Huo Yuhao said, âFor instance, like this.â He stared at Nan Qiuqiu, and his eyes suddenly became deep and profound. Nan Qiuqiu felt as if there were a black maelstrom in each of his eyes, and she could feel an indescribable and terrifying pressure emanating from his body that locked her body down in an instant.
She could feel a tremble that came from her own spirit, and she was terrified as she subconsciously gathered her soul power to resist that pressure. However, she quickly realized that her attempt was futile, because that pressure didnât come from soul power at all â it was pure spiritual power. Furthermore, that spiritual pressure was so strong that she couldnât even speak. Her flying-type soul tool became unstable as well, and she teetered in midair and seemed like she was going to plummet.
The pressure was suddenly lifted, and Nan Qiuqiu felt as if an enormous mountain had been lifted from her body. She panted in deep breaths as she tried her best to control her flying-type soul tool. She glared at Huo Yuhao and said, âAre you crazy? Are you trying to kill me?â
Huo Yuhao smiled and said, âThis is the most effective method to train your spiritual power. If, at any moment, you can successfully resist my spiritual pressure, then your own will have reached a certain standard. Such training like this is very hard to come by. Didnât you feel like you were very bored along the way? Then I will take this chance to help you. Weâre not in a hurry anyway.â
âI donâtâ¦â She couldnât even say âwantâ when the enormous spiritual pressure that had just disappeared descended onto her once more.
Even though Nan Qiuqiu was a little more prepared than before, she was caught still off-guard in front of Huo Yuhaoâs formidable soul power. This time, she was so badly beaten that she plummeted straight towards the ground.
Huo Yuhao grabbed Nan Qiuqiu at an appropriate time in midair, and made sure that she wouldnât fall to her death. He waited for her to regain control of her body and for her to stabilize herself before the spiritual pressure came back.
âIâm not fighting back anymore. Throw me to my death if you dare!â Nan Qiuqiu was furious after this repeated itself a few more times!
She felt extremely fatigued after those episodes of immense spiritual pressure. She didnât even bother to fly as she just allowed herself to drop down.
Huo Yuhao had no choice but to catch her and land on the ground.
Nan Qiuqiu kicked toward Huo Yuhao as they dropped to the ground. Huo Yuhao dodged lightly towards the side and said, âIâm doing this for your own good, Qiuqiu.â
âPsh. Youâre trying to take this opportunity to get back at me!â Nan Qiuqiu glared at Huo Yuhao with an indignant look on her face.
Huo Yuhao frowned slightly and said, âLooks like I was wrong about you.â
Nan Qiuqiu was momentarily stunned. âWrong about me? What are you wrong about me?â
Huo Yuhao continued, âI have always believed you were a very strong lady. If others canât bear this method of training spiritual power, Iâm sure you can. This is very beneficial for you becoming a Titled Douluo in the future. I didnât expect you not to be able to take it after these few times. Youâre no different from a typical little girl. Forget it â I wonât give you any more pressure. Meditate and rest up, and once youâve rested up, we shall hurry towards the Earthdragon Sect.â He gave her a disappointed expression as he spoke and turned his head to one side.
Nan Qiuqiu frowned as he eyebrows went almost vertical. âWho says I canât take it? I can take it. But⦠but youâre so evil. Are you targeting me deliberately?â
Huo Yuhao snapped back. âIâm not so frivolous. I wouldnât be willing even if someone else begged me.â
Nan Qiuqiu grunted and said, âAlright, then let me recover. Donât think you can overcome me when Iâm prepared.â
Huo Yuhao twitched his lips and said, âProve it.â
Nan Qiuqiu crossed her legs and began to recover with a competitive heart.
Huo Yuhao smiled faintly as he watched her enter meditation. Provoking this girl is the way to go! Sheâll probably be tricked even if she knows Iâm trying to bait her.
The Earthdragon Sect could be said to have taken out their most important belongings so that they could establish close cooperation with the Tang Sect. Bei Bei had told Huo Yuhao privately that the Tang Sect had to find some way to repay them if possible. The Earthdragon Sect wasnât considered a top-tier sect amongst the sects on the continent, but they were still considered a very old and powerful sect. The Earthdragon Sect had provided much help to the Tang Sect in terms of resources. Furthermore, with Nan Shuishuiâs support, the Tang Sectâs middle to high level strength had been bolstered. The Earthdragon Sectâs several hundred disciples still belonged to the Earthdragon Sect in name, but Nan Shuishui had already expressed generously that the Earthdragon Sect would fully support the Tang Sect if anything happened.
Of course, the Tang Sect reciprocated the Earthdragon Sectâs sincerity. Almost a third of the Earthdragon Sectâs disciples had successfully fused with Spirits, which was a very laudable accomplishment amongst the sects. The other sects all looked on with watering mouths, except they didnât understand the Tang Sect like Nan Shuishui did, and they were just a little hesitant for the moment.
