The time spent cultivating seemed exceptionally long when it was monotonous and repetitive, yet it flew by when one was fully immersed.
Three months passed.
Whenever his spiritual power recovered, he would immerse himself in the Hall of a Thousand Mirrors.
While cultivating his soul power, he also utilized its unique multiple abilities to constantly hone his combat skills and practical reactions.
Although time flowed faster in the Hall of a Thousand Mirrors, the Eastern Mirror itself was unaffected.
That evening,he held Dongfang Yao's soft little hand and walked towards the center of Winchester City the Winchester Great Soul Arena.
This place was a melting pot of all sorts of people, with a strong gambling atmosphere.
Originally, he hadn't planned to bring his sister.
But even the most ruthless young man couldn't resist his little darling's crying, tantrums, and threats of suicide.
She insisted on seeing her brother's heroic figure and his charming, captivating moments.
Reluctantly, he decided to bring her.
He had been busy cultivating lately and hadn't spent much time with this girl.
"Listen carefully, Yao'er. You must stay close to me later. When I go on stage to compete, don't run around. Be a good girl and wait for me to come to the audience to pick you up, okay?"
"Okay~" Dongfang Yao replied sweetly.
A brown squirrel obediently perched on her head, like a fluffy hat.
To avoid being recognized, the two went to a general store and bought two masks and two oversized trench coats.
After all, it's always good to be safe when traveling.
The girl wore a "deer" mask; she really liked these uncommon animals.
Dongfang Jing didn't care about such things.
He randomly chose a pure black mask, but half of his face was engraved with white cracks.
Hmm, it felt quite suitable for him.
Before even stepping into the Soul Arena,just at the entrance, the dull clashing of metal and the sounds of fists colliding, mixed with the smell of rust and sweat, hit them.
Dongfang Jing felt the small hand in his palm suddenly tighten.
He looked down, but his sister silently looked away, avoiding her brother's questioning gaze.
Upon arriving at the registration area, the receptionist explained the rules to Dongfang Jing in a mechanical yet highly skilled tone, clearly having repeated them countless times.
"Hello, I'd like to register for the Soul Battle."
In general, the Soul Battle mode is divided into three categories: sparring, gambling, and life-or-death duels.
The registration process is simple.
Fill out a basic information form, pay a registration fee of 10 gold soul coins, and finally test your soul power level to receive an Iron Soul Battle Badge.
The receptionist said that above Iron are Bronze, Silver, and Gold.
Each victory in a Soul Battle earns 10 gold soul coins.
Wins accumulate points; with enough wins and points, the badge upgrades, earning more soul coins and stronger opponents.
After understanding the details, the two went to the gambling table.
1,600 gold soul coins were their entire fortune.
"Thirteenth Soul Battle Arena, one-on-one, second match, bet 'Lord Mirror' 2 gold soul coins."
As he read the name, he noticed the staff member glance at him.
Dongfang Jing's cheeks under his mask flushed slightly.
He glared at his sister, who was secretly laughing beside him; it was all that brat's doing.
He had to choose a name when registering for the Soul Battle, and he couldn't think of one for a moment.
Dongfang Yao volunteered, so he let her have it.
However, this "Lord Mirror" was truly a bit embarrassing.
Luckily, he was wearing a mask.
Dongfang Jing's match was in twenty minutes.
Led by the staff, Dongfang Yao took her seat in an inconspicuous corner of the back row of the audience.
One-on-one sparring was the least popular of the three types of soul battles.
Compared to sparring, the audience preferred bets that risked everything, and bloody, cruel, life-or-death battles.
Not to mention that with Dongfang Jing's current soul power,he could only participate in battles at the Soul Master level.
In most people's eyes, this was nothing more than child's play and lacked any appeal.
Therefore, only a handful of people watched the thirteenth Soul Arena where he was.
Due to the lack of audience, the referee was not very enthusiastic.
But the middle-aged man announced in a businesslike voice: "Next, we will begin the first one-on-one soul battle in the thirteenth Soul Arena. The two opponents are 'Cruel,' who possesses the Beast Soul Crow, and 'Lord Mirror,' who possesses the Weapon Soul Shattered Mirror. Please welcome them to the arena!"
The two opponents stepped onto the stage together.
