While Bi Ji was speaking, the battle on the arena continued.
Hu Wu leaped into the center of the chaotic fight. As a level 48 Soul Ancestor who had consumed immortal herbs, her Martial Soul, Blazing Shadow, had been further enhanced.
"Third Soul Skill—Repelling Fire Ring!"
A ring of flames expanded outward from her body before abruptly exploding.
The flames were extremely gentle, carrying no trace of harm.
Yet, everyone from the Shrek Academy team, except for Shui Bing'er, was blasted away by the explosion. Shui Bing'er, being a Soul King, withstood the attack.
"Feng Xiaotian, eliminate all the weaker members of Shrek Academy as quickly as possible! The rest of you, hold off Shui Bing'er!"
Feng Xiaotian, who seemed well-prepared, swept across the battlefield like a violent storm with his level 46 Soul Ancestor strength.
Shen Liuyu and other Shrek Academy students, who were not Soul Ancestors, were sent flying out of the arena.
With the support of the Nine Heart Begonia, even opponents with one higher soul ring would find it difficult to kill them. However, throwing them out of the arena when they weren't paying attention was still achievable.
Thus, after tossing out several Soul Elders, Feng Xiaotian set his sights on Ning Rongrong and Ye Lingling.
Feng Xiaotian's vision blurred for a moment, and his hand, which was about to grab Ye Lingling, closed on empty air.
Ning Rongrong whooshed past Feng Xiaotian.
With both hands, she grabbed Ye Lingling and Yu Hairou beside her, soaring into the sky. The Nine Treasure Glazed Pagoda hovered in the air around Ning Rongrong.
"A-Another soul bone?" The spectators outside the arena were stunned.
The Nine Treasure Glazed Pagoda couldn't fly, so if a Soul Ancestor could take to the skies, it had to be due to a soul bone, right?
As for Shui Bing'er's flight, she relied on condensed ice wings—barely qualifying as a self-created skill.
"T-This is really worth the ticket!" A burly Soul Master muttered in the audience. As a wandering Soul King, he never expected to witness such an astonishing match in the Soul Master Tournament, where soul bone skills were displayed in abundance.
"Tch, a soul bone skill?" Feng Xiaotian looked at the three flying figures in the sky. Though slightly surprised, he wasn't overly shocked. The Nine Treasure Glazed Pagoda was the Seven Treasure Glazed Clan's prized successor—wasn't it normal for her to have one or two soul bones for protection?
Just then, an intense burning sensation erupted from the ground.
Hu Wu's Martial Soul lit up with her first, second, and third soul rings simultaneously. The soul power fluctuations from these rings rapidly flowed into her fourth soul ring.
"Soul Ring Fusion, huh…"
In the sky, Ning Rongrong noticed the skill Hu Wu was gathering.
She remembered that in the original story, there was also a Soul Ring Fusion skill, though it didn't seem as stable as this one.
Mastering Soul Ring Fusion or Martial Soul Fusion Skills required not only resonance but also extensive practice—grueling work.
But having a healer changed everything, especially someone like Bi Ji, who could bring you back even from death.
Ning Rongrong could already hear the gasps of amazement. Soul Ring Fusion was as rare as Martial Soul Fusion Skills.
Not everyone could be like Ning Rongrong, constantly analyzing the structure and frequency of soul rings. Most Soul Masters relied on instinct when using such skills—at least in Douluo Dalu I, that was the case.
Speaking of which, Shui Bing'er had asked her about Soul Ring Fusion a few days ago.
Unfortunately, within the Seven Treasure Glazed Clan, aside from Dugu Yan and the Sword Douluo, no one else could learn it.
Dugu Yan was special—she possessed the Misfortune Poison Body.
As for the Sword Douluo, his comprehension of the sword path was already profound, so it wasn't surprising that he could master it.
Ning Rongrong simply watched quietly.
"Well, Soul Ring Fusion is indeed powerful, but Shui Bing'er isn't as weak as you think."
