In the brief exchange between the two captains, the referee’s loud and authoritative voice once again echoed clearly:
"Both sides, step back. Prepare for battle."
The calm smile on Zhou Sichen’s face instantly faded. His expression sharpened, becoming cold and focused.
He shifted slightly to the side, raising a hand to signal his teammates behind him. In perfect unison, the Shrek squad retreated step by step.
This battle carried extraordinary weight. It was the first time Shrek Academy’s main team would publicly take the stage. They had to open with overwhelming force, shaking the entire arena and leaving the audience awestruck.
As both sides steadily pulled back, their formations quietly unfolded.
On Shrek’s side, Zhou Sichen stood at the forefront, shoulder to shoulder with Dai Yueheng, like a pair of razor-sharp blades. Their very presence exuded crushing pressure.
Ye Guyi and Ma Xiaotao flanked the wings like two radiant, burning arcs.
Du Gu Xianmeng and Ling Luochen remained calm at the center, their steady auras like an unshakable fortress.
At the rear stood Gongyang Mo alone, free from worries of frontal assault, ready to fully devote himself to support.
Across from them, however, Dou Ling Academy’s formation left the crowd stunned.
Their captain, the assault-type Battle Spirit Master Gu Zhu Jian, had not taken the vanguard position as common tactics dictated. Instead, he had pulled back into the center.
At the very front stood Qian Yuan, the Soul King with the Terrorclaw Bear Spirit, and Chi Hengyu, the defense-type Soul King with the Vajra Giant Shield Spirit.
Qian Yuan’s hulking figure was like a living mountain, radiating wild pressure. Beside him, Chi Hengyu stood like an immovable boulder.
Behind them, the agility-type Soul King Han Ling’er crouched low like a leopard in the shadows, concealed just behind Qian Yuan and Chi Hengyu, poised to pounce at the right moment.
Even stranger were the two control-type Soul Masters, the Soul King Xiao Feng and the Soul Ancestor Qing Feng. Instead of occupying their usual middle line, they had shifted to the wings, carefully guarding the core position where Gu Zhu Jian stood, as well as their rear support, the Soul Ancestor Tang Niuniu.
This lineup completely broke conventional tactical wisdom. To describe it in one word: bizarre.
Their strongest assault-type fighter was standing where a controller would normally be. What trick were they planning to pull?
The strange formation sparked a wave of whispers among the spectators. Other academies’ representatives exchanged looks filled with curiosity and suspicion.
But to Zhou Sichen and his companions, it made little difference. No matter how strange the enemy’s tactics or how many unorthodox strategies they employed, the result would not change.
After all, if their lineup couldn’t win this match, then Shrek might as well withdraw from the tournament altogether.
The referee’s eyes swept sharply across both sides. Once he confirmed that both formations were ready, he raised his hands in a solemn gesture to each captain. Then, taking a deep breath, he bellowed:
The instant his voice fell, both teams erupted in unison, releasing their Martial Spirits.
In a heartbeat, dazzling halos of soul rings rose like constellations in the night sky, bathing the arena in a blaze of color.
But at that very moment, every gaze in the plaza was pulled irresistibly toward Shrek’s formation.
The reason was simple—
On Shrek’s side, not a single main team member had fewer than five soul rings!
Even more shocking—among them stood three six-ring Soul Emperors!
This revelation struck the audience like a boulder crashing into a still lake, sending shockwaves through the entire Star Luo Plaza.
Cries of disbelief erupted, echoing again and again as countless jaws dropped in shock.
The other competing academies were left gaping in awe. Even the proud students of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, who had always been confident in their superiority, revealed stunned expressions.
On Ye Guyi, Ma Xiaotao, and Dai Yueheng’s bodies, six rings—two yellow, two purple, and two black—rose in sequence, their brilliance terrifying. The overwhelming aura of Soul Emperors surged outward like tidal waves, crashing across the arena.
The sheer force of it left every member of Dou Ling Academy wide-eyed, their faces painted with shock and fear.
Unlike the Sun Moon Academy, they had not gone to such lengths to gather detailed intelligence. Witnessing such overwhelming power firsthand, how could they not be shaken to their core?
Since the beginning of this tournament, this was the first time Soul Emperors had appeared on the stage—and not just one, but three at once!
And aside from those three, the remaining four were all Soul Kings.
Their captain, Zhou Sichen, bore a ring configuration of two yellow, one purple, and two black—a lineup so rare it drew gasps from the crowd.
Just by releasing their Martial Spirits, Shrek’s main team had already conquered the hearts of the audience, sending Star Luo Plaza into an uproar.
