Chapter 1297: Third Soul Armament (Part Ten)
What Yang Haoran meant by "thank you" was something Ulan naturally wouldn't interpret as genuine gratitude for her explanation. In her eyes, it was nothing short of Yang Haoran's reckless mockery, daring to challenge death.
The reason she felt she had ample time was that, in her estimation, dealing with Yang Haoran would take mere minutes, certainly not a full hour. There was more than enough time not just for idle explanations, but even for a meal or a bath.
However, Yang Haoran's reaction left her deeply dissatisfied, and so, she was furious!
"Stubborn as a mule, I'll wipe that smile off your face today!"
Ulan uttered coldly, and was about to move against Yang Haoran. Since time was plentiful, she had no intention of striking a killing blow immediately. Instead, she planned to toy with Yang Haoran first, tormenting him thoroughly. She wanted Yang Haoran to perish in fear and despair, thus unleashing the rage festering in her heart.
But just as she prepared to make her move, the power fluctuations emanating from Yang Haoran suddenly surged. Originally, there were only two swirling masses of Yin Qi around his body, but now, a third had appeared.
Ulan's movements froze, her expression stiffening. For she, of course, understood perfectly what the changes in Yang Haoran signified at this moment.
"How is this possible! How could you possibly have the ability to Open your Life Soul!"
When Yang Haoran became a Night Watcher, she wasn't clear on that, but when he became an Emissary of Death, and then a Guardian—that, she was intimately aware of.
That Yang Haoran could elevate his cultivation to the peak of the late-stage Earth Soul in such a short span of time had already astonished her. For she had served as an Underworld Official for an untold number of years, and aside from Yang Haoran's girlfriend, Xu Meijing, she had never witnessed anyone's strength improve so rapidly, nor anyone's status climb with such breathtaking speed!
Yet, the truth was that the peak of the late-stage Earth Soul wasn't Yang Haoran's true realm at all. Yang Haoran's actual cultivation had already broken through to the Life Soul. This was not only unacceptable to her, but also utterly unbelievable.
Although she didn't understand how Yang Haoran had managed to increase his power, two things became clear to her in that instant. The first was why Yang Haoran had remained so composed when facing her.
Just moments ago, she had believed Yang Haoran's composure stemmed from his reliance on Zhong Siyu, that Ghost King. Now, it seemed that wasn't entirely the case. While Yang Haoran might indeed have harbored thoughts of relying on Zhong Siyu, the greatest reason for his composure must have been his own strength.
The second point was the "thank you" Yang Haoran had just uttered. She had initially taken it as a death-defying taunt, but now, it appeared that wasn't it at all. Yang Haoran's "thank you" might genuinely have been meant for her!
"Heh heh, how I gained the ability to Open my Life Soul—that's a private matter, so I'm afraid I can't tell you. However, the fact that my Life Soul has indeed Opened is something you cannot deny. " Yang Haoran chuckled lightly.
As his words fell, his Soul Armament, Remnant Moon, transformed into a streak of black light, shooting towards Ulan.
At the same time, he extended his hand and drew Black Lightning, his other Soul Armament, from the violently swirling mass of Yin Qi, absorbing it into his palm where it vanished.
The instant Black Lightning disappeared beneath his palm, a colossal dark cloud coalesced above Yang Haoran's head.
This dark cloud was immense, its coverage far exceeding what it had been during his previous fight with Shi Weihan, almost entirely engulfing the area shrouded by the restrictive barrier. Back then, against Shi Weihan, he had neither Opened his Life Soul nor fully unleashed Black Lightning's power, using only a fraction of its strength. In contrast, now he had not only Opened his Life Soul, but also significantly amplified his control over the Soul Armament Black Lightning, which was why its covered area had become so vast.
