Shrek Academy's soul device-assisted victory, though expected, sent shockwaves through traditional soul masters and clan forces.
Shrek Academy—the holy land of traditional soul cultivation—had not only fielded formidable fighters but deployed soul devices with masterful precision!
Whether it was Wu Feng's life-saving sixth-grade defensive soul device or Zhou Sichen's near-continuous soul power replenishment via milk bottles, the message was unambiguous: Shrek was embracing the soul device era actively and advancing further than many had imagined.
Soul devices were no longer Sun Moon Empire's exclusive domain. They were integrating into elite soul master combat systems with unstoppable momentum.
On the Sun Moon high platform, Regent Prince Xu Tianran maintained a calm expression, but his fingers tapped the armrest slightly faster than before.
Beside him, Princess Ju Zi's gaze remained gentle, yet a flicker of gravity passed through her eyes as they swept over Shrek's rest area.
Shrek's adaptability and soul device technology had exceeded their estimates. In their view, established soul master forces should have stubbornly resisted soul devices.
Princess Xu Jiujiu of Xing Luo Empire's beautiful eyes flickered with calculation: "Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect disciples using soul devices is unsurprising, but such widespread adoption in Shrek's team…"
"Is this due to Ning Tian's influence, or Shrek Academy's strategic shift? It seems our cooperation with the Tang Sect on Zhuge Crossbow Cannons needs more aggressive advancement."
Representatives from other traditional soul master clans and the three empires felt shock and pressure. The convenience and potent support of soul devices had been displayed vividly, forcing them to confront a field they'd previously underestimated.
The first day's matches continued. Teams took turns showcasing their strengths and specialties. Fierce, spectacular battles drew continuous gasps from the audience, heating the atmosphere.
By midday, eight matches had concluded. Eight teams advanced while eight others departed in defeat—the tournament's brutality was becoming evident.
Near noon, the final match pairing appeared on the large screen: Natural Sect versus Fierce Beast Academy.
Seeing the draw, Gu La's true body—seated in the competitors' rest area, face concealed by an ancient mask—leaned back in his chair with a lazy, unrestrained posture. A faint smile touched his lips.
"Sun Moon Empire designed these arena rules assuming no one could easily sweep seven opponents, to save time. Who wants to give them a 'surprise' and earn us a more comfortable viewing spot?"
"I'll go."
Liu Niandao stepped forward. His volunteerism wasn't driven by enthusiasm or desire for attention—he was born without emotional fluctuations. He acted because his teammates' martial souls were too conspicuous:
Abyss Martial Soul, Ghost Emperor Martial Soul, Body Martial Soul, Ultimate Water, Ultimate Ice, Spiritual Martial Soul… Exposure would inevitably draw intense scrutiny from the Holy Spirit Cult, Body Sect, and Xu Tianran.
His "Nine-Leaf Flying Knife" martial soul, appearing as a standard weapon-type soul, was ideal for early-stage deception.
"It's yours," Gu La gave a slight nod.
Liu Niandao rose silently. With a thought, an ancient-looking flying knife—edged with nine delicate leaf patterns—materialized beneath his feet.
He leaped lightly onto it. Like sword-riding legends of old, he shot toward the arena as a streak of light, his posture elegant and unrestrained.
Upon landing, the knife vanished soundlessly.
This "knife-riding flight" drew murmurs from the audience. Even Gu La was momentarily stunned. Beneath his mask, his facial muscles twitched. "Knife-riding flight? More showy than me?"
He silently resolved to borrow one of his avatars' martial souls someday to test such a flashy entrance.
In the spectator stands, the Tang Sect members—who knew some of Natural Sect's secrets—perked up immediately.
Huo Yuhao focused intently, his spiritual detection silently enveloping the arena, unwilling to miss any detail.
Xu Sanshi pursed his lips, a hint of sourness in his tone: "His martial soul is just that little knife? Looks utterly ordinary. Though riding a knife to fly… this guy sure knows how to show off!"
Having always enjoyed stealing the spotlight himself, Xu Sanshi felt irked seeing others shine.
Huo Yuhao smiled faintly, his gaze profound: "I can't yet discern his depth. But we'll soon see his true strength."
Other uninformed teams paid little attention to the obscure "Natural Sect."
