The Soul Fighting Arena looked magnificent from the outside, but when Yang Jian walked in, he found that there wasn't much inside. Apart from a large platform surrounded by a Soul Tool Shield, a Soul Tool screen displaying Soul Fighting points and match results, and spectator stands all around, there was nothing else.
"How is it? Does it feel different from what you expected?"
Ma Xiaotao had been watching Yang Jian's profile. Seeing the brief flash of surprise on his face, she immediately chuckled. "What do you think? Doesn't it look rather plain, without all that flashy stuff?"
"It is a bit surprising."
Yang Jian replied, his gaze unconsciously settling on the enormous Soul Tool screen.
On the far left were the day's match results, while on the right were the current Soul Fighting points and rankings of the Inner Court students.
At the very top was Zhang Lexuan, the Inner Court's senior sister, whom Yang Jian had briefly met in the Star Dou Great Forest.
"The one in first place is Zhang Lexuan, the Inner Court's senior sister. They say that ever since she entered Shrek Academy and began competing in Soul Fighting, she's never lost. At most, an opponent has managed to force a draw, so she's far ahead in points, leaving the second-place student in the dust."
When Ma Xiaotao spoke of Zhang Lexuan, her tone held a rare note of respect.
There weren't many people in the entire Inner Court whom she thought highly of, and Zhang Lexuan was definitely one of them.
Yang Jian wasn't surprised that Zhang Lexuan was in first place.
After all, in the original story, before Huo Yuhao entered Shrek Academy, the academy's most talented student was Zhang Lexuan, whom Mu En had brought back to Shrek Academy when she was young.
So... how had such an outstanding senior sister—who had grown up alongside Bei Bei, and possessed maturity, intelligence, gentleness, and thoughtfulness—ended up with Bei Bei falling for Tang Ya?
Being blinded by love was a pretty ridiculous thing.
But as Bei Bei's friend, Yang Jian had only one comment: a wild boar couldn't appreciate fine chaff.
"Your points only put you in ninth place?"
Yang Jian scanned the rankings from top to bottom, somewhat surprised by Ma Xiaotao's position. After all, even though Ma Xiaotao had constantly been troubled by her Evil Fire, her cultivation had never fallen behind. In terms of either strength or talent, she was more than capable of ranking among the best in the Inner Court.
Ma Xiaotao gave Yang Jian a serious look, as if she found it odd that he would ask:
"The people ahead of me are all Inner Court seniors who are close to graduating. On top of that, I was troubled by my Evil Fire before and often couldn't use my full strength, so I didn't participate in many Soul Fighting matches. That's why I ended up in ninth place."
"Now that the Evil Fire problem is taken care of, it won't be long before my ranking climbs."
Her voice brimmed with confidence.
And her confidence wasn't blind; she truly had the ability to back it up. Just as she'd said, she'd managed to break into the top ten despite being plagued by her Evil Fire. Now that it was temporarily under control, her ranking would surely keep climbing.
Yang Jian looked at the big screen again and saw that things were indeed as Ma Xiaotao had said.
Most of the names above Ma Xiaotao's were unfamiliar to him, except for Han Ruoruo. Most of them were the Inner Court seniors Ma Xiaotao had mentioned, the ones nearing graduation. But below Ma Xiaotao, he spotted a few familiar names.
For example... Jin Ming in eleventh place, Dai Yueheng in sixteenth, and Ling Luochеn in twenty-fourth.
"You could try climbing the Soul Fighting rankings too. With your strength, I think you'd rise pretty quickly. You might even pass me and end up above me."
Ma Xiaotao winked at Yang Jian, revealing a hint of playfulness.
"Ma Xiaotao? That's Ma Xiaotao, isn't it?"
Jin Ming, who was known alongside Ma Xiaotao as one of the Inner Court's two living volcanoes, widened her eyes slightly as she looked at Yang Jian and Ma Xiaotao standing at the entrance to the Soul Fighting Arena.
Given that they were both rather hot-tempered, one might assume the two weren't close. In reality, however, Jin Ming and Ma Xiaotao got along well. They had even gone out together on missions for the Shrek Inspectorate.
Jin Ming knew Ma Xiaotao fairly well, but she truly couldn't imagine Ma Xiaotao making that kind of expression in front of a boy.
And...
Who was this boy?
How come she didn't recognize him at all?
"Ruoruo, do you know the boy next to Xiaotao? Why do I feel like I've never seen him before?"
Jin Ming tugged at her friend's sleeve.
Han Ruoruo, seated beside Jin Ming, studied him carefully, then nodded in apparent approval. "Mm, he looks young and handsome."
Jin Ming was speechless.
I can tell the boy's handsome, of course. I'm not blind. But was that what I just asked you?
"I'm asking if this boy is a student in our Inner Court."
"Oh, that's what you mean. No, he isn't."
As a senior student about to graduate from the Inner Court, Han Ruoruo had seen almost every Inner Court student. And her memory was excellent, so she was certain that the boy beside Ma Xiaotao wasn't an Inner Court student.
"Wow!"
"So he's from the Outer Court? You'd never guess! Xiaotao's really into old bulls eating tender grass?"
Jin Ming couldn't help lowering her voice in astonishment. Right afterward, she heard her friend murmur wistfully:
"That grass really is tender..."
At the same time, an old man seated at the very back of the spectator stands finally finished gnawing on the chicken leg in his hand.
After casually wiping his greasy fingers on his clothes, he lowered his eyelids and glanced toward Yang Jian and Ma Xiaotao.
This little fellow... was he the peerless genius Shao Zhe had mentioned, the one who could solve Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire problem?
From the looks of him, other than being a little more handsome than the old man had been in his youth, there didn't seem to be anything special about him.
No... that wasn't right!
Xuan Zi's gaze locked onto Xiao Bai in Yang Jian's arms, and a flash of shock passed through his eyes.
He could actually feel a strange pressure coming from this little dog... as though it were some kind of being far above him!
How was that possible?!
Could this little dog be a Ferocious Beast that had taken human form?
That was absolutely impossible!
Xuan Zi furrowed his brow and carefully tried to sense it.
Rather than saying that this little puppy was putting immense pressure on him, it was more like his Martial Soul was being suppressed.
But Xuan Zi found the idea absurd.
His Martial Soul, the Godly Taotie Bull, was one of the greatest Martial Souls in the world. The Taotie bloodline within it came from Taotie, the fifth son of the Dragon God!
How could this little puppy possibly suppress his Martial Soul?
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