Chapter 199: Promotion Match

The Soul Master of the Spirit Hall in the VIP seats cast an increasingly hostile gaze toward Shilake Academy.

Fulangde showed no fear at all; with the Clear Sky Sect standing behind him now, his confidence was greater than ever.

Not to mention the White Gold Bishop of the Spirit Hall glaring at him ferociously— even if he walked up to him, he might still get slapped twice.

The second round featured two unknown teams, none of which had even a Soul Ancestor.

From this one can see the difference between the main competition area and the sub‑competition area.

Their matches were by the book, with nothing at all that was captivating.

The third bout was Thunder Team versus the Beast Academy team.

In the audience, Tie Li was somewhat familiar with the Beast team; when he saw Meng Yiran's figure, Tie Li finally recalled.

The first to step onto the stage for Thunder Team was, surprisingly, Lei Ying.

Looking at his stance, he seemed to intend a one‑through‑seven.

After all, he is a Soul King; the strength he displayed was unquestionably top‑notch.

Thunder Team also intended to use this match to showcase their overwhelming power and exert psychological pressure on the other teams.

Two yellows, two purples, one black— five Soul Rings floated beneath him; by contrast, Meng Yiran's pretty face turned pale. She was only Level 37— how could she contend with this Soul King?

From the moment the referee announced the start, not even a minute passed before Meng Yiran was eliminated by Lei Ying.

The subsequent situation was almost identical: Lei Ying, with a dominant bearing, single‑handedly eliminated the Beast Academy team.

When the five major sub‑competition zones entered Tiandou City, they heard that the main competition area had a Soul King among its teams, but they remained skeptical and could not believe it.

Yet with Lei Ying's appearance, five Soul Rings manifested on him, the profound yet dazzling Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, and the fact lay plainly before them.

The next match was the turn of the Tian Dou Royal Academy.

Will another team that has a Soul King also, like Thunder Team, put the Soul King member first and recreate a one‑through‑seven scenario?

The team under the most pressure at this moment was undoubtedly the Fabia Academy team.

But reality disappointed them: the first to go out was Gu Qi.

The entire Fabia team let out a sigh of relief.

Although their team lacked a Soul Ancestor, they could, by virtue of their numbers, drain that Soul Ancestor's soul power.

That's still stronger than the Beast Academy, right?

Tie Li, watching from off‑stage, had no intention of stepping in; the opposing team didn't even have a single Soul Ancestor;

and the quality of their martial soul was inferior to that of Second Team's members— at most three of them could finish off the opponent.

Gu Qi single‑handedly eliminated four opponents, leaving the remaining three to be handled by Tuo Yu.

Do not underestimate Tuo Yu just because he is only a Soul Elder; in a one‑on‑one, his martial soul holds a huge advantage.

His opponent was a Level‑38 offensive‑type Soul Elder, yet against Tuo Yu he held no advantage at all.

Tuo Yu only used the First Soul Technique and the Second Soul Technique to seize control of the situation.

The Hundred‑Year Diamond Bear acted as the offensive, while Ghost Vine provided crowd control, creating a clear numerical advantage.

"Looks like it's our turn to act," Zhang Xiaohe said with a smile.

According to the order, he was originally slated to be the third to go out.

"Boss, do you want to be the first out in the next round?" Zhang Xiaohe asked, smiling at Tie Li.

The dominance Lei Ying displayed today was a deterrent to all the major teams.

If Tie Li did the same, he would surely intimidate the remaining teams with an even stronger stance.

The members of Second Team trusted Tie Li without hesitation.

"I will only be the last member of the team to go out, but I hope you can finish the match without me."

Bai Baoshan, standing nearby, couldn't help but nod; Tie Li's authority in Second Team was not solely due to his displayed strength.

As Tuo Yu defeated the opposing team's final member, the referee announced the result.

On the first day, Divine Wind Academy had a bye, and the outcomes of the other seven matches were roughly as expected.

On the second and third days, the opponents faced by Tiandou Royal Team were not very strong; they barely needed Tie Li to act, and Gu Qi and Tuo Yu alone could finish the matches.

And Shilake Academy truly seemed to have become an academy of the Clear Sky Sect, as the members they sent out for several consecutive days were all disciples of the Clear Sky Sect.

The formidable Haotian Hammer martial soul, even its own soul techniques, are extraordinary.

This is the innate advantage of a martial soul; a powerful martial soul whose soul techniques are born from fused Soul Rings become especially potent.

Aside from initially sending out Lei Ying, Thunder Team did not show Lei Ying's presence in the subsequent matches.

The Shenfeng Team had Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang join them, and when they faced Tianshui Team, they easily defeated them.

It wasn't until the fourth day that clashes between strong teams emerged.

The Tiandou Royal Team faced the Tianshui Team, while Thunder Team faced the Shenfeng Team.

The collision of these four teams was undoubtedly the highlight of today's matches.

"Hoo—"

Gu Qi inhaled deeply; facing the Tianshui Team, his pressure was the greatest— in the Preselection he had been completely suppressed by Shui Bing'er, and his own reckless actions had led his team to a crushing defeat.

"Is the pressure huge?" Tie Li glanced at Gu Qi and said lightly.

"Hmm."

Gu Qi did not deny it; he admitted it outright.

"This time, you go first, I'll be second."

According to the earlier statement, Tie Li would only appear as the team's last member, after the first six had been eliminated.

But this time was different; he placed himself second mainly to help Gu Qi steady his mindset.

Mental pressure likewise affects performance.

It can be considered a subtle weakening!

"Good." Gu Qi nodded heavily.

After the two teams in the first match decided the winner, the second match was the Tiandou Royal Team versus the Tianshui Team.

Gu Qi walked onto the competition field, while the Tianshui Team sent out their first combatant, Shui Bing'er.

"You should know the gap between us; facing my Ice Phoenix martial soul, you cannot display the strength of a Soul Ancestor." Shui Bing'er said lightly.

"You are the strongest one on your team, you bear more pressure than I do; even if I lose, I still have the Team Leader to back me up, but what if you lose?"

After hearing that, Shui Bing'er furrowed her brows; her reason for being the first to go out was to create opportunities for her teammates, trying to eliminate as many members of the Tiandou Royal Team as possible.

"I won't lose!" Shui Bing'er said firmly.

Seeing this, the referee immediately announced the start of the match.

Their soul power levels were not far apart, and both had the optimal Soul Ring Configuration of two yellow and two purple rings.

However, the difference in martial soul quality was especially apparent.

The Phoenix martial soul absolutely suppresses avian-type martial souls, and the high-level ice attribute has a significant restraining effect on the fire attribute.

Combined, they exert an especially obvious suppression on Gu Qi.

This is an innate factor; it's no wonder Gu Qi, even if he strenuously tries to shake off the suppression effect of the Phoenix martial soul, the effect is minimal.

Unless he can obtain a Soul Ring from a super Soul Beast bloodline in the future, he cannot change this situation.

(End of chapter)