Soul Master Competition Begins, Skywater vs. Heaven Dou Second Team

"Bing'er."

As Shui Bing'er smiled brilliantly, Leng Qishuang walked over with an envelope in her hand.

The moment Shui Yue'er saw Leng Qishuang, she immediately ran over to affectionately act spoiled.

Leng Qishuang lovingly held her.

After more than a year of growth, Shui Yue'er's girlish figure had developed considerably, especially her height.

Leng Qishuang had always been tall, around 1.8 meters.

And now, Shui Yue'er could already bury her face in Leng Qishuang's chest.

Seeing Shui Yue'er pounce at her, Leng Qishuang chuckled and gathered her into her arms.

Shui Bing'er took the envelope. After opening it, she exclaimed in surprise, "The All-Continent Elite Soul Master Competition?!"

"What?! The All-Continent Elite Soul Master Competition?!"

That cry instantly drew Xue Wu and the others' attention. They stopped what they were doing and gathered around to look.

Even Shui Yue'er temporarily left Leng Qishuang's ample embrace.

"Mm. The preliminaries will be held in Heaven Dou City a month from now. This is the notice from the academy. All participating teams need to report in half a month early," Shui Bing'er told the sisters around her.

Yu Hairou was overjoyed. "It's finally starting! I can barely wait to get into the arena and show what I can do!"

Shui Yue'er's little face was brimming with excitement. "Sis, we can definitely win the championship, right?"

Even the quiet, introverted Shen Liuyu and Qiu Ruoshui had excited flushes on their faces, as though the championship were already within reach.

It was no wonder they were so excited. Thanks to the cultivation techniques Meng Chen had given them "before bed," everyone at Skywater Academy had reached the Soul Ancestor level, while Shui Bing'er was even a Soul Emperor. In terms of rank, they were likely unmatched among the competing teams.

Only Xue Wu and Gu Qingbo remained more composed. Xue Wu warned, "Pride comes before a fall. The continent is full of hidden talents. We absolutely cannot underestimate our opponents."

Gu Qingbo agreed, solemnity filling her soft, alluring voice. "In past years, it was always Spirit Hall's team that won the championship. This time, who knows what trump cards they're hiding."

Shui Bing'er, however, had drifted away in thought. There was only one thought in her mind: the All-Continent Elite Soul Master Competition had already begun, yet Master still had not awakened. She did not know whether Master would still be able to watch her win the championship...

One month later, Heaven Dou City.

The city roared with voices and blazed with lights.

Heaven Dou City had welcomed its liveliest day of the year.

The area around the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena had been cleared out in advance, ensuring smooth passage for the competitors.

Ordinary citizens, however, had to endure traffic that crawled as slowly as a turtle, pedestrians included.

"Look, look! Xue Ye's imperial carriage!"

A squad of golden-armored knights galloped in from the end of the street. The lead knight held aloft a flag embroidered with the Heaven Dou Empire's royal emblem. The golden dragon banner gleamed under the sunlight, snapping loudly in the wind.

A carriage adorned entirely in gold rolled past, its body carved with exquisite patterns. Eight snow-white steeds pulled it, their coats without a single stray color.

Behind the gauze curtains of the carriage window, a majestic figure could vaguely be seen sitting upright and utterly still.

"Xue Ye! Xue Ye!" someone shouted, but the voice was quickly swallowed by an even greater uproar.

The Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena stood in the northern part of the city, the most magnificent building in all of Heaven Dou City.

Starting a month ago, all Soul Fighting matches here had ceased for internal renovations.

The Soul Fighting platforms had been reinforced, while the spectator stands had been expanded to hold more than twice as many people.

The VIP section remained on the northern side of the entire venue. Red carpets imported from overseas covered the ground there, the seats were fitted with velvet cushions, and their armrests were inlaid with gold trim.

The emperor of the empire, Spirit Hall's envoy, and representatives from the major sects would all sit there, looking down from above at the Soul Fighting platforms below.

Inside the Skywater Academy Team's waiting room, the Seven Maidens were making their pre-match preparations.

Yu Hairou turned in circles before a mirror, tugging at her skirt one moment and straightening her collar the next.

Shui Yue'er poked her head out from behind her. The two squeezed in front of the mirror, shoving each other back and forth, until Gu Qingbo pushed them apart with one hand each.

"Stop fooling around," Gu Qingbo said helplessly. "Don't embarrass yourselves once you're out there."

"Who's going to embarrass themselves?" Yu Hairou pouted defiantly. "I'm already a level forty-two Soul Ancestor! Level forty-two! I never would have dared dream that I could break through to Soul Ancestor at this age!"

Watching the group fool around, Xue Wu could not help looking toward their captain, Shui Bing'er, hoping she would put a stop to it. However...

Shui Bing'er stood by the window, gazing through the glass at the sea of people outside, their cheers like crashing waves. Her expression was calm.

She wore Skywater Academy's formal ice-blue uniform, making her cold beauty seem even more frost-like.

So it was this opponent... Let Yue'er and the others relax a little longer, then.

That was what Shui Bing'er thought.

"Creak—"

Leng Qishuang pushed open the door and walked in.

At the sight of Leng Qishuang, Shui Yue'er and the others immediately stopped fooling around and stood where they were, awaiting orders.

She wore an ice-blue robe embroidered with Skywater Academy's emblem, paired with white high-heeled over-the-knee boots. She looked every bit the sexy, mature beauty.

Leng Qishuang's expression was more serious than usual as her gaze swept over the faces of the seven people one by one.

"Are you ready?"

Leng Qishuang asked sternly.

"We're ready!"

The Seven Maidens answered in unison, their eyes filled with confidence.

Leng Qishuang nodded in satisfaction, then walked over to Shui Bing'er and said gently, "Bing'er, about your Master... don't dwell on it too much. Master would not want you thinking about other things while you're competing."

"I know, Mother."

Leng Qishuang nodded, took a step back, and resumed her authority as team leader. "Let's go."

She led the way out of the waiting room, her high heels clicking crisply against the floor.

Shui Bing'er followed behind her mother, followed by Xue Wu. Yu Hairou, Shui Yue'er, Gu Qingbo, Shen Liuyu, and Qiu Ruoshui followed in turn.

The seven people's footsteps rang out with strength, echoing through the corridor.

At the end of the corridor stood a massive iron gate, tightly shut.

Behind it lay the attention of the entire Heaven Dou Empire.

"First to enter the arena—the Skywater Academy Team!"

The iron gate flew open, and the audience's cheers and applause surged in like a tidal wave. Leng Qishuang stepped aside, her eyes full of expectation.

The Seven Maidens filed out. As they stepped onto the arena, the host's impassioned voice exploded once more. "Before the audience can recover from the beauty of the Skywater Team's members, another team has already arrived at the arena—the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy Second Team!"

The instant his words fell, light arrived first.

Dozens of spotlights lit up simultaneously from various directions above the stands. Massive golden beams shot down from on high, crisscrossing and converging in the air, bathing the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy Second Team in a sea of golden light.

Then, attendants scattered rose petals along the path the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy Second Team was about to take.

Next came a thunderous burst of music—an orchestra performing a symphony live. It was as majestic as an army returning in triumph, the notes echoing beneath the dome and stirring layer upon layer of reverberations.

"What the heck... They even brought an orchestra for a match..." Shui Yue'er muttered quietly.

That was the special treatment reserved for the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy Second Team's entrance.

Mainly because they had too much money.