Liu Niandao's knife-riding display struck them as flashy but impractical—why waste soul power on martial soul flight when convenient flight soul devices existed?
Natural Sect's opponent, Fierce Beast Academy, specialized in beast-type martial souls from the Dou Ling Empire.
A golden-haired youth with an arrogant demeanor leaped onto the platform first. He jerked his chin at Liu Niandao: "Meeting me? Your bad luck!"
He released his martial soul. A resonant cry echoed as wide wings unfolded behind him, feathers covering parts of his body, hands transforming into sharp talons—the Griffin! A top-tier beast martial soul combining flight capability and raw power, second only to true sub-dragon martial souls. Like Liu Niandao, he was a five-ring Soul King with two yellow, two purple, and one black soul ring.
Unfortunately, Liu Niandao merely glanced at him with detached indifference.
That hollow, icy gaze seemed to contain endless mountains of blades and seas of blood. The golden-haired youth froze as a chill shot from his spine to the crown of his head, his battle fervor doused like ice water. His movements stiffened; his body turned cold.
During Douluo 3 Tang Sect missions, Liu Niandao—the emotionless killer—never spared opponents a shred of mercy.
Though not yet a Soul Saint, his mastery of "Heartless Blade Intent" and tangible "Killing Intent" had reached perfection, rivaling any prodigy. After sharing countless battle insights and realm comprehension with Gu La, his understanding of "intent" surpassed many Titled Douluos.
No longer delaying, he released his martial soul.
Twelve identical Nine-Leaf Flying Knives instantly hovered before him like living fish.
Most shocking were the six oul rings rising beneath his feet—all deep, profound black!
"Impossible!"
The spectator stands and competitor zones erupted in chaos.
Long Aotian of the Body Sect—competing under an alias for the Snow Demon Sect—shot to his feet, disbelief written across his face. Even Body Martial Souls, famed for physical prowess, couldn't withstand a ten-thousand-year first soul ring's impact!
"Could he have twin martial souls, attaching rings to another first?" This was the only logical explanation he could conceive—yet why reveal it so blatantly? He remained baffled.
Others shared Long Aotian's speculation. Stunned by this rule-breaking soul ring configuration, they could only attribute it to dual martial souls.
On the arena, the golden-haired Griffin soul king's face hardened completely. His lips trembled.
'Six ten-thousand-year soul rings? How am I supposed to fight this?'
Unfazed by the uproar around him, Liu Niandao's fourth black soul ring flickered.
Fourth Soul Skill: Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch Knife Array!
The twelve flying knives chimed softly, scattering to form a foundational knife array in an abstruse pattern.
Once formed, heavenly stem energy and earthly branch energy circulated subtly, coating the blades. An invisible aura of sharpness enveloped the entire arena.
Sensing lethal danger, the youth's survival instinct triggered all defensive skills simultaneously:
Third Soul Skill: Sacred Protection! Light-attribute shield!
Fourth Soul Skill: Hundred Battles Body! Full physical enhancement!
Fifth Soul Skill: Royal Glory! Attack, defense, speed amplification!
Three soul skill glows flared together, encasing him in protection.
But to Liu Niandao—who had reached the "Blade Soul" realm—his defenses were riddled with flaws.
No need to deploy the array's 108 variations. Mere five or six knives, manipulated like invisible black threads, wove through space with surgical precision.
Pop. Pop. Pop…
Shields shattered like paper. Amplified states collapsed abruptly.
Before the youth could trace the knives' paths, blood bloomed across his body. With a scream, he crumpled unconscious in a pool of his own blood.
Liu Niandao hadn't intended to kill—only to precisely dismantle his defenses and combat ability.
Born without emotion didn't make him a bloodthirsty madman; that was evil soul master behavior.
The audience buzzed with shock.
Liu Niandao's victory was effortless. He'd stood motionless while a few flying knives dissected a top-tier beast soul king's full defenses like a master butcher parting ox meat.
A chill ran down spines—What if all twelve knives unleashed the full array? Who could withstand it?
Strong teams' competitors grew solemn.
On the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy side, Xiao Hongchen smirked with relief: "Flying knife martial soul? Heh. Perfectly countered by this young master."
