A fierce battle between a dragon and a tiger.
The Sword Qi Long Dragon clashed with the tiger-shaped Fist Force, a dazzling spectacle.
The audience sighed in admiration at the high quality of this battle.
This was the purest, most blood-pumping combat.
Gu Zhujian and Zhang Wei stopped testing each other and charged at their opponent, engaging in close-quarters combat.
Lightning crackled and spread, sword auras crisscrossed.
The fierce tiger roared, fist radiance shot towards the sky.
Gu Zhujian exerted all his abilities, yet could only fight Zhang Wei to a standstill.
At this moment, the audience exclaimed at the excitement.
Some Spirit Masters whose own Spirit Rings weren't particularly good watched this scene, their blood boiling, wishing they could be on the stage themselves.
So it turns out that even without the optimal Spirit Ring configuration, we ordinary Spirit Masters can also fight above our level!
Zhang Wei's common face allowed too many people to project themselves onto him, wishing they were that unremarkable youth, facing the fifty-seventh level Power Attack System Battle Spirit King Gu Zhujian head-on with the strength of a forty-fifth level Spirit Ancestor.
During the fight, Zhang Wei's will grew increasingly tenacious.
With every collision, his will was being tempered, his willpower was rising, and his strength was visibly improving.
On this stage under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Zhang Wei's mental state underwent another transformation.
Seeing this, Su Ming was inwardly astonished.
To be honest, he thought Zhang Wei's will transformation would probably only be the previous one. That transformation was too great, turning Zhang Wei from an ordinary person into a peerless genius.
Because, from a native's perspective, Zhang Wei had established the courage to oppose Shrek and question this mountain pressing down on the Spirit Master world.
Now, Su Ming realized that the transformation of will isn't only related to courage.
"This transformation didn't stimulate his Martial Soul's second awakening. It seems we'll have to wait until he breaks through to Spirit King."
Under Zhang Wei's renewed sublimation, his fighting became increasingly effortless.
Gu Zhujian gritted his teeth and persevered.
He had basically no consumption from the previous match.
Yet, he was being suppressed by a mere Spirit Ancestor, seeing no hope of victory.
"He's been fighting above his level for so long, yet his Spirit Power is still endless!"
Gu Zhujian didn't know that within the Spirit Power Propulsion Unit on Zhang Wei's back, there were eight fully charged Milk Bottles. The Spirit Power from the Milk Bottles, combined with the absorption device made from Spirit Metal, was directly channeling Spirit Power into Zhang Wei's body.
Zhang Wei, with 'Courage Embodied' and 'All Things Dissolution', could digest the Milk Bottle's Spirit Power in just a moment.
And he himself, relying on the Purple Lightning Sword made from Spirit Metal, already possessed the combat power of a Spirit Emperor!
Gu Zhujian was unwilling to accept this.
There was something off about this Zhang Wei.
"This is my final sword strike."
Gu Zhujian jumped backward, using an Invincible Barrier to block a large number of Zhang Wei's attacks, while simultaneously activating three of his own Spirit Skills.
His third, fourth, and fifth Spirit Rings flashed simultaneously.
Sword auras shot skyward around his body, and lightning power spread outwards.
A Thunder Sword Domain was thus generated.
Finally, he raised the Purple Lightning Sword high, drawing upon all the lightning power within the domain, transforming it into a sword light that he slashed out.
"Tiger Soul Fist!"
Facing this sword strike, Zhang Wei still threw a firm punch.
Boom!
One punch wasn't enough.
Again!
Again!
Zhang Wei seemed not to feel the erosion of his body by the dissipating lightning power, nor the sharp sword auras cutting his flesh; he just kept punching.
As the lightning dissipated, Gu Zhujian smiled.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
He had still defeated this insignificant Spirit Ancestor.
As Zhang Wei fell to the ground, Gu Zhujian also collapsed.
"Zhang Wei, Gu Zhujian eliminated. The Douling Team is completely defeated. The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy team wins this match."
