Chapter 172: The Final Begins

Two days later, the day of the final of this continental advanced soul master academy elite tournament finally arrived.

As the capital of the Star Net Empire and the empire's largest city, Star Net City has been experiencing urban congestion for several consecutive days.

Both semifinals have already ended, and from the moment the semifinals finished, people began lining up outside Star Net Plaza, some having waited two days and two nights just to witness in person the grandeur of the continental advanced soul master academy soul duel tournament final, which might become a topic they will talk about for the rest of their lives.

Moreover, although this final will be divided into team battles, individual elimination matches, and 2-2-3-3 competition formats, it will all be completed within a single day, offering excellent value for money; missing it would be a great pity, so enduring a little hardship is worth it.

To maintain order in the imperial capital, the Star Net Empire urgently drafted an additional ten thousand elite troops into the city to keep order, and all shops within the city extended their business hours.

To supply the suddenly surging influx of outsiders, the Star Net royal family urgently mobilized various resources from surrounding major cities, and for a time the prosperity of Star Net City reached an unprecedented level.

The two sides in the final are Shrek Academy and the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy, undoubtedly representing the pinnacle of strength that contemporary academies on the continent can achieve; the anticipation for this final is self-evident.

However, due to Shrek Academy's incomplete lineup, coupled with the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy's excellent performance yesterday, Shrek's odds in the underground black market are clearly suppressed by Sun Moon, showing that most people still are not optimistic about Shrek.

Of course, no one would consider Shrek Academy easy to defeat, not even the members of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy themselves.

After all, every student of Shrek Academy is without exception a genius full of potential; what kind of combat power they can display in the match, and whether they still have hidden tricks, no one can say for sure.

In the previous matches, they have already shown the audience too many surprises; in this final, they will surely give their all, so it remains uncertain who will win.

Today's weather is not good, with overcast skies and even a light mist lingering over Star Net City; occasionally fine rain threads drift down from the sky, bringing a touch of chill to this grand metropolis.

At this moment, the two teams about to stage the ultimate showdown are walking along the road to Star Net Plaza, with soldiers lined up along the way, blocking the crowds loudly shouting their names; many who could not enter Star Net Plaza have gathered on both sides of this passage to watch the two teams up close.

Ling Luochen raised her head to look at the sky, and a hint of joy could not help but appear on her icy pretty face.

This humid air, with the possibility of rain at any moment, is undoubtedly very favorable for her performance; although it cannot cause a qualitative leap in her strength, it is enough to give her a higher chance of victory against peers of the same level.

Yesterday, Wang Yan arranged a day of strategy and tactics, and this morning, in response to the weather, there have been some changes; regarding the upcoming final, everyone is somewhat overly nervous, but this is completely unavoidable.

Not only is Shrek Academy nervous; compared to them, the members of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy are even more nervous, after all this is the closest their academy has ever come to winning the continental advanced soul master academy soul duel tournament championship in its history, with their own strength unprecedentedly strong while Shrek's team is incomplete; describing such an opportunity as a once-in-a-thousand-years chance is no exaggeration, and precisely because the championship is so near, they become all the more nervous.

Even someone as proud as Xiao Hongchen now has a tense facial expression; occasionally glancing at the Shrek Academy members walking beside them on the red carpet laid just last night, one sees battle intent and longing burning in their eyes.

Compared to Xiao Hongchen's nervousness and excitement, Meng Hongchen standing behind him is much better off; she cannot help but steal glances at Tang Wulin beside her, her little hands unconsciously entwining.

He is truly handsome, practically the best-looking person she has ever seen; although he is a bit younger, she wonders why he joined Shrek at such a young age, whether something happened to him… Such thoughts fill her mind, completely washing away her nervousness about the impending final.

Tang Wulin keenly felt a scorching gaze upon himself, and instinctively looked to his side, where he met Meng Hongchen's eyes.

He remembered that this female reserve team member was called Meng Hongchen? She is the sister of the reserve team captain Xiao Hongchen, possibly possessing a Soul Fusion Technique with Xiao Hongchen, and Wang Yan had specifically warned to pay special attention to these two.

Regarding this student named Meng Hongchen, Tang Wulin doesn't know much about her; he only recalls that when the match first began, their eyes had also met, indicating that she had already been paying attention to him.

However, from the previous occasion when Meng Hongchen stopped Xiao Hongchen from continuing to provoke Huo Yutong, she perhaps bears them no ill will.

Thinking of this, Tang Wulin, out of courtesy, gave Meng Hongchen a friendly smile, but unexpectedly she instantly 'swished' her face away, no longer looking at him.

"?"

Tang Wulin felt some doubt in his heart, but since both sides were about to enter Star Net Plaza, he could only suppress his doubts.

Walking beside Tang Wulin, Huo Yutong's mood is now very calm; last night Wang Yan approached her and Tang Wulin, and they talked for a long time; although she cannot guarantee she will definitely help Shrek win the championship, she will surely exert all her ability.

She looked up onto the city wall and saw Xu Jiujiu and Xu Jiawei standing there; Xu Jiawei's expression was calm, while Xu Jiujiu's gaze toward her still held a hint of ferocity.

Suddenly, Huo Yutong's whole body jolted, her previously calm mood shattered into pieces.

She saw a figure appear beside Xu Jiawei.

It was a middle-aged man, looking about thirty-something, wearing a full set of golden armor, without a helmet, revealing his regular features, deep-set eye sockets, and in his azure pupils each had dual pupils shining.

His face appeared somewhat thin, yet his whole person had a metallic texture; his visage was handsome and resolute, while also exuding an iron-blooded aura.

Although she did not know this person, she still managed to guess his identity.

The reason is simple: he resembles the brothers Dai Yaoheng and Dai Huabin by about seventy percent, and given his qualification to stand beside the Star Net Emperor Xu Jiawei, his name can be said to be on the tip of everyone's tongue.

White Tiger Duke, Dai Hao.

He, who guards the western frontier of the Star Net Empire, has rushed back from the border, not only because the quinquennial continental advanced soul master academy elite tournament has reached its final, but also because his eldest son is participating in this final.

By the way, Dai Hao, you brat, you have leisure to watch the match but no time to go home, right? (End of chapter)