With the size of this ten-thousand-year Azure Jade Bird, although the space on its back wasn't particularly spacious, it was more than enough to accommodate fifteen people. There was even sufficient distance between each person for them to sit cross-legged and meditate in cultivation.
As times had changed, although humans had tamed some soul beasts, flying-type soul beasts were not among them. After all, flying-type soul beasts could fly, and their strength was usually greater than that of ordinary soul beasts. The process of taming them was not only troublesome but also extremely costly.
Moreover, if soul masters wanted to fly, there were now many more convenient flying-type soul tools available.
If it weren't for this, the various nations on the continent would probably have long since established special cavalry units mounted on flying-type soul beasts, striking directly from the air.
Riding a flying-type soul beast to travel, this novel and impressive experience greatly excited many members of the Shrek representative team. Only Wang Qiu'er, Dai Huabin, and Wu Feng still had cold expressions. Apart from them, Nanmen Yun'er, whose martial soul already possessed the ability to fly, appeared relatively calm. However, compared to Wang Qiu'er and the other two, her gentle and approachable personality made her much easier to get close to. She occasionally chatted softly with Xiao Xiao and the Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo sisters while carefully observing the details of how this Azure Jade Bird controlled its soul power and wind elements when using its soul skills.
The Azure Jade Bird's main attribute was wind, and it also controlled a certain amount of spatial power. If she could gain some insights from this, it would bring considerable benefits to the improvement of her strength.
On the other side, Xu Zihuang was gently supporting Ning Tian as they walked toward Zhang Lexuan and Ye Guyi.
Earlier, when she had acted so intimately with Yu Tianhuang in front of everyone, a faint, charming blush appeared on Ning Tian's pretty face. Noticing Ye Guyi's teasing gaze, she lowered her head and quickly stepped forward, taking hold of Ye Guyi's jade arm.
" Sister Guyi…"
"Your outfit today seems even prettier than usual. No wonder Tianhuang likes you so much."
Ye Guyi affectionately stroked Ning Tian's cheek, a smile on her face. From her words and actions, she appeared to fully accept Ning Tian.
But the corner of Xu Zihuang's mouth couldn't help but twitch slightly.
The more Ye Guyi praised Ning Tian in front of her, the more outrageous and bold the things she did behind Ning Tian's back became. If it weren't for his sufficiently sharp spiritual perception, several times he might have been exposed on the spot.
Some time ago, Zhang Lexuan and Ye Guyi had begun jointly assessing the Shrek representative team's coordination. Zhou Sichen, Cao Jinxuan, Lan Susu, and Lan Luoluo, the four outer court students who had not yet entered the inner court, also learned of Ye Guyi's public identity within Shrek Academy.
At the time, it had shocked them quite a bit.
And when Ye Guyi occasionally served as a sparring partner, the terrifying strength and soul ring configuration she displayed left them marveling at the astonishing talent of this "sibling" pair.
Only Wang Qiu'er, who had seen Xu Zihuang's memories, vaguely guessed Ye Guyi's true identity. Because once, during a spar with Ye Guyi, she accidentally caught a glimpse of the golden angel pattern above Ye Guyi's chest.
Although she had only seen a very small portion of it, Xu Zihuang's memories of that part were so profound that she remembered it as well.
Soul masters had always spoken with strength, so Ye Guyi's position as vice-leader was quickly accepted by everyone.
Everyone tacitly avoided approaching the area where Yu Tianhuang, Ning Tian, Zhang Lexuan, and Ye Guyi were gathered.
Xu Zihuang gestured toward Zhang Lexuan and said, "Eldest Senior Sister, at the speed of this Azure Jade Bird, we won't need even half a day to reach Mingdu."
"In that case, it indeed saves quite a bit of effort." Zhang Lexuan gave a gentle smile and asked softly,
"Tianhuang, how much soul power does summoning this Azure Jade Bird consume for you?"
"Summoning this Azure Jade Bird is essentially imprinting Zhou Sichen's soul skill. After summoning it, it doesn't consume additional soul power. Of course, its flight and use of soul skills still require my soul power to supply. But for me, it's no burden at all. The rate of soul power consumption is actually slower than the rate at which my soul power naturally recovers."
