Famous Throughout Heaven Dou City

In the days that followed, every day of Lin Li's was packed with activity.

He cultivated his Soul Power in the morning, went to Soul Fights in the afternoon, and relaxed in Heaven Dou City at night, either searching for delicious food or interesting taverns where Storytellers performed.

After half a month, Lin Li finally realized that the energy within his body had nearly been depleted. He then consumed the second Immortal Herb—Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew.

This Immortal Herb raised Lin Li's Mental Power by an entire level. He couldn't help feeling refreshed and invigorated.

At the same time, Lin Li discovered something else.

He seemed to have become famous throughout Heaven Dou City.

He first noticed this in the tavern where he often listened to stories. Lin Li discovered that the Storyteller's tale had suddenly become his own story.

The Storyteller even fabricated stories Lin Li himself had never heard of, describing how many setbacks and hardships he had encountered along his path of cultivation.

Sitting on the second floor, Lin Li merely smiled. He found it rather amusing.

Time continued until the end of the month. By then, almost no one in Heaven Dou City was unfamiliar with Lin Li, the Arena Defender.

After the Great Soul Arena was expanded, it could accommodate three times as many people. More and more Gold Soul Coins were being wagered by his fans, and without exception, they were all betting on Lin Li to win.

According to Ning Yang, even the Great Soul Arena in Heaven Dou City had not expected Lin Li to be so strong. As a result, the spectators were all betting on him to win every match.

So they wanted to negotiate with Lin Li and have him throw a match. They would pay him a million Gold Soul Coins.

It was tempting.

Lin Li refused.

Afterward, the Great Soul Arena kept searching for powerful Soul Masters. Apparently, they had already found someone and planned to defeat Lin Li on the final day, taking all the money in the betting pool.

Lin Li paid no attention to this. He knew he would definitely win. After all, Lin Li possessed a certain ability to adapt and could grow stronger the more he fought.

What he cared about was why Qian Renxue, who was disguised as Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, had yet to come looking for him.

Judging by her personality, she should have noticed him long ago. Yet she had still not appeared. He had no idea whether she was plotting something or worried about something.

Lin Li remained in the tavern, listening to stories about things he had never experienced.

After glancing at the sun overhead, Lin Li left a Gold Soul Coin behind and departed the tavern, heading for the Great Soul Arena in Heaven Dou City.

The Arena Tournament on the final day began.

The moment Lin Li stepped onto the arena, he was surrounded by cheers from every direction.

He barely managed to adjust to the situation and somewhat regretted not wearing a mask from the start. He had originally hoped to make Qian Renxue recruit him of her own accord, but now it had become a nuisance.

Lin Li raised his head. His gaze swept over the surroundings unintentionally, and he froze before looking in one direction.

It was the VIP Room where Ning Fengzhi usually stayed. Over the past month, this Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, who should have been busy with countless affairs, had unexpectedly made time to watch half a month of his matches.

But that was not the main point.

The main point was that, in that hidden VIP Room, there was someone who made Lin Li's Martial Soul want to manifest.

It was Martial Soul Resonance.

"She finally came."

Lin Li roughly understood why Qian Renxue had not come to the Great Soul Arena earlier. He had thought she was genuinely uninterested.

Now it seemed that she had been afraid he would act without restraint after the Martial Soul Resonance and do something inappropriate that exposed her identity.

"The Arena Tournament on the final day is about to begin. Let us welcome today's first challenger!"

The Host was still the same beautiful girl with the microphone Martial Soul as before.

Lin Li withdrew his gaze. He knew that the Great Soul Arena had hired someone to deal with him.

"Today's first challenger is known as the Golden Armored Rhinoceros! He is a level-56 Soul King powerhouse!"

Lin Li's expression grew somewhat solemn. This was indeed his first encounter with a Soul King powerhouse. The strongest opponent he had fought before had only been a level-49 Soul Ancestor.

