“Who is that!?” Hao Ranhui shouted in rage as he glared at the gray-haired child in the arena. “He dares interfere in this match? Security, apprehend that intruder!”

“Rraff!” [Don’t you dare! He’s with us]. Twilight challenged Hao Ranhui with snarling teeth, daring him to act.

Bu Lu frowned as he looked at the unfamiliar child. He did not like unpredicted variables. “Surely, this is against the rules? The competition is between humans and monsters.”

All parties looked at the woman who covered her face with a veil. The woman hesitated but then shook her head and said, “The competition is between the human and soul monster camps. We never stated who could or could not participate in each camp.”

“Esteemed Lady really looks favorably on soul monsters.” Bu Lu did not dare openly criticize this woman, but he could at least express his displeasure. He felt she had a soft spot for these soul monsters from the beginning but had no way to prove it. Why else would she offer a 70:30 split? Bu Lu was confident she did it to ensure the soul monsters did not come out empty-handed.

The Soul Society Representative softly replied to the criticism. “You are still young, Second Prince. One day, you will learn to respect soul monsters as they are the foundation of your kingdom’s strength.”

The Representative’s warning was not without merit. Kingdoms were only as strong as the surrounding soul monsters. If the stronger soul monsters migrated or fled, the kingdom’s next generation would have to contract weak soul monsters, thereby reducing their overall strength.

Due to this, most kingdoms closely monitored the hunting and contracting of soul pets in their regions. It was very common for kingdoms to ban hunting or contracting certain soul monsters when their numbers ran very low to reduce the chance of mass migration.

Bu Lu gritted his teeth as he glanced at Midnight and Twilight. Jiandao’s strength relied extensively on two mass-produced monsters: the Rank 8 Steelback Apes and Dusklight Wolf tribes. Jiandao’s future generations would suffer if either of these tribes left the region in anger.

A decade ago, this would not have been a problem because the various Dusklight Wolf and Steelback Ape tribes were decentralized and often competed against each other. Then, out of nowhere, Midnight, a Star Dusklight Wolf, appeared and forcefully united the Dusklight Wolves. Under Midnight, the various wolf packs formed a strong alliance despite maintaining their different territories.

Later, another monster did the same with the Steelback Apes. As a result, the impossible was now a reality: Midnight and Tyrant could order their tribes to migrate to another region. With both these monsters’ obscene strength, seizing a territory wouldn’t prove too difficult.

With this reasoning at the back of his mind, Bu Lu softly bowed and said, “Thank you, Esteemed Lady, for your lesson. Young Bu Lu will keep that in mind.” Though he spoke flowery words, his cold eyes held some unknown plot.

The Esteemed Lady either did not notice his gaze or did not care, as she only nodded and then said, “Let us see out this match. I, too, am curious about this brazen child. I doubt he can change the course of events.”

Hao Ranhui snorted as he declared, “My son will not lose to some barbarian.” However, he then glanced at the section of the stadium and added, “But, in the worst-case scenario, there are still four Elite Students left.”

Twilight, who had been looking at the Esteemed Lady with a complicated gaze, turned and then sneered at Hao Ranhui. ‘We’ll see about that. Can those pot flowers really compete against a jungle thorn?’

Ten special seats were carved out in the human contestants’ box, upon which ten powerful students around 9-12 years old sat with varying expressions as they watched the match. Of the ten, five had bruises or dust on their faces, revealing they had already battled and been eliminated.

Initially, these Elite students did not think they would get a chance to fight, but the monsters’ unexpected strength forced a few of them out early to repeatedly turn the tides in their favor. In particular, an Elite Student had to weaken Lunar after her win-streaks before Hao Feng toyed with her.

Amongst these students, a girl with flaming red hair stared at the arena in shock. “Is that Rao Wu? Why is he there!?” Aeriole Von Basten could not keep her composure as she stared at Rao Wu. For two years, all attempts to find him turned up fruitless. She had begun to suspect he was dead, but he suddenly appeared here of all places?

“Haha. It looks like he really intends to surprise us,” nearby, a silver-haired youth chuckled as he adjusted his glasses. Brian Stanley laughed as he observed Rao Wu’s wild appearance. “Turns out I was right. He really is a jungle boy. No wonder he didn’t know anything back then.”

