Sun and Moon's Team captain, Ma Rulong, is out.
Seeing their plan unfold so smoothly, Ma Xiaotao sent a voice transmission to Huo Yuhao: "Yuhao, withdraw the Star Barrier. I'll take it from here."
Huo Yuhao nodded and said solemnly, "Everyone, prepare yourselves. The final battle begins now."
He understood Ma Xiaotao's intention perfectly—their thoughts aligned.
This scenario had been anticipated long before the match even started.
If the Sun and Moon team was desperate, Shrek would naturally respond with their full strength.
Seeing his teammates ready, Huo Yuhao's mind stirred, and he instantly dispelled the Star Barrier.
The moment the barrier vanished, Heavenfiend Douluo Huang Jinxu, who had been monitoring the match, immediately intervened, rescuing Ma Rulong from the stage.
Huang Jinxu gazed at Huo Yuhao with undisguised wariness.
The instant the invincible shield had ended, he had already judged that Ma Rulong couldn't withstand Shrek's follow-up assault and had intended to extract him in time.
Yet, to his shock, as a Control System Titled Douluo, he found himself utterly powerless against the Star Barrier.
Huo Yuhao's version of the skill not only isolated attributes but also suppressed space itself—an overwhelmingly domineering effect.
It was more than twice as potent as the one Princess Jiujiu had used in the semifinals!
'How could a pirated version surpass the original?'
To rescue Ma Rulong, brute force would have been necessary—direct interference in the match.
But with Xuan Zi overseeing the proceedings, Huang Jinxu didn't dare.
Though this was the finals, a death would cast a dark shadow over the event.
As long as Shrek's team remained unharmed, it was acceptable.
Fortunately, Shrek knew their limits.
Though the final strike had been heavy, Ma Rulong's life was secure.
As for Huo Yuhao's finishing blow? Huang Jinxu had noticed—and chose silence.
'This boy… steady indeed.'
From the very beginning, when Huo Yuhao released his mental fluctuations, Huang Jinxu had sensed the sheer vastness of his spiritual power and the precision of his control.
Such mastery was rare even among Soul Douluo, let alone a Soul Ancestor.
'This is the power of an ultimate martial soul.'
'This is Shrek.'
No wonder Taotie Douluo had personally taken charge—Huo Yuhao was a treasure worth guarding.
With no barrier left between the two teams, the Sun and Moon side acted first.
They swiftly distanced themselves, preparing for the inevitable.
They believed Shrek wouldn't prolong this attrition.
With Xu Sanshi eliminated, Shrek had lost the mobility of Xuanwu Replacement, and the turtle shell tactic would soon collapse.
This team battle had to be won.
Ma Rulong, their strongest individual soul engineer, was already down—severely injured, likely unable to participate in the next solo match.
The Sun and Moon team had no retreat.
At this moment, Xiao Hongchen reactivated his soul tool combat mode.
The others, too, drew out their trump cards—high-level soul tools kept in reserve.
Meng Hongchen, however, did not deploy long-range soul tools.
Instead—Her snow-white hair cascaded down, her once-clear ice-blue eyes now burning crimson.
An indescribable chill radiated from her.
As she stepped forward, her exposed skin—face, palms, all of it—turned jade-white, translucent like the finest ice.
In her palms, a faint light-blue shimmer flickered.
Five soul rings—two yellow, two purple, one black—hovered around her.
Behind Meng Hongchen, a phantom emerged: Vermillion Clear Icetoad, its blood-red eyes mirroring hers.
Unlike Xiao Hongchen, she showed no signs of beast transformation.
Meng Hongchen's first soul ring flashed.
"First Soul Skill: Icefire Poison!"
With a push of her palms, a white-green vortex of air shot toward Shrek.
A deadly blend of ice and fire, this toxin was something even Huo Yuhao's Ultimate Ice might struggle to neutralize.
At this moment, Meng Hongchen resembled not a soul engineer but a true soul master.
Yet, aside from Huo Yuhao, none on Shrek's side could identify her martial soul.
Even the knowledgeable Elder Xuan and Wang Yan, who had studied martial souls for decades, failed to recognize the Vermillion Clear Icetoad at first glance.
But there was no time to ponder.
First—they had to survive the onslaught of firepower from Sun and Moon.
Shrek was prepared.
Fourth Soul Skill: Spiritual Engraving - Blue Water Field!"
Huo Yuhao moved, using Blue Water Field and Ultimate Ice to intercept the bombardment.
Deafening explosions followed, shaking the arena's protective shield violently.
Under the gloomy sky, the stage blazed as bright as day.
