"Everyone from Tianshui Academy, come in and have a chat."
Su Cheng nodded amicably toward Shui Bing'er and the others.
The next moment, however, the smile on his face stiffened slightly.
Seven or eight people suddenly crowded into the carriage, including even the substitutes from their team.
"Captain Su Cheng, how do you cultivate? I heard you're only fifteen years old."
"Qingyu, how are you finding things here? What about that Feng Xiaotian guy? Why didn't he come?"
"Is Ning Rongrong not here?"
"Why didn't you join the main team for the competition?"
"..."
Accompanied by a chorus of lively female voices, the girls filed into the carriage one after another, making the already spacious interior feel rather crowded.
The other members of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy team rarely encountered a scene like this. For a moment, they all lowered their heads, too embarrassed to say anything.
Su Cheng could only feel somewhat helpless.
He had indeed sensed several presences led by Shui Bing'er earlier, but because their auras had been mixed together, he hadn't bothered to distinguish them individually.
He hadn't expected so many people to show up.
Shui Bing'er gave him an apologetic smile.
Her teammates had wanted to come over and see what was going on, and she hadn't wanted to stop them.
Once the girls' chatter finally quieted down, Su Cheng straightened his expression and looked toward the beautiful girl with long aqua-blue hair sitting opposite him.
"Captain Shui Bing'er, have you made your decision?"
"Captain Su Cheng, you don't have to be so formal. Just call me Bing'er."
"Alright." Su Cheng readily agreed. "Then you can just call me Su Cheng as well."
Shui Bing'er nodded. Instead of immediately answering his earlier question, she asked,
"Su Cheng, do you know much about the Spirit Hall team?"
Su Cheng nodded lightly.
"I know a little."
Shui Bing'er looked at him solemnly.
"As far as I know, they have three Soul King-level fighters. Spirit Hall calls them the 'Golden Generation,' and their strength is extremely formidable.
"I don't know much about their Martial Souls or Spirit Skills, but I do know that the weakest among the three is at Rank 51, while the other two are Rank 52.
"They were also personally awarded Spirit Hall's Purple Record Medal by the Pope, setting a new record for Spirit Hall.
"Even if none of them can defeat you individually, can you handle all three if they join forces?"
She genuinely wanted to accept Su Cheng's earlier proposal and temporarily join the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's second team for the finals.
The various academies had all gathered information about the Spirit Hall team.
At present, they didn't know about Qian Renxue's existence, but they had long since heard of the famous Golden Generation.
Three Soul Kings.
There was simply no chance of winning the championship against such a lineup.
Although Shui Bing'er wanted to lead Tianshui Academy to achieve a respectable result and win some glory, Su Cheng's promised championship rewards were also extremely tempting.
After all, if they couldn't actually win the championship, how much glory could they really gain?
Besides, the other teams weren't weak either.
Even Shrek Academy was already a team they weren't confident they could defeat.
Zhu Zhuqing alone was troublesome enough. Adding Tang San, who now possessed the Clear Sky Hammer, had pushed their overall combat strength to another level.
Although Tang San had been defeated by a single sword strike from Su Cheng, that was only because Su Cheng was overwhelmingly powerful.
Everyone who had participated in the competition had seen what happened, and they knew very well that Tang San was absolutely among the strongest contestants.
But even if they joined the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's second team, would they really have a chance at the championship?
Shui Bing'er wasn't sure.
She knew Su Cheng's strength seemed to be far beyond that of an ordinary Soul King, but no matter how strong he was, wouldn't facing three Soul Kings simultaneously still be difficult?
She herself wasn't at that level. Although she had encountered plenty of Soul Kings and Soul Emperors before, she had never developed an accurate understanding of their true strength.
She simply didn't know where Su Cheng stood among them.
"Or are you planning to merge with the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's main team once we arrive in Wuhun City and form a new team?"
"No merger."
