On the Douluo Continent, polygamy wasn't uncommon. Martial soul inheritance was crucial, and to ensure the family bloodline and continuation of the martial soul, many families encouraged their offspring to have as many children as possible.
Take the White Tiger Duke, Dai Hao of the Star Luo Empire—for all the praise he received as a clean stream among the nobility, he still had more than one woman by his side.
If even the White Tiger Duke was like that, there was no need to mention the other nobles.
After all, if a family had too few heirs, a single accident could wipe out the bloodline.
Take the Star Crown Sect of the Star Luo royal family as an example—the mighty Star Crown martial soul had fewer than three holders. If disaster struck, this powerful martial soul could be lost forever, which for inheritance-focused clans and sects, was simply unacceptable.
"As long as you're okay with it, that's good." Keqing nodded and walked away.
She knew well that with Lu Jingming's ability and charm, he'd have many companions in the future, most of whom would probably be girls.
After spending so much time together, sparks were bound to fly.
Instead of adding to her troubles later, it was better to be mentally prepared from the start.
In this regard, Zhang Lexuan was truly open-minded, helping Keqing understand why Lu Jingming liked her so much.
Such an understanding girl, devoted to Lu Jingming—how could anyone not love her?
….
The 2023 All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Battle Tournament was about to open grandly in Heaven Dou City.
The tournament venue was the most magnificent in Heaven Dou City—the Heaven Dou Grand Soul Arena.
This soul arena, a major industry of the Heavenly Soul royal family, had lost some of its former bustle due to the simulated universe, but its immense scale still inspired awe. Its vast field easily accommodated 100,000 spectators.
With such superb conditions, this year's tournament was naturally held there.
The Grand Soul Arena stood at the city center, adjacent to the royal palace, its classical architecture exuding a heavy, ancient charm.
Legend had it that the original Shrek Seven Monsters had once taken the stage here for the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Tournament, their legendary stories adding a touch of myth to this ancient arena.
As the music played, hymns echoed through every corner of the city, and the resounding bell tolled across the metropolis.
Atop the palace, fireworks in the shape of a snow lotus, symbolizing the Heavenly Soul Empire, lit up the sky, illuminating the night.
Amid cheers from 100,000 spectators, 130 soul master academy teams from every region of Douluo Continent appeared in turn.
When all teams had arrived, the current emperor of the Heavenly Soul Empire—a Titled Douluo standing at the pinnacle of power—walked steadily onto the stage.
Every step radiated majesty, instantly silencing the crowd.
His speech was the usual: encouragement, praise, lighting the crowd's passion. Cheers and shouts erupted again, thundering like a tidal wave.
In this heated atmosphere, the emperor solemnly declared the opening of the 2023 All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament!
By tradition, the opening match always went to the previous champion. For millennia, that title had almost never left Shrek Academy's hands.
"Shrek! Shrek! Shrek!"
The deafening chant thundered through the arena, wave after wave as if it would break through the sky.
From this frenzy, one could feel Shrek Academy's blazing reputation and the fans' near-mad devotion.
"This popularity is insane!" Keqing was stunned. The passionate crowd reminded her of the scene when the Rock King Emperor appeared at the Rite of Summoning.
"Well, they've dominated the championship for over two thousand tournaments. Such popularity is only natural," Lu Jingming shrugged with a hint of emotion.
To be honest, he was puzzled—why, in all these years, with a tournament every five years and over two thousand sessions, had no other academy ever claimed the title?
He guessed that Shrek's Golden Tree must play a key role.
After all, soul emperors under twenty were extremely rare on the Douluo Continent; each was a prodigy with the potential for a Titled Douluo.
Yet the Golden Tree allowed Shrek's inner court geniuses to greatly boost their soul power—ensuring every team had at least one soul emperor, providing a solid foundation for victory.
With luck, a team could even have more than one soul emperor.
This year, both Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming from Shrek reached the soul emperor level. Han Ruoruo's soul power was especially high—at least a high-level soul emperor.
According to what Lu Jingming had heard from Xu Jiujiu, this year's Star Luo Royal Academy had no soul emperors, nor did Dou Ling Royal Academy.
Only the Heavenly Soul Empire's Dragon Academy and the Sun Moon Empire's Royal Soul Engineer Academy had soul emperors.
Even so, their chances of defeating Shrek were slim.
Barring surprises, Shrek would win again, with Dragon and Sun Moon fighting for second place.
As Han Ruoruo led Shrek's team onto the stage, the cheers reached a fever pitch.
Lu Jingming then noticed that this year's Shrek Seven Monsters lineup was female-dominated: only two boys, the rest girls, with the strongest being Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming.
Lu Jingming's expression was odd. If he hadn't intercepted Zhang Lexuan, this year's Shrek Seven Monsters would have been six girls and one boy!
Then he thought about his own team—by the next tournament, if things went according to plan, he'd be the only boy among six girls. That would be a true overabundance of females.
PS: Yep! That's why DD2 not being a harem story was weird. So many female characters.