After comforting Wang Dong'er, who was still disheartened by the current state of the Tang Sect, Xu Xingyu and her group decided to stick around for the upcoming higher-grade spirit combat match. Their reasons were twofold: not only were some of the fighters people they knew personally, but also because a two-on-two battle between senior students was a rare and exciting event.
Once everyone settled into their seats, Jiang Nannan began explaining the fighters to the newcomers — Beibei, Xu Sanshi, Dugu Yanran, and Tang Ya.
For Xu Xingyu, this information was old news, but for Xu Yanxue and Wang Dong'er, it was fresh knowledge. A proper introduction wouldn't hurt.
Thanks to Jiang Nannan's briefing, the two young ladies gained a clearer understanding of the fighters' strength and Martial Souls. Yet, this also raised more questions in their minds.
Wang Dong'er asked, "Nannan Jie, you said Xu Sanshi's Martial Soul is the divine Xuanwu, right? So why can't he beat Beibei, who's just a 'mixed' Golden Holy Dragon?"
Xu Yanxue nodded eagerly in agreement.
Jiang Nannan didn't hesitate. "There are several reasons. For one, Xu Sanshi and Beibei are actually close friends, so they hold back during combat."
"Second, although Xu Sanshi awakened the divine-level Xuanwu Martial Soul, its overwhelming power drains him significantly. So when he uses its strength, he never goes all out."
"Third, the academy's senior officials reject the use of soul spirits in official spirit combat, considering them external forces. So students are forbidden from summoning soul spirits in battle."
"This means that unless he's fighting desperately, a Spirit Sovereign level Xu Sanshi can at best match a high-level Spirit Master. Combined with mutual restraint, that's why they've ended in a stalemate multiple times."
Xu Yanxue then asked, "What about when Dugu Yanran and Tang Ya enter the fight? How will that change things?"
"Hmm, in that case, I think Xu Sanshi's side has the advantage," Jiang Nannan answered. "Not only is Dugu Yanran much stronger than Tang Ya, who just reached Spirit Sovereign level, but also because Dugu Yanran and Xu Sanshi have better teamwork than Beibei and her partner."
Jiang Nannan's head ached just thinking about the complicated relationships on stage. After all, she had close ties with almost all of them.
Xu Sanshi — nearly became a sacrifice during someone's Martial Soul awakening.
Dugu Yanran — her good friend from the Spirit Tower.
Tang Ya — her roommate.
Originally, Jiang Nannan had introduced Dugu Yanran to Tang Ya, hoping to help them get along, but once they learned each other's identities, a fierce quarrel broke out.
Every time they met, even over trivial matters, the two would fight bitterly.
To avoid trouble, Jiang Nannan tried to meet each separately and avoid situations where both were present.
Luckily, neither gave her much trouble directly. Though they disliked each other, Jiang Nannan was a neutral party, uninvolved in their personal grudges.
So when Jiang Nannan was around, they suppressed their dislike to avoid putting her in an awkward position.
As Jiang Nannan worried about how to ease the tension between Tang Ya and Dugu Yanran, Xu Xingyu suddenly asked, "Nannan Jie, I see your cultivation is almost at Spirit King level. Once you break through, will you apply to enter Shrek Academy's inner courtyard early?"
Jiang Nannan smiled. "Actually, I'm already at level 45. If I become a Spirit King this year, I can apply to the teachers for early entry."
Seeing her slightly proud expression, Xu Xingyu felt relieved. Jiang Nannan used to carry the burden of being a commoner with poor talent, often feeling inferior.
But after awakening her Taiyin Jade Body physique, her cultivation soared rapidly, and her self-doubt faded.
Now, Jiang Nannan was no longer just a side character—a mere accessory to Xu Sanshi's awakening of Xuanwu, destined to be a forgettable figure. She had truly become a talented prodigy!
While Xu Xingyu admired her, Xu Yanxue suddenly pinched Xu Xingyu's waist and teased, "Xingyu Gege, you know it's rude to keep staring at a girl like that, right?"