Wang Dong'er handled straggling attacks, ensuring none disrupted their formation.
He Caitou responded with his Super-Energy Soul Cannon, prepared even before the Star Barrier fell.
Ling Luochen's five soul rings flickered in rapid succession.
"First Soul Skill: Ice Staff!"
"Second Soul Skill: Ice Armor!"
"Third Soul Skill: Ice Prison!"
"Fourth Soul Skill: Icy Mist!"
"Fifth Soul Skill: Brilliant Ice Ring!"
Within three breaths, empowered by the Brilliant Ice Ring, a vast icy mist erupted.
The temperature plummeted to -50°C instantly.
Tang Ya, gripping a soul power replenishment vial, used Blue Silver Grass to tether her teammates, ensuring their reserves stayed high.
"Screeeech!"
A dark-red phoenix flame erupted as Ma Xiaotao unleashed her Phoenix Cry.
Her seventh soul ring blazed.
"Seventh Soul Skill: Martial Soul True Body!"
Wings spread, flames surged, distorting the air.
The sheer heat sent temperatures skyrocketing.
Ma Xiaotao embodied the absolute suppression of a Soul Sage.
With her True Body active, she entered killing mode.
'The best defense? Overwhelming offense.'
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao directed Ling Luochen to cool their side, countering Ma Xiaotao's residual heat.
For a Soul Sage, the stage was too small.
Ma Xiaotao's flames could engulf the entire arena if unchecked.
Nearly a hundred fire meteors rained upon Sun and Moon's side, shrouding everything in a crimson inferno.
The audience saw only flames—nothing else.
The 108 soul masters reinforcing the barrier strained, pouring in soul power to contain the blaze.
No casualties could be allowed.
Only the strongest could perceive the battle through the flames.
Atop the imperial city, Xu Jiawei smirked.
"Seems Yuheng won't get his turn."
Beside him, White Tiger Duke Dai Hao nodded.
"Fate has spoken. This match belongs to Ma Xiaotao and Huo Yuhao."
Xu Jiujiu watched, wide-eyed and uneasy.
Had Ma Xiaotao used this in their semifinal, even their absolute defense shield wouldn't have held her.
Her tactics had failed utterly.
Even without Huo Yuhao, Shrek—with a Soul Sage—was unbeatable.
As the audience held their breath, the Sun and Moon leaders trembled, their hands unsteady.
Ma Rulong was out.
The match was tilting irreversibly.
They were on the verge of another runner-up finish.
What use were advanced soul tools if they couldn't even be deployed?
Ma Xiaotao's Phoenix True Body crushed all resistance.
The Sun and Moon team activated their invincible barriers—three seconds of respite.
But three seconds was too short.
Though Ma Xiaotao couldn't instantly breach their defenses, her relentless meteors scorched even through the barrier.
Their counterattacks? Useless.
Fear crept into their hearts.
They couldn't win.
Even Xiao Hongchen, prideful as he was, admitted it.
This Phoenix Soul Sage was beyond him.
"Sister!" Xiao Hongchen called grimly.
Meng Hongchen understood.
Against Ma Xiaotao, their individual skills—his metal control, her poison—were meaningless.
Only one option remained: Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
"Let's do it. " Meng Hongchen agreed.
Xiao Hongchen grinned fiercely.
"Let them witness our ultimate attack!"
A gold-and-ice-blue pillar erupted, dispersing the phoenix flames.
"Martial Soul Fusion Skill?" Ma Xiaotao's eyes narrowed.
She hadn't expected this.
Even Xu Jiawei and his officials stared in shock.
Martial Soul Fusion Skills were legendary in the Sun and Moon Empire—unseen in millennia.
Heavenfiend Douluo sighed inwardly.
'Why not just concede?'
But he couldn't stop them now.
How powerful would a twin Soul King fusion be?
In the sky, the light coalesced into a scarlet-gold three-legged toad, its body gleaming red-gold, eyes pitch-black.
Xiao Hongchen's voice echoed: "Behold, Shrek! Our fusion skill—Hongchen's Yearning"
The toad's maw split open, unleashing a swirling red-gold vortex—a torrent of metallic ice and searing heat.
It didn't target Ma Xiaotao.
Instead, it rained down upon Huo Yuhao and the others.
The arena trembled.
The very air distorted, as if the stage had become a sea of molten metal.
…
The Sun and Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy's strategy wasn't limited to long-range artillery bombardment—they had also prepared meticulously for close combat.
This was especially true for the subsequent one-on-one battles.
Their hidden trump card? Soul-guided armor.