His Three-Legged Golden Toad martial soul excelled at metal manipulation. Against ordinary weapon soul masters, it might only disrupt—but against pure metal flying knives? Even if he couldn't seize full control, he could severely cripple their effectiveness.
The Sun Moon team relaxed into light laughter.
The referee snapped out of his stupor, declaring Natural Sect the victor and signaling Fierce Beast Academy's second fighter.
This time, Fierce Beast Academy sent a burly, muscular man whose eyes held sharp cunning beneath his rugged appearance.
Upon entering, he didn't release his martial soul immediately. Instead, he pointed at the still-active Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch Knife Array on the arena and loudly addressed the referee.
"Referee! I protest his rule violation! How can he release and maintain soul skills before the match starts? This makes it impossible for subsequent fighters!"
This tactic had been painstakingly devised after studying Shrek's Zhou Sichen's strategy the day before. Ironically, it was deployed against Natural Sect first.
The audience murmured in sudden realization. Indeed, such pre-deployed, persistent array-type soul skills held massive positional advantage in arena battles—bordering on exploiting rule loopholes.
"Uh…" The referee hesitated, seemingly considering but actually consulting higher-ups via a soul device communicator.
Princess Ju Zi, overseeing tournament operations, quickly issued a ruling.
Receiving instructions, the referee silently admired the princess's quick thinking before announcing loudly:
"After deliberation, the committee rules that individual matches test combat adaptability. Pre-releasing and maintaining soul skills violates fairness."
"However, acknowledging this as part of a soul master's capability, we decree: persistent field-affecting soul skills must be retracted after every two opponents and re-released to continue use."
This compromise balanced restriction with recognition of skill traits, earning general audience approval.
Fierce Beast Academy was disappointed they couldn't ban it entirely but accepted the ruling.
On stage, the protesting man's face paled with cold sweat.
Retract every two rounds? That means… I have to survive at least this round before he deactivates his martial soul?
He wanted to weep. Muttering to himself: "Bad luck, bad luck! Captain, can I surrender now? I shouldn't have volunteered for this spotlight!"
The referee gave no reprieve: "Match begin!"
The man didn't hesitate. He activated his martial soul—Earth Demon Bear! Specializing in pure defense and earth-element manipulation.
He roared, unleashing nearly all defensive skills simultaneously:
First Soul Skill: Earth's Might! Strength and defense boost!
Second Soul Skill: Earth's Surge! Manipulating stone obstacles!
Third Soul Skill: Demon Bear's Roar! Sonic shockwave, minor stun!
Fourth Soul Skill: Unyielding Fortress! Rocky armor coating his body!
Fifth Soul Skill: Earth's Embrace! Summons earth energy and rocks for full-cover shield!
Instantly, thick earth-yellow light and rocky armor encased him. The arena floor heaved, forming heavy stone walls to block the elusive knives.
Unfortunately, Liu Niandao's Nine-Leaf Flying Knife martial soul—though not Ultimate Metal—had tempered "sharpness" to its absolute pinnacle.
With a thought, his first soul ring flared—First Soul Skill: Thousand Cuts! Massive boosts to knife sharpness, penetration, and attack speed!
Already terrifyingly fast, the knives now became streaks of death.
The twelve-knife array didn't fully activate, but its properties persisted. They wove blinding trajectories, slicing through thick stone barriers and shields like hot knives through butter.
Liu Niandao perfectly inherited Gu La's "avoiding trouble" and "an eye for an eye" mentality.
Since his opponent tried using rules to weaken him, he wouldn't hold back.
Manipulating the knives, he precisely carved 108 wounds of varying depths across the burly man's body—enough to incapacitate but not kill. Only then did he calmly retract all knives, dissolving the Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch array.
The seemingly unbreakable stone walls and shields collapsed only after the knives withdrew, revealing the man transformed into a blood-soaked figure, collapsed unconscious in a crimson puddle.
The wounds weren't lethal, but blood loss and agony left him utterly incapacitated.
Holy Spirit Cult leader Zhongli Wu watched through a special viewing window, his scarlet tongue licking his lips as he admired the ice-cold Liu Niandao on stage:
"Unflinching. Precise control. Thousand cuts without taking life… Tsk tsk. What promising material—a perfect candidate for an evil soul master!"
His eyes gleamed with the fervor of a discoverer finding a hidden treasure.
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