Zhang Lexuan nodded, showing no doubt. She knew that Yu Tianhuang had condensed a soul core very early on, so having such a foundation was entirely reasonable.
With Yu Tianhuang as the captain of the Shrek representative team, she believed that no matter what changes occurred in this edition of the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament, Shrek Academy's undefeated myth would continue.
Because in her view, even the most outstanding youth soul masters under twenty years old couldn't compare to even half of Yu Tianhuang. It was a gap in levels, like an insurmountable chasm.
However, Zhang Lexuan did not relax because of this.
Before setting out, Elder Xuan had specifically instructed her about certain matters. During this Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament, some special incidents were likely to occur. As the team leader, her duty was to bring everyone from Shrek Academy back safely, and she must remain vigilant at all times.
After greeting Zhang Lexuan, Ye Guyi, and Ning Tian, Xu Zihuang returned to the head of the Azure Jade Bird to observe the surrounding situation. The other members of the Shrek representative team, following Zhang Lexuan's instructions, all sat cross-legged to rest.
Ye Guyi and Ning Tian stayed close together. Listening to Ye Guyi's teasing, Ning Tian remained shy and bashful throughout, her gaze occasionally falling on Xu Zihuang ahead.
Wu Feng, who took all of this in, felt her heart twisting in pain. But she was powerless to change anything.
...
The new edition of the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament was billed as a "return." Because of this grand competition, with a history of tens of thousands of years, originally allowed sect participation. It was only in the past thousand years that the scale had been reduced to allow only academies to participate.
This time, at the proposal of the host, the Sun Moon Empire, and with the agreement of the other three empires, it was unanimously decided to restore the previous eligibility rules. Sects were once again allowed to participate, and the competition format had also changed.
As a result, this edition of the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament had become unprecedentedly grand in scale.
Even for a genius soul master to become a top-tier powerhouse at the Titled Douluo level, a massive amount of resources was absolutely indispensable for support. This meant that sect forces would be overwhelmingly dominant.
On the continent, the number of sects far exceeded that of various soul master or soul engineer academies.
For the academies, achieving good results in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament was a great opportunity to make their academy famous and greatly benefit its development and recruitment. The same applied to sects.
Unlike academies, sects had stronger binding power over their members, but they also invested in their disciples without reservation. The more outstanding the talent, the more likely they were to join powerful sects.
After the changes to the new competition format, more than sixty percent of the sects on the continent had chosen to register.
If the organizing committee hadn't ultimately decided to limit participants to those under twenty years old while also requiring that at least five members of each sect team have four or more soul rings, the number of participating teams in this edition might have been ten times that of the previous one.
Even with such restrictions, the final number of participating teams settled at one hundred sixty-seven, more than thirty teams than the previous edition. And precisely because of these restrictions, the overall strength of the participating teams in this edition far surpassed that of the previous one. The competition would undoubtedly be far more intense.
To host such a grand competition, the Sun Moon Empire had begun preparations three months in advance. Large batches of hotels were expanded to increase room capacity, preparing to accommodate more guests during the competition, especially merchants from various places, to earn greater profits.
As the wealthiest nation on the continent, the Sun Moon Empire had also set extremely generous prizes for this competition.
The champion would receive a ninth-level soul tool, the runner-up an eighth-level one, and third place a seventh-level one. The value of these three soul tools far exceeded that of soul bones. Especially for teams from the original three empires of the Douluo Continent, a ninth-level soul tool was essentially priceless.
It wasn't just about market value; it held profound strategic significance. If they could analyze a ninth-level soul tool, no matter what kind it was, it would inevitably greatly narrow the gap in soul tool technology with the Sun Moon Empire.
This was also the main reason why Xian Lin'er and Qian Duoduo had valued the ninth-level fixed soul cannon design blueprint that Xu Zihuang had brought back so highly.
However, this was purely an idealistic notion. The gap in soul tool technology between the Sun Moon Empire and the original three empires of the Douluo Continent could no longer be bridged simply in this way.
Mingdu, Sun Moon Empire Imperial Palace, rear garden.
