Shrek Academy
Elder Xuan, with messy hair, sat on the steps, holding a wine gourd in his right hand and drinking from it.
The conditions of Ling Luocheng, Yao Haoxuan, and Xixi had stabilized, and their injuries would not affect their future cultivation.
After receiving this news, Elder Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, a major disaster had been averted.
Though Elder Xuan still felt guilty, his mindset was relatively stable. Compared to the painful results they had suffered when they encountered the hundred-thousand-year soul beast in the Star Dou Forest, the current situation was far better.
In his white robes, Yan Shaozhe stood behind Elder Xuan.
"How's the situation?" Elder Xuan asked, facing away from Yan Shaozhe.
Yan Shaozhe respectfully replied, "Elder Zhuang personally examined them. Yao Haoxuan is seriously injured and will need about two months to fully recover. As for Ling Luocheng and Xixi, if they recover well, they should be fine in about half a month."
Elder Zhuang was also an esteemed elder in the Sea God Pavilion, second only to Elder Mu, Elder Xuan, and Elder Lin. He was the only Title Douluo in the Sea God Pavilion specialized in healing.
"Elder Xuan, do you think we should send Ling Luocheng and Xixi to Star Luo City for further treatment?"
Elder Xuan shook his head sadly.
"Shao Zhe, I just spoke with Elder Mu. His suggestion is to let the youngsters handle things on their own. Over the years, we at Shrek Academy have been too immersed in our past glory. Failure is not frightening, but complacency is. This encounter has sounded an alarm for us. While I still believe that traditional Soul Masters have the advantage once they reach Title Douluo, we cannot completely ignore the role of soul tools. Over the last few decades, soul tools have developed rapidly, almost changing with every passing year. If each of our inner academy disciples had equipped a defensive soul tool, we wouldn't have been so passive during that situation."
"Elder Mu will hold a meeting at the Sea God Pavilion soon to address this issue."
When Yan Shaozhe heard this, his spirit stirred. He understood that Shrek Academy was likely about to undergo a significant change.
Star Luo City
As the capital of the Star Luo Empire, Star Luo City was rightfully the largest city in the empire, known as the "Imperial City That Never Falls."
This title, however, carried a somewhat ironic meaning.
A thousand years ago, Star Luo City had always been compared with the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire, Heaven Dou City. Star Luo City had never fallen, but after the destruction of the Spirit Hall, the Heaven Dou Empire fell into intense civil war and split into two nations: the Heaven Soul Empire and the Douling Empire.
The Heaven Soul Empire's royal family had conquered Heaven Dou City from the former Heaven Dou Empire royal family, forcing them to relocate their capital to Ling Dou City and establish the Douling Empire.
Star Luo City stretched over more than a hundred miles, and in terms of scale, even a bustling city like Shrek City could not compare.
The core of the entire city lay in the central inner city, which was also the imperial palace of the Star Luo Empire. The royal palace had existed since the days when the White Tiger Duke's family was part of the royal family. After several renovations and expansions, the palace had grown in scale.
Star Luo City had a permanent population of over eight million, and with the influx of travelers, the population reached up to twenty million.
Yet, despite the massive scale of this city, it had recently become crowded.
All of this was due to the upcoming All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle, which would be held in Star Luo City.
There were four countries on the continent, and the All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle was held once every five years. This meant that Star Luo City had to wait twenty years for the chance to host the event again.
Such a grand event could not help but draw people in to watch.
For this reason, the Star Luo Empire mobilized tens of thousands of soldiers to maintain order.
The All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle would be held at Star Luo Square, located in front of the imperial palace. Not far to the east of Star Luo Square stood a luxurious hotel called the Star Emperor Hotel. This hotel was owned by the royal family of the Star Luo Empire and had been specifically set up to accommodate the participating soul master academies and soul master teachers for the tournament.
Shrek Academy, as the defending champion of the last competition and the number one academy on the continent, was naturally placed at the top floors of the hotel.
Everyone had their own room, which was spacious and luxurious. The Star Luo Empire's organizers even prepared a separate meeting room for Shrek Academy's teachers and participants.
At this moment, Xu Zhihuang and the other Shrek Academy participants were sitting in the meeting room, holding a pre-match conference.
Wang Yan, with a grim face, sat at the head of the table. To his left were Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, Chen Zifeng, and Gongyang Mo, the four main team members. To his right were Xu Zhihuang, Bebe, and the other seven reserve team members.
They had only just arrived in Star Luo City this morning, and after a long journey, not only had Ma Xiaotao and the others' injuries worsened, but even Bebe, Xu Sanshi, and He Caitou had experienced a recurrence of their previous internal injuries.
Among everyone present, only Xu Zhihuang, Jiang Nannan, Wang Dong, and Ning Tian were in the best condition.
Wang Yan's expression was understandably grim.
This year, 133 academies were participating in the All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle. According to the lottery, one academy would receive a bye in the first round of elimination matches.
However, as the defending champion, Shrek Academy would not have a bye and would have to compete in the first match.
Given the current situation, even though Wang Yan wanted to encourage everyone, he couldn't find the right words.
The first round of elimination matches would be a team battle, but they couldn't even field a full team of seven in peak condition.
The atmosphere in the meeting room grew tense and heavy.
