A Bunch of Pretty Boys

Xiao Han knew Suotuo Great Soul Fighting Arena's fighting rules inside and out.

He led the team to the front desk to register and sign up, preparing for tonight's team battle.

Team battles were matched according to the highest-ranked member of each team, so their opponents would be no higher than Battle Soul Elder rank.

Suotuo Great Soul Fighting Arena had only one central fighting area, but twenty-four branch arenas that could accommodate sixty thousand spectators at the same time.

Tonight was Heavenly Ice Team's first time competing here. Without enough points, they could only fight in a branch arena.

Compared with the main arena, the opponents in the branch arenas were not as strong, and they drew less of a crowd.

But none of that mattered. As long as they could make money betting, that was enough.

Heavenly Ice Team was assigned to the twelfth branch arena.

After confirming their match, Xue Wu followed the two Teachers to the spectator stands of the twelfth arena.

Xiao Han and the other six headed to the Soul Master resting area.

The area was fairly spacious, and quite a few Soul Masters were already seated there, all waiting to take part in Soul Fighting matches.

Some were meditating in cultivation, some were resting with their eyes closed, while others observed the other Soul Masters.

Xiao Han's group did not attract much attention when they arrived, because the girls were disguised as boys.

In the eyes of those older Soul Masters, they were merely a group of inexperienced youths.

There was a huge floor-to-ceiling window in the resting area, through which they could see the situation in the arena.

The entire branch arena resembled a massive bowl, with the fighting platform at the bottom and spectator stands surrounding it.

Tonight's matches were about to begin.

Xiao Han had little interest in other people's matches.

He wanted to claim their first victory together as a team, and he wanted to make money.

They were newcomers, a rookie team with no previous record to speak of, completely blank.

The Soul Fighting Arena generally offered higher odds for rookie teams like this.

Xiao Han gathered everyone together.

"Have you thought about our strategy for tonight's battle?"

Shui Bing'er said:

"I'll use Freeze first to seal all their feet in ice. Then you can launch your attacks and blast them off the platform in the shortest time possible. What do you think?"

"Good. That's what I was thinking too."

"Then it's settled. We have to win tonight."

"Heavenly Ice Team, victory!"

Xiao Han smiled.

"Since everyone is so confident, shouldn't we place a bet?"

Shen Liuyu asked curiously:

"Xiao Han, what kind of bet are you talking about?"

"The Soul Fighting Arena will set odds for Heavenly Ice Team. We just need to bet on ourselves to win. We're a rookie team, so our odds will be higher. This is a great chance to make money."

"I see."

"I spent all my money on clothes. Did you bring any money? Lend me some first, and once we make money, we'll split it together."

The girls all understood what Xiao Han meant.

Skywater Academy provided its students with free meals and lodging, so they only needed money when they went out.

As a result, they did not carry much money with them.

"I have five hundred Gold Soul Coins here. You can have them all."

As Shui Bing'er spoke, she took out a money pouch from her Soul Tool and handed it to Xiao Han.

"I have four hundred. You can have those too."

"I have five hundred. Here."

"My five hundred too. Take it all."

The girls all trusted Xiao Han and handed their money to him one after another.

There were a total of two thousand eight hundred Gold Soul Coins.

"Two thousand eight hundred. I'm going to get rich. Not bad, that's a good omen."

Xiao Han put away the Gold Soul Coins.

"You trust me so much, so I definitely can't let you lose. Wait here. I'll go place the bet and be right back."

Xiao Han happily headed to the front desk.

Before a match, no one knew who their opponent would be.

Therefore, the large screen above the front desk only displayed the odds for each team in that branch arena.

The higher a team's chance of winning, the lower its odds, and vice versa.

Several people were placing bets at the front desk.

"Look, Heavenly Ice Team has the highest odds tonight. Three-to-one. Odds this high haven't appeared in a long time."

"What Heavenly Ice Team? I've never seen them before. They must be a weak rookie team to get odds that high."

"Yeah. Only a complete sucker would bet on them."

As they spoke, Xiao Han placed all two thousand eight hundred Gold Soul Coins on the counter.

"Two thousand eight hundred, all on Heavenly Ice Team."

The attendant stared at Xiao Han in surprise. He looked familiar, yet she could not remember where she had seen him.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. Just place the bet for me."

"Alright. Here's your ticket. Please keep it safe."

Xiao Han put away the ticket and left the front desk amid the astonished gazes of the others.

The attendant shook her head.

"Heavenly Ice Team is a brand-new team. There isn't even a single Soul Master above level thirty-five on the team, and four of them are below level thirty, which is why their odds are so high. Those two thousand eight hundred Gold Soul Coins will probably go down the drain. That person looked so familiar. Is he... a member of Heavenly Ice Team?"

Xiao Han returned to the Soul Master resting area.

"Xiao Han, did you place the bet?"

"Yeah. They really did give us fairly high odds: three-to-one. They're also the highest odds in the twelfth branch arena tonight."

"Hmph! The highest odds? Who are they looking down on?!"

Shui Yue'er pouted, somewhat angry.

Xiao Han smiled.

"If we win tonight's match, we'll get eight thousand four hundred Gold Soul Coins. That's a net profit of five thousand six hundred. It's a good thing."

"Then we'll prove it to them with our actions. We're a new team, but we're not rookies."

"Mm, Heavenly Ice Team, victory!"

They waited in the resting area for their turn.

An hour later, the host's voice rang out from the loudspeakers.

"Next is a team battle between Seven Star Team and Heavenly Ice Team. Seven Star Team has won three consecutive victories in their previous Soul Fighting matches, while Heavenly Ice Team is a brand-new team appearing at Suotuo Great Soul Fighting Arena for the first time. Which team will claim victory in this match? Let us wait and see. Please have both teams take the stage."

Xiao Han exchanged smiles with the girls.

"It's finally our turn. Let's show them what we're made of."

"Alright!"

Xiao Han and the others passed through the Soul Master tunnel and slowly stepped onto the platform beneath the gaze of thousands of spectators.

The members of Seven Star Team also took the stage one after another, standing opposite them.

All seven were men over twenty years old: three burly men, three tall and skinny men, and one short fellow under one meter sixty.

One of the burly men said to the short fellow:

"Boss, our opponents tonight are a little weak. They're just a bunch of wet-behind-the-ears brats, all pale and clean like a bunch of girls."

The short fellow looked at Shui Bing'er and Xiao Han, who stood at the front of the team, then grinned smugly.

"Looks like you two are the leaders. Pretty boys don't belong in a place like this. Surrender now, and you can avoid some physical pain."

Xiao Han gave a disdainful smile and shot back:

"Shorty, you should be the one surrendering."

"You bastard! Who are you calling shorty?!"

"What? You're short, and you won't admit it? I'm not even twelve yet, and I'm already as tall as you."

The short fellow was so enraged by the retort that his face turned red.

"You little brat, you're pretty arrogant for your age. Just wait and see how I deal with you!"

"Shorty, who's going to deal with whom is still up in the air."

Before the match had even begun, the platform was already thick with the smell of gunpowder.

Seeing this, the host hurriedly said:

"Both teams, please release your martial souls. The match will officially begin in one minute!"