Soul Land 2: The Unrivaled Tang Sect

At the start, Huo Yuhao could still accurately judge and adapt using his Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track. But Na Na was getting faster and faster. The wind blades unleashed from her Swift Blade were also increasing. A new batch of wind blades would appear before he had a chance to dispel the previous batch. The entire place was filled with green lights, and Huo Yuhao had disappeared within them.

Huo Yuhao had no choice but to unleash his Ice Empress’ Armor, as he was under immense pressure. The diamond ice crystals resisted the wind blades, piercingly sharp noises were released when both powers clashed. Huo Yuhao seemed to be at more and more at a disadvantage.

But Na Na was also a little anxious. Huo Yuhao’s defensive soul skills were very strong, and her wind blades had a negligible effect on him. The Swift Blade was much inferior to the Scarletflame Blade in terms of offensive strength, and could be blocked by Huo Yuhao using just his hands. They were stuck in a stalemate. Na Na didn’t really have much of an advantage.

“If this is all you’re capable of, you’re going to lose,” Huo Yuhao’s voice sounded in her ears. Following that, Huo Yuhao’s footsteps became a little messy, and his speed increased slightly. His Darkgolden Terrorclaws appeared again. However, he wasn’t just resisting the Swift Blade this time. Rather, he was also attacking Na Na.

Na Na’s momentum was such that she couldn’t dodge when Huo Yuhao positioned his terrorclaws right at a specific position that she had to cross. She clashed with them heavily, using her blade to block their attack.

However, it wasn’t just a simple meeting of blades this time. Huo Yuhao’s terrorclaws closed up, and his body was about to ram into Na Na. The two of them were approaching each other rapidly.

Oh no! Na Na’s third soul ring lit up as she reacted, and her body turned illusory. Huo Yuhao brushed past her, and there was no impact between the two of them.

This was Na Na’s third soul skill, Spectre Possession. She could turn her body into a spectre, and not be struck by anything physical, but only for a second. It was a life-saving technique. She couldn’t attack as this soul skill was unleashed, which was why Na Na hadn’t used it before.

But she couldn’t hold back this skill any longer. When their paths crossed, her fourth soul ring also lit up. Her shadow detached from her body as she paled,and it suddenly landed on Huo Yuhao’s body.

Huo Yuhao was engulfed by a layer of black gas. He couldn’t move even though he struggled mightily.

Na Na suddenly turned back and burst towards him with the Swift Blade. She slashed the blade towards his neck. This was the effect of her fourth soul skill, Avenging Spirit!

Her soul skill had a powerful restraining effect, but it had a lot of restrictions. It was operated using her spiritual power. But if the opponent couldn’t be restricted, she would suffer from the backlash.

I’ve won! Na Na said to herself in her heart. However, she abruptly realized that something was amiss when she saw the look in Huo Yuhao’s eyes. He was too calm. He didn’t seem to be restrained...

Huo Yuhao was a little amused at this point. In his mind, Elder Yi remarked, “She must be tired of living, using an Avenging Spirit in front of a necromancer!”

As Na Na realized something was wrong, Huo Yuhao’s eyes turned grey, and an indescribable fear instantly engulfed Na Na. Following this, Huo Yuhao seemed to mutter something. The Avenging Spirit surrounding Huo Yuhao’s body instantly disappeared, seeming to fuse into Huo Yuhao’s body.

No backlash occurred. Na Na only felt a sense of emptiness, and staggered a little, but she still managed to react. Her fifth soul ring lit up, and she reached out with her left hand. A small and short white dagger that was only five inches long was flung towards Huo Yuhao at lightning speed.

This was Na Na’s trump card. She finally used it as she was in deep peril. It was a Class 6 close-combat soul tool, the Blinkknife.

The throwing knife didn’t make a sound, but it instantly reached Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao had been too careless. When he used Elder Yi’s necromancy to deal with the Avenging Spirit, he had the ability to restrain Na Na’s martial soul through their soul connection, and had done so. That’s why Na Na’s fifth soul skill wasn’t really unleashed.

However, the Blinkknife still reached him.

The knife was hidden in a storage ring on Na Na’s left hand. It possessed a tremendous destructive strength. In this critical situation, Huo Yuhao had no choice but to lift his hand to block the knife.