“Jungle boy or not, anyone who dares to sully humanity’s glory will be killed.” A boy with scraggly-jet black hair, chocolate skin, and vicious eyes glared at Rao Wu. He took out a dagger and rested it on his laps. “He will pay for standing in our way.”

Brian Stanley’s smile faltered as he looked at the black-haired boy. The strange child was Lunzi Brooks, one of the Lunzi family’s latest child prodigies. Brook was born into a special branch of the Lunzi family that specialized in assassinations and murder. It was rumored that 6 out of 10 Lunzi children born into that branch never made it past ten years old. However, all those that emerged went on to become terrifying soul trainers.

Aside from Brooks, one other Elite Student viewed Rao Wu with disdain. This child’s blue-hair and sky-blue eyes were very eye-catching under the afternoon sun. The child, Jurgen Ozursson, snorted as he looked at Rao Wu. “Barbarians should learn their place.”

Aeriole Von Basten glared at the other Elite Students. Including her and Hao Feng, they made up the five strongest Elite Students. Knowing their strength, she felt bad for Rao Wu because there was no way he could defeat all five.

However, Aeriole was still hopeful. If Rao Wu beat Hao Feng, Soul Academy would highly consider accepting him as an Elite Student.

How would Aeriole feel if she knew that Rao Wu did not plan on merely beating Hao Feng?

Oblivious to the commotion caused by Rao Wu’s entrance, Hao Feng sneered when he heard the youth’s taunt. “You’ll make me suffer? You and what army, country bumpkin!? I’ll make you pay for the humiliation from two years ago!”

Rao Wu ignored the shouting youth and instead looked at a middle-aged man who stood at the edge of the arena. The wildebeest explained the tournament’s rules, so Rao Wu knew he could not attack without the referee’s permission. “Excuse me, Sir. Can we start the fight?”

‘What a polite child.’ The referee smiled at Rao Wu and then glanced at the podium where the Representative sat. When she nodded, he looked at both children and then waved, “You may begi—”

“Fire Lord! Burn that beggar!” Hao Feng impatiently shouted as he ordered his Flamebeak Eagle to attack.

“Scree!” The Flamebeak Eagle reared its head and then spat out a massive fireball at Rao Wu, who shockingly stood in place as if petrified.

“Haha! Coward Bumpkin!” Hao Feng mocked as he glared at the immobile child. “Don’t blame me if you die!”

Rao Wu’s gaze that had been fixed on the fireball, suddenly turned as he sneered at Hao Feng. “With just this much? Are you joking?”

“What—”

Vwoosh! Several spectators gaped in shock as Rao Wu suddenly vanished. “Screee!” Moments later, they stared in amazement as Rao Wu appeared in the air with his hand tightly clasped around the Flamebeak Eagle’s neck.

Cries of “What!?” “How!?” rang out across the stadium, but Rao Wu only had eyes for the soul monster in his hand.

Rao Wu’s burning glare scared the Flamebeak Eagle as he stated, “You first.” Before the Flamebeak Eagle could react, Rao Wu flung it to the ground with all his might.

BAM! “Scwaaa!” The Flamebeak Eagle cried in pain as it smashed against the earth. It immediately tried to get back up, but Rao Wu once again dropped to the ground and slammed his foot into its stomach.

When had the Flamebeak Eagle ever suffered so much pain? It directly fainted after coughing up a lot of blood.

“Already?” Rao Wu stared at the Flamebeak Eagle with a disappointed gaze. He hadn’t even begun to vent his anger, but the target had already fainted. Rao Wu was not crazy enough to strike an unconscious opponent, so he turned his hate-filled glare at Hao Feng instead. “Whatever. I’ll just deal with the master, then.”

Hao Feng nearly pissed his pants in fright when Rao Wu started walking towards him. “St-Stay away!” Fortunately, he still had the presence of mind to call back his Flameback Eagle, and then quickly summoned a 2nd Phase, 7th Stage Steelback Ape, and 2nd Phase 8th Stage, Dusklight Wolf. These were his secondary soul pets. He had not put in as many resources into them as his 3rd Phase Flamebeak Eagle, so they were considerably weaker.

Rao Wu coldly gazed at both soul pets as they charged at him. What a disappointment. Neither of these monsters had seen significant combat. Their movements were so open that it was like they were advertising their attacks. Rao Wu could have easily toyed with these soul pets two years ago, let alone now.

