Zhang Geyang hailed from a family that had held high-ranking positions in the Spirit Pagoda for many generations, so his first soul spirit was one that had been painstakingly sourced for him by his family.
A normal Soul Master could obtain multiple soul spirits as their cultivation rank progressed, and the later soul spirits would definitely become more and more powerful. However, the soul spirit that remained with a Soul Master for the longest time would always be their first soul spirit, and if a soul spirit possessed sufficient evolutionary potential, then it would improve alongside the Soul Master. This was the type of soul spirits that Soul Masters liked the most, and they were referred to as bonded soul spirits.
This soul spirit, which was the Infernal Flame Beast, was the same as Zhang Geyang's martial soul, as well as his bonded soul spirit.
In reality, Tang Wulin's Goldsong could also count as his bonded soul spirit. It had grown alongside him, and evolved to this point from the nourishment of the Gold Dragon King bloodline. All of its inherent flaws had been ironed out over time, and it was constantly undergoing metamorphosis. However, it had become like this as it didn't possess a dragon-type bloodline to begin with, so it was technically a mutated beast that had integrated the Golden Dragon King bloodline.
From their outward appearances alone, both soul spirits were extremely eye-catching to the spectators, and their battle soon quickly commenced as they charged toward one another.
Tang Wulin and Zhang Geyang both stood in the distance, instructing their soul spirits through their spiritual connections with them. As such, this was still a battle between Soul Masters, except the soul spirits were being used as tools to facilitate the battle.
The Infernal Flame Beast was extraordinarily fast and reached Goldsong in virtually the blink of an eye. It raised its front right paw and swept it toward Goldsong at an incredible speed, and at the same time, blue flames erupted from its body, hurtling directly toward Goldsong.
This soul spirit had been with Zhang Geyang all the way from rank 10 to rank 98, and it had become extremely powerful over this extended span of time.
Goldsong's eyes were as glittering and translucent as a pair of golden crystals, and neither side was able to gain the upper hand as the golden light emanating from Goldsong's body clashed with the Infernal Flame Beast's blue flames.
Goldsong twisted around in the air to evade the Infernal Flame Beast's sharp claws, then swept its tail toward the Infernal Flame Beast like a giant whip.
In response, the Infernal Flame Beast made no effort to evade and simply allowed Goldsong's tail to strike its body, but in the instant that it was struck, it abruptly swelled slightly in size.
Goldsong's tail sank into the Infernal Flame Beast's body as if it were a mere illusion, but at the same time, the Infernal Flame Beast's blue flames reared up with even greater ferocity to incinerate Goldsong from all sides.
These blue flames were capable of directly incinerating the target's soul, and Tang Wulin could sense Goldsong's pain through their spiritual connection.
Goldsong had only developed intelligence through its constant evolution; if its intelligence were to be erased, then that would result in irreversible damage.
Light flashed through Tang Wulin's eyes, and the scales on Goldsong's body immediately began to shimmer with bright golden light. At the same time, it opened its mouth to let loose a deafening dragon's roar.
"Roar!"
The spectators had all heard the same roar during Tang Wulin's battle against Huang Zhengyang the day before, and even though the version unleashed by Goldsong was slightly less powerful, it still caused the Infernal Flame Beast to stiffen for an instant.
Bright golden light erupted from Goldsong's body as it abruptly swept its front paws through the air.
"Boom!"
This didn't appear to have been a very significant motion, but it created a powerful explosive effect, and the Infernal Flame Beast was sent flying amid an anguished howl.
Zhang Geyang's expression changed slightly, and blue light flashed in his eyes as the Infernal Flame Beast tumbled through the air a few times before landing on its feet. However, its aura was clearly not as domineering as before.
Tang Wulin harrumphed coldly upon seeing this. Zhang Geyang was significantly underestimating Goldsong if he thought he could restrict it like this.
As Tang Wulin's bonded soul spirit, Goldsong possessed all of Tang Wulin's soul skills, particularly his Golden Dragon King abilities. The Golden Dragon King bloodline was undoubtedly one of the most powerful bloodlines in existence, and even though Goldsong only possessed a very small portion of the Golden Dragon King bloodline, it was still superior to all other soul beasts in this area.
The dragon's repulse and Golden Dragon Vibrational Explosion were more than enough for it to send the Infernal Flame Beast flying. The Infernal Flame Beast didn't actually have a physical body; it was merely able to use a strange type of soul skill that made its body insubstantial, but even an insubstantial body would be damaged by energy-based attacks.
Of course, Goldsong had also been harmed somewhat by its blue flames, so it could be said that the first clash had concluded in a tie.
On the rostrum, En Ci was staring at Goldsong with a stunned look in his eyes. He was naturally aware that Zhang Geyang possessed a bonded soul spirit, but he didn't think that Tang Wulin would have one as well.
Zhang Geyang's soul spirit was clearly of a higher caliber than Goldsong, and he was a rank 98 Hyper Douluo while Tang Wulin was only a Soul Douluo. With such a vast disparity between their cultivation ranks, the power gap between the two soul spirits should've been very apparent, but that wasn't actually the case. During that first clash, Goldsong hadn't fallen to a disadvantage.
This entailed that Tang Wulin's soul spirit possessed a superior bloodline to the Infernal Flame Beast. One had to realize that the Infernal Flame Beast was an ancient beast that had already been extinct for countless years, and this soul spirit had been developed by the Spirit Pagoda.
It was an extremely rare mutated black soul spirit, and it was completely different from the mass-produced black soul spirits that the Spirit Pagoda was currently churning out.
The Infernal Flame Beast wasn't the highest caliber soul spirit that Zhang Geyang possessed, but as his bonded soul spirit, it shared the closest tie with him.
In terms of appearance, Goldsong was more pleasing to the eyes to the vast majority of spectators. It was very lithe and powerful, and even somewhat elegant, thus creating a stark contrast with the Infernal Flame Beast's sinister appearance.
Both of the soul spirits only stopped momentarily before pouncing toward one another again.
Following that first clash, they had developed a basic understanding of one another's powers. The Infernal Flame Beast was still as fast as ever, and it rushed over to Goldsong before swiping its front right paw toward Goldsong's neck.
Goldsong opened its mouth to expel a ball of golden flames, which transformed into a dragon's head before exploding in mid-air, sending powerful shockwaves sweeping forth in all directions.
The Infernal Flame Beast was forced to recoil and unleash more blue flames to withstand the shockwaves. Following that clash, the two separated once again, and on this occasion, it was Goldsong's turn to take the initiative.
It sprang toward the Infernal Flame Beast, and at the same time, countless Bluesilver Emperor vines erupted from its body. As a soul spirit, it was obviously unable to directly use Tang Wulin's martial soul, but it could use its own power to emulate Tang Wulin's soul skills.
The Infernal Flame Beast faltered slightly upon seeing this, clearly rather perplexed by this ability being displayed by Goldsong, which didn't exactly correspond with its powers. However, it reacted very quickly, and the blue flames around its body swirled before forming a giant vortex. The vortex shielded its body, while the flames within the vortex transformed into a series of sharp blades that threatened to tear the oncoming Bluesilver Emperor vines into shreds.
Goldsong sprang up into the air and appeared right above the Infernal Flame Beast, then swept its claws downward to unleash its Golden Dragon Annihilation Claws!