"Ah!" Jiang Jiang cried out in pain, dropping all the grilled fish in her hand onto the ground.
Seeing Jiang Jiang hurt, Xu Sanshi's eyes instantly turned bloodshot, and he panted like a bull.
He flung away the grilled fish in his hand and summoned a pitch-black shield. Four soul rings-yellow, yellow, purple, purple-also lit up behind him.
"You dared to slap Jiang Jiang's face!"
Raising his shield, Xu Sanshi smashed it toward Tang Ya beside him.
"Ah, why are you attacking me?"
Before Tang Ya could dodge, a figure descended from above.
A slender leg slammed into Xu Sanshi's shield, unleashing a blast of air that sent the barbecue grill flying.
The figure who had attacked Xu Sanshi flipped over and landed upright in front of Tang Ya.
She was a girl with long golden hair, with two adorable rabbit ears standing atop her head.
Three soul rings-yellow, yellow, purple-shone behind her.
"Jiang Nannan, get lost! Stay out of my way, or I'll beat you up too!"
"Xu Sanshi, you were the ones who stole someone else's grilled fish first. You only have yourselves to blame for getting slapped."
Jiang Nannan stood fearlessly in front of Lu Yu.
Ever since Lu Yu had cured her mother, Jiang Nannan had been quietly gathering information about him. That was how she had recognized him the instant she saw him.
Seeing her benefactor and her roommate in trouble, she had acted immediately.
Although Xu Sanshi was known as one of the Outer Court Twin Stars, the soul tools in her storage ring were no pushovers either.
Lu Yu had given her guidance years ago.
"Although the Soft Bone Rabbit martial soul has plenty of mechanics, it lacks offensive skills early on. It's best to make up for that with soul tools."
"Also, soul tools are something I only use, not study. Studying them before twenty is a complete waste of talent."
Following Lu Yu's guidance, Jiang Nannan had joined the Soul Tool Department after her first year at Shrek Academy to learn how to use soul tools.
With her strength as the best in her year, she had made a name for the Soul Tool Department, successfully earning herself core disciple status there. Her storage ring also held all sorts of soul tools, including some of their latest research...
A Fixed Soul Cannon Shell appeared in her hand.
A Fixed Soul Cannon Shell cost one hundred gold soul coins and had ten times the offensive output of a soul master of the same rank.
Unlike ordinary Fixed Soul Cannon Shells, which required a launcher, this one was manually triggered with a delay.
With her Waist Bow + Gravity Control, Jiang Nannan could easily exceed the range of long-range soul masters of the same rank, on top of sneak attacks with Teleportation and the Invincible Golden Body already planned for the future.
The Soul Tool Department was already researching how to make her shine brilliantly in next year's All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Soul Fighting Tournament.
"You dare act tough in front of me with some lousy soul tool? You think I'm afraid of you?"
Xu Sanshi raised his shield, and the soul rings behind him lit up.
Xiao Xiao and Huo Yutong also immediately revealed their martial souls. The tension had now reached its peak.
"Sanshi, calm down, calm down! You'll be expelled for getting into a fight with lower-year students."
"If you have a dispute, you can settle it at the Soul Fighting Arena."
Just then, a blue-haired boy wearing the same black school uniform as Xu Sanshi ran over shouting and stood between the two sides.
"Fine, Bei Bei, I'll do you this favor. Tang Ya, dare to have a wager match with me? Whoever loses leaves the academy!"
"Well... hmph, who cares about you leaving? If you lose, I want you to give me a hundred thousand gold soul coins!" Still bewildered, Tang Ya immediately played along after receiving Lu Yu's Spiritual Detection.
Wait! Lu Yu, how could I possibly beat Xu Sanshi?
Don't worry. You won't be fighting. I will.
You will? What do you mean?
I mean I'll control your body to fight Xu Sanshi.
How is that any different from me fighting Xu Sanshi?!
Complaints aside, Tang Ya still decided to trust Lu Yu.
Xu Sanshi hesitated, but then turned to look at Jiang Jiang beside him, weeping like pear blossoms drenched in rain, and gritted his teeth.
"Fine. If you want Xu Sanshi's money, we'll see whether you have what it takes to get it."
With that, Xu Sanshi turned and left with Jiang Jiang.
"Sorry. Sanshi is a little impulsive. Just fight for a bit and surrender later. I'll help you sort out the rest."
Bei Bei said this to Tang Ya.
"No need. You'd better figure out how to help him make up the gold soul coins he's short of."
Leaving him with those words, Tang Ya walked around Bei Bei and headed for the Soul Fighting Arena.
Hey! Lu Yu, why didn't you agree? Fine, I'll take the blame, but couldn't you spare me a beating?
If we win, you get half the money. If we lose, I'll pay out of my own pocket and not give you fifty thousand gold soul coins. If you're expelled, I'll send you to Star Luo Royal Academy. Are you in or not?