The cruel man wore a black magician's hat, black sunglasses, and a completely black trench coat and trousers.
He was tall and thin, but judging from his unkempt beard, he seemed to be of a certain age.
He chuckled sinisterly, "Little dwarf, the Soul Arena isn't a playground. Go home and drink your milk! Hahahaha!"
Was he just trash-talking before the match?
Dongfang Jing ignored him and waited for the referee to speak.
"Gentlemen, you may activate your Martial Souls now."
After the referee finished speaking, he jumped off the fighting platform.
Immediately afterward, a white spirit ring rose from beneath Cruel's feet, and black feathers sprouted all over his body, especially dense on his arms.
"Little thing, I'll show you what cruelty is!"
Hearing this, a disdainful smirk curled at the corner of Dongfang Jing's mouth beneath his mask.
Shards of broken mirror floated around him.
Seeing these fragments, Cruel chuckled even louder: "Are you planning to play a game of throwing stones? These little things are nothing to me..."
His words trailed off.
A purple ring then rose beneath Dongfang Jing's feet.
Those dozing in the audience rubbed their eyes, thinking they were hallucinating.
"A thousand-year spirit ring! How is this possible? Are you a Soul Master?"
Cold sweat beaded on Cruel's forehead.
How could a Soul Master with only a dozen or so levels of Soul Power fight a Soul Master?
Cruel stiffly turned his head, his gaze towards the referee questioning.
The referee was stunned by this sight, truly seeing a new face.
He quickly regained his composure and, after consulting with the staff responsible for measuring soul power, declared loudly, "There's no problem. This is a battle between soul masters."
Upon hearing this, Cruel's eyes twitched.
A thousand-year soul ring in the first ring? Unheard of!
He immediately concluded that this must be a reclusive genius from some family or sect.
If so, the opponent must be quite young.
"Hmph, so what if it's a thousand-year soul ring? The combat experience and skills I've accumulated from so many matches are not something a little brat like you can contend with!"
The man in sunglasses spread his arms, flapping them up and down like wings.
Seeing this, Dongfang Jing thought he could fly and was going to fight in the air.
But he was clearly mistaken, because the man in sunglasses was already charging towards him.
The two drew closer and closer, until they were seven steps apart.
"First Soul Skill, Feather Arrow!"
Cruel immediately launched his attack, forcefully swinging his arm forward, most of the feathers falling off, shooting towards Dongfang Jing like an arrow.
An arrow is fast beyond seven steps; within seven steps, it is both fast and accurate.
Cruel charged forward first, making the enemy believe he was a melee fighter.
Then, he would launch a sudden sneak attack!
His speed was so fast he believed no one could dodge it!
But before the first arrow could be fired, Dongfang Jing had already reacted.
Countless shards of mirror instantly converged, forming a 'Kaleidoscope Mirror Shield' in front of him.
His control over his martial soul was now far greater than it had been three months ago.
This defensive Kaleidoscope Mirror Shield was a self-created soul skill.
Seeing the black arrows blocked by the mirror shield, Cruel's eyes widened. He could even react like that?
"Damn it! It's not over yet, I still have..."
*Whoosh whoosh whoosh! *
Accompanied by the sound of sharp blades slicing through the air,the Kaleidoscope Mirror Shield disintegrated into countless shards, instantly surrounding the man in sunglasses.
Feeling his throat, heart, and testicles being pressed against by the sharp points of the shards,Cruel dared not breathe, hurriedly shouting, "I surrender! I surrender!"
From the start to the end of the match,only a few breaths had passed.
"The outcome is decided, Lord Mirror wins!" the referee stammered.
The few spectators in the stands couldn't help but erupt in gasps mixed with profanities.
That's it?
They didn't even see the first soul skill of the millennium.
What a waste of money!
Wait a minute.
They discovered a dark horse; this is a win!
Hearing the referee's announcement, Dongfang Jing left the arena and returned to the contestants' rest area.
"Awesome!"
Dongfang Yao gave a thumbs up, her heart pounding.
Sure enough, her brother was handsome!
Dongfang Jing smiled slightly.
Since he chose to participate in the soul battle, his millennium soul ring couldn't be hidden.
However, Dongfang Jing had his own plans and didn't need to worry too much.
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(End of Chapter)