Heading to Suotuo City, sweeping through the Soul Fighting Arena

"All right, enough teasing. Let's have a proper fight now!"

Yang Xingchen laughed as he flicked out the fishing line in his hand once more, and Yu Tianheng and the others' clusters of energy dispersed back into their bodies.

"Captain, Yang Xingchen's Soul Skill is terrifying! Once that hook hits you, it fishes away your Soul Power, strength, and everything else. There's absolutely no counter to it!"

"Could you get off me first?"

Yu Tianheng pushed at Osler, who was pinning him down. He would definitely keep his distance from Osler in their next team battle. This guy was far too heavy.

"Ah, Captain, I forgot!"

Hearing that, Osler hurriedly scrambled up. Once he had his footing, he reached out and pulled Yu Tianheng up.

By the time the Heaven Dou Royal Team had regrouped, Yang Xingchen was still leisurely fiddling with the fishing rod in his hands.

That single strike had made everyone on the Heaven Dou Royal Team understand the gap between themselves and Yang Xingchen.

So their next task was not to defeat Yang Xingchen, but to find their shortcomings and bring their strengths into play as much as possible while fighting him!

As captain, Yu Tianheng immediately gave their two fastest members, Yu Feng and Osler, a meaningful look. Both understood at once, unleashed their respective Soul Skills, and charged toward Yang Xingchen's left and right flanks.

Immediately afterward, Yu Tianheng completed his Dragon Transformation, unleashed his Soul Skill, and charged straight at Yang Xingchen. Dugu Yan seized the opening to spit out several clouds of poisonous mist, sealing off his other escape routes.

Meanwhile, under the protection of the Shi brothers' defenses, Ye Lingling remained ready at all times to provide further healing to anyone injured.

Facing the Heaven Dou Royal Team's soaring fighting spirit, Yang Xingchen smiled and stretched lazily before flicking out a fishing line.

A short while later, Yang Xingchen put away the Space-Time Fishing Rod and stood before Ye Lingling, speaking softly to her:

"Do you have any Soul Power left? If you do, sorry for the trouble, but please give them some healing!"

Behind Yang Xingchen, everyone except Dugu Yan lay sprawled on the ground, each sporting injuries to varying degrees.

"Captain, did you see Brother Yang's movements clearly? All I know is that after the fishing line tied me up, I crashed into something."

Feeling as though he had been beaten into a pig's head, Osler lay beside Yu Tianheng, staring at the blue sky overhead, wanting to cry but having no tears.

Just as he had been about to reach Yang Xingchen, Yang Xingchen's fishing line had bound him in an instant. Then he had crashed into something, and the next time he opened his eyes, he was lying on the ground.

Somewhat speechless, Yu Tianheng shifted away, because the "something" Osler had crashed into was him.

He really had no words. He had not even brushed the hem of Yang Xingchen's clothes before Osler sent him flying over here.

The Shi brothers, meanwhile, sat side by side, staring at the shattered Black Tortoise Shells at their feet as though they had lost all hope in life.

Growing up, the Shi brothers had certainly encountered plenty of Soul Masters capable of breaking their Black Tortoise Shells. After all, their defense was not absolute.

But those Soul Masters had either used a Soul Power output beyond what the Black Tortoise Shells could withstand, or found their weak points and broken through the whole surface at a single point.

Yet why was Yang Xingchen, a human Soul Master, strong enough to shatter their Black Tortoise Shells with a casual slap?

This dealt an enormous shock to the Shi brothers' tender young hearts.

Ye Lingling glanced at her teammates lying in a heap behind Yang Xingchen, swallowed, and said solemnly, "Yes. I still have enough Soul Power."

"Good. I'll leave them to you, then!"

After giving Ye Lingling a thumbs-up, Yang Xingchen walked over to Qin Ming and discussed when they would leave for Suotuo City.

"Teacher Qin Ming, roughly how many days will it be before we leave?"

"In five days. I'll have to trouble you to train Yu Tianheng and the others some more over the next few days, Student Yang. Their strength is decent, but their coordination is really quite average."

"If Yu Tianheng and the others encounter opponents whose overall strength is below theirs, they can cover the holes in their coordination with the difference in strength. But if they face opponents of roughly equal overall strength, their lack of coordinated teamwork becomes a fatal weakness."

Every time Qin Ming thought about their rigid coordination, he felt a headache coming on. Yet they were the only team the Heaven Dou Royal Academy could present with any pride.

Left with no choice, Qin Ming could only take them to compete in Soul Fighting Arenas across various cities and towns, hoping to correct their problems by accumulating extensive combat experience.

But finding a Soul Master team capable of putting pressure on Yu Tianheng and the others in Soul Fighting Arenas devoted purely to matches was undoubtedly like sifting sand for gold.

After visiting more than a dozen cities and towns without encountering a Soul Master team capable of pressuring Yu Tianheng and the others, Qin Ming decided to try his luck in Suotuo City.

Given Shrek Academy's graduation requirements, if Qin Ming was lucky enough, he might just encounter a Soul Master team from Shrek Academy.

Since Shrek Academy only admitted monsters, its Soul Master team certainly could not be too weak!

After enduring five days of Yang Xingchen's hellish training, the members of the Heaven Dou Royal Team finally received some good news: they were leaving this place now.

"Heavens above, I can finally escape Yang Xingchen's special training! I really don't know how that monster came up with those training methods."

Upon learning that training was over, Osler excitedly pressed his palms together and frantically bowed toward the sky in thanks.

Over the past few days, Osler and the others had either been bound by fishing line and had their strength and Soul Power drained away, or experienced Yang Xingchen's mental attacks and the baptism of Ultimate Ice.

The only reason Osler and the others could still stand there now as though nothing had happened was the heaven-defying healing ability of Ye Lingling's Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul.

But Osler felt that he should have dropped dead right there with a snap on the very first day of training.

"Oh, it seems our student Osler has quite a few complaints about my training plan!"

Yang Xingchen, who had been reading, immediately perked up upon hearing someone badmouthing him behind his back. He stared at Osler with a smile that never reached his eyes.

"But I'm not one to hold grudges. Judging by the results of our previous training, our student Osler is still lacking in speed."

"So, as your junior teacher, I spent a fortune getting you some weights. Until we reach Suotuo City, you'll run beside the carriage with them on your back for two hours every day to train your endurance."

"No! Teacher Yang, I was wrong! I shouldn't have questioned your training methods; I shouldn't have spoken badly of you behind your back; I shouldn't have..."

As Osler stood there listing out his "edict of self-reproach," everyone burst into laughter, and joy filled the air!

"All right, this is your first battle at Suotuo City's Soul Fighting Arena, and your first battle since completing Student Yang's special training!"

"As the teacher leading your team, I hope you can show how you've changed and what you're capable of, sweeping through this Soul Fighting Arena with a completely new face!"

Shortly before the match, Qin Ming emphasized this to the Heaven Dou Royal Team once again. He hoped that, after their special training, they would give him a pleasant surprise.

As long as their teamwork gradually became more seamless, even if they could not challenge stronger Soul Master teams above their level, at the very least, teams of equal strength would no longer be able to take advantage of them!

"Right, Heaven Dou Royal Team, let's go!"

"Let's go!" ×6

"Why aren't you going down there to join in?"

Dugu Bo and Yang Xingchen stood by the window of their private room, watching Dugu Yan and the others step into the ring.

"I'm waiting for someone right now. Once that person shows up, I'll naturally enter the ring!"