[DD2]: 59

"Thank you," Meng Hongchen whispered, her face flushed red.

Wang Dong, on the other hand, was much more carefree. He took a deep breath, savoring the aroma of the lamb leg in his hand.

"Smells amazing!"

He immediately took a large bite, his eyes lighting up.

"Wow, this is delicious!"

Wang Dong devoured the food ravenously, gnawing on the lamb leg, which was bigger than his face, taking hearty bites. His face was soon covered in oil.

Compared to him, Meng Hongchen ate much more elegantly. She carefully cut off small pieces, eating slowly and gracefully, like a refined lady.

All four of them were soul masters, so naturally, their appetites were larger than the average person's. Soon, all the food they had ordered was completely devoured.

Su Yu ate one lamb leg and some vegetables before stopping. Meng Hongchen managed to finish one front leg, but Wang Dong and Xiao Hongchen, with their voracious appetites, practically wiped out all the remaining food.

"Ugh, I'm so full!"

Wang Dong rubbed his round belly, burping with satisfaction, looking completely content. It had been a long time since he had enjoyed barbecue so freely and indulgently.

"We have to come back here next time—it's too good," Wang Dong muttered.

"You just finished eating, and you're already thinking about next time? You foodie."

Su Yu couldn't help but laugh. That was typical of Wang Dong—such a little glutton.

"Alright, wipe your face. Look at yourself; you've turned into a little cat." Su Yu habitually handed him a napkin.

Watching Wang Dong eat so happily reminded him of Di Mingli. That girl also loved barbecue, and her appetite was even bigger than Wang Dong's.

Wang Dong took the napkin and wiped his face vigorously, getting rid of the oily shine. His delicate face finally reappeared.

"Sister Meng, you know how to pick a place. The roast lamb here is amazing," Wang Dong said, his expression much friendlier. One whole roast lamb was all it took to win him over.

"I'm glad you liked it," Meng Hongchen replied with a smile, though her gaze remained on Su Yu.

"Do you even know who found this place?"

Xiao Hongchen, chewing on a toothpick, boasted proudly. How could a place chosen by Xiao Hongchen be anything but great?

"Who's talking to you? Don't flatter yourself," Wang Dong retorted, looking disdainful.

"Hey, you're testing my patience," Xiao Hongchen said, rolling up his sleeves, clearly ready to start something. Was Wang Dong seriously provoking him?

"Alright, brother, stop messing around. Come on, Wang Dong," Meng Hongchen called out, trying to defuse the situation, while Su Yu placed a large hand on Wang Dong's head.

"Tsk!"

"Tsk!"

Both Wang Dong and Xiao Hongchen clicked their tongues simultaneously and turned their heads away, clearly annoyed with each other.

"Let's go. Time to pay the bill. After eating, we should walk around Radiant City to help with digestion," Su Yu said, standing up.

Meng Hongchen and the others also got up, preparing to head downstairs. Just then, a commotion erupted from below.

"Sir, you haven't paid yet."

"Make me pay? Get lost!"

This was followed by the sound of tables and chairs being smashed.

Su Yu and the others exchanged glances, momentarily stunned.

"Come on, let's go check it out," Su Yu suggested, but before he could finish speaking, Xiao Hongchen had already dashed off, leaping straight down from the second floor.

Su Yu's mouth twitched, and he led Meng Hongchen and Wang Dong down the stairs more slowly.

When they reached the first floor, Su Yu's eyes scanned the area. By now, many diners had been startled. In one corner, however, an old man in black robes continued to sip his drink leisurely.

Su Yu glanced at him briefly, saw nothing unusual, and moved his gaze away. When the three of them reached the entrance, they saw Xiao Hongchen standing off against two men in gray robes.

Master Wu stood behind Xiao Hongchen, holding a pair of fire tongs, while supporting Wu Feng. Wu Feng's face bore a handprint, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. Nearby, tables and chairs lay overturned, and the restaurant was a mess.

Xiao Hongchen, one hand on his hip, pointed at the two men in gray with his right hand and spoke arrogantly, "You two scumbags dare to dine and dash and even hit people? Don't you know this is my territory? You've got a death wish."

