On the side of Spirit Hall Academy, disbelief was written across every face. Although Xie Yue and Hu Liena were still standing, so was Lin Jie—he hadn't fallen.
In contrast, the Shrek team members were wearing faint smiles. This was exactly the Lin Jie they knew—powerful and unwavering.
Xie Yue stared at his Moon Blades, now chipped and cracked, his expression darkening. Hu Liena looked pale as she gazed at the slightly weary but still-composed Lin Jie.
Xie Yue finally realized that two of their own had already been taken down by the girl with the Spirit Bone, Zhu Zhuqing, while on Shrek's side, only Dai Mubai and Tang San had sustained minor injuries—and the two of them were already back on their feet, engaging Yan once more.
Clearly, Spirit Hall Academy had fallen into a disadvantage.
Lin Jie cast a light smile at the now-separated Xie Yue and Hu Liena. "You two were strong—but is this your limit?"
Xie Yue snapped coldly, "What do you mean? Your Spirit Power must be nearly depleted by now. You think you can still fight?"
"Depleted?" Lin Jie chuckled. "Who said anything about being out of Spirit Power?"
By this point, Lin Jie had reached such fine control over his Spirit Power that his consumption was minimal. Besides, he had yet to use any official Spirit Abilities. His self-created techniques consumed far less energy than conventional Spirit Abilities.
Xie Yue's expression instantly turned sour. Hu Liena's face darkened as well—maintaining their Spirit Fusion Ability had drained them significantly, and Xie Yue had also unleashed his strongest move, Full Moon. Now, they were nearly spent.
"Zhuqing!" Lin Jie called out softly, raising his right hand.
Zhu Zhuqing immediately understood. Without even glancing at the two fallen opponents, she turned and charged straight at Spirit Hall's unguarded support-type Spirit Master.
"Not good!" Xie Yue, Hu Liena, and Yan exclaimed in unison, turning toward their teammate in alarm.
Yan roared and exploded with power, sending Tang San and Dai Mubai flying with a blast of overwhelming force. Mubai, already low on Spirit Power, couldn't withstand the strike and was knocked backward. Tang San, though startled, wasn't seriously harmed. Seeing Mubai on the verge of collapse and Zhu Zhuqing closing in on her target, he chose not to chase Yan and instead darted over to support his teammate.
As an agility-type Spirit Master, speed was Zhu Zhuqing's forte, especially when amplified by her Eight Spider Lances and the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's speed boost from Ning Rongrong. In a blink, she appeared beside Spirit Hall's support-type Spirit Master.
The closest to protect the support Spirit Master was a power-attack Spirit Elder who was locked in combat with Ma Hongjun. Although his role was to guard the support-type, facing Ma Hongjun's fiery onslaught left him unable to disengage.
Despite having five ranks of Spirit Power over Ma Hongjun, the latter's top-tier Phoenix Martial Soul had significantly narrowed the gap. The Spirit Elder couldn't spare a moment to defend his teammate.
As for Yan—he was one step too late.
Squelch—
A sharp leg from the Eight Spider Lances pierced the support Spirit Master's body. His face turned a deadly purple-black as he collapsed instantly.
Before the match, Lin Jie had warned Zhu Zhuqing not to use her most lethal poison—or else the opponent wouldn't just fall; they might never get up again.
With Spirit Hall Academy now deprived of their support-type member, the balance tilted even further.
"You—" Yan growled through clenched teeth, fury flashing across his face as he stared at Zhu Zhuqing.
He now understood—they had completely lost the upper hand. This girl with a Spirit Bone—her strength was unknown, but it was certainly formidable.
Xie Yue's face turned even gloomier as he saw their support teammate fall.
Spirit Power surged again as the Flame Lord Martial Soul possessed Yan. His magma-like body appeared before Zhu Zhuqing, and his Exploding Fist came crashing down.
Zhu Zhuqing remained calm in the face of the incoming blow. Her fourth Spirit Ring lit up instantly.
"Tell me—who do you think is going to win now?" Lin Jie said casually as he walked toward Hu Liena, glancing briefly at Zhu Zhuqing's battle.
As he moved, the Lightning Armor, previously deactivated, reappeared and enveloped his body. His Iron Sand Sword now looked like a pitch-black longsword.
"Lin Jie!" Hu Liena called out, her tone tinged with frustration, her face pale.
