The Tournament Begins

In the blink of an eye, two days had passed.

Over those two days, Meng Hongchen had truly been through hell.

Every moment, she wanted to travel back to the instant she had agreed to prove herself to Xia Yu and slap her past self.

Then tell herself not to agree to that bastard Xia Yu, because she had only been asking for trouble and overestimating herself.

Ever since she had put on that blue-and-white semi-transparent gauze nightgown, she had not set foot on the ground once. She had spent the past two days entirely in bed and on Xia Yu.

And that was not even the end of it. Perhaps having discovered some special amusement in those outfits, Meng Hongchen had no idea how many sets of intimate clothing she had changed into under Xia Yu's lecherous tyranny over the past two days.

That bastard seemed tireless. Every time she changed into a new outfit, he would torment her until she was half-dead.

At the same time, she had been forced to repeat all those unbearably embarrassing acts.

It could be said that after this experience, Meng Hongchen's experience in that sort of thing had advanced by leaps and bounds.

If the Elite Soul Master Tournament had not been so close at hand, leaving Xia Yu no more time to teach her, then Meng Hongchen would not merely have made rapid progress—she would have become thoroughly practiced and reached the pinnacle.

"Phew..."

After two days, setting her feet firmly on the carpet once more, Meng Hongchen could not help but let out a relieved breath.

But when she saw Xia Yu lying on his side on the bed nearby, propping up his head as he looked her over from head to toe, her teeth itched with hatred.

That bastard had tormented her beyond measure for the past two days, yet now he looked as though nothing had happened. It was infuriating. She really wanted to bite him and let him experience her misery too.

The moment that thought arose, it instantly spread through Meng Hongchen's heart, urging her to act quickly.

But just as she was about to find a suitable place to sink her teeth into Xia Yu, she suddenly came to her senses. Now was not the time to provoke that bastard Xia Yu again.

She still had to attend the opening ceremony of the Elite Soul Master Tournament and take part in soul battles.

Who knew whether, after provoking Xia Yu, he would cast aside all reservations, stop caring about the Elite Soul Master Tournament, and seize her for another endless round of punishment?

Though the chances of that happening were tiny, so small they could practically be ignored.

Still, no matter how small the chance was, it remained possible. It was better not to provoke that bastard Xia Yu again. She would just endure it.

After comforting herself for a while, Meng Hongchen finally suppressed the urge to bite Xia Yu.

Then she simply ignored Xia Yu, treating him as if he did not exist, and walked barefoot into the bathroom.

Before long, the sound of running water rang out.

Only after quite some time did Meng Hongchen emerge from the bathroom and begin dressing up.

Today was the opening ceremony of the Radiant City Elite Soul Master Tournament. As the vice-captain of the Sun Moon Imperial Academy Team, she had to maintain her bearing and could not afford to embarrass herself.

"Brother Yu, why are you still not getting up? The tournament is about to begin."

While getting dressed, Meng Hongchen could not help frowning when she saw Xia Yu still lying lazily on the bed.

"No rush. I'll get up after you're done dressing!"

"Hmph, suit yourself!"

Morning light streamed through gaps in the clouds, spreading a sheet of golden radiance before the manor gates.

Bathed in that golden light, Xia Yu and Meng Hongchen boarded a soul tool carriage and headed toward the tournament grounds in the eastern outskirts of Radiant City.

It truly was worthy of being the once-every-five-years Elite Soul Master Tournament. It was indeed a grand event on the continent, drawing the attention of countless people.

Everywhere they looked along the way, there were seas of people and deafening clamor.

Xia Yu was not particularly interested in any of it. After looking around for a while, he stopped paying attention.

Meng Hongchen, on the other hand, seemed rather fond of the bustling sight for some reason.

Her gaze never once moved away from outside the carriage.

But unfortunately, her physical condition did not allow her to keep looking out the window.

After watching the scenery outside for a long time, her brows gradually drew together.

Then she sighed softly and moved her aching neck, a trace of exhaustion flashing through her eyes.

Leaning against the comfortable seat with his arms folded, Xia Yu watched Meng Hongchen's profile with a faint smile on his lips.

He had indeed gotten a little too excited over the past two days, but Meng Hongchen's endurance had also exceeded his expectations somewhat.

In the past, faced with such unprecedented intensity, she would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago, unable even to lift a finger.

After undergoing a transformation, however, things had improved considerably.

Other than some lingering soreness and fatigue, she had nothing else to deal with now.

It had to be said that the Ten-Thousand-Year Mysterious Ice Marrow had truly played a major role. Xia Yu liked that very much.

"Phew~"

After massaging her neck until it felt better, Meng Hongchen turned around. Just as she was about to let out a breath, she met Xia Yu's smiling eyes.

"What are you smiling at? It's all your fault."

Without giving it any thought, she shot Xia Yu a resentful glare.

Xia Yu did not say much in response. Instead, he reached out, pulled her over, and began massaging her neck and shoulders.

His movements were gentle, carrying a dense aura of life force that glimmered faintly.

Nourished by that life force, the lingering fatigue in Meng Hongchen's body quickly vanished, replaced by a thoroughly soothing numbness.

Feeling all her exhaustion dissipate beneath Xia Yu's hands, much of Meng Hongchen's resentment faded as well.

"All right, you can let go of me now."

Meng Hongchen pressed her lips together, then released them. Her voice was very soft, as though she were wary of something.

"All right."

Xia Yu nodded. At a time like this, he naturally would not do anything.

The carriage moved leisurely along with the crowd and finally arrived at the tournament grounds on the outskirts just as the participating teams were entering.

The moment they arrived, the members of the Sun Moon Imperial Academy Team immediately spotted Xia Yu's carriage.

"Brother Yu, I'll be going first!"

Meng Hongchen also noticed Xiao Hongchen and the others waiting for her.

She did not get out of the carriage immediately. Instead, she looked at Xia Yu and softly bade him farewell.

"Mm, go on. I'm looking forward to your performance in the tournament, and I also hope you can win the championship."

Xia Yu nodded lightly at Meng Hongchen. After offering a few words of encouragement, he watched her get out of the carriage.

After getting down, Meng Hongchen first turned back to look at Xia Yu before walking toward the Sun Moon Imperial Academy Team.

"Let's go. Head inside the grounds!"

Only after Meng Hongchen had joined the Sun Moon Imperial Academy Team did Xia Yu lower the curtain and sit back inside the carriage.

Then, at his command, the coachman drove the carriage through the passageway and into the tournament grounds.

As a Titled Douluo and a Rank-9 Soul Engineer, Xia Yu naturally had a seat reserved exclusively for him on the viewing platform.

However, since the tournament had not yet begun, Xia Yu did not go up to the viewing platform. Instead, he casually found a place below to wait.

He quietly awaited the tournament's opening.