Melee archer with maxed-out Douluo luck

Chapter 251 Pre-match Preparations: No Need to Hide Them Anymore

"He definitely looks more handsome this way."

As soon as Han Li stepped out of the room, he heard Dugu Yan's slightly teasing voice.

However, even though it was meant as a joke, she looked at Han Li with shining eyes, clearly quite satisfied.

Normally, Han Li wears custom-made outfits in black, white, and blue. Although they are not bad, they do not create a visual impact for those who are used to this kind of clothing.

Han Li smiled and looked at Dugu Yan: "Since you've put it that way, I can't let myself be at a disadvantage. The Tianshui Academy uniforms should have arrived by now, right? Let's reciprocate, is that alright?"

"Of course, no problem. Bing'er has already gone next door to get it. You'll see it when you come back. I'm just worried you won't know who to look at."

As she spoke, she moved closer to Zhu Zhuqing with ill intent and touched her face like a female hooligan, making Zhu Zhuqing blush deeply.

"Alright, that's enough. I should get going. This is such a hassle."

Han Li habitually adjusted the crown on his head and took a step to leave.

"Yes, let's hurry up and go, or you'll be in big trouble if you run into Bing'er's sister."

Dugu Yan seemed to have thought of something, and a mischievous smile appeared on her face.

Upon hearing Dugu Yan mention Shuiyue'er, Han Li paused slightly, then quickly quickened his pace.

Behind them came the suppressed laughter of the three women.

Han Li admitted that even he found Shui Yue'er a bit difficult to deal with, but she was Shui Bing'er's younger sister.

The main reason is that Shui Yue'er is the ultimate representative of the "face-value" type. Just two days ago, after arriving in Tiandou City, she called out "Brother-in-law, brother-in-law" as soon as they met and then rushed towards him.

What's even more outrageous is that after he dodged away, she was only sad for a second.

Then she quickly changed her mind and asked Han Li if the Spirit Hall had any suitable handsome men of her age that she could introduce to her.

In her words, handsome men are always surrounded by other handsome men, and even if they aren't "brother-in-law," it doesn't matter; she won't compete with her sister for them.

Looking at her blinking eyes, Han Li knew perfectly well that this girl had been plotting this from the moment they met, and had also taken the opportunity to trick him and Shui Bing'er.

In the end, Shui Bing'er couldn't stand it anymore. She immediately froze her and, blushing, carried away her sister, who was both incredibly beautiful and extremely adorable.

Of all the Soul Masters Han Li had ever met, he would call Shui Yue'er the ultimate beauty fanatic, if that were an option for the ultimate attribute.

After being hugged by Shui Bing'er, Shui Yue'er finally returned to normal.

After successfully leaving Heaven Dou City, Han Li's speed increased considerably, and he quickly joined the team belonging to the Spirit Hall.

Then, the group headed towards Tiandou City.

After a half-hour journey, Han Li, the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall, finally completed a high-level meeting with Xue Qinghe, the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, at the city gate of Heaven Dou City.

Amidst the scrutiny of the crowd, the two rode together in a carriage towards the palace that had been prepared in advance.

Inside the carriage, Xue Qinghe looked at Han Li, who was dressed as a holy son, with a mocking gaze.

"It seems that His Highness is quite popular."

"Heh, she is indeed very popular. Within ten minutes of her appearance, I felt hostility coming from four different directions."

Han Li glanced at the gloating Xue Qinghe with annoyance, and sat down on the soft couch next to her without any regard for her image.

Upon hearing this, Xue Qinghe's smile vanished, replaced by a murderous expression.

"Do you need me to help you with this?"

"No need, I've already memorized them, and some of them are old acquaintances. I can handle it myself."

Han Li lazily relaxed his body and answered indifferently.

He has already marked those people, and then he can just follow the clues. Moreover, they are only hostile, probably spies from other forces. If he really had to deal with them all, would he still be able to live? One of them is Haozi.

"Really, Grandpa was too careless not to send someone with an official title to accompany him."

Xue Qinghe muttered something indignantly, feeling wronged for Han Li.

"In the meantime, should I have Serpent Spear or Bloodstain follow you? You're making public appearances, so there are bound to be a lot of people watching you."

This friendship was worthwhile; Han Li mentally gave Qian Renxue a thumbs up.

He shook his head: "No need. This is Tiandou City after all. There's no need to be too ostentatious. If Emperor Xueye had to carry his title with him for so long, he probably wouldn't be able to sleep."

"Besides, Huyan Zhen has already arrived, and Salas will be following me later, that's enough. Also, you don't think I'm lacking in combat power, do you?"

"Have you decided to reveal your combat strength?"

Xue Qinghe looked at him with some surprise. In her subconscious, Han Li shouldn't make a move easily.

"No, but if it really comes down to it, it doesn't matter. I've already completed my initial development."

Han Li shrugged at her arrogantly, only to be met with a glare in return.

"Tell me honestly, what level of strength have you reached now?"

Xue Qinghe stared at Han Li suspiciously. This guy, who would never make a move unless he was sure of success, was now not even going to hide, which really made her itchy to try and catch him.