The two men in gray exchanged glances but ignored Xiao Hongchen, turning to leave.

"You dare run? Didn't you hear me talking to you?"

Seeing them blatantly disregard him, Xiao Hongchen was furious. He lunged after them, reaching out with his right hand to grab one man's shoulder.

The man's eyes flashed coldly, and with a flick of his wrist, he shook off Xiao Hongchen.

"Well, well, well, looks like you're more than just common thugs. But you're not leaving until we settle this," Xiao Hongchen snarled, activating his martial soul.

Golden light flashed, and a third leg extended from his back—his martial soul, the Three-Legged Golden Toad, appeared. Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black—five soul rings rippled around him. He was a five-ring Soul King.

Xiao Hongchen wasn't even fifteen yet, and he had already reached the Soul King level. Even with the help of special supplements, this was an impressive achievement.

"Wow, a Soul King! And so young, too!"

Many onlookers were excited. A fight involving soul masters naturally drew attention, especially since Xiao Hongchen was so young and already a Soul King.

Xiao Hongchen quickly unleashed a core formation. His soul rings glowed as the formation expanded into a series of metal cannons. Soon, beams of light shot out from them.

The two men in gray instantly became alert, knowing how deadly soul tool firepower could be—especially from someone as talented as Xiao Hongchen. His explosive power as a Level 5 Soul Engineer was difficult to match.

The two gray-robed men grimaced and dodged the attacks, quickly summoning their martial souls. Behind one of them appeared a large black mosquito with a long proboscis, dark body, and blood-red streaks that gave off a menacing aura. Black wings sprouted from his back, also veined with blood.

The other man's martial soul took the form of a purple beastly shadow, resembling some kind of insect—likely a bee. Its presence was eerie and unsettling, even more sinister than the black mosquito.

Despite their differences, both men had yellow, yellow, purple, purple, and black soul rings—the optimal configuration.

Xiao Hongchen's expression grew serious. These two were also Soul Kings.

"Black Blood Mosquito, Soul-devouring Bee… Both are evil martial souls. These two are evil soul masters," Su Yu muttered, his face darkening as he recognized their martial souls.

Both martial souls were classic examples of evil martial souls. The Black Blood Mosquito is cultivated by absorbing the blood of humans or soul beasts—the higher the quality of blood, the faster the cultivation. Human blood, especially, accelerated its growth.

Humans are naturally primates, and compared to ordinary soul beasts, human blood possesses mysterious properties. Therefore, even though they can absorb soul beast blood for cultivation, most Black Blood Mosquito martial soul users eventually turn to absorb human blood. The thrill of rapidly increasing strength is hard to resist—like drug addiction, once they start, it's easy to spiral downwards.

The Black Blood Mosquito user in front of them, whose body was filled with evil energy and marked with numerous blood patterns, had clearly absorbed a significant amount of human blood.

As for the Soul-devouring Bee, it was even more sinister than the Black Blood Mosquito. While the latter absorbed blood for cultivation, the Soul-devouring Bee fed on the brains of human soul masters or soul beasts to grow stronger. Moreover, the Soul-devouring Bee possessed mental attributes, making it particularly dangerous. If one wasn't careful, they could easily fall victim to it.

Facing two evil soul master Soul Kings was no easy task. Even though Xiao Hongchen was extremely talented, he would likely struggle against them.

"Su Yu, did you say they're evil soul masters?"

Wang Dong was shocked, and Meng Hongchen's face paled with fear.

"Evil soul masters?"

Meng echoed in disbelief.

"Yes. These two martial souls are classic examples, and the thick evil energy surrounding them suggests they've harmed many people," Su Yu explained, identifying the martial souls for them.

Wang Dong's expression turned grim, and Meng Hongchen furrowed her brows tightly.

"These evil soul masters are truly despicable," Wang Dong muttered, disgusted. His Bright Goddess Butterfly was a light-attribute martial soul, and he detested anything dark and evil.

"Why would there be evil soul masters in Radiant City?"

Meng Hongchen frowned, perplexed. She, too, harbored a strong disdain for them.

