai; within those eyes—which burned with purplish-black flames—a flicker of confusion and intense scrutiny appeared.
This little Jiang Bai... since when did he possess such combat prowess?
Wasn’t his Martial Soul supposed to be the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda? When did it transform into this?
"You old bastard! Look at me!"
Jiang Bai’s voice snapped the old man’s attention back to the present.
The old man spun around in a rage—only to see Jiang Bai opening his mouth wide.
"Fire Dragon’s Breath!"
"Blazing Sun Golden Eyes!"
From his open mouth erupted a torrent of fiery-gold flames, while simultaneously, two beams of golden light shot forth from his eyes!
Columns of fire and beams of light intertwined in the air, coalescing into a golden-red torrent of destruction that surged directly toward the old man’s face!
"Eighth Soul Skill: Wave of Ten Thousand Bones’ Desolation!"
The old man dared not be complacent any longer; gripping his bone staff tightly with both hands, he unleashed a piercing shriek from the skull adorning its tip, which then spewed forth a shockwave as black as ink.
Wherever the shockwave passed, the grass and vegetation on the ground withered instantly, crumbling into dust—the manifestation of death and curses condensed to their absolute limit.
The golden-red torrent and the pitch-black shockwave collided mid-air!
"Rumble—!"
Amidst the deafening roar of the explosion, the two forces locked in a fierce stalemate.
Veins bulged across the old man’s forehead as he made a terrifying discovery: his Eighth Soul Skill—unleashed with the full power of his Soul Douluo cultivation—was utterly unable to suppress the attack of that mere Soul Emperor brat!
The opponent’s total Soul Power might have been inferior to his own, but the quality of those flames and golden light was absurdly high; in particular, the power of holy purification contained within the golden light was the absolute bane of his dark Soul Power.
"How is this possible...?"
A tempest of shock raged within the old man’s heart.
Just as he was pouring every ounce of his strength into countering Jiang Bai’s assault, the sound of rushing air rang out once more from behind him.
"Thwack—!"
The dull, heavy sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh.
The old man’s body went rigid; slowly, he lowered his gaze.
The tip of a dark-violet blade protruded from his left chest, its surface shimmering with an eerie, purplish-black flame.
Dark Qian Renxue had appeared behind him at some unknown moment, her Black Angel Sword having pierced straight through his heart.
"You... have no martial ethics..."
The old man struggled to force out these few words, the light of life rapidly fading from his eyes.
As his Soul Power dissipated, Jiang Bai’s golden-red torrent met with no further resistance, crashing down to engulf the old man’s scorched face.
Dark Qian Renxue withdrew her sword and stepped back; the old man’s lifeless body slumped to the ground, his eyes wide and staring—dying with his eyes unclosed.
With the old man’s death, the fallen ones who were still locked in combat with the Holy Knights Corps shuddered in unison.
The crimson glow in their eyes extinguished, and the blood-red markings upon their faces rapidly faded away. Several collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
The rest, having lost their will to fight, were swiftly subdued and killed by the knights.
"Sister Xue!"
Tian Yue was the first to rush towards Qian Renxue, but stopped three meters away, warily observing the lingering purplish-black aura around her.
"Are you... alright?"
Dark Qian Renxue ignored Tian Yue, instead looking at Jiang Bai.
She opened her mouth, as if to say something, but suddenly clutched her forehead, letting out a suppressed groan.
"Uh..."
The purplish-black light around her fluctuated violently, her long hair rapidly shifting between gold and silver-white.
The black angel phantom behind her crumbled inch by inch, transforming back into a holy six-winged angel.
A few seconds later, the light completely subsided.
Qian Renxue opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was Jiang Bai standing not far away.
Time seemed to stand still at that moment.
Qian Renxue stared blankly at that familiar face, her eyes quickly reddening.
She approached step by step, her steps faltering, as if afraid that what she was seeing was just a dream.
Until her hand touched Jiang Bai’s cheek, feeling that real warmth.
"It really...is you..."