In stark contrast, Dou Ling Academy’s lineup of five Soul Kings and two high-ranked Soul Ancestors suddenly seemed like mere fireflies against a radiant moon. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵~𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖~𝙣𝙚𝙩
Even the Sun Moon Empire’s representatives, usually so composed, could not hide their shock.
They had originally received intelligence reports stating that both Ye Guyi and Ma Xiaotao were at the Soul Sage level.
Yet what now unfolded before their eyes... was clearly the power of six-ring Soul Emperors.
This massive discrepancy filled their hearts with doubt.
Could the painstakingly gathered intelligence have been false?
But if it were false, would the Star Luo Royal Family truly have allowed such a blunder in a tournament of this importance?
What no one noticed, however, were the faintly glowing metal rings clasped tightly around Ye Guyi and Ma Xiaotao’s thighs—one on the left, one on the right.
These seemingly ordinary items were in fact Seventh-Rank Concealment Rings.
With their effect, even if a Titled Douluo personally used advanced detection abilities, they would still only sense Soul Emperor-level cultivation.
As long as Ye Guyi and Ma Xiaotao refrained from releasing their seventh soul rings or revealing their Martial Soul True Body, the Concealment Rings’ camouflage would remain flawless.
The moment their Martial Spirits were released, Ye Guyi’s Four-Winged Angel spirit radiated divine majesty beyond compare.
In an instant, holy light flooded the arena. Waves of sacred angelic power, imbued with attributes of purification and radiance, rippled outward like flowing water.
Behind her, two pairs of white wings slowly beat, stirring the air with faint whooshes as her body gracefully lifted into the air. Sacred brilliance emanated from her, like a god descending upon the mortal realm.
On the other side, Ma Xiaotao’s Fire Phoenix erupted with terrifying might.
Flames roared like molten lava, surging around her in a blazing vortex. The searing heat made the surrounding temperature skyrocket.
Her fiery wings expanded, every feather burning with dazzling brilliance. She ascended proudly, eyes sharp with disdain, gazing down on her opponents with the arrogance of a sovereign.
At the same time, Dai Yueheng’s White Tiger spirit exploded forth with a deafening roar. His body swelled, muscles bulging as every strand of fur bristled like steel needles, glowing with silver light. An aura of dominance radiated from him, fierce and unyielding.
When Zhou Sichen’s Radiant Holy Dragon appeared, it was accompanied by an awe-inspiring dragon’s roar.
The sound rippled outward like invisible shockwaves, striking directly into the souls of every beast-spirit master present. Hearts trembled uncontrollably, as if their very spirits had been shaken.
The massive dragon’s body gleamed with golden luster, its scales shining like tempered metal. It stood like a fortress of living light.
Du Gu Xianmeng’s Emerald Scaled Serpent hissed softly, flicking its forked tongue as dark green toxins seeped from its form.
The poisonous mist corroded the very air, exuding a pungent stench that seemed capable of consuming all life.
Beside her, Ling Luochen summoned the chilling power of ice. Holding her elemental staff, she stood tall and elegant, releasing waves of freezing aura.
Cold winds swept outward, merging eerily with Du Gu Xianmeng’s venomous miasma to form a dangerous and sinister fusion.
At the rear, Gongyang Mo’s Rainbow Dragon unfurled its wings, displaying the most radiant beauty among draconic spirits.
Its prismatic scales shimmered under the sunlight like a living rainbow. Its form was graceful and mesmerizing, rivaled only by Wang Dong’s Goddess of Light Butterfly.
Every member of Shrek Academy, with their dazzling rings and radiant spirits, shone with overwhelming might.
Across from them, Dou Ling Academy’s seven members also released their Martial Spirits.
Aside from Chi Hengyu, whose soul ring sequence was two yellow and three purple, the rest displayed the optimal ring configurations.
But unlike Shrek’s calm composure, Dou Ling’s fighters fidgeted nervously like ants on a hot pan.
No sooner had they released their spirits than they rushed to unleash their soul skills, almost in panic.
This sight alone made the audience realize just how overwhelming Shrek Academy’s main team’s aura truly was.
If not for the crushing pressure Shrek exuded—like a mountain weighing down on their shoulders—would Dou Ling’s elites really be in such a hurry to waste their soul skills at this range?
After all, the stage was vast, with a distance of nearly a hundred meters between both sides.
Soul skills capable of spanning such a range were rare among Soul Masters of this level.
And even then, the wider the area of effect, the weaker the attack’s destructive force usually became.
Not to mention—Xu Sanshi, the one who could wield the miraculous Mysterious Heaven Displacement, wasn’t even present in this battle.
That Dou Ling Academy would so hastily throw out their techniques only proved one thing—
Shrek Academy’s main squad had already rattled them to their core, disrupting their composure and forcing them into reckless tactics.
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