Amid the attention and cheers of the entire crowd, Xu Zihuang walked slowly toward the arena.
He still wore that indifferent, cold, and proud expression.
His pace wasn't fast, but it brought immense pressure to the other 65 academy representatives and the contestants from the Sylvis Academy, who were watching from the contestant rest area.
In the round-robin competition, only four groups would compete each day, with two rounds every two days. This was designed to give the participating soul masters some time to rest between matches.
Normally, half of the teams wouldn't have a match today, but the contestant rest area was packed with spectators, all eager to watch Shrek Academy's match.
The scene from two days ago, where Xu Zihuang fought alone against seven opponents, was so shocking that it had left a deep impression. If a member of the backup team, who seemed not even to be fifteen, could be this strong, how powerful would the official team members be?
Such Shrek Academy couldn't be underestimated.
Naturally, only a few teams dared to treat Shrek Academy as a potential adversary, such as the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, Star Luo Royal Academy, and the Douling Royal Academy, which were the top soul master and soul engineer academies in the four great empires.
As for Sylvis Academy, while a few of their members stood out in terms of strength, overall, their team was only in the middle of the pack among all the participating academies. They had made it through the first round of the knockout tournament relatively smoothly, but advancing further in the round-robin wouldn't be easy.
Facing such a strong and mysterious Shrek Academy, the team leader from Sylvis Academy had devised a plan: try their best to avoid injuries while doing what they could.
Losing to the continent's number one, Shrek Academy, wouldn't bring shame.
However, he wouldn't let his students forfeit outright in the match against Shrek Academy. After all, for a soul master, having an undaunted spirit of progress was most important. If a soul master lacked confidence and dared not face a strong opponent, their future achievements would be limited.
The best-case scenario, however, would be to use the full strength of the team to eliminate Xu Zihuang, which would give Sylvis Academy some face.
On the other side, the contestant sent by Sylvis Academy was a young man with very ordinary looks and physique. He appeared to be around twenty years old, with black short hair that resembled steel needles. His body was slightly lean, and his movements had a floating, unpredictable feel to them.
Although his appearance was somewhat mature, his expression was grave, and his inner turmoil was apparent, which stood in stark contrast to Xu Zihuang, who looked calm and composed.
This was an inevitable situation.
His martial soul was average at best, and while his soul power was at level 45, in terms of personal strength, he was on par with the four Soul King-level soul masters from the Qianling Advanced Soul Master Academy team.
Two days ago, Xu Zihuang had crushed all seven members of the Qianling Academy team on his own.
The referee landed at the center of the arena and called loudly:
"The rules for this individual elimination match are as follows: The losing party will leave the stage, and the winning party may choose to continue or substitute in another member until all seven members from one team are eliminated. No special soul guidance devices with materials that provide extreme power can be used. Now, please state your names."
The representative from Sylvis Academy spoke in a deep voice: "Sylvis Academy, Li Yue."
"Shrek Academy, Yu Tianhuang," Xu Zihuang replied indifferently.
According to the traditions passed down for thousands of years on the Douluo Continent, soul masters would normally state their martial soul and level in one-on-one official duels to show respect for their opponent.
However, in this Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament, these introductions had been simplified. Not revealing their martial soul also kept an air of mystery for the spectators and other potential opponents.
"Begin!"
Xu Zihuang and Li Yue were positioned at opposite ends of the arena. With the referee releasing his soul power, he retreated to the edge of the arena.
Both competitors released their martial souls almost simultaneously.
Li Yue let out a sharp howl, and a faint green light surged from his body. As the light swirled, his body underwent dramatic changes. With a series of crackling sounds, his muscles and bones expanded rapidly. His once lean frame became much bulkier, and his black hair turned green.
A cold, menacing glint sparkled in his narrow eyes.
Surrounded by intense green light, four soul rings appeared beneath his feet—two yellow and two purple.
Li Yue's martial soul was the Gale Magic Wolf, a mid-to-high tier beast martial soul. When a soul master activates their martial soul, it usually influences their personality to some extent.
Beibei and Xu Sanshi were typical examples of this.
Beibei, who was usually gentle and refined, exuded the fierce and domineering aura of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon when he activated his martial soul, while Xu Sanshi, upon using the Xuanming Shield, displayed a steady, mountain-like presence.
