Lu Mingfei starts from Douluo

It was already evening in Tiandou City, and the moon had just risen. Wisps of translucent black clouds swirled around it, like a lady veiled in silk. But before she could lift her veil and reveal her fair skin, the room lights were turned off in the blink of an eye, leaving only starlight.

The moon was obscured by dark clouds, but Tian Dou City did not fall into darkness in the night.

Tiandou City has a permanent population of over one million and is one of the two most prosperous cities on the entire continent. At night, the city is even more vibrant than during the day.

If someone were to fly up at night and look down at the city, they would immediately notice the location of the city's most prominent brain and heart.

The brain is undoubtedly the Heavenly Dou Imperial Palace at the very center of the city, while the heart is the most active commercial and entertainment center in the entire Heavenly Capital City, the Heavenly Dou Great Soul Arena.

Although Lu Mingfei had seen the building marked on the map, he only truly realized how grand it was when he got closer.

This is an oval-shaped stone building over a hundred meters high, with architectural styles reminiscent of the ancient Roman Colosseum and the Parthenon. At first glance, it exudes a sense of historical vicissitude.

"This place has the main arena in the center and thirty-six branch arenas, capable of accommodating over 100,000 people simultaneously!"

Li Lan led Lu Mingfei to the entrance with ease, and after paying two silver soul coins for admission, they entered the main arena's audience seats.

A fierce battle of spirits was taking place on the field. Both sides had five spirit rings floating around them, clearly indicating that they were two spirit kings. Tens of thousands of spectators around them were cheering them on. Lu Mingfei felt as if he was about to be drowned in this wave of support.

"My God." Lu Mingfei had never been to a concert or watched a performance, but he felt that even if some Hong Kong or Taiwan superstars were to hold a concert, it wouldn't be as lively as the one in front of him.

The two quickly found suitable empty seats and sat down. Li Lan even bought some snacks at the entrance to share with them.

"It's just a soul battle, why are they so excited?" Lu Mingfei didn't understand. This was the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire, after all. Soul Kings shouldn't be that rare. It was just a soul battle. Why were these spectators acting like they were seeing some big star?

"Of course it's because most of them gamble!" Li Lan explained, "You can place bets on every battle here, with a minimum of one gold soul coin."

"No wonder." Lu Mingfei suddenly realized that gambling would always be addictive, no matter which world you were in.

The thrill of gambling, coupled with the intense and spectacular battles between Soul Masters on the field, made it difficult for most people to remain calm. Even he, who had just arrived that day, was slightly stirred by the emotions.

Soon, the battle on the field ended. After cleaning up the traces, a new group of fighting spirits was quickly arranged, this time consisting of two Soul Masters.

"There are so many Soul Masters in the Great Soul Arena?" Lu Mingfei exclaimed in surprise. At this rate of battles, there could be nearly a thousand battles in the entire Soul Arena in one night. Even if some Soul Masters participated repeatedly, there were at least three hundred Soul Masters waiting in the arena.

"The Grand Soul Arena is just a platform. These Soul Masters are all free to register. As long as they are above level 10, any Soul Master can register at the Grand Soul Arena to participate in Soul Battles. Based on level and points, even in the lowest-level battle, the winner will receive a bonus of ten gold Soul Coins, and the loser will not be punished. Therefore, many wandering Soul Masters come to the Soul Arena to earn money. If they are outstanding, they may even be selected as a star representative by the Grand Soul Arena and be sought after by people all over the continent!" Li Lan introduced the situation, including the rules and basic information of games, gambling battles, life-or-death battles, team Soul Battles, etc.

"So that's how it is." Lu Mingfei nodded secretly.

An open, official PvP platform immediately appealed to him, not only because of the prize money for winning, but more importantly because it offered the practical experience he needed.

Unless he seeks out a teacher at the academy, no one is willing to spar with him. His combat experience is practically zero, and he would be completely caught off guard if he were ever in real danger.

"Mingfei, didn't you complain about not having any peers to practice with at school? This is the best place." Li Lan understood Lu Mingfei's situation, which is why she thought of bringing him here.

"How do I register?" Lu Mingfei asked.

"Follow me." Li Lan led Lu Mingfei into an entrance next to the audience seats, down to the bottom level of the Great Soul Arena, where a spacious hall appeared.

"This is the registration hall. The registration fee is only ten gold soul coins. You just need to fill out a form and have your soul power tested to complete the registration and receive the most basic Iron Fighting Soul Medal." Li Lan led Lu Mingfei to the registration desk and they lined up.

"Ten gold soul coins? I don't have enough." Lu Mingfei gave a slightly embarrassed smile. Who knew the transaction fees here would be so expensive?

"I'll cover for you. Don't I know your abilities?" Li Lan patted Lu Mingfei on the shoulder. "When you go on stage later, I'll bet half my fortune on you to win. Tonight, I'm going to make my fortune thanks to you!"

Li Lan's eyes lit up when she said this, and Lu Mingfei had good reason to suspect that the other party had brought him here today for this purpose.

"Brother, take it easy. I'm only level 14. What if I lose?" Lu Mingfei advised.

He has little combat experience. If he were to encounter someone like Tang San who possesses a family-inherited martial arts manual, and without revealing his full strength or using his Word of Power, he might not be able to defeat him.

"It's okay, if I lose, it's on me; if I win, I'll split it with you." Li Lan patted her chest, appearing very generous.

Lu Mingfei shook his head helplessly, and could only pray that all the gods would bless him so that he wouldn't lose half of Li Lan's fortune in his first battle, otherwise he would really feel a little guilty.

The registration process went smoothly, except that Lu Mingfei's age surprised the staff.

In addition, Lu Mingfei asked if he could use weapons on the field, and the answer was yes, which put his mind at ease a little. After practicing his swordsmanship for so many days, he finally had a chance to use it.

After registering for the Soul Battle, the staff took Lu Mingfei to the waiting room of the 17th Soul Battle Arena, while Li Lan also went to the audience seats in advance to wait.

"I'm going." Lu Mingfei couldn't help but frown as he entered the waiting room. There were all kinds of people there, from teenagers to burly middle-aged men.

When they saw Lu Mingfei, such a young child, come in, they initially thought he was a staff member bringing his own child along for the fun.

It wasn't until someone noticed the iron badge on his chest that they realized this was indeed their opponent, and someone on the spot burst out laughing.

They guessed that Lu Feifan was most likely a genius from some family or academy, but this was the Soul Arena, and no one would give way to a child because of their age.

Lu Mingfei could only turn his head away, trying to ignore the onlookers' stares, and look out the window at the arena. He had just been assigned to the first group, and it would be his turn to compete after this match ended.