Su Cheng calmly replied,
"Besides me, the confirmed members of our second team include the Soul Ancestor Ning Rongrong of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, the Soul Ancestor Huyan Li of Elephant Armored Academy, and the Soul Elder Feng Qingyu of Kamikaze Academy."
"And…"
At this point, Su Cheng smiled.
"Those three Soul Kings aren't my targets. I'll need you to keep them occupied."
Shui Bing'er was stunned.
"What do you mean?"
"Their captain is a peak Soul Emperor. She may even reach the Soul Saint realm by then."
Su Cheng's expression became serious.
"I'll be dealing with her."
Those words caused not only Shui Bing'er and the girls accompanying her to pale, but even the original members of the team—including Huyan Li and Feng Qingyu—to feel their breathing tighten.
Shui Bing'er stared blankly at him.
"Su Cheng, the rules for this competition require participants to be under twenty-five…"
"She really is under twenty-five."
Su Cheng looked directly at her.
"But that doesn't mean I can't beat her."
He continued,
"Your team leader is also a peak Soul Emperor. What does she think of my strength?"
"...She admits that she isn't your match."
After a brief hesitation, Shui Bing'er answered honestly.
She hadn't originally placed much faith in her teacher's assessment.
But seeing the serious expression on Su Cheng's face now, she suddenly felt that perhaps her teacher had been telling the truth.
"Your teacher is right."
Su Cheng nodded.
"However, that Soul Emperor from Spirit Hall isn't an ordinary Soul Emperor either. I'll have to go all out against her, so I won't have the energy to deal with the others."
"So that's how it is…"
Shui Bing'er fell silent.
Yet beneath her calm expression, a surge of excitement quietly began to burn.
As a genius Spirit Master and the most talented member of Tianshui Academy's current generation, she naturally possessed a certain pride.
Although she appeared gentle and peaceful on the surface, how could she possibly lack the desire to clash with powerful opponents?
At that moment, she suddenly sensed a peculiar aura emanating from Su Cheng.
It inexplicably filled her with a sense of admiration while simultaneously making her feel strangely close to him.
"What is this?"
Shui Bing'er stared at him in surprise.
It felt somewhat like the resonance between two Martial Souls during a Martial Soul Fusion Technique, yet it wasn't quite the same.
Naturally, this was only her misconception.
The essence of a Martial Soul Fusion Technique was the complementary nature of two Martial Soul bloodlines.
The aura Su Cheng was emitting at this moment came from the trace of immortal essence within her own Martial Soul.
In a sense, the two shared the same origin.
"Your Martial Soul is extraordinary."
Su Cheng exchanged a glance with her before choosing his words carefully.
"But I suspect that neither the teachers at your academy nor even you have realized its true nature."
"You can consider cultivating with me for a while. You might gain something from it."
He paused.
"Especially when it comes to your future Spirit Ring configuration. I may be able to offer you some advice."
"..."
Shui Bing'er didn't answer.
She was still overwhelmed by the shock of what she had just experienced.
The connection between a Martial Soul and its Spirit Master's soul couldn't be faked.
The person standing before her seemed to be faintly pointing toward a higher path for her Ice Phoenix Martial Soul.
"Bing'er, you should consider it."
Feng Qingyu, who had been sitting nearby, suddenly spoke.
She and Shui Bing'er had known each other for a long time.
Both came from extraordinary backgrounds and belonged to the same Elemental Academy faction.
Unlike Elephant Armored Academy, whose backing sect—the Elephant Armored Sect—had pledged allegiance to Spirit Hall, or Thunderclap Academy, which belonged to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Kamikaze Academy, Blazing Academy, and Tianshui Academy all had relatively pure educational philosophies.
They also welcomed talented commoners rather than excluding them.
The three academies had always maintained a good relationship.
Naturally, Shui Bing'er and Feng Qingyu had plenty of opportunities to interact.
Shui Bing'er turned toward her.
