"Where did Xiao Chen go?"
Su Chen had just returned to Saintess Hall when he heard a displeased voice.
He looked up. Bibi Dong was sitting in the courtyard, with a table full of delicious food laid out before her.
She was staring at him reproachfully.
"Teacher, I went to see Elder Chrysanthemum."
Su Chen knew better than to lie. There were almost no secrets in Spirit Hall.
It was one thing if no one found out, but once they did, making things up would leave a terrible impression.
"Mm. You can grow some flowers and plants, but you need to know your limits. Don't let it interfere with your cultivation."
To Su Chen's surprise, Bibi Dong didn't make an issue of it. She seemed to have misunderstood something, but he didn't explain. He simply nodded obediently. "I understand, Teacher. I'll go cultivate now."
"Mm. Come eat first, then go cultivate."
Grinning, Su Chen walked over. The food on the table hadn't been touched.
He was a little surprised. Bibi Dong had actually been waiting for him.
Su Chen couldn't help thinking of other things. Bibi Dong was still quite good-natured at this point, but a major event would happen over the next year or two, and her personality would change completely.
Bibi Dong would fall in love with Yu Xiaogang.
Qian Xunji would become the Secret Chamber Douluo.
Qian Renxue would be born.
Bibi Dong would enter the Slaughter Land, and her personality would change drastically from then on.
Later, she would become a complete madwoman.
Su Chen sighed.
He had only just awakened his Martial Soul. He didn't know whether he could change anything.
Su Chen thought of Qian Renxue. Perhaps he could help her be born early.
Once Qian Renxue arrived, Qian Xunji's attitude would change completely. With a wife and daughter, he couldn't possibly turn into the Secret Chamber Douluo.
As for Yu Xiaogang, the guy was only Level 29. Su Chen didn't think he'd have any trouble dealing with him.
"Xiao Chen, what are you thinking about?!"
Seeing that Su Chen was distracted, Bibi Dong furrowed her lovely brows.
Su Chen answered without thinking. "I'm thinking about how to give the Pope a daughter."
"Hm?" Bibi Dong froze.
"Teacher, I was joking."
A year and a half later, at Spirit Hall Academy.
Six months earlier, Qian Xunji had packed Su Chen off to the Soul Master Academy.
The reason was that Bibi Dong also needed time to cultivate.
During the academy's advancement examination, all the students in Class One gathered on the training field.
Two students were battling on the Soul Fighting Stage. Both had reached at least Level 15 and were qualified to advance to Class Two.
Most of the spectators below were students and teachers.
Bibi Dong was in the VIP section, too.
A faint smile played on Bibi Dong's lips. Entering Class Two at the age of seven was a rare feat across the entire academy.
The requirements for Class Two were being under fifteen, having Soul Power above Level 15, and possessing a yellow Soul Ring.
"The next Soul Fighting match: Su Chen and Ao Debiao. Step onto the stage."
Just then, the teacher on the Soul Fighting Stage called out.
Su Chen rose from among the students.
He was tall, graceful, and handsome. His pure white hair, like snow and frost, caught the sunlight without a trace of any other color, so clear and bright that it seemed almost demonic.
Though he looked like a boy, he had an aloof, eerily alluring air that warned people away, along with a strange quality that was hard to describe.
Many students both loved looking at him and were afraid of him. Su Chen had been here for half a year.
His Innate Full Soul Power had drawn the attention of many girls.
The love letters never stopped.
Even the older students had made it clear they wanted to pursue him.
His age, though!
They didn't care at all. They said they could raise him.
Su Chen often heard, "I'll take care of you!"
He'd heard of raising women, raising men, and raising children, but never of raising someone's age!
"Su Chen. Martial Soul: Nine Nether Red-Clad Ghost Emperor. Level 19 Power Attack System One-Ring Battle Soul Master."
On the Soul Fighting Stage, Su Chen watched the man before him carefully.
The man was muscular and dark-skinned, with a banana in his hand.
"Ao Debiao. Martial Soul: Black Banana. Level 19 Control System One-Ring Soul Master."
The referee smiled. "Friendship first, competition second. No killing blows; stop when the outcome is decided. Show us your best. I hereby declare the match underway!"
"Xiangsi!"
Buzz!
A gust of sinister wind swept through, and streaks of red light gathered all around.
At last, to everyone's astonishment, a woman appeared on the Soul Fighting Stage. She wore a bridal crown and robes, and held a red oil-paper umbrella.
Resentment, murderous intent, and fury radiated from her, casting a shadow over the sky around her.
The style of her clothes had never been seen before on the Douluo Continent.
Yet plenty of people could tell that she wore a bride's outfit. They just couldn't understand why it looked so terrifying.
Those in the audience who feared ghosts got goosebumps. If it hadn't been daytime, with so many people around, plenty would have run away.
Those who weren't afraid of ghosts found her bridal attire tragic and beautiful. Some even thought that maybe a ghost bride wouldn't be so bad after all.
Su Chen's first Soul Skill had no offensive effect.
And he couldn't go around telling people about his companion follower.
So the official record of Su Chen's first Soul Skill at Spirit Hall Academy was that it summoned a Ghost Bride.
Only Bibi Dong knew about Dream of Millet. He hadn't told even Qian Xunji.
"First Soul Skill, Banana Bala!"
Ao Debiao made the first move, and his first Soul Ring lit up.
Countless black bananas appeared all around.
They peeled themselves.
The next moment,
the bananas shot out in a dense barrage, like raindrops.
Ghost Bride drifted backward, her figure as elusive as a ghost.
The bananas hit the ground and immediately turned into a sticky substance.
It was like glue. Once it stuck to something, it was almost impossible to break free, and it had a certain corrosive effect.
Ghost Bride Xiangsi spun the red oil-paper umbrella in her hand.
As her first Soul Skill activated, the paper spun at high speed, forming a tornado. Countless vivid red petals appeared and were swept inside, creating a Flower Sea Tornado.
The mighty whirlwind was filled with an invisible force that dragged everything toward it.
The incoming bananas were swept into the tornado, unable to break free, and became Xiangsi the Ghost Bride's weapons.
As the Flower Sea Tornado struck, the force of the storm reached him in an instant. Ao Debiao clenched his fists and shouted, "I surrender!"
The Flower Sea Tornado vanished in an instant, but Ghost Bride couldn't control the bananas. They were Ao Debiao's own Soul Skill; she had only turned his strength against him.
The bananas struck Ao Debiao with unerring accuracy. They caused no pain or injury, but stuck to him like slime, clinging fast. In the end, they even sealed his mouth and nose. The moment they touched his clothes, the fabric dissolved at a visible rate.
In just a few breaths, Ao Debiao's dark skin was exposed to everyone.
"Yikes, that's powerful, ugly, weak, and tiny."
"That Soul Skill is way too perverted!"
"Teacher, why are there three black things hanging down there?"
Ao Debiao couldn't hear the comments. His face had turned red, and he was struggling to breathe. Just as he was about to suffocate, the referee rushed over and pulled the sticky banana residue away.
"The match is over. Su Chen wins."