He actually dared to steal Yutong's grilled fish. Of course I have to teach him a harsh lesson!
Shrek Academy, Soul Fighting Arena!
The fantasy world lacked the real world's rich nightlife. Aside from going out to drink and revel, Shrek's lazy dogs only had the academy's Soul Fighting Arena to while away their time.
Upon hearing that Xu Sanshi, one of the Outer Court Twin Stars, would be taking the stage, everyone present immediately erupted in thunderous cheers!
"Tch, why is it Xu Sanshi again? Is he setting up another fix with Thunderbolt Bei Bei?"
"I heard his opponent this time is Tang Ya."
"Tang Ya? Who's that?"
"Our academy's only Blue Silver Grass user. A Soul Elder who just reached rank thirty-one."
"Isn't that completely one-sided? Yeah, nobody's even taking bets on this match."
"Who says nobody's taking bets? I'll be the bookie."
Lu Yu called out from right behind the crowd.
If he was going to make money, he would make a fortune.
"Impressive, kid. You've got guts."
"What are the odds?"
"Ten to one on Xu Sanshi winning-bet ten, win one."
"Why is there only one option? What about the other person winning?"
"I'm betting on the other person winning. Are you placing bets or not?"
"All right, you've got guts!"
Hearing that someone was giving away money, hordes of gambling addicts poured their gold soul coins into the betting pool.
An academy teacher even helped verify Lu Yu's funds: forty thousand gold soul coins. Since it was the first day, most students had plenty of money.
The four hundred thousand backing Xu Sanshi's victory was soon collected.
As for concerns that Xu Sanshi and Tang Ya were working together to fix the match? With such a large sum involved, a teacher would be specifically watching, and any fixing would be spotted immediately.
If anyone was caught deliberately fixing the match, not only would all the money be confiscated, they would also be expelled from the academy!
On the soul fighting stage, Tang Ya looked expressionless on the surface, but inside, she was panicking terribly.
As a Soul Elder hovering on the verge of expulsion, she truly could not understand how she was supposed to beat the outer court core disciple facing her.
Below the stage, Jiang Nannan stared at Lu Yu, her face so close that he could even feel her breath on his face.
"Grandmaster Lu, long time no see. I actually failed to recognize you for a moment."
"It was thanks to you that my mother was brought out of danger."
Jiang Nannan bowed to Lu Yu.
For some reason, despite only having met him for those few days years ago, Jiang Nannan felt a sense of familiarity once again.
Is it because the Soft Bone Rabbit martial soul within me recognized him?
Back then, seeing a Soft Bone Rabbit martial soul with innate full soul power, Lu Yu had felt the thrill of a hunter spotting prey and done a good deed, using medicinal broth from the game to cure her mother's illness, then giving her some guidance on her future development along the way.
Since she already had two rings when he first met Jiang Nannan, and the third and fourth rings afterward were both crucial soul skills for the Soft Bone Rabbit, there had been no need for major changes.
He had only recommended a hybrid soul beast, the Mutant Wolf Ape, which could yield a soul skill granting ten-meter Teleportation.
Apart from that, Lu Yu had advised her to equip herself with soul tools as much as possible for battle.
At low soul master ranks, there was no need to learn how to manufacture soul tools. Learning how to use them was enough.
Seeing Jiang Nannan immediately pull out a Fixed Soul Cannon Shell just now, it seemed she had learned well.
"Which of Xu Sanshi's soul skills do you know about?"
"Xu Sanshi's soul skills? His first soul skill is an area knockback, his Second Soul Skill is a barrier, and his Third Soul Skill strengthens his martial soul and his other soul skills. As for his fourth, he only obtained it during the holidays, so I don't know. Oh, and he can also actively turn his Xuanming Shield into the Black Tortoise Shield. All his soul skills become stronger then."
Did that help you? Jiang Nannan propped her chin in both hands, watching Lu Yu as he thought.
"Yes. I've already grasped the formula for victory."
"Then let me congratulate you in advance on winning big."
In the Soul Fighting Arena, Tang Ya's vision suddenly changed, and she found herself in a small space. Within it, she saw Lu Yu, who had just been in the stands.
"So this is what you meant by controlling my body to fight? Entering my Sea of Consciousness?"
Tang Ya had practiced the Purple Demon Eye and was fairly familiar with spiritual power.
"But isn't this still my... ah, don't rush in! It tickles so much here. No, my body can't fit any more."
Without waiting for Tang Ya to object, Lu Yu directly pushed her out of control of her body.
Tang Ya watched Lu Yu familiarizing himself with the controls.
"Will you win?"
"I will."
Controlling Tang Ya's body, Lu Yu looked confidently at Xu Sanshi and revealed a contemptuous smile.
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