At that moment, Lei Keli was already standing on the competition stage.
"You're indeed strong," he said.
"But after six matches… how much soul power do you have left?"
Yun Yibai's lips curved into a faint smile. He didn't answer Lei Keli's question directly but responded with a look that conveyed:
My soul power is still plentiful—come and try me.
Roxen, the referee, didn't rush to start the match like he had in the previous rounds.
That was his little indulgence.
He looked toward Yun Yibai, a flicker of both admiration and helplessness in his eyes.
"This kid… he's something. I remember he's only eighteen, and already a Soul King—with a ten-thousand-year fourth spirit ring. He's a complete monster."
"But even if he's a Soul King, doesn't he realize how much soul power he's consumed in those previous matches?"
"Sigh… I've staked the reputation I've built over the first half of my life on this tournament. Kid, I hope you don't let me down."
Roxen thought to himself.
Just as Lei Keli had pointed out, being a Soul King was powerful, but he was still a spirit master, and soul power had its limits.
Yun Yibai might not have used many spirit abilities, but judging by the fierce thunder-element attacks he'd unleashed earlier, there was no way he hadn't burned through a significant amount of power.
"Referee, aren't you going to start the match already?"
Lei Keli, unsatisfied with Yun Yibai's response, turned to Roxen with a playful grin that revealed his smugness.
"Ahem… very well. Since both of you are ready, let the match begin!"
Roxen coughed awkwardly, clearly embarrassed at having been caught hesitating by someone younger. With that said, he left the arena.
Lei Keli activated his Martial Soul—it was a leopard wreathed in flames.
Once possessed by his spirit, his hands morphed into sharp claws, flames encircling them, and his entire body became more upright and powerful.
"From the Fire Leopard Sect—one of the Lower Four Sects?"
Yun Yibai muttered, recognizing the opponent's origins.
Lei Keli didn't respond. His claws shimmered with fire, razor-sharp and blazing.
With his Martial Soul fully activated, both his speed and strength surged dramatically.
He now resembled a true flame leopard, radiating raw power and primal ferocity.
He wasn't going to waste the opportunity his teammates had given him.
Yun Yibai, a Soul King who had already spent a great deal of soul power, Lei Keli believed he could defeat him.
He would unleash his full strength and strike hard.
"Second Spirit Ability: Fire Leopard – Blazing Form!"
Lei Keli shouted, and in an instant, his body was engulfed in blazing fire. Within the flames, a leopard's form could vaguely be seen—majestic and mysterious.
His second spirit ability was a boost-type technique, massively enhancing both speed and strength. He now truly looked like a savage beast born from fire.
Immediately after, he shouted again:
"Third Spirit Ability: Fire Leopard – Divine Flame Form!"
This time, the flames around him underwent a tremendous transformation.
The color of the fire grew more intense and dazzling, while his eyes turned into flaming pupils, glowing with a soul-piercing radiance.
His third spirit ability further empowered his flames, while also significantly boosting strength, speed, and defense.
The Fire Leopard Sect, one of the Lower Four Sects of the Star Luo Empire, had long been settled there. Because their Martial Souls resembled the Evil-Eyed White Tiger, their spirit abilities also shared many similarities with the royal Dai family of Star Luo.
Seeing his opponent using two augmentation-type spirit abilities, Yun Yibai became interested in playing with this Fire Leopard Sect spirit master a bit.
A soul master who absorbed two self-boosting spirit abilities was rare. Apart from himself, Lei Keli was the only other one Yun Yibai had seen.
So this intrigued him—it sparked his fighting spirit.
Yun Yibai's first and second spirit rings lit up.
Since his opponent used two abilities, and since Yun Yibai intended to "play" a little, he naturally didn't want to gain an unfair advantage.
His spirit abilities weren't flashy like Lei Keli's.
That's because Yun Yibai had chosen pure augmentation abilities—not spectacular in appearance, but extremely efficient.
So when Lei Keli assumed Yun Yibai's soul power was heavily depleted, it was laughable.
Aside from his 100,000-year Blue Silver Emperor spirit bone, just his first three spirit rings alone gave him far more soul power than most.
He had chosen augmentation-type spirit abilities precisely so that, as he grew stronger, they could feed more soul power into his combat.
Even before obtaining immortal herbs or spirit bones, he had aimed for the cultivation path of a future genius.
That genius had started with only an innate level 3 soul power and still managed to cultivate to Titled Douluo.
Much of that success came from his first six spirit abilities, all of which boosted soul power. Without them, it would have been impossible to become a Soul Emperor at such a young age.
In this world, soul power is everything.
Once you have it, your combat methods can be developed on your own.
Of course, that approach requires the Soul Power Extremity Style—it only becomes viable once your soul power reaches a certain level. At the very least, you need to be a Soul King to pull it off.
Its greatest flaw?
You have to survive long enough to reach Soul King level in the first place.
Modern examples include Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu, both at level 99.
Tang Chen eventually relied more on brute force—his famed Random Cloak Hammer Technique and the Hao Tian Nine Techniques.
To him, spirit rings were just explosive tools to amplify attacks.
As for "Angel Sword" Qian Daoliu, he used a 99,999-year external spirit bone to defeat Chen Xin's father, proving that raw power and soul reserves could trump technique.
On the battlefield...
Yun Yibai's lightning-infused fist collided with Lei Keli's flame-wrapped punch.
The audience expected an evenly matched clash, but instead, they saw Lei Keli sent flying through the air, while Yun Yibai only took a few steps back.
"Such incredible strength!"
Lei Keli twisted his body mid-air and landed safely. After that single exchange, his eyes were filled with deeper caution.
"Is it because of his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul?
Or is it the effect of those spirit abilities?"
He didn't know what spirit abilities Yun Yibai had used.
"I overestimated you."
Those words were more a reflection on himself—Lei Keli had simply overestimated his capability.
His Martial Soul quality was lower. His augmented spirit abilities were weaker.
How could he expect to overpower Yun Yibai?
Moreover, Yun Yibai had trained in close combat for years, even focusing his fighting style on fists—he could deal both internal and external damage through force.
Lei Keli, on the other hand, relied mostly on his spirit-possessed claws to harm opponents, not brute strength.
"Boring."
Yun Yibai rolled his shoulders, clearly losing interest.
Yes—at his level, even in his normal state, he could already go toe-to-toe with high-level Soul Kings, or even match a Soul Emperor.