"Brother, you don't need to worry too much. While it's true that Spirit Hall is powerful in terms of Soul Master strength, that doesn't mean they can act recklessly without consequences.
Once the promotion matches are over, I will also head to Spirit City to participate as a judge in the finals on behalf of the Heaven Dou Empire. With both of us there, Spirit Hall won't dare to act rashly."
Qian Renxue spoke in a relaxed tone.
With her as his "good big brother," how could she not protect her "good little brother"? The elders of the Worship Hall all knew that Xue Qinghe was actually her. When the time came, she could scare Mu Yang a little first, then at the most critical moment, step forward as his protector—just the right opportunity to earn some goodwill.
After all, on the surface, the elders of Spirit Hall had to consider the consequences of their actions. It was reasonable to assume that they wouldn't dare make a move against her, the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.
"That's great news!"
Mu Yang deliberately put on an expression of joy, as if he had truly found a powerful backer.
After chatting for a long time, Qian Renxue eventually took her leave.
"Xiao Yang, the Heaven Dou Empire and Spirit Hall seem to be at odds. Are you planning to side with the Heaven Dou Empire in the future?"
After Qian Renxue left, Huo Wu asked Mu Yang.
"Sis, you don't understand~"
Mu Yang smiled and shook his head.
If it were the real Xue Qinghe, he wouldn't even bother acknowledging him. But Qian Renxue was different.
She was destined to inherit the Angel God's position, whereas he wasn't certain whether he could pass a god's trials and inherit a god's position before she ascended.
Because of that, forming a good relationship with Qian Renxue in advance was crucial.
He didn't have any deep grudges against Spirit Hall. Even though there had been some conflict due to Salas, he had already exacted his revenge, and the real culprit had been dealt with. There was no need to dwell on the past.
If his god trials didn't go smoothly and Spirit Hall, under Qian Renxue's leadership after inheriting the Angel God's position, unified the continent before he could become a god, then with their existing relationship, protecting himself and his academy wouldn't be a problem.
In other words, maintaining a friendly relationship with Xue Qinghe, who was actually Qian Renxue in disguise, was like securing a safety net in advance.
"I don't understand? You're getting close to the Heaven Dou Empire, and Spirit Hall might not take it lightly. You should be careful."
Huo Wu had initially wanted to warn Mu Yang that siding with the Heaven Dou Empire could have serious consequences. However, she quickly realized that if even she could think of this, Mu Yang must have already considered it as well, so she didn't say much more.
"Mm, I know what I'm doing."
Mu Yang nodded.
Blazing Academy was lucky. In the second round of the promotion matches, they drew a bye.
As a result, on the second day of the promotion matches, the Blazing Team didn't need to compete.
Once the second round concluded and the representatives of each academy drew lots, the matchups for the third round were announced.
Blazing Academy's opponent for this round was none other than Shrek Academy.
When the drawing results were revealed, Mu Yang noticed that Shrek Team didn't seem to have any intention of forfeiting. In fact, Tang San's gaze toward Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang was filled with intense battle intent.
"A team with three Soul Ancestors and four Soul Elders—I'd really like to see where you're getting your confidence from, Tang San."
Mu Yang couldn't help but think to himself.
It wasn't that he was overly confident, just stating the facts.
Shrek Team's strongest lineup only had three Soul Ancestors and four Soul Elders. With that level of strength, how could they possibly be a match for the Blazing Team? If Blazing Academy sent Huo Wu or Huo Wushuang as their lead fighters, there was even a chance they could completely wipe out Shrek Team.
After all, whether it was Huo Wushuang or Huo Wu, neither of them were ordinary five-ring Soul Kings. Not only did they have soul power reaching level 59, but their overall abilities also far surpassed other Soul Masters of the same level.
With their powerful martial souls, extraordinary soul ring configurations, and various secret techniques, Huo Wushuang's strength was comparable to an ordinary newly advanced six-ring Assault-type Soul Emperor.
Huo Wu was even more formidable, her strength surpassing Huo Wushuang's. With her unique innate ability, Fusion Ring, her attack-type soul skills could unleash power equivalent to that of a seven-ring Soul Sage.
With such strength, what could Shrek Team use to stop them?
Even with the protagonist's fortune on his side, Tang San wouldn't be able to overcome this challenge. Just the natural suppression of fire-type Soul Masters against plant-type Soul Masters would be enough to put Tang San at a severe disadvantage.
With martial soul and level disadvantages, no matter how rich Tang San's combat experience was or how proficient he was in Tang Sect techniques, he couldn't make up for the vast difference in strength between the two sides.
The Next Morning, Grand Arena
The first two matchups quickly concluded, and it was time for the third match—Blazing Academy versus Shrek Academy.
The referee announced loudly, "Third round of the promotion matches—Blazing Academy versus Shrek Academy. Both academies, please send out your first contestant."
Hearing this, Blazing Team's Huo Yu and a young man from Shrek Team, who emitted a slightly eerie aura, stepped onto the battlefield.
Although their opponents were the protagonist's group from the original story, Mu Yang didn't change Blazing Team's lineup order. He still followed the strategy of sending out fighters from weakest to strongest.
That was because today, the ace of Blazing Team wasn't Huo Wushuang—it was the even stronger Huo Wu.
From Mu Yang's perspective, the first battle between Huo Yu and Shrek's Jing Ling was a match between two weaklings. The former's martial soul was the Flame Demon Rhinoceros, a defense-type Soul Elder, while the latter's martial soul was the Skeleton, specializing in agility attacks.
As the saying goes, "A long defense leads to defeat." In a battle between defense and agility, the defender should theoretically be at a disadvantage.
However, reality proved otherwise. Huo Yu's Flame Demon Rhinoceros martial soul was of a higher quality than Jing Ling's, his soul power level was a few levels higher, and even his soul ring configuration was superior. With all these factors combined, Huo Yu used his defensive advantage to suppress his opponent.
Three minutes later, Huo Yu seized an opening and used his first soul skill, a charge-type ability, to knock Jing Ling out of the white boundary, securing victory in the first match.
For the second match, Shrek Team sent out Tai Long.
A thick-skinned rhinoceros versus a power-type gorilla, both at level 39 Soul Elder rank—this battle turned into a brutal exchange of blows.
Fists met flesh, and the fight was intense. However, since Huo Yu had already fought one match and was running low on soul power, he ultimately lost to Tai Long.
But as soon as Blazing Team's second contestant stepped onto the field, Shrek Team suffered back-to-back defeats.
Despite being designated as a support member, the second Blazing Team fighter, Huo Chui, wasn't a typical auxiliary-type Soul Master. His soul skills had both support effects and considerable combat capabilities.
With his soul power having reached the four-ring level, he had achieved a qualitative breakthrough over his opponent. Using this advantage, Huo Chui defeated both Tai Long and Zhu Zhuqing. However, due to his dwindling soul power, he was eventually taken down by Ma Hongjun, who had the advantage of flight.
Minutes passed, and the battle situation became increasingly unfavorable for Shrek Team.
For additional chapters
Versatile mage {40 chapters}
Douluo Dalu:This Soul Master is to Weird {30 Chapters}
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