"Next."
Blue Silver Grass spread across the stage like a vast emerald sea.
Li Zhexian stood alone at its center.
The Qinglian Sword pointed toward the direction of the Spirit Hall.
Though the sword had not yet moved—
Its sword intent had already stifled the very air.
"Next."
His voice was not loud—
But it struck like thunder, echoing through every corner of the arena.
The countless Spirit Masters of Spirit City, normally rowdy,
fell utterly silent.
One youth had toppled an entire academy.
Without even pausing to rest, he now pointed his sword at the Golden Generation of Spirit Hall.
The arrogance and brilliance of that boy's presence had reached its absolute peak!
That kind of bearing—
That kind of strength—
Set the blood of all who witnessed it on fire.
The Spirit Masters of Heaven Dou City were already roaring with fervor. Some clenched their fists, others found their eyes burning hot.
"Who says only Spirit Hall produces peerless prodigies? We of Heaven Dou have Lord Sword Wine!"
"Five days ago, word already flew back to the city—that Sword Wine swept aside Spirit Hall's second team with a single sword!"
"Hah! By now, every storyteller in the city is surely reciting Sword Wine's glory until the sky itself resounds with it!"
Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, and the others were swept up in emotion.
From the very moment Li Zhexian donned the captain's robe and stood before them, they had already known—
This Spirit Master Tournament would be his stage alone.
Every other so-called prodigy would pale beneath his brilliance.
Bai Baoshan could not contain himself, clapping and shouting three times in succession: "Good! Good! Good!"
Before setting out,
he and the two other board members, Meng Shenji and Zhi Lin, had vowed with their lives:
"With Zhexian here, we will take the crown and return in triumph!"
Now it seemed—
That promise was close enough to grasp.
...
On the Shrek Academy's side, the atmosphere was so thick that water could drip out.
Though Dai Mubai was unscathed, not a shred of Spirit Power spent, his spirit was crushed.
Tang San was being frantically treated by Spirit Hall's healing-tyoe Spirit Masters. His face was pale as paper, his body drenched in blood.
But the agony of his flesh was nothing compared to the dead numbness in his eyes.
Seeing this scene,
Flender could not hold back his tears.
Broken…
His two greatest prides, Tang San and Dai Mubai—
Crushed beneath Li Zhexian's unstoppable force.
Their very Dao hearts shattered.
"Xiao San… Mubai…" Yu Xiaogang tried his best to maintain a steady tone, but the words that came out were filled with an uncontrollable trembling.
His mournful gaze swept over the hollow-eyed Tang San, the silent Dai Mubai, and the wordless Oscar, Bai Chenxiang, and others.
"This Spirit Master Tournament…"
"Shrek's journey… ends here…"
With those words, Yu Xiaogang, supported by Liu Erlong, bowed deeply toward his disciples.
"It was your teacher… who misjudged Li Zhexian's strength…"
"And brought about this crushing defeat…"
"But your teacher begs you… do not lose heart… your path to strength has only just begun…"
"Look upon the one standing on that stage—Li Zhexian…"
"Take him… as the goal you must chase… and one day, surpass…"
"Your teacher… believes in you…"
His words were hoarse,
each syllable bleeding from the heart.
A trickle of bright red blood slid from Yu Xiaogang's lips.
In that instant, his face seemed to age ten years.
...
"Hey, this guy is indeed incredibly handsome." Huo Wu leaned lazily on the railing, swinging her slender wrist.
Feng Xiaotian and Huo Wushuang, hearing this, had meant to dismiss him with hollow words.
But their eyes fell upon the solitary figure in white standing on the stage—
and all they could do was let out a long, helpless sigh.
"Yeah. He's handsome as hell."
"Now let's see how Zhexian crushes Spirit Hall's Golden Generation."
At that moment—
Shui Bing'er's cold voice rang out like beads of ice dropping onto jade.
"No."
"Tang San, with a ten-thousand-year Spirit Ring added to his Clear Sky Hammer, was already no weaker than the Golden Generation."