Su Yu studied Meng Hongchen's expression and guessed that she might not know about the Sun Moon Empire's connection with the evil soul masters. But the fact that these evil soul masters could act so brazenly in Radiant City suggested that the Sun Moon Empire's higher-ups had long been in league with the Holy Spirit Cult. Jing Hongchen must have known. As the head of Illustrious Virtue Hall, it would be suspicious if he didn't.

"The Sun Moon Empire isn't much better themselves," Su Yu sighed inwardly. Shrek Academy might not be likable, but the Sun Moon Empire's top brass weren't any nobler. They were two sides of the same coin.

Luckily, Su Yu had never intended to serve the Sun Moon Empire. His only goal in joining the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy was to advance his skills—he held no respect for the Sun Moon royal family.

"Look, they're fighting!"

Wang Dong's voice interrupted Su Yu's thoughts.

By now, Xiao Hongchen had engaged the two evil Soul Kings. Though Xiao Hongchen was firing with great force, the evil soul masters weren't pushovers. Even though it seemed like he had the upper hand, he hadn't inflicted any real damage. Both the Black Blood Mosquito and the Soul-devouring Bee could fly, giving them an advantage.

Suddenly, the Soul-devouring Bee soul master's fourth soul ring lit up, and a strange buzzing sound filled the air. Xiao Hongchen's body froze in place, his eyes glazing over.

"Not good, it's a mental attack!"

Meng Hongchen exclaimed, rushing forward. She couldn't stand by while Xiao Hongchen was in trouble.

Meng Hongchen's martial soul activated. It was a unique toad-type martial soul, the Red Eyed Ice Toad. Its white exterior emitted cold air, but its fire-attribute eyes were particularly striking. The alternating ice and fire attributes produced a special cold poison.

As her martial soul possessed her, Meng Hongchen's appearance transformed—her wine-red hair turned snow white, and her ice-blue eyes became blood-red. Her exposed skin turned snow-white like jade. With her soul tool's propulsion, she dashed forward and pulled Xiao Hongchen out of the mental attack, breaking its hold on him.

Xiao Hongchen regained consciousness, his face filled with fury. Having been caught off guard, he had taken a hit.

"This place isn't safe—let's go!"

The two evil soul masters exchanged glances. Both the man and woman in front of them were Soul Kings, making them difficult to deal with. If the Imperial Guards were alerted, things would become even more complicated.

"Leave? Not so fast!"

Xiao Hongchen shouted, unwilling to let them escape. He was about to attack again when the Soul-devouring Bee soul master's fifth soul ring lit up, sending countless Soul-devouring Bee shadows toward Xiao and Meng Hongchen.

They activated their soul tools to defend themselves, but the two evil soul masters used the moment to flee.

Just then, the Black Blood Mosquito soul master suddenly turned into an ice statue and fell from the sky. A bone-chilling cold filled the air.

The Soul-devouring Bee soul master's expression shifted. He turned back to see Su Yu standing in their path.

"Since you've come, why leave in such a hurry?"

Su Yu said calmly, standing on a slender branch, his hand lightly behind his back. Behind him loomed an ice-blue shadow, radiating an endless cold aura.

The Soul-devouring Bee soul master's face twisted in fear, sensing a dangerous presence. He noticed Su Yu's three glowing soul rings—black, black, and white. Initially shocked, he then sneered.

"Just a Soul Elder and you block me?"

"A mere Soul King," Su Yu replied coldly, "why struggle? Isn't it easier to wait for death?"

Before the evil soul master could react, he too froze into an ice statue and fell.

Xiao Hongchen, free from the Bee shadows, unleashed countless beams of white light, tearing the frozen Soul-devouring Bee soul master apart.

Su Yu then casually threw his ancient spear, Azure Spear, impaling the frozen Black Blood Mosquito evil soul master. In an instant, both evil Soul Kings were dead.

"Su Yu!"

Meng Hongchen called out, approaching with a sweet smile. "You're amazing."

Su Yu smiled slightly but tensed as his eyes met those of an old man in black robes through the open door of the barbecue restaurant.