Jiang Wuyue's brows furrowed tightly. "Is that a possibility? But I felt really good during those battles! If you ask me, my defenses have clearly become more powerful; how could they be weaker?"

Tang Wulin shrugged in response. "That's beyond me. This is a major problem; it doesn't matter in the battle net, but if this problem arises when you're battling abyssal creatures, you'll be in a lot of trouble. This is a matter of life and death! How about we go in again so you can assess how your defenses have changed?"

Jiang Wuyue immediately nodded as a slightly tense expression appeared on his face. "Alright, let's go again, but take it easy this time and don't attack me so quickly."

The two of them entered the competition platform again.

Jiang Wuyue slammed one of his own giant hammers viciously into his chest to test out his own defenses, as well as that of his battle armor, and the tense look in his eyes immediately vanished.

"My defenses are really normal! Look, that hammer blow packed at least several dozens of tons of impact, but I'm completely fine. Haha, I knew there wasn't an issue with me. Let's go again! This time, I'm sure..."

One minute later.

"TANG! WU! LIN!" Jiang Wuyue was glowering at Tang Wulin in a furious manner as he yelled, "There's something off about that spear of yours, and your strength is also different! My hammer struck your Golden Dragon Spear just now; how was it repelled so easily? And you even left such deep indentation on my hammer. My defenses are completely ineffective against your Golden Dragon Spear; you cut through me like a hot knife through butter! What the hell happened?"

Tang Wulin blinked, and he was just about to say something when Jiang Wuyue continued, "Don't tell me you don't know what happened! I know you know what's going on! You're a sly little bastard on the inside! You had to have known what was going on from the very beginning, right? There's nothing wrong with the Star Battle Net, is there? The problem here is that your abilities have evolved!"

Jiang Wuyue had quite a simple and straightforward personality, but for him to have reached this point in his military career indicated that he was definitely not an idiot. After experimenting on several occasions and making an active effort to observe Tang Wulin's spear, he finally realized that he'd been swindled. This guy knew what was going on from the very beginning, but tricked him over and over again into agreeing to be a human target.

However, at the same time, he was extremely stunned. His defensive prowess definitely stood at the very pinnacle of all Soul Emperors, yet Tang Wulin's attacks were so devastating that they rendered his defenses completely ineffective. Even the average Soul Douluo couldn't accomplish this! Even in the first few matches, where he had underestimated Tang Wulin a little, he still had to possess extremely formidable offensive prowess to break through his defenses.

Jiang Wuyue was completely unable to comprehend this, but this was the truth, nonetheless.

Tang Wulin put on an innocent expression, and argued, "That's not true! I don't know what happened either. I did make a minor breakthrough, but that doesn't explain why there's such a huge disparity between our powers. Surely the problem here is that you've become weaker!"

"Don't try to feed me that nonsense! I formed a soul power vortex, so I'll definitely be attaining a soul core in the future; how could I have become weaker?" Jiang Wuyue countered in an enraged voice.

A smug expression suddenly appeared on Tang Wulin's face, and he goaded, "Then that means I've become more powerful! There's no need for you to be so upset; you can just admit it if you're scared. Don't worry, I won't look down on you; we'll still be friends."

"Scared? I ain't scared! I'm just unfamiliar with your new abilities!" Jiang Wuyue was becoming even more enraged.

"Tch, you don't even dare to fight me anymore, and you're trying to convince me that you're not scared? We've fought quite a few times now, so you should be accustomed to my new powers, right? Do you dare to go again?"Tang Wulin intentionally put on a proud expression as he spoke.

"Come at me! You must be playing some kind of trick! You're paying this time!"

"No problem," Tang Wulin agreed without any hesitation, and two of them entered the competition venue again.

Two minutes later.

Light flashed, and Jiang Wuyue's body swayed as he emerged. A hint of astonishment flashed through his eyes.

Tang Wulin re-emerged right after him with a smug expression on his face. "I told you you were too weak! You're no match for me now!" He flexed his bicep to Jiang Wuyue as he spoke.

