Among women, when two rivals face off, the one who wins the man's heart is always more confident.
Especially the one who is of lower status but still won him, that sense of superiority is palpable.
Bibi Dong and Liu Erlong exchanged glances, but Bibi Dong backed down.
There was no way around it; Liu Erlong was now lying in the master's arms.
A hint of defeat flashed in Bibi Dong's eyes, she sighed softly, and then changed her expression. She
continued, "This morning, there will be an individual elimination tournament with seven players from each of your three teams.
The winning team will have an advantage. Tomorrow, they will directly enter the championship battle. The two losing teams will compete for the other final spot in the afternoon. Now, you can send out your first player."
The fifth round of the finals is divided into two parts. First, the three teams will simultaneously compete in the individual elimination tournament, with the winner advancing directly to the final.
The two losing teams will compete in a team tournament, and the winner will then face the individual tournament winner in a team battle for the championship.
At the top three level, the difference in strength between the participants is not that significant. Playing consecutive matches in a single day will undoubtedly lead to substantial exhaustion and even injuries. With the final match tomorrow, it's almost impossible to recover to peak condition. Therefore, the team that wins the individual matches below is very likely to be the final champion.
Shrek Academy's individual lineup consists of Ma Hongjun, Xiang Chengxian, Dai Mubai, Tang San, Zhu Zhuqing, Tailong, and Jing Ling.
Two Soul Kings, three Soul Masters, and two Soul Venerables.
From the lineup alone, Shrek Academy has a lower advantage in the individual matches, as their three Soul Master-level support characters cannot participate.
However, those who know Ma Hongjun's strength understand that in the individual elimination rounds, as long as Ma Hongjun holds the line, there will be no problem.
Given Ma Hongjun's current level 54 strength, the only concern is the opponent's Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
Otherwise, whether it's a battle of Martial Souls, Soul Rings, or Soul Bones, Ma Hongjun is fearless.
Each of the three sides sends one member.
The first member goes on stage to draw lots.
The draw was conducted by three people to determine which two academies would compete in the first match, with the winners continuing in that order.
Shrek Academy sent out their weakest member, Jing Ling, with her Skeleton Spirit.
Unexpectedly, Jing Ling had exceptionally good luck, drawing a bye right away.
It seemed even the Skeleton Spirit was favored by luck.
This gave Shrek an advantage in the individual match order.
A bye in the first round meant Shrek's team could play later, allowing them to conserve energy and better assess the strength of their opponents. This was undoubtedly a favorable draw.
However, in the first match, when the first member of the Spirit Hall team faced off against Huo Wushuang, the first member of the Divine Wind Academy
team, the Spirit Hall member suddenly turned around, bowed towards the Pope, and said,
"I forfeit this match."
This caused an uproar, subtly revealing a conspiracy.
This was the first time a forfeit had occurred in the fifth round of the finals.
Generally, even knowing they can't win, they'll still try to wear down the opponent, creating an advantage for their next teammate.
But now, it seems the actions of Shenfeng Academy and the Spirit Hall are specifically targeting Shrek Academy.
"This... how could Bibi Dong be so despicable!"
Grandmaster was helpless. Tactics are tactics, but conspiracy is something he couldn't have predicted.
No wonder the Spirit Hall still chose to bring out three spirit bones.
But, didn't they consider recruiting Shrek Academy in the first place?
The best option in this situation would be for Shrek Academy to forfeit the individual competition and participate in the loser's bracket team battle. This way, they wouldn't have to constantly expend spirit power and could avoid unforeseen circumstances in the individual competition.
However, thinking of Ma Hongjun's fifth spirit skill, Grandmaster felt relieved.
To a certain extent, Grandmaster felt that Ma Hongjun's strength had already surpassed the level of the youth spirit master competition.
In a one-on-one fight at the same level, no one would be Ma Hongjun's match; at least in Grandmaster's research, he couldn't find anyone like him in the Douluo Continent.
Jing Ling faced off against Huo Wushuang, a Soul Master level cultivator. The outcome was predictable: Jing Ling couldn't withstand ten rounds of Huo Wushuang's fire dragon attacks.
Then, the Spirit Hall sent their second representative.
The Spirit Hall again sent a Soul Master, who also conceded defeat.
Next, Shrek Academy sent out Tai Long.
The same result occurred; Tai Long lasted a few more rounds before being defeated.
The Spirit Hall's strongest members were undoubtedly the three from the Golden Generation,
while Shenfeng Academy's strongest were Feng Xiaotian, Huo Wu, and Huo Wushuang. Shrek
Academy's top strength consisted of Ma Hongjun, Xiang Chengxian, Tang San, and Dai Mubai.
At this rate, Shrek Academy's situation wasn't too dire.
