Ye Guyi

At one the next afternoon, Kong Bo and the Evil Emperor changed into cloaks and waited by the entrance for Lin Lang to arrive. Before long, Lin Lang drove up to the Evil Emperor's residence.

This was one of the Sun Moon Empire's Soul Tools, called a Soul Guidance Car. The two cars were jet-black, with sleek lines and a teardrop shape that was quite aerodynamic. It seemed the Sun Moon Empire had done some research into aerodynamics while studying Soul Tools.

After coming to this world, Kong Bo had gained some understanding of the Sun Moon Empire's productivity. This Soul Guidance Car wasn't something that could be mass-produced like cars on Blue Star; it was handmade, so its price was naturally very high. Kong Bo and the Evil Emperor got into the car. "Sister Lin Lang, you can afford a Soul Guidance Car. Do you really need money?"

"What's it to you? Who ever minded having more money?" Lin Lang said from the driver's seat. Then she started the Soul Guidance Car and drove Kong Bo and the Evil Emperor to the Underground Soul Fighting Arena.

The Underground Soul Fighting Arena was on the border between the inner and outer districts. A sign reading "Aodu Warehouse" hung outside. From the street, it looked like a huge warehouse, with a few burly men standing guard.

"This is the Underground Soul Fighting Arena, little brother Kong Bo. Those guards are from the Aodu Chamber of Commerce, the Pingfan Alliance, and the Xishui Alliance. Try to act as haughty as you can," Lin Lang said.

"Okay." Kong Bo nodded.

At the entrance, Lin Lang showed her Soul Tool access card. The guards immediately became respectful and opened the gates for her, letting her park the car. After the three of them got out, Lin Lang took them to the front desk and arranged a contestant certificate for Kong Bo. Then they entered the Underground Soul Fighting Arena. Before they went inside, the receptionist gave them cloaks to conceal their identities. After all, Ming Capital's respectable folk wouldn't want to be seen in a place like this.

"Come on, let's head into the Underground Soul Fighting Arena," Lin Lang said.

Compared with a traditional Soul Fighting Arena, the Underground Soul Fighting Arena was far noisier. The spectators were swept up in the more savage fights on the stage, howling themselves hoarse and waving their arms.

"Finish him!"

"Kill him!"

"Just grab his arm!"

Two Beast Martial Soul Soul Masters were fighting on the stage: one with the Bloodthirsty Mad Bear and the other with a wolf Martial Soul. Both were close-combat Beast Martial Souls, so the fight was especially bloody. The Bloodthirsty Mad Bear Soul Master had gained the upper hand. He swung his bear claws, raking the wolf Soul Master again and again with their sharp points. His frenzied assault quickly shattered the wolf Soul Master's Martial Soul Possession.

In a proper Soul Fighting Arena, the match would have ended there. But the spectators in the stands only grew more frenzied.

"Kill!" "Kill!" "Kill!"

Then the Bloodthirsty Mad Bear Soul Master grabbed the wolf Soul Master. With a roar, he tore off the man's left arm. As the wolf Soul Master screamed, the Bloodthirsty Mad Bear Soul Master ripped off his right arm, too. Then his enormous paw seized the wolf Soul Master's head and crushed it in one blow. The ground was left a complete mess.

"Wooo!" The spectators in the stands let out bloodthirsty howls.

"Uh, little brother Kong Bo, it's still not too late to back out. I only wanted to make some money, but these fights... Do you think you can handle them?" Lin Lang was starting to worry. Kong Bo was only eight and a half, not even nine yet. She was afraid he wouldn't be able to stomach such a bloody fight.

"Fights like these are just right for me," Kong Bo said. He had been watching Gundam for two and a half years now. What kind of Gundam hadn't he seen? His heart had long since gone still. This sort of thing was nothing to him.

Damn, this kid really is a born demon seed, Lin Lang thought. Through Kong Bo's mask, and the expression on the lower half of his face, she could tell that he wasn't afraid of the bloody fighting at all. He was watching with keen interest.

"Y-you can decide," Lin Lang said. "Then I'll sign you up, little brother Kong Bo. Don't worry. To make sure the matches are evenly balanced and not too one-sided, every five levels count as one bracket. The strongest Soul Master you can face is level 25. But once you enter the stage, you can't leave."

"Okay, Sister Lin Lang. I understand," Kong Bo answered calmly. "I'm a Soul Engineer. Is that all right?"

"No problem," Lin Lang said. "There are a few more matches before yours. Do you want to get ready?"

"No need." Kong Bo shook his head. "I'll just watch here."

Kong Bo watched the matches with keen interest. He paid especially close attention to the executions after each victory. Lin Lang could tell from his tone that he wasn't afraid; he genuinely enjoyed it. It was as if the Soul Masters being executed on the stage weren't human at all. That was the benefit of watching Gundam for two and a half years. Even as he watched the vicious Soul Fighting battles, Kong Bo didn't feel the slightest fear.

"Hm?" One of the Soul Masters on the stage caught Kong Bo's interest. She was a masked female Soul Master, level 28, wearing a golden mask. After her Martial Soul Possession, she had manifested a Holy Angel with sacred attributes. Facing the Evil Soul Master opposite her, she showed not the slightest fear. In the end, she killed him with a single sword thrust.

Seeing this Angel Martial Soul, Kong Bo recognized the female Soul Master. Who else could it be but Ye Guyi? But he couldn't understand how Ye Guyi could compete in an Underground Soul Fighting Arena like this, where many of the contestants were Evil Soul Masters.

Kong Bo asked Lin Lang about it. "Sister Lin Lang, we know what Soul Masters the Xishui Alliance has. A Holy Angel Soul Master clearly has the upper hand against them, so they must hate Soul Masters with angel attributes. Is it really okay for her to compete on the stage like that?"

"It's fine, at least off the stage," Lin Lang said. "The Xishui Alliance may be powerful, but both the Pingfan Alliance and the Aodu Chamber of Commerce are protecting this little girl named Ye Guyi. Her cultivation conditions are excellent, at the very least. But once she steps onto the stage, it's a fight to the death. That's the line the Xishui Alliance has drawn."

"Winning is good for the Aodu Chamber of Commerce and the Pingfan Alliance, because it means they've trained a powerful Angel Soul Master. And by letting her fight in the arena, they're giving the Xishui Alliance a chance, too," Kong Bo said.