This was a reflection of the power gap between them. Tang Wulin"s spiritual power had already reached the Spirit Domain realm, thereby allowing him to instantly gauge the trajectories of Xie Xie and Yue Zhengyu"s attacks. In his Bluesilver Emperor True Body form, his Bluesilver Emperor vines had become extremely resolute, and they were imbued with the power of the Golden Dragon King, as well as the numbing effect of the Infernal Lightning Vine. As such, they were always able to effectively nullify Xie Xie and Yue Zhengyu"s attacks and keep them at bay.
The three combatants seemed to be everywhere at once as they flashed through the air, and their battle was an extremely spectacular sight to behold.
Xie Xie had never had an opportunity to display his abilities to such a complete extent before. He was constantly traversing through time and s.p.a.ce, and every time he did so, his Light Dragon Dagger and Shadow Dragon Dagger would become more ethereal and threatening. Every single Bluesilver Emperor vine was like an enemy, and every clash taught him something new.
He was learning how to avoid being bound by the vines, how to resist their numbing effect, and how to search for opportunities to break through the defensive line.
He had broken through on more than one occasion through the power of his s.p.a.ce Time Dragon to create attacking opportunities for himself, but Tang Wulin"s Time Reversal domain would effectively counter him every single time, sending him back to square one.
This was not a good feeling, but it was also exactly because of this that he had to think even harder to find opportunities.
Tang Wulin had made drastic improvements through constant battle during the Trial of Five G.o.ds, which was the best way to improve oneself, and Xie Xie was currently experiencing the same thing, as was Yue Zhengyu.
After fusing with the Delicate Inferno Apricot Flower, his powers had also been drastically enhanced, and the combination between his flames of light and the flames of the Delicate Inferno Apricot Flower soul spirit had allowed him to forge a unique path for himself. Compared to his original Holy Angel martial soul, his powers were now more aggressive and invasive.
The invasive nature of his power resembled that of flames, and in conjunction with the unpredictable powers of Xie Xie, the duo was posing a huge threat to Tang Wulin. Under these circ.u.mstances where none of them were using their battle armor and Tang Wulin was unable to retaliate, he could only use his Time Reversal domain over and over again to bail himself out.
Without having to worry about retaliation from Tang Wulin, Xie Xie and Yue Zhengyu were able to attack to their hearts" content, and they were quickly consolidating their newfound powers through this process.
This was a very wonderful feeling for them, and at the same time, Tang Wulin was also benefiting from this sparring match. As someone whose forte lay in his offensive power, he had grown to rely heavily on the power of the Golden Dragon King during battle. This was evidenced by the fact that he had never even used the eighth soul skill of his Bluesilver Emperor during the Trial of Five G.o.ds. He had grown accustomed to attack, and had neglected many of the advantages that his Bluesilver Emperor possessed.
Now that he was focusing entirely on defense, he was using his Bluesilver Emperor vines to defend himself, thereby allowing him to hone his skills when using his martial soul.
At the same time, the constant repet.i.tive usage of his Time Reversal domain was also allowing him to become more proficient in unleas.h.i.+ng the domain.
All three of them were above rank 70 in soul power, so they had all attained soul cores, which granted them a virtually limitless supply of soul power. After battling for over an hour straight, Yue Zhengyu was the first to concede.
At this point, his clothes were completely drenched in sweat, and he flapped his wings to fly back out of the battle as he panted, "I"m done! That was awesome!" He was completely exhausted, but his eyes were brighter than ever.
The light beside him warped, and Xie Xie emerged with his hands on his hips. He was also panting heavily. "That was the best! Boss, if you"re willing to hold back like this, every time, we"d be happy to spar with you every day!"
The Bluesilver Emperor vines were withdrawn, and Tang Wulin reverted back to his human form. His breathing was still normal, and he didn"t appear to have undergone any rigorous exercise, but his eyes were slightly dim, which was an indication of a vast amount of spiritual power expenditure.
"You sure make it sound easy; this is very tiring for me as well!"
The direct clashes with Yue Zhengyu actually didn"t pose much of a threat to him as his physical const.i.tution had already reached an unfathomably powerful state. To put it in simpler terms, even a quasiG.o.d like Infernal King Douluo Harosha"s physical const.i.tution may not even be able to match that of Tang Wulin.