The Ice Empress’ Pincer didn’t completely resist the Blinkknife. His palm was instantly pierced. However, the Ice Empress’ Pincer and Mysterious Jade Hands’ defensive strength managed to buy Huo Yuhao some time. He lifted his hand as he looked backward. The Blinkknife almost kissed Huo Yuhao’s face as it flew past him. It turned into a streak of white light as it went on by, and only stopped when it hit the defensive barrier around the arena.

Huo Yuhao broke out in a cold sweat, even though it was a sudden change. He was too careless, and had almost been killed by the Blinkknife!

Fresh blood flowed from his left hand. His expression also turned colder. He shrugged his left hand and sealed the blood on it, then continued to attack Na Na.

Na Na was indeed resilient. She couldn’t get closer to control the Blinkknife without the help of her martial soul. Otherwise, she believed that she would’ve won. Even so, she continued to wield the Swift Blade and slashed at Huo Yuhao.

But Huo Yuhao’s gaze was extremely cold now.

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom…! A series of booms rang out in front of Na Na. Huo Yuhao’s blood also contained soul power! He used his own blood to unleash the Ice Explosion Technique, and forced Na Na back with a series of explosions, and the Swift Blade was also torn from her hand. She couldn’t resist the explosions in such a condition.

Huo Yuhao didn’t chase after her. He only shouted, “Don’t move!”

Na Na’s body suddenly jerked, and she was actually frozen in place. She was horrified. She couldn’t understand why her body didn’t listen to her.

“You’re so intent on killing me? We’re only sparring,” Huo Yuhao said coldly. He slowly placed the Darkgolden Terrorclaws in front of Na Na. The wound on his left hand had already been sealed by ice, and stopped bleeding.

Na Na couldn’t calm down at this point. This situation that she couldn’t comprehend left her extremely afraid.

“I’ve won.” Huo Yuhao wasn’t above hitting a woman, but the killing spirit that he restrained wouldn’t be unleashed at this point.

Electrolux taught him that there were different regions in a person’s spirit, even though it was a complete entity. He had also taught Huo Yuhao the different capabilities of a human’s body.

Na Na’s Avenging Spirit aimed to restrain a person’s movements, which was why it now controlled Na Na’s own movements. After her Avenging Spirit was snatched using necromancy, Huo Yuhao easily found the characteristic of her spirit, which was why he could restrain her now. If Huo Yuhao destroyed this part of her spirit, she might be paralyzed. Without her spirit, she would be unable to move.

He relaxed his will and released his control on Na Na before turning around. He walked back towards the waiting area. His energy had been greatly depleted in this battle.

Na Na chased after him and shouted, “What did you do to me?”

If it were somewhere else, others might misunderstand her words. But no one could sense the fear in Na Na’s heart at this moment. When Huo Yuhao had controlled her body, she felt as if she lost something important.

Huo Yuhao said, “You’re the one who’s been attacking me.”

She wanted to question him further, but she realized that she once again couldn’t move. She could only watch as Huo Yuhao walked away.

Her fear grew stronger. She couldn’t sense Huo Yuhao unleashing any undulations of soul power. The force that was restraining her seemed to come from inside her. This also meant that she wasn’t being restrained by one of his soul skills. After she thought of how her Avenging Spirit had disappeared earlier, she roughly guessed that it was a side effect that was more scary than a direct backlash.

While the Avenging Spirit was powerful, it became her nightmare once it met a worthy opponent!

The restraint on Na Na was only removed when Huo Yuhao reached the waiting area, leaving her trembling. At this point, she didn’t dare pester him anymore. As she thought of how completely helpless she was in front of him, that she could only let him do what he wanted, she wanted to kill him!

Huo Yuhao didn’t think about it too much. He was furious, as Na Na had almost killed him. He decided to punish her since she hadn’t treated this as a sparring match. He was going to keep this spirit with him, and he would only return it to her after some time.

“Do you need a break?” Xuan Ziwen’s voice was gentle.

He had seen Na Na’s actions, but had been too late to stop her. They had clashed at such close range that even the Hallmaster of Illustrious Virtue Hall wouldn’t have been able to separate the two of them if he was the referee.

Xuan Ziwen was surprised when Huo Yuhao shook his head and said, “I’m alright, I can keep going.”

