"The sixteen-to-eight format involves drawing two types of battles, totaling three possible combinations. We drew team battle + individual elimination. As long as we win the team battle and eliminate three of their members in the individual matches, we win. Conversely, if they want to tie the score, they must eliminate all of us within the first three matches…"
"Though that's pretty much impossible," Meng Hongchen shrugged.
"If they do somehow manage to tie, we'll have to use the two-two-three format to decide the winner."
"So…"
Meng Hongchen glanced around. "Who's going up for the individual elimination matches?"
"Let Nan Qiuqiu handle it," Xu Cheng said, glancing toward the reserve members. As the daughter of the Dilong Sect's leader and their strongest current member—a Soul Emperor—she hadn't competed under her sect's name, but instead as part of the Sun Moon Imperial Academy's reserve team.
Honestly, it felt unfair. Even though she had shown up before, she was treated more like background. In any of the other top-eight teams, she'd be a core member, but here, her presence felt almost nonexistent.
"Me?!!"
Nan Qiuqiu had been zoning out, swinging her slender legs from a bench. She looked up abruptly, eyes wide.
"Then it's settled. Qiuqiu will go," Meng Hongchen said with a warm smile."Good luck. Don't embarrass our Sun Moon Empire."
"O-okay…"
Suddenly, Nan Qiuqiu felt a mountain of pressure.
She just wanted to slack off a bit. Who would've thought…?
As expected, they won the team battle.
Ning Tian led a group of reserve members who utterly overwhelmed the Ao Jian Sect. Their teacher could only bitterly surrender to avoid further humiliation. The Ao Jian Sect's morale was crushed.
"Sun Moon Imperial Academy, Nan Qiuqiu!"
The girl stood proudly in the arena, hands on her hips.
Just as she was getting pumped up to prove herself—
The Ao Jian Sect's team leader lazily raised his hand. "Referee, we forfeit…"
No other reason than that their fighting spirit had been destroyed. With such an overwhelming gap in strength, any further effort would just be pathetic. Even worse, it might break the willpower of the Ao Jian disciples. So they gave up.
Nan Qiuqiu: "…"
With the referee announcing the result, the Ao Jian Sect team left, leaving Nan Qiuqiu standing there, dazed.
"Hey! Get back here! We haven't even started!"
No matter how she yelled, the Ao Jian Sect leader never looked back. His steps were firm and decisive.
The second match ended quickly as well.
Without Tang San, the Haotian Sect played much more cautiously, learning from Shrek Academy's mistakes. Whether in team battle or the two-two-three format, they gave it their all. Their strongest, a Soul Douluo, fought in every match. Two Soul Saints and four Soul Emperors made up their main team.
The Tianlong Sect couldn't withstand the assault. Yu Tianlong had no choice but to surrender.
The third match: Dio Academy vs. Mingdu Soul Engineering Academy.
Dio's strongest only reached the Soul Emperor level. They lost the team battle, so they focused on the two-two-three and individual elimination rounds.
They tried to wear down Xu Tianzhen's soul power by sending weak opponents first.
But even after two people, they hadn't drained even 10% of his soul power. They delayed him a bit, but it was useless—Xu Tianzhen wiped out three in a row and secured a spot in the top eight.
The next five matches concluded with:
Xuemozong
Yulingzong
Zheng Tian Academy
Douling Empire Royal Academy
Xuanmingzong
advancing.
Meanwhile, Xu Cheng sat in his chair, flipping through documents.
The arena was heated and intense, but he wasn't interested. He had watched a bit the day before, but it was mostly fights between Soul Elders and Soul Kings. Among the strong teams, only Xuemozong was decent—others were just trash.
Might as well spend time dealing with paperwork.
Nana, as the head maid, was excellent at warming the bed, but not so much at handling politics. And she also had to manage the Holy Church.
Juzi wasn't having it easy either. As the Sun Moon Empire expanded, countless small matters began piling up. While brute force could solve many of them, it wasn't a long-term solution.
The door opened.
High heels clicked across the floor. A fragrant scent filled the air. Even without using his spiritual power, Xu Cheng could tell who it was—he could recognize the scent.
Each woman had a distinct scent.
Juzi had a citrusy freshness.Nana carried the aroma of wild grass.And Xu Lexuan—she smelled like epiphyllum (queen of the night).
"You're back?" Xu Cheng asked softly, not turning around.
Xu Lexuan had been appointed captain of the main starship in the interstellar fleet. After training, she was supposed to stay on board for some time.
But she didn't say anything. She just quietly climbed onto Xu Cheng's lap, wrapped her fair, slender arms around his neck, and buried her head in his chest. He could feel her warm breath.
"What's wrong?" Xu Cheng blinked in confusion.
Something happened?
That shouldn't be. The starships were fine. The destruction of the God Realm had just been reported. The Abyss Plane wouldn't arrive for several more months. If something had happened, he'd be the first to know.
He held her curvy figure gently and rubbed her back, waiting for her to speak.
"I… think I'm pregnant."
After a long moment, she looked up into his eyes and whispered.
"Pregnant? With what… Wait—you're pregnant?!"
Xu Cheng's pupils contracted sharply. His gaze dropped to her abdomen.
The tight-fitting space uniform didn't show anything out of the ordinary. It was still flat. But with his vast spiritual power, Xu Cheng clearly sensed a faint life force pulsing within her.
"Ah Cheng, you're going to be a dad."
Xu Lexuan's face flushed, tinged with shyness. Xu Cheng was still caressing her belly, eyes soft and affectionate. Her entire demeanor seemed to gain a new, delicate charm.
Meanwhile…
"Is Brother Cheng still not here yet?"
Meng Hongchen stood on tiptoe, scanning the crowd.
"He's busy. Juzi went to space recently, so all the government affairs fell on Ah Cheng's shoulders," Xiao Hongchen replied with a shrug.
"Besides, it's just the top-four draw. He doesn't need to show up."
In fact, he kind of hoped they'd draw Shrek Academy—stop them from reaching the semi-finals.
That arrogant group.
He had actually wanted to block them in the quarterfinals.
But luck wasn't on his side. Shrek drew Xuanmingzong, while he got Zheng Tian Academy, a team that clearly only got through by luck.
Because of Xu Sanshi, Xuanmingzong ended up being targeted by Shrek. In the team match, their main members were either fractured or crippled. Their reserve team was so terrified they surrendered without even fighting the second match.
Haotian Sect drew Xuemozong.
Strangely, the latter immediately forfeited, confusing the audience. After all, Long Aotian was clearly a Titled Douluo, while Tang San from the Haotian Sect had lost an arm and was heavily injured—he obviously wasn't a match.
Mingdu Soul Engineering Academy got lucky again and drew Douling Empire Royal Academy, securing their spot in the top four.