Douluo Dalu: Starting With Tom Cat

Upstairs, there are three well-furnished rooms, with the others simply having beds. However, if people need to stay, it's no problem at all.

Ning Rongrong followed Shen An upstairs, though she wasn't sure why she had come here. Perhaps it was because Shen An was the only person she had any connection with in Soto City.

She had run away from home and, in this foreign place, when others bullied her, there was no one to rely on. Her instinct was to find someone familiar, even if just to be near them.

After Shen An sent Ning Rongrong to her room, he returned to his own, where he lay curled up on his bed, looking quite pitiful. He sighed, then decided to keep her company for a while.

"Let's talk. Why did Dai Mubai hit you? And why are they isolating you?"

Upon hearing this, Ning Rongrong's lips quivered, and she spoke with a sob, "I didn't train properly and went out to play. That old man Flender wanted to kick me out, and when I didn't leave, he had Dai Mubai deal with me."

"Then I mocked Dai Mubai a little and compared him to you. He got mad and hit me."

"Look, I've got bruises on my arm." Ning Rongrong pulled up her sleeve, revealing her once smooth, fair arm now marked with dark purple bruises.

Shen An saw the dust on Ning Rongrong's skirt and noticed the bruises on her body. He asked, "Why did they isolate you? Did something happen?"

"Oscar told me they went to the Soto Arena," Ning Rongrong replied.

"What's that for?" Shen An asked.

"It's where soul masters battle. As long as you keep winning, you can earn money and fame. It's a place where ambitious soul masters can show off," Ning Rongrong explained.

Shen An, who had been ready to sleep, suddenly lost his desire for rest. This sounds like a great place! Forget about the money, but the fame is really tempting!

He grabbed Ning Rongrong and pulled her up from the bed. "Let's go, let's go, no sleeping. We're going out."

"What for? Be gentler, it hurts," Ning Rongrong pouted as she looked at the wrist Shen An was holding.

With excitement in his voice, Shen An replied, "We're going to the Soto Arena! I want to see how strong those soul masters are. Tonight, we'll make a name for ourselves!"

Ning Rongrong looked at Shen An's handsome, gentle face, and the stars in his bright eyes seemed to contain an indescribable charm.

Her heart started racing inexplicably, and her face grew hot.

He's serious, he wants to go to the Arena to help me get revenge, right? Ning Rongrong's heart was full of confusing thoughts as she looked at Shen An, her cheeks turning red.

Of course, he wants to help me take revenge on Dai Mubai. The Arena is dangerous, so why else would he go?

Ning Rongrong couldn't explain the sudden warm feeling in her chest. She just felt that Shen An was actually quite a nice person.

She softly said, "Okay, let's go. But you need to be careful inside. The fights can be life-or-death, and even the lighter ones can result in serious injury."

"Don't worry. The ones who should be worried are them, not me. I'm very strong," Shen An said confidently.

Soon, Shen An and Ning Rongrong arrived at the Soto Arena, a grand building standing in the center of Soto City, nearly a hundred meters tall and immense in size.

Ning Rongrong was familiar with the rules of the Arena and quickly registered Shen An. She even paid for his registration fee.

"The Soto Arena is huge, with 24 sub-arenas and one main arena. The battles here are divided into two types: strategic matches and death matches."

"There's also a special betting match, but that's rare and usually only happens between soul masters or families with personal grudges."

Shen An thought for a moment and then said, "Let's sign up for a strategic match first. We'll leave the death match for later and get a feel for things."

Shen An and Ning Rongrong were assigned to the 14th Arena for the strategic match.

Ning Rongrong signed them up for both one-on-one and two-on-two battles because each soul master could only participate in one strategic match per day but could join different types.

Shen An didn't mind and left everything to Ning Rongrong to handle.

He had confirmed that only soul masters with equal strength would be matched up, meaning he'd only face opponents at the Soul Grandmaster level.

At this level, Shen An was confident he would be unbeatable.

As for Ning Rongrong, she only signed up for the two-on-two matches alongside Shen An. After all, as a support-type soul master, fighting on her own would be asking for trouble.

It's also worth mentioning that when Ning Rongrong signed them up for the two-on-two match, she gave their team a name without even asking Shen An.

Since others had already signed up, Shen An and Ning Rongrong went to the waiting area.

Tom had followed Shen An the whole way. No matter how many times people saw a cat walking upright, it was always eye-catching. And in Soto City, Tom was the only cat that did this.

Many people turned to look at him in surprise, as Tom had become quite the celebrity. Some people who had been to Shen An's shop whispered among themselves.

As soon as Shen An entered, many gazes turned toward him.

Tang San had been waiting in the resting area. When he saw Shen An enter, he was slightly moved.

"He's here. I wonder if I'll get to face him. It would be great to experience his abilities in this strategic match."

Ever since Tang San had witnessed Shen An defeating Dai Mubai so effortlessly, he had seen Shen An as a rival. Shen An's sharp and powerful martial soul, capable of fighting in mid-air, made Tang San feel extremely cautious.

On the other hand, Zhu Zhuqing, who was sitting next to him with a dark expression, had a different reaction. When she saw Shen An, she was initially delighted and even stood up to approach him. But when she noticed Ning Rongrong behind him, her excitement immediately cooled. She sat back down with a dark look on her face.

Flender had also noticed Shen An and the others. He felt a little bitter inside, not because of Shen An, but because of Ning Rongrong.

He had received a letter from Ning Fengzhi and was originally planning to lecture Ning Rongrong, but not to punish her severely.

If the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan was punished, it would be a major issue for Shrek Academy. That's why he had only allowed Dai Mubai to act freely, but he never expected that Dai Mubai, already furious after being defeated by Shen An, would take his anger out on Ning Rongrong.

If he hadn't intervened in time, it was possible that Dai Mubai would have beaten Ning Rongrong even worse.

At this moment, Ning Rongrong saw Flender and the others. She had originally wanted to smile and say a few words, but when she saw the cold look on his face, she immediately pulled Shen An to another seat.

Flender sighed inwardly. "I hope Ning Fengzhi won't mind too much. He's the one who asked me to take care of her, and besides, she wasn't seriously hurt."

Flender reassured himself in his heart.

However, what he didn't know was that while Ning Fengzhi might not mind, the one who cared most about Ning Rongrong—Sword Douluo Chen Xin—was already on his way to the battlefield.

Ding! Sword Douluo is about to arrive at the battlefield. Please, Master Flender, prepare yourself to face death.