Even if Shui Bing'er had just turned eighteen.
"Soul Ring Fusion—Blazing Dance of the Sun!"
Hu Wu raised her hands, gathering flames above her head. A massive fireball rapidly expanded and locked onto Shui Bing'er.
Seeing this, the Blazing Wind team members unleashed their ultimate skills before quickly retreating.
The blazing white fireball descended like a falling meteor.
It crashed toward Shui Bing'er with terrifying force. Shui Yue'er stood behind Shui Bing'er—if Shui Bing'er dodged, Shui Yue'er would be the first to take the hit. With the Nine Heart Begonia's support, she likely wouldn't die.
This was also why Hu Wu used the skill without hesitation.
But even with the Nine Heart Begonia's healing, Shui Yue'er would undoubtedly be severely injured, allowing the Blazing Wind team to eliminate her while she was incapacitated.
If Shui Bing'er didn't dodge, she would have to endure the fused Soul Ring skill.
Even with the Nine Treasure Glazed Pagoda's enhancement…
Blocking it shouldn't be easy.
No matter the choice…
The advantage still lay with the Blazing Wind team, as they too had an auxiliary Soul Master—the Emerald Swan.
"Your Blazing Wind Academy really plans things step by step." Shui Bing'er's expression showed no trace of worry. She knew about Soul Ring Fusion and had studied its principles in detail, though she couldn't perform it herself.
But that didn't mean she couldn't break it!
She hadn't eaten all that whale glue for nothing. Her fifth soul ring had reached the 30,000-year threshold—even her physique surpassed that of an ordinary Soul King.
The surrounding cold energy began to gather, and the chilling aura clashed directly with the incoming fireball.
As seconds passed, Shui Bing'er's hand formed a long spear entirely condensed from ice-attribute soul power, adorned with crystalline patterns.
"Fifth Soul Skill—Frozen Spear!"
Her fifth black soul ring flashed, and the sky instantly turned bitterly cold.
The spear shot forward, piercing straight through the center of the massive fireball, leaving a gaping hole.
In an instant, the fireball seemed frozen solid.
Then—
"BOOM!"
A violent explosion engulfed the entire arena.
The spear descended at an angle, crashing into the Blazing Wind team's side of the stage.
Even with its power diminished, the impact still triggered another explosion.
Despite the Emerald Swan's protective barrier, the weaker Soul Masters couldn't withstand the force.
Only four members of the Blazing Wind team remained on the field—Hu Wu, Hu Wushuang, Feng Xiaotian, and Xue Ke, who was protected by a full-body barrier.
In other words, the current numbers were:
Blazing Wind Academy—4.
Glazed Academy—5.
Moreover, the explosion had left the remaining four injured to varying degrees.
The two teams separated once more.
Hu Wu panted heavily—clearly, the Soul Ring Fusion had taken a toll on her.
"...You broke my Soul Ring Fusion with just one soul skill?" Hu Wu's voice trembled with disbelief. Even for a Soul King, this shouldn't have been so easy.
She had fought Soul Kings before, but none were this strong!
"Your Soul Ring Fusion isn't stable. Breaking through at a single point isn't difficult—it's just that your previous opponents either didn't try or couldn't do it."
Breaking a surface by focusing on a single point—this was what Ning Rongrong had taught her.
Before the match, Ning Rongrong had warned her about Hu Wu's Soul Ring Fusion skill and explained that concentrating on one spot would make it easier to counter.
"So that's how it is…?" Hu Wu staggered to her feet.
As much as she hated to admit it, she was no match for Shui Bing'er. She had thought Soul Ring Fusion would turn the tide, but she had been effortlessly defeated.
"Admit defeat. You can't win with just the four of you," Shui Bing'er said.
Earlier, the reason they had dragged out the battle was because Ning Rongrong suggested letting the level 39 team members gain more combat experience, hoping they would break through to Soul Ancestor soon.
From the start, they hadn't fought seriously—though Shui Yue'er had undoubtedly given her all.