The wheelchair stopped on the wide and neat bluestone path in the rear garden. Plants of various shapes were neatly distributed throughout the garden. Every detail was exquisitely designed. The small waterfall among the artificial mountains, the flower clusters forming the Sun Moon Empire royal emblem of golden sun and silver moon patterns, and the tall trees everywhere, almost gave the illusion of being in a tranquil forest.
Xu Tianran sat in the wheelchair with his eyes closed, a thin blanket covering his legs. His entire person exuded a faint sense of leisure. This leisure perfectly blended into the serenity of the rear garden.
A series of steady, crisp footsteps sounded from behind. Still with his eyes closed, Xu Tianran spoke faintly, "How is it?"
The person who arrived was precisely Juzi. Today, Juzi wore a goose-yellow palace dress with a long skirt. The fluffy hem rose slightly with her light movements, and the exquisite floral patterns printed on it rippled along with it.
Her jet-black hair was piled high, accentuating her fair and delicate skin. Her beautiful eyes shimmered with intelligent light. At this moment, she truly looked like a noble and elegant imperial princess.
"Since Your Majesty issued the decree ordering the Third Prince to relinquish military authority, our people have smoothly taken control of the Mingdu Garrison District. The military side has shown no unusual movements and remains calm. Currently, two-fifths of the empire's armies are under our control. Of the remaining three-fifths, another two-fifths are loyal only to the emperor. Once you ascend the throne, they will surely switch sides immediately. As for the last one-fifth, they are mostly frontline generals with real power, but they cannot affect the overall situation."
Xu Tianran slowly opened his eyes, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"Father Emperor, though gravely ill, is not yet muddled. He hopes that by doing this, I will spare my Third Brother's life?"
From beginning to end, he showed not the slightest emotional fluctuation at Juzi's words.
Because in the previous struggle for the throne, although it appeared as if he and the Third Prince were evenly matched, in reality, he had long since held the victory in his grasp. With the full support of the entire Holy Spirit Cult behind him, the portion of military backing behind the Third Prince couldn't stir up any waves at all. It was only because he still needed the full support of the military for his future grand plans that he had adopted this relatively peaceful approach.
And the old emperor of the Sun Moon Empire had seen through all this. Knowing that his days were numbered, he ultimately had no choice but to make such a decision.
Now, Xu Tianran had already been conferred the title of Crown Prince and was acting as regent, fully in charge of the empire's affairs.
Xu Tianran smiled and continued asking, "The preparations for the competition are mostly complete, right?"
Seeing Xu Tianran's warm, spring-breeze-like smile, Juzi's delicate body suddenly shivered with cold.
"Everything is ready. All is proceeding according to the original plan."
Xu Tianran chuckled softly, "I remember that in the previous competition, the grandson of Hallmaster Hongchen, that extraordinarily talented young man, was defeated by a genius soul master from Shrek Academy named Yu Tianhuang. If the intelligence is correct, the one representing Shrek Academy in this competition should still be the champion from the previous edition. I'm actually quite looking forward to seeing what kind of brilliant sparks will fly when our people encounter those from Shrek Academy in the competition."
Hearing Xu Tianran mention Yu Tianhuang, Juzi's heart instinctively jolted. As she pushed Xu Tianran's wheelchair from behind, a chilling coldness emerged deep in her eyes.
She knew that to Xu Tianran, she was merely a tool. But wasn't she also using Xu Tianran? Everything she did was for the person she held in her heart.
Completely unaware of any of this, Xu Tianran seemed to think of something and closed his eyes again.
"By the way, go and invite Mr. Zhongli over. Tell him I have important matters to discuss with him."
"Yes." Juzi respectfully responded and quickly left.
Juzi's footsteps gradually faded in his ears. Xu Tianran maintained the appearance of resting with his eyes closed, as if he had fallen asleep. Amid this garden filled with birdsong and fragrant flowers, he blended into nature.
Fifty kilometers outside Mingdu, high in the sky, the Azure Jade Bird circled under Xu Zihuang's control.
Mingdu possessed a complete city soul tool defense system. If they entered Mingdu from the air, they would instantly become targets for various long-range soul tools.
The group had no choice but to descend one after another and switch to walking.
