Yang Wushang lost—not only in his one-on-one battle against Xu Zihuang, but also in spirit.
From the moment Xu Zihuang first copied his soul skill and suppressed him completely, Yang Wushang's once unwavering confidence began to waver. And when Xu Zihuang successively imprinted all three of his soul skills, by the time Yang Wushang used his third soul skill to clash with him, a hint of hesitation had already crept into his heart.
For a weapon-type assault soul master like him—one who specialized in pure offense—momentum was everything. Once his belief began to falter, the unity between his martial soul and his own will was no longer perfect.
If he had thrust that final spear strike with full conviction, even if he lost, he would not have been left in such a miserable state.
Outside the competition platform, the soul guidance barrier was withdrawn. The referee, still shaken by what he had just witnessed, forced himself to calm down, collected his thoughts, and then raised his voice to announce:
"Since the Sylvis Academy team has voluntarily conceded, in the first round of the group stage, Shrek Academy versus Sylvis Academy—Shrek Academy wins!"
The moment his words rang out, thunderous cheers and applause erupted throughout the arena.
Though Xu Zihuang had faced only three opponents in this round of individual elimination matches against Sylvis Academy, everyone could tell that those three were already the strongest members of Sylvis Academy.
In the first match, against Li Yue, he had sent his opponent flying off the stage with a single kick.
In the second match, against Gu Fengli, he had completely dominated her from start to finish—without even using any soul skills—winning solely through a grade-four close-combat soul tool.
But what truly made the audience's blood boil was the third match.
Most of the spectators were ordinary people who couldn't understand the deeper intricacies of soul master battles. To them, the straightforward, head-to-head, skill-versus-skill confrontation of the third match was far more exhilarating and easy to grasp.
In the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy's rest area, the atmosphere was silent.
There was no denying it—Yu Tianhuang, a mere Soul Ancestor, had brought immense pressure to them all.
Every one of them was at least a Soul King or a level-five Soul Engineer, yet when it came to facing Yu Tianhuang one-on-one, how many of them could truly claim to have full confidence of victory?
Xiao Hongchen frowned deeply, his face dark and ugly, his eyes flickering with thought.
Ma Rulong, captain of the main Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy team, sighed and said, "As much as I dislike admitting it, this boy named Yu Tianhuang has such outstanding talent that even I can't help but feel envious. What our Sun Moon Empire truly lacks… is precisely a genius of his level."
"You mean my talent isn't as good as his?" Xiao Hongchen raised an eyebrow.
Ma Rulong replied calmly, "What do you think? Just from the youthful look in his eyes, it's clear he's no older than thirteen. And since he's from Shrek Academy, it means his cultivation was built step by step through his own effort, not relying on elixirs or external aids—his foundation is incomparably solid. You, on the other hand, did reach the Soul Ancestor realm at thirteen, but how many cultivation-assisting tonics did you consume? And how much time and effort did you later spend stabilizing your foundation?"
Ma Rulong's earlier sigh was heartfelt—but at the same time, his words served as a deliberate reminder to Xiao Hongchen.
Xiao Hongchen's frown deepened even further.
"So what? A solid foundation doesn't necessarily mean stronger power. I'm both a soul master and a soul engineer. Even if he were the same age as me, his strength might not surpass mine."
Ma Rulong shot him a sidelong glance but then withdrew his gaze, choosing not to argue further.
Although Xiao Hongchen was still trying to act tough, the heavy look in his eyes did not escape Ma Rulong's notice.
He knew his point had landed.
In the past, whenever Xiao Hongchen quarreled with Ma Rulong, Meng Hongchen would always step in to defend her elder brother.
But now, her gaze was fixed entirely on Xu Zihuang. She didn't even notice their exchange.
Xu Zihuang, calm and composed, walked back from the stage to Shrek Academy's rest area.
Everyone turned their eyes toward him, but due to Wang Yan's prior instructions, none of them displayed any obvious emotion.
Wang Yan stood up, patted Xu Zihuang on the shoulder, and said, "Well done. Let's go."
The others in the team weren't especially skilled at concealing their emotions, but thanks to Shrek Academy's legendary reputation—and the overwhelming display Xu Zihuang had just given, crushing three Sylvis Academy students in succession—no one detected anything unusual about their demeanor.
Once again, Shrek Academy's team left Star Luo Square under the gaze of the entire crowd, maintaining an air of mystery around them.
Outside the square, Wang Yan finally exhaled in relief, and the others likewise relaxed.
He stopped, turned to face them, and said with a pleased and earnest expression:
"To be honest, among the teams grouped with us in this round-robin, while many are strong, there's only one team whose overall power could possibly surpass ours on paper. Even if Ma Xiaotao's group doesn't return for the group stage, the pressure we'll face to advance isn't that great. There's no need to be overly anxious."
Of course, his confidence came primarily from Yu Tianhuang's overwhelming strength.
Adding to that, Beibei, who could wield the awakened bloodline of the Radiant Holy Dragon, and Xu Sanshi, who possessed the Xuanwu bloodline, the three of them together could practically be regarded as three Soul Kings.
In short, Xu Zihuang's performances in both the first knockout round and the current round-robin had given Wang Yan tremendous confidence.
"Still," Wang Yan continued with a faint smile, "we should maintain this aura of intimidation. It might work to our advantage in the upcoming matches."
"Alright, everyone, go get some rest. I'll return to Star Luo Square to observe the other teams in our group."
As they watched Wang Yan's departing figure, Xu Sanshi muttered suspiciously, "Could it be that the opponents we'll face in the group stage are really that strong, and Teacher Wang just said that to reassure us?"
Beibei rolled his eyes. "If Teacher Wang wanted to comfort us, why would he bother saying so much? Idiot."
"You think every soul master and soul engineer from the other academies on the continent can compare to us?"
"Well, that's true." Xu Sanshi nodded smugly—but then, as if realizing something, glared at Beibei.
"Who are you calling an idiot?!"
Xu Zihuang watched the two of them bicker with a gentle smile—but then, as if sensing something, he instinctively raised his head and looked toward the roof of the Star Emperor Hotel.
With his Golden Eyes' extraordinary vision, he could clearly see two strangely built middle-aged men standing there.
Both men had ordinary faces, but their physiques were peculiar—one had an abnormally muscular right arm, while the other was short and thin, with a disproportionately large head that made him look like a caricature.
"The Body Sect?!" Xu Zihuang's pupils contracted slightly.
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