"Shrek! Shrek! Shrek!"
The Soul Battle Tournament had been underway for over half a month, and the crowd gathered around the arena grew larger by the day. At this moment, under the blazing sun, countless spectators below the stage were chanting Shrek Academy's name in unison.
Yet on the arena stage, only a single, rather frail-looking figure was barely standing.
Wang Dong took two steps forward, using both hands with great effort to help Beibei and Huo Yuhao, who had collapsed on the ground, to their feet. Though his body trembled uncontrollably, he still managed to stand in the center of the arena.
"Referee, we won."
"Yes…" The referee on stage finally snapped out of his daze. "Yes, the victor is Shrek Academy!"
In an instant, the cheers and applause from the audience below became even more thunderous.
As for the preparation area of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, it had fallen into complete silence.
Since the start of the competition, Shrek Academy had only ever sent out a few reserve members. If at first they had wondered whether Shrek was hiding some kind of strategy,
by today's crucial match, with only these children no older than fifteen taking the field, anyone with eyes could see that something unexpected had happened to Shrek Academy.
Yet it was precisely these reserve members who had fought their way through opponents to reach the top sixteen, leaving every one of them gravely injured.
"As expected of Shrek Academy," Ma Rulong said softly, breaking the silence in the preparation area.
Even Xiao Hongchen, who was usually arrogant, looked at them with a changed expression. "These are the opponents we'll face five years from now."
"Brother, it's just one match. Do they really have to be this stubborn? If they end up seriously injured or even crippled because of one match, what future will they have?"
Meng Hongchen looked at Xiao Hongchen in confusion.
"I don't know," Xiao Hongchen shook his head. "I'm not from Shrek. I don't know what they're thinking."
"Hmph." Ma Rulong's Grandfather let out a cold snort, cutting off their conversation. "No matter what Shrek Academy is thinking, this is the year we're closest to the championship."
"Based on observations and investigations over the past few days, I've submitted a request to the academy. The latest batch of soul tools will arrive today. If you truly admire Shrek Academy's spirit, then give it your all to defeat them—that's the only way to show them respect."
"Let's go. We're heading back."
With that, Ma Rulong's Grandfather stood and walked toward the exit of the arena. The other students lingered for a moment, their gazes fixed on Shrek Academy, before standing and following him.
In the spectator stands, a lone figure slowly rose. Unlike those around him who were shouting in excitement, he remained silent, standing out slightly.
But in such a lively place, not many people noticed him anyway.
Lin Xiao's gaze had been fixed on Shrek Academy the entire time, staring at Wang Dong on the stage for a long while, a faint sigh rising in his heart.
He had arrived earlier than the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy had anticipated. Xuanwu-awakened Xu Sanshi, the Ultimate Martial Soul Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion, the Clear Sky Hammer… these things that existed only as text in his memory were now appearing vividly before his eyes, stirring an inexplicable feeling within him.
Shrek Academy's reserve members were injured or unconscious—this had truly been a brutal victory. But what Lin Xiao paid even closer attention to was the performance of Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong on the stage.
Others might be fooled by Huo Yuhao's soul rings, but he knew the truth. To achieve such a standout performance with only two rings was inseparable from Wang Dong by his side.
In the original story, Huo Yuhao had three martial souls: Spiritual Eyes, Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion, and Electrolux. It was these, combined with the two major martial souls on Wang Dong and the hidden divine sense of the Sea God, that allowed a 100% martial soul fusion.
But now, Electrolux was inside Lin Xiao himself—yet Huo Yuhao could still complete martial soul fusion with Wang Dong. This could no longer be explained away as a mere "coincidence."
Perhaps the original Tang Wutong's soul power state was Wang Dong's true appearance. Her lofty soul power had never been able to fuse with Huo Yuhao's. Only after becoming Wang Dong did her soul power change, resulting in the current state.
To completely alter a person's soul power state—what an incredible feat. This was clearly not something an ordinary person could accomplish.
Lin Xiao slightly lifted his head, glanced at the clear, cloudless sky, then turned and left the spectator stands.
The group from Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy was walking toward their accommodations at the Star Emperor Grand Hotel. Ma Rulong, walking at the front, suddenly stopped and looked toward the street nearby.
"Senior Lin?"
The other students, hearing this, also stopped in their tracks.
"You arrived so quickly?" Ma Rulong's Grandfather's eyes lit up as he too looked at Lin Xiao.
"Yes. Aside from some delay at the border, I didn't stop much along the way."
"You've worked hard." Though he had initially looked down on Lin Xiao's suggestions, hearing that Lin Xiao had rushed here without rest softened Ma Rulong's Grandfather's tone considerably.
Lin Xiao immediately understood that the man in front of him had misunderstood something.
After absorbing that 100,000-year soul bone, Lin Xiao's soul power had only increased by one level. The excess soul power hadn't vanished—it had made the soul power within his body much denser.
Though he was still far from condensing a soul core and achieving a state of endless soul power regeneration, it was still a significant improvement compared to before. Simply using a flight soul tool to reach the Star Luo Empire wasn't enough to require him to stop and rest.
But Lin Xiao had no intention of explaining. He nodded and followed the group from Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy into the hotel.
"Teacher Ma, I've brought all the soul tools you requested from the academy. Additionally, to ensure absolute success, I've also brought some items the instructors prepared specifically for this Soul Battle Tournament."
In the meeting room, Ma Rulong's Grandfather took the storage soul tool from Lin Xiao's hand and glanced at him. "What about the soul tool Director Lin mentioned before?"
"I brought that too. Teacher Ma has already seen it. For our students, it will only take one night to fully master it." Lin Xiao said, turning to look at the others, his gaze lingering for a moment on one student. "Also, be careful when using the Invincible Barrier. The Invincible Barrier is not truly invincible."
As he spoke, a knock sounded from outside the meeting room, interrupting their conversation.
The door opened, and the person outside glanced at the situation inside the room, their expression shifting subtly.
"My apologies, everyone. I am an auctioneer from the Starlight Auction House. I invite you all to attend the top-tier auction being held tonight."
"An auction of this level is held only once or twice a year, and only the most distinguished guests are invited. I believe you will all find something of value."
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