Code Name: Mountain Lord, First Spirit Fight

Standing at the registration window of the Great Soul Arena, Chen Yumo calmly reported his code name.

At first, he had wanted to call himself Golden Emperor or Divine Emperor. The Golden White Tiger Martial Soul he displayed corresponded to Golden Emperor, while the path of the Nine Transformations of the Divine Silkworm he followed corresponded to Divine Emperor.

But he was only a Soul Grandmaster now. He had yet to transform from a wriggling maggot into a soaring dragon, so using either of those code names would have been far too ostentatious.

It did not suit his personality.

That was why he chose "Mountain Lord," a code name that did not sound so arrogant and still matched his Martial Soul.

"Fill out this information, then pay the registration fee of ten Gold Soul Coins." The Spirit Fighting Arena staff member looked up at Chen Yumo before handing him a form.

Chen Yumo glanced at the form before him, then picked up the pen beside it and began filling it out.

The form was simple, containing only a few lines of information.

Name, age, birthplace, Martial Soul.

The Great Soul Arena would not investigate the identities of participating Spirit Masters too deeply. Registration was merely a formality, signifying that a Spirit Master had officially registered with the Great Soul Arena. They did not care who you really were.

As long as you did not violate the Great Soul Arena's rules, you could do whatever you liked within those rules.

They would not even verify the information on forms like this. Other than age, Martial Soul, and Soul Power Level needing to be tested on the spot, it did not matter if you filled in a random name and birthplace.

He had not written his real name, either. After all, Chen Yumo was a lung-mist Spirit Master with an "Ice Silkworm Martial Soul," while Mo Yu was the one with the Golden White Tiger Martial Soul.

Reversing the last two characters of his name made for a disguise. Simple and effortless.

Sure enough, the staff member at the counter asked nothing further. After having Chen Yumo release his Martial Soul and testing his Soul Power, he handed him an Iron Soul Badge.

Along with it came a sheet containing the Great Soul Arena's basic competition rules.

Each person could participate in only three spirit fights per day: one individual fight, one doubles fight, and one team fight. A victory earned one point, while a loss deducted one point. Each time a badge advanced, the points gained and lost from victory or defeat would increase tenfold.

Chen Yumo had neither teammates nor a team, so he could only fight one individual match each day. He could not participate in doubles or team spirit fights.

Nor did he intend to look for a team.

He had come to the Great Soul Arena to make money and accumulate combat experience. Finding teammates or joining a team was meaningless.

It would simply make accumulating points more difficult.

If Chen Yumo wanted to raise his spirit fighting rank quickly, he could only keep winning. After five consecutive victories, every additional win would grant points worth ten times his current badge value. After ten consecutive victories, the points would be worth a hundred times as much.

The higher his winning streak and the higher his badge rank, the stronger the opponents he would be matched against, and the better the tempering effect would be.

Naturally, he would also earn more money.

After receiving his badge, Chen Yumo immediately signed up for his first spirit fight, then followed the directions to the designated waiting area.

Since he was a newly registered fighter with a low Soul Power Level, the spirit fighting venue assigned to him was not large, and there were not many spectators in the stands.

For a newcomer like him, unless he encountered a famous opponent in his first spirit fight, the odds would not be particularly high. The battle would also be unlikely to offer much spectacle, so naturally, there would not be many spectators.

In that regard, Chen Yumo did not receive any protagonist treatment. His opponent tonight was ordinary, even little more than cannon fodder.

Naturally, this spirit fight did not attract much attention.

Before long, the previous spirit fight ended, and the host's voice rang out.

"The next spirit fight will be contestant Iron Wall versus contestant Mountain Lord!" The host hovered in the air, using an exaggerated tone to stir up the atmosphere. "Some of our audience members may be familiar with contestant Iron Wall. He has participated in seventeen spirit fights so far, with a record of seven wins and ten losses. He can be considered an old friend of ours!"

"As for contestant Mountain Lord, he is a newcomer who only registered tonight!"

"Interestingly enough, contestant Mountain Lord has 'mountain' in his code name, while contestant Iron Wall's Martial Soul happens to be a Pangolin. So in tonight's spirit fight, will Mountain Lord, this mountain, be pierced through, or will Iron Wall be crushed beneath the mountain?"

The few spectators in the stands immediately burst into laughter at the host's words, their interest in the coming match rising.

This host really knew what he was doing.

Spirit fighting was not just about fighting. It also needed enough gimmicks to stir the audience's emotions. Just like a livestream, if a streamer could not get the audience worked up, how could he get them to shower him with gifts?

Chen Yumo glanced at the host on the high platform, one brow lifting slightly.

He acknowledged the man's marketing skills, but he did not like his tone.

After stepping onto the arena, Chen Yumo saw his opponent for the night.

The man matched his Martial Soul.

He was in his thirties, average-looking, short, stout, and solidly built. He wore a smile on his face and a gray cloth cap on his head, fitting the name Pangolin perfectly.

But compared to Chen Yumo's appearance, the man opposite him looked rather like a goblin.

The other man had clearly noticed Chen Yumo's face, one that rivaled the readers', and intense jealousy and inferiority immediately appeared in his eyes. At that moment, the host called for both sides to release their Martial Souls.

He immediately snatched off his cap and threw it to the ground, then cried out his Martial Soul in a dramatic, rising-and-falling tone.

"Pang~go~lin!!"

"Possession!"

Chen Yumo's mouth twitched, and he felt as though he had somehow wandered onto another set.

But this was a spirit fight, obviously not the right time for snide remarks.

After taking a deep breath, Chen Yumo's gaze suddenly sharpened. He stomped his right foot fiercely against the ground, and an earthshaking tiger's roar rang out as visible shockwaves spread in every direction.

"White Tiger—Possession!"

Within the dazzling platinum radiance, Chen Yumo's already tall body grew several inches larger. The muscles on his arms swelled, a distinctive king character appeared between his brows, and his pupils turned into golden tiger eyes.

As an existence at the very top of the food chain, Chen Yumo's White Tiger Transformation had only just possessed him when the Pangolin opposite him felt immense pressure.

"Mountain Lord, White Tiger Martial Soul, level twenty-one assault-type Battle Soul Grandmaster. Please advise!" Chen Yumo fixed his eyes on the Pangolin, his voice overlapping with the tiger's roar and brimming with intimidation.

"Iron Wall, Pangolin Martial Soul, level twenty-four defense-type Battle Soul Grandmaster. Please advise!" Despite the overwhelming pressure, Iron Wall still forced himself to complete the most basic etiquette before a Spirit Master's duel.

It had to be said that Spirit Masters of Douluo Continent truly valued martial etiquette. Before fighting, they even had to tell their opponent that they were about to beat them up.

Chen Yumo could not help sighing inwardly before tiger claws extended from both hands, and he charged toward the Pangolin.