As the match concluded, the next events were the award ceremony and the final closing speech.
In the center of the massive arena, atop the slowly rising podium, the seven members of the Spirit Pagoda Team stood shoulder to shoulder.
Xu Tianran, the Regent of the Sun Moon Empire, personally presented trophies and medals to the champion, runner-up, and second runner-up. A benign smile hung on his face, and when shaking hands with each winning contestant, he carried a just-right gentleness, showing no trace of the gloomy expression from earlier that had been almost dark enough to drip water.
Finally, when Jing Hongchen announced that the All-Continent Youth Soul Master Tournament had officially ended, this grand event, which had lasted for several weeks and captured the attention of the entire continent, finally came to an official close.
As the spectators left, the faces of the vast majority bore expressions of lingering eagerness.
It was simply because there were too many "accidents" in this tournament: Evil Soul Masters participating, Shrek Academy losing the Ten Thousand Years championship, and the newly established Spirit Pagoda seizing the championship in one fell swoop...
These topics were destined to become talking points for them to chew over repeatedly after meals for a long time to come.
In the carriage returning to the imperial palace, the benign smile on Xu Tianran's face finally faded completely.
He leaned against the seat back, closed his eyes, and remained silent for a good while, the atmosphere inside the carriage appearing somewhat gloomy and oppressive.
Juizi sat opposite him. Looking at his unprecedentedly solemn expression, she softly spoke up and called out: "Your Highness?"
Xu Tianran slowly opened his eyes, his pupils carrying a fatigue and depression that were rarely revealed to outsiders.
He still trusted Juizi quite a bit; this princess consort had been by his side for many years, and many emotions that he was unwilling to express to outsiders did not need to be deliberately concealed in front of her.
He spoke with a slightly hoarse voice: "The Spirit Pagoda has truly given me a surprise."
He paused, turned his head to look at Juizi, and asked: "A Spirit Tool capable of raising Spirit Power by twenty ranks, Juizi, do you know what this means?"
Juizi's expression was respectful. She understood the weight in Xu Tianran's words; the appearance of battle armor meant that what the Spirit Pagoda held in its hands was no longer just the resource of Spirit Souls, but also a technology capable of changing the form of warfare.
Then she slowly spoke: "This means that if the Spirit Pagoda provides this technology to the original Douluo Three Kingdoms, their strength will experience a qualitative leap."
When mentioning the four characters "qualitative leap", Juizi's tone involuntarily carried a bit of solemnity.
Her goal was to annihilate the Star Luo Empire, and the appearance of battle armor also gave rise to an unprecedented sense of urgency in her heart.
If that set of armor was equipped in batches among Star Luo's army, everything she planned would become even more difficult.
Xu Tianran slowly clenched his fists. His voice was a few fractions lower than before, yet it carried an even heavier oppression: "That's right, this is a change we did not anticipate beforehand."
"Huo Yuhao is a Star Luo person, and the first Spirit Pagoda was also built under the sponsorship of the Star Luo Imperial Family."
"His relationship with the Star Luo Empire is far closer than it appears on the surface."
He paused, his tone as resolute as if he had already seen the arrival of that day: "As long as we attack Star Luo, the Spirit Pagoda will definitely step in to help."
Then he let out a cold snort, a layer of chill entering his voice: "The plan allows for no mistakes; contact the Holy Spirit Cult and have them ready to make a move!"
Hearing this, Juizi's gaze narrowed slightly.
She naturally understood what this sentence meant, and respectfully replied: "Yes."
In her mind, Huo Yuhao's face involuntarily surfaced. That young and steady young Pagoda Master was the most Genius Spirit Master she had ever seen.
But she quickly banished that visage from her mind, her gaze returning to calmness.
For the sake of revenge, she could no longer care about others.
Night fell, and Ming City, the most prosperous city on the continent, lit up with thousands of lights in the night.
The Spirit Tool street lamps on both sides of the street were neatly arranged, illuminating the wide road brightly.
The tall buildings in the distance were decorated with flowing bands of light, outlining a well-proportioned skyline in the night.
The citizens' nightlife had only just begun; laughter drifted from the taverns, street vendors were still busy, and the air was filled with the aroma of food and the lazy hustle and bustle unique to the night.
The Sun Moon Spirit Pagoda was also exceptionally lively tonight. They had just won the championship of the All-Continent Youth Soul Master Tournament, and this Branch Pagoda was immersed in joy from top to bottom.
Not only those who had rushed over from Star Luo to participate, but even the local personnel of the Sun Moon Branch Pagoda were extremely excited.
After all, they were also people of the Spirit Pagoda, and this glory belonged to them as well.
The restaurant on the fourth floor had been meticulously decorated; red and golden decorative ribbons hung from the ceiling, and brand-new tablecloths covered the tables.
Right at the very front and center of the restaurant, the trophy symbolizing the championship was neatly placed on a tabletop covered with flannel, casting a soft golden light under the illumination of warm-toned lights.
Everyone sat around several large round tables, eating and chatting, with people standing up from time to time to raise their glasses, creating a warm and joyful atmosphere.