Bebe, sitting in the first seat on the right, normally graceful and refined, no longer wore a smile in light of the situation.
He looked at Wang Yan and said in a deep voice, "Teacher Wang, Xu Sanshi and I are not severely injured. We can both participate in tomorrow's elimination match."
Bebe and Xu Sanshi had a close relationship, and Xu Sanshi nodded in agreement.
He Caitou, sitting beside them, also spoke earnestly, "Teacher Wang, I can also participate."
"You're all good kids." Wang Yan sighed deeply, feeling a rush of emotion in his heart.
Not everyone could take on the honor of representing Shrek Academy on their shoulders. For the reserve team, this honor felt especially heavy.
If they failed, the pressure would be unimaginable.
The four members of the main team sitting across from them, Ma Xiaotao included, wore faces of shame. This honor and responsibility should have been shouldered by them.
Wang Yan noticed Xu Zhihuang, who was sitting next to Bebe and seemed to be deep in thought. He suddenly asked, "Tianhuang, do you have something to say?"
"Teacher Wang, and everyone, would you trust me?" Xu Zhihuang slowly raised his head, looking at everyone with calm eyes. His clear purple eyes flickered with a golden-purple glow, momentarily mesmerizing them.
"Teacher Wang, you mentioned earlier that Shrek Academy is the defending champion. In the first round of elimination matches, we won't face any of the top sixteen teams from last year. That means our opponents in the first round will have at most one or two Soul Kings. If you trust me, let me take on the first elimination match tomorrow."
Xu Zhihuang's words made everyone's expressions shift dramatically.
"Junior Brother Yu, are you saying that you want to represent Shrek Academy alone in the seven-on-seven team battle in the first round?" Dai Yaoheng frowned slightly. While he recognized Xu Zhihuang's talent and strength, he felt that Xu Zhihuang's idea was a bit too arrogant, even seeming to treat Shrek Academy's honor as a joke.
Xu Zhihuang calmly met Dai Yaoheng's gaze.
"Senior Dai, I believe this is the best solution."
Unexpectedly, Wang Yan supported Xu Zhihuang's plan.
Wang Yan quickly grasped Xu Zhihuang's intentions.
Bebe, Xu Sanshi, and He Caitou all had a tendency for their injuries to flare up again. If they participated in the team battle, using their soul power and martial souls would inevitably worsen their injuries.
This would be highly disadvantageous for the subsequent rounds. In the following rounds, eight to nine teams would be grouped together. Only the top two teams in terms of points would advance. Though it wasn't as harsh as a knockout match, the schedule would be very tight.
Once two losses were suffered, it was basically game over.
But if Xu Zhihuang could win the first round of elimination matches alone, he would give Bebe and the others three days to recover. With the help of Shrek Academy's healing pills, it wouldn't be a problem for them to fully recover within three days.
Moreover, Xu Zhihuang's victory in the first round would also send a huge shockwave to other teams, making them hesitant to clash with Shrek Academy in the subsequent rounds.
As for not including Ning Tian, Wang Dong, and Jiang Nannan, that was to avoid revealing the fact that Shrek Academy was short of participants. Additionally, their cultivation levels were relatively low, which might hinder Xu Zhihuang's individual performance, making it a loss.
However, this all depended on Xu Zhihuang being able to win the elimination match alone.
"Tianhuang, how confident are you?" Wang Yan asked seriously, staring intently into Xu Zhihuang's eyes.
Xu Zhihuang smiled freely.
"Ten out of ten."
"Good!" Whether it was Xu Zhihuang's confidence or not, Wang Yan slammed the table heavily.
"I personally support Tianhuang's plan. Everyone should understand Tianhuang's intention. He wants to give Bebe, Xu Sanshi, and He Caitou time to recover and prepare for the upcoming round-robin matches. But since this concerns Shrek Academy's honor, we must proceed with caution. Alright, let's vote. Those in favor, raise your hands."
As he spoke, Wang Yan raised his hand first.
His decision wasn't just based on these reasons; he had personally witnessed Xu Zhihuang's terrifying strength during the previous Outer Academy core disciple selection. The scene of black and purple lightning ravaging the skies was still vivid in his mind.
The second hand to raise was Ning Tian, her gaze trembling as she looked at Xu Zhihuang. In her heart, she had already developed an unspoken trust in him.
Hearing Wang Yan's words, Bebe and Xu Sanshi exchanged glances and also raised their right hands. They had personally felt Xu Zhihuang's true power, and this plan was indeed their best option.
However, this decision meant that the pressure was entirely on Xu Zhihuang.
The next hand to raise was He Caitou. Following him, Ma Xiaotao and Gongyang Mo, who knew some of Xu Zhihuang's second martial soul secrets, also raised their hands.
Ma Xiaotao said, "I also think Xu Zhihuang's plan is good. Isn't the goal of Shrek Academy to train monsters? How can we not have pride and confidence? Right now, we can only trust Xu Zhihuang. Dai Yaoheng, let me ask you, can you fight, or should I step up now? Or do you have a better plan?"
"Ma Xiaotao, I didn't mean that. I just think it's a bit too risky," Dai Yaoheng said with a wry smile.
But no matter what he said, the decision was made. With Ma Xiaotao and Gongyang Mo's votes, it was already seven votes in favor.
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