Hu Yiming hadn't wanted to expose the Hu family, which was why he had sent Lin Dong, a retainer without any official identity label, to carry out the attack. He
initially thought that with Lin Dong's Soul Emperor strength, dealing with Yang Feng, who had exhausted his soul power, wouldn't take long.
However, they waited at the agreed location for a long time, and Lin Dong still hadn't brought the person.
The three of them rushed over to check, only to find that Ma Hongjun had appeared out of nowhere.
This surprised Hu Yiming greatly, but after calming down, he was also very pleased.
It was late at night, and Ma Hongjun was essentially alone, which he saw as an opportunity.
Killing Ma Hongjun would weaken Dai Mubai's strength.
They knew Ma Hongjun's extraordinary potential; once Ma Hongjun fully matured, given his relationship with Dai Mubai, it would be much more difficult for the Hu family to rise again and become the masters of the Star Luo Empire.
Reaching the high-level combat power level had a significant impact on the situation.
Therefore, he would cherish any opportunity to eliminate an enemy's friend.
Ma Hongjun was equally surprised, his brow furrowing as he watched the two Soul Masters and one Soul Emperor charging towards him.
Danger was imminent.
"Zhu Qing, I'll handle them. Go get reinforcements."
Ma Hongjun dared not be careless now. Four opponents—three offensive, one defensive—and all stronger than Zhu Zhu Qing. At this point, Zhu Zhu Qing's role was minimal; her words were insignificant.
Moreover, leaving her here would make Ma Hongjun worry about her safety, preventing him from fully focusing on the battle.
Besides, they were actually quite close to the Great Soul Arena; Zhu Zhu Qing could go there for help.
"No, I have to help you!"
Zhu Zhu Qing wasn't stupid. Two Soul Masters, two Soul Emperors, and two of them from the Tiger Soul Blade family—she couldn't help but worry.
Although she knew Ma Hongjun was strong, the opponents still had two Soul Emperors, higher in rank than him.
Going for reinforcements would take at least half an hour round trip, during which time the battle might already be over.
Ma Hongjun activated his second Soul Skill, a spear explosion that sent Lin Dong flying. He
forcefully pushed Zhu Zhu Qing away.
"Listen to me, go quickly. I'll be distracted if you stay here,"
Ma Hongjun said loudly, his eyes calming down.
"Don't worry, I can hold them off. Go quickly!"
Hu Yiming certainly couldn't let Zhu Zhuqing go, or things would be exposed.
"Erming, block the road! Don't let her escape!"
Hu Erming immediately chased after Zhu Zhuqing, while Hu Yiming charged forward, his fourth soul ring illuminating.
"Tiger Soul Blade!"
A huge cyan blade slashed down, blocking Ma Hongjun's path to Zhu Zhuqing.
"Miss Zhu, you'd better behave. I won't kill you."
Zhu Zhuqing didn't want to run; Hu Erming had already blocked her way.
Ma Hongjun and Hu Yiming were now surrounded.
"Silly little cat!"
Ma Hongjun said helplessly, but a smile appeared on his face.
Zhu Zhuqing also smiled; how could she be a silly cat?
"Don't worry about me, I'm fast enough to protect myself. I can help you hold one person back.
Even if things get worse, we can just die together!"
Ma Hongjun didn't say anything more. She told Zhu Zhuqing to leave mainly because she was worried about her safety. After all, although there were only four enemies now, who knew if they had reinforcements?
If Zhu Zhuqing asked for help, even if she died, she would know who killed her and could avenge him.
But Zhu Zhuqing disagreed. In her opinion, if Ma Hongjun died, what was the point of revenge? It would be better to die with him.
Fighting side by side like this made her feel more at ease.
"Hu Erming? Rong Xing?"
Zhu Zhuqing read their names, her eyes filled with doubt.
"Miss Zhu, it's just that you followed the wrong person."
Hu Yiming said coldly.
"Attack!"
The four people's soul skills lit up.
"Lava Armor!"
The lava rock in Rong Xing's hand split into four, falling onto the three of them and forming a dark red armor on their bodies.
"Albinism!"
Lin Dong's greatsword turned white and slashed at Ma Hongjun again.
