Prototype Duel Runner No. 1

The first academic year at Shrek Academy passed by in the blink of an eye.

In terms of Soul Power Level, You Jie had officially overtaken the competition, his level forty-four soul power leaving the level forty-three Bei Bei in the dust, forcing him to choke on his exhaust.

"Barely a three-level increase after breaking through to Soul Ancestor... It seems you've been slacking off again, Brother Bei Bei."

"What, was the last time I beat you so hard that you shared a first kiss with Xu Sanshi not enough? Are you planning to exchange something else with him in the future, like a Martial Soul Fusion Skill?"

At the gates of Shrek Academy, You Jie, dressed in travel gear, watched Bei Bei—who had just been acting all lovey-dovey with Tang Ya—and approached him with a twitching lip, draping an arm over his shoulder to whisper.

Bei Bei's expression turned awkward instantly, and he didn't quite know how to respond.

After breaking through to Soul Ancestor, perhaps because he felt he had finally put some distance between himself and Xu Sanshi, Bei Bei had started to feel confident again, and the time he spent doting on Tang Ya had increased.

Consequently, not only had he been overtaken by You Jie, but he was now on the verge of being caught up by Xu Sanshi once more.

As for his first kiss, that, too, had been knocked out of him by the Scrap Iron Fist.

When You Jie sparred with Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, he never used other monsters, opting instead to have his Junk Warrior repeatedly deliver the Scrap Iron Fist.

One time, whether it was due to Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi's good coordination or the Junk Warrior finally getting the hang of it, Bei Bei was sent flying by a punch and, as luck would have it, landed right next to Xu Sanshi, who had been sent flying just moments before. The two of them then reenacted a legendary scene between Naruto Uzumaki and Second Pillar.

Because of this, Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi had developed a sort of "Split-Leg PTSD"; the mere sight of a purple-eyed, white-scarved figure performing a split would make them tremble uncontrollably.

It was a pity that Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi lacked the necessary purity; despite managing the much more difficult feat of exchanging their first kisses, they had yet to receive the Glory Right Scar.

"Hey, don't go slandering my innocence out of thin air... Besides, I'm not as much of a genius as you, capable of making achievements in Soul Tools without hindering my cultivation."

"But are you really not planning to join the Tang Sect? If you joined, then..."

Bei Bei whispered a helpless reminder.

If Tang Ya ever found out that his first kiss had actually gone to Xu Sanshi, she would probably tease him about it for the rest of his life.

As for Bei Bei's own cultivation issues, that was simply a choice he had made.

The current Tang Sect lacked a workhorse like Prisoner Huo to supplement their knowledge of Soul Tools, and even He Caitou hadn't joined yet, so Bei Bei was forced to divert some of his energy to study at the Soul Tool Department.

However, his talent in this area was limited, and the time he invested was in an awkward middle ground—too much to avoid hindering his cultivation, yet too little to actually master Soul Tools. Bei Bei's grasp of Soul Tools was even worse than Huo Yuhao's, and his cultivation had suffered for it.

"The Tang Sect? Forget it. You know, Brother, I have no reason to join."

"Rather than giving you some useless hope, like 'I'll join the Tang Sect once every disciple can defeat me in a fair and open duel,' it's better to be clear from the start."

"By the way, that suggestion was actually thought up by the Mystic Ancestor."

Upon hearing Bei Bei try to recruit him into the Tang Sect again, You Jie refused immediately.

Even Huo Yuhao could see that if You Jie joined the Tang Sect now, he would just be a workhorse. Even Huo Yuhao, who once had a filter for the Tang Sect, had no intention of joining, let alone You Jie.

Although Mu En had intended to use this to encourage Bei Bei to cultivate faster, You Jie had rejected it on the spot.

"Fine... I suppose you're right. Even if Sanshi and I teamed up, we couldn't beat you, let alone with Xiao Ya."

"But where are you planning to go? I recall you haven't reached level fifty yet, right?"

Bei Bei sighed. Mu En's suggestion might have sounded good, but it would likely only make Tang Ya more withdrawn, requiring him to spend even more time comforting her.

Even including Tang Sect hidden weapons, Tang Ya's combat power in front of You Jie was extremely limited. Her Blue Silver Grass martial soul was simply too weak, and the Tang Sect techniques she possessed at this stage couldn't bridge the gap in combat power.

Rather than giving Tang Ya a hollow hope, it was better to make a clean break.

But for Bei Bei, this...

"I'm heading to Sister Lexuan's hometown first to help her family sweep their graves, then I'll head to the Far North with the Mystic Ancestor. I heard there are some peculiar things there."

You Jie didn't hide his destination.

It wasn't that he wanted to snipe Prisoner Huo, but rather because rumors had surfaced recently that a building resembling a temple had suddenly appeared in the deepest part of the Far North, and You Jie was quite interested in it.

If it was related to the Ice Barrier, then it would be even better.

Unlike a conventional duelist, You Jie wasn't worried about his "Extra Deck" space. If he could incorporate a few Ice Barrier cards into his soul skills, his combat repertoire would be even more diverse.

As for why he wasn't hunting ice-attribute soul beasts to try his luck...

You Jie had a premonition that his soul skills, aside from preparing a few hand traps, would likely need to make room for some heavy-hitting cards.

Thus, You Jie had asked Mu En to take Zhang Lexuan along while she went home to sweep the graves, and then proceed to the Far North to investigate.

Although the environment of the Far North was extremely harsh, You Jie had already prepared plenty of specialized Soul Tools from the Soul Tool Department. With the healthy Mu En accompanying them, and given that the Snow Empress had likely already been stuffed into a God Sealing Platform (crossed out) and the Ice Empress was destined to become Huo Yuhao's martial soul, the safety coefficient for You Jie and Zhang Lexuan was incredibly high.

"Sister Lexuan, sweeping the graves..."

Seemingly reminded of some experiences he had deliberately forgotten due to Tang Ya's appearance, Bei Bei's expression turned sorrowful.

Seeing this, You Jie patted Bei Bei's back firmly and pulled a vehicle-type Soul Tool he had just retrieved from the Soul Tool Department out of his storage soul tool.

It looked like an elongated motorcycle, but the seat was clearly longer, obviously designed with the possibility of carrying two people in mind.

"As expected, after improving the materials, this first prototype of the Duel Runner is looking quite decent. I'll keep working hard to fully replicate the Duel Runner I have in mind."

Ignoring his sappy brother and sister-in-law, You Jie mounted the imitation Duel Runner, started the soul-powered engine, and sped away.

"Wow, that looks so cool! Bei Bei, can you ask him to make one for me too?"

"This... I don't think that's a good idea. Besides, that thing probably isn't cheap..."