Brawl

This method proved remarkably effective. The chatter died down considerably. No one present was a fool—such a young Heavenly Dou Level student, with the Crown Prince backing him...

One look was enough to know he was someone they couldn't afford to provoke.

Teachers were graded the same way as students, except the requirements were higher. Reaching Rank 40 in Soul Power was the entry threshold for teachers at Heaven Dou Royal Academy, as well as most advanced Soul Master Academies.

At Heaven Dou Academy, teachers above Rank 40 but below Rank 50 were Heavenly Micro Level teachers. Those between Rank 50 and Rank 60 were Heavenly Supreme Level teachers. Those above Rank 60 were Heavenly Dou Level teachers.

At present, Heaven Dou Royal Academy had the three senior members of the Education Committee, along with as many as eight Heavenly Dou Level teachers. This was exceedingly rare throughout the entire Heaven Dou Empire.

Among the Five Element Academies, aside from Elephant Armor Academy and Thunder Academy, which had the Elephant Armor Sect and Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan behind them, the principals of the other three academies were at most Soul Fighting Douluo.

After taking a walk around outside, Dugu Chen and the other two returned to their dormitories to rest.

The dormitories at Heaven Dou Academy were also built lavishly, all of them standalone courtyards.

The courtyards were graded just like the students. The higher the grade, the more luxurious they were. The three chose three adjoining vacant courtyards so they could look after one another more easily.

As Dugu Chen and the other two moved into their dormitories, Qian Renxue was writing a letter in the Crown Prince's Mansion. She handed it to an old man standing in the shadows beside her.

"Make sure this letter reaches Grandfather."

Although she and Bibi Dong were at odds, for the sake of Spirit Hall, she still quickly wrote down the uses of Whale Rubber and sent the information to her grandfather. They needed to purchase some Whale Rubber quickly; otherwise, once the news spread, Spirit Hall would lose its advantage.

"Yes."

A hoarse voice answered, and the old man had already vanished without a trace.

Qian Renxue stood by the window, gazing into the distance toward Heaven Dou Academy.

"Little Chen, you truly opened my eyes today. But that only makes things more interesting. Just like Grandfather and Tang Chen back then—Grandfather couldn't do it, but that doesn't mean I can't."

The beginning-of-term season at Heaven Dou Academy quietly passed.

Over the past few days, Dugu Chen and the other two had explored everywhere there was to explore in Heaven Dou Academy. It truly deserved to be called an academy supported by the Heaven Dou Empire. Its facilities were exceptionally complete, with all kinds of mimic cultivation environments.

Yet such excellent facilities failed to produce many talents. It could only be said that the Heaven Dou Empire's decay ran deep in every aspect.

Today was the first day of school at Heaven Dou Academy. Dugu Chen and the other two would be experiencing classroom life for the first time, which reminded Dugu Chen of his days in school before.

"Junior Brother, morning!"

When Dugu Yan saw Dugu Chen emerge from his courtyard, she greeted him with a beaming smile.

Hearing her voice, Dugu Chen looked up and saw a tall young girl standing before him.

Ever since Dugu Chen had said that he liked long hair, Dugu Yan had never cut hers again. Now, dressed in Heaven Dou Academy's white uniform, her purple hair fell to her waist, the ends curling slightly as it draped over her delicate shoulders.

Dugu Chen's reflection was mirrored in her purple eyes, while her face was filled with undisguised joy.

The young girl walked toward Dugu Chen. Her long, fair legs moved gracefully as her soft, boneless waist swayed from side to side, creating an unusual kind of beauty.

Looking at Dugu Yan, whose purity was mixed with seduction, Dugu Chen had never expected her to be so alluring to him.

So men really did like novelty, huh?

When Dugu Yan reached Dugu Chen's side, she saw that he was somewhat dazed and secretly rejoiced. Her careful preparations had not been in vain.

Dugu Yan naturally looped her arm through one of Dugu Chen's arms, leaned close to his ear, and said,

"Do you like how Senior Sister dressed today, Junior Brother?" After saying that, she even blew softly into his ear.

A strange sensation ran through Dugu Chen, as if a cat were scratching at his heart. Shocked, he thought, So this is what you're like, Senior Sister. With Dugu Bo gone, you're finally letting yourself loose.

Feeling the warm, soft embrace around his arm, Dugu Chen lowered his head to gaze into Dugu Yan's eyes and said gently,

"Of course. I like however Senior Sister dresses, every day."

Dugu Yan felt as though she had eaten honey. She shot Dugu Chen a glare.

"What a smooth talker. You weren't this cute when you were little!" Even so, she tightened her hold on his arm.

"Let's go! It's time for class."

Dugu Chen headed toward the classroom with Dugu Yan. As for their relationship, the two of them understood it without needing to say anything.

Ten minutes later, Oscar stepped out of his courtyard and looked at the empty neighboring courtyards. His heart ached. They had agreed to look out for each other. So love really could disappear, couldn't it?

Heaven Dou Academy had plenty of students, and students at each level had to be divided into classes. There were simply too many for teachers to manage otherwise.

Naturally, Dugu Chen and the other two were assigned to Heaven Dou Class One. The members who participated in the Soul Master Tournament had always been selected from Class One, which contained Heaven Dou Academy's most talented students.

When Dugu Chen and Dugu Yan entered the classroom, they were not surprised to find that most of the students were seventeen or eighteen years old. After all, students like them were rare. For most people, reaching the Soul Elder realm at that age already made them geniuses. They found seats in a corner.

Dugu Chen and Dugu Yan ignored the astonished looks from several people. Dugu Yan leaned against Dugu Chen without even glancing at the others, lowering her head to play with his hair.

