I've also recently started a new translation, please check it out and show your support! Douluo: Seven Kill Shock the World
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Due to Sky Water Academy forfeiting, Lan Ba Academy automatically won the final round of the preliminaries. With little enthusiasm, Chu Chengzhou and his team went to the stands to watch the last leg of the preliminary matches.
After a fierce battle (or perhaps just a skirmish among weaker opponents?), at 10 a.m., the Tian Dou Division preliminaries officially concluded. The five spots for the advancement tournament, as well as the specific rankings, were finalized.
Lan Ba Academy secured first place in the Tian Dou Division preliminaries with a perfect record of 27 wins.
God Wind Academy, Thunderbolt Academy, and Blazing Fire Academy all ended with identical records of 25 wins and 2 losses out of 27 matches. Since God Wind lost to Blazing Fire, Blazing Fire lost to Thunderbolt, and Thunderbolt lost to God Wind, the three academies tied for second place without any distinction in ranking.
Sky Water Academy finished fifth with a record of 23 wins and 4 losses out of 27 matches.
Following the standard procedure, an awards ceremony was held next to present qualification certificates for the advancement tournament to the top five teams.
The ceremony wasn't complicated. All 28 academy teams that participated in the preliminaries gathered in front of the main stage. Then, under the host's announcement, the captains and vice-captains of the top five teams stepped onto the stage.
Representing Lan Ba Academy were Chu Chengzhou and Xiao Wu. As they walked onto the stage, they immediately felt several hostile glares directed their way.
Aside from Sky Water Academy, who hadn't formally faced off against them, the captains and vice-captains of the other three academies all looked at Chu Chengzhou with resentment.
Among them, Huo Wu of Blazing Fire Academy was the most visibly angry, almost wishing she could strip Chu Chengzhou's skin off.
This was because either they themselves or their teammates had been hung from trees by Chu Chengzhou. Huo Wu, being the first to suffer such humiliation—and also being female—was particularly incensed.
Facing these hostile gazes, Chu Chengzhou simply glared back.
The grievances of a few defeated opponents? Not worth mentioning!
After asserting dominance, Chu Chengzhou couldn't help but take a closer look at Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu from Sky Water Academy.
"Long blue legs—if I were to practice rope art, wouldn't that be quite pleasing to the eye?"
What a pity!
But maybe there'll still be a chance during the advancement tournament?
"Next, His Majesty, along with Sect Leader Ning Fengzhi of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect and Platinum Bishop Salas of the Spirit Hall, will personally award the qualification certificates and prize money to the five teams advancing to the next stage!"
With this, the ceremony began, and the host's voice rang out.
The qualification certificate was essentially a handwritten letter. There was no fear of forgery. After all, both the Tian Dou Empire and the Spirit Hall were well aware of which academies had advanced, so faking it was impossible.
As for the prize money? To be honest, Chu Chengzhou didn't care much about it.
All five top-ranked academies received the same reward, even Lan Ba Academy, despite finishing first. This was just the preliminaries, after all. Each team received a reward of 10,000 gold spirit coins from the Tian Dou Empire.
Once the qualification certificates and rewards were distributed, the host handed the microphone over to Emperor Xue Ye, the host of the Tian Dou Division.
Xue Ye's gaze swept across the representatives of the five academies, lingering a bit longer on Chu Chengzhou before he smiled and said: "First of all, children, I congratulate you. You have successfully earned the right to advance to this year's Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament!
As the supreme ruler of the Tian Dou Empire, I am proud of you. You are all the future hope of the empire.
And as team captains and vice-captains, you have played crucial roles in the competition. I've seen all of it.
Therefore, I have decided to bestow upon you ten individuals the title of viscount within the empire, and the other participants from your five academies shall receive the title of baron.
Once you graduate from your respective academies, the imperial family's doors will always be open to you. Your fiefs will be allocated after graduation!"
"Your Majesty, is this appropriate?"
As soon as Xue Ye finished speaking, Salas suddenly interjected.
Xue Ye glanced at Salas indifferently: "Is there any issue, Bishop Salas?"
"Your Majesty, there has never been a precedent of awarding noble titles in previous tournaments. Moreover, aren't these titles too high?"
Salas frowned as he spoke.
In both the Tian Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire, noble ranks were ordered as duke, marquis, count, viscount, and baron.
Granting ten viscounts and ten barons for merely qualifying through the preliminaries was an unprecedented level of generosity that astonished everyone present.
Of course, whether Xue Ye was truly generous or not was originally unrelated to Salas.
However, if Xue Ye was willing to spend so lavishly, wouldn't the Spirit Hall need to match or exceed this investment to recruit talent?
If they did, the cost would be exorbitant.
Moreover, inequality breeds discontent. If new recruits were given such lavish treatment, what about those recruited earlier? Everyone was of similar talent—why should one group receive better treatment? This would harm internal unity.
