“You!” Rao Wu shouted with so much ferocity it made Brian flinch in fright. But then, the child cocked his head to the side and asked, “Who are you, again?”

Brian nearly fell over in shock. “It’s me!? Don’t you recognize me?” Brian adjusted his glasses as he protested. “We met at the banquet, remember?”

“Ah! The weak-looking, glasses guy,” Rao Wu’s lips curled in a teasing grin as he winked at the stunned Brian. “Been a while. How’ve you been?”

Brian, realizing Rao Wu took him for a ride, chuckled and replied, “I’ve been great. Being an Elite student is awesome. Hurry up and enroll so we can partner up.”

Rao Wu’s eyes widened. “Whoa, so you were really an Elite student. I thought you were lying back then.” Rao Wu burst out laughing when Brian turned red in the face. “Pfft. I’m kidding, I’m kidding. But, hey, if I beat you, an Elite student, will that automatically make me an Elite?”

“Beat me?” Brian Stanley smirked as he adjusted his glasses. The smile remained as he summoned two monsters to his side. The first monster, a Winged Unagi, was a seven-meters long, eel-like monster. It sported a set of wings that allowed it to fly, but the wings were not powerful enough to carry it over large distances.

Winged Unagis were primarily aquatic creatures, but they also had lungs that allowed them to breathe on land. Their primary mode of attacks were their teeth, powerful tails, and water attacks generated from their mouths.

A foot-long Water Fairy floated beside the Winged Unagi. Water Fairies possessed liquid bodies that took the shape of beautiful women. As pure elemental creatures, Water Fairies attacked by summoning columns of water to attack their targets.

Brian Stanley’s Winged Unagi was a general-ranked, 3rd Phase 1st Stage soul pet, while his Water Fair was a warrior-ranked 2nd Phase 8th Stage soul pet. At the children’s age and level, general-ranked soul pets were usually the most they could safely contract.

Brian grinned as a ball of water enveloped him, and then looked at Rao Wu. “Sorry, Rao Wu, but I’m not going to underestimate you. I suggest you summon your second soul pet.”

Rao Wu grinned. “Oh? Is it that obvious?”

“No. You just confirmed my conjecture.” Brian chuckled, satisfied with having pulled one over Rao Wu for once.

“Oh,” exclaimed Rao Wu as he looked at Brian with an appreciative gaze. “Good one, but, I’m not going to summon them yet.” When he saw Brian frown, he chuckled as he brandished the staff. “Don’t worry. I’m not looking down on you. I just need to save energy for the next couple of fights.”

Brian’s eyes flashed as he turned to look at the stands where the remaining Elites sat. “Are you really thinking of beating everyone?”

Rao Wu nodded with a firm gaze. “I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t. What? You don’t think I can?”

Brian sighed and shook his head. “It’s not a question of if you can, but that it’s impossible.” He glanced at the stands and then said, “Even if, by some crazy miracle, you defeat the rest of us, you can’t touch her.” Before Rao Wu could ask, Brian chuckled as he drew out bow from his spatial ring. “Don’t bother asking. You’ll find out for yourself if you ever reach her.” With those words, he turned to the referee, and then said, “I’m ready.”

The referee nodded, and then turned to Rao Wu. “Are you ready?” When Rao Wu nodded, he raised his hand and then declared, “Fight!”

Vwoosh! Surprisingly, Rao Wu led the attack this time, charging out immediately the referee gave the go-ahead. The child’s speed was stunning, rivalling even some soul monsters.

Brian, however, was not caught unprepared. “Little Blue! Use Water Needle!” Following Brian’s shout, the Water Fairy quickly cast a spell, summoning several tennis size balls of water around her.

The Water Fairy raised her hand, and those balls of water transformed into thin, sharp needles capable of piercing iron. She then gently waved, sending the needles raining down on Rao Wu and Raven.

Rao Wu’s eyes narrowed as he glared at the Water Fairy. “Go high, I’ll go low! Let’s split her attention.”

“Got it!” Raven screeched and then jumped into the sky with a heavy flap of its wings.

“Chase it! Little Blue. Don’t let that eagle out of your sight!” Brian was equally decisive, immediately ordering Little Blue to pursue.

“Yes, master,” promised Little Blue and then ‘flew’ into the sky by swimming through a water tunnel she created.

On the ground, Brian jumped onto the Winged Unagi’s back as it charged at Rao Wu. “Nessy! Use Hydro Cannon!” The Winged Unagi reared its head and then spat out an earth-shattering water column at the incoming Rao Wu.

The Hydro Cannon was an extremely fast attack. In the blink of an eye the 2-meter water beam reached Rao Wu. If struck at that speed, Rao Wu would not escape with only a few broken bones.

Brian obviously wasn’t holding back.

