Lu Mingfei starts from Douluo.

"Coming, coming," Lu Mingfei replied.

He stood up. The setting sun shone on the pale yellow school uniforms of Yu Tianheng and the others in front of him, casting a reddish-brown halo, as if they, like the sun, were about to sink into darkness and disappear without a trace.

A sudden sadness welled up within him. Every sunset felt like a farewell rehearsal, and his life on campus in another world was drawing to a close.

Days passed by, and with a sudden cicada's chirp, the Continental Elite Tournament of Advanced Soul Master Academies finally began.

Chapter 150 The Soul Master Competition officially begins!

Summer days light up quickly, and by five o'clock, the clock tower of the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy had already rung its bells ahead of time.

Lu Mingfei opened his eyes groggily. Today was the opening day of the Soul Master Competition. However, as a seeded team, they did not need to line up like other teams to participate in the opening ceremony of the preliminary rounds. Instead, they were given seats in the VIP section.

I have to say, it feels really good to watch others fight to the death while you can slack off in the audience.

Actually, he was thinking of asking for a day off, since tens of thousands of viewers wouldn't miss one more. However, the three education committee members sternly refused, saying that even Emperor Xueye and Ning Fengzhi had to attend in person today, so how could he be more arrogant than them?

Wearing a suit that had been ironed long ago, Lu Mingfei headed to the school gate to gather. All the students of the Royal Academy would be attending the ceremony today, and the Great Battle Arena had reserved a whole exclusive viewing area for the Royal Academy students in advance.

The sight of hundreds of people gathering at the school gate was quite spectacular. The group was led by the college's teachers, as well as the Tian Dou Team led by Lu Mingfei and Yu Tianheng.

The three members of the Education Committee entered the palace yesterday and are currently serving Emperor Xueye. After all, today is a rare day for Emperor Xueye to make a public appearance, with more than 80,000 spectators gathered at the Great Soul Arena alone. Who knows if any trouble might occur?

It has to be said that, looking at the longing look on the faces of the dark mass of people behind him, Lu Mingfei suddenly felt as if he were the godfather of the Italian Mafia, and that with just a wave of his hand, these well-dressed, refined nobles and beasts would rush up and chop people into eight pieces.

"Let's go." Several teachers waved their hands, and the large group of people immediately began to walk quickly towards Tiandou City. It wasn't that their academy couldn't afford to rent a carriage, but the road conditions today were simply not as convenient as walking.

When Lu Mingfei obtained his third spirit ring and left the academy, he missed the opening ceremony of that year's event. Only after entering Heaven Dou City today did he realize just how popular the spirit master profession is on the continent.

Centered around the Great Soul Arena of Tiandou City, the crowds were beyond description; if the city's defense forces hadn't been deployed, traffic would probably have been completely paralyzed long ago.

The Soul Master Competition is essentially a graduation ceremony for young genius Soul Masters. With the total number of Soul Masters on the continent not exceeding six figures and high-level Soul Masters possibly not reaching five figures, the team members who can participate in the Soul Master Competition are undoubtedly the best of the younger generation.

These contestants almost all represent the future of the Soul Master world in the Heaven Dou Empire. Each of them is sought after by nobles and Soul Master families. At the same time, due to age restrictions, these Soul Master contestants are also the ideal prince charming of young girls all over the continent.

Of course, Prince Charming will eventually suffer the same fate as the cabbage at the morning market. In a competition determined by the strength of a Soul Master, the most eye-catching ones are always the dark horses that are one in a million.

"Lu Mingfei! Lu Mingfei!..."

Lu Mingfei was walking with his teammates on the noble passage opened up by the city defense team when suddenly his name was called from behind.

It started as just a few girls shouting, but it gradually spread, and the entire audience outside the Heavenly Battle Arena joined in the shouting and cheering.

"Wow." Lu Mingfei never expected that his name would be shouted by hundreds of thousands of people. His cheeks were a little hot, and he felt like ants were crawling all over his body. He felt a little ashamed for some reason.

Please, he's not even participating in the qualifiers. What are you guys doing, calling his name here? How are the other contestants supposed to feel?

