"You've got a good look?" Kong Bo condensed a fist-sized block of ice, then tossed it into the air. He snapped his fingers, and the fine strands of Soul Power within the ice block detonated at his command. The block exploded in an instant.
"Not bad, not bad. That's what Ice Explosion looks like," Snow Empress said. "I never thought you could master Ice Explosion without using the Ice Jade Scorpion's Soul Bone. Even among humans, your intelligence truly ranks among the very best. I've lived for hundreds of thousands of years, and I've never met a human like you."
Kong Bo pointed at his head. "Observation, thought, and learning—that's what sets humans apart. A human who can't do those things isn't even fit to sit at the same table as Soul Beasts, let alone compare with them. They're no better than wild beasts, and don't deserve to be called human." Kong Bo's words were clearly an insult aimed at Shrek Academy.
"Enough. Now we're moving on to the next step of training. From now on, I'll be spending my afternoons at the Underground Soul Fighting Arena in Ming Capital," Kong Bo said. "Evil Emperor Sister should have reached an agreement with them."
The Underground Soul Fighting Arena in Ming Capital was different from the Ming Capital Grand Soul Fighting Arena. The underground arena was like an illegal prizefighting ring in the Douluo World. If someone was killed in a legitimate arena, the organizers would ultimately be held responsible. But that wasn't how things worked underground. The whole point was to beat your opponent to death. It catered specifically to the powerful and wealthy who enjoyed watching such spectacles.
Underground Soul Fighting Arenas could be found everywhere, whether in the Douluo Three Kingdoms or the Sun Moon Empire. They were also prime sources of income for various underground organizations. The Ming Capital Grand Soul Fighting Arena, for example, sat at the edge of the inner and outer districts. The city's three major factions—the native Pingfan Alliance, the Aodu Chamber of Commerce, backed by the Ming Capital military, and the Xishui Alliance, backed by the Holy Spirit Cult—all had investments in the underground arena. The Xishui Alliance had put in the most.
Now that Kong Bo wanted to visit the Underground Soul Fighting Arena, he naturally needed an identity. But he was at a loss over how to get one. He'd wanted Evil Emperor to approach Xu Tianyuan for him. Xu Tianyuan was the Aodu Chamber of Commerce's boss behind the scenes and a representative of the Sun Moon Empire's military. Evil Emperor was now a major figure among Ming Capital's upper circles. If she asked Xu Tianyuan for an admission pass, he would certainly give her one.
But Kong Bo later abandoned the idea. Xu Tianyuan surely knew that Evil Emperor's disciple was Kong Bo, and Kong Bo couldn't guarantee that Xu Tianyuan would keep his mouth shut. If Xu Tianyuan let it slip and told Kong Deming, then—heh—Kong Bo would have a hard time going anywhere from then on. So he had to think of another way. It looked like he'd have to find someone at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.
The students at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy either had exceptional talent or came from powerful families. Kong Bo planned to use his classmates' connections and see if any of them could ask their parents to get him a pass. Now that he was attending the Sun Moon Soul Engineer Academy, he could take leave whenever he wanted, because Zhuang Yi and Lin Jiayi felt the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy could no longer teach him anything. Evil Emperor handled his Soul Master training, while Kong Deming taught him about Soul Tools.
Still, Kong Bo continued to come to school, mainly to attend history lessons. He needed to understand the Sun Moon Empire's conditions. He usually listened to Zhuang Yi's history lectures and took careful notes. After class, Kong Bo went to find his classmate Wang Longqing, whose father had retired from the Imperial Dragon Soul Master Legion and was now a manager at the Aodu Chamber of Commerce.
After Zhuang Yi left, Kong Bo went to look for Wang Longqing. Wang Longqing was with Zhao Chaoyong, opening his schoolbag and secretly taking out items that weren't allowed at school, which he planned to sell to his classmates.
"Brother Longqing, I need to talk to you," Kong Bo said.
"Oh, little brother Kong Bo, you need something from me?" Wang Longqing said. "Just tell the two of us."
Kong Bo shook his head. "Brother Longqing, come over here. This is something I can only ask you about."
Kong Bo pulled Wang Longqing aside and used his Martial Soul to create a soundproof barrier.
"Brother, is this something you can only ask me about? Even Chao Yong can't hear?" Wang Longqing asked.
"Brother Longqing, I heard your father works at the Aodu Chamber of Commerce. He's a manager, too—is that right?" Kong Bo asked.
"Yeah, that's right. What, do you want me to get something for you?" Wang Longqing asked.
"Well, I'd like an admission Soul Tool card for the Underground Soul Fighting Arena," Kong Bo said. The pass could be used not only to compete, but also to watch. But how could the powerful and wealthy of Ming Capital possibly enter the ring to fight?
"Little brother, don't get me in trouble." Wang Longqing's expression changed as soon as he heard Kong Bo's request. "My dad would never let me touch that thing. He carries that Soul Tool access card with him at all times, just in case I try to sell it to some well-connected student at school—someone like you, little brother."
Wang Longqing especially emphasized the point about Kong Bo. "Yeah, especially you. My dad went out of his way to mention you."
"Me?" Kong Bo stared at him in surprise. "What does this have to do with me?"
Wang Longqing imitated his father's voice and repeated what he'd been told. "Little Longqing, is Elder Kong's great-grandson in your class? Oh, how strong is he? Is he especially talented? Are you two close? Longqing, then you'll have to keep a tighter hold on those Underground Soul Fighting Arena passes. Kong Bo is so talented. He won't just sit there watching—he's bound to get in the ring and fight. If anything happens to him and Elder Kong blames us, our whole family won't be able to bear the consequences."
"..." Wang Longqing's father had to be said to have a sharp eye. A young genius like Kong Bo was never content to sit still. So Wang Longqing had taken all the Underground Soul Fighting Arena cards from home, for fear that he might sneak one to Kong Bo.
"Fine, Brother Longqing. I understand." Kong Bo sighed helplessly. "I only wanted to go and watch. Since you can't get one, forget it. And if you can't get one, no one else in class will be able to, either."
Aside from Kong Bo, Wang Longqing was the richest in their class, which meant his father had plenty of connections. If Wang Longqing couldn't find a way, none of their other classmates could. As for the Hongchen siblings, that was even less of an option. If Jing Hongchen found out Kong Bo wanted to go to the Underground Soul Fighting Arena, he'd tell Kong Deming immediately.
Forget it. I might as well have Evil Emperor ask Xu Tianyuan for one. We don't have to say it's for me—we can say it's for Gu Long'er.
After history class, Kong Bo decided there was no point attending the practical lesson that followed. He left the classroom, planning to find Evil Emperor and ask her to get Xu Tianyuan to arrange an admission pass to the Underground Soul Fighting Arena.
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