Douluo Continent: Starting with a Tom Cat

Shen An smiled and said, "They'll be performing at the banquet today, so you can look forward to it."

Shui Bing'er looked over curiously upon hearing this. What kind of performance would the cat and mouse put on? She was really looking forward to it.

"Brother, when does the banquet start?" a little girl with silver-gray hair and delicate features called out to Xue Qinghe.

"Yes, it's you, brother. Let me tell you, this is the person who bullied me the other day. I flicked his head, and it hurt so much." Xue Ke immediately complained to Xue Qinghe when she saw Shen An.

Shen An touched his nose, feeling slightly embarrassed. He had bullied a child and gotten himself into trouble in front of the child himself; it was a little shameful.

Shen An's eyes lit up slightly as he said, "Hey, little princess, didn't your brother say you like flowers the other day? I even..."

Before Shen An could finish speaking, Xue Qinghe hurriedly interrupted him.

"Ahem, well, this is Shen An, my friend. He was just joking with you that day. As a princess, you should be more magnanimous."

As she spoke, Xue Qinghe stared at Shen An, feeling slightly guilty. She knew what Shen An wanted to say, since the flower was still in her room.

"It's almost time, Shen An. You can play with Tom and Jerry for a while. I need to get ready."

Before Shen An could answer, Xue Qinghe hurriedly pulled Xue Ke away, afraid that if she stayed even a second longer, she would give herself away.

"It would be best to keep Xue Ke and Shen An away from each other in the future," Xue Qinghe thought to himself.

After Xue Qinghe left, Shen An felt a gaze fall on him. He talked to the Shui Bing'er sisters without making a sound, while turning around to look.

He was a tall, well-dressed young man who grinned at Shen An, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, his eyes filled with provocation.

Shen An frowned slightly, but quickly calmed down.

They must be one of the forces that harbor ill intentions towards the Heavenly Dou royal family. It seems they've set their sights on me because I've been too close to Xue Qinghe.

Shen An didn't care. If you want fame, you have to bear the corresponding troubles. If you want to wear the crown, you must bear the weight.

With the system at his side, he was destined to become famous throughout the world, so how could he possibly be timid and hesitant because of others' covetousness?

More and more nobles entered, and young girls dressed in light gauze swayed their alluring figures to greet and serve them.

Almost every nobleman had a young maidservant by his side, but Shen An was the only one without one. It was unclear whether someone had made a special arrangement for him.

Soon, Shui Bing'er and her sister were taken away by their elders, leaving Shen An and Tom Jerry behind.

Shen An felt a headache coming on. Where should I go next? Why didn't anyone tell me?

"Shen An, Tom Jerry, I have been entrusted by His Highness the Crown Prince to escort you to your seats." Tang Yuehua appeared, her silver palace dress making her look incredibly elegant and noble.

Shen An followed Tang Yuehua to an extremely spacious hall, which could probably accommodate several thousand people.

In the center of the main hall is a high platform used for banquets, dances, and spirit battles. Below it are rows of seats, each with a small table next to it, laden with fine wine and delicacies.

Tang Yuehua led Shen An to sit to the right of Xue Qinghe. Tang Yuehua was also extremely surprised, as Xue Qinghe seemed to be paying far too much attention to Shen An.

The seats are now almost full, and Shen An even saw many familiar faces.

Huo Wu, Feng Xiaotian, Shui Bing'er, Lei Dong...

Countless eyes fell on Shen An, and the nobles were all wondering what Shen An's identity was, that he could sit next to the Crown Prince.

"Shen An, I'm taking Tom and Jerry with me. I'll need them for the grand finale later."

Shen An chuckled and agreed. The two little ones had been looking forward to it for a long time, and he was sure they also wanted to see the shock of the cat and mouse performing together.

The tall young man, Lovki of the Barak Kingdom, stared at Shen An's back and said, "This person is very close to Xue Qinghe; he must be being groomed by the royal family."

"I really want to meet him soon and break all his bones. The Heavenly Dou Empire has declined, and with the strength of our Barak Kingdom, we may be able to take its place."

Yang Huo said, "This kid is so young. With your Soul Master strength, Captain, defeating him would be a piece of cake. Why don't I go and meet him first?"

After saying that, Yang Huo picked up his wine glass and staggered toward Shen An, his eyes gleaming with a malicious light.

When Yang Huo walked up to Shen An, he deliberately poured the wine glass in his hand over Shen An's head.

"Whoo~"

The wine that was supposed to be poured downwards actually flew upwards in an instant, covering Yang Huo's face, which was full of surprise and anger.

