Time passed swiftly, like a white colt flitting past a crevice. In the blink of an eye, Lu Jingming had turned fourteen, and at the same time, the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament was about to begin in Haiyuan City.
Months before, the Star Luo Empire had carefully prepared and sent invitations to all the participating Soul Master Academies.
They notified all participants that the venue for this year's tournament would not be the familiar Star Luo City, but a somewhat unfamiliar city—Haiyuan City.
For most Soul Master Academies, this change of venue didn't seem to matter much.
They had come for the tournament, focused solely on displaying their strength and vying for glory in the arena; the specific location of the competition felt less important.
Although some keen individuals sensed something unusual from the change of venue, no one dwelled on it—after all, everyone understood that ultimately, this was an internal affair of the Star Luo Empire.
For a single city to host such a top-tier, continent-wide event required unimaginable effort.
From event preparation and security to logistical support, countless complex tasks had to be considered in detail. The slightest misstep could lead to chaos.
Xu Jiawei and Xu Jiujiu understood this perfectly, so they sent an experienced, highly professional team to Haiyuan City to help plan the tournament.
When news broke that the venue had shifted to Haiyuan City, the entire upper echelon of the Star Luo Empire was shaken.
The stakes behind this event were intricate, with interests and factions deeply intertwined. The change of venue triggered a series of chain reactions.
However, with Xu Jiawei's full support, Haiyuan City finally secured the hosting rights for this Soul Master Tournament.
With the Star Luo royal family's backing, the nation-protecting Douluo—Skyhawk Douluo, a level 98 Super Douluo—personally voiced his support. Plus, Haiyuan City made huge concessions in the distribution of benefits, voluntarily giving up most of them. Only then was the furor over the venue change quelled.
After that, Haiyuan City sprang into action, fully committing to the preparations.
In a very short time, a brand-new competition arena rose up. Hotels and restaurants sprang up like mushrooms after rain.
Thanks to Xu Jiawei granting a vast area of land to Haiyuan City, Lu Jingming was able to launch a large-scale expansion.
Now, Haiyuan City was completely transformed—its scale greatly enlarged, its layout more rational, and its infrastructure much improved.
With its current capacity, the city could easily accommodate five million people.
If temporary high-rises were included, the population limit could even exceed twenty million.
All this was possible because of Haiyuan City's advanced soul tool technology and Keqing's tireless overtime planning.
With a nearly modern architectural style making full use of every inch of space, they'd managed to create more living and activity areas.
Even though Haiyuan City developed rapidly in a short time, it still lagged behind other major cities.
Currently, the city's permanent population was under a million, while Star Luo City had eight million, and Shrek City had five million. As for Mingdu, known as the continent's number one city, it was simply out of reach.
According to Lu Jingming, Mingdu covered a vast area—larger than the combined capitals of the original three Douluo nations—with a permanent population of over twenty million.
There, the economy was booming, the crowds were immense, and all kinds of soul tool products dazzled the eye. Its prosperity truly deserved its reputation as the continent's greatest city.
By comparison, Star Luo City, Heaven Dou City, Dou Ling City, and Shrek City all paled in comparison.
Still, Lu Jingming was confident about Haiyuan City's future.
If the tournament could be held successfully, it would surely attract a wave of people, bringing unprecedented development opportunities.
That was exactly what Lu Jingming hoped for. He valued not just the tournament's influence but the huge benefits hidden behind it.
In his view, population growth was the real engine of urban development. As long as Haiyuan City's population kept increasing, the economy would naturally flourish, and the temporary sacrifices made now would be earned back many times over.
"Hmm? Where's March 7th?"
At St. Freya Academy, as the tournament loomed ever closer, the official team members—Gu Yue, Robin, Jinhsi, and others—often gathered to practice teamwork.
But Lu Jingming saw things differently. In his eyes, with the strength of their seven-member team, they could sweep the competition even fighting solo. There was no need to spend so much time on team drills.
However, March 7th was full of enthusiasm for this tournament.
It was her first time participating in such a grand, continent-wide event, and her seriousness surprised everyone.
As one of the team's favorite members, March 7th was pampered no less than the pink-haired fox.