"They know full well—if they go up now, it's only to invite humiliation. That's why they'll also forfeit."
"And wait until the team battle in the afternoon to join forces and encircle Li Zhexian."
As soon as she spoke—
All eyes turned toward her in unison.
Huo Wu's delicate brows furrowed.
"You're saying…"
"The Golden Generation will forfeit?"
"Wouldn't that be even more disgraceful?"
Shuibing'er replied calmly:
"Compared to being defeated by Li Zhexian under the eyes of all."
"Forfeiting, to them, is the more dignified choice."
"As long as they can defeat Li Zhexian in the team battle, they can still regain some honor."
Just as her words fell—
From Spirit Hall's preparation area came Hu Liena's cold voice:
"For the individual battles… Spirit Hall… forfeits!"
With that said, Hu Liena ignored the clamor throughout the arena and was the first to turn around and leave decisively.
Yan and Xie Yue followed close behind, their faces so dark they seemed to drip water.
"Why wouldn't you let me go up?!" Yan snarled.
"Can you defeat Li Zhexian?" Hu Liena cut him off coldly, not even turning her head.
Yan's fists clenched, his knuckles cracking.
But in the end, he gritted his teeth and swallowed the words that were about to come out.
A cold light flashed in Hu Liena's foxlike eyes.
"The team battle is the true battlefield."
"Shrek is already broken. They won't even show."
"This afternoon, the four people will hold off the six of Heaven Dou. The three of us will focus all our strength on attacking Li Zhexian."
The three had barely taken a few steps when—
Behind them—
Li Zhexian's amused voice rang out.
"Hey…"
Hu Liena froze mid-step, slowly turning back.
She saw Li Zhexian's lips curve into a faint smile as he spoke lightly:
"You really are nothing but trash."
Hu Liena's knuckles whitened instantly, a flash of killing intent flickered across her face.
But then—
She whipped around and strode away faster, disappearing into the tunnel.
Spirit Hall's Golden Generation…
Forfeiting in the finals of the individual battle?!
Hearing Li Zhexian's merciless word "trash," and watching the proud Golden Generation retreat—
The audience was struck dumb.
For a dozen breaths, silence reigned.
Then whispers began, swelling into a crashing roar:
Some could not believe it.
Some were thrilled with excitement.
Some burned with shame and anger.
"The individual battles…"
At that moment—
From atop the Pope's throne, Bibi Dong spoke.
Her voice was calm yet commanding, carrying clearly to every corner of the arena:
"For the individual battles..."
"The Emperial Battle Team, Li Zhexian, is the champion."
"Rest for a bit. The team battle will begin at the hour of the Rooster (5 PM to 7 PM)."
With that, she slowly rose.
Amidst the mountain-shaking and sea-roaring shouts of "Respectfully see off Your Holiness the Pope" from both sides, she turned around with a graceful and dignified manner.
The sunlight fell behind her, casting her regal figure in shadow.
In the instant she turned around, the smile on the corner of Bibi Dong's lips slowly froze. It then turned into a bone-chilling coldness.
The surging killing intent in her deep purple eyes was so thick it couldn't be dissolved.
No one understood better than her the potential of twin martial souls.
If not for Li Zhexian's sudden appearance, Tang San, with his Clear Sky Hammer and twin Martial Souls, would have been Spirit Hall's prime target for elimination.
But now…
This Li Zhexian…
Was too monstrous!
The sharpness of the Qinglian Sword in his hand surpassed even Chen Xin's Seven Kill Sword!
The talent he had displayed with a single Martial Soul had already surpassed that of twin Martial Souls!
Such a shocking genius, tied closely to the Heaven Dou Empire and many great sects—
If allowed to grow…
He would surely become the greatest obstacle to Spirit Hall's plan of ruling the continent!
And on top of that, his tangled relationship with Qian Renxue…
Bibi Dong's expression grew dark as an abyss.
In her heart, the killing intent toward Li Zhexian had already risen to an unprecedented peak.