In Suotuo City, the next three days were an inescapable nightmare for the Shrek Seven Devils.
"What's going on? Why is it them again?!"
In the rest area, Dai Mubai slammed the registration form in his hand onto the table. His sinister eyes were bloodshot, and he looked ready to explode.
For the past three days, no matter what level of Soul Fighting they signed up for—
1v1, 2v2, or team battles—
if any Shrek member was competing, someone from the World Burial team was sure to be on the other side!
Ma Hongjun entered a 1v1 match and faced Osler. The Ghost Leopard toyed with him using his speed, then shaved off Ma Hongjun's prized red mohawk. Ma Hongjun ran off the stage in tears.
Oscar and Dai Mubai teamed up for a 2v2 match against the Shi Mo brothers. The two giant turtles stood their ground, and no matter how fiercely Dai Mubai attacked, he couldn't break through their defenses. In the end, the brothers smacked him into the wall with their two turtle-shell shields, where he got stuck and couldn't be pulled free.
Tang San had it the worst.
He tried to reclaim his pride in a 1v1 match, only to face Yu Feng.
Tang San had assumed Yu Feng was just a fragile Agility Attack System Spirit Master. But under Yu Tianyu's guidance, Yu Feng had learned the Low-Altitude Predation tactic. He never landed or got close, and simply kept Tang San at bay with wind blades.
Whenever Tang San used Blue Silver Grass to Bind, Yu Feng flew high into the air. Whenever Tang San used Hidden Weapons, Yu Feng dodged with his incredible maneuverability.
In the end, Tang San didn't lose by much, but he ran out of Soul Power and the match ended in a draw. (Yu Feng had gone easy on him, not wanting to win too obviously and arouse the Soul Fighting Arena's suspicions.)
"This is targeted! This is blatant targeting!"
Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang sat in a corner, his face darker than the bottom of a pot. He had tried to protest over the past few days, but the Great Soul Arena's response had been: "Random matchmaking. It's a matter of luck."
To hell with luck!
Whose luck was so bad that they'd run into the same team in every single match for three days straight?
"All right, stop complaining."
Flender sighed and pushed up his glasses. "We're suspending tonight's team battle. You're all in terrible shape, and your morale has collapsed. Take the night off and go clear your heads."
At the words "take the night off," Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up.
She'd had enough of this exhausting routine of getting beaten up, not to mention the shabby rest area and awful boxed meals. She was the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!
"I'm leaving first!"
Without waiting for Flender to finish, Ning Rongrong changed into her own clothes and ran out of the rest area without looking back.
"Rongrong!" Oscar tried to follow, but Ning Rongrong shot him such a cold look that he stopped in his tracks.
Meanwhile, in the shadows—
Zhu Zhuqing, who was usually quiet, glanced at Dai Mubai as he fumed. A trace of disappointment flashed in her eyes. She said nothing, quietly left the group, and headed toward the night market outside the Soul Fighting Arena.
Suotuo City's night market was ablaze with lights.
Ning Rongrong wandered aimlessly through the streets, growing more upset with every step.
She'd run away from home to prove herself, only to end up at this lousy Shrek Academy. The food was bad, the lodgings were bad, and Flender even scolded her, saying she was worthless without the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.
"What kind of Monster Academy is this? It's a beggars' den!"
Ning Rongrong kicked a small stone by the roadside and grumbled, "I can't even get a decent slice of cake."
Just then, a tempting aroma drifted over.
It smelled of the finest cream mixed with expensive spices.
Ning Rongrong followed the scent and saw a group of familiar people seated at an extravagant open-air dessert shop up ahead.
They were the Imperial Fighting Team—the World Burial team.
They had booked the entire terrace. Their table was covered in exquisite desserts that looked like works of art, fruit tarts, and chilled fruit wine.
Yu Tianyu sat at the head of the table, elegantly savoring a slice of Black Forest Cake with a silver fork. Beside him, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling chatted and laughed.
The relaxed, comfortable, refined atmosphere was a stark contrast to the gloom hanging over Shrek.
Ning Rongrong couldn't help swallowing.
She wasn't craving the food. She missed this kind of lifestyle. This was how the eldest daughter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was supposed to live!
Perhaps her gaze had been too intense.
Yu Tianyu turned his head and spotted Ning Rongrong standing under a streetlamp, looking torn, even from across the crowd.
"Since you're here, why not come sit with us?"