So, Robin and Jinhsi gladly made time to practice with her, and even the normally aloof Gu Yue joined in—after all, of the seven, she was closest to March 7th and couldn't refuse her requests.
But today, to Lu Jingming's surprise, the usually energetic March 7th was nowhere to be seen.
"If you mean little March 7th, she went out with Gu Yi. I heard there's a group of evil soul masters entrenched in the Mingdou Mountains that the White Tiger Army hasn't wiped out yet. Gu Yi wanted to go purify them and raise her cultivation, so little March 7th tagged along out of curiosity," Robin explained softly.
Ye Guyi hadn't been at the Academy long, but with her outstanding strength, she'd quickly become one of the few A-level students.
Her tough character meant she often challenged Firefly, Gu Yue, and the others. After many rounds of sparring, she gradually became close with Robin and the rest.
Ye Guyi, Lan Susu, and Lan Luoluo were all chosen as reserve team members, and often joined practice sessions organized by March 7th.
"Evil soul masters in the Mingdou Mountains! Who went with them?" Lu Jingming frowned instantly.
He'd been training Ye Guyi and had the Wuchang Division hunt down evil soul masters for her to purify and raise her strength.
If he remembered correctly, the evil soul master entrenched in the Mingdou Mountains was no ordinary figure—he was the so-called strongest Soul King in history, the Death God Envoy!
This Death God Envoy, with Soul King power, had nearly wiped out Shrek Academy's seven main team members.
He'd even managed to kidnap Huo Yuhao from right under the nose of a level 98 Title Douluo and retreat unscathed.
Such achievements were virtually unheard of on the Douluo Continent—even the Holy Spirit Cult would have to tip their hat.
"Don't worry, Dan Heng went with them," Robin said, her lips curling into a smile.
Ye Guyi was brave, but little March 7th was timid. The legends of evil soul masters were infamous in the soul master world, with stories so gruesome they made people's skin crawl.
Still, strong curiosity made March 7th follow Ye Guyi, but she'd had the sense to bring along Dan Heng, a recent summon of Lu Jingming.
Dan Heng, a companion from the train crew, was reliable and strong. With him there, March 7th felt much braver.
"I see. With Dan Heng there, I'm relieved," Lu Jingming nodded.
Ye Guyi was reckless, March 7th was naive. If it were just the two of them, he'd be worried, but Dan Heng was steady and strong. When he summoned Dan Heng, he didn't skimp on his Reality Power.
A full-power manifestation was impossible—his Reality Power couldn't handle it—but Title Douluo level was no problem.
Dan Heng wasn't like some Holy Spirit Cult elder. Against an evil soul master Soul King, there was no way Dan Heng would fail.
Upon hearing Robin and Lu Jingming mention Dan Heng, Gu Yue's expression turned odd. After so many years, she had noticed the peculiarities of Haiyuan City and the mysteries of Lu Jingming.
One Jinhsi was odd enough, now there was Dan Heng as well. Both gave her the impression of being dragons—and each was stronger than the last, making her, the Silver Dragon King, question her own existence!
Lu Jingming noticed her expression and laughed inwardly. If only she knew that Castorice also kept a dragon, he wondered what her reaction would be. The thought made him look forward to it.
Summoning Dan Heng served two purposes: for the upcoming tournament, and because he felt Haiyuan City was a bit too dominated by women.
Aside from himself, nearly all the high-level figures in the city were female. Though they were Haiyuan's pillars, Lu Jingming still felt the city needed more masculine energy.
Besides, summoning Dan Heng made March 7th happy, and as for Jingliu, without her Spectral Transmigration state, she was no longer so extreme.
Dan Heng didn't see himself as Dan Feng, and Jingliu couldn't claim Dan Heng was Dan Feng. What she hated was the Dan Feng who desecrated Baiheng, forcing her into the Demonic Yin path and committing great sins—not Dan Heng.
Lu Jingming knew well that the legendary five heroes of the Cloud Quintet were now a thing of the past.
Even if he could summon Bai Heng, time could not be reversed. The beauty and friendships of the past were gone forever.
Still, Lu Jingming planned to summon Bai Heng at the right time—at least, it would make Jingliu happy.
After all, Bai Heng's suicide to save her and Dan Feng was a lifelong regret.