That's right, he's fallen into his habit of feeling embarrassed for others again, and to the point where he could just give up on saving them.

The feeling of being suddenly drawn into the whirlpool of the sea and placed under the spotlight made him subconsciously want to escape, but then he suddenly realized there was nowhere to escape, so he could only give an awkward, bitter smile.

"Mingfei, you're really popular." Yu Tianheng patted him on the shoulder. As teammates for so many years, they were already used to it. Not to mention before, when Lu Mingfei's level was lower than his, he was no match for him. Now that he was a whole level behind, he was even more convinced.

The others joined in the laughter.

There's no way around it; in this era, all young Soul Masters have to admit that Lu Mingfei's name is a landmark that dominates the contemporary world and that no one can bypass.

Centuries later, if they are fortunate enough to leave their mark in history books, they will probably be given a prefix, such as "the wondrous friend of the legendary Soul Master Lu Mingfei".

"What's this? Last time, when news spread that Mingfei might have met with disaster in the Star Dou Great Forest, countless young ladies in Tian Dou City wept their hearts out." Yu Feng exaggeratedly covered his face, not afraid of Lu Mingfei teaching him a lesson in front of everyone.

What can Lu Mingfei say about this? Can you give him a list or something? But it feels like he's some kind of lewd womanizer.

He could only try his best to keep his smile from appearing too awkward or uncomfortable.

Fortunately, we could see the end of the outer passage and were about to enter the arena. The hundreds of people in the VIP area were all people who cared about their reputation, so surely no one would cause a commotion.

However, just as they were walking from the internal passage to the VIP table, they were unexpectedly ambushed by Xue Qinghe, who had been lying in wait at the entrance.

Xue Qinghe, dressed in his formal Crown Prince attire, greeted Lu Mingfei and the others with a smile upon seeing them: "Brother Lu, Father has specifically instructed that he wishes to personally meet the main combat team of the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy, the rising stars of the empire. Your seats are in the third row, please follow me."

Looking at Xue Qinghe's harmless smile, Lu Mingfei almost rolled his eyes. Their seats were originally in a corner of the VIP area, but now they had suddenly become the center of attention.

He didn't believe that the old man in the snowy night had such a good memory; it must have been Xue Qinghe who was behind it.

When they arrived at the VIP table, the first and second rows were already full of people, all of whom were prominent figures in Tiandou City and whom they had all met before.

Of course, the most eye-catching seats were the three in the first row: Salas, the Platinum Bishop of the Spirit Hall; Xue Ye, the Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire; and Ning Fengzhi, the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School.

Xue Qinghe led the group to the third row, where everyone bowed to the three people in the first row before taking their seats.

Emperor Xueye nodded and smiled slightly, Ning Fengzhi also nodded, while Bishop Salas's gaze shifted, seemingly lost in thought.

However, the opening ceremony is about to begin, so now is not the time for casual conversation.

As the emcee on the VIP side announced the entry of each team from the Tian Dou region, waves of applause instantly erupted throughout the Great Battle Arena.

Nearly thirty teams, young Soul Masters dressed in colorful costumes and patterns, strode confidently into the Great Soul Arena like heroes, receiving cheers and applause from more than 80,000 spectators.

Everyone was full of fighting spirit and high morale, with an air of dominance over the world. However, everyone on the field knew that before they could look down on the world, they had to witness its vastness first.

All the teams that took to the field unanimously focused their attention on the central position in the third row of the VIP section.

Lu Mingfei crossed his arms and rested his elbows on the armrests. His sharp black suit hugged his tall and imposing figure, making him look like a young lion, looking down with an inexplicable air of authority.

All the heroes of the world are but dung!

"Damn it." Lu Mingfei forced a cold expression, cursing Xue Qinghe half to death in his heart. Arranging such an attractive and hateful position for him, did he wish he would get a sack over his head when he walked at night?

Chapter 151 Bishop, we really want to beat up Lu Mingfei!

He can be replaced!

Even without using his Golden Eyes, he could clearly see the howling eyes of the bunch of wolves below.

