"I never thought Dai Mubai was that kind of person. After the way my sister and I treated him, he actually left his fiancée in danger and chose to run away himself! What a coward!"
After hearing Zhu Zhuqing's account, Chen Yun was filled with righteous indignation. She bluntly said that she and her sister had misjudged him, and her heart was filled with contempt for Dai Mubai.
Chen Meng said nothing, but her expression made it clear that she agreed with her younger sister.
Now that they knew the whole truth, the two sisters felt too embarrassed to keep following the pair around, so they said their farewells.
Then they headed off in one direction under Yu Tianling and Zhu Zhuqing's gazes.
Since none of it had anything to do with him, Yu Tianling felt little about it, but he could clearly sense that Zhu Zhuqing seemed somewhat different.
Looking at Zhu Zhuqing, who radiated ease and happiness from within, Yu Tianling smiled faintly. He already knew the reason for the change.
Although living in Spirit City for several years had made Zhu Zhuqing gentler and more endearing in her words and actions than she had been after spending those years at home in the original story, there had actually still been a thorn in her heart: Dai Mubai, her so-called fiancé.
Although Zhu Zhuqing never spoke of it, everyone knew this was a hidden bomb that might very well become her weakness in the future. Now, having seen Dai Mubai's cowardice, and with her own formidable strength, Zhu Zhuqing knew her family and the Imperial Family would no longer stand in her way, and her state of mind naturally rose to a new level.
Afterward, the two did not linger and headed straight for the Forest Hotel.
They booked two rooms at the Forest Hotel, washed up briefly, and rested for a while before setting out for the Soto Great Soul Arena.
Suotuo City truly lived up to its reputation as one of the Balak Kingdom's two most famous cities. Its Great Soul Arena was of no modest scale, either. Seen from outside, the entire structure was oval, just like the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena, and stood a hundred and twenty meters tall. Inside, it was divided into one main Soul Fighting Arena and twenty-four subsidiary Soul Fighting Arenas. By Yu Tianling's estimate, it could probably hold sixty thousand spectators at once.
After all, even the Great Soul Arena in Heaven Dou City, the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire, had only thirty-six subsidiary Soul Fighting Arenas and could accommodate just a hundred thousand people.
Meanwhile, with her hand held in his, Zhu Zhuqing felt as though she had returned to those events several years ago, just after she first met Yu Tianling. Back then, he had taken her to the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena, where she watched the matches from a VIP room and waited for him to return. Was it finally her turn now?
Zhu Zhuqing looked at Yu Tianling ahead of her, his figure filling her eyes completely, and silently resolved that she absolutely must not disappoint him.
Walking into the Great Soul Arena, Yu Tianling clicked his tongue in wonder. Why, you ask?
The layout of this Great Soul Arena was actually much the same as that of the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena. Here, too, the first thing that came into view was a massive stone stele, densely engraved with names-all the names of those who had died in Soul Fighting matches.
Yu Tianling did not stop, leading Zhu Zhuqing straight over to register for Soul Fighting.
The process was the same as when Yu Tianling had registered before. Once the Soul Power test was finished and Zhu Zhuqing's level was confirmed, her Soul Fighting registration was complete.
Whenever she came for Soul Fighting in the future, her opponent could be determined after she first took a Soul Power test.
Then Yu Tianling took out his diamond badge. Once his identity was confirmed, the staff hurriedly led them to a VIP room and informed the person in charge of the Soto Great Soul Arena that Dragon Phoenix had arrived. The manager rushed over and chatted with them for a while before leaving, instructing the staff to take good care of the pair before he went.
By now, every Great Soul Arena across the continent knew that a Four-Ring Soul Ancestor who had earned a diamond badge had appeared at the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena several years ago. However, no one knew his true background. They only suspected that he had connections reaching to the heavens, and those above had instructed them to avoid conflicts with him as much as possible.
Dragon Phoenix had not appeared at all in the past few years, and everyone had thought he would not show up again. They had never expected him to suddenly appear at the Soto Great Soul Arena, and his strength had certainly increased tremendously.
That was because even he, a Six-Ring Soul Emperor, could not clearly sense Dragon Phoenix's strength.
At that thought, the manager of the Soto Great Soul Arena could not help being filled with emotion. Truly, the waves behind on the Yangtze pushed those ahead onward.
"Qing'er, with your strength, handling opponents at your level isn't a problem, so I hope you can complete your Soul Fighting matches over the coming period without using your third Soul Skill."
Inside the spacious VIP room, Yu Tianling offered Zhu Zhuqing this suggestion.
After all, they had come here to improve her practical experience fighting opponents. If every match went the way his had back then, what would be the point?
Besides, Zhu Zhuqing could not compare with him. When he was in Spirit City, he had often sparred and learned with Bibi Dong, Hu Liena, and many others, so his practical combat experience was already relatively extensive.
"All right. I'll do whatever you say, Ling."
Zhu Zhuqing understood what Yu Tianling meant, too, so naturally she did not object.
Then Yu Tianling took out the cat mask he had bought on the street earlier and personally put it on Zhu Zhuqing before patiently waiting for the Soul Fighting match to begin.
Concerned that Zhu Zhuqing might be somewhat unfamiliar with things, Yu Tianling had registered her for a Soul Fighting contest today, which posed very little danger. He planned to let her get used to it first, then gradually move toward life-and-death wager matches.
Under normal circumstances, Soul Masters participating in Soul Fighting would all be assigned to rest in one spacious room while waiting to take the stage.
But Yu Tianling was, after all, an important figure who possessed a rare diamond badge, so Zhu Zhuqing, who only had the strength of a Soul Elder, naturally benefited by accompanying him. She could wait for her match to begin in a VIP room, which had passages leading directly to every Soul Fighting Zone.
Matchups in the one-on-one Soul Fighting Zone were determined by drawing lots. After a staff member drew a lot for Zhu Zhuqing, they handed her the number plate. She glanced at it: number twenty-five.
It was still early, so Zhu Zhuqing began watching the participating Soul Masters' battles with great enthusiasm.
It had to be said that Soul Elder-level Soul Fighting really did look like children playing house in the eyes of Yu Tianling, a Soul Emperor, as though he could easily wipe them out with the slightest movement of a finger.
At that moment, the second Soul Fighting match had just ended. A middle-aged man in a tailcoat walked onto the Soul Fighting platform and stood in its center. He cleared his throat slightly, then announced in a ringing voice, "Next, we will hold the third one-on-one Soul Fighting match in our tenth Soul Fighting Arena. The two contestants are both Soul Elders: Battle Soul Elder Dai Mubai, who possesses the Beast Martial Soul Evil-Eyed White Tiger, and Battle Soul Elder Ye Mengyang, who possesses the Beast Martial Soul Black Tortoise. So, will Battle Soul Elder Ye Mengyang remain undefeated in battle and conquer every defense, or will the young Battle Soul Elder Dai Mubai claim victory? Let us wait and see!"
With that, the middle-aged staff member hurried off the Soul Fighting platform, and two figures swiftly made their way onto it.
When the spectators heard that this match was actually between two Soul Elders, every one of them perked up. Most shouted Ye Mengyang's name, while only a handful of women screamed uncontrollably in excitement at Dai Mubai's handsome appearance.