Yu Tianyu's voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to Ning Rongrong's ears.
Ning Rongrong hesitated.
Her reason told her that this was an opposing team and she shouldn't go.
But her rumbling stomach and haughty princess temperament somehow compelled her to walk over.
"Hmph. I'm only tired from walking. I'm just borrowing a seat."
Ning Rongrong reached the table, lifted her chin, and tried to maintain her dignity.
"Please, have a seat."
Yu Tianyu snapped his fingers. "Waiter, bring this beautiful lady a serving of Angel's Kiss mousse, and a hot chocolate with a double serving of milk."
Ning Rongrong froze.
Angel's Kiss? That was the latest limited-edition dessert in Heaven Dou City. They had it here too? And... how did he know she liked her hot chocolate with extra milk?
"Don't look at me like that."
Yu Tianyu smiled, his mismatched eyes seeming to possess the power to see right through people. "The preferences of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's young lady aren't much of a secret."
Ning Rongrong sat down and looked at the delicate dessert in front of her. Half her defenses crumbled in an instant.
"You... know who I am?"
"Of course."
Yu Tianyu cut off a small piece of cake. "The beloved daughter of Sect Master Ning Fengzhi, a genius with what's hailed as the finest Support Martial Soul on the Douluo Continent. Who doesn't know you?"
Those words pleased Ning Rongrong immensely.
At Shrek, Flender only belittled her, saying she couldn't even compare to Oscar. But this young man called her a genius, a treasure.
"Hmph. At least you have good taste."
Ning Rongrong took a bite of the mousse. Its sweetness blossomed on her tongue, easing some of the resentment she'd felt over the past few days.
"However..."
Yu Tianyu changed tack, his tone tinged with regret.
"I'm curious. Why would someone as noble as you, a phoenix, insist on lowering yourself by staying in a nest full of chickens?"
Ning Rongrong paused, her spoon in hand, and her expression darkened. "Who are you calling a chicken?"
"Don't misunderstand. I wasn't talking about you."
Yu Tianyu swirled the red wine in his glass. "I meant Shrek Academy."
"An academy without a Mimicry Cultivation Environment, unable to provide even decent nutritious meals, and whose only idea is to send students to risk their lives in the Soul Fighting Arena for money... If that's not a nest of chickens, what is?"
"Besides, I hear that old codger Flender is always putting you down, saying you're inferior to that sausage seller?"
Ning Rongrong's eyes instantly reddened.
That was a sore spot for her.
"He... said that aside from my Martial Soul advantage, I have a poor temperament, am spoiled, and am good for nothing..." Ning Rongrong bit her lip as she spoke.
"Bullshit."
Yu Tianyu sneered, swearing.
"Support Spirit Masters are the commanders on the battlefield and the core everyone protects. So what if you're spoiled? As long as your boosts are powerful enough, countless experts will be willing to fight for you and hold you in the palm of their hands."
"Although Oscar has Innate Full Soul Power, his Martial Soul is food-type. Food-type Spirit Masters and top-tier Support Spirit Masters like those with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda follow completely different paths."
"Expecting a Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Spirit Master to meet standards for physical fitness and endurance is like expecting a swan to plow a field like an ox. That's how an idiot educates people."
Those words struck Ning Rongrong right in the heart!
She looked at Yu Tianyu excitedly, as if she'd found her kindred spirit. "You think so too?!"
"Of course."
Yu Tianyu leaned forward slightly and stared into Ning Rongrong's eyes, laying out his first tantalizing offer.
"And, Rongrong..."
"Do you know why the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda can only ever be the 'Seven Treasure' Pagoda, and can never break through to level eighty and become the 'Nine Treasure' Pagoda?"
Clink.
Ning Rongrong's spoon fell onto her plate.
Her eyes widened and her breathing quickened. "You... What did you say? You know why?"
This was the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's pain, a burden that had weighed on them for thousands of years! It was also the greatest regret of her father, Ning Fengzhi.
"Not only do I know why."
A mysterious smile tugged at the corner of Yu Tianyu's mouth as he lowered his voice. "I also know how to solve it."
"I have an Immortal Herb called Aromatic Silk Beauty."
"It can turn the Seven Treasure into the Nine Treasure."
Boom!!!
Ning Rongrong felt a thunderclap explode inside her mind.
The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda?!
If anyone else had told her this, she would have assumed they were a fraud. But the young man before her was unfathomably powerful, had a mysterious background, and spoke with such certainty...
