As night approached, the members of the Royal Fighting Clan gathered at the Soto City Grand Soul Arena.
Led by Qin Ming, they arrived at a private room to watch the Soul Battle matches.
Suddenly, the zuzong spotted a familiar figure: Zhu Zhuqing. Her luck wasn't good; her opponent was a control-type Soul Master, two levels higher than her. Being countered, Zhu Zhuqing's fight was far from easy. Fortunately, thanks to the advantage of her Soul Rings, after much effort, she finally won the match with minor injuries.
This pained the zuzong greatly; after all, it was his precious little kitten!
Xiao Wu, standing nearby, also recognized Zhu Zhuqing. Seeing the zu zong's worried expression, she snorted coldly and kicked him.
Xiao Wu pouted, "Hmph! Don't just stand there like an idiot, go bring your little girlfriend over to treat Lingling! Look at how distressed you are."
Zu Zong was taken aback, then overjoyed. It seemed that after what happened during the day, Xiao Wu wasn't so averse to Zhu Zhuqing anymore.
"Thanks, Xiao Wu."
As he spoke, Zu Zong patted Xiao Wu's head. Amid Xiao Wu's embarrassed and angry shouts, Zu Zong used his Instantaneous Movement Technique to leave the private box.
In the Shrek Academy section of the audience seating area.
Dai Mubai's gaze remained fixed on Zhu Zhuqing. "Zhuqing."
These past few days, he had felt uneasy. Ever since the Shrek freshmen's first Soul Battle, Zhu Zhuqing seemed to have changed overnight. She smiled much more often, no longer so cold. She got along very well with her classmates, and even when facing Dai Mubai himself, she was no longer so aloof.
Logically, Dai Mubai should have been happy about the changes in Zhu Zhuqing. But he felt uneasy, a tightness in his chest, an indescribable feeling. He realized that although Zhu Zhuqing had always treated him coldly, he still believed he held a place in her heart. But now Zhu Zhuqing had changed, treating him the same way she treated Oscar, Tang San, and others—as a stranger or a friend. The distance between them was growing. Lost
in thought, Dai Mubai stared blankly into the distance.
Seeing his best friend lost in thought, Ma Hongjun, the phoenix from the brothel, nudged him and said casually, "Boss Dai, what's wrong?"
"Uh, nothing, nothing," Dai Mubai stammered, snapping out of his reverie. His face was pale, his mood heavy.
"Boss Dai, look! Zhuqing won, but she seems to have suffered a minor injury. Go help her!" Ma Hongjun pointed.
Dai Mubai's eyes lit up noticeably. "Thanks, Fatty!"
He then turned to Oscar, who was sitting below, and said, "Little Oscar, quickly make two recovery sausages. Zhu Qing is injured, I'll go help her first."
Oscar grinned lewdly, the thought of Zhu Qing eating his big sausages was incredibly exciting. He gave an OK sign and said, "Don't worry, Boss Dai."
Amidst the knowing smiles of Ma Hongjun and Oscar, Dai Mubai rushed towards Zhu Zhu Qing's location with a heart full of joy.
A few dozen meters away from them, he saw Zhu Zhu Qing stop, seemingly smiling and waving at him. Dai Mubai was delighted, thinking, "It seems Zhu Qing is quite happy that I came to pick her up! Look at that affectionate smile, even I've never seen it before. I really have to thank Fatty this time; if it weren't for his reminder, I probably would have missed the opportunity."
Just as Dai Mubai paused and raised his hand to reply, a scene that shocked and angered him even more unfolded before him.
A young man with long blue-silver hair, dressed in a black combat uniform, walked out from a corner in front. He greeted Zhu Zhuqing, and from her smile, it was clear they were having a good chat.
Dai Mubai recognized the blue-haired boy; he was Tang San's "good friend" from last time.
Dai Mubai reassured himself, "They just bumped into each other, they just bumped into each other." In
the blink of an eye, both the zuzong and Zhu Zhuqing had vanished.
After searching fruitlessly without finding her, Dai Mubai returned dejectedly to the audience seats.
Ma Hongjun grinned lewdly, looked around, and said, "Brother Dai, why were you gone so long? Where's Zhuqing? Tell me, did you run into another pretty girl and forget about Zhuqing? I'm not trying to criticize you..."