But if they didn't invest similarly, wouldn't all the talented individuals emerging from the Tian Dou Division this year go straight to Tian Dou?
At this moment, Salas was extremely displeased.
Salas: Damn you, Xue Ye, you're completely disregarding martial ethics!
Immediately, Xue Ye retorted: "Platinum Bishop, the granting of noble titles is an internal matter of the empire, unrelated to the Spirit Hall or this tournament. It's merely a reward for my admiration of these children!
Furthermore, I will make another promise.
If any of your teams win the final competition, the entire team's noble rank will be elevated by one level. Additionally, your academy's name will gain the prefix 'Royal,' and you will enjoy financial support from the empire!"
As he spoke, Xue Ye looked at the representatives of the five academy teams, pausing especially on Chu Chengzhou for two seconds.
If one were to ask which of the five advancing teams had the potential to win the championship, in Xue Ye's view, perhaps only Lan Ba Academy stood a chance—but even then, the likelihood wasn't very high.
After all, the Spirit Hall's so-called Golden Generation possessed undeniable talent and strength. With three Soul Kings and four Soul Ancestors, the championship of this Soul Master Tournament would likely once again fall into the hands of the Spirit Hall.
However, Xue Ye wasn't upset. If this generation couldn't do it, there would always be the next. For example, Chu Chengzhou, who would still meet the age requirements for the Soul Master Tournament five years from now.
Upon hearing Xue Ye's promise, Salas's expression turned sour, but he didn't say much, though his eyes grew darker.
On the other hand, Ning Fengzhi remained silent with a faint smile, seemingly indifferent to everything.
"If the entire team's noble rank is promoted after winning the championship, I'd become a count—a count with actual power. Should I aim to become a decadent noble lord in Tian Dou?"
Chu Chengzhou thought to himself.
The noble titles granted by Xue Ye weren't honorary titles given to anyone above level 30 who joined the Tian Dou Empire and served it.
Honorary nobility, in essence, were just regular hired fighters kept by the Tian Dou Empire. They were paid salaries based on their rank, but when needed, it was time for them to risk their lives.
If they happened to lose their lives, aside from a substantial compensation payment to their blood relatives, that was all they'd get.
But real nobles with fiefs were different. Though they also had to fight when called upon, within their fiefs, they were like miniature kings. Aside from paying taxes and maintaining diplomatic and military alignment with the empire, they enjoyed significant autonomy, including but not limited to the infamous droit du seigneur.
Most importantly, honorary titles couldn't be inherited, but actual noble titles could be passed down to descendants.
"Hmm, a Count is still a bit low. Let's see…"
After some thought, Chu Chengzhou felt that a Count's rank was beneath him—it didn't suit his status.
To put it bluntly, considering his status as Ning Fengzhi's future son-in-law, he should at least start as a Marquis, right?
Xue Ye didn't miss Salas's sour expression, but he didn't care. What he feared was the Spirit Hall as a massive entity, not Salas, who merely wore the Spirit Hall's cloak.
A Platinum Bishop and the Hall Master of the Tian Dou Spirit Hall paled in comparison to him, the emperor of Tian Dou.
Ignoring Salas, Xue Ye smiled and continued: "The upcoming advancement tournament will still be held within the empire, but the venue will shift from the Grand Spirit Arena to the Royal Hunting Grounds.
At that time, the ten teams from the four kingdoms and one duchy under the empire that qualified through their preliminaries will join you in the advancement tournament.
I hope that all five of your academies perform well in the advancement tournament. Doing so will give you an advantage in the finals.
Moreover, the subsequent advancement tournament will be the best stage to showcase your individual strengths. The top three students with the most victories in the advancement tournament will be provided by the empire with soul beasts required for their next title advancement.
You can choose the type of soul beast you want, and the empire guarantees any soul beast below 30,000 years of cultivation."
Upon hearing this, Chu Chengzhou's eyelids twitched slightly.
Could you, Emperor Xue Ye, guarantee a near-30,000-year-old Dark Demon God Tiger?
Among the known experts within the Tian Dou Empire, aside from Dust Heart of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, Bone Elder Gu Rong, and Thunder Douluo Yu Yuanzhen of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, there probably wasn't anyone who could handle a near-30,000-year-old Dark Demon God Tiger, right?
A 20,000-year-old Dark Demon God Tiger could already send Ling Yuan Elder of the Spirit Hall running for his life, and a near-30,000-year-old one would likely be more than enough to take down Elder Dugu Bo, a Titled Douluo.
To be honest, Xue Ye's promise wasn't particularly appealing.
After all, only three slots for hunting soul beasts were promised, and soul beasts below 30,000 years didn't require reliance on the Tian Dou Empire to hunt.
When the time came for additional soul rings to advance, the academy would naturally arrange for high-level experts to lead the expedition.