Another sharp bird cry rang out, and the Azure Jade Bird turned into specks of light and dissipated into the air.
Although Xu Zihuang's fourth soul skill could imprint Zhou Sichen's martial soul abilities, it also had limitations; it could only be used once.
Zhang Lexuan faced everyone and said, "First, go register for the competition, then rest and recuperate. Tianhuang, you once studied at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy for a period of time, so you should be quite familiar with the city of Mingdu, right?"
"Mm." Xu Zihuang nodded and led everyone into Mingdu.
"Everyone, follow me."
Compared to the overcrowded Star Luo City back then, although the streets of Mingdu had clearly seen an increase in foot traffic due to the approaching competition, there was hardly any feeling of crowding. This was the advantage of a sufficiently large city.
The registration location was called Mingyue Grand Hotel.
This was a large hotel, eight stories tall, located in the center of Mingdu. From afar, one could see this entirely silver-white building. Each floor was very high, so even with only eight stories, it was still one of the few extremely tall landmark buildings in Mingdu.
As soon as they entered the hotel lobby, a metallic texture assaulted them. The interior decorations were all the same silver-white as the exterior. Various streamlined designs made it look like a finely crafted soul tool, giving people an irresistible urge to touch it.
At this moment, quite a few people had already gathered in the vast lobby spanning several thousand square meters. The moment Xu Zihuang and the others entered, a girl in a silver skirt immediately came forward to greet them.
Zhang Lexuan directly stated their identity.
"You are all distinguished guests from Shrek Academy?" The girl widened her eyes in shock, then quickly recovered and made an inviting gesture.
"As the champions of the previous competition, Shrek Academy receives special courtesy. We have prepared an exclusive passage for you, distinguished guests. Please follow me."
As she spoke, she signaled to the other welcoming girls. Soon, more than a dozen gathered, lining up neatly in two rows to lead the way. They instantly became the focus of the entire lobby. The members of the other participating teams looked at the Shrek representative team with eyes full of awe.
After all, Shrek Academy's reputation on the continent was simply too resounding.
Zhou Sichen and Cao Jinxuan exchanged a glance, both feeling a bit lightheaded for a moment. They walked with their heads held high and feet practically floating.
At that moment, Xu Zihuang, Ye Guyi, and Zhang Lexuan, who were walking ahead, simultaneously stopped and looked back.
Another participating team had entered the lobby. However, their attire was truly distinctive and eye-catching, all dressed in black, with cold and sinister auras.
Especially the black-clothed elder at the very front. The elder had one high and one low eyebrow, very distinctive, and a rather thin build.
The gazes of Xu Zihuang and the other two met briefly before they tacitly resumed walking.
"All of them are evil soul masters." Ye Guyi's expression slightly darkened as she transmitted her voice with soul power to the other two: "The leading elder likely possesses the cultivation of a Titled Douluo level."
With her sacred angel martial soul, she had an extraordinary sensitivity to the cultivation and abilities of evil soul masters.
"A Titled Douluo-level evil soul master?" Zhang Lexuan's beautiful eyes were filled with gravity. Combining this with the evil soul masters, the Zhongli trio she had encountered before, and Elder Xuan's instructions to her, she believed Ye Guyi's judgment was most likely correct.
Meanwhile, Xu Zihuang vaguely guessed the identity of that elder.
Scorpion Tiger Douluo, Zhang Peng.
The other members of the Shrek representative team also noticed the unusual behavior of the three, but by the time they subconsciously followed their line of sight, the welcoming girls had already led them into the exclusive VIP room.
Here, they needed to fill out some forms. Detailed information for every main and substitute team member had to be recorded. Afterward, a soul tool imaging device would capture their appearance, which would then be directly printed onto the forms.
Finally, a physical examination was required. This was mainly to confirm that the participating students were indeed under twenty years old.
The staff worked efficiently, and the entire process took less than a quarter of an hour. With Shrek Academy's status as the previous champions, things were indeed much more convenient. They were also assigned the best suites on the top floor of Mingyue Grand Hotel.
After Zhang Lexuan assigned rooms to everyone, she immediately called Ye Guyi and Xu Zihuang to her room to discuss matters.
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