Douluo: I Can Choose My Own Soul Skills

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"Alright, alright, Xiong Er, Da Ju, you two can go back now," Ye Lan said as he rubbed the two soul beasts. These two soul beasts had been e

"Alright, alright, Xiong Er, Da Ju, you two can go back now," Ye Lan said as he rubbed the two soul beasts. These two soul beasts had been e

"Alright, alright, Xiong Er, Da Ju, you two can go back now," Ye Lan said as he rubbed the two soul beasts. These two soul beasts had been e

"Alright, alright, Xiong Er, Da Ju, you two can go back now," Ye Lan said as he rubbed the two soul beasts.

These two soul beasts had been eating Blue Silver Grass every day and had grown noticeably chubby. Who knows if he'll run into these two again the next time he returns to the Star Dou Great Forest.

Thanks to Xiong Er's guidance these past few days, Ye Lan had fought various soul beasts and seen a sharp rise in his combat experience.

With no further room for improvement in his soul skills, Ye Lan decided it was time to head to Soto City.

Xiong Er and Da Ju rubbed their heads affectionately against Ye Lan. After giving each beast a firm head rub, he turned and walked northward.

The two beasts lay on the ground, watching Ye Lan disappear into the setting sun.

Through their time spent together, this odd pair had somehow become close friends.

With a very human-like gesture, Xiong Er patted Da Ju on the shoulder, then eagerly rushed home to find his little wife.

Da Ju, on the other hand, shrugged his shoulders, yawned, and strolled back to the mountains for a nap.

Heaven Dou Empire – Balak Kingdom – Soto City

Ye Lan journeyed northward from the Star Dou Great Forest and finally arrived at Soto City, one of the key cities of the Heaven Dou Empire.

Located to the south of the Star Dou Great Forest, Soto City boasted abundant soul beast resources. Leveraging this advantage, it had gradually developed into Balak Kingdom's most important city for the soul beast economy. The city's tax revenue formed a vital part of the kingdom's income.

Ye Lan raised his head and looked at the imposing city gates before steadying his spirit and entering the city.

His Grand Soul Master badge, pinned to his chest, didn't draw much attention in Soto City. Ye Lan passed unnoticed.

He soon observed that the crowd in Soto City was unusual today—many adults were accompanying teenagers.

From their conversations, Ye Lan gathered that they had come to register at Soto City Soul Master Academy.

Could it be the start of a new term at Shrek Academy?

If that's the case, then Zhu Zhuqing, who used his map, must've arrived more than ten days early. Who knows what unexpected developments her early arrival might bring?

While wandering around Soto City in search of lodging, Ye Lan's attention was drawn to a noisy pair not far away—a boy and a girl whose loud voices made them hard to ignore.

They appeared to be about fourteen or fifteen years old. The girl had a youthful and beautiful face, dressed in simple clothes that clearly marked her as a farmer's daughter.

The boy was short, wearing a red leather jacket stretched tightly around his plump body.

He had a spiky red mohawk, round eyes, a short nose, a chubby face like a ball, and a pair of thin mustache-like whiskers above his lips.

Strangest of all, the chubby boy had dark purple rings around his eyes.

He clung tightly to the girl's right arm, while she kept struggling and pushing him away.

"Can you stop pestering me already, Ma Hongjun!?"

"Don't ever come looking for me again—we're breaking up!" The girl looked anxious as she tried to break free.

Ma Hongjun's eyes were filled with lustful fire as he said in a creepy tone, "Cuihua, what did I do wrong? Can't you give me another chance? Let's not break up, okay?"

Cuihua's face turned pale. "Another chance? What do you take me for? Go find someone else! I'm only fifteen! I'm begging you—just leave me alone from now on!"

Ma Hongjun loosened his grip slightly but then threatened her, "Fine, we can break up, but only if you give me one last breakup bang. Otherwise, no deal!"

Hearing this, Cuihua realized that, in Ma Hongjun's eyes, she was nothing more than a tool.

