"After the first round of elimination, a total of 67 teams have advanced to the next round. According to the rules of this continent-wide Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Fighting Tournament, these 67 teams will be divided into eight groups for the next round of the round-robin matches. That means five groups will consist of eight teams, while the other three groups will have nine teams. As I mentioned before, the round-robin matches are based on a point system. Winning a match earns two points, a draw earns one point, and losing gives no points. Only the top two teams in each group can advance to the next round."
"Our Shrek Academy, as the champions of the last continent-wide tournament, will be placed in one of the groups with eight teams. We will only need to play against the other seven teams in our group. However, to advance to the next round, we must win at least five of those matches."
Wang Yan looked at everyone with a serious expression.
"The elimination round will consist of team battles, individual matches, and the 2v2-3v3 format. The specific format for each match will be determined by a draw. The team battle is straightforward, a normal seven-vs-seven match. The individual match doesn't mean just one person goes up to fight a single match; instead, the loser leaves the stage, and the winner can continue fighting until one team has lost all seven participants. Individual matches focus on individual strength, and the order of combatants can be adjusted based on the opponent's abilities. But let me focus on explaining the third format: the 2v2-3v3 match."
"The 2v2-3v3 format, as the name suggests, consists of two 2v2 matches and one 3v3 match, all in a best-of-three format. This will test my coordination skills. I've carefully considered everyone's strengths, and here's the tentative lineup: Bei Bei and Jiang Nannan will be a team for the 2v2 match, and Xu Sanshi and Wang Dong will team up for the other 2v2. As for Yu Tianhuang, He Caitou, and Ning Tian, your abilities complement each other perfectly, so you will be the team for the 3v3."
Upon hearing Wang Yan's arrangement, the four inner academy disciples—Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yuheng, Chen Zifeng, and Gongyang Mo—nodded in agreement.
The explosive power of the assault-type Soul Masters combined with the agility of the speed-type Soul Masters made a perfect match, and Xu Sanshi, as a defensive Soul Master, could provide support to Wang Dong for the use of their powerful thousand-year soul skills.
As for Yu Tianhuang's exceptional control ability combined with Ning Tian's Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Tower martial soul, there was no doubt that it would perfectly support He Caitou's soul engineer weapons.
It's important to note that soul engineers are generally much stronger than Soul Masters below the seventh ring when it comes to destructive power.
Such a combination was indeed the most reasonable.
Wang Yan looked at the reserve team and asked, "Does anyone have any objections to this arrangement? If so, now is the time to bring them up."
Everyone shook their heads seriously, except for Xu Sanshi, who hesitated for a moment but ultimately remained silent.
Of course, he wanted to team up with Jiang Nannan, but he recalled that he had just made her angry, so he decided not to provoke her further.
Besides, this was the competition arrangement, and it concerned Shrek Academy's honor, so he wouldn't want to mess things up.
Wang Yan stood up and said, "Alright, the basic arrangement is set. In the next two days, I will observe the round-robin matches to assess the abilities of the other teams. Depending on the situation, changes may occur. Everyone should go and rest now, especially Xiaotao and Bei Bei, focus on recovering from your injuries."
"Yes, Teacher Wang," everyone replied in unison before standing up and leaving the meeting room.
Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yuheng, and the others intended to talk to Xu Zihuang, but before they could leave the meeting room, Xu Zihuang was called aside by Wang Yan.
This made them abandon their plan.
Chen Zifeng glanced at Xu Zihuang and couldn't help but praise, "I didn't expect Tianhuang's strength to be so overwhelming. He has the power to surpass ordinary Soul Kings even at the Soul Zong level. He's a monster."
He and the previous captain of the Qi Ling Advanced Soul Master Academy, Shen Ce, were of the same type of Soul Master, so he understood the strengths of this type of Soul Master very well.
"Teacher Wang is really farsighted. Yu Tianhuang's strength is definitely stronger than we imagined," Dai Yuheng nodded in agreement.
In Shrek Academy, strength was the most important thing. These inner academy disciples had never really thought highly of Wang Yan, since his cultivation was weaker than theirs. But the truth was, with such an experienced teacher offering advice and strategies, they had been able to save some effort.
Gongyang Mo smiled without speaking, but there was a knowing smile on his face as he added, "Yu Tianhuang's strength is far beyond what he showed just now."
Chen Zifeng and Dai Yuheng didn't disagree with Gongyang Mo's statement.
With their experience, they could tell that Yu Tianhuang had spare energy when crushing the Qi Ling Advanced Soul Master Academy. But they didn't know that Gongyang Mo was referring to Yu Tianhuang's dual martial souls.
