The first spirit ring to appear on Yun Yibai's body was yellow.
The audience dared not miss a single detail. For those who had come from the Heaven Dou Empire, this was the moment they had long been waiting for.
Following the first yellow spirit ring came a second yellow one, then a third purple ring…
And then came the fourth and fifth spirit rings—both black.
Two yellow, one purple, and two black!
A Soul King!!
The arena fell completely silent. Five spirit rings—he was undoubtedly a Soul King. The crowd's attention immediately locked onto Yun Yibai's spirit rings, all wanting to confirm with their own eyes whether he truly possessed five rings. This was the moment they had been anticipating—finding out whether Yun Yibai was truly at the level of a Soul King.
"Wait!!"
"What did I just see?!"
"His fourth spirit ring… It's black—a ten-thousand-year spirit ring!!!"
"What?!" Those who were slower to react now focused their eyes on Yun Yibai's fourth spirit ring in shock.
"How is that possible?! Isn't it only Soul Kings who can absorb ten-thousand-year rings?"
Most Spirit Masters, bound by conventional thinking, believed ten-thousand-year spirit rings could only be absorbed after reaching the Soul King level.
But now the truth was right in front of them. No matter how much they wanted to deny it, they had no choice but to accept it.
Yun Yibai had just shattered the continent's long-standing understanding of spirit ring absorption.
He broke the deeply rooted norms.
"This guy…!"
Yu Tianxin was speechless. The shock Yun Yibai brought him was indescribable.
Not only was Yun Yibai younger than him and already at a higher level, but his fourth spirit ring was also a staggering ten-thousand-year ring.
After her initial shock, Shui Bing'er from Tianshui Academy calmed down.
"No wonder he never revealed his spirit rings before… so this was why."
"All this time, we thought we had already figured out Yun Yibai's greatest trump card. Turns out, it was these two ten-thousand-year spirit rings!"
Over at Blazing Fire Academy…
"I knew it! There's no way Feng Xiaotian would leave Godwind Academy for no reason and join Wuji Academy instead. It's all because this Yun Yibai is a total monster!"
"Sigh! What's even the point of us competing anymore? If you ask me, just let Wuji Academy and the Spirit Hall go straight to the finals and fight for the championship. Let us battle it out for third place."
Huo Wushuang couldn't help but sound a bit sour at this point.
"Spirit Hall has three Soul Kings and four Soul Ancestors."
"Wuji Academy has two Soul Kings and four Soul Ancestors. Feng Xiaotian could also be considered a Soul King. They're practically evenly matched!"
"You don't have to sell yourselves short," their teacher from Blazing Fire Academy added, clearly someone who had weathered many storms. Among your generation, you're already extremely outstanding. On this continent, every few decades, there are always one or two freakishly talented individuals. You don't need to feel discouraged by them."
Indeed, their teacher was from the same era as Tang Hao.
Now, Tang Hao stood high above them all as a Titled Douluo, while he remained a Level 67 Soul Emperor.
Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy…
"Xiao Gang…"
"Sigh… we'll just have to wait for the next Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament. Right now, Little San and the others are still too young. Even with their fortuitous encounters, they're no match for Wuji Academy and Spirit Hall."
Flender had never felt so defeated before.
Before, when they were only up against Spirit Hall, Shrek Academy could at least hype themselves up. But now with Wuji Academy in the mix, their hopes for the championship were utterly dashed.
That is… unless Spirit Hall and Wuji Academy fought each other to the point of mutual destruction. Then Shrek Academy might stand a chance.
Yu Xiaogang remained silent.
To be honest, the appearance of Yun Yibai and Wuji Academy had caught everyone off guard. But then again, Shrek Academy's current strength was also something no one expected.
Even Yu Xiaogang didn't know where Tang San had gotten all those resources that helped the students improve so much.
At present, Shrek's seven-member team consists of:
Evil-Eyed White Tiger Dai Mubai, level 42
Tang San, level 41
Xiao Wu, level 41
Zhu Zhuqing, level 41
Ma Hongjun, level 39
Ning Rongrong, level 39
Huang Wenhua, level 39
Flender continued, "In another five years, these little monsters may well reach Soul King level themselves. By then, we'll be able to stand tall like Spirit Hall and Wuji Academy, lording over the younger generation."
"I heard from Tailong that Yun Yibai, Dugu Yan, and Oscar from Wuji Academy were all formerly students of Blue Tyrant Academy."
"What a shame…"
Flender still held onto the wistful fantasy that if only Yun Yibai and the others hadn't transferred...
"No! We're competing!"
Before Yu Xiaogang could respond, Tang San had already made his decision.
"Even though my level isn't as high as theirs, I still have my second Martial Soul. I also have my external spirit bone, and Mubai and Zhuqing have their Martial Soul Fusion Technique. If we control things well, we still stand a chance."
"…"
Tang San laid out their advantages calmly and confidently.
Yu Xiaogang, standing nearby, wore a complicated expression.
Originally, he wanted to use this tournament to prove to the world that he, Yu Xiaogang, was not a useless man—that he had achievements to be proud of through his students.
But now, Tang San's spotlight was completely overshadowed by Yun Yibai.
By all accounts, Yu Xiaogang should resent Yun Yibai for that. But he couldn't bring himself to. Because Yun Yibai belonged to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the same clan that Yu Xiaogang himself came from.
Even if he could tell Yun Yibai had aspirations beyond the clan, he could never escape his identity as a member of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Even though the clan saw Yu Xiaogang as a disgrace, he still cared deeply about it.
It was a complicated, indescribable feeling.
Call it twisted if you want, but that was the truth.
Yu Xiaogang didn't want to disappoint Tang San. He had already made up his mind:
If there truly was no hope, he would abandon his ambitions and have Shrek Academy merge with another top academy to form a team that could truly compete with Spirit Hall and Wuji Academy.
On the Tournament Stage...
After Yun Yibai revealed his true strength, the web of thunder and lightning he unleashed defeated Ou Hao in just one or two minutes.
"Your fighting spirit is commendable—but your strength is still lacking," Yun Yibai said flatly.
His voice was calm, but carried an undeniable sense of authority.
"You…"
Ou Hao looked up at Yun Yibai towering above him in fury, but faced with such overwhelming power, he couldn't utter a single threat.
After Ou Hao, the remaining members of Rock Academy fell one after another—
One Soul Ancestor and three Soul Elders—all defeated by Yun Yibai alone.
Only the captain, Leikeli, remained.