"Azure Light!"
Both Hu Yiming and Hu Erming's Tiger Soul Blades flashed with an azure light.
"You go and deal with Zhu Zhuqing!"
Hu Yiming said to Hu Erming. Ma Hongjun was very strong; Lin Dong couldn't handle him alone, so he needed to go with Lin Dong.
Rong Xing wasn't fast enough; he couldn't hold off Zhu Zhuqing.
In fact, if Zhu Zhuqing wanted to leave, she could retreat as long as Hu Yiming and Lin Dong weren't blocking her. With her Wind-Chasing Leg Bone, no Soul Master of the same level could catch her in speed.
Ma Hongjun was facing three opponents.
The twin swords slashed from the left and right, their blue and white light approaching Ma Hongjun.
Above his head, a huge lava rock pressed down from above.
Two fists can't fight four hands; this perfectly described Ma Hongjun's current situation.
Ma Hongjun had once fought the three scoundrels one-on-one, but those three were too weak.
Right now, Rong Xing was a young genius Soul Master,
Lin Dong was the head of the Great Ring Blade Clan,
and Hu Yiming was the number one young talent in Star Dou.
These three were no ordinary people; they were all top-tier Soul Masters of their level.
Facing a group attack, Ma Hongjun couldn't possibly block them all. At this moment, he needed to play it safe.
"Dragon Scale Armor."
Fine blue scales covered his entire body, making Ma Hongjun's body emit a pale blue light.
Ma Hongjun twisted his body to the side, his left hand holding the Dragon Soul Spear, thrusting it vertically upwards.
His right hand turned dark gold, five dark gold claws extending from between his fingers.
Finally, the three attacks arrived.
"Bang bang bang~"
The Dragon Soul Spear thrust out, the effect of the second soul skill activated, and the lava rocks were blasted away.
His right hand was now covered with blue dragon scales, within which dark gold light surged. His right hand, shrouded in blue-gold light, grasped the cyan blade, the Tiger Soul Blade covered in cyan light, in his hand.
However, Ma Hongjun had no way to defend his back, as Lin Dong's greatsword slashed down.
Lin Dong's face was astonished; the greatsword did not embed itself into Ma Hongjun's body, as if it were stuck in sheet metal, unable to advance.
Ma Hongjun's face turned cold. This was his first true life-or-death battle.
He was not going to hold back, displaying all his strength.
The current situation left him no choice; if he did not quickly resolve the trouble before him, he might be put on the defensive.
Zhu Zhuqing dared not confront Hu Erming head-on, relying solely on speed to entangle him. The Tiger Soul Blade's attack power was too strong; Zhu Zhuqing simply couldn't withstand it. This situation was dangerous; Hu Erming was no ordinary Soul Master, and it was difficult to guarantee that Zhu Zhuqing wouldn't be caught off guard.
Ma Hongjun's body trembled. Although Lin Dong's blade hadn't cut his body, it had still injured him.
At this moment, the importance of the Soul Bones became apparent. The torso Soul Bones perfectly supported Ma Hongjun's body, protecting his internal organs.
Simultaneously activating all three Soul Bones was a significant burden for Ma Hongjun; his Soul Power was being consumed too quickly. Even with the torso Soul Bones replenishing his Soul Power, it wasn't enough.
Ma Hongjun needed to unleash his power; he had to quickly eliminate the three.
At this moment, the three surrounded him in a triangle.
The strongest was undoubtedly Hu Yiming, and the most stable was Lin Dong.
As for Rong Xing, he was purely defensive, difficult to defeat, but his attack wasn't strong either.
Ma Hongjun chose Lin Dong as his breakthrough point; this guy had already had his Martial Soul injured and had consumed a lot of his Soul Power.
He couldn't be surrounded, otherwise all three could focus fire, and he wouldn't be able to dodge.
Using the Phoenix Playing with a Hundred Birds technique, Ma Hongjun activated his first spirit ring, needing to unleash his speed.
"Be careful, don't let him break through!"
Hu Yiming, seeing through Ma Hongjun's intentions, shouted a warning and charged forward, already activating his sixth spirit ring.
