Mu Tianyi Goes to the Soul Fighting Arena to Test His New Soul Skill; Ye Qing and He Mingqin

After lunch, sunlight streamed through the window lattice into the living room, filling it with warmth.

Zhang Lexuan cleared the dishes, swiftly washed and put them away, then untied her apron and hung it behind the kitchen door.

"Tianyi, I have class this afternoon." She walked out while drying her hands and said to Mu Tianyi, "So I can't keep you company."

Leaning back in his chair, Mu Tianyi nodded. "Alright, Sister Lexuan. Go do your thing. I need to head out too."

Zhang Lexuan tilted her head slightly and glanced at him without asking further. She merely said softly, "Tell me in advance what you want for dinner," then gathered her things and left.

Her footsteps gradually faded away.

Mu Tianyi sat in his chair for a while longer, digesting both his lunch and the Reign Over the World he had learned from Mu En that morning.

A moment later, he rose to his feet and rolled his shoulders, anticipation flickering in his eyes.

He had just acquired a new soul skill and had yet to test it in actual combat.

Not trying it out would be a terrible waste.

He changed into a neat training outfit, locked the courtyard gate, and headed toward the Outer Court.

The Outer Court Soul Fighting Arena stood at the southwestern corner of Shrek Academy's Outer Court.

From Sea God Island, one only needed to cross the tree-lined path between the Inner Court and Outer Court and walk for about fifteen minutes to reach it.

The Soul Fighting Arena had a square, imposing architectural style: blue-gray stone walls, an arched entrance, and a huge soul tool screen embedded above it, displaying the current matches and contestant information in real time.

The entire arena was circular in structure. At its center stood a fifty-meter-square fighting platform, surrounded by ascending spectator stands that could accommodate nearly a thousand viewers at once.

The rules were simple enough.

Because advancement required it, Outer Court students of Shrek Academy needed to earn credits through soul fights every semester.

The more victories they earned, the more credits they received and the higher their ranking would be.

Students from different grades could challenge one another, but to ensure fairness, soul fights were divided into brackets based on Soul Power Level.

One-ring against one-ring, two-ring against two-ring, and so on.

Challenging someone above one's level was naturally allowed as well, but that was a personal choice. Losing would not deduct points, while winning came with additional rewards.

Since soul fighting was a necessary means of earning credits, this place had practically become the liveliest spot in the Outer Court.

Every afternoon, the spectator stands were packed. There were lower-grade students here to watch the excitement, upper-grade students here to gamble, and occasionally even seniors from the Inner Court wandering over.

When Mu Tianyi entered the Soul Fighting Arena, a soul fight had just ended.

Students in the stands rose in twos and threes and began leaving.

Some were still excitedly discussing the match they had just watched, while others walked expressionlessly toward the exit.

He looked up at the soul tool screen.

It displayed the information from the match that had just concluded:

Ye Qing (third year, level thirty-two agility attack-type soul master)—Victory

He Mingqin (third year, level thirty-one control-type soul master)—Defeat

Mu Tianyi gave it a casual glance before withdrawing his gaze and preparing to register.

But just as he took a step forward, he stopped again.

The corner of his eye caught an interesting sight.

At the edge of the fighting platform, two teenage boys had huddled together, heads nearly touching as they spoke in low voices.

One was tall and slender, with sharp brows and bright eyes. He was Ye Qing, the one who had just won.

The other was short and stocky, with a round face and small eyes. He was the defeated He Mingqin.

The two looked nothing like opponents at the moment. They were clearly very familiar with each other.

Mu Tianyi paused and turned his head to look.

Most of the audience had already left, leaving only a dozen or so people scattered throughout the enormous Soul Fighting Arena.

Ye Qing and He Mingqin stood in the shadows beside the platform, assuming no one had noticed them.

But Mu Tianyi's five senses were far sharper than those of his peers.

He vaguely caught a few phrases.

"...You won again this time. We agreed on seventy-thirty, seven for you and three for me..."

"...That fall was too fake. Don't act like that next time. People will notice..."

