Chapter 360 Nether Thunder, Nightmare Demon.
Led by Wu Xuan, the group continued their descent until they stopped in front of a soul-guided elevator inside the hotel lobby.
"Halt! Who sent you here?" Two burly men in black blocking their path stood before the elevator.
"Well, we just received word that we're short-handed down below, so we're being called in to fill in the gaps," Wu Xuan explained with a smile. At the same time, a foot-long blade of light materialized in his hand.
"I see! Then you can go down!" The burly men nodded and opened the elevator.
"Hmm?" Wu Xuan and the others were clearly taken aback, but thanked him and entered the elevator.
As the metal doors slowly closed, Wu Xuan smiled at the three women: "Relax, there won't be any strict checks within the Xi Shui Alliance during the Soul Master Elite Competition."
"Hmm!!" The three women also breathed a sigh of relief, their last trace of tension vanishing.
The elevator continued downwards, stopping after about ten seconds, and the doors reopened. A cacophony of sounds mingled with an atmosphere of decadent luxury.
In stark contrast to the simple, unassuming lobby of the hotel, the opulent gold of the underground world dazzled the four. Gold was everywhere, even the mirrors. It was as if the entire underground world was made of gold.
"What's going on? It's completely different from where we came last time!" Ye Guyi asked, voicing her doubts.
"This is only the second basement level; the Xishui Alliance headquarters is even lower down," Wu Xuan explained.
"This project is truly grand!" Ye Guyi couldn't help but exclaim.
"Junior Brother Wu, how is it? Are there any powerful figures overseeing the Soul Master Competition?" Zhang Lexuan inquired.
"No, in my perception, the highest cultivation level in this hall is only one Soul Saint," Wu Xuan said, looking at the door in front of him.
"Sigh! What a pity," Ye Guyi sighed. She had originally thought that there was at least one Title Douluo in the Xi Shui Alliance!
"Junior Brother Wu, shall we make a move?" Zhang Lexuan asked Wu Xuan.
"Of course we'll make a move! We're already here. Just because there are no evil soul masters on this floor doesn't mean there aren't on the lower floors," Ma Xiaotao answered quickly.
"Then let's go!" Wu Xuan nodded and stepped out from the corner.
Not far away, two guards at the door opened the door without asking any questions after seeing Wu Xuan and his companions' attire.
Entering the hall, it felt like stepping into another world. It was a circular domed hall, the ceiling of which seemed to be drawn with countless golden lines in a neat and regular pattern. The huge dome provided ample light to the entire hall.
Rows of seats extended downwards in an orderly fashion, and there was a ring of sloping escalators at the outermost edge. At the end of each soul-guided escalator was a circular room suspended in mid-air. It was impossible to tell with the naked eye how these rooms were suspended.
This sight left Wu Xuan and his companions deeply impressed; Shrek Academy's soul-guided system was far beyond their capabilities.
"You four, come here. Arrange this batch of rare metals on the metal tables according to the list," a middle-aged man who appeared to be a manager called out to Wu Xuan and his group.
Wu Xuan and his companions hesitated for a moment, but still took the cart from the manager.
The Soul-Guided Competition had already begun, and the metal tables throughout the hall were flashing with soul-guided light. Some of the metal tables were now empty. The manager's instructions were clearly to arrange the materials on the empty metal tables.
The four of them busied themselves for a while, and Wu Xuan also managed to gather basic information about the hall. Besides the 260-plus participants, there were over 2,000 spectators. Their clothing and attire clearly indicated they were all wealthy and powerful.
This was understandable; after all, only big bettors would come to watch the competition, and ordinary people couldn't even dream of it.
With several carts laden with rare metals, Wu Xuan and the other three regrouped.
Wu Xuan looked at the three women and said in a deep voice, "The number of evil soul masters in this so-called Soul Master Competition is probably not too many. You need to be mentally prepared."
"Don't worry, since we're going to attack, we won't leave any survivors," Ye Guyi stated.
Zhang Lexuan hesitated for a moment, but nodded. As the senior sister of the inner courtyard, she wasn't one to be conservative; if innocent people were involved, then innocent people were involved. Besides, those who had connections with the Xi Shui Alliance might not necessarily be innocent.
Just as the three women were preparing to attack, Wu Xuan suddenly stretched out his arms, stopping their movements.
"Something's up!" Wu Xuan murmured, his gaze fixed on the soul-guided elevator on the other side.
"Ding~!" As if in response to Wu Xuan, the metal doors of the soul-guided elevator slowly opened, and two old men slowly stepped out.
"Title Douluo, two of you!" Wu Xuan turned to Zhang Lexuan and the other two, his expression excited.
Hearing this, Zhang Lexuan and the other two women were also shocked. This time, they had really encountered a big fish.
Wu Xuan's strength was beyond question, and Ma Xiaotao and Zhang Lexuan were no match for ordinary Title Douluo. Although Ye Guyi was only a Soul Saint, his strength in dealing with evil soul masters far surpassed that of the two of them. Therefore, even if Feng Ling appeared with two Title Douluo, Wu Xuan and the others would dare to make a move.
"Haha, Eighth Brother! What do you think of the scale of my Elite Soul Master Competition!" One of the old men looked around and laughed heartily.
"Hmm! It's a rare grand event, far superior to the Unlimited Arena Defense Competition." Another man commented objectively.
"Haha! That's for sure." The old man laughed heartily again. The smooth running of this grand event owes half its credit to him.
As Wu Xuan and his companions approached, Wu Xuan recognized one of them. The laughing man was none other than the Third Elder of the Holy Spirit Sect, Ming Lei Douluo. As for the other elder, ranked eighth, it was unsurprisingly the Nightmare Demon Douluo.
"Third Brother, what big moves does the Sect Leader have planned after gathering so many powerful figures from the Holy Spirit Sect in Mingdu?" The two chatted idly after taking their seats on the high platform.
"Hey! Who cares? As long as we complete the mission assigned by the Sect Leader, that's enough. If we control all the smuggling channels of the Mingdu underworld, the profits will be endless. Perhaps this is the opportunity for us brothers to break through to Super Douluo." Ming Lei Douluo said, unable to contain his imagination.
"Third Brother is right!" Nightmare Demon Douluo also laughed heartily.
"Hmph! It's nice to dream, but unfortunately you won't have the chance." The next moment, a streak of emerald light shone from Wu Xuan's body on the side of the judging platform. Unaware of what was happening, everyone in the audience felt the lights in the entire arena suddenly dim.
Including the more than two thousand spectators, everyone felt a blur before their eyes, and the next moment the surrounding scenery completely changed.
The entire underground plaza was now isolated by a strange wind curtain.
(End of Chapter)