Inside one of the tournament organizing committee's lounges.
Tang San had been brought back by the tournament staff, who had arranged for a healing-type Spirit Master to treat his injuries.
Since Dugu Bo had already cleaned up the scene, the organizers dispatched a large investigation team. In the end, all the evidence pointed to the same conclusion: Shi Nian had attempted to murder Tang San and steal his belongings before being caught and killed by Dugu Bo.
Salas, the representative of Spirit Hall on the organizing committee, clicked his tongue.
"Poison Douluo, that's only your version of events. How can I be certain it's the truth?"
Salas had naturally hoped Tang San would die, so Dugu Bo's timely rescue left him somewhat displeased.
Dugu Bo snorted.
"What? Do I look like someone who lies?"
Xue Qinghe, representing the Heaven Dou Empire, quickly stepped in.
"I am naturally willing to trust Your Excellency Poison Douluo. Bishop Salas, what has happened has already happened. Rather than questioning someone who acted to save another, we should focus on treating the injured contestant and compensating the affected academy."
"Shi Nian's reputation was already infamous. If you're so eager to defend him, should we assume you were the one pulling the strings behind the scenes?"
Salas let out a cold snort.
"I have no interest in associating with someone of such poor character."
Since the start of the preliminary rounds, several contestants had already disappeared.
As a result, the Heaven Dou Empire was taking the matter very seriously. In addition to Xue Qinghe, both Prince Xue Xing and Xue Beng had been assigned to participate in the investigation.
Seeing that Tang San had survived, Prince Xue Xing was somewhat dissatisfied.
Fortunately, this had never been his real plan.
The true show was still to come.
Following Xue Xing's instructions, Xue Beng spoke up.
"Brother, I don't think that's the priority. What we should investigate first is whether Tang San's experience is connected to the previous contestant disappearances."
"If we can confirm that Shi Nian was truly responsible, we can finally give the other victimized teams an explanation."
Faced with Xue Beng's challenge, Xue Qinghe remained perfectly composed.
During the previous disappearances, Dugu Bo had secretly followed Shi Nian and therefore knew the locations where the incidents had occurred. He had simply chosen not to intervene at the time.
Since Wu Qi maintained close contact with Xue Qinghe, that information had already been delivered to him not long ago.
Throwing the report toward Xue Beng, Xue Qinghe snorted coldly.
"Unlike you, who only knows how to argue, I had already completed the investigation."
When Flender learned that Tang San had been rescued, he felt both relieved and uneasy.
He had known Shi Nian held a grudge against them, but he had never imagined the man would actually attempt murder.
He could only hope Tang San had not suffered any lasting effects.
Otherwise, he truly wouldn't know how to explain it to Tang Hao.
By the time he was escorted into the committee's lounge, Xue Qinghe and the others had already finished their discussion.
"My respects, Your Excellency Poison Douluo, Your Highness the Crown Prince, Your Highness Prince Xue Xing..."
Flender respectfully bowed.
After causing such a major incident, Canghui Academy was inevitably disqualified from the tournament.
However, no agreement had yet been reached regarding compensation for the affected teams.
Some believed all of Canghui Academy's assets should be liquidated, with part of the proceeds used to compensate the victims and the remainder invested in the tournament.
Flender did not dare interfere with the committee's decision.
As soon as Tang San regained consciousness, he immediately took him back to Shrek Academy.
At Shrek Academy.
After hearing what had happened to Tang San, all seven members of the Shrek Seven Devils were filled with righteous anger.
"Damn that Shi Nian! How could he do something so vicious to Xiao San?" Liu Erlong slammed her fist into the doorframe in fury.
After receiving treatment from the healing-type Spirit Master, Tang San's physical injuries had mostly recovered.
However, he still suffered from severe headaches and occasional bouts of mental disorientation.
"Xiao San, are you alright?" Grandmaster asked with concern.
"By the way, who saved you?"
"Dugu Bo," Flender answered.
Although there had been hostility between the two sides, Dugu Bo had undeniably saved them this time.
By all rights, they should personally visit him and express their gratitude.
Unexpectedly, Grandmaster merely sneered.
"Heh, what a disgusting man."
In his view, Dugu Bo had deliberately rescued Tang San despite their previous grudges just so Shrek would owe him a favor, forcing them to lower their heads.
"Flender, you've become more and more foolish. The scheme is so obvious, yet you still fell for it. And you're supposed to be Shrek Academy's headmaster?"
Flender could only smile bitterly.
Even if that were true, the favor was real.
Shouldn't a Spirit Master be able to distinguish gratitude from personal grudges?
Unfortunately, Grandmaster refused to listen and instead accused Flender of being manipulated.
Left with no other choice, Flender decided to visit Dugu Bo alone.
"Teacher, my Spirit Tool..."
As his headache gradually subsided, Tang San finally noticed the condition of his Spirit Tool and anxiously asked about it.
Grandmaster sighed.
"According to the tournament committee's investigation, Shi Nian searched through your Spirit Tool for valuables after attacking you and erased your spiritual imprint."
The investigators had also found traces of a fire at the scene. In the committee's view, Shi Nian had intended to destroy the evidence by burning the body.
As for the blueprints stored inside Tang San's Spirit Tool, they were believed to have been used as kindling and reduced to ashes.
Tang San quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Shi Nian was already dead. Even if he had seen the hidden weapon blueprints, the secret had died with him.
The only person Tang San was worried about was Poison Douluo. If Dugu Bo had also seen the blueprints and leaked them, it would become a serious problem.
However, he had no time to dwell on it now.
Tomorrow was Shrek's match against Canghui Academy.
After what had happened before the match, what they needed to consider now was what kind of compensation they should receive.
Early the next morning, the Heaven Dou Empire tournament committee for the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament issued an official announcement to the entire continent.
The notice clearly stated that Shi Nian had attacked an opposing contestant before the match in order to secure victory for his own team, and it also announced the punishment imposed on Canghui Academy.
Every match Canghui Academy had already played, as well as every remaining match on its schedule, was officially ruled as a loss.
Previously, the Royal Academy's Third Team had been forced to withdraw from the tournament, leaving them at the bottom of the standings.
Now that Canghui Academy had been handed automatic defeats, it effectively counted as a victory for the Royal Academy's Third Team, allowing them to escape last place.
Whether this ruling also reflected the Heaven Dou Imperial Family's own interests remained unknown.
The announcement made no specific mention of compensation.
However, every affected academy except Shrek Academy received some form of compensation.
Shrek Academy, on the other hand, received nothing.
Naturally, Grandmaster was unwilling to accept this outcome and went to the tournament committee demanding an explanation.
In the end, he was simply dismissed.
The reason was straightforward.
The healing-type Spirit Emperor who had treated Tang San had been invited from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, and the cost of employing such a powerful healer was far from cheap. The committee considered that expense to be Shrek Academy's compensation.
Moreover, Shrek Academy had never been particularly well-liked.
From the organizers' perspective, arranging for such a high-level healing Spirit Master to treat Tang San had already been more than generous.
Such a major incident during the Spirit Master Tournament had naturally become the center of attention across the continent.
After his battle with Dugu Bo, Tang Hao had spent a long period recovering before finally stabilizing his injuries.
By the time he arrived at Heaven Dou City, the Spirit Master Tournament had only just begun.
Since Bone Douluo was constantly stationed at the venue, Tang Hao knew that revealing himself would inevitably expose his presence.
Seeing that the tournament was proceeding without major issues, he chose to leave Heaven Dou City and travel elsewhere to gather information.
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