Great Soul Arena! Life-and-Death Duel!

When they arrived at the Pope Palace, Bibi Dong was listening to a report from her subordinates.

After waiting for a while, the four stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "Your Holiness."

Bibi Dong's gaze swept over the four of them, lingering on Ning Yuan for a moment before a satisfied smile appeared on her lips.

"Not bad."

"You've entered the basics so quickly."

As the creator of the Soul Devouring Codex, Bibi Dong could naturally tell that Ning Yuan had already taken his first steps in cultivating it. She simply had not expected him to do so this quickly.

She had originally estimated that it would take Ning Yuan at least several days to get started.

But he had done it in one night?

Ning Yuan's talent truly was absurdly powerful.

Ning Yuan replied, "Thanks to Your Holiness's blessings. I was merely fortunate."

The exchange between them left the other three somewhat confused.

What did they mean by getting started?

What did they mean by fortunate?

What kind of riddle were these two speaking in?

"Your Holiness." Ning Yuan stepped forward. "The four of us have a request."

"Speak."

"We wish to go to the Great Soul Arena and take part in matches."

A hint of doubt flashed through Bibi Dong's eyes. "Tell me your reasons."

Ning Yuan's expression turned serious.

"Your Holiness, we do not wish to become flowers raised in a greenhouse."

"Spirit Hall has given us the finest resources and cultivation conditions, but true powerhouses do not grow beneath protection."

"Practical combat must match one's strength, and the place most capable of rapidly improving combat ability right now is the Great Soul Arena."

"I hope Your Holiness will grant permission."

Ning Yuan looked like someone wholly devoted to cultivation, but in truth, his goal was merely that External Soul Bone.

Bibi Dong's gaze slowly passed over the faces of the four.

Ning Yuan's expression remained composed and his eyes clear. Not a single word he had spoken was born of momentary impulse.

She felt increasingly fortunate that she had recruited Ning Yuan into Spirit Hall.

His arrival had made the other three more driven as well.

In the past, the three of them would never have requested to go out and gain practical combat experience.

After a long while, Bibi Dong slowly nodded.

"Good." The smile on her lips deepened. "With such determination, my efforts in nurturing you have not been in vain."

"Go. I approve."

Early the next morning, they met at the Great Soul Arena located in the southeastern corner of Spirit Hall.

The arena was exceptionally grand, its overall design somewhat resembling the architectural style of the Parthenon from Ning Yuan's previous life.

"So this is the Great Soul Arena?"

Seeing this popular setting from the original work, Ning Yuan could not help but sigh.

By then, Xie Yue, Hu Liena, and Yan, who had come with him, had already finished disguising themselves.

Ning Yuan had told them about it the day before. It was best to alter their appearances and compete under false identities when participating in matches at Spirit Hall.

The three of them had even begun to suspect that Ning Yuan had visited the Great Soul Arena before.

However, when Ning Yuan saw their disguises, he found them difficult to put into words.

Hu Liena and Yan were fine; they had both worn uniquely designed masks. Xie Yue, on the other hand, had simply covered the lower half of his face with a piece of cloth and come over.

Seeing that Ning Yuan had not disguised himself at all, Hu Liena asked, "Junior Brother Ning Yuan, why did you tell us to disguise ourselves when you aren't doing it yourself?"

Ning Yuan did not answer. He merely brushed a hand across his face.

Venom immediately formed a fierce-looking mask over Ning Yuan's face.

If he used the same design as before, someone would definitely recognize him.

It was practically a black version of Daredevil.

However, to conceal his identity completely, the lower half of his face was covered in black as well.

That flashy transformation left the three beside him green with envy.

"Alright, let's go register."

Ning Yuan's voice came from beneath the mask.

The moment they entered the Great Soul Arena, they could hear the cheers and shouts echoing from within through the walls.

At the same time, a long-dormant scent of blood drifted through the air.

The feeling made Ning Yuan faintly excited.

[The scent of blood, the scent of evil—this place is practically heaven for Venom.]

[Little Ning Yuan, can I eat brains here?]

[If you want people to arrest me as an evil Soul Master, go ahead and eat.]

[...]

The registration process went smoothly.

Xie Yue chose the alias "Scimitar Warrior."

Hu Liena's alias was "Phantom."

Yan's alias was "Flame Envoy."

Ning Yuan simply called himself "Daredevil."

It was worth mentioning that Ning Yuan signed up for a deathmatch.

