Chapter 27: J-b-23

The seven days passed very quickly.

Disciplined training felt both dull and boring.

For Wang Che, it did not feel like anything at all; the forgotten years of Cultivation were even more monotonous…

But for children who went to school during the day, after school, they tended to play and rest.

Only a small number in the class would join clubs after school for Soul Pet Battles and training.

Most were steadily improving.

Most students viewed the Dawn Cup as more about participation than winning.

After all, everyone knew their own limits.

Tianyue Battle Club.

Since the start of the school term, many students had gradually joined the club.

As Yuan Xiaole had predicted, using Wang Che’s reputation indeed attracted many of the opposite sex—and some of the same sex—to join the club.

So, Tianyue Club gradually grew busier.

The students who joined all had some ambition; they wanted to achieve a certain level of strength in the Dawn Cup.

Naturally, the daily battles in the club were endless.

There were too many to watch.

“It’s all just a bunch of rookies fighting each other,” Yuan Xiaole said arrogantly, watching the matches on several platforms below. “Apart from Brother Che, there isn’t a single strong one. Looks like for this competition, the final will just be between Brother Che and me…”

“Right, Kuka Beast?”

“Kuka!!” The Kuka Beast beside him, which had grown noticeably larger, patted its chest.

“Good, you’re truly my Soul Pet,” Yuan Xiaole said. His eyes swept around and he seemed to spot something, then hurried downstairs from the second floor.

“Brother Che!” Yuan Xiaole walked over cheerfully. “The competition starts tomorrow. Aren’t you going back early to rest?”

The person arriving was Wang Che.

“I’m getting paid, so I have to be responsible,” Wang Che said with a smile. “I still need to come by every day.”

“Ah!” Yuan Xiaole waved his hand. “To be honest, your name really works. More students have joined our Tianyue Club this semester than in previous years. Everyone gets what they need; it doesn’t matter if you come or not!”

As he spoke, Yuan Xiaole glanced at the Green Caterpillar behind Wang Che.

This Green Caterpillar had grown much larger than before.

Its Soul Power Cultivation seemed to have reached seventy years.

It was munching on some snack, its mouth all black, looking silly.

Yuan Xiaole pinched his chin and thought for a moment.

Over these seven days, his Kuka Beast had grown much stronger and had learned a Soul Skill.

If what his dad and Professor Yan said that day was true, this Green Caterpillar’s strength should be unusual.

But now…

‘At worst, we should be evenly matched. No matter how strong this Green Caterpillar is, it can only learn one Soul Skill, and it’s Silk Spitting, which isn’t very powerful.’

Yuan Xiaole pondered. ‘But this Green Caterpillar’s Soul Power Cultivation is rising really fast.’

“By the way, Brother Che, do you know who the tough opponents are in this Dawn Cup?” Yuan Xiaole asked with a smile.

“Not really. I haven’t paid much attention,” Wang Che shook his head.

He had been training intensively these days; even the Green Caterpillar could only eat snacks on the go.

When it came to chasing stories, Wang Che could only spare time to write a few hundred words and add some pictures.

But nothing could stop the child’s deep sense of immersion…

Naturally, he had no time to care about who the tough opponents were.

“But no matter how tough they are, they probably aren’t as tough as me,” Wang Che said.

“…” Yuan Xiaole.

“Then it’s fine,” Yuan Xiaole quickly said. “Apart from our No.1 Middle School, there are two or three students in the other two high schools who have Ultra-Rare Soul Pets. They’re really strong. But the Dawn Cup isn’t even for new team leaders, so even with Ultra-Rare Soul Pets, if the Soul Power years aren’t far apart, the strength gap won’t be too big.”

“But, honestly, Lin Xi from your class is really strong,” Yuan Xiaole thought for a moment. “Inside information—do you know which club Lin Xi joined?”

Wang Che shook his head.

“It’s Lieyang Club, one of the top Soul Pact Master clubs in our Donghua War Zone. The founder of this club is also a Titled Heavenly King from our Donghua War Zone, Lieyang Heavenly King.”

Yuan Xiaole sighed. “My dad is in this circle, otherwise I wouldn’t know. Lieyang Club isn’t even in our Tianxin City; it’s in Rongdu, the capital of our Xiyue Continent. They don’t even target high school seniors.”

“Probably, she might be a strong contender for the Dawn Cup championship. You and I can aim for top five or top ten.”

As soon as Yuan Xiaole finished speaking, the Kuka Beast beside him patted its chest and made a few sounds.

“It seems to be saying… that’s not what you said earlier?” Wang Che glanced at Yuan Xiaole.

“How did you know… ahem, I was just bragging earlier, but this is the truth…” Yuan Xiaole quickly coughed a few times.

Wang Che smiled.

He wandered around the club with Yuan Xiaole for a while, then returned home.

After getting plenty of rest, Wang Che went to the Dawn Cup competition venue early the next morning.

Tianxin Stadium.

Even though it was just a small welcoming competition limited to Tianxin City, there were quite a few people.

The competition lasted three days, and high school, middle school, and elementary school all had three days off.

Besides Tianxin City, other cities in Xiyue Continent basically held their own Dawn Cup competitions.

This was to encourage high school seniors and other growing youths.

Wang Che wanted to win the championship mainly because the rewards were so good.

Especially for first place.

A hundred thousand in prize money, food, potions, Soul Guiding Devices…

Most importantly, Wang Che valued the so-called opportunity for training and exploration outside the War Zone.

What was outside the War Zone?

Wang Che didn’t know. It seemed that in the knowledge he had studied so far, there was very little information about outside the War Zone.

The only thing he could gather was one word: dangerous.

He knew nothing else.

Arriving at the stadium, it was crowded, but there were many signs along the way.

Registration had been completed online a few days earlier.

Participants just needed to know their competition area and number.

Wang Che opened his Communicator, clicked on the Xiyue Continent Soul Pet Battle APP, then found the Dawn Cup section for Tianxin City, entered his name and ID, aligned it with himself, and went through a series of simple procedures like facial recognition, iris scan, and fingerprint verification.

Then, a line of text appeared in the program:

“Entering participant information, matching… Your competition area is J Zone, Platform 8, participant number 23.”

“There is one hour until the competition starts.”

“Please show your QR code during the competition.”

“Huh? J-b-23?”

Wang Che thought about it… and felt the number was quite good.

Entering the stadium, Wang Che went straight to the waiting area.

There were also many participants in the waiting area, which was on the third floor, offering a direct view of the matches in J Zone below.

After watching the matches for a while, Wang Che spotted two classmates.

It wasn’t that much of a coincidence.

But in less than five minutes, one of them was eliminated, and the other advanced.

The one who was eliminated had an opponent with a Soul Pet called Young Feather Eagle, a Sky Element Soul Pet. With its inherent flying ability in the early stages, the opponent’s Sharp Touch Insect, which hadn’t even grasped a Soul Skill, was at a disadvantage from the start.

One dive attack almost instantly defeated that Sharp Touch Insect.

Moreover, in terms of cultivation, that Sharp Touch Insect’s cultivation was actually higher.

Not to mention a common Soul Pet like the Sharp Touch Insect; even if it were a Rare Soul Pet, it would still be hard to fight.