"You... have that Immortal Herb?" Ning Rongrong's voice trembled, not only with excitement but with greed as well.
"I don't have it on me right now, but it's in my family's treasury."
Yu Tianyu didn't take it out right away—things that came too easily weren't cherished. Instead, he kept her guessing.
"It's priceless. I can't just give it away."
"However..."
Yu Tianyu watched the longing in Ning Rongrong's eyes and smiled. "If you're willing to join our team and become my teammate, I might consider giving it to you as a welcome gift."
"Join... your team?"
Ning Rongrong glanced at Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan beside him.
Ye Lingling didn't say much, but her top-tier equipment and powerful aura made it clear that she was far better off than the students suffering at Shrek.
"I'm not forcing you."
Yu Tianyu leaned back in his chair, once more looking relaxed and languid. "Take your time to think it over. Do you want to stay at Shrek as the young lady everyone looks down on, or come here, evolve into the legendary 'Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda,' and become a true goddess?"
"This hot chocolate is on me."
With that, Yu Tianyu stood up and left with the others.
Ning Rongrong was left sitting alone, staring at the unfinished hot chocolate. Her eyes shone with fierce conflict and ambition.
The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda...
Shrek? Tang San? Oscar?
In the face of such temptation, all that so-called "friendship" seemed insignificant.
With the groundwork laid with Ning Rongrong, Yu Tianyu didn't return to the hotel.
He sent Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling back first, then turned and slipped into a dark alley in Suotuo City.
Because he sensed her.
Another "lost little cat" was venting her anger there.
Deep in the alley—
"First Spirit Skill: Hell Stab!"
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Several flashes of cold light streaked through the air, frightening a few stray dogs into fleeing in all directions. Deep claw marks were left in the wall.
Zhu Zhuqing wore tight black clothes that accentuated her curvaceous figure, far beyond her age. She was furiously venting her frustration on the wall.
Just a moment ago, she'd seen Dai Mubai claim he was in a bad mood, then go off to a hotel with two seductive women.
Disgusting!
Was this her fiancé? Was this the prince of the Star Luo Empire?
"If you don't want to keep those hands, you can cut them off. Don't take it out on the wall."
A cool voice sounded from the entrance to the alley.
Zhu Zhuqing whipped around, like a cat with its fur standing on end, instantly taking an attacking stance. "Who?!"
Yu Tianyu walked in slowly with his hands in his pockets.
Moonlight fell across his face, leaving one half in the light and the other in shadow. He looked especially sinister.
"It's you... the captain of the World Burial team." Zhu Zhuqing recognized him, and her guard rose even higher.
"Zhu Zhuqing, second young lady of the Zhu Family of the Star Luo Empire."
Yu Tianyu revealed her identity outright. "You came all this way just to find that good-for-nothing named Dai Mubai?"
With her secret exposed, Zhu Zhuqing's face paled. She gritted her teeth. "That's none of your business!"
"It isn't. I just think it's funny."
Yu Tianyu stopped five meters away from her. "You're risking everything to change your fate and stay alive. You train yourself to the limit. And what about that man?"
"He's running away, sinking into depravity, looking for validation in women's arms."
"Do you really think you can defeat your sister with a spineless coward like him? Do you think you can survive the brutal struggle within the imperial family?"
Zhu Zhuqing's body trembled.
That was the reality she least wanted to face.
"Stay out of it!"
Zhu Zhuqing shouted angrily and launched an attack.
"Second Spirit Skill: Nether Hundred Claws!"
She moved with incredible speed, becoming a black blur as a hundred claw shadows descended on Yu Tianyu. She wanted to use battle to conceal her inner weakness.
"Too slow."
Yu Tianyu didn't even use his Martial Soul.
Amid the countless claw shadows, he sidestepped, retreated, and ducked with leisurely ease.
With every strike, her sharp claws came within a few millimeters of his clothes, yet never managed to touch them.
"Your heart's not in it. Every move is full of openings."
Just as Zhu Zhuqing's strength was spent and she had yet to summon new strength,
Yu Tianyu moved.
He lunged forward, crashing straight into Zhu Zhuqing's arms—in the purely physical sense.
His left hand shot out like lightning and clamped around Zhu Zhuqing's slender wrist, twisting her arm behind her back. His right hand followed, gripping the nape of her neck—just like someone grabbing a cat.
"Thud!"