Now, as Li Yue was enveloped by the Gale Magic Wolf, his previous nervousness and unease seemed to vanish, replaced by cold, calculating eyes fixed on Xu Zihuang.
Xu Zihuang calmly met his gaze, his deep purple eyes suddenly turning a dazzling golden color.
Four soul rings rose beneath him, but their aura was a stark contrast to Li Yue's.
Purple, purple, purple, black. Each soul ring that appeared further intensified the pressure on Li Yue.
Compared to Xu Zihuang, Li Yue had no advantage. His martial soul quality, soul rings, and soul skills were all inferior. The only apparent advantage he had was his soul power, which appeared to be three levels higher than Xu Zihuang's. However, the true difference lay in the quality of their soul power.
As a soul master with extreme attributes, Xu Zihuang's soul power, even at level 42, was on par with the soul power of a Soul King above level 50.
This meant that Xu Zihuang's total soul power was nearly double that of Li Yue's. As Xu Zihuang's cultivation progressed, the gap would only continue to widen. This was one reason why soul masters with extreme attributes were so powerful.
Taking a deep breath, Li Yue moved first.
His second and third soul rings lit up in quick succession. Facing such a powerful opponent as Yu Tianhuang, he certainly wouldn't hold back. He knew he couldn't defeat Xu Zihuang, so his only plan was to try and drain Xu Zihuang's soul power, making it easier for the strongest member of their team to take him down.
The second soul ring shone brightly, and the green light covering his body grew even more intense.
Li Yue rushed forward, his speed suddenly accelerating. The green light behind him stretched out into a long trail, and he closed the distance to Xu Zihuang in the blink of an eye.
This was his second soul skill, Magic Wolf Dash, an enhancement skill that greatly increased his speed.
This skill was similar to the Dark Demon Evilgod Tiger's charging skill, both of which could only increase speed in a straight line. But the difference was clear—while the Dark Demon Evilgod Tiger's skill could almost be compared to teleportation, Li Yue's Magic Wolf Dash only doubled his speed.
Despite its limitations, this speed boost was impressive. Even with the restriction of only being able to dash in a straight line, this was still a century-old soul ring skill.
The third soul ring soon illuminated.
The third soul skill, Magic Wolf Clone.
Two intense green lights split off from his body, forming two identical figures that rushed toward Xu Zihuang from both sides.
This third soul ring came from a thousand-year-old Ghost Wolf. Its effect was similar to the Ghost Wolf's innate ability—Ghost Clone.
Of the three figures, only one was real, but the other two still had real attacking power. The only flaw was that the clones couldn't use soul skills.
The three figures attacked from three different angles, and Li Yue was somewhat surprised.
His initial plan had been to force Xu Zihuang into using his soul skills to deplete his soul power. However, Xu Zihuang seemed uninterested in using his soul skills at all.
In his mind, Li Yue quickly recalled that Yu Tianhuang was a control-type soul master, and control-type soul masters were usually weak against agile attackers. From the second soul skill Xu Zihuang used in his battle against the Qianling Advanced Soul Master Academy, Li Yue thought he couldn't escape.
But now, Xu Zihuang appeared to have no intention of using his soul skills.
In a flash, the three wolf claws from the three figures were about to strike Xu Zihuang's vital points.
The referee appeared beside them at some point, his brows furrowed. Had he not witnessed Xu Zihuang's incredible strength two days ago, he might have intervened by now.
But deep inside, he couldn't help but wonder:
What exactly was Shrek Academy's contestant trying to do?
At that moment, Xu Zihuang suddenly turned sharply to the left.
Li Yue, meeting Xu Zihuang's gaze, was struck with fear. He couldn't understand how Xu Zihuang had seen through his real self when he hadn't even given any hints.
What he didn't know was that after Xu Zihuang had refined the effects of the Clear Waters Dew, his Golden Eyes possessed the ability to see through all illusions.
No clone-type soul skill could escape his eyes.
Then, as Xu Zihuang lifted his right leg, the third purple-black soul ring at his feet lit up. A strange golden aura radiated from his leg.
