Douluo: Emerald Poison Emperor

"An old gorilla like you dares to speak to me like that?"

Tai Tan was initially just going through the motions and had no intention of truly arguing with Lou Gao. Without waiting for Lou Gao to continue, he randomly found an excuse to interrupt him, letting out a furious roar, and took a step forward. His palm, as large as a fan, reached out to grab Lou Gao.

Just as Lou Gao was about to unleash a soul skill to resist, Tai Tan's outstretched hand suddenly seemed to be struck by an invisible force. It was instantly repelled at several times the speed, and a cold snort echoed through the air.

"Hmph."

This cold snort appeared to have no source—or rather, it came from everywhere. The sound didn't originate from any person but instead resonated from the surrounding energy of heaven and earth as if the world itself had spoken.

"Who are you!"

Tai Tan, whose hand had been repelled by an invisible force, felt the strange gazes of those around him. He immediately became furious.

The Strength Clan was known for their bad tempers, and Tai Tan's was particularly worse. As an 86th-level Soul Douluo, he had absolute confidence in his strength. So, even when faced with such an unusual situation, he felt no fear. Instead, his soul power surged and doubled in intensity.

"First Soul Skill: Rock Guard! Second Soul Skill: Explosive Strength!"

Tai Tan roared angrily. His first and second soul rings lit up simultaneously, and the two enhancement abilities were added to his massive body. The strengthening of pure power caused his already enormous frame to expand even further, becoming almost grotesque in size. His muscular arms, under the effects of the soul skills, grew disproportionately large compared to his body.

The significantly enlarged hand reached toward Lou Gao's head, intending to grab him like pulling a turnip from the ground.

However, just as his hand stretched halfway, Tai Tan suddenly felt his soul power raging uncontrollably within his body. The enormous energy reversed its flow in his meridians in an unprecedented manner, recklessly impacting his internal organs and meridians.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Tai Tan staggered back several steps, as if he had been punched by an invisible being. His face, originally dark as the bottom of a pot, instantly turned bright red. With a strained "ugh," he coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood.

His body, which had swelled under the effects of his soul skills, quickly shrank, even becoming slightly smaller than before due to the damage he had sustained.

"Who the hell are you?!"

Tai Tan roared angrily. Although he felt uneasy, he maintained an outward display of rage. Gathering soul power in his legs, he stomped the ground heavily. The stone floor beneath him shattered and splintered instantly, and a crack spread from where his foot landed. The entire fourth floor of the building shook slightly from the force of his stomp.

Looking at the destruction he caused, Tai Tan's unease lessened slightly. His expression became even more ferocious.

Not knowing much about spirit-type Soul Masters, Tai Tan assumed that as long as he could physically destroy things, the spirit-type Soul Master hiding in the dark wasn't as powerful as he had imagined.

Ignoring the opinions of those around him, Tai Tan gathered his soul power and threw a punch at Lou Gao. Given Tai Tan's extreme focus on physical strength—comparable to that of some Title Douluo—if this punch landed squarely on Lou Gao, the latter would likely be gravely injured and coughing up blood instantly.

Faced with this punch, Chen Ming sighed softly. With a light tap of his toe, his figure flickered like a ghost, appearing in front of Lou Gao. He extended a hand and directly caught Tai Tan's enormous fist, which was about the same size as his head.

By now, Chen Ming's spiritual power had reached a tangible, substantial level, allowing him to block many attacks. However, forming a shield to directly withstand a punch from Tai Tan—a punch nearly as strong as a Title Douluo—wouldn't just be challenging but also incredibly costly. Chen Ming stood 1.9 meters tall, which was already considered imposing among ordinary people. Yet, in front of Tai Tan, whose body had swelled to 3 meters tall under his martial soul's augmentation, he looked like a child.

But despite the massive size difference, Chen Ming effortlessly caught Tai Tan's punch with his palm, without any visible fluctuation of soul power. No matter how hard Tai Tan tried, his hand didn't budge an inch.

Seeing this, Tai Tan didn't hesitate to activate his fourth soul skill. A purple soul ring appeared on his other arm, which instantly swelled to a size even thicker than his thigh.

"Fourth Soul Skill: Titan's Fist!"

This punch was ferocious and overwhelming. Combined with Tai Tan's physical strength—on par with some Title Douluo—the force of this attack was something even most Title Douluo would avoid.

However, Chen Ming's expression remained calm, showing no signs of dodging or defending. Just as the massive fist was about to land on him, Chen Ming's other arm suddenly rose, his fingers forming a blade. He chopped down precisely on Tai Tan's wrist.

Although this knife-hand strike didn't have the same raw power as Tai Tan's soul skill-boosted punch, it struck with pinpoint accuracy on the concentrated point of soul power at Tai Tan's wrist.

The force wasn't strong, nor was the soul power particularly impressive. But this strike somehow bypassed Tai Tan's skin and muscles, piercing into his meridians like a needle. It caused the soul power in his wrist to violently erupt like a bomb within his meridians.

Tai Tan's face twisted in pain. His previously swollen arm, now grotesquely large, suddenly began to bulge even further, as if it were inflating. Then, like an overfilled balloon, his skin ruptured. Blood splattered everywhere as his wrist and forearm bent at an unnatural angle under the impact.

Chen Ming gently released Tai Tan's fist, which he had been holding, causing Tai Tan to lose balance. Tai Tan stumbled backward, one foot stepping into the crack he had created earlier. Losing his footing, he tripped over his legs and landed heavily on the ground, sitting on the shattered floor.

At this moment, Tai Tan no longer cared about his disheveled appearance. His gaze was filled with terror and shock as he stared at Chen Ming.

"Title Douluo!?"

Tai Tan's dantian throbbed in pain, and his left arm was twisted into an unnatural angle. Most of the skin on his arm had been torn open by the soul power's backlash. Sweat dripped from his forehead, and he no longer carried the arrogant demeanor he had displayed toward Lou Gao earlier.@@novelbin@@

Although he couldn't recall any Title Douluo resembling Chen Ming, after having his soul skills instantly countered and suffering a backlash, Tai Tan was convinced that Chen Ming was a disguised Title Douluo. Any trace of disrespect had vanished.

"Title Douluo? My soul power is still a little short of that level. But dealing with a gorilla-like you is no problem."

Chen Ming lightly tapped his toe, sending a broken piece of stone flying toward Tai Tan's abdomen. The needle-like soul power struck Tai Tan's dantian, instantly doubling the pain. Tai Tan curled up on the ground, clutching his stomach in agony.

PS: There are a lot of arrogant characters in soul land but somehow they were portrayed as good people the moment they joined Tang San's side.