Dai Yuheng asked Ma Xiaotao, who was walking ahead of the group, "By the way, Xiaotao, you're quite familiar with Yu Tianhuang, right? Can you give us some insight into his true strength? It would put our minds at ease."
"Who told you that I'm very familiar with that little brat?" Ma Xiaotao turned her head and snorted. When she heard Dai Yuheng's words, she couldn't help but recall the incident when she fell into the lake, and a hint of embarrassment and frustration appeared in her pink eyes.
She had known Yu Tianhuang for less than a month, but on the day she fell into the lake, they had almost opened up to each other.
Ma Xiaotao knew that she couldn't blame Yu Tianhuang for that incident. In fact, she felt that it was she who owed him a huge favor. But that only made her feel more frustrated.
She had been exposed to him for no reason, and she couldn't do anything about it. In the end, that brat acted like nothing had happened.
However, the reason Ma Xiaotao reacted so strongly was because Yu Tianhuang's performance today was impressive.
She was naturally drawn to such strong, domineering men, those who looked down upon the world.
In fact, when she was watching the match earlier, she had an unconscious thought: if Yu Tianhuang were five years older, she might have agreed to Teacher Yan Shaozhe's proposal.
Dai Yuheng and Chen Zifeng exchanged strange looks as they stared at Ma Xiaotao.
Meanwhile, Gongyang Mo wore a mysterious smile.
Among the main team members, he was the one who had the best relationship with Ma Xiaotao and understood her the most.
It was a relationship like that of "sisters."
The rooms for the main team and reserve team were on opposite sides. Meanwhile, the reserve team was also talking.
"Talking" was really just Xu Sanshi constantly trying to win Jiang Nannan's affection.
Jiang Nannan frowned as she looked at Xu Sanshi, who was sticking to her like glue, and quickened her pace to return to her room, slamming the door behind her.
Bei Bei placed his hand on Xu Sanshi's shoulder and smiled, "This is a long road ahead."
Xu Sanshi's face instantly turned bitter. Just as he was about to argue with Bei Bei, he caught sight of Ning Tian out of the corner of his eye.
He quickly walked over to Ning Tian, looking pitiful. "Ning Tian, what should I do for Jiang Nannan to accept me? I really have no idea. From a girl's perspective, give me some advice."
"Ning Tian smiled softly, her water-blue eyes showing some confusion. "Senior Xu must have done something that made Jiang Nannan dislike you. I think you should try resolving whatever it is that caused her prejudice against you."
Although Xu Sanshi appeared to be a bit cheeky, his strength, talent, and character were all excellent. Ning Tian couldn't understand why Jiang Nannan held such a strong grudge against him.
Upon hearing Ning Tian's words, Xu Sanshi froze, scratching his head awkwardly as he struggled to find words.
He Caitou, smiling foolishly, said, "I think sincerity is the most important thing."
"Isn't that enough sincerity?" Xu Sanshi sighed, looking defeated as he returned to his room.
The others also dispersed, but before going to their rooms, Bei Bei gave a thoughtful glance at Wang Dong, who seemed lost in thought.
In the reserve team, the relationships between everyone were largely shaped by Yu Tianhuang.
Yu Tianhuang had good relationships with Xu Sanshi, Bei Bei, He Caitou, and Ning Tian. Jiang Nannan had a special connection with Xu Sanshi. But Wang Dong always seemed to be outside the team.
As the captain of the reserve team, Bei Bei felt responsible for integrating Wang Dong into the group.
But he knew that the root of the issue lay with Yu Tianhuang and Wang Dong.
Meanwhile, in the meeting room, Wang Yan and Xu Zihuang's conversation had reached its end.
Wang Yan gave Xu Zihuang a reassuring yet serious look and said, "That's all I wanted to say. Also, Tianhuang, in the upcoming round-robin matches, if we end up in an individual match, the pressure will fall on you. I hope you are prepared for that."
"I will, Teacher Wang," Xu Zihuang replied seriously.
Wang Yan smiled encouragingly, not saying much more, but he gave Xu Zihuang a solid pat on the shoulder.
"Alright, Tianhuang, you should get some rest now."
...
The two days passed quickly, and the first round of the elimination tournament came to an end.
After the brutal and intense first round of eliminations, the emotions of the spectators at the Xingluo Square had been completely stirred up.
The upcoming round-robin matches were sure to be even more thrilling, which led countless people to line up outside Xingluo Square in the middle of the night, eager to catch a glimpse of the action. After all, while Xingluo Square was vast, the number of spectators it could accommodate was limited. It wasn't possible to let everyone in.
As a result, the Xingluo Empire raised the ticket prices significantly.
Even so, tickets were still in high demand. Every day, Xingluo Square was packed, with no room to spare.