Rao Wu effortlessly danced past both soul pets, leaving the stunned monsters behind. Then, he closed the remaining space between himself and Hao Feng with a quick dash.

“Flame Wall!” A panicking Hao Feng quickly conjured a burning wall to protect himself, but Rao Wu did not slow down to his surprise.

Rao Wu snorted as he glared at the thin flaming wall. He could easily break through. At worst, he would have some light burns, but, recalling he had nine more battles after this, he changed his mind and took out Ju Tu’s staff.

Before Hao Feng could react, Rao Wu flung the staff like a harpoon.

BAM! Hao Feng coughed up blood as the staff broke through the flames and struck his stomach. The impact sent the child flying through the fire, and he crashed to the ground, crying as he rolled around while attempting to put out the fire.

Rao Wu mercilessly continued his charge and kicked Hao Feng's stomach one more time. Hao Feng nearly vomited as the force sent him flying up. “This is for Lunar!” Bang! Rao Wu punched the airborne youth’s jaw with so much power that Hao Feng crashed to the ground headfirst.

Fortunately for Hao Feng, the impact instantly knocked him out, preventing Rao Wu from doling out more punishment.

Rao Wu calmly picked up his staff and placed it against the unconscious Hao Feng’s neck when the latter’s soul pets turned to retaliate. “Give up, or I’ll kill him.” Rao Wu had no personal beef with these two soul pets, so he was satisfied with ending the fight. After all, he still needed to conserve his energy for the next couple of battles.

“Point to the monsters!” The referee, recognizing the severity in Rao Wu’s eyes, quickly intervened before things took a dire turn. This child had killed before and evidently had no qualms doing so here. He then signaled the medics to check on Hao Feng’s health quickly.

Rao Wu obediently put away the staff and then walked away, allowing the medics to attend to Hao Feng. A hushed silence hung over the stadium as the onlookers looked at the silent child.

The medics paled when they inspected Hao Feng. Rao Wu’s kick was too vicious, resulting in several cracked ribs. On another day, Hao Feng would have been bedridden for months, but fortunately, the soul monsters gave up some Eternal Spring Water for use during the tournament to prevent any deaths.

The medics helped Hao Feng drink some Eternal Spring Water and then took him away for further treatment. When Hao Feng woke up, they would have him summon the Flamebeak Eagle for healing.

Rao Wu took a deep breath after the medics left. His brows relaxed as he shook his hands. Now that he had taken care of Hao Feng, he could calmly focus on the rest of the battles. Rao Wu knew it was his fault that the humans found out about the Eternal Spring Water. He would rectify that error with his fists.

Moments later, Rao Wu’s next opponent stepped into the ring. It was an eleven-year-old girl. The poor child was not an Elite student, so she trembled in her boots as she directly summoned two soul pets: a warrior-rank Black Tiger and warrior-rank Stone Fairy.

It was a basic set up. The warrior-rank Black Tiger was the offensive monster, while the stone-fairy played both defense and support.

Rao Wu’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the line-up. He had many ways to break that formation and strike the girl, but he needed to conserve his soul energy. So, Rao Wu smiled and called out, “Come and play, Raven.”

“Hell Yeah!” Raven’s shrill voice pierced the stadium as she emerged from the summoning circle. The Thunderfiend Chaosbird flapped her wings as she glared at the soul pets opposite. “Who am I cooking first?”

Rao Wu chuckled and then pointed at the girl. “Don’t mess around. Knock her out. We have many more to fight.”

“Tch.” Raven clucked her tongue as she looked at the Black Tiger and Stone Fairy. “Consider yourselves lucky.” She then flapped her wings and charged at the little girl. Strangely, she didn’t fly in a parabolic arc like most aerial soul monster’s but straight, just over a meter off the ground. Her arrogance was outstanding.

“Ru-er! Rock Spikes!” The girl panicked when she saw Raven charging at her and quickly ordered her soul pet to attack.

The Rock Fairy quickly chanted a short spell and then glared at the incoming bird. “Pay for your arrogance!” Dududududu! Several rock spikes shot up from the ground in quick succession with a wave of her hand, threatening to skewer Raven.

Aeriole clenched her fingers in fright, but the nearby Brook’s eyes trembled in shock as he muttered, “No way.”

