Huo Yun and Huo Yu double-teamed Yu Feng, thinking it would be an easy task. After all, the Emperor Team had only one flying soul master, Yu Feng, and the others couldn't join their aerial battle. A two-on-one situation should have been the easiest breakthrough point.
However, reality was entirely different from their expectations. Just as they were closing in on Yu Feng, two dark green tortoise shell shields, each about a meter long and eighty centimeters wide, came hurtling toward them.
If they hadn't been agile enough to dodge, being hit by those shields would have likely meant an immediate elimination on the spot.
Most importantly, those tortoise shell shields were being controlled by the two Defense Type Soul Elders. This meant they weren't just meat shields; they possessed potent long-range offensive capabilities.
Furthermore, the shields seemed to have eyes of their own, relentlessly chasing the two of them like spinning giant blades. This made it impossible for them to focus their full attention on attacking Yu Feng.
With the assist from the two shields, Yu Feng even began to take the initiative and launched counterattacks against them.
The two-on-one dynamic had shifted into a three-on-two disadvantage. If it weren't for the fact that Shi Mo and Shi Mo couldn't fly, the pressure on Huo Yun and Huo Yu would have been even greater.
Because the shields were massive and rotating at high speeds, they didn't dare to take the "Black Tortoise Flying Shield" attacks head-on, even with the buffs from their Support Type teammates.
By now, except for Captain Huo Wu, everyone on the Blazing Team had been drawn into the fray. With their two Support members having no combat ability, the Blazing Team suddenly found themselves in a stalemate.
Down on the ground, Huo Lie was being suppressed by Gu Xuan. If this continued and Huo Lie was eliminated, Gu Xuan would join Yu Tianheng to double-team Huo Wushuang, putting the Blazing Team at a severe disadvantage.
Moreover, the Emperor Team's support, Ye Lingling, hadn't even exerted herself yet. Although they knew she was a Support Type with no offensive power, they were well aware of the terrifying healing capabilities of the Nine-Hearted Begonia. In a war of attrition, the Blazing Team would be completely crushed.
What worried them most was Dugu Yan, the Control Type soul master specializing in poison. Although they could use flames to incinerate her toxins, they had still inhaled a certain amount. While there were no signs of poisoning yet, Dugu Yan still hadn't used her third soul skill.
Huo Wu kept her eyes locked on Dugu Yan. Just as she was thinking this, Dugu Yan moved. The purple third soul ring on Dugu Yan's body began to glow with soul power. She slowly raised her right hand, and as the third ring flashed, a purple toxic mist erupted from her palm, rapidly spreading toward the Blazing Team.
Dugu Yan's cold voice rang out: "Third Soul Skill: Jade Phosphor Violet Poison!"
As the mist expanded, a deeply unsettling odor began to permeate the air. Huo Wu's expression changed instantly as she cried out, "Hold your breath! Do not inhale the mist!"
Simultaneously, her own purple third soul ring lit up immediately following Dugu Yan's activation.
"Third Soul Skill: Defying Flame Ring!"
With the release of Huo Wu's third soul skill, a circle of condensed flames erupted from her center, rapidly expanding outward.
When the circular ring of fire touched Dugu Yan's toxic mist, it actually managed to knock the poison back. While it didn't dissipate the mist entirely, it significantly slowed the spread of the Jade Phosphor Violet Poison.
Gu Xuan was surprised to see this. He hadn't expected Huo Wu's Defying Flame Ring to not only repel physical attacks but also defend against toxic mist.
However, he quickly noticed a flaw. The ring had repelled the poison for a moment, but the mist released by Dugu Yan's third soul skill immediately began to spread again.
Huo Wu's skill could block it momentarily, but couldn't eliminate the toxins. The Violet Poison continued to advance, merely slowed down by the resistance.
Looking at Huo Wu's state, Gu Xuan understood even better: maintaining this skill for a long duration consumed a massive amount of soul power. Only the continuous buffs from her two Fire Spark support teammates allowed her to keep up the output to resist the mist.
"Brother! I can't hold out for long! End this quickly!" Huo Wu cried out.
Hearing this, Huo Wushuang and the rest of the Blazing Team stopped holding back. They unleashed all their soul skills in succession, entering a full berserk mode.
The two support members, Huo Jun and Huo Chui, also flashed their three soul rings (two yellow, one purple) repeatedly to maximize the buffs for their teammates.