Today marked the fourth day of this continent-wide Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Fighting Tournament, and the round-robin matches officially began.
The teams had not yet entered the arena, but the crowds at Xingluo Square were already roaring with excitement.
The reason for this excitement was simple: Shrek Academy would be the first to participate in the opening match. The spectacle of Xu Zihuang defeating seven opponents by himself had left a deep impression on the audience, and now they were eager to see if Xu Zihuang could perform another miracle in today's match.
Even Emperor Xu Jiawei of the Xingluo Empire had shown great respect by arriving early and waiting on top of the royal city's walls, giving Shrek Academy tremendous honor.
Before long, the 67 teams that had advanced from the first round of eliminations were ready to enter.
Shrek Academy was at the front, followed by the Sun Moon Royal Soul Mentor Academy.
Although the Sun Moon Royal Soul Mentor Academy had been the runner-up in the last tournament, the treatment they received was not even close to that of Shrek Academy.
When the Shrek Academy team, wearing dark green uniforms, entered the passage, the entire Xingluo Square erupted in cheers, chanting the name of Shrek.
Under Wang Yan's leadership, the team made its way to the exclusive resting area for Shrek Academy.
The resting area for participating teams was set up on the northern side of Xingluo Square, and Shrek Academy's area was closer to the royal city. Furthermore, their resting area was much larger than the others, with over twenty comfortable sofas, tables filled with food, fruit, and drinks. There were even dedicated attendants standing respectfully by, waiting for the team.
The atmosphere was already heating up. The host began by announcing the names of the academies that had advanced, then continued to introduce the groupings for the round-robin.
Today, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yuheng, Chen Zifeng, and Gongyang Mo did not come to watch the match, as they were staying at the hotel to recover from their injuries.
The spectators and representatives of other competing academies noticed this, but no one thought Shrek Academy's actions were inappropriate. The scene of Xu Zihuang defeating seven opponents just three days ago was still fresh in their minds.
After a few words of excitement from the host, he shouted energetically, "Now, let us welcome the representatives of the continent's number one academy, Shrek Academy, and their opponents, the representatives of the Tianhun Empire's Silvis Academy, to the waiting area. Also, let the captains of both teams come up to the stage to decide the format of their match!"
The waiting areas for both teams were built on the sides of the competition stage, and this system would be used for the round-robin matches.
Everyone stood up and walked toward the waiting area, while Bei Bei, following Wang Yan's instructions, headed toward the competition stage.
As they walked, Wang Yan whispered to the group, "Silvis Academy has a history that dates back thousands of years. Once, the Tian Dou Empire governed several kingdoms and duchies. One of them was the Silvis Kingdom, and this academy was the royal academy of that kingdom. However, after a thousand years of changes, Silvis Academy has become just an average academy. I watched the Silvis Academy team in yesterday's elimination round. They have four Soul Zongs and three Soul Sirs. Their strength isn't even as strong as our reserve team. Bei Bei, Sanshi, and Caitou have fully recovered from their injuries. Winning this match is absolutely no problem."
As Wang Yan introduced the academy, on the competition stage, Bei Bei and the captain of Silvis Academy both grabbed a hollow circular ball.
Inside this ball were three smaller balls: red, yellow, and blue.
They would throw the hollow ball into the air, and the small balls inside would drop out through a hole.
Red represented the team battle, yellow was for individual battles, and blue represented the 2v2-3v3 format.
Under the referee's guidance, both Bei Bei and the Silvis Academy captain used force to throw the hollow ball into the air. The solid balls inside spun and, eventually, a yellow ball fell out.
The referee used soul power to draw it to his hand and then raised it high for the audience to see. He then nodded toward Emperor Xu Jiawei before loudly announcing to the crowd:
"The first match of the round-robin: Shrek Academy vs Silvis Academy will be an individual elimination match. Each team will send one participant to the stage."
Bei Bei returned to the group and suggested to Wang Yan, "Teacher Wang, let me go first, and Tianhuang can finish it last. This should be the safest method."
But Wang Yan shook his head, smiling confidently.
"No, let Tianhuang go first. Silvis Academy isn't very strong. The strongest of them is only a Soul Zong. The ideal situation is for Tianhuang to take out all seven opponents at once. This way, we won't have to expose our full strength, and we can maintain the intimidation from the elimination round."
Bei Bei didn't insist. His main goal was to ensure their victory. Since their opponents were weak, Wang Yan's strategy was the most suitable for the current situation.
Xu Zihuang stood up from the sofa, understanding the plan, and as he walked out of the waiting area, the atmosphere in Xingluo Square surged with excitement once again.
The young man who had previously crushed seven opponents in the elimination round was about to take the stage once more!
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