"Ah San, what should we do now?" Dai Mubai whispered nervously.
Tang San's face was ashen. "Mubai, there's no time for planning anymore. In this soul battle, we'll have to adapt on the fly. Go all out. Whether it's for our previous wager or for Shrek's honor—we can't afford to lose."
"Understood."
DONG DONG DONG…
With the chime of the bell, the match officially began.
At that moment, both teams sprang into motion.
Suddenly, Su Qingqian's Emerald Swan spread its wings, releasing a life-filled domain that spread in all directions.
Bathed in its vibrant green light, Tang San felt its healing energies flowing continuously into him.
Was this domain simply healing indiscriminately? Or... Tang San considered another possibility.
Oscar distributed his recovery sausages, and Ning Rongrong activated the enhancements of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.
Tang San used his Blue Silver Grass to entangle and connect every team member—himself, Dai Mubai, and Ma Hongjun guarded the rear, where Ning Rongrong and Oscar stood, in case of a sneak attack from Ye Qingmei.
But Ye Qingmei did not launch an assassin's strike as she had before. Instead, she prowled cat-like around the edges of the Shrek formation, drawing their attention.
Meanwhile, the Holy Light of the Angel Spirit from the Spark Team flared—each of their members became shrouded in glowing shields.
Then—they struck with full force.
Lu Kai, bearing the Angel Spirit, charged straight at Tang San. Out of instinct, Tang San deployed the Blue Silver Prison, ensnaring the angel. But the prison lasted only moments before it was incinerated by Sacred Flame.
The holy fire raced along the Blue Silver Grass straight to Tang San, igniting him. Tang San felt not only his body burning, but even his soul power being consumed. In mere moments, he became a man of flame.
Without the flame immunity granted by the Fire Apricot Delicate Branch, this was fatal for Tang San. Even with his superior Blue Silver Grass bloodline, ordinary flames were already troublesome—how could he endure divine-type Sacred Flame?
Then came another shocking moment from Ye Qingmei—White Tiger and Agile Spirit Cat, both martial spirits, appeared on her simultaneously.
Then the two martial spirits began to fuse.
A dual martial spirit fusion from a single person—a self-fusion skill never seen in history.
The VIP stands were stirred into an uproar.
With the fusion complete, the Nether White Tiger emerged, moving at terrifying speed, smashing Huang Yuan and Tai Long to the ground in an instant—their fate unknown.
When Dai Mubai's fist clashed with Mu Yuanfang's Golden Clear Sky Hammer, he felt the bones from his knuckles to his shoulder shatter in an instant. The hammer's overwhelming power blasted him out of the arena, unconscious.
Shrek had focused all their attention on guarding against Ye Qingmei's ambush—but they didn't expect it to come from another direction.
A spatial distortion occurred, and Zhao Hengning's Bone Dragon sliced straight into Shrek's backline. Oscar and Ning Rongrong were both knocked out instantly.
Moments later, Ma Hongjun was defeated by Lin Chen's lightning techniques.
Shrek's defeat took less than thirty seconds. Mu Yuanfang and the others stood untouched, scanning the arena with cold eyes—as if declaring to the crowd, "Now you know who the real trash is."
Watching Tang San lying unconscious, burned by sacred fire, Yu Xiaogang (Grandmaster) finally couldn't stay seated. He rose, full of rage, and shouted toward the referee:
"Referee! I demand a complaint! This wasn't a match—it was attempted murder! They've violated the rules! I demand they be disqualified!"
The referee, finally shaken awake, turned his sharp gaze toward the Spark team.
But Mu Yuanfang simply smiled and asked, "Respected referee, I only have one question—are they dead?"
The referee paused, looked over at the fallen Shrek members—while their injuries were severe, they were all still breathing. No one had died.
On the other side, Lu Kai stepped forward and withdrew the flames from Tang San's body. The healing light from the domain poured into Tang San, starting to heal his injuries.
While his body was healing, Tang San's heart burned with shame—because this whole situation felt eerily familiar.
Mu Yuanfang continued, pointing to Su Qingqian:
"Our auxiliary-type soul master here specializes in healing.
She activated her martial spirit and released her healing domain at the very start of the match.
The domain covered not only the entire Soul Battle Arena—but even extended into the surrounding stands. That wasn't for our team's benefit—it was for them."