Full-body soul-guided armor could drastically enhance the wearer's offensive and defensive capabilities, even bridging the gap in cultivation levels.
Meng Hongchen's Class 6 full-body soul-guided armor, equipped with integrated weapons and auxiliary soul tools, could be worn despite her being only a Class 5 soul engineer.
Combined with Meng Hongchen's Icefire Poison, this setup was meant to devastate Shrek Academy in the individual rounds.
But plans were just that—plans.
Ma Xiaotao's breakthrough shattered the balance between the two teams.
At the same age and level, Shrek's representatives were already the strongest.
And now, they had an Evil Fire Phoenix Soul Saint among them?
The Sun and Moon team had to admit it—even their strongest soul engineer,Ma Rulong, stood no chance as
a Soul Emperor against Ma Xiaotao in a one-on-one. Even with full soul tool deployment, his odds of victory were less than 20%.
Of course, they had prepared one-time absolute defense barriers, similar to the one used by the Star Luo Empire last time.
But Ma Xiaotao, having learned her lesson, refused to charge recklessly.
The moment she activated Phoenix True Body, she became a goddess of flame, raining down endless fire meteors.
She was too steady.
Against this, after Ma Rulong's elimination, the remaining six had no counterplay.
The three-second invincibility window of their barrier passed in a flash.
Despite the Sun and Moon Royal Academy's immense wealth, only core members were equipped with advanced invincible barriers.
Ma Rulong had one—but he was already out.
The others? The Hongchen siblings.
Earlier, under the cover of Shrek's team, Ma Xiaotao had caught the Sun and Moon squad off guard.
But with the Hongchen sibling's Martial Soul Fusion Skill, the Sun and Moon team launched their counterattack.
Now, the battlefield was split into two fronts.
On one side, Lin Xi and the others, clad in soul-guided armor, desperately dodged or blocked Ma Xiaotao's fire meteors, while launching their final assault.
It was do or die.
On the other front—The Hongchen siblings unleashed Hongchen's Yearning, targeting Huo Yuhao and the other five.
A storm of metallic frenzy, Scarlet-gold three-legged toad's poison, and the fusion of ice and fire turned the arena into a living purgatory.
Facing the overwhelming Hongchen's Yearning, Huo Yuhao sighed.
"One strike to decide it all..." Huo Yuhao shook his head at Wang Dong'er, who stood beside him with a complex expression.
With a flicker of movement, Huo Yuhao appeared at the team's forefront.
Huo Yuhao had no intention of using a Martial Soul Fusion Skill—Wang Dong'er's soul power was still too low. Even if he took the lead, the cost-effectiveness was poor.
As a Soul Ancestor, even with Ultimate Ice, he couldn't carry her against this.
And this Hongchen's Yearning wasn't the incomplete version from the original timeline—it was fully powered by two Soul Kings, reaching Soul Saint-level destructive force!
They had given their all.
Huo Yuhao respected that.
Under the crowd's gaze, his aura shifted. A three-foot ice sword materialized in his right hand.
Instantly, the Ice Soul Sword Intent erupted, its razor-sharp dominance splitting the stage around him.
Now clad in ice armor, his right hand—and the sword—gleamed with dazzling frost.
"Ice Emperor's Claw!"
Simultaneously, Ultimate Ice surged outward. Blue ice crystals spread, plunging the temperature to -200°C in an instant suppressing Ma Xiaotao's flame purgatory.
Even Hongchen's Yearning slowed under its influence.
The domain condensed instantly.
Huo Yuhao swung his sword.
BOOM—
A deafening slash tore through the air.
A colossal azure dragon of sword energy surged toward the Sun and Moon team.
Hongchen's Yearning vs. Ice Soul sword!
Martial Soul Fusion Skills had been legendary for millennia, yet this was the first time one had appeared in the Continental Elite Young Soul Master Tournament.
Huo Yuhao's Ice Soul sword, however, had been seen once before—during the individual elimination rounds, where he crushed Ye Wuqing effortlessly.
Now, he was going all out.
This self-created soul skill had finally revealed its true edge!
The audience's hearts leaped into their throats.
A Soul Ancestor's self-created skill clashing against two Soul Kings' fusion skill?
Unthinkable.
They had expected Ma Xiaotao to be today's protagonist—but this?
A once-in-a-millennium spectacle.
The crowd roared, chanting for Shrek and Huo Yuhao.
In Shrek's rest area, Wang Yan could barely watch.
This battle had spiraled beyond control—Ma Xiaotao's Phoenix True Body, the opponent's fusion skill…
As a mere Soul King, how could he have predicted this?
