Chapter 124

The referee saw both sides were ready, nodded, and shouted:

"The match begins!"

As the voice fell, the members of both academies simultaneously completed their martial soul avatars.

Zheng Rong's hand gained a blood-red long sword, which looked somewhat similar to Chen Zifeng's Chasing Soul Sword.

Qiao Zihan's back sprouted a huge snail shell, and his body became much more slippery.

Xiang Jisheng's hand produced several green vines, and his martial soul, Heavenly Spirit Vine, was released.

Flames burst from Yan Rilan's body, dense lion hairs sprouted from her skin, and her already alluring figure became even more voluptuous.

Jian Qiu half-opened her eyes as if just waking up, while clusters of blue wind elements swirled rapidly around her; she, like Ling Luochen, possessed a pure elemental martial soul.

Nangong Yabin's hand produced several thin silver needles; these inconspicuous needles were her martial soul.

Lu Fu threw the dice that appeared in his palm, while his first soul ring lit up.

At the same time they acted, Shrek's side also reacted.

Cheers erupted across the venue, and the six strikingly blood-red soul rings reappeared on the field as Huo Yutong held Tang Wulin's hand, standing tall at the front of the Shrek team.

Xiao Hongchen's gaze instantly focused, determined not to miss any of her moves, while Meng Hongchen pursed her lips and looked away.

The other participants gathered around Huo Yutong like stars around the moon, yet they did not rush to act, and the number of soul rings rising from them was uniformly four.

Many spectators frowned secretly, for besides Huo Yutong there wasn't even a single Soul King among them—Shrek must have suffered some mishap.

What they didn't know was that the four rings they saw on everyone were fake; in fact, the team had only three Soul Ancestors.

Huo Yutong tightened her grip on Tang Wulin's hand, then turned her gaze to Lu Fu, launching a soul impact amplified by their martial soul fusion mercilessly at him.

When Wang Yan gave them the pre-match briefing, he emphasized that Wan Guang Academy's auxiliary-system Instrument Soul Ancestor was...

This guy is only rank forty-one, barely breaking into Soul Ancestor, clearly a tier below his teammates, yet he can still represent the team in battle, showing his uniqueness.

His martial soul is quite special, called Spirit Dice; its effect is simple: based on the rolled number, it provides group assistance to teammates.

For example, his first soul skill is Strength Enhancement; with four rings, rolling a one grants a four percent group boost, while a six grants twenty-four percent.

When he reaches five rings, a one yields a five percent group boost, and a six yields thirty percent.

Although it doesn't even qualify to hand shoes to top-tier support martial souls like the Seven Treasure Glazed Tower or Rainbow Dragon, it's still a powerful ability.

Wang Yan watched the first two matches and noticed this guy never rolled a number five or lower, clearly the result of specialized training.

What's worse, Lu Fu is also a soul engineer; though his level is low—only just reaching third rank—he still has some combat ability and can provide limited ranged support.

If left to act freely, Lu Fu would greatly increase the pressure on Shrek, so Huo Yutong had him taken out first. Knowing that after their martial soul fusion Huo Yutong and Tang Wulin's cultivation neared Soul King level, Lu Fu could not withstand such a soul impact; he grunted, lost consciousness, the dice showing six fell to the ground, and then gradually faded as he fainted.

Lu Fu's fate exceeded everyone's expectations; the Wan Guang Academy members all turned their heads in disbelief, looking at the unconscious Lu Fu collapsed on the ground.

The two teams were separated by over a hundred meters—how did the Shrek team silently knock Lu Fu down from such a distance without a sound?

On the other hand, the students of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy who witnessed this all wore thoughtful expressions.

Yesterday, when they analyzed Huo Yutong's performance, a hotly debated topic was exactly how she knocked down Yang Yifan.

Back then they made many guesses, but now they can basically confirm: Huo Yutong likely relied on mental attacks.

Whether it's the invisible attack style, the bleeding from nose and mouth when hit, or Tang Xiaolei's previously inexplicable shooting accuracy, all clues point to Huo Yutong possessing psychic abilities.

The only problem is, why would an obviously ice‑snow Huo Yutong have psychic attack means? The answer isn't hard to imagine, but they're reluctant to accept it.

A six‑ring Soul Emperor with twin martial souls—just thinking about it feels hopeless.

No matter how bewildered the Wan Guang Academy contestants feel, the battle must go on; but losing a support member right at the start makes their already disadvantaged situation even more tense.

Jian Qiu lightly tapped her hand; her third soul ring shone, and a wisp of green light wrapped around each teammate.

Her third soul skill, Wind's Protection, can imbue the target with a wind attribute enchantment, greatly boosting their overall combat power.

Xiang Jisheng, with a head of lush green hair, grinned; his fourth soul ring lit up, and countless green vines shot up from the ground beneath the advancing Shrek members.

Yan Rilan leapt high, unleashing her second soul skill—a massive fireball that smashed into the Shrek front, exploding upon the Azure Vines.

Wind fed the fire, and with the Azure Vines as fuel, the terrifying flames burst forth instantly.

This is their favorite combo; its power rivals that of some Soul Kings' fifth soul skill, making it extremely formidable.

Too bad Lu Fu was eliminated; if he were still there, this strike would be top‑tier even among fifth soul skills.

Yet the Shrek members remained completely unfazed; Huo Yutong's eyes flashed, and a miniature blizzard instantly enveloped the area—though it lasted less than two seconds, when it cleared, both flames and vines were utterly gone.

The flames were naturally cleared by Huo Yutong, while the Azure Vines were cleared by Tang Wulin.

He now has a preliminary grasp of the Natural Son's ability; its suppressive power against plant‑type martial souls is no less than Huo Yutong's Extreme Ice.

However, the Natural Son's martial soul is also a secret of his, and its bright gold‑green soul rings are so conspicuous that he normally avoids using them.

However, this time Huo Yutong was at the side using a simulated soul skill to conceal, naturally no need to hold back.

(End of chapter)