Huo Yuhao listened to Nan Qiuqiu as she introduced her sectâs secret grounds. He understood that even though Nan Shuishui and Nan Qiuqiu spoke of this as a gift to the Tang Sect, this was equivalent to a gift for him. If there really was a rare ice-type metal inside, then that would be extremely useful for him. He could possibly fix the problem of channeling soul power around his human-shaped soul tool.
Human-shaped soul tools didnât present any problems for the average soul master as long as their rare metals, jewels, and formation arrays were used appropriately. However, he had an Ultimate martial soul, and typical rare metals couldnât bear his Ultimate Ice once he used it. Even if those rare metals had enough resistance, they didnât provide any amplification effects. Instead, those rare metals could hinder him instead.
Huo Yuhao didnât want to owe too many favors, and this was especially so when he knew of Nan Qiuqiuâs feelings toward him. Therefore, he wanted to take this opportunity to help her.
Nan Qiuqiuâs recovery speed was considerably fast, and she leapt to her feet energetically after an hour.
âAre you ready? You canât say Iâm ambushing you this time,â Huo Yuhao placed his hands behind his back and stared at Nan Qiuqiu amusedly.
Nan Qiuqiu couldnât stand his mocking smile. She said proudly, âCome!â
âBe careful.â Huo Yuhao warned her as his eyes suddenly became extremely deep and profound. This time, his spiritual power was very gentle as it pressed against Nan Qiuqiu.
Nan Qiuqiu sensed that spiritual pressure, and she immediately concentrated to face it. She felt as if this pressure wasnât that powerful after a few moments, and a proud look immediately appeared on her face. She grunted and said, âI knew it. I was a little panicky in the sky. Otherwise, your spiritual power would have been useless against me, unless you used soul skills.â
Huo Yuhao smiled plainly and said, âPay attention.â
His spiritual pressure gradually began to increase as his voice dropped.
Nan Qiuqiu was tough in her words, but she knew the gap between Huo Yuhao and herself. Her expression froze as she gathered her strength once more to fend off Huo Yuhao without quarter.
Huo Yuhaoâs spiritual pressure started to increase bit by bit. This level of increase was small, but it was still happening continuously. Every increase gave Nan Qiuqiu a little more pressure.
Beads of sweat began to appear on her forehead, and her face turned a little rosy as her mouth opened slightly. A faint aroma wafted from her body because she was sweating.
Huo Yuhao was just standing there. He didnât even use his eyes to look at her as the pressure unleashed from his body continued to strengthen.
Nan Qiuqiu gradually began to see hallucinations appear in front of her eyes as her breathing became very labored. She felt as if there were an enormous and formless mountain that was weighing down on her soul.
No â I need to hold on. I canât let this fellow look down on me.
She gritted her teeth before she suddenly shouted to boost her own form as a layer of pinkish light emanated from her body. That was her Rouge Dragon; her martial soul emerged automatically under Huo Yuhaoâs formidable spiritual pressure.
A pinkish diamond-shaped crystal instantly appeared on Nan Qiuqiuâs forehead as her martial soul appeared. She clearly felt a lift in the pressure as the spiritual power inside her spiritual sea fused with her martial soul and resisted Huo Yuhaoâs pressure more effectively.
Unfortunately, she couldnât even catch a breather as Huo Yuhaoâs spiritual pressure suddenly increased. That tremendous pressure made her body tremble as the pinkish light around her shone brilliantly.
She couldnât help but feel a chill run down her spine. Has this guyâs spiritual power really become this powerful?
Nan Qiuqiu was very clear that Huo Yuhao hadnât yet released his martial soul. This meant that he was pressuring her with pure spiritual power, without any amplification from his Spirit Eyes. However, Nan Qiuqiu had unleashed her martial soul. No matter what, Iâm still a Soul Emperor! Am I about to crumble against his spiritual pressure?
Huo Yuhao still wasnât looking at her as the spiritual pressure increased continuously.
Pinkish dragon scales emerged over Nan Qiuqiuâs body. Her face and eventually her entire body was covered by dragon scales, but these dragon scales couldnât defend her against Huo Yuhaoâs spiritual pressure. Her body started to quiver and sway, and she gritted her teeth as she clenched her fists tightly. However, she was starting to break apart against the tremendous spiritual pressure.
No, I can hold on! Nan Qiuqiuâs stubbornness acted up. Just as Huo Yuhao thought, provoking this unbending girl was always the simplest and most effective method.
Time continued to pass as Huo Yuhaoâs spiritual power continued to increase. Even he was a little surprised in this moment, as he hadnât expected her to be able to resist his pressure for so long. An hour had passed, while he had already unleashed forty percent of what he could release.
This âforty percentâ couldnât be underestimated â this amount was equivalent to the spiritual pressure that an eight-ringed Soul Douluo could unleash. Ever since Huo Yuhao completed his fusion with his soul core, his spiritual powerâs overall volume could be compared to that of a Transcendent Douluo, while his recovery speed and effectiveness followed in tandem. It was already quite impressive that Nan Qiuqiu could withstand forty percent of his spiritual pressure.
A thread of blood began to appear at the corner of Nan Qiuqiuâs mouth. Her eyes and pupils became a little slack, but her unbending will kept her on her feet.