The commotion quickly drew a crowd — including a young woman with light blue hair, who had just entered and hadn't even taken her seat yet.
Watching the scene unfold, she smiled lightly to herself.
"Huh… didn't expect to catch an extra show."
"Damn it!"
The arrogant noble brat, finally snapping out of his shock, cursed loudly — trying to cover up his earlier embarrassment.
"Do you even know who I am?! How dare you glare at me! Believe it or not, I could make sure you never leave this place in one piece!"
Yun Yibai sighed internally.
Why is there always some clueless punk trying to show off? Is his brain made of pig fat?
Doesn't he realize he might just be making enemies for his whole clan?
What if I'm from… oh, I don't know… the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect?
Without even glancing at the other guy, Yun Yibai responded coolly,
"Do you know who I am?"
Though he remained seated, his aura grew noticeably heavier — calm, but undeniably oppressive.
The young noble's eyes flickered with hesitation.
He might be arrogant, but he wasn't completely stupid.
Seeing Yun Yibai so calm and fearless, paired with that suffocating presence… he suddenly had a bad feeling that he'd picked the wrong target.
"Hmph! You better watch yourself!"
After tossing out a half-hearted threat, he turned and stormed off, his lackeys scurrying behind.
Once outside, he planned to investigate Yun Yibai's background — if he turned out to be someone powerful, fine, he'd eat the loss. But if not… he'd make him pay dearly.
"Quite the bold little calf, aren't you?
You even know who that guy was?"
Just as Yun Yibai was about to resume meditating, a teasing, icy voice drifted to his ear.
The next moment, someone sat down beside him, bringing with her a faint, sweet fragrance.
Yun Yibai turned his head and opened his eyes.
What he saw was a striking woman:
Hair like flowing sky-blue silk, cascading to her waist.
She wore a tight-fitting purple cheongsam, embroidered with intricate patterns that emphasized her graceful figure.
Her wrists were wrapped in fluttering ribbons, and she wore jade-green bracelets that gleamed with gentle luster.
Every movement carried an air of elegance and effortless charm.
"Do you know who I am?"
Yun Yibai's gaze didn't linger. He glanced at her once, then turned away without hesitation, repeating the same calm line he'd used earlier.
The woman rolled her eyes — unimpressed by the repetition.
"Ugh… forget it. I'll be the good one today, I guess."
She sighed and brushed her hand across her forehead.
"That guy earlier is a loyal lapdog of Xue Beng, the fourth prince of the Heaven Dou Empire."
Though her tone was light, there was undisguised disdain in her voice.
"He's got some background, but the real problem is the prince behind him."
She glanced sideways at Yun Yibai, hoping to see some change in his expression.
"Mm."
But to her disappointment, Yun Yibai simply hummed in acknowledgment and said nothing more.
His face remained utterly calm — like a still lake, without a single ripple.
Now she was the one feeling frustrated.
Am I… not attractive enough?
"Here they come!"
"It's Yu Tianheng — from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan!"
Nearly thirteen now, Yu Tianheng already carried himself with the poise of nobility. His Martial Soul gave him an extra touch of natural dominance.
He was nearly 1.7 meters tall.
Though Yun Yibai was almost a year younger, he was already taller, having never neglected his physical training. He knew the value of strength — and how important nutrition was for growth.
Yu Tianheng's opponent was a richly dressed young man, though his face carried a certain cruel and sinister edge.
At the referee's signal, both combatants summoned their soul marks and activated their Martial Souls.
Yu Tianheng had two soul rings, while his opponent had three, including one purple ring — a Soul Elder.
But Yu Tianheng's Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon was vastly superior to his opponent's Fire Lizard in both bloodline and raw power.
That, along with other factors, gave him the confidence to challenge someone of a higher level.
As expected for fights below the Soul Ancestor level, the battle was close-range and physical, rather than spell-heavy.
Soon, both fighters were exchanging soul skills.
Yu Tianheng's first soul skill — Thunder Dragon Claw — was an extremely potent single-target attack, boosting his offensive power significantly.
His second soul skill — Thunder Fury — was an area-of-effect skill that overwhelmed his opponent and disrupted their rhythm.
Despite the opponent having a better soul ring configuration — two yellow and one purple — his soul ring quality and martial soul still couldn't bridge the gap in overall strength.
In the end, Yu Tianheng won the match by a narrow margin.
Though strong in many ways, the gap in soul power was still a weakness, and casting soul skills had drained him significantly.
As the short match ended, Yun Yibai stood up and began walking toward the arena's exit — as did many others.
With the fight over, there wasn't much reason to stick around.
"What a weirdo…"
The girl with blue hair and a purple cheongsam was somewhat famous at Heaven Dou Imperial Advanced Soul Master Academy —
but not because of anything she'd done.
Her reputation came from her grandfather, the infamous Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo — a Titled Douluo known for his deadly temper and poison mastery.
No one dared provoke his granddaughter — everyone knew she was his one untouchable reverse scale.
Outside the arena, Yun Yibai leaned casually against the wall.
Students slowly trickled out in groups of two or three.
After around ten minutes, the crowd had mostly dispersed.
"Tianheng, that was insane!"
"Of course it was! He's the future head of the Blue Lightning Clan!"
Yun Yibai opened his eyes as soon as he heard Yu Tianheng's name.
Just then, as Yu Tianheng and his group exited the passageway, a sharp wind tore through the air.
Everyone immediately tensed — but it was already too late.
A fist came flying straight at Yu Tianheng's face.
Despite the ambush, Yu Tianheng's elite training kicked in. He barked out "Get back!" and instantly threw a punch of his own to counter.
He didn't know who the attacker was, but the malice was clear — and no one who launches a sneak attack without even activating their martial soul has good intentions.
BOOM!
The two fists collided mid-air, sending out a blast of force.
Neither side retreated — whether they were both holding back or perfectly matched, it wasn't clear.
The clash kicked up a cloud of dust, obscuring their vision.
"Not bad."
"Yu Tianheng…"
A familiar voice reached their ears.
Both Yu Tianheng and Dugu Yan found it oddly familiar.
Yu Tianheng lowered his fist.
"You are…?"
"What a pity."
As the dust finally settled, Yun Yibai's figure emerged, golden hair gleaming under the sun — unmistakable.