“Oh?” Xuan Ziwen was stunned and asked, “Are you certain?”

Huo Yuhao nodded and replied, “Yes.”

Although he was curious as to why Huo Yuhao had chosen not to rest, Xuan Ziwen still respected his choice and called for the fourth competitor.

The fourth competitor was nearly two meters tall. He was extremely burly, and his shoulders were very broad, which caused him to appear very tough.

The moment he entered the waiting area, he lifted his right hand and hooked his index finger towards Huo Yuhao. He then extended his thumb and wriggled them together in front of Huo Yuhao condescendingly.

Everyone couldn’t help but laugh as they saw him doing this, the depressing atmosphere turning rapturous again as they did so. This student evidently wanted to repay Huo Yuhao tit for tat as he tackled Huo Yuhao’s arrogance with his own haughtiness.

Huo Yuhao turned to look towards Xuan Ziwen and then asked, “Teacher Xuan, can we start?”

“Alright. The match begins!” Xuan Ziwen only realized that both parties had forgotten to name themselves after he’d announced the start of the match; he’d made a mistake. However, he soon witnessed the end of this round.

Huo Yuhao’s opponent immediately moved as soon as the round began. A heavy soul shield appeared in his hands, followed by thick armor on his body.

However, Huo Yuhao didn’t burst forward like he had in the previous three rounds this time. Instead, his golden Spirit Eyes gained a purple hue, and a ray of golden-purple flames were unleashed from them a moment later. Even Xuan Ziwen felt his surroundings light up a little.

A moment later, the previously-conceited student groaned and then collapsed to the ground, along with his soul shield and armor.

Huo Yuhao wriggled his wrist, after which the short spear that had appeared earlier appeared in his palm. He twisted his head towards Xuan Ziwen and asked, “Teacher Xuan, are you confident in my accuracy? I should be able to hit my target accurately within one hundred and fifty meters.”

It’s over?

Xuan Ziwen couldn’t conceal the shock in his eyes. He hadn’t expected Huo Yuhao’s spiritual-type soul skills to be effective over such a long distance. Furthermore, his opponent had been a five-ringed Soul King! Yet, he hadn’t been able to resist at all. Huo Yuhao didn’t even need to throw his spear; this student wasn’t likely to get up anytime soon.

“You’ve won.” Xuan Ziwen said with a little difficulty.

The surrounding commotion instantly turned to silence. Huo Yuhao raised his right hand, and then extended four fingers.

He’d not only completed, but had won four rounds in less than an hour. Aside from his battle with Na Na, he’d overwhelmed all of his opponents up to this point.

Jing Hongchen was a little restless as he sat in the main spectator stand. He’d discovered that, to his horror, Huo Yuhao’s spiritual-type martial soul was actually extremely powerful. A Class 5 soul engineer had been knocked out in a single blow, even though he was a hundred and fifty meters away. Who could challenge him? In the Soul Tool Department, there wasn’t any student who specialized in dealing with spiritual-type soul skills. After all, spiritual-type soul masters were quite rare.

Based on this soul skill, it was evident that Huo Yuhao had been holding back in the previous rounds of the competition. The rest definitely wouldn’t have been able to bear this spiritual-type attack of his.

Huo Yuhao chose to rest after completing the fourth round. He sat down cross-legged and began to meditate.

He’d wanted to go for one more round in order to deplete more of his energy. This had been to allow his spiritual and soul power to recover together as he meditated.

The first few students to challenge Huo Yuhao had been the best of the Class 5 soul engineers. Thus, the later rounds of the competition were even easier for Huo Yuhao.

After resting for a short while, Huo Yuhao continued with the competition. He completely dominated, and won seventeen rounds in the morning. He only stopped to rest when noon approached. No further cheers were heard from the spectators.

The most shocking thing was that the skills he was using seemed very simple—apart from his Spiritual Shock—but even the spectators couldn’t tell how these simple skills were able to achieve such powerful and shocking effects.

Seventeen consecutive rounds! Huo Yuhao had benefited greatly at this stage. Not only had he won seventeen kilos of rare metal, but he’d also received the stakes wagered upon earlier.

After stopping for a quick lunch, he didn’t leave the Soul Tool Experimentation Area. He found a resting place and quickly restored his energy and power beneath the protection of the other Shrek students.