Yet at this moment of clinking cups and smiling chatter...
"Boom!"
A deafening roar penetrated the walls and windows without warning, like a muffled heavy hammer striking everyone's eardrums.
That sound came too suddenly, carrying an impact force that shook the ground; even the cups and plates on the table seemed to be trembling slightly.
The people inside the restaurant who were holding wine glasses and chatting froze instantly, standing rigid as if someone had pressed a pause button.
Before they could react...
"Boom, boom, boom!"
Several more consecutive explosions came, denser and more violent than the first, causing the window glass to emit a faint buzzing sound.
Moments later, almost everyone made the same movement, turning their heads in unison to look out the window.
Through the restaurant's huge floor-to-ceiling windows, one could see the night sky of Ming City in the distance dyed dark red by a sheet of soaring flames.
The flames soared extremely high, particularly dazzling in the night, with thick smoke rolling and rising amidst the firelight.
The scale of that explosion was clearly immense, far from what ordinary accidental incidents could cause.
After a brief dead silence, a local Spirit Pagoda employee in the restaurant was the first to snap back to their senses.
He stared wide-eyed at the sheet of fire, his complexion instantly turning pale, and his voice trembled slightly due to shock: "That is... the direction of the imperial palace?!"
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's hearts were deeply shaken.
That place symbolizing the power center of the Sun Moon Empire had actually experienced such a violent explosion.
Could something major have happened to the imperial palace?
Everyone looked at each other in dismay. At this moment, the originally warm banquet atmosphere was like being splashed with a basin of cold water, and the laughter and conversations instantly vanished without a trace.
At this moment, Huo Yuhao looked calmly at the night sky outside the window dyed red by the firelight, having already roughly guessed what was going on.
He slightly furrowed his brow, not expecting that they would make a move today.
The "they" in Huo Yuhao's mind naturally referred to Princess Xu Jiujiu and those forces from the original Douluo Three Kingdoms that had secretly united.
Previously, Princess Xu Jiujiu had personally visited to invite the Spirit Pagoda to participate in the plan to assassinate Xu Tianran, but Huo Yuhao had not agreed.
Now it seemed that the explosion that had shaken the night of Ming City earlier was most likely their "masterpiece"; otherwise, how could the Sun Moon imperial palace suddenly experience such a change without reason.
Thinking of this, Huo Yuhao stood up.
He swept his gaze around everyone present, his voice clearly transmitting to every corner of the restaurant: "Having eaten and drunk our fill, let the banquet end here. There might be other changes happening tonight, so everyone stay vigilant."
Hearing this, everyone's heart tightened. The excitement and joy that had surged up due to winning the championship were replaced at this moment by a heavy sense of vigilance.
No one said much more; they successively stood up and quietly left the restaurant.
The sound of footsteps gradually faded away in the corridor, and the originally bustling restaurant quickly became desolate.
Huo Yuhao walked over to the window, his gaze falling upon the firelight still continuing to rise in the direction of the imperial palace in the distance.
Although the sound of explosions had thinned out a bit compared to earlier, that red halo in the distance still flickered uncertainly in the night sky.
He stood there in silence for a very long time, a rare solemnity lingering between his brows.
Wang Donger did not know when she had walked up to his side, gently reaching out to hold his slightly cool right hand.
Her palm was warm and dry, carrying a reassuring temperature.
She didn't say much, just standing quietly by his side.
Moments later, she softly spoke: "Attacking the Sun Moon imperial palace, was that done by the people from the original Douluo Three Kingdoms?"
Daring to make such a big commotion in the Ming City imperial palace, Wang Donger could deduce who had made a move without much thought.
Huo Yuhao turned his head to look at her and did not deny it.
In his heart, he actually didn't know how to evaluate this operation, because it was as plain as day.
This was almost equivalent to carving the two words "culprit" on their own foreheads. It was such an obvious matter that even Wang Donger could judge it at a glance; the people of the Sun Moon Empire were naturally not fools either.
He softly sighed, a hint of complexity in his tone: "And Shrek Academy."
Hearing this, Wang Donger was stunned for a moment, then shook her head, her tone carrying a complexity that was hard to tell whether it was helplessness or emotion: "Meddling in other people's business, that is indeed Shrek Academy's style."
She fell silent for a fraction of a moment, then asked again: "Then what should we do now?"
Although the Spirit Pagoda had established a Branch Pagoda in the Sun Moon Empire and had a cooperative relationship with it, Huo Yuhao was a person of the Star Luo Empire, and moreover someone who walked out of Shrek Academy.
Now that the original Douluo Three Kingdoms and Shrek had joined forces to cause such a huge commotion in Ming City, she was worried that this matter would implicate the Spirit Pagoda, which was why she asked this question.
Huo Yuhao's gaze turned back outside the window, and after remaining silent for a moment, he slowly spoke: "Let's wait and see what happens first."
He had promised Princess Xu Jiujiu that if people from Star Luo came running to ask for help, he would lend a hand.
Otherwise, by now he should have led everyone from the Spirit Pagoda to leave Ming City, this place fraught with trouble.
-------------------------------------------------
A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.