Next, the Spirit Hall sent out another member, while Shrek Academy sent Zhu Zhuqing.
Again, Huo Wushuang emerged victorious.
One against six.
The Spirit Hall sent out their fourth member.
However, this time, it wasn't the weak Spirit Master who forfeited.
The Spirit Hall sent out Yan, one of the three Soul Kings.
After Yan entered the arena, Huo Wushuang automatically conceded defeat.
Now it was Shrek Academy's turn to send someone.
Each team could only field seven members.
If they continued to send out weaker members as before, the situation would actually favor Shrek Academy.
Yan's spirit was the Flame Lord, whose fire attribute was stronger than Huo Wushuang's Fire Dragon.
After consideration, Shrek Academy sent out Tang San.
The Flame Lord was a power-attack type spirit, which Tang San, with his control-type spirit, could easily counter. Most importantly, Tang San possessed fire immunity.
During the qualifying rounds, Tang San used this ability to defeat seven members of Blazing Academy.
Although the Flame Lord might also be immune to Tang San's poison, Tang San had a much greater advantage over the Twin Tigers in dealing with the Flame Lord.
Actually, it would be easier for Ma Hongjun to deal with Yan, but for the sake of final victory, it was safer for Ma Hongjun to go last.
Let Tang San and his team deplete the numbers and soul power of both teams, reducing the pressure on Ma Hongjun in the end.
Ma Hongjun reminded Tang San that even if they lost, he shouldn't reveal the existence of the Clear Sky Hammer.
He didn't know if Tang San's father was there, but there was no need for Tang San to reveal the Clear Sky Hammer now. However ,
even without the Clear Sky Hammer, Tang San still had the external soul bone, the Eight Spider Lances.
Yan had a strength of level 52, and Tang San couldn't match his soul power.
Upon entering the arena, Yan immediately used his soul skill, displaying his powerful strength; even the Blue Silver Grass couldn't control his Flame Lord.
It seemed that after the qualifying rounds, the people from Blazing Fire Academy had found a way to counter Tang San's fire attribute immunity and had told Yan about it.
Yan gathered his flames, like Ma Hongjun's second soul skill, Explosion, unleashing a Fire Explosion technique that completely dismantled the Blue Silver Grass's offensive.
However, Tang San's abilities were never limited to the Blue Silver Grass.
Tang San, without using his spirit, was stronger than when using the Blue Silver Grass.
After all, the Blue Silver Grass only provided control.
Knowing many Tang Sect techniques, Tang San relied on them,
such as Crane Control Dragon Capture, Ghost Shadow Perplexing Steps, and Xuan Jade Hand, to unleash his attack methods. Adding
to this was his external spirit bone, the Eight Spider Lances.
The Eight Spider Lances had been strengthened twice, once by the six-thousand-year-old Human-Faced Demon Spider and once by the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, making it stronger than those of ten-thousand-year-old spirits.
Under the onslaught of the Eight Spider Lances, Yan was defeated.
Tang San achieved a victory against a higher-ranking opponent.
However, this battle also greatly depleted Tang San's spirit power.
Next, the Divine Wind Academy sent another fire-attribute student to wear Tang San
down. Tang San won another victory. Then it
was the Spirit Hall's turn to send someone.
With only three members left, the Spirit Hall surprisingly sent their captain, Xie Yue.
Tang San's spirit power was completely exhausted.
Fighting Xie Yue at this point was definitely not an option
, as Tang San couldn't use hidden weapons, nor could he use his second spirit.
With only Blue Silver Grass and a soul power of level 44, Tang San couldn't defeat Xie Yue.
Therefore, Tang San conceded defeat.
Xiang Chengxian took his place .
Xie Yue and Xiang Chengxian were both Soul Kings, but Xie Yue's soul power was one level higher, at level 52.
Xiang Chengxian wasn't Tang San, so fighting someone of a higher level was difficult for her.
Xie Yue was also the captain of the Spirit Hall, so his strength was undeniable.
After a while, Xiang Chengxian was defeated by Xie Yue.
Shenfeng Academy sent another Soul Master as a substitute.
Dai Mubai entered the arena.
He was still no match for Xie Yue.
Shenfeng Academy sent another substitute.
At this point, Shenfeng Academy had three members left, and the Spirit Hall
, including Xie Yue, also had three members left. Shrek Academy only had Ma Hongjun left.
To win, Ma Hongjun needed to defeat all six remaining members.
One against six—difficult!
Ma Hongjun entered the arena, and Xie Yue was already grinning maliciously at him.
"I'll make you roll off the stage!"
A smirk played on Ma Hongjun's lips as he raised his left hand, summoning the Dragon Soul Spear.
"Come on, my spear is itching for a fight!"
(End of this chapter)