"If we were really trying to kill them, would we have healed them?"
"It seems our healing isn't needed. Junior Su Qingqian, stop your domain."
Mu Yuanfang's tone was calm, but he infused his voice with soul power, ensuring everyone in the arena heard him clearly.
Healing the enemy from the very start of the match—what kind of mockery was that?
But the Spark team had shown, from the very beginning, that they had the strength to mock their opponents.
Flender, Liu Erlong, Zhao Wuji, Yu Xiaogang, Li Yusong—all of them were enraged upon hearing this. Liu Erlong, known for her temper, almost stormed the stage to demand an explanation—only Flender held her back.
The referee looked from one side to the other. Just then, two more referees arrived, whispered briefly to him, and after a short discussion, he stepped onto the stage and loudly announced:
"Round 1, Match 4 of the preliminaries: Spark Academy wins!"
BOOM!
The stands erupted with an explosion of voices:
"I knew it! Spark Team was going to win this Soul Battle! Hahaha! I bet 1,000 gold soul coins on them and made a tidy profit!"
"AAAAHHHH—Shit-rek! You useless trash! I had such high hopes for you, and now all my savings are gone!"
"Hah, I see now. That shi-whatever Academy was just pretending to be weak—but who knew, in the end, they really were pigs!"
"Trying to attract attention, and ended up as clowns! What a joke, HAHAHAHAHA!"
"Before the match, they said they'd eliminate their opponents in under five minutes. Instead, they were wiped out in less than a minute. What a bunch of clowns!"
"I timed it—28 seconds. A new record for Shrek: the fastest defeat in history!"
"Don't even call it Shit-rek Academy anymore. Just call it Clown Academy—dedicated to entertaining the entire continent!"
Because his daughter was on stage, Ning Fengzhi summoned his Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda to heal the entire Shrek team.
Tang San, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others—entered the stage standing, left it on stretchers.
Dai Mubai looked at Tang San, full of guilt. "Ah San, I'm sorry. I wanted to help you win this match, but…"
Tang San, expression grim, replied, "It's not your fault, Mubai. We simply didn't gather enough intel on the enemy. Next time… when we meet again… we'll wash away this disgrace."
As Tang San's stretcher was carried past Xiao Wu, he couldn't help but look at her, hoping for a trace of comfort from her.
But Xiao Wu said,
"Ah San-gege, how can you be so useless? If I, Tianheng, and Er Ming had gone on stage, we wouldn't have lost so badly."
Yu Tianheng sneered,
"Sounds noble, saying it was to preserve our trump cards for the team. But to put it bluntly, Tang San, you were just afraid that Er Ming and I would steal the spotlight."
Er Ming pointed at Tang San's nose and added,
"This match was lost because of you, Tang San. You're fully responsible."
"Ah San-gege, how can you be so useless… so useless… useless…"
Those words echoed in Tang San's mind. His blood pressure spiked, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood on the spot.
Flander walked into Shrek's lounge, his face dark as he stared at the Shrek team.
Thanks to Ning Fengzhi's healing, the team's injuries were recovering well. Physical wounds could be easily treated—but psychological ones were another matter.
Looking at the students lying in bed, Flander asked,
"Why didn't you field your full lineup after realizing your opponents were the same Spark Team that had defeated you before? Even just sending out one Soul King would've made the match less humiliating."
Tang San lowered his head in silence. Dai Mubai spoke up for him,
"Dean, Ah San was thinking of the team. We needed to preserve our strength and keep our trump cards hidden.
Besides, we arranged the lineup according to Master's martial soul development curve. Who knew the Spark Team would progress so quickly?"
Flander sighed and said,
"Forget it, little monsters. Don't take this loss too hard. We lost because we lacked information on the enemy and didn't field a complete team. It doesn't mean our Shrek Team is inferior."
"But next time we face the Spark Team, we must deploy our full force. Their over-limit soul rings, four Soul Kings and three Soul Ancestors, and even their self-initiated martial soul fusion configuration…
I'm afraid we'll only have a chance if we rely on the martial soul fusion skill between Xiao Wu, Er Ming, and Tianheng."
Flander meant to comfort them, but his words only tore open the deepest wound in Tang San's heart.
What he'd been trying so hard to avoid—letting Xiao Wu, Er Ming, and Tianheng activate a martial soul fusion—was now described as their only chance at victory.
