Soul Fighting Arena

Early the next morning, Ning Buhui had just come downstairs and ordered a bowl of congee when he saw the short-haired woman enter the inn.

She had changed into clean clothes, and her hair was still wet, as though she had just washed it. A fresh strip of cloth was wrapped around her left hand, and the wound in the web between her thumb and forefinger had clearly been treated. She walked over to Ning Buhui's table, set down a heavy cloth bag, and pushed it beside his bowl.

"Baldy sent me with this," she said. "You agreed on twenty percent, but he gave you fifty. The extra is thanks for saving his life."

Ning Buhui put down his chopsticks and opened the bag for a look. It held a mix of Gold Soul Coins and Silver Soul Coins, and it was no small sum.

"Thank him for me." Ning Buhui tucked the bag into his robes, his tone casual, and made no attempt to refuse.

The short-haired woman glanced at him and seemed to want to say something. Her lips moved, but in the end she only nodded and turned to leave. At the door, she paused and looked back. "Baldy asked me to pass on a message. If you ever want to find a team, you can come to the guild and look for him. He won't ask about your origins."

Ning Buhui nodded to her. The woman pushed through the door and soon disappeared into the crowd at the street corner.

Ning Buhui finished breakfast in a few bites, paid the bill, and returned to his room to pack. He moved to another inn three streets away. Its storefront was smaller, but its rear courtyard had a separate entrance and exit, making it more convenient than the last place. Once settled, he emptied the cloth bag and counted the money. Baldy had been more generous than he expected. The sum was enough to keep him in Star Luo City for nearly half a year, with plenty left over.

He divided the money into two portions, putting one in his ring and the other in the purse he carried on him for daily expenses. Then he sat on the edge of the bed and thought for a while. The matter of the wolf pack was settled, and his new identity now had an origin of sorts. What should he do next?

The Soul Fighting Arena.

The thought had first occurred to him that day when he heard people chatting at the Mercenary Guild. Star Luo City had two major Soul Fighting Arenas. Silver Tiger was an underground arena with deep waters, and he had no intention of getting involved. The Star Luo Great Soul Arena was a legitimate establishment, with transparent rules and clear procedures for wins and losses. It was a good choice.

He planned to ask about the detailed rules first, then decide whether to sign up.

He left the inn and followed the main street toward the city center. The Star Luo Great Soul Arena stood between the inner and outer city, occupying an enormous stretch of land. Its towering stone archway and the reliefs of fierce beasts carved into the lintel were visible from afar. Rows of stone pillars stood on either side of the arch, their shafts wrapped in faded ribbons and old flags. People streamed in and out of the entrance: spectators, competing Soul Masters, and plenty of vendors carrying baskets and hawking snacks and betting slips.

Ning Buhui walked through the main entrance. The front hall was immense, its floor paved with polished bluestone slabs. A circular counter occupied the center, where several uniformed staff members were busy registering people and answering questions. A huge wooden board hung on the wall, covered with match schedules and point rankings. He went over for a closer look. Names crowded the rankings board, and the highest-ranked contestants already bore Silver Soul Badges and had over a thousand points.

He approached the counter. The attendant who received him was a young official in his early twenties, with a practiced smile and brisk movements.

"First time here?" the official asked.

"Yes." Ning Buhui nodded. "I'd like to ask about the rules for competing."

The official pointed to a wooden sign standing beside the counter, its basic rules carved into it. Ning Buhui glanced at it, but still asked, "How exactly are the fights conducted? How many formats are there?"

"There are three kinds of Soul Fighting," the official replied smoothly. "Sparring Fights are friendly matches. Killing is forbidden, and the referee can stop the fight. Life-and-Death Fights are voluntary for both sides and end when one party dies. Wager Fights are a type of Life-and-Death Fight. Both sides place a wager, and the winner takes all. Newcomers generally start with Sparring Fights."

"How are Sparring Fights grouped?"

"By major Soul Power level. Opponents at the same major level are matched against each other. The gap in Soul Power within a major level can be large, and it's common for someone just past level thirty to be matched against an opponent close to level forty." The official paused. "Of course, if you think you're strong enough, you can challenge opponents a major level above you. But you need to reach Silver Soul Fighter rank first, which means having 1,000 points."

"There are three competition formats: one-on-one, two-on-two, and group battles."

"What about the registration fee?"

"Ten Gold Soul Coins, and you start with an Iron Soul Badge. A win earns ten points, and a loss costs five. After ten consecutive wins, each win earns an extra ten points. Thirty consecutive wins earn you 1,000 points and immediate promotion to Silver Soul Fighter. The arena gives additional rewards for fifty and a hundred consecutive wins." The official pushed a form over. "You can use an alias; you don't need to give your real name. Fill in your Martial Soul type, Soul Power level, and competition format."

Ning Buhui picked up the pen. Under Martial Soul, he wrote "tower." For Soul Power level, he wrote "level thirty-four," and for type, "Control System." He checked one-on-one as his competition format. He thought for a moment over the alias field, then wrote "A Hui" after all.

The official glanced at the form, nodded, and led him to the testing area behind the counter. The test was simple: a Soul Power testing stone. Ning Buhui pressed his hand to its surface and poured in his Soul Power. The stone displayed "level 34 Soul Elder." After recording the result, the official handed him an iron badge engraved with a simple image of a small tower and a string of numbers beside it.

