Lin Jie had always held great respect for Flender.
"Don't worry, Headmaster," he said with a confident smile. "We'll bring the championship trophy back to Shrek. Besides, there are still those three Spirit Bones waiting for us."
With that, the group straightened their backs and strode toward the Supreme Pontiff Palace.
As they ascended the steps, determination was etched across the faces of the Shrek Seven. With each step, their desire for victory grew ever stronger.
In front of the Pontiff's Palace, Bibi Dong, Ning Fengzhi, and the three Title Douluo from the day before were already seated. At Bibi Dong's side, three brilliantly glowing Spirit Bones lay quietly atop a crimson velvet tray.
Spirit Hall Academy's seven members stood not far off, their bodies emanating an oppressive battle aura. The moment they saw Shrek approaching, their gazes turned cold and sharp, like blades of ice, brimming with killing intent.
But the Shrek Seven met their gazes head-on, unflinching.
Though the match had yet to begin, the tension between the two teams already clashed violently in the air.
The officiating red-clothed Cardinal raised his voice and declared,
"The Grand Finals of the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament are about to begin. Both teams, prepare. The match will commence in fifteen minutes."
The Shrek Seven huddled close, placing their hands atop one another.
One voice, unified and full of conviction, echoed across the Pontiff's Palace:
"Victory!"
Hearing Shrek's declaration, the captain of Spirit Hall Academy, Xie Yue, sneered.
"Victory, huh? Let's see how you manage that when you're completely outclassed. Even our weakest is on par with your strongest. I want to see how you're going to win."
He turned to his teammates, voice cold and commanding.
"The Supreme Pontiff is watching. The elders are watching. Today, we don't just win—we crush them. Give them no chance. As for Lin Jie… leave him to me."
Then, raising his voice, he shouted louder than Shrek had before:
"Champions—!"
His voice echoed throughout the entire Supreme Pontiff Palace and even rolled down toward the streets of Spirit City. The Spirit Masters below felt their blood surge with youthful excitement. After all, who among them hadn't once burned with ambition?
Fifteen minutes passed quickly.
At the signal of the officiating cardinal, both teams stepped onto the stage.
The two teams stood across from one another, eyes locked, each burning with fighting spirit.
Hu Liena stepped forward slightly, her gaze falling on a familiar figure.
"To think… we'd really meet again like this, Lin Jie," she said softly.
Lin Jie gave a faint, knowing smile. "Yeah. But tell me—do you really think you can beat me?"
The Shrek team cast curious glances at Lin Jie. None of them had known he had any connection with Hu Liena—one of the Golden Generation, no less. Though questions filled their minds, they knew this wasn't the time to ask.
Even Spirit Hall's team seemed surprised. Xie Yue, Hu Liena's older brother, furrowed his brow. Did his sister… know Lin Jie? Had he perhaps lost to Lin Jie before?
He shot Hu Liena a glance full of questions.
But she only shook her head lightly, eyes still on Lin Jie.
"Let's find out," she replied.
The officiating red-clothed cardinal spoke again, seizing the moment:
"Prepare for battle. Both sides may now release their Martial Souls."
Both teams immediately fell into formation.
At the cardinal's signal, the Spirit Hall Academy team erupted with Spirit Power.
At the front stood Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan. All three bore the ideal five-ring configuration: two yellow, two purple, one black. Behind them were four more students—all four-ring Spirit Ancestors with the optimal yellow-yellow-purple-purple Spirit Ring layout.
From their rear ranks, one team member stepped back and summoned a radiant golden scepter—clearly their support-type Tool Spirit Master.
At the same moment, Shrek Academy's formation activated.
This time, Xiao Wu was not on the field. Oscar had taken her place.
In the front row stood Dai Mubai and Tang San, followed by Lin Jie. At Lin Jie's side were Ma Hongjun and Zhu Zhuqing, while Ning Rongrong and Oscar formed the rear.
A standard 2-3-2 formation.
Unlike the previous match where they had used their Seven-in-One Fusion Ability, this time they released their Martial Souls individually, just like in their earlier rounds.
