Soul Battle

Jiang Lan puffed out his chest, making the belly of his penguin suit bulge. "I won't cry! I'm really strong!"

The surrounding crowd burst into good-natured laughter. The young man in leather armor who had mocked him earlier spoke first. "Little guy, level eighteen is indeed impressive, but opponents in the Soul Arena won't go easy on you just because you're young. Are you sure you want to fight?"

"I'm sure!" Jiang Lan said firmly, chin raised. "I want to fight the strongest!"

The supervisor raised an eyebrow, his goatee curling slightly as he revealed a half-smile.

He had seen plenty of geniuses. A six-year-old at level eighteen was certainly monstrous, but talent was talent; actual combat was another matter.

This child did not even know what the arena looked like, yet he was already asking to fight the strongest. A newborn calf that feared no tiger.

"You've got ambition. Xiao Yue, register him." The supervisor pulled an application form from his sleeve and personally handed it to Jiang Lan. "Little guy, just leave a fingerprint on it. But let me make this clear first: solo matches are grouped by level. You're level eighteen, so your opponent will be within the same level range."

"But that range includes opponents up to ten levels above you. In other words, you might face a level twenty-eight Soul Master. Are you still sure you want to fight?"

Without another word, Jiang Lan dipped his right index finger into the ink pad and pressed a round red fingerprint onto the registration form.

The print was too small, and he was afraid it would not stand out enough, so he pressed down hard again. He did not stop until his entire finger had turned red.

"I can fight level twenty-eights too!" Jiang Lan wiped his finger on Doro, then looked up at the supervisor without the slightest hesitation in his eyes.

Before the little red fingerprint on the registration form had even dried, the news spread through the entire Vast Sea Great Soul Arena as though it had grown wings.

"Have you heard? A six-year-old signed up for the solo matches later!"

"Six years old? Are you joking? Since when did the Soul Arena become a kindergarten?"

"It's true! It came from the testing room—level eighteen! A six-year-old at level eighteen!"

"Did you drink too much last night? Level eighteen at six?"

"If I'm lying, I'm a sea soul beast! He'll be on soon. Go see for yourself!"

Similar conversations rose and fell in every corner of the Soul Arena.

The spectators waiting in the hall had originally been slouching in their seats and yawning, but the moment they heard the news, they perked up.

A six-year-old contestant—this was the first time in the history of the Vast Sea Great Soul Arena. Whether the child was genuinely capable or simply there to make everyone laugh, the spectacle alone was worth the price of admission.

So when Jiang Lan's match was arranged, the number of people in the stands had doubled from usual.

Only half the seating had originally been open, but now even the corners of the back rows were packed. Latecomers could only stand in the aisles and crane their necks to look ahead.

Everyone stared at the arena entrance, waiting to see what the legendary six-year-old Soul Master actually looked like.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" The host's voice echoed through the venue via an amplifying Soul Tool, carrying deliberately restrained excitement. "The next solo match will be the most unusual match in the history of our Vast Sea Great Soul Arena! The blue-side contestant, Jiang Lan from Sea God Island! Six years old! Level eighteen!"

The doors at the arena entrance slowly opened.

Everyone's gazes snapped in that direction, and then they saw a sight that left them all stunned.

A chubby little figure in a penguin onesie waddled out through the doors.

Its orange flippers slapped against the arena's stone floor. The belly of the onesie was stuffed full, though no one knew how many snacks and dried fish were crammed inside.

The penguin beak on the hood bobbed with every step. Beneath it was a plump little face, with a speck of candy still stuck to one cheek.

Behind Jiang Lan followed an equally round white little ball.

With cherry-blossom-pink bun hair, purple beadlike eyes, and two tiny legs moving as fast as they could, Doro barely managed to keep up with him.

Doro held an orange in her arms and nibbled on it as she walked. Juice dripped from the corners of her mouth onto the ground, leaving behind a trail of tiny wet marks.

One human and one soul swaggered onto the arena like this. They did not look as though they had come to fight; they looked more like they were strolling through a market.

The audience went silent for a full two seconds before erupting into deafening laughter.

"My god! He really is a child! Has he even been weaned yet?"

"What is that outfit? A penguin? Does Sea God Island raise penguins now?"

"Look at that white ball behind him! What is that thing? It can walk on its own! It can even eat oranges!"

"No, is the Soul Arena serious? They're letting a brat in a penguin suit fight a solo match?"

"I think he's here to make people laugh! Did the Soul Arena hire him as a warm-up act?"

The host was momentarily choked by the sight, but he still dutifully continued the introduction. "The red-side contestant! Zhao Tiezhu, a local from Vast Sea City! Twenty-four years old! Level twenty-five! Martial Soul: Iron-Arm Bear!"

A burly young man emerged from the red-side entrance.

Zhao Tiezhu stood nearly two meters tall. Each of his arms was thicker than Jiang Lan's entire body, and the muscles on them bulged like blocks of iron. His skin carried a dull metallic sheen.

As he walked onto the arena, every step made the stone floor tremble faintly. His sheer size alone was enough to make most opponents' legs go weak.

Zhao Tiezhu stopped and looked down at the tiny little thing across from him, who was not even as tall as his knee. His expression changed from anticipation to confusion, then from confusion to offended anger.

"Are you kidding me?" Zhao Tiezhu turned toward the supervisor at the edge of the arena, pointing at Jiang Lan. His voice was as rough as sandpaper scraping iron. "You want me to fight a little kid in a penguin suit? Is your Soul Arena out of contestants? I paid the registration fee to fight, not to play nanny!"

The supervisor replied expressionlessly, "Follow the rules. The match will proceed as usual."

Zhao Tiezhu turned back to Jiang Lan, bent over, and looked down at the chubby little figure with a mocking grin. "Hey, brat, did you come to the wrong place? The children's playground is in the east of the city. Turn right when you leave. Don't let me stop you."

Jiang Lan looked up at him, his expression exceptionally calm. "I didn't come to the wrong place. I'm here to compete."

"Compete?" Zhao Tiezhu straightened up and folded his arms across his chest, letting out a derisive snort. "You? One punch from me, and even your mother wouldn't recognize you. Believe that?"

Laughter and jeers rose from the stands as well. A burly man in the front row shouted, "Tiezhu! Go easy on him! Don't make the kid cry! His mother might come looking to settle the score with you later!" Several people beside him joined in, while someone else loudly remarked that the child had guts, but unfortunately, he was in for a hard lesson today.

Jiang Lan tilted his head and looked at Zhao Tiezhu. "Mister, you'd better fight seriously. I'm very strong."

Zhao Tiezhu froze for a moment, then laughed even harder.