" Zhu Zhuqing! I've missed you so much!"
Ning Rongrong recognized the person in front of her as her best friend Zhu Zhuqing, whom she hadn't seen for over two years. She immediately rushed over to her and gave her a big hug. Zhu Zhuqing smiled and gently stroked Ning Rongrong's head, who was half a head shorter than her, like a kind older sister.
"I'm sorry I'm back a little late," Zhu Zhuqing said to Ning Rongrong with a slightly apologetic tone.
"It's alright. You said in your letter that you'd be back in the next few days. I was thinking I'd have to wait until at least the weekend, but you came earlier than expected."
Ning Rongrong pulled away from Zhu Zhuqing's embrace and smiled at Zhu Zhuqing.
"It's mainly because there have been a lot of carriages on the road these past few days, otherwise I could have reached Spirit City yesterday," Zhu Zhuqing explained about the situation she encountered on her way back.
Upon hearing this, Ning Rongrong said, "Isn't the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament about to begin? So it's normal to have a lot of cars on the road."
The two sisters started chatting and reminiscing, completely ignoring everyone else present.
Seeing this, Hu Liena, who had been silent for a long time, interrupted, "Ahem, Zhu Zhuqing, if you and Rongrong want to catch up, how about we do it after our training?"
"I'm so sorry, Sister Nana. I haven't seen Zhu Zhuqing in so long, and I just couldn't help but want to chat with her more." Ning Rongrong apologized to everyone.
"Sister Nana, what just happened? Why did you two get into a fight?"
Zhu Zhuqing inquired about what had just happened. She had seen Xie Yue and Yan filled with murderous intent, as if they regarded that classmate as their enemy, which made her very curious about what had happened.
"It's nothing, Junior Zhu Zhuqing. Now that you're back, let's train together as a group of six."
Yan immediately changed the subject and started talking to Zhu Zhuqing about training-related matters.
"Yan, get out of here, don't change the subject." Xie Yue kicked Yan in the butt, then explained what had just happened to Zhu Zhuqing.
"It's like this, Miss Zhu Zhuqing. I've reserved a starting spot for you on the team, but the three substitutes don't like it and want to compete for it."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing showed a hint of surprise. She hadn't expected that even after being away from the academy for so long, she would still have a starting spot on the team. She had been thinking that she would need the teacher's help to compete for one through the Soul Fighting.
"Understood. The three of you Soul Fighting with me. Whoever wins gets to start. Is that acceptable?" Zhu Zhuqing glanced at the three substitutes present and said coldly.
"What is your current strength?" Li Kai asked in a low voice.
Zhu Zhuqing didn't answer. Instead, she summoned her Martial Soul, the Hell Spirit Cat, which appeared as a small black kitten. It was about ten centimeters long, with a slender body and predominantly purple fur, giving it an exceptionally mysterious appearance. Moreover, the moment it appeared before everyone, an extremely dense and chilling aura swept over them, causing the already lowered temperature to plummet to freezing point, as if they were in an ice cave.
Immediately afterward, Zhu Zhuqing's Soul Ring began to appear one by one: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, red, red! Six Soul Ring circled her body in unison, and the aura of Soul Emperor directly intimidated everyone present. Even the strongest Yan and Xie Yue couldn't help but tremble slightly. The oppressive feeling brought by the two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring was too strong. Especially after she released her Martial Soul, she was like a Slaughter God from the underworld. A terrifying and solemn aura instantly filled the entire area.
Six-Ring Soul Emperor?! She's actually Six-Ring Soul Emperor! How is that possible?
Apart from Xie Yue and Yan, who were still in a state of relative shock, everyone else present stared wide-eyed. Zhu Zhuqing had actually become Soul Emperor! And she even possessed two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring? Wasn't that just too outrageous?
Zhu Zhuqing's indifferent gaze swept over the three substitutes. The three of them subconsciously suppressed their emotions and dared not show any more dissatisfaction.
"I'll take the starting spot. Any objections?" Zhu Zhuqing asked the three of them.
No, no.
The three quickly waved their hands, indicating they had no objections. They were joking; this was a living Soul Emperor, a full 20 levels higher in Soul Power Level than the strongest of the three, and he also possessed two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring. Competing with someone like that for a starting spot? They'd better go take a shower first.
Seeing that the three had no other thoughts, Zhu Zhuqing withdrew her Martial Soul and Soul Ring, and turned to look at the others.
Ning Rongrong was so shocked that she covered her mouth. Zhu Zhuqing had only been away for two years, how could her strength have improved so much? Everyone else was also shocked, looking at Zhu Zhuqing in disbelief.
"I originally thought that increasing my Soul Power by 6 levels in the past two years was already quite good, but I didn't expect Miss Zhu Zhuqing's improvement to be even greater than mine. I admire her."
Yan sighed from the side. In the past two years, apart from some things that had to be done, Yan had spent the rest of his time improving his Soul Power. The most obvious benefit brought to him by the evolution of his Martial Soul and the improvement of his talent was that his cultivation speed was faster. Therefore, he was able to advance three levels in two years.
"It seems that the championship of this All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament is basically in my pocket," Xie Yue echoed from the side.
Hu Liena turned to look at her brother and Yan, and found that their expressions were relatively calm, as if they knew that Zhu Zhuqing's Soul Power was originally very high. Did they already know that Zhu Zhuqing was very strong?
Thinking about this, Hu Liena suddenly understood why her brother insisted on reserving a starting spot for Zhu Zhuqing. He must already know that Zhu Zhuqing Zhu Zhuqing very strong, and judging from the tone of their voices towards her, they weren't unfamiliar with each other, indicating that they had interacted before. This made Hu Liena even more curious about how they had come to know Zhu Zhuqing.
"Senior Xie Yue, I'd like to skip the training for now. I just got back today and I'd like to go and pay my respects to our teacher. Can I come back tomorrow?" Zhu Zhuqing said to Xie Yue.
"No problem." Xie Yue readily agreed.
"Um, Captain, can I come with..." Ning Rongrong put on an extremely pitiful look and pleaded with Xie Yue.
Xie Yue ignored her completely and said directly to the others present, "We'll continue training later. Whoever slacks off will be punished by running a lap around Spirit City."
"Captain, how could you do this!"
(End of this chapter)