Contrary to expectations, Rao Wu grinned when faced with the destructive cannon. “Haha! That’s more like it!” The child laughed as he kicked off the ground with explosive force, launching him over the attack. Rao Wu, while upside-down, reached out and gently ran his fingers through the water stream. He then righted himself, and glared at the Winged Unagi with a deadly smile. “My turn! Eat this! 1st Pillar!”

Rao Wu struck with the staff, causing a pillar construct to crash toward the Winged Unagi’s skull.

Seated atop the Winged Unagi, Brian’s eyes flashed as his lips curled in a wide grin. “As expected of Rao Wu. But this is not good enough!” Water droplets swirled around the child’s hand, which he then pointed at the falling pillar. “Neptune’s Palm!”

BAM! A giant water palm burst out of Brian’s hand and shattered the pillar. The water palm, having survived the clash, continued to slap Rao Wu.

“Haha! Awesome skill! Not like that dumbo!” Rao Wu laughed as he twirled the staff and then sent out the follow-up. “2nd Pillar!” The second pillar shattered the palm, sending water droplets flying everywhere, and then continued toward the Winged Unagi.

Brian could have blocked the pillar, but, he instead, clenched his fists. “Hydro Prison!”

To Rao Wu’s surprise, the shattered water droplets suddenly rushed back and encased him in a bubble, instantly cutting off his air supply.

“Yes—” BAM! Brian’s triumphant grin was brief as Rao Wu’s pillar smashed into the Winged Unagi with the force of a piledriver. The tremendous impact sent man and soul pet flying to the arena’s edge.

Brian would have smashed into the wall, but the Winged Unagi quickly coiled around its master, protecting him as they struck the wall. “Ack!” The Unagi squealed in pain as the impact broke a few bones in its back.

Brian meanwhile, wobbled to his feet, slightly groggy, but otherwise unharmed. He shook his head to regain clarity and then stared at Rao Wu in shock and fear. Was that the strike of a human? How did Rao Wu get so strong? Without Nessy, Brian might have died from that attack.

“Unfortunately, you met me,” remarked Brian with a wry smile as he looked at the writhing Rao Wu. Indeed, Brian’s soft, trapping style countered Rao Wu’s aggressive fighting style. “Raise your hand to give up, and I’ll let you go.”

Within the water prison, Rao Wu frowned as he glared at the distant Brian. ‘Damn it. I wanted to hide this longer, but I guess I don’t have a choice. Brian, you’re really strong, but I passed the Infernal Trial.’ Rao Wu slowly raised his right hand, but contrary to Brian’s expectations, it stopped midway.

Rao Wu curled his fist and then, with a devilish grin, raised his middle finger. ‘Have a taste of hell!’

Brian’s eyes widened in shock when Rao Wu suddenly disappeared from the water prison. Fearing the worst, he quickly summoned a thick, viscous liquid to cover him. This liquid could reduce the impact of objects by up to ninety percent, making it a powerful shield.

Shockingly, Brian could still breath despite being submerged, a trait acquired from his unique clan.

Unfortunately, Brian wasn’t Rao Wu’s target.

“AHHH!”

“Little Blue!” Brian screamed in fear as he the Water Fairy’s cries pierced the stadium. He quickly looked up to see Rao Wu grabbing the Water Fairy while electricity sparked around them.

Within the stands, Lunzi Brooks eyes narrowed as he stared at the beautiful, but deadly electric flower blooming in the sky. “I saw it. He teleported using some kind of fire relay.”

“Mm.” Aeriole Von Basten nodded as she sucked in a breath of air. How the hell did Rao Wu get this strong? And what was that strange floating fire? Aeriole recalled Rao Wu mentioned some form of training in the past. Unlike most of the stadium who viewed Rao Wu’s strength with awe, fear or envy, Aeriole looked at him with sad eyes. ‘How much did you suffer to get this strong?’

“Wait. If he’s up there, where’s the bird?” Lunzi’s eyes widened in panic as he quickly stood up and then shouted at Brian. “IDIOT, DODGE!”

Brian, who was still shaken by his soul pets’ pain, reacted a moment too slow. Forgetting that his water shield wasn’t absolute, he hesitated as he pondered on how to save his soul pet. He could not recall Little Blue while she was suffering the electric attack, or the elemental damage would heavily injure his soul. Only Nessy could save her now.

Unfortunately, just before Nessy could charge, a purple lightning bolt appeared in front of the duo.

“Fancy meeting you here,” Raven cheekily called as lightning sparked in her eyes. Without giving the duo a chance to react, she shouted, “Fry!”

Raven smartly avoided Nessy. Her electricity was powerful, but there was no guarantee it would knock out the 3rd Phase powerhouse. Instead, she smashed her electric beam into Brian’s water shield.