Many nobles in the arena witnessed this scene and found it extremely amusing.

Shen An simply said softly, "You're so careless. How could you spill wine on your face?"

"You!" Yang Huo was about to explode on the spot when Emperor Xue Ye walked over with Xue Qinghe and Xue Xing.

Yang Huo's face darkened, and he said in a low voice, "Kid, I'll be waiting for you at the banquet later when we fight."

Shen An smiled without saying a word.

"Father, this is Shen An, my friend. He is extremely talented and is the one I have found to represent the royal family in battle."

Shen An stood up, his extraordinary demeanor attracting the attention of Emperor Xue Ye. Xue Xing behind him also had a glint in his eyes, as he naturally recognized Shen An.

At this moment, he sighed inwardly. He hadn't expected Shen An to be so close to Xue Qinghe. If this continued, how would Xue Beng ever compete with his older brother?

Emperor Xueye smiled and said, "Indeed, it is extraordinary. Qinghe, I trust you to handle things. Just go ahead and do it."

Xue Qinghe lowered his eyes and said obediently, "Father, rest assured, with Shen An here, we will surely be able to uphold the prestige of our royal family. Also, please look forward to today's program."

"Oh, the most captivating thing every year is Tang Yuehua's music. Is there anything more outstanding today?" Emperor Xueye asked in surprise.

"Haha, allow me to keep you in suspense for now, Father, you'll find out as you read on."

Chapter 178 The Shocking Symphony of Cat and Mouse

The show "Zhan Jin" has begun.

Many young women in tattered clothes went on stage to sing and dance. Shen An originally wanted to examine them with a critical eye, but Xue Qinghe kept chatting with him about this and that, so he couldn't concentrate on watching.

To be honest, apart from the ragged young lady, there wasn't much else to see. After all, it was ancient society, unlike the rich and diverse modern world.

The same goes for the nobles below them; they indulge in all sorts of extravagant entertainment in private, so how could they possibly be moved by these programs?

Only Tang Yuehua's music is different. Like a person's shadow or a tree's name, Tang Yuehua is famous among the nobles of Tiandou for her etiquette and music. Many nobles consider it an honor to hear Tang Yuehua's music.

And every year, the aristocratic banquet invariably concludes with music by Tang Yuehua.

Tang Yuehua stood on the stage, holding a small and exquisite silver soul tool in her hand: "The following grand finale will be quite unique, please look forward to it, nobles."

A nobleman below jeered, "Master Tang, isn't this your music? Without your music, this grand event would be half as charming!"

Tang Yuehua smiled gently and said, "This time, it will be a hundred times better than mine. It will be performed by His Highness the Crown Prince's friend, who is also Shen An's partner."

"Now, please welcome the musical maestro Tom Jerry, who far surpasses me."

Emperor Xueye was also curious. Was there such a person as Tom Jerry? If he was really far superior to Tang Yuehua, why had he never heard of him?

Bathed in the golden light of the soul tool, Tom, dressed in a tuxedo, walked out with an air of elegance, his eyes closed the entire time, his demeanor no less graceful than Tang Yuehua's.

Jerry is standing on Tom's shoulders.

Shen An was filled with pride; his cat and mouse had made something of themselves, even going on stage to show off.

Emperor Xueye was also stunned. How could a cat and a mouse play together? And why did he have such a damned elegance that most nobles couldn't match?

Tang Yuehua gently pressed the mechanism and stepped off the stage. The mechanism on the high platform was triggered, and countless musical instruments rose up.

The audience was stunned again. No, even if they could play music, they only had two bodies, four arms and four legs, two tails, and two mouths.

You have ten violins, four wind instruments, one cello, and one percussion instrument. Even a god couldn't play them all at the same time.

Tang Yuehua panicked; this was not what she had expected.

Emperor Xueye's gaze was also deep and thoughtful; the royal family valued face above all else.

Xue Qinghe frowned, not expecting things to turn out this way. He turned to look at Shen An.

Shen An chuckled and said, "Don't worry, Brother Xue. Trust Tom and Jerry. Not to mention the two of them, Tom alone is like a whole band."

Tom opened his cat eyes with a melancholy expression. Playing only the piano or harp was too simple. As music festival veterans, he and Jerry would definitely have to challenge themselves with something more difficult.

The entire arena fell silent, as many unscrupulous forces were eager to see the Heavenly Dou Royal Family make a fool of themselves.

As the music began, a peculiar scene unfolded: Tom, a cat, played a cello, ten violins, and four trombones, all accompanied by percussion music.

