After leaving the beast arena, Tian Chen had no desire to stay at Spirit Hall Academy any longer.
He took off his silver robe, revealing a close-fitting black training outfit. His upper body was not particularly muscular, but the tight clothing made him look especially lean and powerful.
Following the route he had memorized earlier, Tian Chen retraced his steps to the teaching building at the very center, then followed the main road running through the entire campus to Spirit Hall Academy's front gate.
The interior of Spirit Hall Academy was far more complex than Tian Chen had imagined. The buildings alone numbered well over a dozen.
Fortunately, having lived two lives, he possessed outstanding spiritual power and had memorized the route he had taken without the slightest error.
When the squad captain who had met Tian Chen earlier saw him covered in blood, he hurried over at a jog. Alarmed, he hastily asked,
"Young Master Tian, has something happened? Is there anything I can do for you?"
He truly was apprehensive. If anything happened to Tian Chen, there was no telling whether Golden Crocodile Douluo would fly into a rage and take it out on them. He could hardly afford not to care.
"It's nothing. Open the gate. I'm going back to Spirit City now."
Tian Chen was in no mood to waste words with him. The blood on his body had already begun to dry, and the disgusting sensation was truly hard to bear.
Although the squad captain still wanted to ask more, he dared not say anything further after seeing Tian Chen's impatient expression. He hurriedly ordered his men to open the reinforced steel gate, which stood over ten meters tall. Then, smiling ingratiatingly, he personally escorted Tian Chen out of Spirit Hall Academy.
He belonged to the Supreme Pontiff's faction, true, but that did not mean he dared offend Tian Chen.
Besides, he was only a minor figure. Even if Tian Chen had someone kill him, he did not believe the Supreme Pontiff would stand up for him.
Having become a captain of Spirit Hall Academy's guards, he was a shrewd man who knew what he should and should not ask.
Only after watching Tian Chen disappear from sight did he relax.
With Tian Chen deliberately hurrying along, he reached Spirit City's gates in less than five minutes.
Tian Chen took out the token Tian E had given him, and the guards at the gate led him past the sea of people waiting to enter, giving him priority entry into the city.
As Golden Crocodile Douluo's grandson, he naturally could not have lacked even this small privilege.
After returning to the manor, Tian Chen hurriedly instructed the maids to prepare hot water in the bathroom. He stripped off his clothes, immersed his entire body in the bath, and closed his eyes in comfort.
Smelling the fresh fragrance of the various medicinal herbs in the bath, he could not help letting out a couple of contented hums.
Tian Chen had begun bathing in various medicinal herbs to improve his physique when he was only three.
This was also one of the reasons he had been able to absorb a Soul Ring nearly five hundred years old with ease.
Leaning against the side of the tub, he enjoyed a maid's massage while recalling the details of today's battle.
His fight against the Diamond Tiger with two hundred years of cultivation could be called a complete victory, if he discounted the part afterward when he had somewhat lost his reason.
This also gave him a thorough understanding of his own strength. By his estimate, with his current strength, he should be able to secure a victory against any Soul Beast no more than three hundred years old.
However, his actual combat experience was severely lacking. Otherwise, he could have finished off that Diamond Tiger even faster.
He was in no hurry, though. After all, he was still young, and combat experience could be accumulated. Besides, he had already become a Soul Master, so he could also participate in Soul Fighting at the Soul Fighting Arena to improve his practical experience.
He soaked for nearly four hours, until the emerald-green medicinal liquid in the tub had turned completely transparent. Only then did Tian Chen, his face flushed, put on loose pajamas with the maids' assistance.
Tian Chen strolled along the manor's walkways with unsteady steps, two pretty maids following close behind him.
However, Tian Chen had done nothing to them. More precisely, at only six years old, he did not yet have the equipment to misbehave.
His unsteady steps were merely a consequence of having just taken a medicinal bath.
Arriving in the open-air courtyard, he flopped onto a reclining chair made from soft Soul Beast fur and waved at the two maids behind him.
Understanding his meaning, one massaged his legs while the other kneaded his shoulders, while he held freshly squeezed fruit juice in his hands and sipped it with relish.
It was the very picture of a villainous young master's decadent life.
However, he was not indulging in pleasure. This was merely to better absorb the medicinal effects. Having read the later Douluo installments, he naturally knew that physical constitution was directly related to the age of the Soul Rings one could absorb.
He even planned to temper his body with infernal delicate apricot and octagonal mysterious ice grass in the future. If he did not improve his physique now, what would he do if he suddenly died then?
Before he knew it, Tian Chen, comfortable all over, felt drowsiness wash over him. After an inward struggle, he gave in.
He had not slept since awakening his Martial Soul. He would indulge himself a little this once.
After this round of self-reassurance, Tian Chen soon fell asleep. The two maids beside him thoughtfully slowed the movements of their hands.
After completing its glorious journey, the sun gradually sank in the west, still leaving behind the quiet beauty of dusk, leaving a serene and tranquil solemnity.
The gentle sunset spilled across Tian Chen's delicate face, making his golden hair gleam. His eyelashes quivered, and Tian Chen opened his clear blue eyes. Looking at the setting sun in the west, he rolled over groggily.
"I've already slept this long? Still, that was pretty comfortable."
Stretching, Tian Chen picked up the silver cup filled with fruit juice from the table beside him, took a small sip, and murmured.
"Chen'er, have you been comfortable at Spirit Hall Academy?"
A gentle voice reached Tian Chen's ears, interrupting his thoughts, and he instinctively turned his head.
At some point, Tian E had sat down in a chair behind him. Holding a teacup, he was watching Tian Chen with a smile.
He wore a golden robe, his white hair falling meticulously down his back.
His normally sharp eyes had softened at this moment as well.
Tian Chen immediately felt a trace of warmth flow through his heart. As a member of the Qidian orphanage, family affection was a great luxury to him, and naturally he treasured it all the more.
Looking at his grandfather, Tian Chen silently resolved that he would never let his grandfather lose to Tang Hao again and repeat the same mistakes.