A Bite at a Time, Rich but Not Greasy—Even the Evil Spirit Masters Next Door Cried with Envy

Evening.

The screams that had echoed through the Soul Fighting Arena all afternoon gradually subsided.

Class Six had thirty-six members in total, but when they left the Soul Fighting Arena, only six of them walked out upright.

As for the wager between Xu Hu and Zeng Jingyu, it had been settled in less than five minutes after class ended.

The speed could not have been any faster.

The truth was, Zeng Jingyu had been frightened by Xu Yuan's strength.

He had only just become a Soul Master, yet he had instantly defeated Yan, who was on the verge of becoming a Soul Elder. Coupled with his Innate Full Soul Power talent...

He was simply not someone Zeng Jingyu could afford to provoke.

The sooner it was settled, the sooner he could rest easy.

Two hundred Gold Soul Coins was no small sum, but for a three-ringed Zeng Jingyu, it was not too much either.

That evening, after dinner.

Xu Yuan tucked away the combat-strength investment dividends he had received from Xu Hu, left the academy gates, and wandered through Spirit City's night market.

Making money was not something that could be done with just talk. Xu Yuan had already decided what product he wanted to make.

It was just that the academy did not sell the raw materials, so he had to buy them in the city.

Spirit City's night market could not compare to the world Xu Yuan had lived in during his previous life, but it was still brightly lit and bustling with activity.

There were only Soul Masters in the city. Ordinary people were almost nowhere to be seen.

Most of the shops lining the streets sold items related to Soul Masters.

Soul Tools, soul herbs that could increase cultivation speed, Soul Beast corpses, Soul Beast pelts, Soul Beast bones, and so on.

Those bones were not Soul Bones, merely ordinary bones that could be used to craft weapons or Soul Tools. They were all decent materials.

Xu Yuan spent two hours walking through nearly half the city, yet he hardly saw any shops selling clothes, snacks, or food.

What did that mean?

It meant there was an enormous untapped market here.

What did Soul Masters work so hard to cultivate for?

To work for Spirit Hall?

No, no, no. Almost everyone wanted to become someone above others, to enjoy a better life.

But without entertainment or good food, what kind of enjoyment was that?

Xu Yuan felt that he had both the obligation and responsibility to make up for what Douluo Continent lacked.

It was not for money. It was mainly because Soul Masters like him had a duty to do so.

It was not until midnight that Xu Yuan finally gathered all the raw materials he wanted. Since he did not have a Storage Soul Tool, he did not buy too much.

He would make a little first and test the market. What if the things he made did not suit this world?

Carrying a small bundle on his back and wearing a faint smile, Xu Yuan tightened the straps and prepared to return to the academy.

By then, it was quite late, and there were far fewer pedestrians on the streets.

When Xu Yuan passed a street corner and had just stepped into the shadows, a dark figure beside him swept over like lightning.

It was incredibly fast.

It also carried a thick stench of blood.

Before Xu Yuan could react, someone struck the back of his neck with a hand chop, and he immediately lost consciousness.

After doing all that, the culprit's five Spirit Rings—one white, one yellow, two purple, and one black—appeared belatedly, only to vanish again in an instant.

The culprit looked around, confirmed that the area was safe, then hoisted the unconscious Xu Yuan over their shoulder and swiftly fled the scene.

After a few leaps, they vanished into the night.

A light rain pattered softly against the roof, producing a steady drizzle.

Xu Yuan slowly woke up, feeling a throbbing pain at the back of his neck. He instinctively sucked in a breath of cold air.

Only then did his memories gradually reconnect.

He remembered finishing his stroll through the night market and preparing to return to the academy. But the moment he passed a street corner, he lost consciousness.

He lowered his head and looked.

Both his hands and feet were bound, and the ropes appeared to be made from some special material. They gleamed faintly and were likely crafted from the main tendons of some Soul Beast.

Clearly, he had been kidnapped!

Xu Yuan could hardly believe it.

Damn, was public security in this world really this terrible?

As fresh blood for Spirit Hall, a reserve candidate for future management, and a peerless genius with Innate Full Soul Power...

Was it really acceptable for him to get kidnapped while strolling through the night market in his own city?

Xu Yuan's expression turned grim. He still had so many lofty ambitions left unrealized. He had only just begun planning to develop business here—was he going to die right at the start?

A somewhat familiar voice sounded from beside him.

"You're awake?"

Xu Yuan turned his head, and a beautiful face with a hint of seductive charm suddenly entered his sight.

Hu Liena?

Who else could the person beside him be but Hu Liena, his roommate from Room 404?

His expression stiffened. The first thing Xu Yuan thought of was how he had badly injured Yan that afternoon. Could Hu Liena have kidnapped him to avenge Yan?

That was not right. Yan, with his innate simp physique, had not even managed to win her over by the time of the Continental Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament.

There was no reason for this!

Could it be that, because he had transmigrated, the future had already changed with the flap of a butterfly's wings?

Very quickly, Xu Yuan realized he was wrong.

Because Hu Liena beside him had her hands and feet bound as well, and she was in no better condition than he was.

"What the hell is going on?" Xu Yuan was stunned.

Hu Liena gave him a casual glance, her expression calm. "Stop thinking about it. This isn't a prank. It really is a kidnapping.

And there's a high chance we won't survive.

There's no need to feel wronged. You should be secretly delighted to have such a beautiful woman as me dying alongside you."

Pah, what an insufferably confident woman!

Xu Yuan's face darkened.

Hu Liena then roughly explained the sequence of events to Xu Yuan.

As the continent's number one power, Spirit Hall had always considered eliminating evil, upholding justice, punishing the strong, and helping the weak its duty.

Although some rot had grown within its internal institutions over the past few years, its efforts to punish evil had never stopped.

People could be good or bad, and naturally, so could Soul Masters.

Whenever an evil Soul Master appeared somewhere on the continent, Spirit Hall would send people to eliminate them. Those guilty of serious crimes were generally killed on the spot, while those with lighter sins were escorted to the City of Sin for imprisonment.

This righteous act had earned Spirit Hall immense public praise, but it had also made many enemies.

Those evil Soul Masters still at large, who had not yet been killed or captured, would naturally choose retaliation.

They could do nothing to high-level Soul Masters, but could they not bully low-level Soul Masters?

Every year, many promising young talents of Spirit Hall died to such targeted revenge.

And now, that danger had descended upon the two of them.

However.

Knowing was one thing, accepting fate was another. Waiting helplessly for death was not Xu Yuan's style.

He struggled several times, but the ropes binding his hands and feet did not budge. Instead, they left numerous red marks around his wrists and ankles.

Xu Yuan frowned and looked toward Hu Liena.

"Is there no way out? Why didn't they just kill us?"

"There's no saving us. Just wait for death."

Hu Liena calmly glanced at him. "As for why they didn't kill us right away, don't you know that to these Evil Spirit Masters, people are the best cultivation resources?

Especially someone like you, with Innate Full Soul Power and exceptional talent.

They love this stuff. They'll slice your flesh into thin pieces, dip them in your blood, and eat them one bite at a time—rich but not greasy.

Even the Evil Spirit Masters next door would cry with envy."

Xu Yuan: "..."

Damn it!