Lu Mingfei felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. In just over ten minutes, every team that came out seemed to have planned it in advance, with each person's gaze falling on him dozens of times. Note that this is on average, and the emotions in their gazes varied: some were envious, some were awe-inspiring, some were jealous, and some were even wary. If the eyes of these young soul masters were sharp as knives, then Lu Mingfei would definitely have been torn to pieces by now.

He suddenly felt like a legendary final boss, and his appearance here meant that he had revealed his health bar to everyone.

To this, Lu Mingfei could only say, "Damn it, I don't even know you guys!"

Since ancient times, heroes have cherished heroes, but unfortunately, Lu Mingfei is neither a hero nor a coward, but a genuine and widely known number one evil dragon in the world.

The so-called "Heaven Dou Royal Academy's List of Those Who Deserve to Be Killed" is actually incredibly weak. If Lu Mingfei had inquired at other academies over the past few months, he would know that his infamy is absolutely unforgivable among the participating teams in this year's Soul Master Competition.

Which team leader didn't repeatedly mention "Lu Mingfei of the Royal Academy" during training to incite hatred among their teammates?

"You think you can beat Lu Mingfei by speaking so softly?"

"Running this slowly, you can't even catch up with Lu Mingfei's fart."

"Sleep, sleep, sleep. What are you sleeping for? If you don't train soon, you might not even be as good as a hair on Lu Mingfei's head during the competition."

……

Such appalling remarks are an extreme example of "taking advantage of someone else's child".

As victims of the same injustice, everyone in the alliance harbored a deep-seated resentment. Rather than calling this a graduation competition for young soul masters across the continent, it was more like a long-planned "Dragon-Slaying Tournament" where everyone was united in purpose!

Now that they have finally seen their target, how could they not be filled with righteous indignation and fervent passion?

Of course, the thunderous cheers they heard outside while waiting in the waiting room also fueled their already strong emotions.

Even without playing, he stole the show. If Lu Mingfei were to win the championship, what would happen?

"Haha, Your Majesty, it seems that the teams in the Tiandou Division are all in high spirits," Ning Fengzhi said with a smile.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School truly lives up to its reputation as a master of creating atmosphere; they always know how to read the wind.

"Youthful vigor is a good thing. If everyone were like us old folks, what would be the point?" Emperor Xueye stroked his beard, a smile appearing on his calm and wise face.

For so many years, the Soul Master Competition had always left him disappointed. This time, it was finally time for their Heaven Dou Empire to finally hold its head high.

The platinum bishop Salas, who had been keeping his eyes slightly closed, also opened them, remaining unmoved by the boasting of the two people beside him.

He was already immune to it. A 14-year-old Soul King was indeed the number one genius on the continent. However, this was a team competition. Their Spirit Hall team had three Soul Kings and even had a Spirit Fusion Skill. No matter how talented Lu Mingfei was, he couldn't possibly turn the tide in this Soul Master Competition.

"The last team to enter is the Shrek Academy team. Shrek Academy was originally named Blue Tyrant Academy, but it was renamed Shrek a year ago. Look at their strange attire, how distinctive it is!"

As the emcee spoke, the audience burst into laughter, with shouts and jeering rising and falling.

Every team before them was a well-prepared elite warrior formation, but the moment Shrek Academy appeared, the style suddenly veered off course and became a mudslide.

When Lu Mingfei saw Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing also wearing those quirky outfits, he almost couldn't hold back. Dean Flander was definitely a staunch supporter of DreamWorks.

However, he was a little confused when he saw the blue-haired boy in second place.

"Wait, who is this androgynous sissy?" Lu Mingfei counted the heads back and forth, then suddenly remembered what Ning Rongrong had said about Tang San turning people into living beings, and suddenly realized.

As expected of someone destined to have an unfair advantage, he actually completed a level up before the start of the tournament storyline.

He had complained before that Tang San's ugly appearance made him unsuitable to be the protagonist. Sure enough, he's now even had plastic surgery. He's definitely a guy with ridiculously good luck.

"Tsk tsk tsk, look at Lu Mingfei's style, and then look at us, we've lost all face." Ma Hongjun felt that he had lost all face in his life, especially in front of Shrek's biggest rival.

