Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 490: Don’t Jinx It

However, through today's battle with the Scorching Sunflower, Tang San gained more understanding of the nymph races. The Scorching Sunflower clan's bloodline power could even counteract spatial abilities. Even Mei Gongzi might have difficulty facing them. However, there were ways to counteract them. Though their offensive abilities were strong, their defense wasn't exceptionally high; the Solar Beams were extremely powerful, but not well-suited as a shield.

If an opponent had extremely high speed and explosive power, they might manage a quick victory as long as they weren’t too afraid of being burned. Of course, this was easier said than done; the Scorching Sunflower's fire was extremely fierce, among the top flames in this world.

This victory also stirred the spectators, especially in the VIP seats. The high-ranking nobles knew better about the strength of the Scorching Sunflower contestant, Xing Shi. He was one of the new generation's best in the Scorching Sunflower clan. Not only was he from the Sunborne Nymph Emperor’s clan, but he was personally mentored by the emperor, and was even a top ten heir to the Sunborne Palace.

Yet he had lost in the second match of the group stage, and to a human, no less! This human didn't seem to have powerful abilities. He just used an array disc and some strange ranged weapons. The only unique thing seemed to be the hammer that could handle the heat of the Solar Beams. Yet even without showing any particularly outstanding abilities, he had dispatched one of the top nymph contestants; and moreover, he had done so after allowing the opponent to unleash all his abilities!

At this moment, in the spectator stands, there was a tall and burly figure that looked somewhat bruised and battered. This person with a disgruntled expression was none other than Tang San's opponent from the previous round, Mao Wenwu of the Golden Mammoth clan.

"I told you, I didn't lose on purpose. Grandpa insisted I was lazy and didn't want to continue, so I lost on purpose, and he beat me up. Now he knows he was wrong, right? Even that Scorching Sunflower guy lost. Can you guys blame me for losing? Hmph!"

When he found out he was grouped with the Scorching Sunflower, he was somewhat frustrated. Although he had some confidence in relying on his strong defense to withstand the opponent's attacks and charge to victory, he would probably end up like a roasted pig, or rather a roasted elephant, and that wouldn't feel good at all.

But losing to a human in the first match was something he never expected. Others didn't see it that way either. When he went back, his father beat him up, and his grandfather scolded him for being lazy.

Now, seeing Xing Shi also lose to that human called Asura, he felt great satisfaction. At least it proved he hadn’t lost the match on purpose. Didn't that Xing Shi guy also lose?

They were on the same level. He had lost the day before yesterday, and now Xing Shi lost today, which meant he hadn’t thrown the match.

Smack!

A forceful slap hit the back of his head, causing Mao Wenwu to lurch forward, almost colliding with the spectator in front of him. He instantly turned around to glare at the person behind him.

It was a figure even taller and more muscular than him.

"Why did you hit me? Doesn't this prove I wasn't lazy?" Mao Wenwu retorted.

The burly figure behind him said coldly, "The hell does it prove again? How long did he hold out and how long did you? He made his opponent struggle, what about you? Do you even have any idea how you lost? Just wait till we return home; I'll deal with you then."

"..."

Tang San had no idea about the shadow looming over the mammoth's mind. At this moment, he had returned to the waiting area.

Seeing his disheveled appearance, Big Cat's expression was somewhat peculiar, a mixture of wanting to laugh but feeling a bit embarrassed to do so. It was the first time he was seeing Asura in such a sorry state; even his mask seemed partially melted, showing just how challenging the previous battle had been.

"Against these types with powerful area attacks, you need to burst in and attack immediately, not giving them a chance to unleash their offensive. Otherwise, you're going to suffer," Big Cat said.

Mei Gongzi, on the other hand, frowned as she approached Tang San. "Are you okay? Are you badly hurt?"

Ignoring Big Cat, Tang San immediately smiled. "I'm fine, really. That guy's flames were powerful. I could have won earlier, but I wanted to see the full extent of the fighting power of these strong nymphs."

How can I show weakness in front of the person I love?

This was a man's nature, whether that man was a teenager or a God King.

Big Cat's mouth twitched as he turned away.

Mei Gongzi said, "Big Brother, your luck is horrible. How do you keep encountering first-tier bloodline powerhouses every round?"

Tang San's mouth twitched. "You ask me, but who should I ask? It's fine; as long as our luck improves in the doubles matches, it's all good."

Indeed, compared to the doubles, what did the singles matter? Winning here was far less important than keeping his core abilities secret. However, losing the doubles match with Mei Gongzi was unacceptable.

Big Cat laughed heartily. "Brother Asura, your luck is something else. Facing two emperor clans in a row, you'd expect this in the final stages. You've encountered it in the first two elimination rounds. I wonder if there are any other emperor clan members in your group."

Tang San retorted irritably, "Don't jinx it!"

Big Cat shrugged and said, "If we encounter them, so be it. The whole point of the competition is to hone ourselves through battle. I'd love to face a strong opponent later; it will push me to improve."

He spoke with sincerity, and Tang San could feel his burning battle spirit.

Big Cat was indeed a natural-born warrior. Only on the battlefield could he shine most brilliantly, especially in life-and-death struggles. He had fought his way out of the Great Beast Fighting Arena in Kali City, sustaining an entire clan. This was not just grit and hard work, but also talent. And after resolving his bloodline conflict, his fighting spirit could no longer be suppressed.

Behind Tang San thus stood a monstrous Lion-Tiger who had just broken out of his cage, ready to devour his opponents.

Mei Gongzi helped Tang San find a place to sit down. He was in bad shape, and he felt as if he was burning up from within. He sat cross-legged and began circulating his internal energy to heal himself. With the doubles match tomorrow, he needed to recover quickly.

However, today's battle made him appreciate the utility of yin-yang energy even more. Although his yin-yang energy was only at a basic level, it had played a significant role today, greatly neutralizing the extreme heat of the Scorching Sunflower's fire. Without it, things would have been much more brutal. He needed to continue improving it as much as he could.

After today's matches, Tang San thus planned to return to Sunborne Sacred Mountain and Earthshade Sacred Mountain to continue cultivating and evolving his yin-yang energy.

Today's matches were even more intense and exciting than the day before. With the experience of the first round, the remaining contestants were showcasing more and more their abilities. At the same time, the matches also became bloodier, with some participants heavily injuring or even killing their opponents.

No one came out to stop these killings. Even though these contestants were elites from various powerful clans, no one intervened. This was the survival of the fittest among the demon and nymph races. To become stronger, they needed to challenge and defeat tough opponents, and challenge themselves at the same time. Only through this could they continuously improve and eventually become leaders of their clans.

An hour later, it was finally time for the sixth group to compete, and Big Cat was already in the waiting area, raring to go at it.