"Yeah! Brother Dai, you can't be greedy! Zhuqing's injured, and instead of helping her, you're out looking for a new lover. That's not right. Quickly send those two recovery sausages over," Oscar reminded him.
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As they spoke, Oscar handed over two sausages.
Dai Mubai was already in a bad mood, and now, with Oscar and Ma Hongjun misunderstanding him, he finally snapped. In a fit of rage, he flung away the sausages Oscar offered, yelling, "Get lost!"
Dai Mubai's impotent rage drew the attention of Meng Yiran, a new member of Shrek Academy. "You're going too far! Oscar meant well." Through Tang San, Ning Rongrong, and others, she had learned some details about Shrek Academy over the past few days. In her opinion, this womanizing man was unworthy of the pure and innocent Zhu Zhuqing.
Yes. Her own mistress was better, so devoted.
"Exactly, exactly," Ning Rongrong chimed in. She had suffered the most at Dai Mubai's hands, so of course she wanted revenge.
Dai Mubai glared at Meng Yiran and Ning Rongrong. After their trip to the Star Dou Great Forest, their relationships had improved considerably, but they were far from the level of shared hardship depicted in the original story. He couldn't very well tell everyone that Zhu Zhuqing had run off with someone else! If that were the case, how could Evil-Eyed White Tiger possibly survive at Shrek Academy?
Dai Mubai said in a deep voice, "Take care of yourself, and don't meddle in things that aren't your business."
"You—"
Meng Yiran and Ning Rongrong wanted to say something more, but Tang San and Oscar stopped them.
Just then, an announcement rang out over the Soul Arena's loudspeaker.
[Match 138: 'Evil-Eyed White Tiger' vs. 'Uchiha zu'. Please proceed to Soul Arena 7 to participate in the match.] Inside the
Royal Fighting Team's VIP box in the Soul Arena.
Under Ye Lingling's powerful healing ability with her 'Nine-Hearted Begonia' martial soul, Zhu Zhuqing's injuries were completely healed in just a moment.
Zhu Zhuqing, zuzong, and Xiao Wu sat on a long sofa.
zuzong sat in the middle, with Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu on either side, their eyes locked in a fierce confrontation, neither willing to give in. It was clearly another chaotic scene, with zuzong caught in the middle, in a dilemma.
The members of the Royal Fighting Clan watched their patriarch with varying expressions.
Oslo and Yu Feng were green with envy, gritting their teeth and wishing they could take his place.
The Shi Mo and Shi Mo brothers gave a simple, honest thumbs-up, appearing to prostrate themselves in worship.
Yu Tianheng and Dugu Yan sat together, watching the three members of the zuzong with a half-smile, seemingly gloating. Dugu Yan directly cursed the zuzong, calling him a heartless womanizer.
As for Ye Lingling, she stood in the corner as usual, dressed in black with a black veil over her face. Although her expression remained blank, a hint of emotion could be seen in her eyes.
Just as the zuzong felt things were about to get desperate, the arena's announcement rang out. A servant came to inform the zuzong of their participation in the Soul Fighting Competition.
A slight smile appeared on the zuzong's lips, showing none of his previous hesitation. "Oh? It's actually the Evil-Eyed White Tiger? That's interesting."
Zhu Zhuqing rolled his eyes at the clan leader. Although he knew the zuzong was strong, Dai Mubai was not to be underestimated. He reminded him, "The Evil-Eyed White Tiger is Dai Mubai. Although his soul power is one level lower than yours, his family's inherited martial soul, the White Tiger, is extremely powerful. Don't underestimate him. Be careful."
"Hmph! It's that golden-haired loser from last time! With my strength, I could easily defeat him in a few moves." Xiao Wu said unhappily
, throwing a small punch. Because of Zhu Zhuqing's injury, the zuzong showed great concern for her, which made Xiao Wu feel inferior without realizing it. At this moment, she was venting her dissatisfaction. The zuzong glanced at the two of them, patted their heads, and smiled, "Don't worry, I'll handle it seriously."
Of course, how seriously he would handle it depended on Dai Mubai's strength.
"I'll go with you! I need to go back to the Shrek Academy stands anyway." There was something else she didn't say: although she didn't think the clan leader would lose, he might get injured, and she wanted to help him out.
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