Xu Sanshi

"Another class?"

Xiao Yulü furrowed his brow, then suddenly relaxed.

"Ha, you mean Class One? But you beat Wu Feng and Xiong Hui in front of everyone that day. I'm afraid most people already know how strong you are, so they won't spar with you..."

"Are you stupid? It's not like the school doesn't have a place for us to fight."

"You mean... the Soul Fighting Arena? But we're only first-years. Aren't the people in the Soul Fighting Arena all third- and fourth-year seniors?"

"That may be true, but how many people in our year do you think can match us?"

Xiao Yan tapped Xiao Yulü on the head, looking exasperated.

"If you want to see how well you've mastered what you've been learning lately, you've got to find a stronger opponent! What's the point of finding a couple of nobodies you can knock out in a second?"

"Th-then do you know anyone? Even if we go to the Soul Fighting Arena, I doubt anyone will challenge us..."

"About that..."

Xiao Yan chuckled, then explained at length:

"Ask Beibei. He's an upper-year senior and a rising star who'll definitely make it into the Inner Court one day. He must know someone suitable for us to practice against."

"Senior Beibei..."

Xiao Yulü fell into thought, while Xiao Yan already had someone in mind.

Turtle boy, licking turtle, two-faced turtle... Anyway, the one and only Xu Sanshi!

A Soul Ancestor in his forties, not all that strong, with hardly any offensive Soul Skills—and incredibly tough to beat up!

As for how to get in touch with their turtle brother, Xiao Yan grinned and took Xiao Yulü to Shrek City.

Just as he'd expected, even though Huo Yuhao was incredibly busy training his Martial Soul and studying Soul Tools, he still had a few places he visited regularly. For example, right now, Huo was at Huo's Grilled Fish stall.

"Yu Hao!"

Huo's Grilled Fish was easy to find. There weren't many places with long lines at this hour, and Huo's stall, famous for its grilled fish, was one of them. All they had to do was follow the crowd to find their classmate selling grilled fish.

"Xiao Yan! Xiao Yulü! What brings you here?"

The blue-haired boy brightened at the sight of his classmates. His hands kept moving as he made conversation.

"Two grilled fish, please."

"Oh, sure... Here you go!"

Each of them took a skewer and paid. Xiao Yan ate as he casually asked,

"Mm... Yu Hao, do you know how to get in touch with Senior Beibei?"

"Big Brother Beibei... I can help, but what do you need him for?"

Watching Huo Yuhao grill fish with such practiced ease—and even use Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon in the process—Xiao Yan's eyebrow twitched.

Damn it, is that really what Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon is for? The Divine King Tang would weep to see his secret art used like this, you rascal.

But jokes aside, Huo's grilled fish really was something special. It was so addictive, like it had been laced with something.

After swallowing his last bite, Xiao Yan leaned forward and stared intently at Yu Hao.

"Of course... we're looking for someone to spar with."

"Beibei's a veteran senior, with plenty of connections around the school. We've made some progress in our training lately and want to test ourselves, so we thought of him."

"Ohh—"

Huo Yuhao responded with an "oh," then scratched his head.

"Sure. Wait here. A little later, Sister Xiao Ya... I mean, the sect master, should bring Big Brother over."

"Heh, you've really settled into your role as a Tang Sect disciple."

Xiao Yan found a nearby step and plopped down, showing none of the dignity expected of his family. Xiao Yulü was more particular: he found a bench and sat upright.

The two waited and waited. By the time Huo Yuhao had sold almost all the grilled fish, with just two skewers left, Beibei and Tang Ya finally arrived.

"Yu Hao, the grilled fish today... Huh? Xiao Yan? Xiao Yulü? You're here too?"

Tang Ya had just taken two skewers from Huo Yuhao's cart when she spotted the two familiar faces.

"Sister Tang Ya, Big Brother Beibei."

Xiao Yan greeted them, then got straight to the point and told Beibei and Tang Ya he was looking for someone to spar with.

"An opponent... Hmm, preferably someone with little offensive power and especially strong defenses..."

As he spoke, Beibei suddenly froze. The more he thought about that description, the more familiar it sounded.

"I do know someone who fits that description, but I can't say whether he'll agree to spar with you."

"Who? Who?"

Xiao Yan asked, pretending to be curious.

"Xu Sanshi, a Core Disciple. His Martial Soul is the Mystic Tortoise, so he's a perfect match for what you're looking for. It's just that he recently lost a match to me, and it left him... pretty dejected."

When he mentioned beating Xu Sanshi, Beibei looked away uneasily. Huo Yuhao and Tang Ya lowered their heads too. Xiao Yan could guess what had happened: his junior had cheated for him in the Soul Fighting Arena, letting him beat Xu Sanshi. It wasn't exactly something to be proud of.

"It's fine, Big Brother Beibei. Just help us get in touch with Senior Xu Sanshi. I'll convince him."

Xiao Yan waved it off. Beibei rubbed his chin, then sighed after a long while.

"Fine, I'll arrange for you to meet him... Hmm, it's a bit late today. Tomorrow afternoon, then. Meet us in the Soul Fighting Zone."

Beibei had a way of getting things done, and he kept his word. The next day, he really did arrange for Xu Sanshi to meet them.

"Hmm? You're the ones who want to spar with me?"

Xu Sanshi looked the two of them up and down, one eye wide and the other narrow, sensing their auras.

"One of you is level 17, the other level 18. At your strength, you can't break through my defenses. I could just wear you down and win. Forget it."

The young man waved a hand, clearly uninterested. Xiao Yan merely curled his lips and pulled a piece of paper from his robes, handing it over.

"Why not read what's on this paper before you decide, Senior?"

Xu Sanshi raised an eyebrow.

"You're that sure I'll fight you after reading it?"

Then he unfolded the note—and his whole body jolted.

"Really?"

"Mm-hmm."

Xiao Yan shrugged.

"Jiang Nan..."

"Okay, enough, I know, I know! I'll fight you. Afterward, you have to tell me all the details! By the way, when are we going to the Soul Fighting Arena? Did you book a match? If not, I happen to have one booked. Better now than later—we can fight right now!"

Xiao Yulü's eyes widened. Then he spun around and stared at Xiao Yan.

"What did you tell Senior?"

Xiao Yan smiled mysteriously and shrugged.

"Nothing. The underlying code of Douluo Continent kicked in."

"What underlying code? Hey, answer me!"

"Quit yapping. Come on, let's get to the Soul Fighting Arena."

While the two of them bickered, Xu Sanshi had already sorted out the paperwork at lightning speed and booked an arena.

Standing on the stage, Xu Sanshi looked at Xiao Yan with a complicated expression.

"Let's get one thing straight. Even if you use... to tempt me, I'll still fight you fair and square. I won't go easy on you."

"That's exactly what I'm hoping for, Senior."

Xiao Yan stepped forward unhurriedly, his aura rising steadily.

Feeling that pressure, Xu Sanshi finally looked at Xiao Yan seriously. His expression lost its frivolity and turned solemn.

"Fine, then. Watch out, Junior!"