What element was one of the best conductors of electricity?

Water, of course!

Brian didn’t even get a chance to yell before the electricity fried him into crispy bacon. The water shield served as the best conductor, ensuring Brian got a full serving, leaving nothing behind.

Splash! Brian’s water shield exploded as the child fell unconscious. Smoke belched from his hair as he fell off the slightly stunned Winged Unagi head-first.

“Shit!” The referee immediately sprung into action, sprinting to catch Brian before he hit the ground. From that height, Brian’s life would be in danger if he struck the ground with his hand.

“Woah there!” Fortunately, a fox-fire appeared next to Brian. Rao Wu appeared and then caught Brian as they dropped to the ground.

“Kwaa!” The Winged Unagi panicked after recovering from the stun. It quickly looked around and then roared at Rao Wu, who held Brian in his grasp.

“Don’t worry. I’m not gonna harm your trainer,” soothed Rao Wu with a loose laugh as he waved at Nessy. His nose twitched as he inhaled smoke from Brian’s burnt hair, and he scratched the back of his head as he let out an awkward laugh. “Well, not anymore.” Rao Wu paused and then looked at the referee. “He’s unconscious so he can’t surrender. This still counts as my win, right?”

The referee froze as he stared at Rao Wu in disbelief. Where did this monster even come from? However, he quickly regained his faculties and announced, “Point to the Monsters!”

“WHOOOO!” The stadium immediately erupted in raucous cheers as medics took Brian and his soul pets for healing. They clapped for the underdog child who dared to challenge impossible odds, but more importantly for Rao Wu’s all-action style.

The previous fights were longer, but not nearly as entertaining. Both sides often chose conservative tactics to save soul energy and seek out opportunities. Rao Wu—at least in layman’s eyes—was defying the convention by fighting all out. He was even handicapping himself to prove a point. Where could you find such a heroic child!?

In the podium, Hao Ranhui’s eyes narrowed as he glared at the smiling child. “Hmph. What a farce. He was lucky to face a water-elemental soul trainer. We’ll see what happens when he faces an Elite without an elemental advantage.”

Bu Lu, however, shook his head. “Luck is part of a trainer’s strength.” He then revealed a snide grin as he glanced at the wolf couple. “An ordinary soul trainer can suddenly become a god by finding the right soul pet at birth.” He then glanced at Rao Wu and said, “That said, luck can only take you so far.”

Twilight and Midnight ignored the Second Prince, their gazes filled with pride as they watched Rao Wu. It did not even bother them that Rao Wu was yet to call up Xian Da. It would not surprise them if Xian Da couldn’t keep up with Rao Wu’s training speed. After all, their little cub was only a servant-ranked soul monster.

Rao Wu, oblivious to the crowd’s analysis, hid his inner turmoil behind a smile as Raven perched on his shoulder. He glanced at the crafty bird and then murmured under his breath, “Just hang in there a little longer. You’re doing great.”

“You better get me something good after this.” Raven raised, and then pretended to groom her wings to hide her panting. It was easy to forget, but the Thunderfiend Chaosbird was only a 2nd Phase soul monster. Fighting consecutively with so many elemental attacks had severely tired her out. However, understanding Rao Wu wanted to keep Ju Tu and Xian Da fresh for the final battles, she put on a stoic appearance to fool the stadium.

“Certainly,” promised Rao Wu as he turned to look at the next contestant. His eyes brightened when a slightly trembling youth entered the stadium. Heh. It seemed the humans had overestimated Raven’s strength. Instead of sending the remaining Elites to finish off the job, they chose to whittle down the child’s stamina with non-Elites.

Rao Wu, understanding the strategy, grinned as he brandished his staff. “Perfect. Raven, you’re on support. Don’t use your elemental attacks unless I say so.”

“Ugh. This sucks. I should have listened to you,” lamented Raven as she flew above Rao Wu. Raven was of course talking about learning Soul Battle Skills. She looked down on the skills because she felt all she needed was her lightning. Now, however, she was forced to admit that she was useless once her soul energy ran out.

Rao Wu chuckled as he looked at the stubborn Thunderfiend Chaosbird. Raven was his most opinionated soul pet. Rao Wu did not mind that, choosing to let Raven figure out her path. Rao Wu was not the type to force his soul pets to do anything. Instead, he saw himself as a teacher, guiding them on the path he thought best.

However, it was ultimately the soul pets’ choice to follow or not.

Rao Wu was not sure if his method was the best, or not. He was just following the same method Twilight used to train him. There would surely be soul trainers out there with differing opinions on the best way to raise soul pets—many of whom were countless times stronger and more experienced than the child.

“Are you ready?”

The referee’s call brought Rao Wu back to reality. The youth grinned and then stomped his staff on the ground. “I am.”

“Good. Then, Fight!”