Huo Yuhao was still a human, not a God. He’d fought for seventeen rounds straight against the elite Class 5 soul engineers of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy at this point. His opponents had watched his previous rounds and tried to adapt to his changes. However, Huo Yuhao’s fighting strategy had also changed. He’d thought of as many ways as possible to achieve victory without exposing too much of his abilities since he couldn’t use soul tools.

He was already fatigued after a long morning of battling. However, this fatigue was refreshing in a sense. The feeling of venting left Huo Yuhao very refreshed. He also felt that his soul power had increased during his deep meditation.

Lin Jiayi had mentioned that he would only be facing Class 5 soul engineers today. Tomorrow, he would face the Class 6 soul engineers. As for the third day, the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy would give Huo Yuhao the authority to choose who he wanted to challenge from the Illustrious Virtue Hall as a form of reward for him. After all, challenging the higher-level soul engineers would be a valuable experience for Huo Yuhao. He would also be able to use his soul tools on the third day.

Fan Yu sat to one side and watched Huo Yuhao. He revealed a slight smile and comforting look on his face.

Although he couldn’t say that the Ultimate Soldier Plan had succeeded yet, he was clearly aware of Huo Yuhao’s performance in the battles today. This was the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, where the most talented soul engineers in the continent resided. And yet, even these soul engineers with higher cultivations than him weren’t able to beat him. He was only fifteen years old! Besides the fact that his soul power increased very slowly, Huo Yuhao was almost perfect.

Huo Yuhao had two hours to rest in the afternoon. After these two hours passed and Huo Yuhao re-appeared in the Soul Tool Experimentation Arena, he was already full of energy again.

However, he was still a bit fatigued from the morning full of sparring. The time he took rest between each opponent increased with each. Finally, he defeated thirteen more competitors, and ended the day with a total of thirty victories.

When it was close to dark, the students from the Sun Moon Academy walked out of the Soul Tool Experimentation Arena with serious looks on their faces. The looks in their eyes was a little heavy.

Fifteen years old; this was merely a fifteen year-old soul master from Shrek Academy. He’d somehow defeated thirty Class 5 soul engineers, including more than seventy percent of the Grade 6 students, without any soul tools.

This also meant that practically no one could defeat him, apart from those in the Illustrious Virtue Hall. This was a humiliation. Tomorrow, the Class 6 soul engineers from the Illustrious Virtue Hall were going to compete. But… could they really win?

The effect that Jing Hongchen wanted to see had been realized, albeit a little too heavily. Not all the students’ fighting spirits had been motivated. A few of the students were in low spirits and doubted soul tools after witnessing Huo Yuhao’s strong showing. This wasn’t something that Jing Hongchen had wanted to see.

“We’re rich, we’re rich! Hahaha…” Ye Xiaosheng laughed in Huo Yuhao’s room.

Currently, Fan Yu, He Caitou, Huo Yuhao, and Ye Xiaosheng were all standing around. Huo Yuhao had just finished dinner and was about to collapse. If not for the Life Gold’s life power that enabled him to recover faster than an ordinary person, he wouldn’t have been able to last until now.

The Life Gold’s power was indeed quite great. The wound on his left hand had already fully recovered despite the fact that it had only been a day.

Huo Yuhao leaned on his bed and felt very refreshed as his body relaxed. “Brother Sheng, how much did we profit?”

Ye Xiaosheng chortled. “The odds that you wouldn’t clear ten rounds were three to one. Most people wagered on this. Their bets took up more than half of our total bets. With just these alone, we’d already earned quite a lot. Then there’s the odds that you wouldn’t clear twenty rounds, which were one to one. Those’re also in our pockets now. The remaining twenty percent of the wagers are on you not being able to clear fifty rounds. Even if you don’t clear fifty rounds, we’ll only have to pay twenty percent of what we have. We’ve profited a lot, no matter what happens. I believe that the rare metals we’ve won are equivalent to a year of the Sun Moon Empire’s production of these metals as well.”

Huo Yuhao shook his head and then said, “Brother Sheng, don’t be too delighted. Tomorrow, several people will bet on me not being able to clear fifty rounds.”

“Ugh… surely not?” Ye Xiaosheng was stunned for a moment.

