"Extra, extra! A freshman is taking on senior Xu Sanshi for love!"
"Extra, extra! Only the winner gets to approach Jiang Nannan!"
And just like that, the news department spread the half-true news everywhere.
In their dorm room, Wang Dong watched Huo Yuhao meditating, unable to help feeling a little worried. She leaned closer and studied him carefully.
"Hey, are you really going to take on that Xu Sanshi? I heard he's one of the Outer Court Twin Stars."
"Twin Stars?"
At that, Huo Yuhao opened his eyes and stopped cultivating.
"That's right. His Xuanming Turtle is a top-tier beast martial soul, and with his formidable defense, he and Bei Bei are known as the Outer Court Twin Stars."
Xuanming Turtle? Xuanming Sect...
Huo Yuhao had heard from Sister Nan Nan that the person who had ambushed him last time seemed to belong to the Xuanming Sect. Was it really such a coincidence?
Seeing Huo Yuhao looking slightly dazed, Wang Dong thought he had been intimidated. She patted his shoulder. "It's fine. It doesn't matter if you lose. I'll beat him back for you!"
Huo Yuhao looked at Wang Dong and raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of teasing in his voice. "Beat him back? If I can't beat him, wouldn't you be even more doomed?"
"You!"
That one remark from Huo Yuhao left Wang Dong fuming. Her face flushed bright red, and her cheeks puffed right out.
She turned her face away and gave a sullen snort. "So what? It's called not losing in spirit! We're roommates. Even if I can't beat him, I'll still help you."
After that, Wang Dong stole another glance at Huo Yuhao. "Speaking of which, you're not really planning to clash head-on with Xu Sanshi, are you? There's a huge gap between your levels, and his defense is so high."
Looking at the anxious Wang Dong, Huo Yuhao shook his head. A faint golden gleam flashed through his eyes.
"Have you forgotten? My Spirit Eyes have a mental attribute. Naturally, I can use mental attacks too."
"Mental attacks?"
Hearing that, Wang Dong leaned closer again, a few notes of surprise in her voice.
"That move of yours would be hard for him to deal with, but the gap between your soul power-"
Seeing that Wang Dong was still worried, Huo Yuhao cut her off. "All right, all right. Rather than worrying about that, why not cultivate with me a little longer?"
Wang Dong glanced at Huo Yuhao, who still looked completely relaxed, and pressed her lower lip. "Fine. I'll reluctantly agree to cultivate with you today."
The Soul Fighting Zone was a very important place in Shrek Academy, located in the northwestern corner of the Martial Soul Department.
There were also dedicated teachers serving as referees, responsible for deciding the winner, protecting the students, providing aid, treatment, and so on.
Of course, all of these required payment. For each match, the two sides had to pay at least ten Gold Soul Coins as a venue fee.
Thanks to Shrek's vigorous promotion, no small number of people came to the Soul Fighting Zone every day for an arena showdown.
That was because fighting here came with no restrictions, nor did anyone have to fear danger from striking too hard. The teachers acting as referees would keep things well under control.
Likewise, winning a match could earn additional credits in subsequent exams and assessments, which were also very important for advancing to the next year.
Matches in the Soul Fighting Zone were open to all students, but admission cost one Silver Soul Coin.
With these two streams of business, the Soul Fighting Zone had become one of Shrek's key gold-squeezing venues.
Of course, there was a third stream of business too.
"Hey, which one did you bet on to win?"
"Isn't it obvious? Xu Sanshi, of course. Isn't this a heaven-sent chance to make money? I'm going all in. Going all in is a kind of wisdom!"
"All in, my ass. Did you forget how you went all in and lost your living expenses the last few times? Your dad even came to the academy specifically to teach you a lesson last time."
"Bro, trust me. This time really is different. No matter how heaven-defying that freshman is, he can only be a little over rank thirty at most, right? Xu Sanshi is almost rank forty. This one's definitely in the bag."
The other boy looked at him suspiciously. Wouldn't being rank thirty at that age be even more of a sign that something was off?
"Forget it. I'll put a little on the other guy. You led me into miserable losses the last few times."
"What a shame, bro. You're not betting with me. After this, we'll be clouds and mud apart, as far apart as heaven and earth, like an immortal and a mortal..."
"Look at her. She's so pretty, and so aloof."
"Isn't that Senior Ling Luochеn from the Inner Court? Why is she here too?"
The moment Ling Luochеn heard about Huo Yuhao's duel with Xu Sanshi, her expression darkened.
Where did Xu Sanshi get the nerve to challenge little Yuhao to a duel? And Yuhao still isn't choosing to use Ultimate Ice.
She was furious. She should have kept little Yuhao by her side all the time; only then could she rest easy. As for that Xu Sanshi... he would have plenty to suffer through in future training matches!
When the teacher in the Soul Fighting Zone saw Xian Lin'er arrive in person, his expression turned respectful. "Dean Xian, what brings you here?"
Xian Lin'er looked down at the increasingly crowded Soul Fighting Zone and said evenly, "I just came to watch a student from my own class. What, am I not allowed?"
Xian Lin'er was also very angry at that moment. With Xu Sanshi making this fuss, Huo Yuhao would definitely expose his martial soul and talent. If someone wanted to snatch him away then...
Isn't the Xuanming Turtle famous for its defense? I'll have Xu Sanshi brought over for the next soul tool experiment, then. It's only an experiment, after all.
"Of course you are."
Seeing Xian Lin'er's grave expression, the teacher hurriedly stepped aside.
Dean Xian had clearly come to protect her cub. When the time came, whether Xu Sanshi won or lost, there would be no good way to wrap things up.
The rest area of the Soul Fighting Zone.
Bei Bei held several hidden weapons and offered them to Huo Yuhao. Although Huo Yuhao was very talented, he was still a little worried.
"Yuhao, if it really comes to it, take these Tang Sect Hidden Weapons. At most, they'll put Xu Sanshi in the hospital for a few days."
Standing not far away, Xu Sanshi's face instantly darkened when he heard Bei Bei. "Bei Bei, is that how you play? The fight hasn't even started, and you're already giving the other side those!"
Huo Yuhao looked at the hidden weapons Bei Bei was offering and shook his head. "It's fine, Senior. I still have confidence in myself."
Seeing Huo Yuhao refuse, Bei Bei put the hidden weapons away, his expression serious. "Xu Sanshi, you know this whole thing started because of you."
"I understand."
Xu Sanshi turned his gaze toward Huo Yuhao and reined himself in a little.
"Pretty boy, this time I just want to see whether you can actually protect Nan Nan. Of course, I'll hold back. We'll stop short of hurting each other, and I won't strike to kill."
Huo Yuhao looked quietly at Xu Sanshi, his expression calm. "Whether I can protect her doesn't seem to require your approval, does it, Senior? Of course, since you want an answer, I'll oblige."
With that, Huo Yuhao walked out first.
Wang Dong looked earnestly at Huo Yuhao, both hands clenched tight. "Hey, if things look wrong, don't force yourself to keep going. If it really comes to it, I'll charge in, and we can embarrass ourselves together."
Huo Yuhao looked at Wang Dong, speechless. "Have at least a little confidence in me."
"Well, you say that-"
Xu Sanshi was about to enter the arena too. Before leaving, he looked at Bei Bei.
"Don't worry. I'll definitely hold back this time. He's only a freshman-"
"Heh, he'll win."
Before you continue