However, Xie Xie was an entirely different story. Xie Xie"s attacks were virtually omnipresent, and they were completely unpredictable. Without being able to retaliate, he was forced to use his Time Reversal domain over and over again to ward off Xie Xie"s attacks.
Even though Xie Xie hadn"t become a Soul Douluo yet, he had posed a lot of problems for Tang Wulin, and this was a very encouraging sign. The more powerful his friends became, the better equipped they were going to be to lead the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy to greater heights.
No matter how powerful he was, he was only a single person. The current situation on the Douluo Continent was very detrimental to both the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy, and he couldn"t reverse everything alone.
However, once all of Shrek"s Seven Monsters became t.i.tled Douluos, Tang Wulin was confident that they would be able to rebuild Shrek Academy for sure.
Xie Xie chuckled, "Don"t be like that, Boss; these sparring matches are mutually beneficial for all of us. If you"re allowed to attack, then it"ll be a non-contest that doesn"t benefit anyone. I think all of our future sparring matches should be like this."
Yue Zhengyu immediately nodded in a rare gesture of support for Xie Xie. "I also think this is a great idea. There were a few areas of my fusion with the Delicate Inferno Apricot Flower that were imperfect, but they seem to have all been ironed out during the course of that sparring match. If we do this a few more times, I"m sure I"ll be able to fuse to an even greater extent with my soul spirit."
Tang Wulin nodded with a contemplative look on his face. "I"m not opposed to continuing in this fas.h.i.+on, but more changes need to be introduced to benefit our overall development. Once Yuanen and the others complete everyone"s suits of battle armor, they should join in on these sparring matches as well. How about this? We"ll have three sparring matches where I don"t retaliate for every one match where I"m allowed to attack as well. It"s good to be able to hone your offensive abilities, but you need to learn to defend under pressure as well."
Xie Xie and Yue Zhengyu exchanged a glance upon hearing this. "Boss, you"re not doing this to get back at us, are you?"
Tang Wulin maintained a serious expression as he asked, "Am I that type of person? I"m proposing this for the sake of everyone"s improvement."
"Ahem," Xie Xie scratched his head, and said, "Sometimes, I feel like you can be pretty sly."
Tang Wulin suddenly smiled, but the smile sent s.h.i.+vers running down Xie Xie"s spine for some reason. Before Tang Wulin even spoke again, Xie Xie was already backtracking. "Alright, I think this is a good idea; we do indeed need some pressure as well!"
During the upcoming period of time, the submarine would rise to the surface almost every day for them to spar. The sea was the ideal drill ground for them where they could battle without any inhibitions, and soon, the other members of Shrek"s Seven Monsters began to join in as well.
At times, Tang Wulin was battling them without retaliating, and at other times, he was allowed to attack, but everyone was fighting him all at once. Everyone"s combat prowess was constantly improving, and Tang Wulin was also consolidating his own powers through the repet.i.tive cycle of sparring and cultivation.
Time flew by, and they drew closer and closer to the Douluo Continent.
On this day, Tang Wulin and his friends had only just returned from their sparring match when he was approached by the submarine captain. "Sect Master, we"ve managed to contact the sect."
The fact that they had gotten into contact with the Tang Sect indicated that they were already very close to the Douluo Continent.
Tang Wulin smiled, and asked, "How long until we reach the sh.o.r.e?"
The captain replied, "We"ll get there in around three days. The vice-palace master has requested that you contact him as soon as possible; he seems to have some urgent matters to discuss with you."
Tang Wulin"s heart jolted upon hearing this. Urgent matters? Could it be that the Star Luo Empire had still failed to withstand the a.s.sault from the federal fleet?
He quickly hurried to the communication cabin in the submarine, and the captain asked all of the workers to vacate the room, then also left after using the communication device to get into contact with the Tang Sect.
Zang Xin"s voice rang out from the other end of the line. "Wulin."
Tang Wulin could hear the exhaustion of Zang Xin"s voice as he spoke.
"What happened?" Tang Wulin hurriedly asked, but he wasn"t all that anxious or urgent. After experiencing so much, he had learned how to be calm under all circ.u.mstances.