Xu Xingyu suddenly realized he had been quietly staring at Jiang Nannan for a while. If the others hadn't known his character well, it might have looked like he was some perverted stalker.
Flushing, he quickly apologized to Jiang Nannan, who didn't mind much — though Xu Xingyu noticed a faint blush on her cheeks.
Unbeknownst to him, Jiang Nannan had long discarded any plan to reconcile Tang Ya and Dugu Yanran, her mind now buzzing with thoughts: Could the young lord Xingyu be interested in me?
But wasn't he supposed to be the type to open up slowly, needing long-term companionship?
Or maybe, like Zi Ji Jie said, she had underestimated her own charm.
Compared to Gu Yue, the Soul Master of the Ancient Moon Tribe, she was just a humble girl.
Jiang Nannan's only weakness compared to the original story was her tendency to daydream about her relationship with Xu Xingyu.
But it was understandable. Without Xu Xingyu's help, Jiang Nannan would have been sold to the Xuanming Sect as a child to pay for her mother's medical bills — losing her Taiyin Jade Body forever.
Later, Xu Xingyu even made Jiang Nannan his personal secretary in the Spirit Tower, an indispensable presence there.
Now she no longer worried about money and could shop for beautiful clothes and cosmetics for herself and her mother (though she mostly bought for her mother, as she preferred a modest life).
With such support, it was no wonder Jiang Nannan had fallen for Xu Xingyu.
Watching Jiang Nannan lost in thoughts, Wang Dong'er sighed softly, murmuring, "Sure enough, Nannan Jie has fallen under Xingyu Gege's charm."
"I have to make an alliance with Nannan Jie soon — only then can I get more of Xu Xingyu's attention, and not lose him to those other flashy girls at the academy!"
That was the only way she could compete with Gu Yue's beast alliance and become Xu Xingyu's most important girl.
Just then, cheers erupted from the stands — the contestants were entering the arena.
As the combatants took their positions on stage, the crowd fell silent, anticipation mounting for the battle about to unfold.
***
A few minutes before the match began.
In the Douhun Arena's resting lounge at Shrek Academy, Xu Sanshi wore a grimace like he was struggling with constipation and grumbled,"Beibei, your Xiaoya really went way too far. Was it necessary to use so many Dragon Whisker Needles?"
Beibei glanced at the swollen lumps already rising on Xu Sanshi's body and showed no sympathy. Instead, she smirked with obvious glee,"You're totally asking for it! Who told you to pick on my little junior disciple?"
Xu Sanshi's anger, which had just calmed, flared up again."I already compensated that kid! He accepted it too. You Tang Sect people really have some narrow minds!"
Beibei just shrugged and said, "We call it loyalty to our own. Besides, don't forget you destroyed the grilled fish Yuhao prepared for Xiaoya."
"You know Xiaoya loves Yuhao's grilled fish. You destroyed them all. You should be grateful she only used Dragon Whisker Needles on you."
In truth, Beibei understood Xiaoya had indeed overstepped, but when it came to Tang Ya, Beibei never dared deny her anything. All she could do was let Xiaoya act recklessly and deal with the fallout herself.
Seeing Beibei's mischievous expression, Xu Sanshi knew he was beaten in argument and sighed impatiently,"Fine, fine! You always have the reason, always the righteousness! Just hurry up and get those Dragon Whisker Needles out of my body!"
At that, Beibei suddenly shifted into the sly merchant mode,"One Xuan Shui Pill, and I'll remove them for you."
"A Xuan Shui Pill?! Beibei, are you crazy?" Xu Sanshi almost couldn't believe his old friend was trying to extort him at this moment.
He'd only read about backstabbing and extortion in books — never imagined a trusted friend would make him experience it firsthand.
His wife was right: be cautious about who you call friends. Otherwise, you never know when they'll stab you in the back.
Beibei, watching Xu Sanshi's anger boil, "kindly" warned,"If you don't want to pay, that's fine. I can remove them after the match for free. But I do wonder how you'll fight me and Xiaoya with those needles still in you."