Su Ming went onto the stage to bring Zhang Wei down, preparing to hand him over to the team's healing-type Spirit Master for treatment.
"No need, leave him to me."
A familiar voice sounded.
Su Ming looked surprised at the Eight-Arms Elder, who had somehow arrived in the preparation area.
"Elder Eight-Arms, how did you get in?"
"Hehe, I'm an honorary president of the Blacksmith Association."
Over the past year or so, Eight-Arms, while stationed at the Blacksmith Association, had long since secured a position.
With this identity, even though he wasn't a participant, he could still enter this preparation area.
"Leave Zhang Wei to me."
As he spoke, Elder Eight-Arms had already grabbed Zhang Wei and was quickly leaving the square with him.
"Su Ming, can Zhang Wei still compete?"
He wouldn't be taken away by this Eight-Arms Elder and not come back, would he?
"Don't worry, Elder Ma. Elder Eight-Arms probably intends to take Zhang Wei as his disciple. He'll likely teach him some things during this time."
Elder Ma breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhang Wei's performance today had given him a big surprise; he never expected there was still room for improvement.
From now on, he could practically be used as a Spirit Emperor!
The only downside was that Zhang Wei's abilities were already exposed, and they were relatively single-faceted. He would probably be heavily targeted in the future.
"I want to know why Zhang Wei was expelled."
In the Shrek preparation area, Wang Yan's face was dark, and he couldn't help but roar in a low voice.
Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao – these soldiers trained by Zhou Yi – remained silent, not daring to speak.
Zhang Wei's performance was too dazzling; a Spirit Ancestor fighting a Spirit King.
"I will report this upwards upon our return," Wang Yan took a deep breath.
If Shrek couldn't unearth a Spirit Master's abilities and just expelled them like trash, then what was the point of Shrek?
Cultivating monsters?
The person was already a monster; did you cultivate them?
Having potential, but not managing to unearth it, expelling students if they couldn't unearth it themselves.
Then what was the point of them joining the academy?
Did it really just become a social occasion to meet various geniuses?
This was what Wang Yan found most tragic.
If things continued like this, allowing this atmosphere to grow, Shrek would truly become an empty shell, its reputation not matching reality.
There were eight groups total in the group stage. Four groups competed each day, one round every two days. Within each group, there were four matches. The group containing the Sun Moon Imperial team had nine teams, requiring roughly nine rounds, meaning eighteen days.
Of course, after seven rounds, i.e., after fourteen days, only three groups would remain, so it wouldn't take eighteen days; the group stage could be completed on the morning of the sixteenth day.
The Sun Moon Imperial team's second match was against a Spirit Engineer academy from the Sun Moon Empire.
The same order of appearance, basically the same outcome. The Sun Moon Imperial team won without revealing too much of their abilities.
Correct, it was still an individual elimination match.
The third match, however, changed the format to the 2-2-3 cooperative battle mode.
Two consecutive individual elimination matches couldn't even probe the situation of the Sun Moon Imperial team's seven members, so Xu Jiawei decisively changed his strategy.
Unfortunately, he still couldn't learn much more information from the 2-2-3 cooperative battle, because the '3' in the 2-2-3 didn't even need to be fought before the Sun Moon Imperial team won.
The fourth match, this time, was a team battle, 7 vs 7.
For this match, the participants were Ma Rulong, Mi Jia, Chen Fei, Xiao Hongchen, Zhang Wei – these five – plus Xiao Xiafeng and Lin Xi.
Xiao Xiafeng and Lin Xi were both regular team members. Xiao Xiafeng was a Food System Spirit Engineer, and Lin Xi was a defensive-type Spirit Engineer.
Their appearance on stage only revealed this little bit of information.
"We can't go on like this. So far, we only know that Zhang Wei has a Spirit Tool made from Spirit Metal. We haven't probed anything else yet." Xu Jiawei grew anxious.
***
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(Chapter end)