But there was a fundamental difference between an ordinary Soul Ancestor and a Soul King.

The key lay in the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring that only a Soul King could obtain!

Under everyone's eager attention, a man with exceptionally developed biceps and a somewhat pointed head stepped onto the arena.

"Begin!"

The next moment, five Soul Rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, and black—appeared beneath the Soul King's feet. A massive rhinoceros covered in golden armor appeared behind him!

His opponent did not use a Soul Skill either, choosing to collide with Lin Li first and test their respective strength.

The two attacked each other rapidly. Feeling the numbing pain traveling through his hands, Lin Li was shocked by the man's strength.

The Soul King was equally astonished. He had not expected Lin Li's strength to be so great,

especially when Lin Li had not even activated his Martial Soul and was relying solely on his physical strength!

Watching the two exchange blows continuously, all the spectators became incredibly excited.

Compared with other matches, they preferred pure hand-to-hand combat, just like this.

Not everyone was a Soul Master. Ordinary people could not understand overly profound battles, especially Self-Created Soul Skills and the like. What they liked was precisely this kind of flesh-to-flesh brawl!

Lin Li was sent flying dozens of steps by a punch before finally stopping, yet the injuries he had suffered earlier rapidly began to heal.

Aside from his astonishing Self-Healing, Lin Li had another advantage: he did not rely solely on brute force.

Back in Nuoding City, Lin Li had learned some techniques for exerting force from Tang San. During the recent period, he had fought frequently and integrated those combat techniques into methods suited to himself.

Although he was still far from founding his own school, it was enough to narrow the gap between the two fighters in this battle.

As Lin Li settled into a horse stance and spread his hands, one forward and one behind, the Golden Armored Rhinoceros also activated his Third Soul Skill.

"Third Soul Skill, Golden Armor Covering the Body!"

The next moment, the two once again clashed.

At that moment, inside the VIP Room.

Ning Fengzhi sat to the right of the main seat, while Xue Qinghe, whom Lin Li had hoped would come, sat to its left.

Between the two sat an old man wearing a crown and imperial robes.

This man was none other than Xue Ye, the Great Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire!

"Sect Master Ning, to think you managed to obtain such an extraordinary genius. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is truly fortunate!"

Xue Ye congratulated Ning Fengzhi with a hearty smile. Beside him, Xue Qinghe echoed him:

"Congratulations, Teacher. With such a fine talent, the sect will surely flourish for another hundred years!"

"It should be the empire's good fortune," Ning Fengzhi replied courteously, intending to brush the matter aside with a laugh.

But Xue Qinghe spoke again,

"I wonder how Teacher plans to arrange this genius. Could it be that you intend to form a team and participate in the next Continental Advanced Spirit Master Elite Tournament?"

Ning Fengzhi secretly cursed. You really are my good disciple. It seems I have no choice but to make things clear.

He had originally wanted to give a vague answer and make them assume that Lin Li had joined the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"I recruited Little Friend Lin Li a month ago, but he and My Son have gotten along extremely well. I did not want sect rules to make their relationship distant, so he has been training alone."

"However, I also gave him the Seven Treasure Token. That can be considered my support for the younger generation represented by My Son. I do not wish to interfere too much in their decisions."

How could Xue Ye fail to understand Ning Fengzhi's meaning?

The first sentence meant that although Lin Li had not joined the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the two sides had an excellent relationship.

The second sentence was telling him not to interfere. Xue Ye was himself a member of the previous generation.

But that did not matter. His Xue Ye still had a Crown Prince who was skilled at winning over geniuses.

Following Xue Ye's meaningful glance, Xue Qinghe immediately smiled and spoke:

"Teacher's second son has also come of age, and he even befriended such an unpolished jade. This is truly cause for celebration!"

"Why not have your disciple and Brother Ning introduce themselves to each other? That way, we can deepen our relationship... Father, Teacher, what do you think?"