Each member's Martial Soul was unique.
In Lin Jie's hands, a familiar bolt of lightning crackled quietly—simple, unassuming. Yet no one dared underestimate it anymore. Everyone here had witnessed that same unassuming lightning annihilate the entire Kamikaze Academy team with two palm strikes the day before.
Six of Shrek's members were Spirit Ancestors, each with four Spirit Rings. Only Oscar remained a Spirit Elder with three rings. Observers couldn't help but take note—Shrek had benched a Spirit Ancestor in favor of Oscar. That could only mean one thing: they had a plan.
"Begin!"
With a sweep of his sleeve, the officiating cardinal vanished from the stage, and the match officially began.
Oddly, the first to act wasn't Spirit Hall's captain Xie Yue, but Hu Liena.
With a graceful step and a twirl of her waist, she drifted forward. Her Charming Fox Martial Soul had already activated, and her body shimmered with an alluring pink mist. Her eyes radiated a hypnotic charm, the same gaze she had once used to dominate Yu Tianheng.
But to her shock, Shrek's team remained completely unaffected.
No one faltered. No one reacted.
Except for Lin Jie and Tang San, the others had already covered their ears and closed their eyes—completely sealing off both vision and hearing.
They had cut off their senses preemptively.
Charm-type Spirit Abilities rely on the six senses—sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and perception. Hu Liena's abilities clearly functioned through visual and auditory pathways. With those senses blocked, her charm was utterly ineffective.
Just then, Lin Jie stepped forward, vanishing in a flicker of light and reappearing at the front of the formation—face-to-face with Hu Liena.
But Hu Liena did not retreat.
Her Spirit Power surged as the pink aura enveloped Lin Jie like a cloud of mist. A subtle smile curled at her lips—she could already envision Lin Jie falling under her control.
One second passed.
Two seconds.
But Lin Jie didn't falter. Instead, he casually waved a hand through the mist, as though shooing away smoke.
Hu Liena frowned. She increased her Spirit Power output—but it was useless.
A joke.
Her charm abilities were only effective against Spirit Masters whose spiritual power was equal to or below hers. Lin Jie's spiritual and soul strength far surpassed her own. Even if she poured every ounce of power into her ability, it would never work.
Then, Lin Jie's eyes flashed.
A pulse of mental energy erupted from him and shot toward Hu Liena.
"Ah—!"
A sharp cry escaped her lips. She staggered back several steps, her expression pale.
Mental attacks were incredibly dangerous—strong enough to kill. If Lin Jie had unleashed the full force of that blast, she might have ended up like the students from Canghui Academy: brain-dead. But he had held back—just enough to drive her back.
Still, she was lucky to be a charm-type control—Spirit Masters like her naturally had stronger mental fortitude than others.
With Hu Liena's opening move broken, Lin Jie turned and gave a swift gesture to his team.
Without hesitation, the rest of the Shrek team launched into motion.
At the same time, Lin Jie dashed forward again, charging toward Hu Liena. But this time, his speed seemed a little… slower than usual.
Hu Liena remained alert.
Her five Spirit Rings began to glow in sequence—black, purple, purple, yellow, yellow. With each activation, the pink mist surrounding her grew thicker.
Behind her, Xie Yue moved.
His Martial Soul, Moon Blade, transformed into two crimson crescent sabers. As his Spirit Rings flashed, he charged toward Hu Liena.
In the rear, the support-type Spirit Master launched two beams of golden light—one toward Xie Yue, the other toward Hu Liena. Both merged instantly into their bodies.
Just as the two met, a dazzling red light exploded outward—forming a dome of light that rapidly expanded.
In a flash, half the arena was engulfed in crimson radiance. The entire Shrek team was enveloped in the glow. Lin Jie was now less than twenty meters away from the fusion point.
With the aid of their support Spirit Master, Hu Liena and Xie Yue had initiated their Spirit Fusion Ability: Charm Demon.
Shrek knew they possessed a Fusion Ability.
But Spirit Fusion Ability... were an entirely different concept from ordinary fusion ability.