Duel, Training Arena!

"Yao Haoxuan, are you actually stupid or just pretending? The one by my side right now is my—"

Halfway through, Ling Luochan suddenly stopped.

Because Ling Tianchen gently tugged at her sleeve from behind and shook his head at her.

Ling Luochan looked at him and noticed that his hair had turned white for an instant before changing back.

"This is Phoenix's ability. It can change the color of my hair. Now they definitely won't be able to tell who I am, and that way I can help Sis teach them a harsh lesson."

Ling Tianchen said in a low voice.

"You're so bad. I like it so much."

Ling Luochan's eyes curved into crescents.

"Who else could he be?" Yao Haoxuan sized Ling Tianchen up and down. "Don't tell me you want to say he's your little brother? Everyone knows Luochan's brother has blue hair. This kid has a head of white hair—do you think you can fool us like that?"

"Exactly! Kid, surrender obediently. Young Master's Soul Tool isn't just for show, heh heh."

Qian Shaoshao poked his plump head out from behind Yao Haoxuan, revealing a mouthful of dazzling gold front teeth. His grin was particularly lecherous; even from so far away, it felt as though one could smell his bad breath.

He'd gotten up before dawn that morning and deliberately circled through more than half the Inner Court to pack breakfast from the cafeteria. He'd eagerly carried it to Ling Luochan's courtyard gate, only to be yanked behind a tree by Yao Haoxuan, who had appeared out of nowhere, before he could even knock.

"Why are you dragging me away? I haven't even delivered breakfast to Chencheng yet!"

"Don't bother. She's not there. She brought a guy back last night, and he still hasn't come out."

The fat on Qian Shaoshao's face twitched several times before he forced out a smile uglier than crying. "W-what kind of joke is that? How could Chencheng possibly..."

The rest of his words caught in his throat.

Because he saw with his own eyes Ling Luochan push open the courtyard gate and walk out. Humming a tune with light steps, she happily headed straight for the cafeteria. When she returned, she carried an obvious two-person breakfast in her hands, and her steps were even more cheerful than before.

"Th-this... this is for that guy... They, they have no shame! They actually lived together for an entire night!"

His expression looked as awful as if he'd eaten dog shit.

Yao Haoxuan wasn't as grotesque as he was, but his face was still dark enough to drip water.

"Don't jump to conclusions yet, Qian Shaoshao."

"What conclusions are there to jump to? They spent the night together—what else is there to conclude?!"

"I know we've had some conflicts before. That's unavoidable when we're rivals in love. But I hope we can form a united front today. We have to make that kid lose all face in front of Luochan! Only then will we have a chance."

"Fine, we'll cooperate this once. How did that saying go again—right, good fertilizer shouldn't be left for outsiders!"

"It's good fertilizer doesn't flow into outsiders' fields."

Yao Haoxuan's mouth twitched, but he still clasped that greasy pig trotter of a hand.

With both hands in his pockets, Ling Tianchen strolled unhurriedly up to the two of them.

"You want to capture me? Fine. But before that, I want to challenge you two to a duel. As I recall, upperclassmen aren't allowed to refuse a duel from lowerclassmen, right?"

"A duel? You? Alone, challenging the two of us?"

Qian Shaoshao froze for a moment, then burst into laughter while clutching his belly.

The fat all over his body shook wildly as he laughed. He looked a little like one of those laughing milk frog memes, except far more unpleasant to look at.

"Are you sure? If you come with us obediently, at most you'll get a disciplinary warning. But once we enter the Soul Fighting Arena, fists and feet have no eyes, and age means nothing. Have you thought through the consequences of offending your superiors?"

Yao Haoxuan didn't laugh. With his arms folded, he scrutinized the ignorant freshman before him.

"You don't need to worry about that. Or are you saying... you're scared?"

Ling Tianchen made no effort to hide the mockery in his voice.

"You're courting death!"

Qian Shaoshao's face instantly turned liver-red as he prepared to charge forward, only for Yao Haoxuan to grab and stop him.

