Soul Fighting Arena.
In the past few days, Zhao Tie continued to lead a few men to search around, but he was not in a good mood.
Although he successfully settled into the Soul Fighting Arena, but...
There are still no clues about Luo Tian.
Returning empty-handed, Zhao Tie is truly doomed. He'll likely be used as a sacrifice by Shrek Academy and handed over to the Luo Tian family.
Are we really going to live here forever?
One of Zhao Tie's men couldn't help but ask.
"They've been very cooperative with us, not giving us any obstacles these past few days. Is it possible they really didn't do it?"
" Luo Tian's last clue stopped at the Soul Fighting Arena, and we couldn't find it no matter how hard we searched after that. Don't you find that strange?"
Zhao Tie's face was grim as he spoke in a cold voice.
"They're letting us investigate openly, so they might not be afraid of what we find at all. So much time has passed since Luo Tian disappeared; they've probably already cleaned up the mess."
The subordinate was quite worried:
"What can we do? Since they've put us in this position to investigate, they must be certain we won't find anything."
"You guys go back first. After all, you've been away from your posts for so long. I can manage on my own from now on," Zhao Tie.
"Well... alright." The group exchanged glances and then left the Soul Fighting Arena.
"If all else fails, we'll have to resort to the most ruthless methods." Zhao Tie glanced at the staff of the Soul Fighting Arena and took a deep breath.
"Use Spiritual Power to forcibly search the memories in the other person's mind."
But just as he was about to do so, the battle in the Soul Fighting Arena began.
The entire Soul Fighting Arena became lively, drawing Zhao Tie's attention to the stage where Soul Master and Soul Beast were locked in a life-or-death struggle.
"... It's quite interesting, a life-or-death battle between an ordinary person and Ten-Year Soul Beast." Zhao Tie knew his mission was important, and just as he turned to leave, he bumped into Liang Wu coming towards him.
"Hey, sir, the competition has started. Why don't you come down and play a few rounds?" Liang Wu greeted Zhao Tie with a grin, looking all ingratiating.
"Play... play?"
Zhao Tie was taken aback.
"What's the meaning?"
"Ahem, sir, is there even a question? It's a betting game, of course." Liang Wu leaned closer and whispered, "We made our fortune through betting. You know, Luo Tian and I are good friends, and he usually relies on the Shrek Academy's status to protect us."
"Now that Luo Tian is gone... the Soul Fighting Arena can't be expanded any further, or something bad will happen."
"But if you, sir, were to join..."
Liang Wu chuckled and took out a whole bag of Gold Soul Coin.
"You get a share of the annual dividends."
Zhao Tie frowned deeply, intending to refuse righteously, but when he saw the number of Gold Soul Coin inside, he gasped sharply.
He looked around, coughed a few times as if to improvise, and accepted the money without making a sound.
"It seems Mr. Liang has a good eye."
"That's right, that's right. Lord Zhao is a renowned Soul Saint, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the strongest in our little place." Liang Wu flattered with a smile.
Meanwhile, in the office, watching all this through the window, Father Zhang couldn't help but say to Toji beside him:
Is this really okay?
"I could tell at a glance that he's different from rich kids like Luo Tian," Toji said calmly, sipping his wine.
" Shrek's disciples aren't all from wealthy families; there are also some very talented children from poor backgrounds. Shrek prefers to take in these kinds of kids because once they grow up, they'll follow Shrek wholeheartedly."
How do you know?
He enjoyed the status, identity, and power that Shrek Academy gave him.
"I guess he's been cooped up at the Shrek Academy for too long. He doesn't have much personal wealth, so he can only live a stable life at the academy."
" Uncle Zhang, do you know what can subtly change a person and slowly corrupt them?"
Toji Father Zhang could answer, she continued:
"Environment is the most important factor. A good learning environment can cultivate good students, while a bad environment can cultivate bad students who are unwilling to learn and cultivate themselves."