"...What's there to fear? It's not like the referee can't tell. As long as there's no evidence..."

Mu Tianyi raised an eyebrow.

Oh?

A fixed match?

He had not intended to meddle, but his feet carried him over as though possessed.

Ye Qing had been speaking when he noticed someone approaching from the corner of his eye. He immediately fell silent, a wary expression appearing on his face.

When he saw that the newcomer was merely a seven- or eight-year-old child, that wariness quickly turned to impatience.

"Brat, what are you staring at? Go play somewhere else."

Ye Qing waved a hand as if shooing away a fly.

Mu Tianyi stopped where he was and looked up at the boy, who stood more than half a head taller than him.

His expression did not change much.

He Mingqin looked over as well, plastering a perfunctory smile onto his round face.

"Kid, this is the Soul Fighting Arena, not a playground. Hurry up and leave. Don't hold up our business."

Mu Tianyi did not move.

He stood quietly there, his dark eyes as calm as a deep pool as he watched the two of them.

Ye Qing frowned, inexplicably feeling uncomfortable.

He could not explain why.

Being watched by this child made his whole body feel uneasy.

The kid was tiny, yet those eyes gave him the feeling that... he had been seen through.

"Senior brothers, fixing matches to make money—if the academy finds out, having all your credits deducted would be the least of your worries. You might even be expelled, right?"

Mu Tianyi said with a grin.

The air instantly froze.

The color drained from both their faces.

Ye Qing's lips trembled twice before he forced out a smile.

"K-Kid, what are you talking about? What fixed matches? That was just a normal spar..."

"A normal spar?" Mu Tianyi blinked. "Would a normal spar include 'seven for you and three for me'? Would it include 'that fall was too fake, don't act like that next time'?"

He paused, then smiled.

"My hearing is pretty good."

Ye Qing's expression darkened completely.

He stared fixedly at the child before him, who only reached his chest. His fists clenched and loosened, then clenched again.

He Mingqin was even more flustered, instinctively shrinking behind Ye Qing.

"Y-You... what do you want?" Ye Qing gritted out, keeping his voice low.

He gambled that this child would not dare make a fuss, but the threat in his words was already plain as day.

Mu Tianyi waved his hand, his smile gentle and harmless.

"Relax, senior brothers."

"If I wanted to report you, I would've gone straight to the referee just now. Why would I come over here to greet you first?"

Ye Qing was slightly stunned.

He Mingqin also poked his head out, watching him warily.

"I only have a small request." Mu Tianyi raised one finger, his tone sincere. "I just obtained a soul ring, and I've been worried about not finding anyone to test my soul skill on."

"You two senior brothers are quite capable. Could you accompany me and help test my new soul skill?"

Ye Qing and He Mingqin exchanged a glance.

Then Ye Qing's expression shifted from nervousness into something subtly... amused.

He looked Mu Tianyi up and down.

A seven- or eight-year-old child, even if he was exceptionally talented, could at most be at the one-ring level.

His brief panic earlier had been purely because the words "fixed match" had frightened him too much.

Thinking about it now, what threat could a little brat who had barely grown any hair pose?

Ye Qing's eyes shifted, and the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward.

"Being a sparring partner? That's so boring." He crossed his arms, his tone frivolous. "Since you have an idea, little brother, why don't we have an official soul fight? Add a little stake to it. Win or lose, it'll be more satisfying."

He Mingqin immediately caught on and chimed in from the side.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. The Soul Fighting Arena has rules. Once you step onto the platform, you rely on your own abilities."

"If you win, we'll each give you ten Gold Soul Coins. If you lose..."

He chuckled twice and left the rest unsaid.

But the meaning was obvious enough.

If you lose, kid, keep your mouth shut. Pretend the fixed match never happened.

Mu Tianyi looked at the schemes practically spilling from the eyes of the two before him, understanding everything perfectly.

Trying to set him up?

His expression remained unchanged, and he even cooperatively revealed an innocent smile.

"Sure, then let's have a soul fight."

"Senior brothers, please go easy on me."