"We haven't lost yet!" Xie Yue shouted, mustering what little Spirit Power he had left. His shattered Moon Blades reformed as he launched a fresh attack toward Lin Jie.
At the same time, Hu Liena activated her charm-based control ability.
But Lin Jie's eyes suddenly gleamed—he unleashed a mental attack, invisible but sharp, aimed directly at Xie Yue. It was precisely calibrated to daze him for a few seconds, just enough.
Xie Yue, unaware of the incoming attack, had no time to react.
"Urgh—" A muffled groan escaped him as his movements suddenly froze.
Hu Liena immediately sensed something was wrong. This was exactly like the spiritual strike Lin Jie had used on her at the start of the match.
At this moment, Lin Jie—moving at unmatched speed under his Lightning Armor—closed the distance in an instant.
Then, a blur of images appeared—not one, but nine shadowy Lin Jies, all attacking from different angles. His sword danced like a storm.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Blades howled. Wind rose. Blood sprayed.
Nine sword wounds appeared across Xie Yue's body. He collapsed, defeated.
Before Hu Liena could react, Lin Jie's blade was already at her throat.
"Don't move," he said with a light smile.
"You—" Hu Liena bit her lip in fury, taking a step back. But Lin Jie's sword followed—just one small thrust and it would pierce her heart. Rage burned in her eyes. If she could, she'd bite him to death.
"You've already lost," Lin Jie said softly.
"You—!" Hu Liena began, but the words caught in her throat.
Just then, three beams of nine-colored light descended from the sky and merged into Zhu Zhuqing's body. Ning Rongrong's triple boost—attack, speed, and Spirit Power—instantly caused Zhu Zhuqing's aura to explode in strength.
The next moment, the original Zhu Zhuqing split into nine shadowy figures, each cloaked in darkness and wielding Eight Spider Lances.
A tidal wave of killing intent flooded the air.
Yan's eyes narrowed. He was already in mid-strike and had no way to pull back.
Nine Zhu Zhuqings. Nine directions. Nine simultaneous attacks.
In a blink, they converged on Yan.
He was stunned—he hadn't expected this level of speed, of strength, of lethal precision.
How could he block nine deadly attacks?
How could he defend against all sides at once?
Squelch!
Blood sprayed like crimson blossoms from nine wounds, bursting in nine directions.
Thud.
Yan collapsed with a crash, his eyes filled with disbelief as he stared at Zhu Zhuqing.
This moment of his defeat was perfectly synchronized with Lin Jie's blade being held at Hu Liena's throat and Xie Yue collapsing from his injuries.
Hu Liena was rendered speechless—not only had her brother Xie Yue fallen, so had Yan, both critically injured and unable to fight. The last remaining Spirit Elder, who had been fighting Ma Hongjun, had also been defeated—with Tang San's help, no less.
Now, of the seven members of Spirit Hall Academy, only she remained standing.
And before her stood Lin Jie, his blade at her throat.
Up in the viewing stands, Bibi Dong had long since risen to her feet. Her expression remained composed, showing no outward emotion. She was the Supreme Pontiff—her face showed no joy or rage. But if one looked carefully, they'd notice her hand gripping the scepter tightly enough to turn her knuckles white.
Beside her, Ghost Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo looked visibly grim. It was undeniable now—Spirit Hall had lost. Even the word "furious" couldn't describe their current mood.
On the other hand, Ning Fengzhi and Sword Douluo Chen Xin were all smiles. Even more excited were those in the audience stands—Xiao Wu, Liu Erlong, and the others cheered with joy. Huang Yuan, Tai Long, and the rest even cried out in amazement.
Back on the stage, Lin Jie looked at Hu Liena and smiled. "So? Admit defeat. I don't want to hurt you."
Hu Liena stood pale-faced. She knew—Spirit Hall Academy had lost.
They had failed the expectations of Spirit Hall. She had failed her teacher.
But she didn't want to admit defeat—she couldn't. Even if she were the last one standing, she would fight to the very end.
Gritting her teeth, she lunged forward and launched an attack at Lin Jie.
Seeing Hu Liena charge at him recklessly, Lin Jie sighed. He couldn't seriously hurt her—not now, not with what was coming later. So, he prepared to knock her unconscious.
Just as Lin Jie was about to act—
"Spirit Hall concedes."
Bibi Dong's calm voice echoed from the Supreme Pontiff's Palace.
The moment her words rang out, the members of Shrek Academy erupted in joy.