" Zhao Tie is like an honest student who only knows how to focus on cultivation and constantly restrains his desires."
"By taking him out of a good environment and placing him in a bad one, we can amplify his inner desires."
"This is the environment we're going to provide." Toji placed the prepared items into Father Zhang's hands.
"Put all of this into the wine and food he wants to drink."
"These are poisons?" Father Zhang looked up at him.
"Do you think I'm stupid? With Soul Saint's intuition, he'll definitely be able to sense anything that's dangerous to him." Toji shook his head.
"These are all highly nourishing supplements; they can only benefit him and have no harm. The only side effect is an excess of yang energy."
"If he has too much yang energy in his body, he will have no choice but to find an outlet for it."
"We provide him with women, alcohol, and money, allowing him to indulge in depravity."
"He wanted to meditate, so we tried every way to interrupt him, making it impossible for him to meditate; all he wanted to do was sleep with a woman in his arms."
"Given enough time, his strength will inevitably decline."
"At the right time, you and Liang Wu should spar with him again to solidify his confidence that he is powerful Overlord of this place, thus lowering his guard. At the same time, you should pretend to be seriously injured and unable to move..."
"Next, it's all my performance, and I can clear your names afterwards."
Father Zhang stared at Toji.
I have a feeling that the image of Toji as an honest and reliable child is gradually fading away.
He's changed a lot in the five years I haven't seen him.
Where did you learn all of this?
She didn't say Toji, just stared into Father Zhang's eyes.
"I will do as you say." Father Zhang wisely refrained from asking any further questions, simply sighed, and left the office.
Everything then proceeded perfectly as Toji had predicted.
Liang Wu successfully lured Zhao Tie into the scheme, starting with a match and inviting Zhao Tie to participate in a betting game. On the very first night, they earned hundreds of thousands of Gold Soul Coin.
Such a large sum of money gradually revealed Zhao Tie's inner desires.
Enjoying the fine wine and delicious food provided by the Soul Fighting Arena every day...
Even though he still hadn't found any clues about Luo Tian, Zhao Tie felt that something had changed within him.
I've been thinking about using my Spiritual Power to forcibly search other people's memories, which has delayed me from doing so.
Thinking he'd do it tomorrow, and enjoy himself today... but tomorrow after tomorrow, Zhao Tie didn't do it.
Perhaps it was because he knew that once he found clues about Luo Tian, he would have to continue working and wouldn't be able to enjoy himself anymore that he stopped doing so.
There was just one thing that he found very strange.
For a period of time after each tasting of fine wine, he felt as if he was about to explode, and he felt uncomfortable all over if he didn't vent it.
He couldn't take it anymore, so when Zhao Tie awkwardly brought up the issue with Liang Wu, Liang Wu immediately understood and offered him a row of beautiful girls to choose from.
Having been pent up for so long, Zhao Tie was finally released. Every night, he no longer bothered with meditation and cultivation, but instead went straight to three or four women Xiaoyao enjoy himself for a whole night.
I slept during the day because I was exhausted, and gambled and had fun at night. This went on for a whole month.
Zhao Tie lay on the bed with dark circles under his eyes, looking quite listless, but his mind was still quite active.
"Hahahaha, those two Soul Emperor who don't know their own mortality actually dared to challenge me. This time, I'll beat them so badly they'll behave themselves."
Zhao Tie remained immersed in this excitement, but after a while, his mind finally went blank, and he suddenly realized something.
What's wrong with me?
Zhao Tie sat up on the bed with great difficulty and sighed.
"No, I really have to go search my memories today. I've already wasted a month, enjoying so much time. It's time to get back to work."
"Take a short meditation first, and get yourself in a good state of mind."
Zhao Tie quickly adjusted his posture, closed his eyes, and began to meditate cross-legged.
And in the next second...
Five dark golden claws silently and stealthily pressed against his neck, then pulled him sideways.
"Sizzle--"
Blood gushed from his neck like a fountain, splattering all over the bed.