Xuan Zi, however, remained calm.
As a Level 98 Super Douluo, he saw what others couldn't—Huo Yuhao's sword carried no tricks.
It was pure will, fused with soul power and mental energy, forming a sword intent that defied the heavens.
A trinity of sword intent, martial soul origin, and domain.
At its core—the sword's will, amplified by the Ultimate Ice's essence.
In that strike, Xuan Zi saw traces of Mu En's grace and the Dragon Emperor's world-shaking power.
Huo Yuhao had found his own path.
All Xuan Zi felt now was envy.
Envy that Mu En had found such a successor.
Had he been kinder earlier, perhaps he could've taken Huo Yuhao as his disciple.
Meanwhile, Beibei and the others watched from the stands, silently praying for Huo Yuhao's victory.
He had already given them so many miracles.
They just needed one more.
On the Sun and Moon side, Teacher Ma clenched his fists.
Even if their fusion skill was exposed early—Maybe, just maybe, they still had a sliver of hope!
They still had soul tools designed to counter Ma Xiaotao.
If they could capture both her and Huo Yuhao here, Shrek would be left with only Dai Yueheng—White Tiger Soul Emperor.
Against two top-tier Soul Kings, victory was assured.
But—
'Could Huo Yuhao withstand Hongchen's Yearning?'
In the imperial city, Emperor Xu Jiawei, Princess Xu Jiujiu, White Tiger Duke Dai Hao, and other nobles fixed their eyes on the arena.
They needed Shrek to win.
If the Sun and Moon Empire claimed the championship—The future would be unimaginable.
Only Heavenfiend Douluo Huang Jinxu, the referee, was on the verge of tears.
He couldn't stop either side from using their trump cards.
Nor could he predict how catastrophic the collision would be.
His only duty? To prevent deaths.
He prayed silently.
…
Under countless gazes—The result was utterly one-sided.
The azure sword light tore through the gold-red torrent like paper.
Even the Hongchen siblings desperate resistance failed.
As the Sun and Moon team teetered on annihilation—Heavenfiend Douluo intervened, evacuating all six members.
The moment the Ice Soul sword exploded, even Heavenfiend Douluo flinched.
Heavenfiend Douluo intercepted the sword head-on.
"Seventh Soul Skill: Martial Soul True Body!"
If that strike had landed, the arena's barrier would've shattered.
The sky darkened.
Black mist clashed with ice swords in a storm of destruction.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
When the dust settled—The stage was frozen solid, yet riddled with craters.
Half of it had been obliterated by Ma Xiaotao's flames and the aftermath of Huo Yuhao's strike.
Only the left side remained intact.
And there—Huo Yuhao stood at the forefront.
His expression cold as frost, yet his presence dominated the arena.
Silence.
This moment was etched into history.
Heavenfiend Douluo's voice rang out: "Shrek Academy wins the team battle!"
The crowd erupted.
"SHREK! SHREK!"
Teacher Ma's face darkened.
The Hongchen siblings were exhausted.
The other four? Severely injured, unable to fight.
Ma Rulong remained unconscious.
There was no need to continue.
Teacher Ma sighed.
"We forfeit the individual rounds."
"Sun and Moon surrenders. The champion of this tournament is… SHREK ACADEMY!"
The stadium exploded in cheers.
Teacher Ma closed his eyes.
'Soul Saints were too oppressive.'
Next time—they'd need stronger soul power cultivation.
Especially since the next tournament would be on Sun and Moon's home soil.
If they still lacked a Soul Saint by then…
Would they even stand a chance against Huo Yuhao?
Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen exchanged glances.
They didn't protest.
Ma Xiaotao was a monster beyond their generation.
And Huo Yuhao's sword had crushed their pride.
Xiao Hongchen whispered: "I underestimated Shrek. They're… truly strong."
Meng Hongchen nodded.
"And if their main team had come… we'd have lost even harder."
Xiao Hongchen gazed at the sky.
"After this, I'll train like an apprentice again. Grandpa was right—rushing cultivation harms both body and mind. Without patience… we'll never reach the peak."
Perhaps this loss was a blessing in disguise.
Meng Hongchen smiled. "I'll join you."
…
"WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!" Shrek's team cheered wildly.
Dai Yueheng stood dazed.
"I didn't even get to fight…"
The reserves hugged, laughed, cried.
Wang Yan finally relaxed.
They'd done it.
Huo Yuhao and Ma Xiaotao led the team offstage.
It was over.
[Achievement Unlocked!]
[…]
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