Neuvillette, Is This the Justice You Speak Of?

"Against a Soul Saint, I, Tang San, managed to retreat unscathed with only minor injuries. What more do you want?"

"You spectators don't understand a thing!"

"The ignorant judge others by appearance, and that will be the death of them!"

Tang San's face was as black as charcoal. When he had first arrived in Suotuo City, he had already been mocked by plenty of passersby. He had thought he could get used to it, but he had overestimated his own composure.

He simply could not tolerate this kind of mockery thrown right in his face!

Damn Zhao Wuji, and damn these spectators!

Zhu Zhuqing stared intently at Neuvillette, her beautiful eyes filled with admiration—nothing more than admiration.

This "Young Master" was beyond reproach, whether in how he carried himself or in what he did. If Dai Mubai had even half of Neuvillette's qualities—just half...

Unfortunately, Dai Mubai was not even worthy of being compared to Neuvillette.

Zhu Zhuqing had only met Neuvillette once. Or rather, she had secretly followed him...

They had not even spoken. Everything she knew of Neuvillette came from the conversation between Ning Rongrong and him, as well as Flender's evaluation of him.

The Soul Arena's branch arenas also had hosts, who warmed up the crowd before the competitors began their duel.

Most people who came to the Eighth Branch Arena were there for Neuvillette. As long as Neuvillette was here, there was practically no need for a host, because no one wanted to hear what he had to say.

"Silence!"

Neuvillette lightly tapped the ground with his scepter. An invisible pressure spread throughout the arena, and the spectators who had been discussing him immediately fell silent. His words seemed to possess magic, making them stop talking and quiet down.

"Do not interfere with the competitors while watching the match."

"The arena is a place of absolute fairness and justice."

"Anything that might affect the competitors must be eliminated!"

Neuvillette spoke expressionlessly. Yet the colder and more detached he appeared, the more the girls in the stands had hearts in their eyes.

"So aloof, so captivating!"

"Neuvillette is seriously so handsome. The moment he said 'silence,' my whole body..."

"That's it! Scold me!"

"???"

Had something strange slipped in among them?

Everyone thought the same thing. Even the more reserved girls could not bring themselves to shout such embarrassing words.

"The competitors have one minute to summon their Martial Souls. The match will officially begin in one minute!"

Only after Neuvillette's voice fell did Tang San and Zhu Zhuqing come back to their senses.

Tang San looked at Neuvillette in surprise. A faint trace of gratitude actually rose in his heart!

So many spectators had mocked him before, but now, thanks to Neuvillette's "help," all those idle remarks had vanished.

Wait, why had he not said that earlier?

He only stepped in as a mediator after Tang San had already made a fool of himself!

That trace of gratitude in his heart promptly disappeared.

If you helped Tang San, he would only resent you for not helping enough.

Helping a certain Yan next door was different. He would truly repay the favor many times over, and he would definitely help whenever there was trouble...

"Martial Soul Possession: Hell Spirit Cat!"

"Zhu Zhuqing, Rank 27 Agility Attack Type Soul Grandmaster. Please advise!"

After Zhu Zhuqing's Martial Soul Possession, subtle changes appeared in her body. Her delicate figure became even more slender, a pair of cat ears appeared... and the nails on all ten of her fingers transformed into sharp claws.

"Tang San, Martial Soul: Blue Silver Grass, Rank 29 Soul Grandmaster. Please advise!"

A blue light flickered in Tang San's right hand, and a stalk of Blue Silver Grass appeared in his palm.

Both were Soul Grand Masters, and both possessed the optimal configuration of two yellow soul rings.

Though they were classmates, they had only known each other for a short time and did not understand one another very well.

They only knew each other's Soul Power ranks, after all, since they had taken Zhao Wuji's assessment together.

"Zhu Zhuqing, surrender. An Agility Attack Type against a Control Type—you have no chance at all."

Tang San spoke indifferently.

Zhu Zhuqing frowned at those words, but she said nothing.

Tang San and Dai Mubai got along so well, so Tang San was probably no good either. The same went for Ma Hongjun and Oscar—they were no good people.

Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing remained silent, Tang San did not get angry. He too fell silent, and the arena sank into stillness.

"One minute is up. The match begins!"

The minute passed in an instant. As Neuvillette's words fell, Tang San emerged from his silence. He had not expected a minute to pass so quickly.

Remembering what Dai Mubai had said before, Tang San spoke to Zhu Zhuqing again. "Zhu Zhuqing, surrender. I'm afraid I might hurt you, and Dai Mubai will blame me!"

"In a one-on-one match between opponents of the same rank, Control Types are the strongest. You are no match for me."

"Surrender. We're classmates, after all. You know my strength..."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing, who had been about to attack, furrowed her brows tightly. Was Tang San sick in the head?

She knew she was no match for Tang San. After all, Tang San had fought Zhao Wuji to that extent—how could she possibly be his opponent?

The match had already officially begun. What was the point of Tang San saying all this?

Dai Mubai would blame you?

Those words nearly broke Zhu Zhuqing's composure. Of all people, Tang San had to bring up Dai Mubai!

Just as Zhu Zhuqing was about to say something, Neuvillette's voice rang out.

"Competitor Tang San, first warning!"

"Deliberately disturbing your opponent's emotions is prohibited during an official match. It is a despicable act. You are hereby given a warning!"

"If you do it again, you will receive a second warning and lose your qualification to continue in this match!"

Neuvillette said without changing expression.

Pre-match trash talk was perfectly normal, but that was before the match began!

The one minute allotted for summoning Martial Souls was meant for both competitors to introduce themselves, then provoke their opponents... in other words, it was time for trash talk.

After the official match began, such behavior was despicable, but it did not violate any rules!

However, as the Soul Arena's Chief Judge, Neuvillette had the authority to add such a rule!

That's right! Exactly like this!

Tang San froze. What was going on?

He had merely been persuading Zhu Zhuqing to surrender, and that counted as a violation?

"Neuvillette, is this the justice you speak of?"

"Which rule says that competitors are not allowed to persuade their opponents to surrender?"

Tang San practically shouted at Neuvillette.

He had read through the match rules before the competition. There was no such rule at all!

"As the Soul Arena's Chief Judge, I have the authority to add this rule, for the sake of absolute fairness!"

"Furthermore, what you are doing does not count as persuading your opponent to surrender. You are disturbing your opponent's emotions!"

"Soul skills that disturb an opponent's emotions may naturally be used, but verbal attacks do not fall within the scope of soul skills."

"Soul skills are not frightening. Words hurt the most!"

Neuvillette glanced sideways and spoke without the slightest hint of panic.

Tang San: "???"