For a moment, the Blazing Team truly "ignited," their members erupting with the sheer explosive violence of the fire element.
However, even though they were strong and pushing their limits, the Emperor Team was not inferior.
With the buffs from Dugu Yan's first and second soul skills, they were completely unafraid of the heat, as her second skill had eliminated their sense of pain.
Whenever their injuries worsened, pale purple begonia petals would drift down, causing their wounds to heal at high speed.
In this moment, the terror of Ye Lingling was displayed perfectly. It could be said that as long as Ye Lingling didn't die, the team would never fall!
Huo Wushuang and Yu Tianheng were evenly matched. Meanwhile, Huo Yun and Huo Yu were trying to find a way to eliminate Yu Feng while dodging the attacks from Shi Mo and Shi Mo.
But they were so hounded by the Shi brothers' second soul skill that they not only failed to take out Yu Feng but almost got taken out themselves.
Whenever they tried to bypass the frontline to deal with Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, the Shi brothers stood like two insurmountable mountains. They perfectly executed a balance of offense and defense, protecting their backline flawlessly.
Aside from them, the one in the most miserable state was Huo Lie. Even with his power fully unleashed and the support buffs active, he was still no match for Gu Xuan—he couldn't even manage to suppress him.
At his peak, he could only manage a stalemate with Gu Xuan, and even that "stalemate" seemed to be an illusion.
Because Gu Xuan had only used two soul skills so far—both hundred-year skills. He hadn't even released his thousand-year skill yet.
What kind of monster was this? Gu Xuan was only Rank 33, while Huo Lie was Rank 35. With three skills active and support buffs, he could only pull a draw?
Just as Huo Lie began to question his life choices, Gu Xuan suddenly sighed and whispered, "Face your defeat..."
Then, the purple third ring on Gu Xuan's body ignited. Before Huo Lie could react, bone swords as sharp as rapiers erupted from the ground beneath him, instantly overwhelming him.
"Third Soul Skill: Bone Dragon Purgatory!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Countless bone swords rose from the earth. Huo Lie was severely injured and immediately lost consciousness.
Gu Xuan's third soul skill didn't stop there. It continued to surge forward toward the only three people left in front of him: Huo Wu, who was struggling to maintain the Defying Flame Ring, and the two support members, Huo Jun and Huo Chui.
"Oh no!"
Huo Wu was horrified. She immediately retracted the soul power maintaining the larger ring and, with her expert control, released her third soul skill again.
This time, it wasn't wide-range; it only covered herself and the two support members.
The Defying Flame Ring appeared instantly, and the momentum of Gu Xuan's third soul skill was forcibly cut off, unable to penetrate the barrier by even an inch.
Gu Xuan wasn't surprised. In the original records, Huo Wu's third soul skill could knock away the attacks of the entire Shrek Team at once, so blocking his third soul skill was within reason.
However, while Huo Wu blocked the physical assault, the removal of the wider barrier meant that Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphor Violet Poison instantly enveloped the rest of the Blazing Team.
Only the flying Huo Yun and Huo Yu, and the three inside Huo Wu's small circle, remained unharmed.
The unconscious Huo Lie and the struggling Huo Wushuang immediately inhaled a massive amount of toxin. Huo Lie was fine as he was already out cold and couldn't feel the pain, but Huo Wushuang suffered. He stumbled, gasping for fresh air, but every breath he took was filled with poison mist.
Gu Xuan kept his third soul skill active, grinding against Huo Wu's Defying Flame Ring, preventing her from making any other moves.
At this point, Huo Wu knew her team was at a total disadvantage, though they hadn't technically "lost" yet.
However, Gu Xuan spoke up: "Hey, I suggest you surrender. My sister Yan's third soul skill is a lethal poison. Putting aside those of you still in decent shape, look at the one on the ground and the one barely holding on. In a few moments, even if they are Soul Elders, they will eventually turn into a pool of pus."
Huo Wu wanted to argue, but she quickly realized the severity of the situation. Huo Wushuang and Huo Lie had already been poisoned.
She had seen the data on how terrifying Dugu Yan's poison was; Gu Xuan was not exaggerating.
Thinking of this, Huo Wu looked at the suppressed Huo Yun and Huo Yu, then at Gu Xuan, who looked like he had plenty of energy left while pushing his third soul skill against her barrier. Finally, she bit her lip and said slowly:
"Blazing Team... surrenders."
(End of Chapter)
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