"Bing'er, my teacher may be quite calculating, but he really does know a lot."
"You know what my Martial Soul is. Even my grandfather couldn't figure it out completely, yet my teacher managed to analyze it thoroughly."
"He definitely won't disappoint you."
Su Cheng glanced at Feng Qingyu.
He didn't care about her little jab at him and simply waited quietly for Shui Bing'er's decision.
Shui Bing'er pondered for a moment before looking at the encouraging expressions of her teammates.
Finally, she nodded lightly.
"We're willing to temporarily join the Heaven Dou Royal Academy team. We'll be counting on you."
A satisfied smile appeared on Su Cheng's face.
"No need to thank me. Let's work hard together in the upcoming matches."
"Those three Soul Kings won't be easy to deal with."
The Heaven Dou Empire's participating Spirit Master teams continued their journey.
Nothing unexpected happened along the way.
Although Tang San had exposed the existence of the Clear Sky Hammer, the Spirit Hunting operation that had occurred in the original timeline never took place.
Su Cheng didn't pay much attention to it.
He simply assumed that Qian Renxue had already made the necessary arrangements.
Because of the large number of people and the fact that they traveled entirely by carriage, it took more than half a month before the entire group finally arrived outside Wuhun City.
The fifteen Spirit Master teams then entered the city together.
Compared with the enormous Heaven Dou City, Wuhun City was much smaller—less than one-tenth its size.
Yet to the young Spirit Masters, this place held extraordinary significance.
The enormous granite walls stood eighty meters high and were more than thirty meters thick. From the outside, they looked imposing and magnificent, making it obvious that an astronomical amount of resources had been invested into their construction.
Even the patrol teams were composed entirely of Spirit Masters.
Dressed in Spirit Hall's standard uniforms, they continuously patrolled the city walls.
Su Cheng silently raised his head and looked at Wuhun City's distinctive hexagonal walls.
He couldn't help sighing inwardly.
"Wuhun City… it's been a long time."
There weren't many pedestrians inside Wuhun City.
The shops along the streets were also relatively sparse, mostly selling items required by Spirit Masters.
Even spatial storage-type soul tools were available for purchase.
Under the guidance of a Red-Robed Bishop, the various teams—more than two hundred people in total—were quickly settled into a hotel on the western side of Wuhun City.
Here, even the hotel staff possessed at least twenty ranks of spirit power and were Grand Spirit Masters.
Not long after entering the hotel, a middle-aged man with completely black hair and beard and an imposing bearing came looking for Su Cheng.
It was none other than Dugu Bo, who had arrived in Wuhun City early with his granddaughter.
The moment he heard that Su Cheng and the others had arrived, he immediately came over.
"Senior, you're here."
Su Cheng nodded toward him.
"Want to go out for a walk?"
Dugu Bo spoke casually while giving him a meaningful glance.
Su Cheng thought about it.
There was nothing particularly interesting to do at the hotel. Once Ning Rongrong arrived, someone would naturally escort her here.
So he didn't refuse and prepared to leave with him.
"Teacher, I'm coming too!"
Seeing Su Cheng preparing to leave, Feng Qingyu quickly called out.
She had never been to Wuhun City before and was naturally curious.
Dugu Bo looked somewhat surprised.
He glanced at Feng Qingyu, then turned toward Su Cheng.
"And this is?"
"My newest disciple, Feng Qingyu from Kamikaze Academy."
"You're barely old enough yourself, and you've already taken a disciple?"
Dugu Bo laughed.
"And this little girl actually agreed to become your disciple?"
"That just proves she's smart enough."
As they spoke, the three of them made their way onto the streets of Wuhun City.
As they walked, Dugu Bo seemed to want to say something, but with Feng Qingyu beside them, he appeared reluctant to bring it up.
"She's just a little kid. She doesn't understand anything. Just say whatever you want."
Feng Qingyu rolled her eyes at him but said nothing, continuing to look around curiously at the various shops.
