A New Day

Suo Tuo Great Soul Arena.

Zhao Xuan strode up the stairs, the mask he wore removed before he even reached the top.

"Soul Masters' Soul Skills are truly bizarre."

He silently recalled the battle from earlier. Although he had won easily, Zhao Xuan was not satisfied deep down.

He felt he had merely relied on his extraordinary physical fitness in that fight, and under equal circumstances, he might not have won.

The Blood Colored Lone Wolf was indeed strong. Its First Soul Skill, Surprise Attack; Second Soul Skill, Calamity of Bloodlight; Third Soul Skill, Quill Needle; and Fourth Soul Skill, Wolf Blood Boil, were all distinctive.

Facing an opponent of the same level in a one-on-one fight, it would be a nightmare. After activating its Fourth and Second Soul Skills, anyone caught within the Blood Mist was essentially a trapped prey for the Blood Colored Lone Wolf. Unfortunately for it, however, this time it encountered a monster like Zhao Xuan.

Still, Zhao Xuan wasn't without gains from this encounter. He had vaguely awakened his Intuition. If he were to face enemies with 'confusing' skills again, Zhao Xuan, with his Intuition, would be their nightmare.

His other gains were the twenty Gold Soul Coins and ten Points. The danger level of the indiscriminate arena was second only to the certain death of the life-and-death arena, but the rewards were also quite generous.

"I wonder how Xiao San and the others are doing."

Zhao Xuan looked around. The arena on the ground floor was clearly much more prosperous than the one underground. Even the corridors were bustling with people.

Many people came to the Soul Arena simply to witness the passionate clashes between Soul Masters. Compared to the more bloody and dangerous arenas underground, more people preferred to watch strategic battles.

Without pausing, he returned to Shrek Academy. Seeing the brightly lit dormitory, Zhao Xuan felt a sense of relief; it seemed Xiao San and the others had already returned.

However, Zhao Xuan vaguely felt that the atmosphere was a bit off.

"Xiao San."

Zhao Xuan pushed open the door and saw Tang San sitting on the bed, cleaning his Hidden Sleeve Dart. Under the candlelight, the Hidden Sleeve Dart emitted a cold glint.

"Xiao Xuan, are you alright?!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Tang San shot up from his seat. In three quick steps, he reached Zhao Xuan and began checking his body from head to toe.

"I'm fine, hey?! Stop messing around, you're acting like a gay guy."

Tang San thoroughly checked him, his hands occasionally touching Zhao Xuan. Zhao Xuan felt goosebumps all over and quickly pushed Tang San away.

"Gay guy? What's a gay guy?!"

Seeing that Zhao Xuan was unharmed, Tang San breathed a sigh of relief. Then, he asked curiously.

"N-nothing, forget it if you don't know." Zhao Xuan avoided Tang San's gaze, his eyes darting away.

Tang San frowned slightly, scrutinizing Zhao Xuan with a suspicious look. Seeing Zhao Xuan's reaction, he guessed it probably wasn't a good word.

Seeing Tang San's gaze gradually turn dangerous, Zhao Xuan had a sudden idea and quickly asked.

"Xiao San, why do I feel like the academy's atmosphere is a bit strange?"

Using his newly developed Intuition, Zhao Xuan keenly sensed the change in the academy's atmosphere.

Tang San's expression froze for a moment, then he said with some worry, "Some things have indeed happened."

Afterward, Tang San told Zhao Xuan about what had transpired in the academy earlier.

"Ning Rongrong again?!" Zhao Xuan looked at Tang San with surprise.

"That's right. Miss Ning Rongrong has too much of a temper. After offending Boss Dai, she wanted me to help her kill Boss Dai. Can you believe how ridiculous that is?" Tang San's expression was somewhat helpless.

"Heh, that's truly interesting." Zhao Xuan's expression was odd. One million Gold Soul Coins to buy Dai Mubai's life? That's not a small sum! But unfortunately, there are many things in this world that money cannot solve.

"So... where's Oscar?" Looking at the empty bed in the dormitory, Zhao Xuan asked.

"The Dean called him away."

A short while later, Oscar returned to the dormitory. When Zhao Xuan asked about it, he looked like he had a lot to say but couldn't. However, perhaps due to Flender's guidance, his emotions were quite stable. After returning and freshening up, he sat cross-legged and began to cultivate.

Seeing that Oscar was fine, Tang San and Zhao Xuan also went to sleep peacefully.

The next day, when they woke up, they saw Oscar still cultivating and decided not to disturb him.

The two were eating breakfast in the cafeteria. Midway through, Dai Mubai arrived late, his expression somber, clearly in a bad mood. After nodding lightly to them, he sat at a separate table and buried his head in his food.

Following them, Xiao Wu and Hermione arrived together and gathered at Zhao Xuan and Tang San's table. The group ate and chatted merrily.

During this time, Ma Hongjun and Zhu Zhuqing also arrived one after another.

Ma Hongjun appeared refreshed, as if he had done something good last night. However, he was perceptive. Seeing Dai Mubai's obviously bad mood, he closed his smiling mouth and quietly ate in a corner.

Zhu Zhuqing was her usual self, with a cool demeanor, meticulously finishing her breakfast.

Zhao Xuan clicked his tongue. The atmosphere was a bit heavy, and Ning Rongrong and Oscar were nowhere to be seen.

Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were whispering in a corner, Ma Hongjun looking animated, while Dai Mubai occasionally glanced at Zhu Zhuqing.

A melodious bell sound echoed from afar. Everyone hurriedly finished their food and headed to the training grounds.

A figure was already present on the training grounds – Ning Rongrong, the source of the conflict. Oscar was still nowhere to be seen.

Her fair and beautiful face looked somewhat haggard, her eyes were red, and her spirits seemed very low.

When everyone arrived at the training grounds, the Zhao Xuan quartet gathered together and continued their lively conversation, while Ma Hongjun and Dai Mubai whispered to each other on the side.

Only Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong stood alone.

This class was, as usual, taught by Flender, but the bell had been ringing for a long time and he was nowhere to be seen.

About a quarter of an hour later, Flender strolled in, his hair and clothes looking a bit disheveled.

"Did he oversleep?" Zhao Xuan stared suspiciously at Flender and muttered.

Flender's body stiffened almost imperceptibly. Then, he scanned everyone with his eyes, furrowed his brow, and said with a calm expression, "Where's Oscar? Is he sleeping in again?"

Zhao Xuan yawned and then looked at Flender with interest. "He's probably still cultivating. Maybe he's entered a meditative state and hasn't woken up yet."

Flender nodded with a very calm expression, unaware that Zhao Xuan had already seen his earlier oddity.

So, you're the one who overslept, aren't you?