He Caitou added, “Why not? Brother Sheng, think about it. The most talented soul engineers in the Sun Moon Empire are enrolled in this academy. And then there’s the Illustrious Virtue Hall. They’re definitely wealthier than we think they are. Little junior, do you remember the soul tool produced by the Illustrious Virtue Hall that we saw in the Starlight Auction house? It was extremely costly! It was already extremely tough to survive thirty rounds. Why don’t we cancel betting for tomorrow?”

Huo Yuhao shook his head and said, “No, let the betting continue. Otherwise, it’ll affect my fighting spirit. From the odds, we’ll only lose our profits if I eventually lose and they increase their wager. Moreover, I may not lose. I’ll give it my all tomorrow.”

Ye Xiaosheng’s lips twisted a little, and he laughed bitterly, “Talking to the both of you dampens my spirit. I shall not talk to the both of you anymore. Teacher Fan Yu, I’m leaving first! You’re already so ferocious today, but it’s still not your… gosh!” Ye Xiaosheng was depressed as he walked out with his hands on his forehead.

Huo Yuhao and He Caitou couldn’t help but think of how he had asked them to call him Brother Sheng as he left. They grinned as that thought crossed their minds.

Fan Yu stood up and said, “Yuhao, take a break. I don’t have many instructions for you. Give it your best tomorrow, but safety comes first. You should know how important you are to Shrek.”

“Yes, teacher. I won’t be careless again.” Huo Yuhao sat up straight on his bed and wanted to send them off. However, he was stopped by Fan Yu and He Caitou. After that, the two of them left on their own.

Huo Yuhao dragged himself up and forced himself into a cross-legged position. He couldn’t just sleep. Otherwise, his efforts for the day would be wasted. It was only through restoring his energy in his cultivation state could he assimilate the gains he had made during the sparring today.

The doorbell suddenly rang. As he was too tired, Huo Yuhao didn’t unleash his Spiritual Detection. He assumed that it was either Fan Yu or He Caitou, and so took in a deep breath and walked to the door.

However, it was neither of them. Rather, it was a young lady with a well-proportioned figure. She was Na Na, the Soul King from the Active Control Soul Tool Department who he had defeated today.

“Why are you here?” Huo Yuhao furrowed his brows, but he wasn’t too wary of her. Part of Na Na’s spirit was still under his control. If he wanted to, he could restrict her movements and even harm her.

Na Na furrowed her brows as she said, “Can I come in?” Although she wasn’t that ravishing, her bravery gave her a sense of charm. This charm greatly accentuated her well-proportioned figure.

Huo Yuhao opened the door wide and gestured for her to enter.

Na Na entered the room, but Huo Yuhao didn’t close the door. It was too late, and it wasn’t too appropriate for the two of them to be together in the same room, thus it was better for the door to be left ajar.

“What’s up?” Huo Yuhao was too tired, and went to take a seat on a chair at the side.

Na Na retorted, “I should be the one asking you that! What did you do to my body? How did you manage to control it?” She was filled with hatred as she demanded an answer.

After she lost to Huo Yuhao, the matter had been bothering her, she only came to talk to him after the entire competition was over. She didn’t approach him as there were others with him, but only came to his room after Fan Yu and He Caitou had left.

Huo Yuhao answered indifferently, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. If there’s nothing else, please excuse yourself. I still need to spar tomorrow.”

Na Na was enraged. “You don’t have the guts to admit it?”

Huo Yuhao’s brows lifted and he said coldly, “What did I do? You’re the one who unleashed your Avenging Spirit. You’re also the one who tried to kill me. It’s a joke that you’re interrogating me now. Please see yourself out.”

“You…” Na Na wanted to erupt, but she held it in. She bit her lips until they were red, “What exactly do you want? I can feel that my Avenging Spirit has been restrained by you. Return my spirit to me.”

Huo Yuhao was stunned by her sensitive judgement.

Na Na continued to say, “Don’t tell me it’s not your doing. If my spirit was dissipated or destroyed by you, I would’ve been critically injured. But I’m fine. It’s just that my body is not under my control. You must’ve done something to my spirit. Return it to me!”

Huo Yuhao laughed and answered, “Alright, even if I did so, why should I return it to you? You almost killed me. What right do you have to comment on my actions?”