Dugu Bo understood what Su Cheng meant and no longer held back.
He sighed softly.
"Spirit Hall's ambitions aren't small."
Su Cheng raised an eyebrow.
"How so?"
"The Spirit Masters here may have come from the two great empires, but in their hearts, they only recognize Spirit Hall. They don't even seem to know that the two great empires exist."
"Do you think that's normal?"
"And what exactly are you thinking?"
Dugu Bo looked at him in surprise.
This kid's reaction was rather strange.
But then he recalled the woman who had once disguised herself as Xue Qinghe.
Clearly, there were deeper secrets involved.
And judging by Su Cheng's expression, he obviously knew far more than he was letting on.
"What could I possibly think?"
Dugu Bo shrugged.
"I'm all alone anyway."
"But judging from the situation here, getting involved at this point may not be a good idea."
"It's the same everywhere."
Su Cheng's voice remained indifferent.
"For you, Spirit Hall is the best choice."
"Besides, you're a peak Douluo. What do you have to be afraid of?"
Dugu Bo sighed.
"That's true."
Given Spirit Hall's current scale and influence, if it truly had ambitions of its own, there wasn't much need to speculate about what it intended to do.
If a change capable of sweeping across the entire continent really occurred, then there wouldn't be much difference no matter where one stood.
In that case, Spirit Hall truly was the best faction to side with.
Before long, the three arrived at the center of Wuhun City.
A huge competition arena stood nearby.
"That is where you'll be competing."
Dugu Bo pointed toward the arena.
The platform was a full hundred meters in diameter and constructed entirely from granite. It looked incredibly sturdy.
The enormous competition stage was also equipped with a large number of soul tools designed to reinforce it and prevent damage.
"I heard from the people of Spirit Hall that this arena can withstand any attack below the Soul Emperor realm."
"Oh."
Su Cheng nodded thoughtfully.
Looks like Xiaoxue probably won't make a move until the final match.
Otherwise, if she accidentally destroyed this place, how would the other teams compete?
"What does 'oh' mean?"
Dugu Bo shot him a sideways glance.
"Oh means I could split this thing apart with one sword."
"..."
The other two were rendered speechless.
Feng Qingyu didn't hesitate to criticize him.
"Teacher, you really love showing off."
Dugu Bo chuckled as well.
"Once the final three-way showdown begins, the Pope will personally appear to crown the champion."
"Looks like Spirit Hall really does place great importance on this tournament."
As they continued talking, Su Cheng's eyes suddenly shifted.
He turned around and looked toward the end of the distant street.
A figure stood there.
Golden hair fluttered in the wind, while ripples of light danced within her black eyes as she silently watched Su Cheng.
Her posture was tall and straight, both hands clasped behind her back.
A fitted black ceremonial robe wrapped around her figure, and a faint smile curved at the corners of her lips.
Su Cheng smiled as well.
Dugu Bo and Feng Qingyu noticed his expression and followed his gaze.
They immediately spotted Qian Renxue standing in the distance.
Dugu Bo was secretly astonished.
With his cultivation at the peak Douluo realm, he couldn't sense the slightest fluctuation from her aura.
If not for Su Cheng, he wouldn't even have noticed that someone had been watching them from afar.
Isn't that Su Cheng's old flame?
Has her strength improved again?
Another monster…
Unlike Dugu Bo's astonishment, Feng Qingyu felt somewhat uneasy.
When that woman had casually glanced in her direction just now, her gaze had been ice-cold, sending a shiver through her entire body.
"What a scary big sister…"
Qian Renxue didn't remain in the city for long.
She merely gave Su Cheng a light nod before turning around and leaving.
Only after she had disappeared did Feng Qingyu finally dare to speak.
"Teacher, I can't believe you're colluding with the enemy!"
"You were exchanging glances with someone from Spirit Hall!"
"Stop talking nonsense."
===============
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— End of Chapter 149 —