The group stage continued, but the tournament was already halfway through, and the outcomes in each group were becoming increasingly clear.
In Group One, Shrek Academy led the pack, having won all five of their matches and becoming the first team to secure advancement. Trailing just behind was the Holy Spirit Sect, also undefeated with five wins. However, everyone knew that only one of these two teams could enter the quarterfinals with a perfect record — their face-off was set as the final match of the group stage, making it the headline event of the round.
In Group Two, the most likely teams to advance were Tang Sect and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. Tang Sect had an undefeated record, while the Sun Moon Academy had won four out of five matches. The other teams in the group were effectively out of contention.
Group Three saw two sect teams — Proud Sword Sect and Heavenly Dragon Gate — as the top contenders to advance.
Group Four was the most intriguing. It featured the Snow Demon Sect and the Mingdu Soul Engineer Academy. The Snow Demon Sect, needless to say, was a disguised front for the Body Sect. As for the Mingdu Academy, it was the second-ranked institution in the Sun Moon Empire, just behind the Royal Soul Engineer Academy. They had never participated in past Soul Master Tournaments, but it was said that this year, they had produced a once-in-a-millennium genius, which prompted their appearance in this competition.
Mingdu Academy was a purely noble institution — only children of nobility ranked Earl or higher in the Sun Moon Empire could enroll. The so-called genius had yet to make an appearance in the matches. The team had made it this far purely due to their "average commoner-crushing" strength — not particularly outstanding, but just enough to progress.
Soon, the final day of the group stage arrived, and all eyes were on the last match of the day — Shrek Academy vs. Holy Spirit Sect — including those of Zhu Ziyang and the rest of the Shrek team.
In Shrek Academy's resting area, Zhu Ziyang's eyes gleamed with killing intent as he briefed Qian Lingyi, who would soon be entering the arena. For this match against the Holy Spirit Sect, Qian Lingyi — with her Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul — was undoubtedly the best candidate. The Six-Winged Angel was known to be the ultimate counter to evil soul masters, without exception. In the ancient era of the Douluo Continent, the original bearer of this martial soul suppressed the rampant evil soul masters across the land, gained the faith of the masses, and ascended to godhood.
Although the Angel God's divinity had since shattered, losing its former glory, Qian Lingyi had the potential to walk her ancestor's path once more — even more easily than her predecessors. And this match against the Holy Spirit Sect was to be her starting point.
Zhu Ziyang gave her only one order: Leave no survivors.
He showed no mercy to a sect of pure evil soul masters like the Holy Spirit Sect. Never mind their cruelty in the recent matches — their true identity alone warranted death. What's more, Zhu Ziyang had intended to use this opportunity to stage a grand drama.
However, to his disappointment, the Holy Spirit Sect unexpectedly announced their forfeit for the match. Regardless of their reasoning, Zhu Ziyang's plan would now have to be postponed.
"What a pity. Looks like you all get to jump around a few more days," Zhu Ziyang sighed with regret.
With the Holy Spirit Sect's forfeit, the fourteen-day-long group stage officially came to an end. The eight quarterfinalist teams were officially confirmed. The top two teams from each group advanced, while the others were eliminated.
This year's top eight teams were: Shrek Academy, Holy Spirit Sect, Tang Sect, Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, Snow Demon Sect, Mingdu Soul Engineer Academy, Proud Sword Sect, and Heavenly Dragon Gate.
With the group stage complete, the eight teams were given three days of rest. After that, the quarterfinals would begin — a one-day knockout round, with matchup draws held on the morning of the competition.
——
That evening, Zhu Ziyang appeared alone at an inn in Mingdu, where he met three individuals: Zhang Lexuan, Elder Song, and Xu Jianwei.
"Sister Lexuan!" Zhu Ziyang greeted her with a smile.
"Ziyang, we're here," Zhang Lexuan responded with a gentle smile of her own.
"I was just wondering yesterday when you'd arrive. Then I got your message today — we really are in sync." Zhu Ziyang chuckled.
"There was a lot going on in the military, so we were delayed a bit," Zhang Lexuan said with a smile, then added, "But don't worry. Everything has been arranged — we can act whenever you're ready!"
"That's wonderful!" Zhu Ziyang couldn't help but step forward and take Zhang Lexuan's hand. With deep emotion, he said, "You've worked so hard, Sister Lexuan."