With a flash of golden light, Xu Zihuang kicked heavily into Li Yue's waist.
The impact was like an explosion. Li Yue's body was blasted away like a cannonball, and a sharp whistling sound filled the air.
The referee briefly lost focus, but when he regained his senses, Li Yue's body had already slammed into the soul guidance barrier outside the arena.
Blood spurted from Li Yue's mouth as his body fell limply toward the ground.
The entire arena was in an uproar.
What had just happened?
The spectators were momentarily confused by how the situation had changed so suddenly.
This was completely understandable.
Even the Soul Sage-level referee had only caught a faint change. As for the vast majority of spectators, most of them were regular people who couldn't have understood what had occurred.
On Shrek Academy's side, Wang Yan and the backup team were also stunned.
Only Beibei and Xu Sanshi, who were familiar with Xu Zihuang's third soul skill, Time Distortion, exchanged meaningful glances.
The most shocked, however, was the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.
"What the hell did this guy just do?!" Xiao Hongchen clenched his fists, veins bulging. Even two days ago, when Xu Zihuang single-handedly crushed the Qianling Advanced Soul Master Academy, he didn't lose his composure like this.
Two days ago, Xiao Hongchen could accept Xu Zihuang's display of strength, but now, he hadn't even seen Xu Zihuang's move clearly, let alone the effects of Xu Zihuang's third soul skill.
For someone as proud as him, this was the hardest thing to accept. He disliked the feeling of being outside of his control.
Meanwhile, beside Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen had completely opposite thoughts.
Her ice-blue eyes sparkled with light, and instead of hostility toward Xu Zihuang, various strange thoughts began to swirl in her mind.
She blushed slightly.
Compared to the other students from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, she felt entirely out of place.
If Xiao Hongchen knew what his sister was thinking, he would probably have been so frustrated he'd spit blood.
The captain of the official team, Ma Rulong, whispered gravely.
"Shrek Academy never lacks talent."
His martial soul was special, and it made his mental strength much stronger than that of other soul masters of the same level. Like the referee, he vaguely noticed a small change.
On the Star Luo Imperial Palace's rooftop, Emperor Xu Jiawei stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze deep.
"Yu Tianhuang, only twelve years old, and already at level 42 soul power. A descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon family with a Golden Eye martial soul. Now he also possesses time-based soul skills. Why couldn't such talent come from our Star Luo Empire?"
Xu Jiawei sighed deeply.
"Shrek Academy truly deserves its reputation. If it were peacetime, once this kid grows up, Shrek Academy could be safe for hundreds of years. But I fear the Sun Moon Empire won't remain idle."
"The first match of the personal elimination round, Shrek Academy wins," the referee called loudly, bringing the atmosphere back to life.
The spectators didn't know what had happened, but it didn't stop them from witnessing the truth.
The fact was, Li Yue had been utterly defeated by Xu Zihuang with one move.
They were already eagerly waiting to see Xu Zihuang complete his one-on-seven feat again and create another miracle.
Xu Zihuang stood quietly on the arena, and from the moment he stepped on the stage until facing Li Yue's attack, he hadn't moved an inch.
To the audience, it seemed he was calm and at ease, effortlessly handling the situation.
However, his gaze remained focused on his right leg.
What he had just done was combine his third soul skill, Time Distortion, with himself, greatly accelerating his kick speed. This idea had only recently occurred to him, and now he was putting it into practice.
This did make his close-combat ability terrifying, but his body couldn't withstand it.
He had only accelerated the speed of his kick by dozens of times, and already his right leg felt uncomfortable.
Moreover, his third soul skill, Time Distortion, had a massive limitation. While he could slow down time to the point of almost stopping it, he could only speed it up within a specific range. The closer he got to this limit, the greater the soul power consumption would be.
This was the necessary limit for powerful rule-based soul skills.
After a moment of contemplation, Xu Zihuang lifted his head again, gazing at the next contestant from Sylvis Academy who was about to step onto the stage. He wasn't fighting for the so-called honor of Shrek Academy. His goal in this tournament was to refine his combat skills and master the usage of his soul skills.
The Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament gathered most of the continent's young genius soul masters, making them the best sharpening stones.
And now, he had the chance to test his skills further in this personal elimination round.
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