Just as Beibei spoke, a vision of Xu Sanshi and Yanzi being defeated by Beibei and Tang Ya flashed in Xu Sanshi's mind, filling him with dread.
He knew that with Dragon Whisker Needles still lodged inside, even if he managed to win against Beibei, it would be by a hair. And if he lost, Yanzi would face the combined wrath of Beibei and Tang Ya—and surely lose the match.
Losing wouldn't be the worst thing. They could always win next time. But losing to the Tang Sect was a serious problem.
Xu Sanshi's family had no ties or grudges with the Tang Sect, but Yanzi was different — she was the daughter of the current Dugu family head.
Don't be fooled by Yanzi's quiet and rational appearance. When it came to the Tang Sect, she would show a completely different, fierce side.
As a Dugu family member, Yanzi naturally inherited her ancestors' deep resentment towards the Tang Sect for occupying their ancestral herb garden. That was why every time Yanzi met Tang Ya, the two always clashed bitterly.
Looking back, Beibei and Xu Sanshi had countless times intervened to stop their fights.
If Xu Sanshi and Yanzi lost this 2v2 Douhun match against Beibei and Tang Ya—especially because of Xu Sanshi—Yanzi might not say something as extreme as breaking up, but Xu Sanshi definitely wouldn't sleep next to his wife for a whole month. He might even have to kneel in apology for a month before she cooled down.
Thinking of this grim future, Xu Sanshi threw a porcelain bottle at Beibei with a tragic expression.
Beibei smiled as she caught the bottle and carefully checked inside. After confirming it contained a Xuan Shui Pill, she smiled with satisfaction and began to extract the Dragon Whisker Needles from Xu Sanshi's body using the Tang Sect's unique method.
The Xuan Shui Pill was a rare spirit pill, refined from the blood of over fifty water-attribute spirit beasts.
Its main function was to cleanse impurities: the water-elemental energies would purify the user's meridians and expel accumulated toxins.
But its most coveted effect was that it could increase the user's innate spirit power by one level.
If the user had water or ice attributes, their innate spirit power could increase by even more than one level!
Innate spirit power was the measure of a soul master's natural talent. The higher it was, the greater the potential for cultivation.
Except for those with special martial souls, soul masters with full innate spirit power were destined to become titled Douluo.
That was why whenever a Xuan Shui Pill appeared, it attracted countless soul masters scrambling to buy it—either for themselves or their descendants.
In short, for Douluo Continent's soul masters, the Xuan Shui Pill was a priceless treasure. Consuming one could even reverse one's fate!
This was also why Xu Sanshi looked so sorrowful handing the pill to Beibei.
Manufacturing Xuan Shui Pills was his family's main industry, but that didn't mean he could waste them like beans!
Each pill was painstakingly produced by his sect. If he acted recklessly, his father—the sect leader—would surely disown him!
Soon, four or five golden particles appeared in Beibei's hand—the cores of the Dragon Whisker Needles, special crystals called "Hair Crystals."
Xu Sanshi stared at the extracted needles and said bitterly,"Beibei, do you dare bet that if Yanzi and I win, you'll give me back the Xuan Shui Pill I gave you?"
Beibei didn't immediately agree, but asked,"What if I win?"
"If you win, I'll give you another Xuan Shui Pill!" Xu Sanshi added. "If it's a draw, then we go our separate ways."
"Alright then. Let's settle this in the Douhun Arena!" Beibei said with a sly fox smile, then left the lounge to head for the stage.
Xu Sanshi watched her retreating figure and wondered if he'd been tricked again.
But without the Dragon Whisker Needles weakening him, Beibei and Tang Ya's chance of winning was nearly zero, right?
Could they have some secret trump card he didn't know?
With a solemn expression, Xu Sanshi clenched his fists and swore to himself that this time, he wouldn't hold back.
Because if he lost now, his life would be utterly miserable.
[T/N: every 10 power stones ill upload another chapter]