Yao Haoxuan was nearly fainting with anger at this pig teammate. He was far too easily provoked. If they really attacked a freshman in public, they would be the ones in the wrong.

If this fatty hadn't had a Titled Douluo as his adoptive father, Yao Haoxuan would have wanted to beat him up himself long ago.

"Calm down. He's provoking you."

"Fine, kid. Very good. You've got guts. Then we'll meet at the Training Arena."

After throwing out those words, Yao Haoxuan turned and left, not forgetting to drag away Qian Shaoshao, who was still baring his teeth at Ling Tianchen.

The Inner Court's Training Arena, specially used for practical combat training, stood atop a hundred-meter hill on the eastern side of Sea God Island. Other than Sea God's Pavilion, it was the highest point on the island.

When Ling Luochan brought him up to the Training Arena, she was surprised to discover that someone had arrived before them.

A black-clad figure stood proudly in the middle of the arena. A purple windbreaker was draped over her black dress, and her long black hair moved despite the absence of wind, making her look valiant and heroic.

"Is she pretty?"

"Pretty!"

Ling Tianchen blurted it out instinctively. The moment the words left his mouth, he realized something was wrong and hurriedly added, "But she's still a little behind Sis."

"You don't need to comfort me."

Though Ling Luochan said that, the corners of her lips lifted slightly. Clearly, she was quite pleased by his compliment.

"Senior Sister is publicly recognized as both the most beautiful woman and the strongest person in the Inner Court. She has both beauty and strength. I really can't compare to her. That's not modesty; it's the truth."

Ling Tianchen shrugged indifferently.

"What most beautiful woman? That's just the filter people put on the strong. Once Sister Luochan takes Senior Sister's position in the future, people will say you're the most beautiful woman in the Inner Court too."

Ling Luochan lowered her lashes and gently shook her head. "I admire Senior Sister, but I've never thought I could stand in that position. That's a height that can't be reached through effort alone."

"I'll help you, so don't belittle yourself. Forget Senior Sister of the Inner Court—even becoming the master of Sea God's Pavilion wouldn't be a problem for Sis."

Ling Luochan looked at him with an extremely serious gaze, without the slightest trace of teasing or jest.

For some reason, her heartbeat skipped half a beat. She immediately turned her face away and softly hummed in acknowledgment.

At that moment, the battle in the arena had reached its most intense stage.

Among Zhang Lexuan's two yellow, two purple, three black, and one red soul rings, the red one was especially eye-catching. Behind her floated the phantom of a crescent moon as bright and pure as the moon itself, shooting out cold moonlight-like rays in a dense downpour.

Moonbeam was attacking two people: one was a Soul Sage controlling golden ropes, while the other was a Soul Emperor surrounded by golden flames.

With a single glance, it was clear that the Inner Court's senior sister, Zhang Lexuan, was fighting Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming. However, the two sides were not remotely on the same level. Rather than a battle, it was more like Zhang Lexuan was feeding them moves.

Golden Crow True Flame Break!

Wu Ming shouted furiously as the golden flames around her fist flared up, and she smashed it viciously toward the incoming Moonbeam.

As flames collided with moonlight, she let out a muffled grunt and was forced back half a step.

This was only a casual basic attack from Zhang Lexuan, yet it already displayed the terrifying power of a Soul Douluo.

"Ruoruo, help me!" Wu Ming gritted her teeth and shouted.

In fact, Han Ruoruo had already moved before she even spoke.

The Flashing Gold Rope in her hands moved like a spirit snake flicking its tongue, weaving an impenetrable golden defensive net through the air and intercepting every Moonbeam aimed at Wu Ming.

Zhang Lexuan noticed a few more people at the edge of the arena from the corner of her eye, but her offensive didn't pause. "It seems some junior brothers and sisters need the venue. Then let's finish this quickly."

"No, Senior Sister! If you use your full strength, what meaning would there be in training?!"

Wu Ming let out a miserable howl.