"Captain! We're almost out of fixed-position soul-tool shells!"
Ma Rulong was in the midst of unleashing destruction when one of the official team members suddenly reported in.
Hearing the news, Ma Rulong frowned. "Weren't you told to bring extra shells when you came? How are they already running low? Skimped on your supplies, or slacking off?"
"Captain, it was you firing the most shells earlier! We've been firing soul‑guide beams mostly—we've been exhausting what we had!" the teammate tried to explain defensively.
"Don't make excuses!" Ma Rulong glared at him, then scanned the remaining durability of Xu Jiujiu's barrier. He decided swiftly, "Keep up the suppression at range—I'll go punch through their shield!"
True to his word, after draining his fixed-position soul-tool ammo, Ma Rulong engaged propulsion and charged straight toward Xu Jiujiu's position—catching their side completely off guard.
Although primarily a soultutor, Ma Rulong was also a Soul Emperor of six rings. His martial prowess alone—without soul tools—was formidable.
Using soul-guide beams in coordination, he pried open a small section of the Star Crown barrier. And that single breach became a disaster for the Xingluo team.
With a Soul Emperor stepping directly into the midst of Soul Kings—armed with defensive and retaliatory soul tools—the attacks the Xingluo side aimed at him had no effect at all.
The power of technology on full display!
Without the support of his soul tools, a low-level Soul Emperor of the Sun Moon Empire would never perform so casually in front of that many talented Soul Kings.
Xu Jiujiu tried to intervene—her Star Crown barrier was still intact—but it was insufficient. At that point, no other method could stop Ma Rulong.
The match ended as a total victory for the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
The entire arena floor on the Star Luo side was nothing but devastation and scorch marks—remnants of the soul-tool bombardment.
The one-sided nature of the match sparked an uproar among spectators:
"Unfair!"
"Rematch!"
"Sun Moon Empire is disgusting!"
"Ban soul tools! They're unfair—shouldn't be used in matches!"
"We want a rematch!"
The spectators had expected to see the Royal Academy defeat the Sun Moon team, or at least hold out for a long, competitive fight—not get utterly crushed.
As natives of the original Three Kingdoms of the Douluo Continent, they couldn't accept such a blow.
Amid the chanting crowd, Ma Rulong calmly raised both hands and gestured, "Hold on." Then he pointed thumbs upward at them, spun his finger mockingly, and gave a downward wave.
A blatant act of provocation!
The entire arena roared.
If not for Ma Rulong's Soul Emperor status and the arena's fence barriers, the crowd might have stormed the stage.
Chairman Huang Jinxu stepped onto the stage and glared at Ma Rulong and his team. "Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy—consider this your final warning! No more provocations like that, or you'll be disqualified!"
"You said it, Your Highness!" Ma Rulong bowed cheerily to Huang Jinxu. After hearing the formal announcement of their victory, he turned and walked off.
Watching the mobs foaming for Sun Moon's blood, Jiang Shengyu and the Shrek team sighed in low voices.
"Ignorant and resistant to new technology—they'll learn one day. The iron fist of soul‑tool tech will smash through their skulls."
Xu Jiujiu broke away and knelt before Xu Jiawei. "Your Majesty, please excuse us!"
Xu Jiawei studied her troubled expression and shook his head. "Stand up. This wasn't your fault. The power of their soul tools—too great."
Xu Jiujiu said firmly, "They relied entirely on soul tools. If I had even a shred of Soul Emperor power, I wouldn't have lost!"
In fact, the Sun Moon Empire's saturation of soul tools—especially against former Three-Kingdom powers—fueled further resistance and wariness from those royal lines.
Xu Jiawei placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Soul tools are external. As soul masters, your cultivation is what matters most. This defeat isn't the end. Train well—next time, we'll win."
She nodded, determination hardened in her eyes. With my talent, I will defeat Sun Moon next time. Soul-tools be damned—a soul master's cultivation is the true foundation.
With the semifinals set, Shrek Academy and Sun Moon Academy—with Soul Emperors on their teams—faced two other academies comfortably. Soon, the final showdown began.
The championship format: three matches, point-based scoring; first to four points wins. If the first two duo matches are won, the final trio match—win or lose—won't matter.
Shrek Academy wouldn't risk pairing their two Soul Emperors together; putting one in the last trio match would introduce too much uncertainty—especially since the Sun Moon side also had a Soul Emperor.
So Wang Yan assigned Dai Yueheng and Ma Xiaotao to the first two matches to ensure victories there. The third match team would be Jiang Qingtong, Ling Luochen, and Jiang Nannan.
Beibei was still emotionally rattled—not fit for intense battles—so Wang Yan paired He Caitou with Dai Yueheng and Xiao Xiao with Ma Xiaotao instead.
On the Sun Moon side, plans centered around how to deploy their one Soul Emperor, Ma Rulong.
Thanks to Jiang Qingtong—who was effectively a spy—Shrek Academy's game plan was crystal clear. Jiang Shengyu stated: "They'll put both Soul Emperors in the first two matches. If someone overturns that, they win the championship."
"I'll be in the first two matches then! That'll wreck their plans!" Ma Rulong declared upon hearing Jiang Shengyu's analysis.
"Good—Rulong, you're in match two. I'll pair you with Tang Ya. Tang Ya, do you have any objections?" the team coach asked.
Tang Ya looked to the coach and nodded. "No worries, I'm fine."
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