Night had already fallen, and lights glittered across the city.
Through the crystal wall at the end of the restaurant corridor, the nightscape of Star Luo City could be clearly seen, dotted with countless lamps.
Holding Ning Tian's hand, Xu Zihuang walked toward the restaurant. From far away, he could already hear the voices of Wang Yan, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and the others in conversation.
Tomorrow would be the semifinals. By rights, since he was the team's control-type soul master, they should have called him to the strategy meeting.
Xu Zihuang's heart stirred slightly. Remembering Ning Tian's earlier behavior, a thoughtful light flashed in his eyes.
It seemed Ning Tian had deliberately not mentioned this to him.
Now that they were walking hand in hand, if he suddenly let go halfway there, it would seem forced. What Ning Tian was exploiting was precisely that sort of subtle psychology of his.
Realizing this, a faint smile crossed Xu Zihuang's eyes.
He didn't dislike Ning Tian having such little schemes.
For someone as usually rational as she was, such behavior was proof she was already emotionally involved.
Under the respectful bows of the four maids in white dresses standing by the restaurant entrance, Xu Zihuang, expression composed, led Ning Tian inside.
As they entered, the members of Shrek Academy who were seated around a broad crystal table subconsciously stopped talking and turned toward them.
When they saw the two of them with their fingers interlaced, everyone's gazes instantly took on a knowing look.
"Tianhuang, Ning Tian, you've come just in time. Come sit down—we're about to start the pre-battle meeting."
Sitting at the head of the table, Wang Yan beamed as he beckoned to the pair.
On the Douluo Continent, it was common for ordinary people to marry in their teens.
Soul masters, exposed to greater energies, developed faster physically under the nourishment of soul power and soul rings.
Although they tended to marry later because of their focus on cultivation, having youthful feelings for the opposite sex was perfectly natural.
Just like the first generation of Shrek's Seven Devils, who had supported each other since adolescence.
In truth, Wang Yan rather approved of Yu Tianhuang and Ning Tian as a pair. In his eyes, the two were perfectly matched in both talent and background.
The others shared his view.
Even Xu Sanshi, who liked to tease and joke around, sincerely hoped that Yu Tianhuang and Ning Tian would stay together for the long run.
Only Ma Xiaotao and Wang Dong showed slightly different expressions.
As for what each of them was thinking, only they themselves knew.
Ning Tian, seemingly unintentionally, let her gaze pause briefly on Ma Xiaotao before she and Xu Zihuang sat down side by side to Wang Yan's left.
That side of the table was for the seven reserve team members. This time, Xu Sanshi had shamelessly seated himself beside Jiang Nannan, claiming it was according to age order.
Among the reserves, Beibei was the oldest, followed by He Caitou, Xu Sanshi, and Jiang Nannan, then Xu Zihuang, Ning Tian, and Wang Dong.
In fact, the age difference among Xu Zihuang, Ning Tian, and Wang Dong was less than a month; coincidentally, Xu Zihuang's and Ning Tian's birthdays were consecutive—he was born just one day before her.
On the right side sat Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, Chen Zifeng, and Gongyang Mo, the four Inner Court disciples.
Outside, darkness had fully settled.
The crystal-built restaurant glowed with radiant colors under the illumination of the soul-guide lamps, elegant and resplendent.
Propping his chin in his hands, Wang Yan spoke in a serious tone:
"The final four have been decided, and tomorrow the semifinals will begin. As the reigning champions of the previous Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament, Shrek Academy will once again take the field first. To ensure fairness, opponents for the semifinals will be determined by on-site drawing lots.
"Besides our Shrek Academy, the other three academies that advanced are the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, Dio Academy, and Dou Ling Imperial Academy. You could say they are all old rivals of ours.
"To be honest, I have never doubted your abilities. I believe that students from Shrek Academy, even when measured against the entire young generation of the soul master world, are elites among elites.
"But since this concerns Shrek's honor, for caution's sake I'll still brief you carefully about our opponents."
As he spoke, a confident smile appeared on his face.
Although the main team had lost Ling Luochen, Yao Haoxuan, and Xixi, the overall strength had not decreased—in fact, it had improved—because Gongyang Mo had broken through to the Soul Emperor rank.
After all, Xu Sanshi and Beibei could each unleash combat power comparable to Soul Kings, and there was also Yu Tianhuang, whose strength far surpassed that level.
The reason they had fallen into a disadvantage early on against the Star Luo Imperial Academy was partly that they hadn't anticipated Xu Jiujou's rare domain-type soul skill, and partly because Shrek had deliberately been keeping some of their cards hidden.
That hidden trump card was precisely the killer move they had prepared against the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
"Among these three academies, the one we need to pay closest attention to is naturally the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
"Their overall strength should be second only to ours. Their captain Ma Rulong, and the siblings Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen, have yet to appear in battle. You must remain especially alert to them.
"However, as long as we carry out the plan we discussed, suppressing them shouldn't be a problem.
"Next comes Dio Academy. Its captain Jiang Peng is also a Soul Emperor-level powerhouse, and his martial soul, the Sky-Shaking Axe, is a top-tier tool-type spirit comparable to the Clear Sky Hammer. The rest of his teammates are all Soul Kings or higher.
"By comparison, the Dou Ling Imperial Academy is weaker, with only five Soul Kings and two Soul Ancestors."
Wang Yan then went on to give a concise explanation of the known abilities of the three academies' members.
The entire pre-battle preparation meeting lasted less than half an hour before he announced its end.
The strategies discussed focused mainly on countering the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
While Dio Academy, boasting a Soul Emperor-level student, was strong, it was still a traditional soul master academy. Following the conventional soul master path, how could it possibly compare to Shrek Academy?
With Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng, two powerful attack-type Soul Emperors, supported by the auxiliary Soul Emperor Gongyang Mo, their overall strength would clearly hold the upper hand—if not an outright crush.
As for Dou Ling Imperial Academy, there was even less to worry about.
Had they not revealed their seventh-level soul tool, the Thunder Cannon, in the quarterfinals, they might have retained some chance.
Unfortunately, when they faced a powerful dark-horse team in the round of eight, they were forced to expose that final trump card just to scrape through to the semifinals.
According to Wang Yan's judgment, since Dou Ling Imperial Academy had been compelled to use this weapon—which required all seven members to channel power together—it was clear they'd already been pushed to their limits.
Moreover, such a tactic was non-repeatable.
If Shrek happened to draw Dou Ling Imperial Academy in the semifinals, that would be the luckiest draw possible.
To help everyone relax a bit, Wang Yan chose not to dine with them afterward.
However, before leaving, he took out from his soul guide a strangely shaped soul tool.
It was a silver necklace, with a pendant about the size of an adult's thumb, crafted in the shape of a baby bottle.
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