“You… I’ll report you to the academy.” Na Na was furious.

Huo Yuhao pointed towards the door, “If you wish. But someone must believe you. Even if someone believes your words, what evidence do you have? To soul masters, our spirit is a magical thing. Even a Titled Douluo can’t claim to be completely familiarized with one’s spirit. Moreover, no one can test that your spirit is with me.”

Na Na’s expression changed. As she saw Huo Yuhao’s calm look, she slowly walked to the door.

Huo Yuhao sniggered to himself. Since he was scared by her in the morning, he had to make her pay for it. However, his heart still softened. He would return her spirit to her once the competition was over.

Na Na walked very slowly. When she reached the door, she stopped in her tracks. She didn’t leave, but shut the door.

“Oh? What’re you doing?” Huo Yuhao stood up from his seat. Even though he was tired, his soul power was still in its peak condition. Furthermore, Na Na was still under his control.

Na Na turned around, and two streams of tears flowed down her cheeks. Her body shuddered slightly, and her entire figure seemed to become illusory. Her clothing slipped off her body, revealing her naked figure.

Huo Yuhao was stunned. He didn’t expect her to do that.

“You…” Huo Yuhao was shocked as he looked at her. Her figure was flawless. All women craved a body like hers.

Undoubtedly, Na Na was blessed in this area. There was no fat on her body, and her skin was extremely smooth and tender. Although her skin wasn’t completely snow-white, there was a healthy sense to it.

Her slender waist was springy, and her flawless curves extended all the way down. As she wasn’t facing Huo Yuhao directly, he couldn’t see everything. But he could still see her perky buttocks.

Huo Yuhao couldn’t stand looking any further. At his age, one was supposed to be extremely curious but unclear about the matters of the heart. He had once sensed feminine beauty from Ma Xiaotao, but he was very young then. That was why he wasn’t as tempted. But he had developed biologically over the past two years.

He panicked a little and turned around. After that, he said, “Put your clothes on. What’re you doing?”

Na Na was teary-eyed as she said, “I know that you’re an elite student from Shrek. I don’t have anything valuable to exchange for my spirit. I can only use my body. I’ve never been touched by a guy. If you promise to return my spirit, I’ll give my body to you.”

“I…” Huo Yuhao hadn’t expected something like this. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

He was a little anxious as he said, “Put your clothes on and get out immediately. When the sparring is done, I’ll return your spirit.”

Na Na was stunned for a moment, and only reacted after a while. Huo Yuhao seemed to be scared of her current self, and looked rather pathetic. He wasn’t as arrogant as he was earlier under everyone’s gazes.

Due to his outstanding performance during the sparring competition, many students now treated him as a target. In their eyes, Huo Yuhao was a powerful soul master. But Na Na now realized that he was still a fifteen-year-old youth. It seemed like she was reading too much into things.

She blushed a little before hurriedly dressing herself.

Huo Yuhao was indeed awkward. He felt his nose getting hot as if it were about to bleed. Furthermore, he didn’t dare to use his Spiritual Detection to tell whether she was done. After all, he would still be able to see her body!

“I’m done.” Na Na replied softly.

Huo Yuhao heaved a sigh of relief at this point. He turned back to confirm that Na Na was indeed dressed before turning his whole body around. His face heated up, and his nose was as hot as before. He tried to resist his nosebleed. Even though Huo Yuhao tried his best to cover his nose, Na Na still managed to see it.

Na Na broke out into laughter.

“Quickly leave.” Huo Yuhao snapped. He was trying to expel the erotic scene from his mind.

Na Na was evidently not as furious as before. “You’ll really return my spirit? Why not now? Why must it be after the end of the competition?”

Huo Yuhao said, “That’s because I want to guarantee that you won’t find trouble with me in the next two days. Quickly leave.” Even he felt that his reply was a little incoherent.

Na Na took a deep look at Huo Yuhao and said, “I hope that you can fulfill your promise. Anyway, I’ve nothing that I can use to exchange for it. If you back out and want my body again, just tell me.”

Huo Yuhao felt his nose heating up even more, and there seemed to be blood flowing out of it.

Na Na opened the door before turning back to look at him. She smiled, “You don’t seem that annoying now. Better than that arrogant self in the morning.”