At the Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena, after several months of continuous combat training…
Ye Yu's cultivation had successfully broken through to Rank 48 Soul Ancestor.
That evening—
Inside the artificially constructed Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul mimicry training field near the Icefire Yin Yang Well, Ye Yu opened his eyes slowly, having just finished training his Internal Core Method and refining his self-created soul skill, Thunder-Magnetic Body.
"Time to head back."
Looking up, he saw the sun dipping beneath the horizon, shrouded in golden-orange clouds. Ye Yu murmured to himself as he stood.
Before leaving, he turned his gaze once more to the center of the mimicry field—
Where a single stalk of Blue Silver Emperor, crystalline and translucent like sapphire, traced with golden filigree and about as thick as a finger, stood proud and thriving.
It wasn't just the Blue Silver Emperor, Ah Yin, that was growing tall and strong…
It was also his future opportunity.
Pulling on a black cloak, Ye Yu activated the flight soul skill of his Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, soaring up from the Icefire Yin Yang Well and heading toward Heaven Dou City.
Since no one was around, Ye Yu naturally chose to fly using the leg bone's ability. That way, he could return to Heaven Dou City in under an hour.
By contrast, if he had to travel on foot—even using Thunderburst Step—it would take at least two hours. Flying, after all, ignored terrain entirely.
—
As night fell, stars filled the sky. The Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena remained abuzz with excitement.
After suiting up for combat, Ye Yu returned to the arena.
He signed up for a Soul Ancestor-level solo battle, was assigned to a sub-arena, and made his way to the designated resting zone to wait.
While waiting—
Ye Yu noticed a group of young men and women dressed in fiery red uniforms, likely in their teens.
Among them, he recognized two familiar figures—
The famed sibling pair from Blazing Academy: Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang.
Over the past few months of battles in the Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena, Ye Yu hadn't participated every single night, but had still fought in over thirty matches.
Naturally, he'd begun to encounter some of the notable talents from Heaven Dou City mentioned in the original timeline.
People like Huo Wu, Huo Wushuang, Yu Tianxin, Shui Bing'er, Shui Yue'er, and more.
So far, none of them had been assigned as his direct opponent—
But Ye Yu had noticed something curious.
Even including his girlfriend Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, the ages of these so-called Heaven Dou prodigies all seemed… younger than in the original story.
Take Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, for example—
They were only three years older than Tang San, and two years older than Ye Yu.
Which, in retrospect, actually made a lot of sense.
In the original timeline, Dai Mubai was said to be only three years older than Tang San.
Yet when the Shrek Seven met the Heaven Dou Imperial Team at the Soto Great Spirit Arena, Dai Mubai was sixteen and already Rank 38 Soul Elder.
Meanwhile, Yu Tianheng, heir to one of the three upper sects and wielder of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, was already in his twenties, and still only Rank 39.
That made no sense.
There was no way Yu Tianheng—whose innate soul power should be on par with Dai Mubai's, and who had access to equal or better cultivation resources—should fall behind like that.
Especially since Dai Mubai spent three years carousing in Soto City from the age of twelve.
So clearly, shifting their ages down a bit in this alternate timeline made the narrative far more reasonable.
—
While Ye Yu, fully armored and helmeted, sat silently in meditation…
The arena loudspeaker soul device continued announcing matchups.
It wasn't until some time later that Ye Yu finally heard his own name called.
"Now entering the arena: Soul Ancestor-level match between contestant An Lan, a Rank 32 Soul Ancestor wielding a spear martial soul, and contestant Huo Wu, a Rank 32 Soul Ancestor wielding the Fire Dance martial soul!"
Hearing this, Ye Yu's eyes snapped open in mild surprise.
"Huo Wu is my opponent this round?"
Turning toward the seating area where the Blazing Academy students were gathered, he saw Huo Wu already standing, heading toward her designated entry tunnel.
Ye Yu was indeed surprised—but only for a moment.
He rose calmly and made his way to the tunnel on his side.
As he walked down the passageway toward the sub-arena, he could already hear the host's booming voice echoing through the amplifier:
"Congratulations, everyone! Our next duel promises to be a clash of titans!"
"Both contestants—An Lan and Huo Wu—are currently Silver Spirit Fighters!"
"Huo Wu has participated in our Great Spirit Arena for years. With consistent and outstanding performance, she has accumulated over a thousand points, advancing from Iron Spirit Fighter to Silver."
"An Lan, on the other hand, is a rising star!"
"He has competed in only 32 matches, and won them all, rapidly ascending from Iron to Silver with an undefeated record!"
"Now, please welcome both contestants to the stage!"
As the announcer waved his hand, brilliant soul tool spotlights lit up, focusing on Ye Yu and Huo Wu simultaneously.
A deafening wave of cheers erupted from the surrounding spectator stands.
Some shouted Ye Yu's alias, "An Lan!", while others cheered for Huo Wu.
Neither of them responded to the crowd.
Neither was the type to grandstand.
They simply stepped onto the dueling platform.
—
Meanwhile, up in the inner corridor overlooking the arena from the rest area—
Huo Wushuang heard the announcer declare that Ye Yu (An Lan) had a 32-win streak.
His expression tensed.
"That An Lan… only Rank 32, but he's already won 32 matches?"
"He seems… really strong."
"I wonder if Huo Wu can win."
Though he believed in his sister's abilities, he also worried—
If she couldn't beat this opponent and her temper flared, she might refuse to admit defeat and end up getting hurt.
Such were the worries of an older brother.
—
Back in the arena, the two contestants met at the center of the platform.
Huo Wu, wearing a tight, flame-red battle dress lined with golden flame patterns, looked proud and composed. Her tall, slender frame and scarlet hair gave her an air of fiery elegance.
She cupped her fists and introduced herself in a crisp, confident voice:
"Huo Wu. Martial Soul: Fire Dance. Rank 32 Control-Type Soul Master."
But when she saw that Ye Yu was still wearing a full helmet, her delicate brows furrowed.
"This guy's wearing a helmet… even in battle?"
"Isn't he worried it'll affect his performance?"
"What kind of person fights so secretively?"
"Hmph! I'll knock that helmet off myself and see exactly who you are!"
She huffed inwardly, her fighting spirit ignited.