Jerry waved his baton and gave elegant commands, though it probably didn't work, since Tom wouldn't listen to orders.

So, after giving a few perfunctory instructions, Jerry went over to help Tom relieve some of the pressure.

A grand, epic, passionate, and magnificent melody resounded throughout the entire hall.

At this moment, the beauty of the music reached its peak, and regardless of whether they understood music or not, everyone in the audience was completely immersed in it.

The most special ones are Tang Yuehua and Xue Qinghe.

Sometimes, the music avenue is also a path, and those who perform it are like Tom Jerry, whose every move is close to the avenue itself.

Tang Yuehua felt that her understanding of music was constantly improving, as if she was making progress every moment.

Xue Qinghe was immersed in this grandeur, and his previously stagnant soul power cultivation actually broke through again.

She had only been a Soul Emperor for three months, and now she had made another breakthrough, which was simply unbelievable. The higher the soul power, the harder it was to improve, but now, because of a piece of music, she had actually made a breakthrough, which was simply a fantasy.

After the song ended, the entire venue remained silent for a long time.

It was so overwhelming that no one dared to speak and break the spell.

"it is good!"

Emperor Xueye was the first to cheer, followed by continuous applause. No one, whether friendly or hostile to the Heavenly Dou royal family, could say no to this grand performance.

Many nobles remembered Tom and Jerry's appearance, and by extension, their owner, Shen An.

Some even wanted to buy or even seize these two items from Shen An!

"The grand feast has ended, which is enough to demonstrate the imperial grandeur of Tiandou."

"I'm sure Tian Dou won't disappoint us when it comes to Soul Masters. The young men of my Barak Kingdom have long wanted to witness the might of the Empire."

At this moment, King Barak's younger brother stepped forward to speak.

As the kingdom with the strongest military power in Tiandou, the Barak Kingdom had long harbored rebellious intentions and was now eager to jump out and deflate Tiandou's prestige.

When all the kingdoms realize that the Heavenly Dou Empire is not only inadequate in its current strength, but also inadequate in its younger generation, that will be the time when the Barak Kingdom becomes an empire.

In the end, the Douluo Continent is a world where great power belongs to oneself, where the strong are respected and the weak are preyed upon by the strong.

Emperor Xue Ye did not speak; it was Xue Qinghe who stepped forward.

"Of course, the Heavenly Dou Royal Family welcomes challenges from all sides."

Xue Qinghe pointed at Shen An: "My good friend is Tom Jerry's owner. He will represent the Heavenly Dou Royal Family in this battle."

Shen An walked up to the platform without hesitation. His cat and mouse had already stolen the show, and it was his turn.

Shui Bing'er, Huo Wu, and the others had strange expressions. Shen An was fighting in place of the royal family; who could possibly defeat him now?

Even the proud Huo Wu didn't believe that any of the younger generation could beat Shen An in a one-on-one fight.

A glint flashed in Lovaki's eyes: "It really was him."

Yang Huo was already thinking of getting up to teach Shen An a lesson.

King Barak's younger brother intervened, saying, "Your Highness is so confident, you must have extraordinary cultivation. If it is too high, then our young people will not embarrass themselves by going on stage."

His words seemed to be a compliment, but in reality, he was trying to find out Shen An's cultivation level.

After all, Tiandou is indeed a vast and resource-rich place, with the three major sects all stationed there. If any peerless genius were to come and help, he could retreat in time.

Shen An laughed and said, "To be honest, my cultivation level is only Soul Master, and I haven't even obtained my fourth soul ring yet. I'm just good at fighting."

Upon hearing this, Yang Huo grinned and went up on stage. "What are you trying to prove, you mere Soul Master?"

"Barak Kingdom, Yang Huo, Level 41, Martial Soul: Sunflower, Control-type Soul Master."

As he spoke, four spirit rings—white, yellow, yellow, and purple—rose up.

"Shen An, Soul Master, Martial Soul: Nine-Leaf Sword Grass".

To be honest, Shen An didn't understand why he had to reveal so much information when fighting, but since his opponent was like that, he just gave a token amount of information.

Yang Huo looked over with a mocking gaze. Everyone knew that among soul masters of the same level, those with a control-type soul master were the most powerful, not to mention that he was a level higher than Shen An.

Defeating Shen An would be a piece of cake, but he planned to use the sunflower's spiritual poison to thoroughly humiliate Shen An and make him lose face in front of everyone.

Chapter 179 Tang San's Inclination Towards Evil Soul Masters

Emperor Xueye was also taken aback. A Soul Venerable fighting a Soul Sect? That didn't sound very plausible.