There was no other reason—the deathmatch offered more points.

The other three were all shocked when they saw Ning Yuan register for a deathmatch.

They had only signed up for the most ordinary matches.

As far as they were concerned, they had come merely to gain practical combat experience.

They weren't idiots who would go up and fight someone to the death.

Ning Yuan was truly skilled and fearless.

Ning Yuan paid them no mind. Since he had registered for a deathmatch, there were relatively few opponents he could be matched with. The other three therefore entered the Great Soul Arena first for their matches.

Ning Yuan, meanwhile, strolled in after them with his hands clasped behind his head.

After passing through the corridor, the roaring waves of cheers crashed over him like an avalanche, making his eardrums ache.

He could clearly feel the air filled with the scent of fresh blood, along with the Soul Power fluctuations left behind by all kinds of soul skills.

At that moment, the Soul Devouring Codex began operating passively.

It absorbed the free-floating Soul Power and killing intent in the surrounding air, converting them into Soul Power and feeding it back to Ning Yuan.

Ning Yuan was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected this trip to bring an unexpected gain.

It seemed he would have to visit the Great Soul Arena more often from now on.

Xie Yue was the first to take the stage.

His opponent was a Soul Master with a rock martial soul.

His defense was extremely strong.

Yet the moment the match began, Xie Yue summoned his martial soul and split through his opponent's defense with a single slash. His opponent crashed heavily to the ground, while Xie Yue calmly turned around and left the stage.

Ning Yuan couldn't help but complain. This guy really knew how to show off.

Hu Liena's match was much the same. Using the powerful charm ability of her martial soul, she directly made her opponent injure himself and concede defeat.

Yan, on the other hand, possessed his martial soul and charged like a raging bull, sending his opponent flying with a direct collision.

Though all three had lost to Ning Yuan before, that was only because Ning Yuan was far too monstrous.

In everyone else's eyes, these three were geniuses.

After finishing their matches, the three briefly met up with Ning Yuan.

"Next, it's up to you, Daredevil!"

Beneath her mask, Hu Liena was clearly still not used to this strange name.

"Oh, right. Bet your entire fortune on me winning."

The other three exchanged glances, then hurriedly ran off to place their bets.

A spectator nearby overheard Ning Yuan's words and saw how arrogant he was acting.

"Bet on you to win? Have you gone crazy trying to make money?"

It was time for Ning Yuan's deathmatch to begin.

The host took a deep breath and let out a throat-rending roar.

"Up next!!!"

"Spirit Hall Great Soul Arena! A fight to the death!"

"This contestant has fought four battles and won all four! Four perfect victories! Four finishes!"

"Every single opponent was torn apart by his own hands!!"

"He is the meat grinder of the arena! The nightmare of his opponents! A beast that slaughtered his way here over a path of corpses!"

"Spectators! Are you ready?!"

"Let us..."

"With our most frenzied screams..."

"Welcome this vicious beast... from hell...!!!"

"Iron... Bear...!!!"

As the host's final, impassioned cry stretched into a hoarse crack, the contestant codenamed Iron Bear stepped onto the stage.

He spun excitedly in place, showing off his muscles to the crowd as he let out a furious roar.

Iron Bear was bare-chested, his muscles knotted and bulging, each slab of tendon-hard flesh as solid as rock.

A roaring brown bear was tattooed from his neck down to his chest. Combined with the old scars covering his body, he exuded a savage, murderous air.

Deafening cheers exploded from below the stage, the waves of sound nearly tearing the roof off the entire Soul Arena.

The host continued roaring.

"Next... let us welcome today's challenger with a round of applause... Daredevil!"

The applause was sparse, mixed with jeers.

Ning Yuan slowly emerged from the contestants' passage.

Among Soul Masters, his build was hardly imposing. Compared to Iron Bear, who already stood in the center of the arena, he looked even more pitifully small.

The man who had mocked Ning Yuan for overestimating himself was mixed into the crowd, loudly joining in the taunts.

"Iron Bear! Tear him apart for me!"

Several gamblers beside him were shouting as well.

"I bet two gold coins! Iron Bear is guaranteed to win!"

"That Daredevil or whatever is obviously a rookie at first glance. Even his name is all flashy nonsense!"

"Iron Bear, rip off his limbs!"

"If he can defeat today's opponent, he will achieve five consecutive victories, and his badge rank will rise to Bronze!"

"Tonight... can he claim his fifth straight win? Let us wait and see!"