Ma Hongjun turned and raised his hand.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh..."
Silent sleeve darts shot towards Hu Yiming. The attack power of sleeve darts was limited, hardly capable of harming a Spirit Emperor, but Ma Hongjun didn't have high hopes for them; he just needed a short time.
Hu Yiming was startled by the sudden attack. The key to hidden weapon attacks was concealment; Hu Yiming had never seen such a technique before.
He quickly raised his sword to block.
"Clang clang~"
The silent sleeve darts struck the Tiger Soul Blade and fell to the ground.
In that brief moment, Ma Hongjun had already used the Phoenix Playing with a Hundred Birds technique to approach Lin Dong; Rong Xing's speed was too slow to react.
Lin Dong had already activated his sixth spirit ring when Hu Yiming warned him.
The greatsword charged towards Ma Hongjun with a swift, slashing motion.
Ma Hongjun coldly snorted, tossing his Dragon Soul Spear into the air before charging head-on at Lin Dong.
His dark golden claws extended fully, the massive claw shadows forming five long, sharp swords, which he swung fiercely at Lin Dong.
The dark golden claw shadows clashed against Lin Dong's white blade. Lin Dong had already closed the distance to Ma Hongjun; the greatsword's power was somewhat diminished by the claw shadows, but it still managed to strike Ma Hongjun's chest, rubbing against the dragon scales once more.
The dragon scales were very strong, but Lin Dong's sixth soul skill was no less formidable. The greatsword had already pierced through, the tip entering Ma Hongjun's chest, and blood was flowing from the wound.
A cruel smile appeared on Lin Dong's face. Although he didn't know how Ma Hongjun had suddenly acquired a new scale, Ma Hongjun's method of using his body to fight against his greatsword was truly arrogant and foolish.
His sixth soul skill wasn't just about increasing attack speed; most importantly, it strengthened the tip of his greatsword. Combined with the ultimate sword technique he learned from the Tiger Soul Clan—Death Strangulation—this was enough to give Ma Hongjun a pleasant surprise.
Ma Hongjun smiled, a sinister smile. Although Lin Dong's breakthrough and the subsequent Death Strangulation were unexpected, the blade wasn't enough to kill him. This minor injury was worth it for his life.
"Spear Control!"
Lin Dong looked at Ma Hongjun's smiling face and suddenly felt a chill run through his body.
He looked up sharply and saw a silver spear descending from the sky, its tip pointing directly at him, shimmering with a bluish-green light.
The spear drew closer and closer in his eyes. He wanted to shout, but his open mouth suddenly became utterly silent.
A cold glint appeared first!
"Whoosh!"
The Dragon Soul Spear pierced his mouth, through his throat, and into his body.
Lin Dong's eyes widened, the image of the silver spear still lingering in his vision.
The large ring-bladed sword in his hand slowly disappeared, his hands falling limply to his sides. His dark red lava armor still covered his body, but it offered no protection.
Lin Dong stood stiffly with the spear in his mouth, resembling a sword-swallowing acrobat, except the tip of the Dragon Soul Spear had emerged from his thigh, a stream of bright red blood flowing down its tip.
"Damn it!"
Hu Yiming roared in fury, charging forward with his sword. At this moment, Rong Xing's expression changed, a hint of fear appearing in his eyes. However, he quickly recovered, summoning back the lava rock from Lin Dong's body. The lava rock slowly grew larger in his hand, then covered Lin Dong's body before charging towards Ma Hongjun. At
this moment, there was no room for weakness, for blood had already been drawn.
Ma Hongjun swiftly passed through Lin Dong's body, creating distance between them. Then, with a flick of his wrist, the Dragon Soul Spear within Lin Dong's body vanished, turning into silver starlight. Lin Dong's corpse fell stiffly to the ground. The
Dragon Soul Spear returned to Ma Hongjun's hand, still bright and clear, without a trace of blood.
A faint green light flickered on Ma Hongjun's chest, and his bleeding wound was slowly healing.
"You will die with Uncle Dong!"
Hu Yiming hissed sharply.
Ma Hongjun smiled mockingly and replied,
"Don't worry, you'll be able to go see him soon."
(End of Chapter)