Dugu Chen swept his gaze over the class and found that, besides the seventeen- and eighteen-year-old students, there were several much younger ones. Among them, a pair of twin brothers caught his attention.

These two should be the Black Tortoise Brothers from the Heaven Dou Royal Team in the original story. As for the others, he had not seen anyone familiar yet. They probably had not reached the Heavenly Dou Level yet or had not enrolled.

Just then, Oscar pushed open the door and entered, immediately drawing a wave of exclamations. Oscar looked even younger than Dugu Chen, yet he was already Rank 30. Such talent was enviable, and his handsome face also made the male students unanimously hostile toward him.

"Brother Chen, Boss Lady, didn't we agree to go to class together?"

Oscar sat down in front of Dugu Chen and Dugu Yan, then turned around and spoke to them resentfully.

Dugu Chen and Dugu Yan gave awkward smiles. No wonder they had felt as if something was missing. They had forgotten a person!

Dugu Chen patted Oscar's shoulder and said solemnly, "Oscar, you know I was training the essential qualities you need to become a Battle Soul Master."

Oscar's face was practically screaming, Are you kidding me?

Seeing that he had failed to fool Oscar, Dugu Chen spread his hands.

"Fine! We forgot you. Sorry about that. But with such beauty right in front of me, Oscar, you can understand your brother, right?"

Oscar turned to look at Dugu Yan's dangerous smile and nodded repeatedly.

At that moment, a male teacher pushed open the door. The noisy classroom instantly fell silent.

"Students, my name is Liu Ze, a Rank 72 Battle Soul Saint. Starting today, I will be responsible for leading you. Now, each student will introduce yourselves."

When they heard that their new teacher was a Soul Saint, everyone was shocked. The previous Class One teacher had only been a Soul Emperor. This time, they had sent a Soul Saint, leaving everyone puzzled.

The moment Dugu Chen heard that the teacher was a Soul Saint, he felt that the Three Education Commissioners were probably planning something big.

It was indeed close to what Dugu Chen had guessed. Dugu Chen and the other two had given the Education Committee confidence. Five years later, Heaven Dou was determined to win the championship of the Soul Master Tournament. This was also the Crown Prince's order.

Thus, they had exceptionally assigned a Soul Saint to teach the class. He was to select the strongest seven students from Class One and form the strongest Heaven Dou Royal Team in history.

As he listened to the introductions one after another, most were high-level Soul Elders. After all, their ages and resources were there for all to see. Yet there was still not a single Soul Ancestor.

"Shi Mo. Martial Soul: Black Tortoise. Rank 32 Defense System Battle Soul Elder."

"Shi Mo. Martial Soul: Black Tortoise. Rank 31 Defense System Battle Soul Elder."

It really was them. Looking at the muscular hulks in front of him, each around six feet tall, Dugu Chen knew he had not guessed wrong.

"Oscar. Martial Soul: Sausage. Rank 35 Food System Soul Elder."

Oscar's introduction caused a wave of exclamations. They had guessed that Oscar was a genius, but they had not expected him to possess a Food System Martial Soul. Food System Martial Souls were the hardest to cultivate. With that thought, everyone's eyes turned fervent as they looked at Oscar.

In truth, after news of Dugu Chen and the other two spread over the past few days, if outsiders had not believed that Dugu Bo had already joined the Crown Prince's side, the threshold of the Dugu household would have been worn down by visitors. These were three future Titled Douluo!

"Dugu Chen. Martial Soul: Qilin. Rank 44 Power Attack System Battle Soul Ancestor."

"Dugu Yan. Martial Soul: Jade Phosphorous Serpent. Rank 48 Control System Battle Soul Ancestor."

"Whoa!!!"

Dugu Chen and Dugu Yan's ranks caused another uproar, followed immediately by a chorus of doubts. They were at the age when their blood ran hot—who would admit to being inferior to someone else?

Moreover, they had never seen such young Soul Ancestors. When faced with the unknown, most people remained skeptical.

"I don't believe it! Teacher, they must have falsified their ranks."

"That's right! Teacher, I don't believe it either. How could three freaks appear in one day?"

"We don't believe it!"

As the classroom erupted in noise, Liu Ze was just about to act when Dugu Chen stood up first. His calm voice instantly drowned out the surrounding clamor.

"If you don't believe it, meet me at the Soul Arena. We'll settle it with our fists."

After saying that, Dugu Chen led Dugu Yan and Oscar straight toward the Soul Arena.

Dugu Chen's arrogant attitude instantly enraged this group of pampered second-generation heirs. A large crowd followed after him. Looking at the empty classroom, Liu Ze felt helpless. He had known before coming that Class One would be hard to lead, but he had not expected it to be this difficult. He could only follow to prevent any casualties.

At Heaven Dou Academy's Soul Arena, Dugu Chen stood alone on the stage, looking at the dozen or so classmates who had arrived. Dugu Yan and Oscar watched from the spectator stands, neither of them believing this could trouble Dugu Chen.

Students from other classes who had heard the commotion also gathered around to watch.

"Kid, don't be too arrogant."

"You can't even make up a believable lie. If you're really a Soul Ancestor, I'll eat my own shoes."

"You've been exposed, haven't you? Even your companions aren't helping you. Apologize to me, and I'll go easier on you later."

Listening to the few people below him trading barbs, Dugu Chen thought that everyone at Heaven Dou Academy seemed to be a king of trash talk.

He picked at his ear and said impatiently to the people below,

"Are you done? Come on, all of you get up here. I want to finish this quickly—I still need to have dinner with Senior Sister."