Yu Tianyu pinned Zhu Zhuqing against the wall.
Their bodies were pressed tightly together.
His overpowering masculine presence enveloped Zhu Zhuqing in an instant. She struggled desperately, only to discover that the young man was astonishingly strong. She was like a kitten pinned beneath a giant dragon, unable to move.
"Let go of me!!" Zhu Zhuqing cried, mortified and furious.
"Be quiet."
Yu Tianyu leaned close to her ear, his voice low and magnetic. "Look at yourself right now. So weak."
"You can't even beat me. How do you expect to defeat your sister?"
"Are you counting on Dai Mubai, who goes weak in the knees the moment he sees me?"
At the mention of Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing stopped struggling. A trace of despair showed in her eyes.
"Then what can I do..." Her voice turned tearful.
"It's simple."
Yu Tianyu released one hand and gently lifted her chin, gazing into her stubborn, cool black eyes.
"Abandon that good-for-nothing."
"The Hell Spirit Cat doesn't need to rely on the White Tiger to survive."
"As long as you're strong enough, you can be queen of the night."
Yu Tianyu's fingers traced her delicate collarbone. "Come to me. I'll teach you how to push your speed to its limits, and how to turn those claws into a death god's sickles, reaping lives."
"I don't need a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. I'm the strongest core all on my own. I can make it so that... even by yourself, you can trample Dai Mubai and your sister beneath your feet."
Zhu Zhuqing gazed at the young man standing right before her.
In those mismatched eyes burned a flame called ambition—a thing she had never seen in Dai Mubai's eyes.
That man had given her nothing but disappointment.
But this young man made her feel... that he was powerful and domineering, yet somehow impossible to resist relying on.
"You... can really make me stronger?" Zhu Zhuqing murmured.
"The Soul Fighting Arena tomorrow."
Yu Tianyu let her go, stepped back, and straightened his collar.
"You can try challenging me once. You'll lose, of course, but I'll show you... what true speed and strength look like."
"Also..."
Yu Tianyu turned and walked away, leaving her with one final remark.
"That Dai Mubai isn't good enough for you. Dump him soon. It'll be good for you."
Watching Yu Tianyu disappear into the distance, Zhu Zhuqing leaned against the wall and stood motionless for a long time.
She touched the shoulder Yu Tianyu had pinned moments ago. It seemed to still hold the warmth of his hand.
"Get stronger..."
The confusion in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes gradually faded, replaced by a determination she had never felt before.
Back at Shrek Academy's temporary lodgings,
Ning Rongrong returned with the box containing the unfinished Angel's Kiss mousse cake still in her hand.
"Rongrong, you're back? Where did you go?"
Oscar hurried over, eager to please, holding a freshly grilled sausage. "You must be hungry, right? Want a sausage?"
Looking at the greasy sausage, then at the exquisite cake in her hand,
Ning Rongrong felt the difference between them even more keenly.
"I'm not hungry. Put it away."
Ning Rongrong coldly pushed Oscar aside and went straight back to her room. "Don't bother me with things like this again."
Oscar stood frozen in place, looking hurt.
Meanwhile,
when Zhu Zhuqing returned, she ran into Dai Mubai, who had just come back from outside, reeking of alcohol and perfume.
"Zhuqing, where have you been? Why are you back so late?"
Seeing her, Dai Mubai instinctively reached for her hand. "I was worried about you."
In the past, Zhu Zhuqing might have simply avoided him with a cold expression.
But today, after hearing what Yu Tianyu had said, she looked at Dai Mubai and felt nothing but disgust.
"Don't touch me."
Zhu Zhuqing sharply shook off Dai Mubai's hand, her gaze as cold as a blade. "If you can't keep it in your pants, don't come here and make me sick."
"Also, I'm not teaming up with you for tomorrow's two-on-two Soul Fighting match."
"What did you say?!" Dai Mubai sobered up halfway. "We're the Hell White Tiger duo! If you're not teaming up with me, who will you team up with?"
"I'll fight one-on-one."
After saying that, Zhu Zhuqing closed the door.
"Bang!"
The door nearly smashed into Dai Mubai's nose.
"Damn it! What's wrong with everyone?!"
Dai Mubai angrily kicked the wall.
But he didn't know that this was only the beginning.
Under the hoe named "ambition" and "strength" that Yu Tianyu wielded, the already shaky foundation of Shrek had begun to develop cracks that could never be repaired.
Before you continue