Chapter 99: The Line Between Victory and Defeat
After her soul power was completely sealed, Zhang Lexuan no longer had the strength to resist.
Though her face still showed unwillingness, it was just that—unwillingness. She was now a captive, powerless to fight back.
Click.
A metallic sound echoed softly as a collar locked securely around her neck, becoming the final restraint to ensure her obedience.
Once Xiao Qiang confirmed that Zhang Lexuan was under control, he casually tossed the injured Beibei toward Yan Shaozhe.
Beibei was immediately taken away for emergency treatment, but it was clear that his injuries wouldn't heal anytime soon. Just like Xu Sanshi, Beibei was now out of commission—another fallen comrade in this chaotic battle.
"Referee," Xiao Qiang called out as he glanced coldly toward Tiansha Douluo Huang Jinxu. "All of Shrek's instructors have now entered the battlefield. Shouldn't it be time to make a judgment?"
Tiansha Douluo was just about to nod when a cold snort from Elder Xuan pierced the air and reached his ears.
Instantly, Tiansha Douluo stiffened.
That snort reminded him of who he was dealing with—Elder Xuan, a powerhouse whose strength he had personally experienced. The nod he was about to give froze halfway.
"Well… that is to say… um… in this situation…" Tiansha Douluo stammered, his brain practically short-circuiting. He had no legitimate excuse to continue the match, yet the pressure from Elder Xuan paralyzed him.
Elder Xuan's presence loomed like a mountain behind him, and the memory of being crushed by him once before haunted his mind. Judging by Elder Xuan's mood, he wasn't keen on reliving that pain.
"The situation today is rather… unique," Tiansha Douluo finally muttered. "It's understandable that Shrek's leadership was emotionally stirred. The match will continue."
Even he didn't believe what he had just said. Inwardly, he swore to never accept the position of referee again. Dealing with the lunatics from Shrek Academy was a job for fools.
"Understandable, huh? Whatever. Shrek's been cheating openly for years. No one dares to say a word just because they're strong," Xiao Qiang remarked casually. Then he slowly drew his blade.
"Break—Mirror Flower, Water Moon."
"Ahem!" Elder Xuan cleared his throat sharply. His next words drifted silently into Tiansha Douluo's ears like a whispered threat.
Tiansha Douluo instinctively wanted to refuse, but when he turned to look, he saw Elder Xuan gnawing on a chicken leg while giving him a ferocious glare.
The image chilled him to the core.
He recalled all too well the brutality from the last time Elder Xuan used him as a punching bag. He had no desire to relive that trauma. With a resigned sigh, he bit the bullet and shouted a ruling that went against all logic.
"I haven't called for the next match to start! Who said you could act? You're disqualified!"
Xiao Qiang: "…"
"Fine, fine! The Xingluo Empire is clearly siding with Shrek in this shameless circus!" Jing Hongchen laughed angrily. "I've seen some crooked officials in my time, but this? This is next-level corruption."
"Shrek didn't cheat. The referee made the call," Elder Xuan said calmly while gnawing on his chicken leg. Deep down, he knew the situation was shady.
Still, allowing Xiao Qiang to enter the field again and throw another flash bomb? That would leave Shrek worrying less about match results and more about their survival.
By letting the referee take the fall, even if the call was outrageous, Shrek's reputation could still be salvaged.
And since the referee was from the Xingluo Empire, Shrek could simply shift all blame to him.
As long as Shrek won the next battle fair and square and no one caught them cheating outright, they could maintain their title as the continent's number one academy.
The present audience might whisper about the unfairness, but in the grand scheme of things, their voices would be drowned out. Shrek had been a beacon of excellence for ten thousand years. A few rumors wouldn't shake their legacy.
Faith built over millennia wasn't so easily toppled.
"Hmph! Shrek! I was going to talk about forming an exchange program between our schools. But forget it!" Jing Hongchen spat. "Why bother with a school that only knows how to cheat?"
"I already told you, this was the referee's personal decision. Shrek didn't cheat," Elder Xuan replied, his tone nonchalant.
In the end, Xiao Qiang left the stage. There was no point arguing. The referee was from the Xingluo Empire. No amount of shouting would change things. Xiao Qiang and Jing Hongchen chose not to waste more energy.
Next came a new lineup from Shrek Academy: Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochen stepped onto the field.
Facing them were five Soul Kings from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, led by Ma Rulong.
The Sun Moon Academy held the advantage—both in numbers and formation. As in the original script, Lin Xi used a double-layer invincibility shield to trap Ma Xiaotao, worsening the odds for Shrek.
Ma Rulong directly confronted Dai Yueheng. Though Dai tried to delay the others by blocking multiple opponents, Ma Rulong was no pushover. Even in a one-on-one duel, Dai had no certainty of victory.
While Dai managed to hold his ground for a time, Ling Luochen's side fell into chaos. She was facing four Soul Kings alone.
In a solo matchup, Ling Luochen could match any of them. In a two-on-one, she could probably manage. But four-on-one? That was impossible.
She fell swiftly.
With Ling Luochen eliminated, Dai Yueheng soon found himself surrounded five to one. He lasted only moments more before defeat.
Their losses came too quickly.
Even as Ma Xiaotao pushed herself to the limit, she hadn't yet broken free to deal with Lin Xi. And when Lin Xi finally removed the invincible shield, his soul power reserves were still nearly half-full.
"Six versus one. Ma Xiaotao, your Shrek Academy has lost," Ma Rulong declared, standing tall at the front of the Sun Moon lineup. Behind him, their students—though exhausted—cheered with pride. They were about to become the first team in the Sun Moon Empire to defeat Shrek in ten thousand years.
"Shrek hasn't lost! Absolutely not!"
Ma Xiaotao's eyes burned with fury. Her soul rings began to twist and merge, the energy within her boiling over.
The six rings—two yellow, two purple, two black—fused into a singular, blood-red soul ring.
A 100,000-year soul ring.
A tremendous aura surged from her body as she activated the skill with all her might, prepared to unleash devastating power on the Sun Moon team.
But just then—before she could act—Jing Hongchen raised his hand and made a decisive call, the same choice Wang Yan once made in a similar moment.
"We concede this match."