Junior Brother, You're Still Young—Start Dating Early!

Combat was also a form of training.

Especially when challenging oneself under weighted conditions. That was Ning Wuque's plan, and Shrek Academy happened to have a well-equipped Great Soul Arena that made fighting convenient for him.

So, he intended to use combat to ease the tedium of training and fully enjoy the fiery thrill of trading blows with others after sweating buckets!

Shrek Academy's Great Soul Arena was enormous and open nearly around the clock. Here, one could spar with others, engage in wager matches, or even settle personal grudges.

Although classes had not officially begun yet, Ning Wuque still found the Great Soul Arena packed with people when he entered. Once inside, it felt as though there was not an empty seat in sight.

At the same time, he saw quite a few people not wearing academy uniforms—both adults and children.

Shrek Academy's Great Soul Arena stood at the very edge of the academy. Travelers and residents of Shrek City could buy tickets to enter and watch the academy's geniuses battle with their martial souls.

At the same time, gambling pools and other stimulating ventures were forbidden here. It was a Great Soul Arena with absolutely no special profit-making purpose.

The only thing permitted was the students' own stakes during wager matches.

Well, at least on the surface.

"Hello, I'd like to have a soul battle. Can I be matched with someone here?"

"Of course, Junior Brother. What sort of soul battle are you looking for? If it's an ordinary match, you may need to wait a while. Wager matches will be arranged first if someone is willing to wager against you."

The receptionist was a senior sister working part-time.

Without hesitation, Ning Wuque took out the Gold Card Ning Tian had given him from his Storage Soul Tool and said,

"A wager match. The conditions are that Soul Tools may be used, and the opponent must be a Beast Soul Master below Level Thirty-Three. Preferably someone willing to meet me head-on.

"I can put up ten thousand Gold Soul Coins per match. If the other party agrees to fight me head-on, they may challenge me for free. Otherwise, they'll need to put up an equal stake. Thank you."

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Hearing Ning Wuque's conditions, the senior sister at the counter showed a hint of concern. No matter how she looked at him, he was a newly enrolled freshman!

At the same time, she was a little surprised. Were there not too many Three-Ringed Soul Grandmaster freshmen this year?

"Let's do it. Charge one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins and keep it on deposit. I'll probably come here often for soul battles."

Ning Wuque did not have much time, so he offered a rather tempting condition.

As for losing?

At worst, he could activate his martial soul, or even open the Blood Surge Gate and let those Soul Elders see what the raw stats of a Soul Ancestor were all about!

Seeing that Ning Wuque still insisted, the senior sister stopped trying to dissuade him. One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins was a great deal to her, but to a young master like Ning Wuque, it might only be entertainment.

Ten thousand Gold Soul Coins per match. He really had deep pockets.

"Oi~ Junior Brother, you seem pretty confident in your strength. If I don't use any soul skills, do you think you could loosen the conditions a little and have a soul battle with me?"

Just as Ning Wuque waited for the paperwork to be processed, a delighted voice suddenly popped up behind him. It sounded as though the speaker had learned he was giving away money and had rushed over specifically to collect it.

Turning around, Ning Wuque saw what the newcomer looked like.

Black-and-red hair, a tall and powerfully built frame clad in fitted combat clothes, and pupils like a snake's. He looked decent enough, yet from head to toe he gave off a... frivolous, unruly air.

He looked rather unreliable.

"And you are?"

Ning Wuque recognized him. He was Xu Sanshi, Bei Bei's frequent accomplice in the original story, always appearing with him at the Great Soul Arena to earn pocket money.

But he was not supposed to know him yet, so he asked.

Across from him, Xu Sanshi smiled and introduced himself amicably.

"My name's Xu Sanshi, a fifth-year student and a Level Forty defense-system battle Soul Elder. How about it, Junior Brother? Want to challenge me? I can refrain from using any soul skills and only use my martial soul to spar with you head-on.

"Of course, I won't bully you. My stake will be a Beautifying Pill. This is an especially rare treasure on the market, you know. It works wonders for hooking little girls~"

"Oh? Is that true?"

Ning Wuque nearly failed to hold back his laughter. No soul skills was good. A defense-system punching bag was even better!

He knew about Beautifying Pills. They were a type of pill specially made by the Mystic Tortoise Sect, usually a byproduct of the Mystic Water Pill. Though they could not truly make someone more beautiful, they could leave the skin soft, supple, and smooth, offering a certain skincare effect.

One pill cost around a thousand Gold Soul Coins, but since it was as scarce as the Mystic Water Pill, its actual price was far higher than its listed value. It was especially devastatingly tempting to female soul masters!

"Junior Brother, you're still young—start dating early! So, what do you say? Miss this chance, and there won't be another."

Xu Sanshi grinned in a thoroughly sleazy manner, then casually slung an arm around Ning Wuque's shoulders as though they were old friends. He had come at just the right time today.

Not only could he teach this little junior brother how treacherous people's hearts could be, but he could also score ten thousand Gold Soul Coins in pocket money for free. Tsk, tsk, tsk~ What a wonderful thing soul battles were!

"Alright, then I'll boldly ask for your guidance, Senior Brother. It just so happens that I have someone to give this Beautifying Pill to, so it really came at the perfect time."

"Oh? Junior Brother, so you already have someone in your heart? Fine, then I'll see this good deed through to the end. Even if you lose, I'll still sell you this Beautifying Pill if you add another two thousand Gold Soul Coins. May your romance have a perfect ending!"

"Then thank you, Senior Brother Sanshi."

Ning Wuque smiled and nodded as well. The more he looked at Xu Sanshi, the more pleasing he found him. The man truly understood the art of language.

Afterward, the two happily registered their soul battle at the counter. Their match would be up after three more soul battles.

While waiting in the lounge, Ning Wuque and Xu Sanshi sat together. The latter hooked an arm around his neck and asked,

"By the way, Junior Brother, I still don't know your name. Care to tell me?"

"My name is Ning Wuque. I'm a Level Twenty-Two assault-system Soul Grandmaster from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Clan."

"Level Twenty-Two?!"

Xu Sanshi cried out in surprise. He had assumed Ning Wuque had to be at least Level Thirty-One or Thirty-Two. Otherwise, how could he dare apply for a Soul Elder-level soul battle? And a head-on fight, at that!

Of course, this was also because Ning Wuque had not deliberately released his aura within the academy, so Xu Sanshi could not sense the Soul Elder-level pressure from him as Bei Bei could.

A smile curled across Ning Wuque's lips as he said slowly,

"Senior Brother Sanshi, don't underestimate me because of my Soul Power Level. Oh, and one more thing: I'm also the personal guard of the current Young Clan Head of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. You'd better be careful."

"The Young Clan Head's guard? Junior Brother Wuque, don't tell me the one you have your heart set on is that Young Clan Head? I heard that the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's Young Clan Head of this generation is a girl."

"Correct, but there's no reward."