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The crowd turned their heads in shock, staring at Xiao Xiao.
This little girl was so wealthy? But this bet was far too bold, wasn't it?
A ten-year soul ring against a hundred-year soul ring—how could she place such confidence in Huo Yuhao? Did she think everyone was as monstrous as her boyfriend, Yuwen Tuo?
Although Xiao Xiao and Yuwen Tuo weren't officially dating, only they knew that. To outsiders, the two were inseparable every day—who wouldn't assume they were a couple?
In truth, this was precisely the atmosphere Xiao Xiao had intentionally cultivated. If everyone believed that Yuwen Tuo was already her boyfriend, it would naturally deter a large number of potential rivals.
Even if there were still some competition, she would have the upper hand.
This time, however, the money for the bet didn't come from Xiao Xiao—it came from Yuwen Tuo.
Yuwen Tuo hadn't wanted to abstain from betting himself, but since Wu Feng had earlier supported him, it would be rather ungracious for him to personally back Huo Yuhao now.
But he couldn't support Wu Feng either, because Huo Yuhao had the overwhelming advantage of possessing Tian Meng Bing Can and Elecktor as "cheat codes." Wu Feng stood no chance of winning. Betting on her would be akin to willingly throwing money away.
Cao Jinxuan also wasn't a suitable candidate to place the bet, as he had been one of the two who openly mocked Huo Yuhao earlier.
That left Xiao Xiao, who conveniently belonged to Class One of the freshman year. Huo Yuhao had once been her class monitor, so it made sense for her to support her former monitor over a stranger like Wu Feng.
The amount of the bet was carefully considered by Yuwen Tuo.
Ten thousand gold spirit coins, with a tenfold return, amounted to a hundred thousand.
Cao Jinxuan and Yuwen Tuo had previously discussed Zhou Sichen, who hailed from an aristocratic family. Losing a hundred thousand gold spirit coins would sting enough to make him feel the pain, but not so much that it would bankrupt him.
If Yuwen Tuo had wagered his entire fortune of several million gold spirit coins, the other party wouldn't have been able to pay up anyway—so why bother?
Soon, the battle on the arena began.
Wu Feng displayed the dominance and resilience characteristic of a power-type soul master. From the start, she relentlessly attacked Huo Yuhao.
In terms of raw strength, Huo Yuhao was no match for her.
After all, there was nearly a ten-level gap between them. While Huo Yuhao had grown up malnourished, Wu Feng hailed from the prestigious Nine-Treasure Glazed Pagoda Sect, where she had been nourished with spirit beast meat from a young age. Her two hundred-year soul rings were nearly at their peak potential.
Huo Yuhao could only rely on the Tang Sect's Ghost Shadow Confusion Steps to evade her attacks continuously.
Prolonged defense inevitably led to mistakes, and it wasn't long before Wu Feng found an opening, forcing Huo Yuhao into a retreat.
Even though Huo Yuhao could wound Wu Feng with his mental force, it didn't change the overall situation. Eventually, he was knocked to the ground.
Wu Feng, who merely looked down on Huo Yuhao, didn't harbor any deep grudges against him as she might have in the original storyline. She simply said, "The match is over. You lost. I told you—you're not qualified to be my class monitor."
"I haven't lost yet!" Huo Yuhao's voice was hoarse but filled with a resolute determination. No, he hadn't lost. As long as he had even a shred of strength left, he would never admit defeat. His stubbornness and resolve kept him going. Years of suppressed resentment erupted like a geyser in this moment.
Yuwen Tuo shook his head. Huo Yuhao's current mentality was truly lacking.
If things had unfolded as they did in the original story—where Wu Feng deliberately targeted and threatened him, vowing to torment him until he left Shrek Academy—then his anger would have been justified.
But now, Wu Feng simply didn't want to be overshadowed by a single-ring soul master. In the world of soul masters, where strength reigned supreme, wasn't this only natural?
Yet, in his current state, Huo Yuhao interpreted her words as verbal insults.
Within his spiritual sea, Elecktor sighed. "This child… his eyes are completely blinded by hatred."
He knew that if this continued, Huo Yuhao would eventually collapse. To prevent that, Elecktor had no choice but to intervene, temporarily taking control of Huo Yuhao's mental energy.
Under Elecktor's guidance, the same mental energy that Huo Yuhao wielded clumsily transformed into something as sharp and piercing as a needle.
When Huo Yuhao's eyes gradually turned gray, Wu Feng felt as though she were being stared down by a death god, her heart filled with terror.