"It's a little higher than before. I might make my move at any time, and then you'll see."

Han Li turned his head away and focused on the fruit on the table, laughing and joking, which made Qian Renxue inwardly complain.

When the two arrived at the palace, Salas was already waiting there.

After another show, Han Li entered the palace, while "Xue Qinghe" lingered for a while before choosing to leave.

Because it was hosted by two major empires, and the Spirit Hall was only a co-organizer, she, as the crown prince, was much busier than Han Li.

As for Han Li, after entering the palace, he simply left everything to Salas to handle, and then left gracefully through the back door to go home.

As the holy son of the most powerful force, and given that Han Li had no interest in politics, he had this privilege, and no one could say anything against it.

When Han Li returned home, he found that his house had changed a lot. The Tianshui Girls' Group had taken over his base, and his return made the atmosphere noticeably more reserved.

So, after briefly greeting the girl group members, he returned to his room.

Although he didn't take the previous sources of hostility to heart, he still needed to figure out which factions they belonged to so that he could strike more accurately in the future.

Yes, he never holds grudges.

However, after some investigation, he was somewhat surprised to find that two of them actually belonged to the same faction.

The fact that the two spies eventually returned to different places—one at the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's headquarters and the other at Thunder Academy—amused Han Li quite a bit.

He could understand the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, after all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan had done the same thing.

However, for an academy under a sect to dare to set its sights on the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall is a bit out of line. Could it be that you still hold a grudge against him and your master for forcibly making Tianshui Academy an annex of the Spirit Hall back then?

If that's the case, then that's interesting. I just wonder if Yu Yuanzhen knows about it?

Han Li smiled knowingly, putting the matter out of his mind. He would deal with whatever came his way; he was no longer the little kid who could only follow his master around and watch the show.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and the Soul Master Competition finally began.

As dawn broke and the sky began to lighten, the entire Heaven Dou City was already bustling with activity. Large crowds surged toward the prepared venue, which could hold nearly 100,000 people. If it weren't for the Soul Master Competition, many people would never have seen such a grand scene in their entire lives.

Inside the Chamber of Commerce's mansion, Han Li was leisurely eating breakfast, admiring the four people opposite him who had already changed into Tianshui Academy uniforms. He was in a very good mood; they were indeed a feast for the eyes.

Today is the opening ceremony, but right after the opening ceremony, there will be a match.

Of course, there was only one match, in which the vice-team of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, namely the second team, drew an opponent for the first round of the round-robin tournament. It was a team battle with a somewhat performative element.

Otherwise, a mere opening ceremony would clearly not be enough to satisfy the audience's interest.

This part had already been arranged by Han Li, who chose Blue Tyrant Academy as the opponent for Tang San and his group.

It wasn't that he didn't want to choose Tianshui Academy, but no matter what, it was the first competition of the Tiandou Empire, and Qian Renxue was still Xue Qinghe, so he had to give her some face.

For other teams, although there is still a registration process, it is more of a formality to inform others of the composition of the academy team. Therefore, even the substitutes have to go through the process.

These were originally rules established by the Spirit Hall, and Tianshui Academy is now a vassal of Han Li, so he can't be the one to break the rules.

Of course, it's not impossible, but there's no need for it.

Anyway, the group seemed eager to participate. The Soul Master Competition was a novel experience, and many people wanted to participate but didn't have the chance.

After breakfast, Han Li looked at the others.

"Then I'll be going first. You can follow Tianshui Academy later. As for Zhu Qing, there's no need to hide. I want to see who will jump out."

"If anyone steps forward, you can handle it however you want. Don't worry about the Soul Master Competition."

The second half of the sentence was addressed to the other three.

Zhu Zhuqing was still too hesitant. Perhaps she could be ruthless towards Dai Mubai, but she still had too much sympathy for others.

After saying that, he walked out of the courtyard without waiting for Zhu Zhuqing to speak. He still had to get to the palace in advance, and then head to the meeting place to have a war of words with a bunch of old men. That was also his job.

In the courtyard, Zhu Zhuqing, who had originally intended to conceal her identity, hesitated and looked at the other three, only to receive three equally warm smiles in return.

"It's alright, Zhuqing, just do as Xiao Li says. Since he said that, he must have made preparations. Maybe your public appearance is helping him too. Besides, you can't keep your identity a secret for the rest of your life, can you?"

Dugu Yan walked to her side and took her hand. Shui Bing'er and Xiu'er also came closer and gently comforted her.

You have to understand, if Zhu Zhuqing hadn't been unwilling, they would have already attacked the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy. With Qian Renxue as the mole, as long as they didn't directly kill anyone, it wouldn't be a problem at all.

"Sisters, are you ready? Shall we set off?"

Outside the wall, Shui Yue'er's voice rang out, announcing that the people from Tianshui Academy had arrived.

"Alright, let's go out now."

Shui Bing'er agreed and pulled the three of them towards the door. The Soul Master Competition was coming.

(End of this chapter)