...
It was as if to confirm Na'er's words.
As soon as Na'er finished speaking, the peerless ferocious god on the high platform, who had just released a terrifying pressure that made tens of thousands of people in the audience break out in a cold sweat, suddenly withdrew all the fluctuations of soul power on his body.
The seven dazzling spirit rings also vanished instantly.
Then, amidst everyone's astonished and uncertain gazes...
Xuan Hao slowly took out a neatly folded piece of paper from his pocket.
He unfolded the letter, cleared his throat, and the arrogance and coldness on his face vanished instantly, replaced by a kind of...
The chilling "amiable" demeanor.
"Ahem. Well, that was just a little joke I made during my pre-match warm-up.
Don't be too nervous, everyone. Now let's get down to business."
Xuan Hao, holding the amplifying soul tool, looked down at the speech manuscript in his hand and began to read it aloud in a clear, resonant voice, full of emotion:
"Your Majesty, Emperor Xueye, esteemed seniors of the Soul Master world, and dear young Soul Master friends: Good morning!"
"Today, we gather here to welcome this continent-wide elite competition of advanced soul master academies, which symbolizes friendship, unity and progress!"
"As the younger generation of the Heavenly Dou Empire, we should uphold the noble spirit of 'friendship first, competition second,' and compete with style and skill!
We should help each other, love each other, and work together to build a bright future for the empire..."
In the waiting area, Xue Qinghe, who was still angry, froze instantly.
Inside the vast Heaven Dou Grand Soul Arena, tens of thousands of spectators and participating Soul Masters fell into an eerie silence.
Everyone stared wide-eyed, utterly bewildered, at the man on stage who was reciting "Friendship and Peace" with great emotion and passion.
Almost everyone in the audience was silently screaming the same thing:
Dude, could you be any more fake?!
Just a second ago you were releasing a 100,000-year soul ring, threatening to teach everyone here a lesson, and intimidating every young person on the entire continent!
The next second you're here with cheat sheets, all smiles and talking to us about "friendship first" and "loving each other"?!
Who's the kindest person who holds a knife to someone's neck one minute and then pulls them into singing "We Are a Loving Family" the next?!
Xuan Hao's deeply moving speech lasted for nearly ten minutes.
In those ten minutes, he was fully engaged in the performance, his voice rising and falling with emotion, perfectly portraying the image of a bright young man who had the ambition to build an empire, was positive and friendly to his compatriots.
If it weren't for the suffocating pressure of the 100,000-year-old soul ring at the beginning still fresh in everyone's minds, the tens of thousands of people present would probably have been completely fooled by his compassionate, passionate, and sunny appearance!
But it was precisely because they had just experienced that kind of near-death panic that, at this moment, as they looked at the handsome young man on the stage speaking eloquently, a chilling feeling welled up from the depths of their hearts!
It wasn't until this moment that everyone suddenly realized just how terrifying this guy was!
This is not a mindless violent maniac who only knows how to rely on his fists and brute force to solve problems!
He not only possesses the absolute strength to physically beat you into an idiot, but also the terrifying acting skills and cunning to fool you into becoming an idiot!
Just like his arrogant declaration at the beginning—"Reputation can be faked, and benevolence can be disguised."
He is now practically demonstrating this point to the top elites across the entire continent in a ten-minute-long extreme reversal performance!
If we disregard the death threats he made when he first took the stage, no one could find a single flaw in his impeccable speech.
But the problem is...
This is impossible to get rid of!!!
Those seven deadly spirit rings were like branded marks etched into everyone's minds!
Finally, this ten-minute-long, magical ordeal came to an end.
Xuan Hao put away his speech and, just like a model student in academia, bowed deeply to the audience at a standard 30-degree angle.
Thank you for listening.
Xuan Hao straightened up, holding the megaphone, and his gaze slowly swept over the thirty elite teams that were ready for battle in the competition area below, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally.
His lips curled slightly upward, revealing a bright, warm smile as gentle as a spring breeze.
"I look forward to having a wonderful encounter with everyone here in the upcoming qualifiers."
Looking at that radiant smile, the contestants from all thirty participating teams shivered collectively, feeling a chill run down their spines.
This is hardly a pleasant encounter; it's clearly the King of Hell smilingly flipping through the Book of Life and Death!
After uttering this terrifying concluding remark, Xuan Hao calmly turned around and handed the amplifying soul tool in his hand to Emperor Xue Ye behind him.
Afterwards, he politely bowed slightly to Xue Ye, Ning Fengzhi, and Salas before slowly walking down from the platform.
Emperor Xueye clutched the amplifying soul tool, still warm from Xuan Hao's body, and felt a burning sensation in his palm.
The thing was like a hot potato, making him extremely uneasy.
All eyes in the tens of thousands of people in the audience were on him, and the atmosphere was eerily quiet.
Emperor Xueye forced himself to steady his mind, took a deep breath, and once again summoned his imperial majesty, declaring in a deep voice with all his might:
"The Continental Elite Tournament of Advanced Soul Master Academies, Heaven Dou Region Preliminary Round—"
"Let's begin!"
...
As Emperor Xueye delivered his powerful declaration, tinged with a hint of despair, the long-silent Great Soul Arena finally erupted in a wave of relieved cheers and applause.
Although the applause sounded somewhat jolted, it at least managed to push the opening ceremony off the hook.
Meanwhile, Xuan Hao, the instigator, had already swaggered back to his exclusive VIP viewing area.
The moment he stepped into the private room, the "amiable" look on his face vanished instantly, replaced by an expression that begged for praise.
He plopped down on the soft leather sofa, picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, then turned to look at Xue Qinghe, whose face was full of black lines, and raised an eyebrow, asking:
"How was it, Your Highness? How did I perform just now?"
Xuan Hao solemnly adjusted the collar of his light gold tuxedo.
"Isn't it full of emotion? Isn't it rhythmic and expressive?
This earnest and heartfelt delivery is practically flawless, isn't it?"
"Perfect my ass!!!"
Qian Renxue, disguised as Xue Qinghe, finally couldn't hold back any longer.
She lowered her voice and gritted her teeth as she cursed, "You really are... a man of your word! You bastard!"
Upon hearing this, Xuan Hao spread his hands, revealing an innocent expression:
"You can't blame me for this. I've done everything I promised you, okay?
I didn't miss a single punctuation mark on this manuscript. I did exactly what you asked me to do. What else are you dissatisfied with?"
"you--!"
Xue Qinghe was so angry at his sophistry that her chest heaved, and she felt like crying.
She's kicking herself now!
What was she thinking, to be so naive as to believe this lawless bastard?!
If she had known this guy would pull off such a shady tactic of "first extreme intimidation, then heartfelt recitation," she would never have given him that speech!
In fact, she shouldn't have arranged for that bastard to give a speech at the opening ceremony in the first place!
Now look what's happened! He single-handedly turned the entire Tiandou competition area into a horror movie!
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