Zhen Hua moved even faster than Bai Chen had expected.
In just one day, he returned with a middle-aged man.
"Child, let me introduce you. This is the Deputy Hall Master of the Tang Sect Douluo Hall, the Amorous Douluo Zang Xin. He is a Rank 99 Limit Douluo, one of the strongest individuals standing at the peak of the world."
As soon as they entered, Zhen Hua took the lead in introducing him to Bai Chen.
Bai Chen gave a respectful bow.
"Greetings, Your Excellency Amorous Douluo."
"…"
However, Zang Xin did not look particularly happy about such polite behavior. He cast a somewhat resentful glance at Zhen Hua, as if rather dissatisfied.
Zhen Hua froze for a moment before suddenly realizing something, coughing awkwardly.
"My apologies, I forgot you don't like your title."
Zang Xin shook his head helplessly and sighed.
"Sigh… it's not your fault. It's all the sect master's fault. Back then he insisted on giving me this title and embarrassed me for the rest of my life. Bai Chen, you don't have to call me 'Your Excellency,' and you don't need to call me by my title either. Just call me Old Zang."
Of course, Bai Chen wouldn't be so rude. Instead, he pretended to be curious and asked:
"Senior Zang Xin, what exactly is the Tang Sect Douluo Hall?"
"Well… since you're considering joining Tang Sect, there's no harm in telling you now."
Zang Xin smiled and explained:
"Within Tang Sect, there are the Three Inner Halls and the Three Outer Halls.
The Three Outer Halls are:
the Min Hall (Agility Hall)
the Yu Hall (Defense Hall)
the Li Hall (Strength Hall)
They mainly handle Tang Sect's external industries and operations.
The Three Inner Halls are:
the Law Enforcement Hall
the Battle Soul Hall
the Consecration Hall
These manage Tang Sect's internal affairs.
As for the Douluo Hall, it stands above all six halls. It is the true core of Tang Sect. Generally speaking, only consecrators from the Consecration Hall have the possibility of advancing to the Douluo Hall."
"I see. I understand."
It was roughly the same as what Bai Chen already knew.
The Three Outer Halls were somewhat similar to the Four Clans that once formed the original Tang Sect, though they were clearly less extreme. In theory, as long as a soul master specialized in strength, speed, or defense, they could join without abandoning other abilities.
The Three Inner Halls clearly held higher status than the Outer Halls. Zang Xin didn't explain the exact nature of their internal affairs, but they were likely highly confidential.
As for the Douluo Hall, it was similar to the Sea God Pavilion—the true core of the Tang Sect.
The Tang Sect's Sect Master and Deputy Sect Master served respectively as the Hall Master and Deputy Hall Master of the Douluo Hall, which showed just how important the institution was.
Zang Xin smiled at Bai Chen.
"Alright, little friend. Let's end the greetings here. How about we set off now? Next, we'll conduct a test to evaluate your current strength."
"Alright."
Bai Chen nodded lightly, already understanding.
It seemed they were going to the Hero Hall for a simulated battle.
In the original story, before Tang Wulin and the others joined Tang Sect, they first went to the local Hero Hall, where they fought simulated battles against members of the Second Generation Shrek Seven Monsters.
As for the results, the three of them were beaten rather badly.
However, Bai Chen's performance might not necessarily be worse than theirs. He had confidence in his own strength and believed he could achieve quite good results.
After briefly explaining the situation to Xue E, Bai Chen left with Zhen Hua and Zang Xin.
The three of them drove to a technology company in Tianhai City.
After getting out of the car, Zang Xin led them to a dark-blue building. The building's exterior walls had a mirror-like effect, seemingly composed of countless glass panels, giving it a strange and elegant beauty.
Zang Xin stepped forward and placed his hand on the glass.
The glass door silently slid open to both sides.
Zang Xin didn't immediately enter. Instead, he took out two bracelets and handed them to Bai Chen and Zhen Hua.
"Here. These are for identity recognition. They'll prevent the automated defense system from attacking you."
Bai Chen and Zhen Hua quickly took them and put them on.
Once they were ready, Zang Xin wasted no time and led them inside.
Inside was a white space.
They walked through it for several minutes. After passing through another glass door, Zang Xin—who was walking in front—suddenly disappeared.
"…"
Bai Chen raised an eyebrow slightly.
At the moment Zang Xin disappeared, he felt the power of space within his body tremble.
Spatial technology—one of the most advanced technologies in the Douluo III era.
Although it couldn't be used directly in combat, it had excellent applications in many other fields.
Without hesitation, Bai Chen and Zhen Hua followed him through the door.
The moment they passed through the glass door, the scene before them changed abruptly.
They arrived in a dark-blue space.
Zang Xin walked to the wall. Without any visible action, the wall suddenly split open.
After rapidly typing on a keyboard, a mechanical voice sounded throughout the room.
A large screen appeared.
"Identity confirmed: Deputy Hall Master of Douluo Hall, Zang Xin."
"Test difficulty: Medium."
"Number of participants: One."
"Countdown begins in ten seconds."
"Ten… nine… eight… seven…"
Zang Xin turned around and smiled at Bai Chen.
"Good luck. Try to defeat as many opponents as possible. Your performance in this test will directly determine your evaluation. Let me see the talent and strength that made Brother Zhen Hua praise you so highly."
As the final word fell, the countdown reached zero.
Bai Chen felt himself wrapped in a surge of energy.
A powerful pulling force spread across his entire body, dragging him into a strange space.
At the same time, the mechanical voice sounded again in his ears.
"Welcome to the Hero Hall."
"First trial. Difficulty: Medium."
"Name: Bai Chen."
"Age: Six years old."
"Test requirement: First round — survive for thirty seconds."
As soon as the words ended, a flash of light appeared.
A figure materialized before Bai Chen.
It was a young man with a calm expression, his eyes shining like the stars.
"Damn…"
Bai Chen couldn't help twitching his lips.
His opponent was Huo Yuhao.
The battle opponents in the Hero Hall were members of the Second Generation Shrek Seven Monsters, but which one you encountered was essentially random.
In the original story:
Tang Wulin fought Xiao Xiao
Xie Xie fought Jiang Nannan
Gu Yue fought Huo Yuhao
Among all the Second Generation Seven Monsters, Huo Yuhao was the worst possible draw.
As the protagonist of Douluo Continent II, his abilities were unquestionably the strongest. Even if the simulation only possessed 70% of his strength at the same level, defeating him was extremely difficult.
Gu Yue had been completely crushed by the simulated two-ring Huo Yuhao in the Hero Hall.
Before Bai Chen could think any further, the battle began as the countdown ended.
Then—
A sound of blood being coughed up echoed.
Huo Yuhao suddenly collapsed to the ground, clearly having lost his ability to fight.
The mechanical voice echoed through the empty space.
"Enemy defeated."
"Medium-level test passed."
Immediately afterward, without giving Bai Chen any time to rest, the mechanical voice announced the next stage.
"Advanced test — First stage preparing to begin."
The Huo Yuhao lying on the ground instantly disappeared.
Another Huo Yuhao appeared in the space.
And this time—
Two soul rings were circling around him.