Fury surged within her. Without hesitation, she opened her mouth and bit down hard on Ma Hongjun's arm.

He had never seen her this angry, and before he could react, he was screaming in pain from her iron bite.

No wonder he was the personal disciple of Shrek's headmaster—he was only taught how to cultivate, not how to behave.

No—more accurately, he hadn't even been taught proper cultivation, and as for morals? Clearly, he was taught that being timid meant being useless.

Shaking off Cuihua's fierce bite, Ma Hongjun looked at the clear teeth marks on his arm, full of self-pity.

Just as he was about to demand compensation for his injury—or even suggest she use her body to repay him—he heard a voice from a golden-haired young man nearby.

"Hey, fatty! Didn't anyone teach you to respect women?"

"Bullying the weak isn't a soul master's code of conduct."

Ye Lan couldn't stand watching anymore and stepped forward to confront Ma Hongjun.

Ma Hongjun, furious, had found a target for his rage. "Who the hell are you? You dare butt into my business?"

Smack!

As soon as Ma Hongjun finished shouting, Ye Lan activated his soul skill—Echo Step.

In an instant, he closed the distance and landed a fierce slap across Ma Hongjun's fat face.

Ma Hongjun was sent flying, trailing a line of bright red nosebleed through the air.

He rolled across the muddy ground several times before finally managing to stop his rotund body.

Clutching his right cheek, which now burned with pain, Ma Hongjun could feel it had swollen noticeably.

From the corner of his eye, he could see his face had puffed up on one side.

"You're a soul master?!" From the pain, Ma Hongjun realized this blond young man wasn't ordinary.

"Not too stupid. Now learn to watch your mouth," Ye Lan warned.

"Tch!" Ma Hongjun scoffed, trying to act indifferent, but he didn't dare speak rudely again.

"So you're a soul master too, huh? Then whether you can meddle in my business depends on whether you've got the strength to back it up! Don't think that sneak attacking me means you can lecture me. Let me show you what a monster-level soul master really is!"

Without hesitation, Ma Hongjun shouted, "Martial Soul Possession—Phoenix!"

A purplish-red glow surrounded him. His spiky red mohawk stood up even more, and long purplish-red feathers grew from his arms.

His fingers turned into sharp talons, and his chubby frame bulked up considerably.

Two yellow soul rings rose from beneath his feet. With his swollen face and bruised eye sockets, Ma Hongjun still wore a proud expression, as if he had transformed into a majestic phoenix.

Onlookers nearby gasped in awe.

A soul master with two yellow rings—this was the hallmark of a genius.

As Ma Hongjun activated his Martial Soul Possession, black lines formed on Ye Lan's forehead. Is this supposed to be a phoenix? He thought it looked more like a fat chicken than anything majestic.

"A phoenix? Looks more like a roast chicken. It's been a while since I had roast chicken… I wonder if Soto City sells any," Ye Lan muttered as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"I'm not a fat chicken! I'm a phoenix!" Ma Hongjun roared, as if Ye Lan had hit a sore spot.

His first yellow soul ring lit up as he opened his mouth wide, purple energy rapidly gathering inside.

Szzzt!

A stream of purplish-red flames burst from Ma Hongjun's mouth.

The high-temperature beam distorted the air around it. Even before the flames reached Ye Lan, a wave of heat had already swept across his face.

Ye Lan stepped back instantly, narrowly avoiding the flame jet. Ma Hongjun's first soul skill had a range of about five meters.

"So short," Ye Lan commented.

Flushed with anger, Ma Hongjun charged at Ye Lan while continuing to breathe fire, determined to roast the blond youth.

As the purple flames neared him, Ye Lan focused soul power into his legs, boosting his speed, and dashed sideways past the stream of fire.

Ma Hongjun was surprised to see Ye Lan rushing toward him instead of backing away.

Delighted, he quickly turned his head to aim at Ye Lan again. Does this guy really think my flames can't follow him?

(End of Chapter)