"It's not hard. I chose this myself." Zhang Lexuan's nose twitched slightly at his words, but then she smiled and said, "Let's talk about the next step of the plan."
"Alright." Zhu Ziyang nodded, then turned to Xu Jianwei and said, "Elder Xu, I assume Sister Lexuan has already filled you in on the plan?"
"Yes," Xu Jianwei nodded. "Whatever you need, this old one will assist you with all my strength."
"Great. With your support, things should go smoothly," Zhu Ziyang's eyes flashed with confidence. "Assassinating Xu Tianran is easy. But pacifying the public outrage that would follow the emperor's death is hard. That would only hinder our actions. You see, if the assassination comes from a hostile force, the people will unite in rage. But if the assassination appears to come from within, it will instead cause confusion and unrest. The former hinders our Moon Lineage's takeover. The latter... is what we need."
"So… Ziyang, you mean—" Zhang Lexuan's eyes sparkled as she stared at him, seeming to grasp his intent.
"You understand, Sister Lexuan." Zhu Ziyang smiled. "If we assassinate Xu Tianran in the name of the Second Prince, Xu Tianci, then this won't be just an assassination — it will be a palace coup!"
"!" Elder Song and Xu Jianwei's eyes lit up. They clearly saw the brilliance in the plan. Xu Jianwei said, "That way, the assassination will be seen as internal strife, exposing the chaos of the Sun Lineage to the public and greatly damaging their reputation!"
"More importantly, it lets Shrek Academy stay completely out of the affair. It will also reduce the visibility of the Heaven Soul and Star Luo Empires, delaying the outbreak of war and buying Lexuan time," Elder Song added.
"So our next step," Zhang Lexuan continued, "is to rescue Xu Tianci. Only then can we proceed."
"Exactly. That's why I came to find you." Zhu Ziyang nodded. "Second Prince Xu Tianci is imprisoned in the imperial palace. I need intel from you on his exact location."
"No problem!" Xu Jianwei nodded. "We've already prepared for this."
As she spoke, she took out a map and handed it to Zhu Ziyang.
"This is Mingdu's city defense layout. It marks where Xu Tianran is holding other Sun Lineage members, as well as the location of the former emperor."
"Understood." Zhu Ziyang glanced at the map and said, "Then we act tonight — the sooner the better. Sister Lexuan, come with me to rescue Xu Tianci. Elder Song, Elder Xu, make some noise outside the city — preferably enough to attract Xu Tianran's attention."
"Got it!" Elder Song and Xu Jianwei responded immediately and began to move.
"Sister Lexuan, let's go too." Zhu Ziyang said, grabbing Zhang Lexuan's hand. With a flash of light in his eyes, the two of them vanished.
——
Outside the Sun Moon Imperial Palace, in a secluded corner, a flash of silver light flickered — Zhu Ziyang and Zhang Lexuan appeared.
"Sister Lexuan, let's go. Be ready for combat," Zhu Ziyang said cautiously.
"Ready anytime," Zhang Lexuan replied.
Without hesitation, the two flipped over the wall and entered the palace. Moments after they slipped inside, alarm sirens began to blare across Mingdu, plunging the city into chaos.
Inside the palace, Zhu Ziyang and Zhang Lexuan exchanged a glance. "Looks like Elder Song and Elder Xu have started. Let's move," Zhu Ziyang said.
Due to the turmoil in Mingdu, palace security had tightened. They encountered multiple patrols, but as Titled Douluo, they concealed their auras well. Unless they ran into someone of the same level or with extraordinary spiritual strength, they wouldn't be discovered.
Soon, they found Xu Tianci, who was already on the brink of madness. Guarding him were two Soul Sages and four Soul Emperors. With a wave of his hand, Zhu Ziyang froze all six into blocks of ice. He didn't kill them — they still needed to relay the message to Xu Tianran.
Xu Tianran was likely still trying to piece together the cause of the unrest in Mingdu. He'd soon figure it out. Heh...
With the half-insane Xu Tianci in tow, Zhu Ziyang and Zhang Lexuan left the palace and reunited with Elder Song and Xu Jianwei.
Now, all that remained was to wait for the day of the Soul Master Tournament Finals — when the grand play would unfold.
(End of Chapter)
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