"Iron Soul Fighter, starting at zero points. You can be promoted to Bronze Soul Fighter at one hundred points and Silver Soul Fighter at one thousand. Above that, the ranks are gold, purple gold, sapphire, ruby, and diamond," the official said as he handed him the token.

"Today's individual matches for the Soul Elder group are already full. The earliest available match is tomorrow afternoon." The official handed him a schedule as well. "You can watch some other matches first and get familiar with things."

Ning Buhui put away the badge and schedule, then turned toward the entrance to the spectator stands.

The inside of the Star Luo Great Soul Arena was even larger than he had imagined. A sunken circular fighting platform occupied the center, surrounded by tiered spectator stands with room for over a thousand people. Two Soul Masters were facing each other on the platform, both Soul Elders. The stands were nearly half full. They were far from packed, but the atmosphere was lively.

Ning Buhui found a seat near the back.

On the left side of the platform stood a burly man in his twenties. His Martial Soul was a mountain-cleaving axe, with two yellow rings and one purple. On the right was a tall, thin young man whose Martial Soul was a wind-element dart, also with two yellow rings and one purple. The referee stood at the edge of the platform, raised a hand between them, and shouted, "Begin!"

The burly man struck first. His First Soul Ring lit up, and a layer of crimson Soul Power rose over the axe blade. He charged forward in great strides and chopped down. The tall young man dodged sideways, his Second Soul Ring lighting up as he flung three wind blades carrying darts from his palm. They sliced toward the burly man's upper, middle, and lower body. The man raised his axe crosswise to block. Two struck the flat of the blade and bounced away, while the third skimmed his shoulder, cutting a bloody gash. He winced but kept moving. His Second Soul Ring lit up, and his axe abruptly doubled in size. He swung it in a wide circle as though sweeping away a thousand soldiers. Forced back to the edge of the platform, the tall young man lit his Third Soul Ring and suddenly became a gust of wind, racing around the perimeter in search of an opening.

The two traded blows for more than a dozen exchanges. The burly man attacked fiercely but was slow. The tall young man was fast but lacked attacking power, and after several rounds he still had not broken through the man's defenses. At last, the burly man seized an opening. His First Soul Ring lit up again, his axe blade surged larger, and a vertical chop forced the young man into a corner of the platform. The tall young man retreated several steps and put his foot on the boundary line. The referee immediately stopped the fight.

"Red side out of bounds. Blue side wins."

Applause and whistles rose from the stands. Ning Buhui clapped a few times along with the crowd, silently weighing what he had seen. The two Soul Elders' fighting styles were orthodox: the burly man relied on strength and explosive power to suppress his opponent, while the tall young man used speed and harassment to look for opportunities. Neither man's tactics were particularly clever, but their fundamentals were solid. If Ning Buhui took the stage, Vine Locks the Nine Nether Regions could bind the burly man's wrist the instant he swung his axe, disrupting the rhythm of his exertion. He could use Thunder Prison Imprisons Wind to restrict the tall young man's high-speed movement. Having their movement sealed off was what Agility Attack System Soul Masters feared most.

The second match was between two female Soul Masters, both Soul Elders as well. One had an ice needle Martial Soul, and the other a vine whip. The ice-needle Soul Master kept her opponent in check from a distance, while the vine-whip Soul Master fought up close. They battled for nearly a quarter of an hour. In the end, the vine-whip Soul Master used her Third Soul Skill to catch the ice-needle Soul Master off guard and bind her. The referee stopped the match, and the vine-whip Soul Master with the purple ring won. Gasps broke out in the stands.

Ning Buhui watched intently from below. The vine-whip Soul Master's tactics gave him an idea. His Vine Locks the Nine Nether Regions was also a vine-type control skill. In the past, he had always used one chain against one person, but in the future he could learn from her and summon several against a single opponent, some in plain sight and others hidden. Catching them off guard would make it easier to succeed.

The third match was a two-on-two team battle. Each pair had two Soul Masters: one team combined a power attacker and a support, while the other had an agility attacker and a controller. The agility-and-control team fought with excellent coordination. The Control System Soul Master used binding skills to restrict the opposing power attacker's movements, while the Agility Attack System Soul Master took the chance to circle behind and strike the support. Once the Auxiliary System Soul Master was taken out, the power attacker was a lone tree struggling to stand and was quickly eliminated. The entire fight lasted less than five minutes, clean and decisive.

After watching the three matches, Ning Buhui had a sense of what to expect. The opponents in the Soul Fighting Arena varied in skill, but most had a few tricks up their sleeves. His strength was overwhelming compared with these people. After all, the true ages of his Soul Rings were there for all to see; that alone already put him in an invincible position among those of the same level.

His real target was the Soul Ancestor matches, but first he needed to win thirty consecutive Soul Elder matches and reach Silver Soul Fighter rank.

He rose from his seat and headed out. Passing the rankings board, he took another look. In the Bronze Soul Fighter Badge section, several names had scores approaching one thousand. He recalled the Hundred-Victory Gold Token he had heard people mention before. Only the Silver Tiger Soul Fighting Arena had that. The highest honor at the Star Luo Great Soul Arena was the diamond badge, which required ten thousand points.

He had never thought about winning any extra rewards. He only wanted a place to practice and bring everything he had learned together. He could not stay in Star Luo City too long. In a few months, he would have to return to the Star Dou Great Forest for more training. Only battles between life and death would bring him tremendous improvement.

For now, he would focus on the Soul Fighting matches. His first individual match was tomorrow afternoon; he hoped his opponent would not disappoint him.