...
After the blow, the gale suddenly stopped.
The two remained locked in a stalemate for less than half a second when Tang Hao suddenly flicked his wrist, instantly reducing the force on the Clear Sky Hammer.
Using the terrifying recoil, he flew backward and landed steadily on another boulder more than ten meters away.
Xuan Hao slowly withdrew his slightly numb right fist.
Although his blood and qi were churning violently, he still wore that infuriatingly faint smile on his face.
"The Clear Sky Hammer, a 100,000-year soul ring, and it still shows up in the middle of the night in this godforsaken place to cause me trouble..."
Xuan Hao flicked his wrist, his gaze piercing through the night as he stared directly at the black-robed man opposite him, revealing his identity: "Haotian Douluo, Tang Hao, right?"
Tang Hao's eyes narrowed slightly when he heard his name being called so casually by a teenager.
He neither denied nor admitted it, but simply shouldered the heavy Haotian Hammer, his tiger-like eyes fixed on Xuan Hao's crimson-gold vertical pupils, and asked in return:
"Kid, who exactly are you?"
He had roamed the continent for decades and had seen all kinds of top-tier martial souls.
But the ancient, fierce, and even domineering dragon aura emanating from this kid was something he had never heard of before!
Throughout the entire Douluo Continent, there has never been any record of such a terrifying dragon-type martial soul!
It should be noted that the Clear Sky Hammer is hailed as the number one weapon spirit in the world.
Even among those of the same level, very few martial souls dare to clash head-on with the Clear Sky Hammer, let alone now that the two have a cultivation gap of twenty or thirty levels!
Although Tang Hao did not use his full strength in that hammer blow just now, he only intended to test and teach a lesson.
But the fact that Xuan Hao could withstand that hammer blow unscathed with just his bare fist is an absurd display of power that defies common sense.
Who am I?
Upon hearing this, Xuan Hao shrugged with amusement.
"To be honest, I don't know which crack I popped out of.
But I don't care about such trivial questions at all."
"It seems that you so-called big shots really enjoy asking these kinds of pointless questions."
"If you want to fight, then fight it out properly.
Why worry about who's behind me or who's backing me?"
"If you have concerns and are wary of the power behind me, then why bother coming out to make a move in the middle of the night?
Since you've already decided to take action, why are you still hesitating and asking questions here... Tang Hao, is this the way a dignified Haotian Douluo behaves?
What kind of behavior is this?"
When a junior mocked him so mercilessly, a flash of anger crossed Tang Hao's weathered face.
"Arrogant and ignorant!"
Tang Hao gave a cold shout and stopped talking nonsense.
He admitted that the kid's strength and physical body were indeed beyond reason, but no matter how mysterious his martial soul was, a mere level 69 Soul Emperor could never make a ripple in front of him, a Title Douluo!
"Whoosh!"
The next instant, the boulder beneath Tang Hao's feet shattered with a deafening roar.
He transformed into a black lightning bolt once more, instantly closing in. His Haotian Hammer swung in a perfect arc through the air, accompanied by a deafening sonic boom, before crashing down upon Xuan Hao once more!
The speed and power of this strike far surpassed the previous probing attack!
Due to the extreme compression of the force, black spatial ripples even appeared around the hammer!
Faced with Tang Hao's serious hammer blow, Xuan Hao naturally dared not be careless anymore.
"Golden dragon body!"
"Golden Dragon's Rampage Domain!"
With two low growls from Xuan Hao, a dazzling light shone from his body!
In an instant, a layer of fine and incredibly hard golden dragon scales rapidly appeared on Xuan Hao's already crimson-gold skin.
At the same time, a violent golden domain filled with destructive aura suddenly expanded from his center, enveloping an area of dozens of meters around him.
With the support of these two soul skills, Xuan Hao's strength and defense increased several times over in an instant!
"hold head high--!"
Xuan Hao let out a deafening dragon roar, his right fist clenched tightly, glowing with a dazzling golden light, and once again slammed into the huge Haotian Hammer!
"Boom—!!!"
This collision was far more devastating than the previous one.
A deafening roar echoed through the desolate valley, as if the end of the world had arrived.
Blinding golden light and dense black light intertwined and clashed wildly in mid-air, neither giving way to the other.
However, the gap in power cannot be completely bridged by just two soul skills.
Tang Hao's attack had unleashed a terrifying power capable of instantly crushing most Soul Douluos.
After a brief standoff, Xuan Hao felt a sharp pain in his right arm as the domineering internal force surged into his body like a tidal wave.
"Bang!"
With a muffled thud, Xuan Hao ultimately couldn't withstand this devastating hammer blow. He was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, blasted away by the terrifying force!
Xuan Hao's body traced a long parabola in mid-air, crashing into three or four huge rocks before finally coming to a stop in a pile of rubble, creating a deep crater.
The desolate valley fell silent once more.
Tang Hao stood there, carrying the Clear Sky Hammer, coldly staring at the dust-filled crater.
Although he had sent his opponent flying with a single blow, his face showed no relief; instead, it grew even more grave.
Because he clearly felt that most of the power of his hammer blow, which was enough to seriously injure a Soul Douluo to the point of death, was actually dissipated by that strange golden dragon scale the moment it hit the kid!
"Cough cough..."
Just then, a coughing sound came from the smoke and dust in the deep pit.
Then, to Tang Hao's incredulous gaze...
Xuan Hao slowly stood up from the pile of rocks.
He brushed the dust off his clothes, casually moved his right arm which had been numb from the shock, and apart from a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth and slightly disheveled clothes, he seemed completely unharmed!
"This is unbelievable..." Tang Hao cursed inwardly. This kid's defense was practically comparable to that of a soul beast!
At this moment, Xuan Hao, standing amidst the pile of rubble, spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, his sky-blue eyes flashing with intense resentment and fighting spirit.
"If only my soul power were at level seventy right now..."
Xuan Hao clenched his fists, feeling the immense yet seemingly constrained power of his bloodline within him.
Although there is only one level difference between level 69 and level 70, there is a chasm as wide as an insurmountable barrier – the True Body of Martial Soul!
For a Soul Master with a top-tier Martial Soul, only by unleashing the True Form of the Martial Soul can the most essential and terrifying power of the Martial Soul be fully released.
If he could activate his Martial Soul True Body now and fully utilize the Golden Dragon Origin Power within his body…
Xuan Hao was absolutely confident that even if his opponent was Tang Hao, he would dare to go all out!
Unfortunately, he's just one crucial level away from passing.
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