In the end, Elecktor's mental attack pierced through her defenses, leaving her unconscious.
Elecktor turned his attention away from Wu Feng and toward the arena below. He wasn't interested in her—he was curious about Yuwen Tuo.
What kind of person could possess such an aggressively powerful soul?
Now that he had finally emerged, he wanted to investigate further.
"Huo Yuhao" locked eyes with Yuwen Tuo. In the next moment, a flicker of brown and blue flashed in Yuwen Tuo's eyes, and the scene before him shifted.
It was a world like an ocean, but the waves were golden—the vast expanse of Yuwen Tuo's spiritual sea.
A gray figure slowly approached him.
"A spiritual sea this vast, and these fluctuations…" The gray figure reached out to touch the golden waves, but recoiled immediately after feeling a sharp pain. "Truly formidable spiritual energy, razor-sharp. Though I've lost my memories, I'm certain I've never encountered a mental force this aggressive in my life. Child, who are you?"
"Intruding into my spiritual sea and asking who I am? Shouldn't I be the one asking you that question?" Yuwen Tuo chuckled.
"Heh, child, didn't you let me in here?" Elecktor smiled. "Your spiritual space is so aggressively charged. If you hadn't deliberately restrained it, my meager consciousness would've been shredded by your golden sword qi the moment I entered. Since you've invited me, why should I fear meeting you?"
"I've lost my past memories, so I can't introduce myself properly. All I vaguely recall is that I'm somewhat proficient in mental energy manipulation and necromancy."
Yuwen Tuo nodded. "As expected of the Holy Necromancer. Your temperament is commendable. My name is Yuwen Tuo, and I'm someone with a rather unique martial soul. I'd like to propose a trade with you."
"Oh? I never expected anyone would want to make a deal with someone like me. What do you seek, and what can you offer in return?" Elecktor asked.
"What I desire is a certain ability. I believe you've already noticed—I bear a blood-soaked grudge, just like Huo Yuhao. The difference is, he's controlled by his hatred, while I command mine," Yuwen Tuo explained.
Elecktor nodded. "I see. If Huo Yuhao were like you, I wouldn't have to worry so much. So, the trade you're proposing relates to your grudge, correct?"
"Yes," Yuwen Tuo confirmed.
"Unfortunately, I only have a sliver of consciousness left. I doubt I can offer you any abilities," Elecktor admitted.
"That's not a concern. When the time comes for me to claim your powers, I'll approach Huo Yuhao. As for what I can offer…" Yuwen Tuo's fingers traced through the void of the spiritual sea, conjuring a series of golden characters.
The more Elecktor read, the more astonished he became.
Yuwen Tuo and Elecktor conversed for several minutes within the spiritual sea.
In the outside world, only two or three seconds had passed.
Impressed by the golden text, Elecktor agreed to the trade. Before departing, he suddenly turned back and said, "Child, you're strange—not just because of your astonishingly powerful mental energy, but because of who you are."
Yuwen Tuo frowned. "Me? What's strange about me?"
"You lack any trace of fortune. Not a single shred," Elecktor remarked. Having ascended to godhood in his past life, his consciousness could sense the presence—or absence—of fortune.
Yuwen Tuo was taken aback. "How is that possible?"
Fortune was an essential force that sustained life. Everyone possessed it, though in varying degrees.
For ordinary people, their fortune was like a cup of water, barely enough to sustain normal life. For individuals like Dai Huabing or Ning Tian, born into noble families with top-tier martial souls, their fortune was akin to a river. For those like Bei Bei or Xiao Xiao, members of the original protagonist group, it was like a vast lake.
As for Huo Yuhao, his fortune was an endless ocean, earning him the title of "child of fortune."
A person devoid of fortune couldn't exist—they would have perished long ago.
"It's indeed impossible. That's why I suspect your fortune hasn't vanished but has instead been sealed. Whoever did this likely didn't intend to harm you, otherwise you wouldn't have survived this long. What you need to do now is find a way to break this seal. The most direct method is to obtain one of the top treasures coveted by soul masters—the highest-tier soul rings or soul bones. These are things only those with immense fortune can attain. In other words, obtaining them will awaken the fortune within you," Elecktor explained.
"Thank you for the guidance. I understand now," Yuwen Tuo nodded. No wonder he had been so unlucky for the past decade, unable to achieve his desires.
Whoever had turned him from a "child of fortune" into a jinx would pay dearly when he found out—he'd make sure of it.