Chapter 21: The Arena of Souls

On the playground, Xiao Xiao appeared as she always did.

This time, however, she was wearing heavy iron armor while performing push-ups. Resting on her petite back was a massive cauldron, with two pale yellow spirit rings attached to it.

"Huff... huff~"

Xiao Xiao lowered herself to the ground and pushed back up with agonizing slowness. The martial soul on her back exerted a strange force field, permeating every inch of her body and forcing her muscles and bones to endure the immense weight.

The Power of Suppression.

This was a special power inherent to high-level cauldron-type martial souls. Much like the Clear Sky Hammer’s armor-piercing ability or the sword intent generated by top-tier sword martial souls, it was an innate gift. Whether this power could be successfully awakened and nurtured, however, depended entirely on the spirit master’s own capabilities.

"So that is her martial soul? I never imagined she would use it to temper her physical body..."

Ning Tian leaned against the classroom window, watching Xiao Xiao from afar. Her expression shifted repeatedly. "No, there is more—she is multitasking."

She was manipulating her spirit power to strengthen her body and replenish her stamina, all while ensuring a steady flow of spirit power to the martial soul on her back to maintain a constant weight.

As for whether she had even deeper secrets, Ning Tian could not yet tell. But based on what she had shown, Xiao Xiao had already easily surpassed ninety percent of their peers.

Case in point, the person standing next to Ning Tian.

"Hmph!"

Wu Feng, standing by her side, wore a sullen expression, her arms crossed tightly, saying nothing. Although her lips refused to admit defeat, her heart had already begun to waver.

Both of them had witnessed Xiao Xiao’s growth over this period. They had been intensifying their own training in private, but when it came to diligence, growth, and that raw, ruthless drive, they were still far behind.

"If there is an opportunity later, I should try to make contact..." Ning Tian whispered to herself.

Beside her, Wu Feng’s body jolted, and the gaze she fixed on Xiao Xiao filled with hostility and a burning desire for battle.

No one... No one was going to take the Young Mistress away from her!

Isn’t it just training? Isn’t it just tempering the body? These are things I can do too!

"Two hundred ninety-nine... three hundred!"

Xiao Xiao, unaware of the animosity she had just garnered, immediately retracted her martial soul the moment she finished the three hundredth push-up and collapsed limply onto the ground, unable to move.

***

So tired~

After taking a few deep breaths of dusty air, Xiao Xiao felt her dizzy vision gradually clear. "As expected. Is my body still too weak?"

In the three months of arduous training, her physical progress had been rapid during the first month, but the efficiency had since plummeted, leaving her to grind away bit by bit.

By now, the improvements from her physical exercises were almost imperceptible, forcing her to incorporate the control of her martial soul and spirit power into her routine just to keep herself occupied.

When effort becomes a habit, suddenly being idle feels uncomfortable, as if everything is just not quite right.

"Oh? Training again?"

Suddenly, someone poked her head, using a familiar voice and tone.

Struggling to look up, she saw Wang Dong squatting in front of her with a playful smile. Behind him, Huo Yuhao was leaning on a wooden staff—no, it should be called a cane now.

The once unremarkable, straight wooden stick was now covered in strange, intricate patterns. It looked as if even the material had changed, emanating a gentle, warm glow.

"Wang Dong? Huo Yuhao?"

Xiao Xiao scrambled up from the ground, looking at them with confusion. "Why are you here? Do you need my help with something?"

"Not at all, we just wanted to see if you’d like to form a team," Huo Yuhao smiled. "We’re planning to head to the Spirit Fighting Arena to hone our practical combat skills, and it would be better if we had a teammate. After thinking it over, it seemed you were the only one in the class we were somewhat familiar with."

Hearing this, Xiao Xiao’s eyes lit up. "Great! Count me in!"

She had been worried that her training progress was hitting a bottleneck; heading to the Spirit Fighting Arena to spar might just be the breakthrough she needed. Moreover, after training so hard for so long, she needed to test just how much her strength had truly grown.

***

The Spirit Fighting District within Shrek Academy was located in a corner of the campus, built right next to the Martial Soul Department, which occupied seventy percent of the academy's area, to facilitate matches between students.

However, the fees here were steep; just one match required a payment of ten gold spirit coins to open the arena, and even spectators had to pay one silver spirit coin to enter. It was clearly designed to make money.

The only benefit of this place was that winning a match could earn bonus points toward one's final assessment.

Consequently, at the end of every school year, the place was packed with all sorts of people. Some were there to make up for lost credits, some were hired to stage fake duels, others were just causing trouble, and some were even trying to settle personal emotional issues before graduation.

When Huo Yuhao and his two companions arrived at the Spirit Fighting District, they found it already teeming with people. The spectator stands, capable of holding over three thousand people, were packed to capacity.

"What’s happening? Why are there so many people?" Xiao Xiao scanned the vast hexagonal arena in awe.

She had never seen so many students before, almost all of whom appeared to be upperclassmen.

"I heard them saying two upperclassmen are dueling again," Huo Yuhao said as he returned with their match number. "One is Bei Bei, and the other is Xu Sanshi."

"Ah? Those two?"

At the mention of their names, Wang Dong suddenly recalled the two he had met at the start of the semester.

Especially Xu Sanshi—a dignified four-ring spirit master who had been beaten into a pulp by Huo Yuhao, who only had one ring. Even without using spirit skills, such a record was humiliating enough that Wang Dong could never forget it.

"Do you... know them?" Xiao Xiao asked, curious. Among the group, she was the only one who didn't know who they were.

"The teacher processing the numbers told me they are both four-ring powerhouses. They are very popular among the upperclassmen and frequently duel here," Huo Yuhao shrugged. "Besides, they often use these matches to fleece the audience for money."

The two acted like bitter enemies, but in private, they were actually quite close. By manipulating the outcome of their duels, they could shear the audience like sheep. Yet, the spectators didn't seem to mind; they were simply entertained by the two of them clashing like fire and earth every day.

In a sense, it was a form of performance art.

"Here they come! Both sides are entering!"

Wang Dong looked toward the center of the arena. As participants waiting for their turn, they were placed in a corner near the stands, giving them a clear view of the combatants' movements.

The referee followed the usual protocol, confirming the rules of the duel with the two, and then gave the command: "The duel begins!"

"Bang!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Bei Bei lunged forward, his arms covered in dragon scales and crackling with blue lightning as he launched a fierce strike.

"Hmph! Xuanming Possession!"

Facing a tactic he knew all too well, Xu Sanshi sneered. "Displacement!"

His fourth spirit ring flashed, and the two figures swapped positions.

Having instantly blinked behind Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi raised his shield once more, aiming at his opponent's wide-open back: "Xuanming Shock!"