Raven chuckled as the rock spikes enveloped her. “With just this? You should’ve seen level eight!” The Thunderfiend Chaosbird expertly weaved through the spikes with unbelievable ease. She didn’t even slow down a bit as she broke through the other end. Despite her relaxed expression, Raven cursed as she knew she owed Rao Wu.

That crazy bastard, Rao Wu, made each of his soul monsters go through the obstacle course on their own after they completed it together. This way, he forcefully trained their reflexes and combat judgment before tackling the time-limits as a team.

Forget this little three-meter rock formation. Raven could fly through a one-hundred-meters formation with ease—at this speed, of course.

“Get ready for your punishment!” Raven screamed after she broke through and then charged at the trio.

To the young girl’s credit, she did not immediately give up. She quickly ordered, “Mo-mo, use Punishing Claws!” and then chanted a soul technique to form a defensive barrier.

Across the field, Rao Wu’s eyes narrowed. He recognized that technique. It was a basic soul technique that created a small forcefield around the caster. The forcefield wasn’t mobile, but it required a bit of effort to break through in return. Many contestants in the ninth test used it to protect themselves while their soul monsters battled.

Rao Wu never learned the technique because it took a few seconds to cast, and he preferred mobility on the battlefield. His jungle upbringing would never let him stay in one position for an extended period while fighting.

Due to facing this barrier technique multiple times, Rao Wu knew how to counter it. There was a reason he sent out Raven first. “Raven! Volt! Don’t let her finish that spell!”

“Haio, captain!” Raven excitedly as electricity sparked around her body. Within a second, those electric sparks rapidly condensed, and then, like a coin out of a rail gun, Raven exploded across the arena with blinding speed.

“Grao!” The Black Tiger growled in astonishment as its target suddenly disappeared. Its Punishing Claws only struck air, rendering its attack pointless.

“Kyaa!” The girl’s sudden cry drew the soul pets' attention, who turned to see Raven perched on top of her head.

“Hey, hey! I don’t wanna burn such a cute girl,” Raven complained as she gently pierced the girl’s forehead with her talons, drawing blood. “Will you just give up so we can call it a day?”

“Raven!” Rao Wu glared exasperatedly at the Thunderfiend Chaosbird. Of his soul pets, she was the most opinionated and stubborn. However, he had gotten used to her erratic personality, so he only sighed and looked at the petrified. Managing a slight smile, he said, “We don’t have any enmity between us. Give up, and you won’t suffer, I promise.”

“Really?” The girl gulped as she choked back tears. She still remembered how Rao Wu nearly killed Hao Feng.

Rao Wu chuckled as he nodded. “I promise. Do I look like some monster?”

The girl did not immediately reply. She looked at Rao Wu’s wild, braided, dirty gray hair, torn clothes, scars, and his eyes that looked like a cunning fox and bloodthirsty wolf at the same.

Rao Wu’s confidence took a large blow as Raven burst out laughing on top of the girl’s head. “Haha! Rao Wu, you’re a barbarian! Ugly! Stinky!” Raven happily patted the girl’s head with her talons. “For making me laugh, I, this beautiful bird will let you serve under me in the future.”

“I give up.” The girl, unable to handle the mental pressure of being mocked by a soul monster, shed tears as she recalled her soul pets and fled the arena.

“Wow, Rao Wu, you beast. Making girls cry is the worst.” Raven said as she flew back to Rao Wu and perched on his shoulder. “You will be single for the rest of your life!”

Rao Wu ignored Raven and then turned to the stunned referee. “I won, right?”

“Ah. Ah. Yes. Point to the monsters!”

The referee's pronouncement caused the stadium to erupt in cheers, boos, and screams in equal measure. Many wondered about this mysterious youth’s identity. They screamed in delight at the thought of Rao Wu, forcing those Elite students to showcase their powerful soul pets.

Most of the spectators were vagrant soul trainers without significant backgrounds. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see these rare soul pets in action. With crazy hoots, they cheered the strange child.

On the podium, Twilight chuckled as he looked at the Representative. [What do you think? He’s pretty strong, right?]

The Representative clenched her armrest but otherwise remained silent. Instead, she gazed at the next youth that stepped into the arena.

Brian chuckled as he adjusted his glasses and looked at Rao Wu. “Well, well. Nice to meet you again, Rao Wu.”