He had wanted to win through his own strength and intelligence. But now even Flander was saying that they could only rely on that dog Yu Tianheng's martial soul fusion skill with Xiao Wu. The resentment festered in Tang San's chest.
"Well then, all of you rest and prepare for the next match," Flander said before leaving.
At that moment, Yu Tianheng stepped in front of Tang San and said mockingly,
"Hey, little loser, remember our bet?"
Tang San scowled and said,
"I remember."
"Good. I was worried you'd act like last time—lose and then refuse to admit it. Poor sportsmanship." Yu Tianheng once again insulted Tang San's character.
Er Ming chimed in,
"Can't take a loss~"
Tang San gritted his teeth, clutching the bedsheet in humiliation.
"This time will be different," he said.
Yu Tianheng replied,
"Of course it will be. After all, I didn't even set a harsh condition this time.
If I'd said the loser must leave Xiao Wu's side forever, then by the rules, you shouldn't even be near her anymore. But I, Yu Tianheng, love Xiao Wu. I wouldn't selfishly strip her of her right to choose her friends like you would."
"Yu Tianheng—!" Tang San's eyes were bloodshot, his breathing heavy with rage as he roared.
"You see? You're angry again. Gonna break the rules if you lose, huh?" Yu Tianheng sneered. "Honestly, I hope you do break the rules—because Xiao Wu knows about our bet."
Hearing that, Tang San immediately cooled down. The redness faded from his eyes, and his breathing stabilized.
Tang San said,
"Yu Tianheng, don't get cocky. You're only arrogant now."
Tang San reminded himself that he still had another martial soul—he was the child of the God of Shura's summoning.
Yu Tianheng leaned in and whispered,
"Yeah? But I'm the Soul King. I have a martial soul fusion with Xiao Wu. I have the right to be arrogant."
"You… you think having a martial soul fusion makes you so great?!" Tang San shouted, grief-stricken.
"Sorry, but yeah. Having a martial soul fusion with Xiao Wu is a big deal," Yu Tianheng said coldly. Then, pointing at Tang San, he added to Er Ming,
"But hey, I guess a lowly Soul Ancestor with a trash martial soul like Blue Silver Grass—so weak a single flame could burn it—wouldn't understand what that feels like."
Er Ming grinned and said, "Wouldn't understand."
And with that, the two walked off, arms around each other.
Tang San lay in bed, red-eyed, watching them leave.
"Damn it… Ah San, are we really gonna just take that?" Oscar finally spoke up, furious on Tang San's behalf.
"Bastard! That dog Yu Tianheng is way too arrogant. Ah San, I'm gonna fight him!" Dai Mubai tried to get up, only to collapse in pain, clearly having torn his wounds open again.
"Don't push it, Mubai. I appreciate it, but now's not the time to deal with Yu Tianheng," Tang San said.
Oscar whispered,
"Ah San, you're good with poison—why not find a chance to off that Yu Tianheng dog?" He made a throat-slitting gesture.
Tang San looked at his hands, pain written all over his face.
"You think I don't want to?"
He came from Tang Sect in his past life—poison and hidden weapons were his forte. Even if he couldn't match Yu Tianheng in raw power, he had many ways to assassinate him.
But...
Yu Tianheng—that dog destined to die—had a martial soul fusion with Xiao Wu. Their souls were linked. If one died, the other would be bound to avenge them.
Tang San couldn't bear the thought of things going that far with Xiao Wu, his beloved. He just couldn't.
Seeing this, the Shrek trio fell silent.
Oscar patted his shoulder,
"Ah San, don't beat yourself up. To us, you're our brother. And Xiao Wu will always be our sister-in-law."
Dai Mubai said,
"Exactly, Ah San. We won't let Yu Tianheng steal her from you."
Ma Hongjun snorted,
"Hmph, Yu Tianheng is only arrogant now because you haven't been using the Clear Sky Hammer. If you had, he wouldn't even dare show his face."
"True," Dai Mubai agreed.
"In front of the Clear Sky Hammer, even the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon is just a mud eel."
Listening to them, Tang San slowly raised his hand.
A burst of dark light flickered—revealing the small Clear Sky Hammer in his palm.
For a brief moment, Tang San's heart wavered.
But he quickly pushed the feeling away.