Flender looked at Ning Tianchen with admiration. "Well said."
"Tonight will be your first time here. You won't be participating in team battles just yet. Except for support-type Soul Masters, everyone must take part in a one-on-one soul duel tonight. As for the two-on-two duels, everyone—including the support-types—must participate in at least one match."
With that, Flender turned and left, leaving the matter of how to arrange the matches up to them.
Among the eight of them, only Oscar and Ning Rongrong were support-type Soul Masters. With a total of eight people, there was no issue of someone being left out of the two-on-two duels.
Tang San and Xiao Wu didn't even need discussion—they were naturally a team.
Ning Rongrong originally intended to team up with Ning Tianchen. But when she noticed that Dai Mubai was trying to pair up with Zhu Zhuqing, she immediately changed her mind. "Brother Tianchen, I'll team up with Zhuqing. You can find someone else."
Ning Tianchen didn't object.
Dai Mubai shot Ning Rongrong a fierce glare, but for the sake of Ning Tianchen, he didn't say anything. He just gave a cold snort.
Oscar, having witnessed Ning Tianchen's strength firsthand, wasn't about to pass up the opportunity now that he was unpaired.
"Brother Tianchen, how about me?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows playfully, a cheeky grin on his face.
Ma Hongjun didn't know how strong Ning Tianchen was.
Since he was left with Dai Mubai as a teammate, he naturally had no objections.
Dai Mubai suddenly said, "Oscar, you go team up with Fatty. In two-on-two and team battles, the opponents you get matched against are based on the strongest person in your team."
His meaning was crystal clear.
Teaming up with a support-type Soul Master in a two-on-two match essentially meant you were fighting a two-on-one. With Oscar only being a Soul Grandmaster, he would be at a complete disadvantage if the enemy team consisted of all Soul Elders.
Dai Mubai's intentions were simple.
He was in a foul mood and needed to vent. He acknowledged Ning Tianchen's strength, and if the two of them teamed up, the chances of losing a match were very low.
This would also allow him to vent his frustration to the fullest extent.
But Ning Tianchen shook his head and refused. "No need. Oscar is my roommate—I'll team up with him."
"Good brother!" Oscar looked at him with a deeply moved expression.
…
At the registration counter.
The attendant, seeing their young faces, couldn't help but ask, "Kids, are you sure you want to participate in the soul duels?"
"Don't judge a book by its cover," Tang San replied calmly.
The attendant looked a little embarrassed. "I see… but just so you know, the minimum soul power requirement for the Great Spirit Arena is level 21. If you're not at that level—"
Before she could finish, Xiao Wu immediately revealed her spirit rings.
The Great Spirit Arena didn't require real-name registration. Everyone used their actual names, except for Ning Tianchen, who gave himself a codename:
Sword Dao Tianchen.
"That's quite a bold name. I hope your strength lives up to it," the attendant chuckled lightly and handed him a spirit duel badge engraved with his alias.
After signing up, the group followed the staff to the spectator area.
The Great Spirit Arena was one of the few nighttime entertainment venues in Suotuo City. Spectators came in a steady stream, and nearly every seat was filled.
"There are so many people… Brother Tianchen, I'm a little nervous," Ning Rongrong whispered, tugging on his sleeve.
"Don't worry. Just keep calm and treat it like usual," Ning Tianchen said gently, brushing her forehead.
In truth, Ning Rongrong wasn't the only one feeling stage fright.
Aside from Ning Tianchen and Tang San, everyone else felt at least a little anxious. Even Dai Mubai—who had participated in many duels before—was no exception.
Just as everyone sat down, before their seats had even warmed, the broadcast system of the Great Spirit Arena came on.
"Dai Mubai and Li Gang, please proceed to Peripheral Ring, Duel Platform Six for your match. Jian Dao Tianchen and Evil Tiger, please proceed to Peripheral Ring, Duel Platform One for your match."
Hearing this, Dai Mubai didn't say a word to the others and walked off the spectator stand on his own.
"Be careful, Brother Tianchen," Ning Rongrong said with a worried expression.
Although killing was prohibited in standard soul duels, soul skills had no eyes. Accidents happened, and people had died in the ring before.
After seeing the names of the deceased engraved on the central stone pillar in the arena, Ning Rongrong was feeling uneasy about his safety.
"It'll be fine. Trust in my Seven Kill Sword, Path of No Return," Ning Tianchen reassured her, gently brushing her forehead again before heading toward the contestant passage.
…
Evil Tiger was already waiting on the platform. When he saw Ning Tianchen approaching, a mocking sneer appeared on his face.
"Jian Dao Tianchen, huh? I thought you might actually be some kind of sword master. Fancy name—let's see if your bones are as tough as your mouth."
Evil Tiger was no pushover. He was on a nine-win streak.
Of his past nine matches, he had killed seven of his opponents. In one soul duel, he even assaulted a female contestant on the platform before ultimately killing her.
Despite this brutal fighting style, he had become wildly popular with certain spectators.
As soon as he finished speaking, a wave of excited shouts erupted from the stands.
"Evil Tiger, rip him apart!"
"Hahaha! Wonder whose kid that is—he's in for a rough time."
One overweight merchant pulled a long face and cried out, "Damn it, I was drunk just now and bet on that kid to win!"
Although the Great Spirit Arena didn't officially take bets for regular one-on-one matches, there were plenty of private bookies who ran underground betting pools.
On the Soul Battle Platform—
Ning Tianchen was completely unfazed by his opponent's aggressive aura and infamous reputation.
His expression remained exceptionally calm, as though he didn't care in the slightest.
"Kid, if you surrender now, I might let you go for the sake of your young age,"
Evil Tiger said menacingly.
But Evil Tiger wasn't a fool.
This was the Soul Elder-level platform. Regardless of whether Ning Tianchen was a lower-rank Soul Elder, simply being able to step onto this stage proved his exceptional talent. Talents like this often had powerful clans backing them. If he injured or crippled such a person, trouble might follow.
> "Referee, can we begin?" Ning Tianchen ignored him and addressed the official.
Seeing that Evil Tiger had no objections, the referee immediately announced:
"You have one minute to activate your Martial Souls. Once I strike the gong, the soul duel will officially begin."
"Don't say I didn't give you a chance! Evil Tiger—Possession!"
A purple-black-striped tiger emerged, and the man's muscles swelled dramatically, his body size expanding significantly.
Three soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple—appeared beneath his feet.
Judging by his soul power pressure, he was definitely a high-level Soul Elder.
Ning Tianchen smiled inwardly and summoned his Martial Soul—Seven Kill Sword—into his right hand, three soul rings appearing as well.
Very few people on the continent had encountered the Seven Kill Sword before. What's more, Ning Tianchen's Martial Soul bore dragon patterns, making it nearly impossible for anyone at the Soto Great Spirit Arena to recognize it.
The duel began.
Evil Tiger launched the first attack.
"First Soul Skill — Tiger Pounces Down the Mountain!"
As the skill activated, he lunged like a hunting tiger, pouncing straight toward his opponent.
In response, Ning Tianchen swung the Seven Kill Sword, sending out a powerful burst of sword energy.
The edge of the Seven Kill Sword was no ordinary thing. Feeling the threat from the sword aura, Evil Tiger immediately abandoned his offensive and shifted to a defensive stance.