Besides Lan Ba Academy, each of the other four elemental academies had at least one eight-ring Soul Douluo.
With an eight-ring expert leading the way, aside from absurdly powerful targets like the Dark Golden Terror Claw Bear or the Dark Demon God Tiger, soul beasts below 30,000 years would be easily dealt with.
However, Xue Ye's face couldn't be ignored. Including Chu Chengzhou, all ten showed signs of interest.
Xue Ye smiled faintly and continued: "The advancement tournament will be held in one month. I hope you can break through further within this period.
That's all I'll say for now. You children are all smart—I'm sure you'll make wise choices!"
After speaking, Xue Ye's gaze briefly swept over Platinum Bishop Salas before he turned and left, escorted by a group of high-ranking officials.
Salas's eyes flickered slightly, but his expression had already fully calmed. It was hard to discern anything from his demeanor.
As Xue Ye had said, everyone present was intelligent. Although he hadn't explicitly stated it, the captains and vice-captains of the academy teams understood his meaning: choose between the empire and the Spirit Hall.
Choose between the two?
Chu Chengzhou glanced at Xue Qinghe, who had left alongside Xue Ye.
Only kids make choices—adults take everything!
Whether we can defeat them or not, we'll join anyway. Sooner or later, both the Tian Dou Empire and the Spirit Hall will change their surnames to follow me!
Afterward, Chu Chengzhou and Xiao Wu exited the Grand Spirit Arena to meet up with Ning Rongrong and the others.
"Brother, Emperor Xue Ye has granted us noble titles. Are you going to become a noble?"
Xiao Wu asked Chu Chengzhou.
"Become one? Of course I will! How could I refuse a free noble title?"
Chu Chengzhou replied without hesitation.
"Really? Then may I ask, Lord Chu, are you planning to take on a few more noble wives?"
Xiao Wu's gaze turned dangerous.
She had heard from Ning Rongrong before that many nobles in the Tian Dou Empire were quite lustful, often taking up to eighteen concubines.
If this trashy little Chu became a noble lord, wouldn't Xiao Wu's number of little sisters increase exponentially?
"How could I? Xiao Wu, you must trust my character. With you, Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing, I'm already satisfied!"
Chu Chengzhou inwardly cursed his slip-up and quickly grabbed Xiao Wu's hand, his face full of sincerity.
"What? Zhu Zhuqing too? She fell into your trap?"
Xiao Wu's eyes widened.
"Cough, well, seeing how close the three of you are as sisters, I couldn't bear to let you drift apart after graduation!"
Chu Chengzhou awkwardly explained.
He had almost forgotten that Xiao Wu didn't know yet that, following Ning Rongrong as the second sister, the big cat had also reluctantly become her third sister!
"You're despicable!"
Gritting her teeth, Xiao Wu grabbed Chu Chengzhou's arm and bit down hard.
Feeling the pain from his arm, Chu Chengzhou winced. What was this biting nonsense? If you've got the guts, bite me, little rabbit!
Of course, Chu Chengzhou didn't dare to say that aloud, fearing a beating.
"Hmph!"
Seeing Chu Chengzhou endure silently, Xiao Wu lost interest in biting him and coldly humphed, walking toward the exit of the arena.
But to say she was truly angry? Not really.
Wasn't it expected that her little sister Zhu Zhuqing would become the third sister?
Xiao Wu's pretense of anger was just to prevent this scoundrel from pushing his luck and finding more sisters for her.
"Hey? Xiao Wu, what's wrong?"
At the entrance of the arena, Ning Rongrong curiously asked upon seeing Xiao Wu storm out angrily.
Zhu Zhuqing also cast a curious glance.
Xiao Wu didn't speak but glanced at Zhu Zhuqing and then glared back at Chu Chengzhou.
There was nothing she could do. This was her very close little sister, and they still needed to unite against external threats. She could only blame Chu Chengzhou, the culprit.
Seeing this, Ning Rongrong seemed thoughtful, while Zhu Zhuqing blushed slightly.
"Cough, well, let's head back to the academy!"
Waving his hand, Chu Chengzhou called out to the group.
"Don't! Boss Chu, we've finally won first place in the preliminaries. As the team captain, shouldn't you treat us to a good meal?"
Ma Hongjun quickly chimed in.
"That's right, Boss Chu, you should treat us!"
Oscar echoed.
Their back-and-forth immediately gained unanimous approval from the group.
Winning first place in the preliminaries deserved a celebration.
"Coincidentally, our team just received a cash prize. Let's head to the Tian Dou Grand Hotel!"
Smacking his lips, Chu Chengzhou didn't refuse and readily agreed.
"Prize money? Boss Chu, public funds are public, and private funds are private. You've already earned the most among us—how can you use the prize money? This meal must come out of your own pocket!"