Tang San could only keep a cold face. Even though he had lost so many matches, today was the first time he felt inferior to Lu Mingfei.

As for Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, they were completely lost in their own thoughts. They couldn't accept that this was reality and only hoped that they were dreaming.

After all the teams had entered, the emcee channeled his spiritual power and announced loudly:

"Now, please welcome His Majesty the Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire to announce the opening of this competition."

Emperor Xueye, dressed in a crimson-gold robe, slowly rose to his feet amidst thunderous applause from the entire audience.

He raised his right hand and waved it lightly towards the participating Soul Masters below the audience. The huge arena fell silent instantly.

This demonstrates the majesty of the ruler of a country.

After Emperor Xueye's brief but powerful opening speech, thunderous applause erupted one after another. The eyes of all the Soul Masters present shone with a burning light, for each of them had made unimaginable efforts for this competition.

Subsequently, Ning Fengzhi and Salas also took the stage to deliver speeches.

After the three speakers finished their speeches, the emcee continued, "Next, please welcome Lord Salas, the Platinum Bishop of the Spirit Temple of Heaven Dou City, to draw lots for the first round of the preliminary rounds. After the draw, the vice-team of Heaven Dou Royal Academy will play against their opponents drawn in the first round."

However, the emcee paused abruptly at this point: "In addition, in the spirit of sharing joy with the people, His Majesty the Emperor has granted permission for a highly anticipated one-on-one exhibition match today, in addition to the team competition, to warm up for this grand event."

"After the first round of draws, Bishop Salas will conduct a second draw. Apart from the two teams participating in the first team match, one team will be randomly selected from the remaining twenty-six teams. This team can send any one player to participate in the exhibition match, and as for their opponent..."

The emcee pretended to keep the audience in suspense, then suddenly announced loudly:

"That's Lu Mingfei, the number one genius on the continent and a member of the main team of the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy."

The entire stadium fell into a brief silence, followed by a torrent of cheers and applause.

"Hey, this is exactly what we want to see."

"Wow! To see Lu Mingfei's performance is definitely worth the ticket price!"

All the participating teams on the field instantly turned their attention to Platinum Bishop Salas, their eyes filled with indescribable joy and pleading!

"Your Excellency, we really want to beat up Lu Mingfei!"

Chapter 152 Exhibition Match

Lu Mingfei felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

"Hey, hey, hey, why didn't anyone notify me of such big news beforehand? I didn't turn on any do-not-disturb mode, did I? You guys sold me out without even consulting me?"

Lu Mingfei turned around abruptly and met the guilty looks of the three education committee members. The three old men chuckled awkwardly and gave him a smile.

This matter must have been approved by all three of them.

He suddenly realized that the three education commissioners were Xue Qinghe's henchmen, and he turned to look at Xue Qinghe with a fierce glint in his eyes, determined to get an explanation from him.

Ke Xueqinghe returned a bright smile, then, as if he had succeeded in his prank, he immediately looked away and simply pretended to be dead.

Lu Mingfei gasped. This was the friend he had risked exposing his trump card to save—he was truly a scoundrel.

He now deeply regrets it; what terrible things had he done to have met such a person?

Bishop Salas's cloudy eyes flashed with a rare glint of light. His intelligence gathering on Lu Mingfei had always been very limited. For example, there was no record of his recently acquired fifth and third soul skills. Although he felt that his side had the upper hand, it would be better to be more prepared.

Ning Fengzhi and Emperor Xueye exchanged a smile. It was indeed Xue Qinghe who suggested this last night. Emperor Xueye had wondered at the time if it would be inappropriate to let Lu Mingfei reveal his strength in advance.

But Xue Qinghe said, "Father, don't you want to see how strong Brother Lu really is now? We won't be able to see him when he goes to the finals."

Upon hearing this, not only Emperor Xueye but also the three major educational committees immediately agreed.

To their shame, as their superiors, the last time they saw Lu Mingfei take action was during his battle with the First Prince of Xingluo, Davis.

However, they were all in important positions, and at most only one of them could go to Wuhun City to watch the finals.