"That's impossible! I don't believe this! Let's go again!"

Another two minutes later...

"Again!"

Two minutes passed once again...

"I give up!"

Jiang Wuyue was looking at Tang Wulin with a dejected expression on his face. He could attribute one or two losses to errors or complacency, but how could he explain being beaten close to 10 times in a row?

This guy was like a literal monster! His strength, speed, defenses, and offensive prowess; all of it had far exceeded Jiang Wuyue's. No matter how he looked at it, that Golden Dragon Spear shouldn't have been a heavy weapon, but it was always able to swat his giant hammers aside with ease. He had always been very proud of his own defensive prowess, but his defenses posed no impediment to Tang Wulin whatsoever; all he needed was a single opportunity to strike, and Jiang Wuyue was dead.

What was even more terrifying was his spear intent. Every time he released his spear intent, Jiang Wuyue would instantly be struck by a bone-chilling sensation, and he felt as if his entire body had been punctured.

In the face of such an indomitable opponent, even his powerful battle intent was quickly being worn down. If he were to keep engaging in these sparring matches, his confidence would be completely shattered, so he was unwilling to continue.

"Are you alright, Wuyue?" Tang Wulin approached him with a concerned expression.

"Go away!" Jiang Wuyue was panting heavily as he attempted to recover from the agony that he'd just been afflicted with.

Tang Wulin sighed, "I didn't know things were going to turn out like this; am I this powerful already? I'm sorry, Wuyue. I know that an excessive gap between our powers will make you feel inferior, but there's no helping it. It's alright, though; keep working hard, and don't feel inferior."

"Who's feeling inferior? You're the inferior one!" Jiang Wuyue couldn't help but flare up with rage.

Tang Wulin shrugged in response. "You don't even dare to continue, and you're trying to convince me that you're not feeling inferior?"

"Who says I don't dare to continue?" Jiang Wuyue's eyes instantly widened with rage, but all of a sudden, a placid look suddenly appeared on his face, and he harrumphed, "That's not working on me again; I won't fall for your dirty tricks. You're just trying to goad me again like the sly bastard that you are! I ain't falling for it anymore."

Tang Wulin shrugged. "Suit yourself. I was going to give you an opportunity to restore your confidence by refraining from using my battle armor in the next battle, but if you don't want to, then so be it. Let's get out of here."

"Wait! Are you serious? You won't use your battle armor?"Jiang Wuyue immediately grabbed onto Tang Wulin's arm.

"I am!" Tang Wulin said with an earnest expression, "I have to give you a chance to restore your confidence, but I don't think that's needed anymore; you look like you're still quite lively, so I don't have to cop a beating from you now."

"No! You're a good guy, Wulin! Come on, let's go again; I'll pay this time!"

After entering the competition venue, the two of them faced one another, and a smile had already appeared on Tang Wulin's face.

Jiang Wuyue appraised him with an intense gaze, and said, "You better keep your promise; don't use your battle armor!"

"Of course!" Tang Wulin nodded in response.

"Three, two, one, begin!"

As soon as the countdown concluded, Jiang Wuyue released his martial soul and battle armor again, raising his power to its very maximal extent.

Tang Wulin couldn't help but internally praise Jiang Wuyue. If he were facing anyone else, then he definitely wouldn't goad them into battling him over and over again, even though he really did require a powerful opponent to fight against so he could consolidate his newfound powers.

However, Jiang Wuyue was different as he possessed the most powerful battle intent that Tang Wulin had ever seen. Furthermore, he was always able to brush off setbacks and possessed excellent mental fortitude, thereby allowing him to constantly grow stronger in the face of adversity.

Sure enough, Tang Wulin didn't release his battle armor. He held his Golden Dragon Spear by his side, and four golden soul rings rose up from beneath his feet before revolving around his body.

The first golden soul ring lit up, and it was none other than his Golden Dragon Body. Golden scales appeared all over his entire body, and even though the enhancements he received weren't as pronounced as those from his battle armor, the dragon scales still enhanced his powers considerably.