Hearing that Chu Chengzhou intended to "misappropriate public funds" for the treat, Ma Hongjun immediately protested strongly.
In ordinary spirit battles, as long as one side had decent fame or performance, the Grand Spirit Arena would open betting pools. And this was the Soul Master Tournament! On the Douluo Continent, where entertainment wasn't thriving, the once-every-five-years Soul Master Tournament surpassed even the World Cup from Chu Chengzhou's previous life.
Given their Lan Ba team's overwhelming strength, placing bets on their own team was akin to picking up money with their eyes wide open. Naturally, no one would pass up such an opportunity—no one ever complained about having too much shiny coin.
Even so, the poorest among them, Ma Hongjun and Oscar, had entered the middle class. It was estimated that for a long time, these two would become frequent visitors to high-end clubs throughout Tian Dou City.
Chu Chengzhou shook his head and said: "Fatty, you're mistaken. Principal Flender earned even more than me."
"How is that the same? The money I won from betting belongs to the academy!"
Flender adjusted his glasses and snapped irritably.
"Fine, it's just one meal. I'll treat you! Let's go to the nearby Home Inn instead of the Tian Dou Grand Hotel!"
It was hard to defy the group's wishes, so Chu Chengzhou couldn't refuse, though he lowered the hotel tier significantly.
The group: "..."
Ma Hongjun and Oscar silently flipped him off, shooting him disdainful looks.
"Alright, it's almost noon. Let's go!"
With that, Chu Chengzhou led the way toward the nearby Home Inn.
"Chu Chengzhou!"
At that moment, an unexpected voice called out to him.
Turning around, Chu Chengzhou saw a fiery figure approaching—it was Huo Wu from Blazing Fire Academy.
"What is it?"
Raising an eyebrow, Chu Chengzhou asked in surprise.
Striding forward with her long, fair legs, Huo Wu stared at this handsome young man, who appeared younger than her but had an 'extremely vile' personality, and said: "Do you have the guts to fight me without using your martial soul?"
Chu Chengzhou was momentarily stunned. Who gave you the courage to fight me without martial souls?
Whose idiot is this? Please collect in Aisle 4.
The members of Lan Ba Academy at the side all twitched their lips. Just recently, two audacious Soul Sages had fallen to Chu Chengzhou's arrows!
Their heads had been blown apart, red and white splattering everywhere—it was a gruesome sight!
Shaking his head, Chu Chengzhou said: "I don't have time to play house with you."
"Play house? How dare you! Chu Chengzhou, if you're a man, fight me!"
Being likened to children playing house, Huo Wu gritted her teeth in anger.
"First, let me clarify something. Although I have girlfriends, I'm still technically a boy.
Second, whether or not I'm a man has nothing to do with you. Are you suggesting you want to help me transition from boy to man?"
Chu Chengzhou teased, stroking his chin.
The next second, before Huo Wu could respond, three jade-like hands landed on his waist, pinching his soft flesh.
"Ouch~!"
Instantly, Chu Chengzhou sucked in a breath of cold air, paying the price for his teasing words.
"Let go, let go! You're going to ruin me!"
Chu Chengzhou hurriedly grabbed Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong's hands. As for the big cat? Thankfully, her pinch wasn't too hard.
"Hmph!"
The three girls responded with cold humphs.
Huo Wu, overwhelmed by jealousy: "..."
"Enough, Miss Huo Wu. Go do whatever you need to do!
You couldn't beat me on the competition platform, and off the platform, you definitely can't either—even without martial souls.
To be honest, the rules of the Soul Master Tournament restricted my full potential."
Waving his hand, Chu Chengzhou addressed Huo Wu.
"I don't believe you. Take this!"
Once again underestimated, Huo Wu's anger flared uncontrollably, and she finally exploded.
A powerful kick launched toward Chu Chengzhou's chin—if it connected, it would surely knock out a few teeth.
Facing the incoming kick, Chu Chengzhou swiftly extended his right hand, grabbing Huo Wu's ankle. He then subtly shook his arm, neutralizing the force of the kick.
At that moment, Huo Wu felt the power of her kick dissipate like mud sinking into the sea. Chu Chengzhou's grip on her ankle was as unyielding as iron—no matter how hard she struggled, she couldn't break free.
"The world is so beautiful, yet you're so short-tempered. That's not good, not good."
Glancing inadvertently at the red undergarment beneath her red skirt, Chu Chengzhou sighed and shook his head.
"Fine, I, Chu Chengzhou, won't hold grudges against petty people. I'll forgive you this time. But if you dare to cause trouble again, I'll make you experience the taste of solitary confinement!"
After issuing this warning, Chu Chengzhou released her ankle.
Then, Chu Chengzhou and the Lan Ba Academy group headed toward the Tian Dou Grand Hotel—or rather, the much lower-tier Home Inn not far from it.
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