It was already the next morning after Ju Ran entered the Spirit Hall.
He woke up and got out of his bed in his new room at the Nuoding City Spirit Hall. Ju Ran was alone in a large, well-organized room.
In the Spirit Hall, the hierarchy of its members is determined by their strength as spirit masters.
Those between Rank 1 and Rank 9 are at the bottom of the hierarchy, usually doing servant work or serving as common soldiers.
Those who have advanced to Rank 11 or higher and become spirit masters have a few more privileges. For example, Ju Ran has a room all to himself.
After getting up and making his bed, Ju Ran began his usual Saitama training. After 30 minutes, he finished his training and headed to the dining hall.
There, he was surprised by what he saw...
"They serve food made from spirit beasts?!"
The bodies of spirit beasts are very valuable and highly prized by spirit masters. Their meat can be very nutritious for a spirit master's body, and the carcasses of some species can even be used as materials to create high-quality armor.
Ju Ran had once bought the meat of a spirit beast, a 10-year-old chicken-like species. The taste was delicious, and the meat was very juicy. As someone who had lived for several years eating normal food in this Douluo world, it was a breath of fresh air. For a moment, Ju Ran thought he had returned to Earth because only there had he experienced such good food.
The difference in taste between the meat of a normal animal and a spirit beast is on another level.
Ju Ran grabbed a plate full of food and sat at a table, savoring every bite.
"Ju Ran! So you're the new guy? Good to see you here."
Suddenly, Ju Ran heard someone speaking to him. He turned and saw a young man with short black hair, who looked to be about 18 years old. He was wearing the Spirit Hall uniform.
"Senior Su, it's good to see you here."
Ju Ran greeted the young man politely while chewing his food.
This lively young man was none other than the legendary Blind Douluo that every Douluo Dalu fan knows.
Ju Ran had met him before during his visits to the Spirit Hall. He was actually quite approachable and easy to talk to.
"Senior Su, have you made any progress with Miss Sisi?"
Ju Ran asked, then took a sip of juice.
"Hahaha, it was exactly as you said, Ju Ran. People only value what they've lost. Sisi is now the one chasing after me," Su Yuntao replied cheerfully.
"Senior Su, in this world, only the strong are respected, and simps are always despised as weak males in the eyes of women. If she didn't value you even after all your effort and dedication, then she was never worthy of your love," Ju Ran said calmly.
"Ju Ran, you only say these things because you haven't fallen in love yet. Once you do, you'll understand that love can drive us to do crazy things," Su Yuntao said with a knowing smile, like a veteran in love.
Ju Ran decided not to press the matter further, as he understood that trying to enlighten a love-struck fool was pointless. He had been somewhat like that in the past when he confessed his feelings and was rejected.
"Hey Ju Ran, what rank has your spirit power reached? Yesterday, I finally broke through to Rank 18. Soon, I'll be able to hunt for my second Spirit Ring, and then Sisi will fall head over heels for me," Su Yuntao said with a silly grin, already imagining the future.
"I'm at Rank 16," Ju Ran replied shortly and directly.
"What?!"
Su Yuntao was completely incredulous at Ju Ran's statement. After all, a child half his age was already almost catching up to him.
As for whether Ju Ran was lying, that thought didn't cross his mind. From what Su Yuntao knew of Ju Ran so far, he didn't believe Ju Ran was like other kids who would lie about their strength just to show off.
"Ju Ran, since you've joined our Spirit Hall, how about a friendly spar to get to know each other better? In the future, we might need to fight side by side, so it would be good to understand each other's fighting styles. And as your senior, I can guide you on the path of battle."
Su Yuntao spoke confidently, placing his hands on his hips.
"Alright, let me finish my breakfast, and I'll join you," Ju Ran agreed.
Although he didn't want to fight right now, he understood that in this world, the Douluo Continent, all spirit masters had to fight. In this world, the strong are respected, while the weak exist to be despised. If he didn't demonstrate a satisfactory level of strength, no one would take him seriously in the future.
And so, in this small branch of the Spirit Hall, he would take his first step to climb the hierarchy.
To do that, he would start by earning the trust of the veterans here.
**********
And so, Ju Ran and Su Yuntao arrived at one of the training grounds of the Nuoding City Spirit Hall.
When they arrived, a small crowd had already gathered to watch the fight. In this world, the main form of entertainment is battles between spirit masters. Some people in the dining hall had overheard the conversation between Ju Ran and Su Yuntao and quickly spread the word to their colleagues to come watch a good show.
"Are you ready, Ju Ran? Here I come!"
Su Yuntao then began summoning his martial spirit. Behind him, an illusory figure of a wolf appeared before transforming into particles of spiritual energy and entering his body. A drastic change occurred in Su Yuntao. His muscles swelled, and his size increased slightly. His hair turned black to white, his hands became slightly hairy, and his sharp claws grew from his ten fingers.
"Rooaarr!"
Su Yuntao roared loudly, exuding a bit of intimidation.
Su Yuntao completed the possession of his martial spirit, and a white spirit ring rose to his waist.
Ju Ran didn't waste any time and summoned his martial spirit, the Void Archives. A golden cube appeared in Ju Ran's right hand, while a white spirit ring emerged from his feet and rose to his waist.
The white spirit ring around Ju Ran glowed slightly, and golden particles formed in his hand, creating a simple golden sword. Purple electric sparks emanated from the sword.
"Come whenever you're ready, Senior Su."
Ju Ran spoke calmly as he assumed a battle stance with the sword in hand.
***********
Author's Note: Hi, everyone. I just wanted to say that I'm both happy and sad because of Mihoyo's games.
This week, I've been happy and sad at the same time.
I'm happy because in Honkai Impact, I managed to get the new Stardust Kiana from the banner. I have all her stigmata except for her signature weapon. Fortunately, I have the new Divine Key of Finality, so my new Kiana is in great shape. Not to mention, I finally got Flamescion Kiana from the login rewards. I have her full set, and now I just have to wait for the Elysian Realm to open so I can test her there. This Monday, I'll have enough materials to get Mobius for free from the shop. She and Flamescion Kiana are available there—just look for them.
And I'm sad because I lost the 50/50 for Tribbie to Gepard in Honkai Star Rail.
As always, Honkai Impact is Mihoyo's best game simply because it has a good gacha system. There's no nonsense like the 50/50 in Genshin or Star Rail. When you hit pity, you get the character you want, plain and simple, instead of getting a character you didn't want.
The gacha in Honkai Impact is much more expensive than in the other two games, but at least you don't cry in despair when you hit pity.
Well, that's it. I just needed to vent a bit.
I'll be away for a while, focusing on getting jades for Castorice and saving crystals in Honkai Impact because I'm only 10 pulls away from getting Vita's weapon.
See you later.