Oscar nodded along. "I'll have two servings of sausages, and preferably a bowl of hot soup too. After all this traveling, my legs are about to give out."
Zhao Wuji glared at them irritably. "All you ever think about is food! Find a seat and order for yourselves. And don't forget what I said: you're paying your own way."
As he spoke, he swept his gaze across the hall and chose a seat in the middle.
Seeing this, the others followed Zhao Wuji and sat down as well.
Ma Hongjun glanced around and spotted Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing. His eyes lit up.
He sidled over to Dai Mubai and pointed at Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing. "Boss Dai, look at those two girls. They're real lookers. Especially the one in pink—those legs are so long. And the one with long, straight black hair has a figure like a cat... If I could get them into bed..."
As Ma Hongjun spoke, Dai Mubai looked in the direction he pointed. When he saw Zhu Zhuqing, his face filled with astonishment.
He truly hadn't expected to run into Zhu Zhuqing here.
Hearing what Ma Hongjun said and seeing the expressions on his and Dai Mubai's faces as they huddled together, Zhu Zhuqing looked utterly disgusted.
She couldn't help sighing inwardly. How could I have a fiancé like this?
If only my fiancé were...
As Zhu Zhuqing pondered, she unconsciously looked across at Xu Yuan.
"Smack!"
Xiao Wu's palm slammed onto the table, rattling the bowls and plates. The sharp crack instantly silenced the entire hall.
Xiao Wu sprang to her feet, eyes wide, and pointed at Ma Hongjun in fury. "Watch your filthy mouth! If you keep spouting nonsense, I'll tear it right off!"
She truly couldn't stand how disgusting Ma Hongjun was when he spoke.
Ma Hongjun wasn't the least bit intimidated. "It's my mouth. I'll say whatever I want."
After all, Zhao Wuji was right beside him, so he wasn't afraid of Xiao Wu in the slightest.
Ning Rongrong watched Ma Hongjun with a look of disgust. As a woman, she couldn't stand the way he acted either.
Xu Yuan looked at Ma Hongjun and said coldly, "Apologize."
Xu Yuan's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unquestionable pressure. Like a chunk of ice dropped into boiling oil, it instantly smothered the commotion in the hall.
"Apologize? Why should I?" Ma Hongjun stuck out his chin, his face full of arrogance. "With Teacher Zhao here, who in this town could scare me? Besides, what's wrong with looking? What's wrong with saying a few words? Those who don't dare cause trouble are useless!"
He slapped the table and stood up, releasing his Soul Power without restraint. His aura, though only that of someone above level twenty, was enough to stir up a commotion in the hotel.
The diners all turned to look, and even the owner was so frightened he ducked behind the counter.
Zhao Wuji silently released his Soul Power, warning Xu Yuan and the others—especially their teacher, Liu Erlong.
"Hmph, Zhao, you dare bully my students?" Liu Erlong had always had a fiery temper. Seeing him openly release his Soul Power to provoke them, fury flared in her eyes.
In the next moment, Soul Power burst from her, and eight Soul Rings—two yellow, two purple, and four black—flashed into view. Her entire presence changed.
Her smooth hair took on a fiery hue, her pupils narrowed into vertical slits, and blazing flames rose around her. Fine, reddish scales surfaced across her skin.
"Roar!"
A roar imbued with dragon might thundered through the hall. Flames surged with its sound, forcing the diners nearby to retreat again and again.
Liu Erlong blurred forward like an arrow loosed from its string, the heat wave she left behind sizzling against the wooden floorboards.
Zhao Wuji hadn't expected Liu Erlong to attack without warning. He had only just begun releasing the Soul Power of a Soul Saint and hadn't had time to gather his defenses when a searing force slammed into his chest.
"Bang!"
With a muffled thud, Zhao Wuji's massive body flew backward like a battered sack and crashed into a wooden pillar against the hotel's back wall.
The pillar, as thick as a bowl, snapped. Wood chips flew everywhere as he slid down the wall and crumpled to the floor. Blood rose in his throat, and he spat out a mouthful, staining the front of his clothes red.
"Teacher Zhao!" Tang San and the others cried, their expressions changing drastically.
God King Tang San and Xu Yuan looked at Liu Erlong's Soul Rings in astonishment.
They remembered that Liu Erlong was currently a Soul Saint. How had she become a Soul Douluo?
Zhao Wuji struggled to his feet. The agony in his chest made every breath feel like it was tearing him apart, but the dignity of a Soul Saint wouldn't let him fall just like that.
He threw back his head and roared. Brownish-yellow Soul Power erupted like a tide, covering his entire body in thick brown fur. His muscles swelled at a visible pace, his height shooting past two and a half meters. His hands grew broad as bear paws, and fury churned in his brownish-yellow eyes.
Zhao Wuji looked at Liu Erlong and said, "You're dead today. I'll rape you before I kill you!"
Seeing this, Xu Yuan told Xiao Wu and the others, "Come with me." Then he led them outside, with Zhu Zhuqing and the others close behind.
The rest of the people fled as well. If they got caught in a battle at this level, they'd be done for.
Zhao Wuji's roar seethed with vicious fury. Before his words had even faded, he charged at Liu Erlong like a raging black bear, his broad paw wrapped in brownish-yellow Soul Power as it slashed through the air toward her face.
Fury blazed even brighter in Liu Erlong's eyes, and flames around her surged. "You're asking for death!"
She shifted aside to dodge his paw, then gathered frenzied flame Soul Power in her dragon-claw-like hand. Her first Soul Skill, Fire Dragon Claw, activated in an instant, and she struck back at Zhao Wuji's chest with a scorching wave of heat.
"Bang!"
The two forces collided, and a shock wave exploded around them. Tables and chairs flew through the air, while the boards on the walls rattled.
Zhao Wuji felt a searing force travel up his arm. His chest burned as if it had been branded with red-hot iron, and he grunted in pain, knocked half a step backward.
"You think being a Soul Saint gives you the right to act however you want?" Liu Erlong pressed forward, and her Second Soul Ring lit up. "Second Soul Skill: Fire Dragon Breath!"
A torrent of flames erupted like molten lava and engulfed Zhao Wuji in an instant.
Zhao Wuji roared in the sea of fire, pushing his Soul Power to its limit as he tried to use his fur to withstand the flames. But it charred and curled, giving off a pungent burnt stench.
"Third Soul Skill: Blazing Dragon Charge!" Liu Erlong gave him no chance to catch his breath.
Her Third Soul Ring flashed. She became a streak of crimson light, like a true fire dragon, and slammed into Zhao Wuji with an aura that could destroy the heavens and the earth.
Zhao Wuji's pupils contracted. He hurriedly activated his Fifth Soul Skill, Gravity Squeeze, trying to restrict Liu Erlong's speed with a field of gravity.
He didn't have time to do so before Liu Erlong slammed into his chest.
"Crack!"
The sound of breaking bones rang out clearly. Zhao Wuji was struck as if by a heavy hammer. His massive body flew backward again, smashed through the hotel's rear wall, and crashed into the muddy ground outside. Blood gushed from his mouth, and who knew how many ribs in his chest had broken.
Liu Erlong hovered at the edge of the hole, flames blazing around her, her eyes as cold as frost. "If you dare say such vile things, you'd better be ready to pay the price!"
Before you continue