The heat of the day quietly faded.
Night swallowed the last streak of red on the horizon, and even the skyline quickly darkened.
As arranged with Dean Flender, all eight members of Shrek Academy had assembled.
Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong had spent the entire afternoon cultivating with Su Zui.
The thought of Su Zui's wondrous cultivation methods made them both especially excited. Their faces were flushed, and their expressions were full of delight.
Zhu Zhuqing felt she had finally found a way to grow stronger. As long as she kept following Su Zui, sooner or later she could become as strong as Su Zui and escape her family's fate.
Ning Rongrong, meanwhile, believed that she too could one day possess formidable combat strength, just like an assault-type Soul Master.
Flender swept his gaze over the group and immediately noticed Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong's excitement.
Although he didn't know why they were so excited, their high spirits naturally made Flender happy as well.
He decided to assume they were excited about the training ahead.
In truth, because of everything that had happened before, Flender's standards for his students had already sunk into the gutter.
As long as they didn't cause him trouble, they would always be his best students.
All in all, it was a sad story.
Dai Mubai, however, was secretly clenching his fists at the side, a hint of struggle in his eyes.
He had no idea what had happened between Su Zui and Zhu Zhuqing.
He had only seen Zhu Zhuqing walking over with Su Zui, looking positively radiant.
That left Dai Mubai unable to stop himself from imagining the worst.
His face had already turned ashen. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was wearing a bright green hat.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Flender beckoned to them.
"Everyone, stay close. I'll take you somewhere good."
As soon as he finished speaking, Flender darted forward.
His toes touched the ground, and he shot away.
As a level seventy-eight Soul Saint, Flender was exceptionally agile.
With a light tap of his toes against the ground, he shot forward like an arrow loosed from its bow.
Seeing Flender flying ahead, everyone hurried after him.
Dai Mubai took the lead, racing at the front and occasionally glancing back at Su Zui in challenge.
Between those provocative glances, Dai Mubai also studied Zhu Zhuqing with a tense expression, hoping to read something from her face.
Su Zui couldn't be bothered with him. He followed at an unhurried pace, staying level with Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong.
Zhu Zhuqing, for her part, shot Dai Mubai a look of disgust and ignored him completely.
Feeling himself being ignored, Dai Mubai felt his blood surge.
But when he remembered that he was no match for Su Zui, he could only force it down.
Su Zui traveled alongside Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong. Whenever he noticed their Soul Power falling behind, he used his own Soul Power to gently carry them forward.
Along the way, Flender glanced back at the students from time to time.
When he saw Su Zui using his Soul Power to help Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, a gentle smile briefly crossed his face.
Su Zui had a sharp tongue, but he was truly dependable.
They sped along and soon left the grounds of Shrek Academy, arriving beneath Suotuo City's walls.
Suotuo City lay in the heart of the Balak Kingdom. It was exceptionally prosperous, and no foreign enemies invaded it.
Even though night had fallen, the entire city was still ablaze with lights, its prosperity undiminished by the darkness.
The broad, level streets were lined with vendors' stalls, while the grand restaurants shone brilliantly with light.
Pedestrians came and went in an endless stream. The streets bustled with the warmth of everyday life, a picture of prosperity in a flourishing age.
Su Zui walked through the crowds on Suotuo City's streets, the vendors' enthusiastic cries ringing in his ears and the rich aromas of street food drifting past his nose. Before he knew it, a faintly dazed look came into his eyes.
The lively bustle of the night was so much like the night markets he had visited in his previous life.
But compared with his previous life, strolling down the street in this one felt a little warmer.
In his previous life, he had been all alone, a miserable single dog.
But things were different now. He had loved ones, friends, classmates, and teachers by his side.
In truth, Su Zui's dream was a simple one.
Once peace came to the world, he wanted to hold Ning Rongrong's hand and stroll through streets and alleys, experiencing the beauty of the mortal world like an ordinary married couple.
Perhaps it was psychological, but Su Zui's emotions grew somewhat sensitive at night.
He turned and pulled Ning Rongrong into his arms, feeling a little more secure at once.
Ning Rongrong seemed to sense his feelings too. She reached out her small hand and intertwined her fingers with his.
Flender paid no attention to his students' little gestures behind him. He led everyone through the streets without lingering at the night market.
He took them into a teahouse beside the street.
The teahouse was quiet and secluded, utterly unlike the bustling night market outside.
The eight of them found a huge round table and sat down around it.
Flender dug out some Silver Soul Coins from his Storage Soul Tool and ordered nine cups of decent-looking tea.
After taking a small sip, Flender raised a finger and pointed at a vast building ahead.
Even from a distance, the building appeared nearly a hundred meters tall, rising like a small mountain against the night.
Looking at the enormous structure, Su Zui couldn't help marveling inwardly.
The complex looked much like the large stadiums of his previous life, but its scale and grandeur far surpassed those stadiums. The two were on entirely different levels.
Although technology in the Douluo World was underdeveloped, its infrastructure capabilities were still formidable thanks to Soul Masters.
As far as Su Zui knew, there was a clan on the Douluo Continent called the Defense Clan, whose members all made their living through construction.
Looking at the distant building, Su Zui voiced the question on everyone's mind. "Dean Flender, is that our destination today?"
Flender nodded, his tone certain.
"That's right. That's the place."
It was Xiao Wu's first time seeing a building so enormous. She blinked her bright, expressive eyes and asked curiously,
"Dean Flender, what exactly is that place? It's so big!"
Before Flender could speak, Dai Mubai immediately answered from the side.
"That's the Suotuo City Great Soul Arena! It's also the greatest gold-swallowing beast."
Flender nodded and replied calmly.
"That's right. It's a Soul Fighting Arena. There, you'll fight one battle after another and hone your practical combat abilities."
Flender then explained the rules of the Great Soul Arena in detail.
As it turned out, the Great Soul Arena was not only a place for Soul Masters to duel, but also a good place to make money.
Su Zui quickly grasped the key point. Wasn't this just like betting on soccer in his previous life?
Sure enough, wherever there were competitive sports, there was bound to be gambling.
The Great Soul Arena offered quite a variety of matches.
There were one-on-one fights, two-on-two fights, and group brawls.
The Soul Fighting ranks were divided into the following levels:
Iron Rank, Bronze Rank, Silver Rank, Gold Rank, Purple-Gold Rank, Sapphire Rank, Ruby Rank, and the highest, Diamond Rank.
The rules for promotion were simple too.
Going from iron to bronze required 1
one hundred points.
A win earned one point, while a loss deducted one.
After five consecutive wins, each further consecutive victory earned ten points.
Going from bronze to silver required one thousand points.
The rules for earning points were the same as at bronze, except that each win awarded ten times as many points as at iron.
These promotion rules were just like those in Honor of Kings that Su Zui had played in his previous life.
Wasn't Diamond just the strongest king?
Su Zui immediately developed a keen interest in the Great Soul Arena.
The Soul Fighting Arena was a good place. He could not only hone his strength but also make money, and more importantly, experience a real-life game.
After finishing his explanation of the Great Soul Arena, Flender drained his tea in one gulp.
Then he looked at Su Zui and the others and said, "All right, it's getting late. Let's head over. We'll discuss the rest when we get there."