It was beyond doubt that the larger the area covered by the dark cloud formed by Black Lightning, the greater the consumption of Spirit Power within Yang Haoran's body. However, there were benefits to this as well: Black Lightning's strike range would be far wider. By encompassing the entire area enclosed by the restrictive barrier, no matter where Ulan fled, she would remain within Black Lightning's strike range.
Ulan had become an Underworld Official hundreds, even thousands, of times earlier than Yang Haoran, and her time as a Guardian was simply incomparable to his. Yet, at present, their cultivation realms were nearly identical, both residing in the early Life Soul stage.
If they followed normal progression speeds, the time Yang Haoran would need to reach the early Life Soul realm would likely not be much less than Ulan's, perhaps even longer. The reason he could break through to his current realm in such a short time was that he was incredibly wealthy, and furthermore, he could personally refine Soul Pills and Soul Crystals.
Although the chances of successfully refining a Soul Crystal were exceedingly low, he occasionally had the good fortune to produce one. He accumulated these refined Soul Crystals, and over time, he had amassed a collection of them.
A significant portion of these Soul Crystals, accumulated over years, were utilized by him for the purpose of breaking through to the Life Soul. As one Soul Crystal after another was refined by him, his realm naturally progressed into the Life Soul stage!
Now, he had not only stabilized at the early Life Soul realm, but the density of Spirit Power within his body even far surpassed that of an Underworld Official who had just entered the Life Soul realm. This was the source of his confidence, allowing him to maintain his composure even when facing Ulan.
Of course, his ability to remain composed when facing Ulan was one thing; underestimating Ulan was quite another. Not only did he not underestimate Ulan as an opponent, but he also held her in extremely high regard. It was precisely because of this that, after Opening all three of his Heaven, Earth, and Life Souls, he preemptively launched an attack against Ulan, rather than arrogantly waiting for her to make the first move. After all, a powerhouse in the early Life Soul realm was simply not comparable to the previous Shi Weihan.
However, in this initial exchange, he did not unleash all three of his Soul Armaments on Ulan simultaneously. Instead, he employed two, temporarily holding back the third.
Though Ulan was inwardly utterly astonished by how incredibly fast Yang Haoran's cultivation had improved, a speed that felt profoundly unreal to her, her reaction speed was anything but slow. Facing the incoming Remnant Moon, she quickly retreated, putting distance between herself and Yang Haoran. At the same time, under the command of her will, a black light shot out from a violently swirling mass of Yin Qi beside her, colliding with the approaching Remnant Moon.
Clang!
!
The sound of metal clashing rang out. The incoming Remnant Moon was blocked by the black light, which then dispersed to reveal the form of Ulan's Soul Armament: a slender, entirely black soft sword. Though it looked like a decorative vase, seemingly devoid of destructive power, it showed not the slightest damage after fending off Remnant Moon's sudden assault.
After their initial clash, the two Soul Armaments of the Life Soul powerhouses did not retract. Instead, under the mental control of their respective masters, they became entangled in a fierce struggle. Their violent collisions not only produced a series of clanging sounds but also threw off a continuous shower of sparks, appearing exceptionally conspicuous in the pitch-black environment.
As the thick dark cloud formed by Black Lightning obscured the sky above their heads, moonlight was utterly unable to penetrate. Consequently, the vision of both Yang Haoran and Ulan was affected to a certain extent.
Neither of them paid this situation any mind; after all, it wasn't a difficult problem for them to resolve. As they both successively Opened their Ghost Eyes, the issue was immediately remedied, and the pitch-black surroundings appeared as bright as day in their eyes.
In just a short span, the two Soul Armaments had clashed no fewer than a hundred times. Because the power unleashed by both Soul Armaments was simply too immense, each collision sent tremors through the surrounding space.
Under such violent clashes, neither Soul Armament gained the upper hand; they fought to a standstill, evenly matched. However, both knew perfectly well that this was absolutely temporary. If this continued, the evenly matched situation was bound to change, for they each still possessed other Soul Armaments and techniques yet to be deployed!
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