Yu Xiaogang's knuckles whitened as he clenched his fists, his face grim, as he led the students to the arena.
He knew his actions had been somewhat reckless, but the method of absorbing Spirit Rings beyond one's limit was currently the only way to save his half-crippled disciples.
And since those children didn't have adults backing them up earlier, it was the best opportunity. Otherwise, how could he have possibly obtained this method in front of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?
He had already considered this before morally blackmailing Ning Rongrong and the others: once he learned the method of absorbing Spirit Rings beyond one's limit, he would make it public. Even if Ning Fengzhi and the others got angry, the law wouldn't punish the masses.
Moreover, Liu Erlong and he both had backgrounds with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Ning Fengzhi wouldn't kill them over something that couldn't be undone.
It was just a shame that Ning Bei's appearance had disrupted all his plans. How tragic, how painful!
Despite his heavy heart, the competition had to continue. Fortunately, this time the Shrek team wasn't up against strong opponents.
The students were all fired up because of what had just happened, and with Tang San's on-the-spot commanding, they easily defeated their opponents, boosting their confidence.
Liu Erlong and Flender remained frozen like ice sculptures in the rest area for three days.
After the day's matches concluded, spiderweb-like cracks finally appeared on the ice encasing them. Soon after, a wave of Soul Power emanated, and the ice shattered into powder, dissipating.
Liu Erlong shivered all over after breaking free, continually exhaling cold mist, her eyes blazing with fury.
"That damned brat, I'll get my revenge!"
Flender, who was also shivering from the cold, heard Liu Erlong's words and instantly trembled so violently he seemed to blur, his eyes filled with terror. He quickly tried to persuade her, "Sister Erlong, it's better if we plan this out carefully. Please don't act rashly again."
"Hmph!"
Liu Erlong was just letting off steam. Since Flender had given her an out, she naturally wouldn't foolishly run back to Ning Bei to offer herself up. After a cold huff, she turned her head away.
Because of Ning Bei's words before he left, Grandmaster and the others didn't even dare to move the two back to the resting room, fearing they might accidentally damage them and cause them to lose an arm or a leg.
So, the two had served as a spectacle for the contestants to observe for three full days. Now, having just broken free, they noticed many passing students pointing fingers at them.
Their old faces flushed, and they quickly scurried into the resting room.
"Dean, Teacher Erlong, you're out!"
Jiang Zhu looked at the two entering the room, her eyes filled with joy. These past few days had been tough for her; she had to check on them occasionally, worried someone might damage the ice sculptures.
After the Shrek team returned to their rooms, there was another round of greetings. The opponents Shrek had faced these past few days hadn't been strong. Although there were some twists and turns, they ultimately won all their matches.
They now had a record of four wins and one loss. Hearing the good news, Flender and Liu Erlong's gloomy moods lightened slightly.
Compared to Shrek Academy's hard-won victories, the Royal Fight Second Team had dominated their matches so far, and every opponent had been a tough one.
It was unclear if Salas was deliberately trying to annoy them, but after their matches against Shrek and Tianshui Academy, the Royal Fight Second Team's opponents for the next three days were Elephant Armor Academy, Plant Academy, and Kamikaze Academy.
They had faced off against all the seeded teams in the competition.
During the match against Elephant Armor Academy, Long Nianbing displayed incredible power.
The Earth Melody: Changsheng Blade could not only draw power from the earth to form countless blades but also create a barrier to absorb the enemy's Soul Power, emphasizing the concept of the earth absorbing all things.
The heavy Elephant Armor Academy had no way to counter these barriers, ultimately ending up with depleted Soul Power. Long Nianbing achieved a "one and a half for seven," with Ning Rongrong counting as half.
This greatly disappointed Hu Yanzhen, the Sect Master of the Elephant Armor Sect, who had eagerly rushed to watch the match. He nearly gnashed his teeth to powder in the stands, glaring at Ning Fengzhi with ill intent.
The battle against Plant Academy was a solo show by Ning Rongrong. With Ning Rongrong's assistance, the overwhelming tidal waves caused the opposing students immense pain, sweeping them off the arena before they even had a chance to release their seeds.
This filled several of the "Heavenly Water Long Legs" from Plant Academy with resentment. They left the venue grumbling, loudly complaining about being bullied.
In contrast, Kamikaze Academy was much craftier. After discussing with their team leader, Kamikaze Academy directly forfeited their match against the Royal Fight Second Team, which drew a chorus of boos from the audience.
They shouted: "Give us our money back!"
However, Kamikaze Academy's approach was recognized by most of the other contestants and was subsequently emulated by later opponents. No one wanted to clash head-on with a team averaging Soul King ranks, as it would expend too much energy and affect their subsequent matches.
This left the Heavenly Water Long Legs, who had already fought the Royal Fight Second Team, deeply resentful. They cursed the organizers for the absurd drawing of lots, feeling that if they had encountered them later, they too could have conserved their strength.
Now, their Spirit Fusion Skill had even been exposed, and not only did they not win, but they couldn't even claim a dignified defeat.
Xue Ye and Little Angel in the stands were both delighted that their second team could easily advance to the Promotion Tournament.
However, this left Xiao Wu extremely frustrated. She had initially planned to give her teammates a chance to shine first, with her, Sister Xiao Wu, demonstrating her might later. But now, as soon as the opposing team stepped onto the stage, they would open their mouths and declare forfeit.
This left the little rabbit with nowhere to vent her boundless energy, making her furious but helpless.
Finally, in the last match of the preliminary round, after the opponent once again declared forfeiture, Xiao Wu could no longer bear it. She pointed at the members of Thunder Academy and began to curse them angrily.
"Do you have no ambition at all? Are you even here to compete? All you do is forfeit!"
Yu Tianxin, the captain of Thunder Academy, immediately turned red-faced but couldn't refute her. He led his team back to the resting room dejectedly, ignoring the little rabbit's taunts.
Ning Rongrong chuckled and pulled back her little friend, who was still ready to chase after them and hurl insults, comforting her.
"Alright, Xiao Wu, in these preliminaries, everyone is just trying to advance. Conserving strength is understandable."
"Hmph!"
Although the little rabbit understood, she was still a bit upset. This had been a great opportunity to show off her power in front of Big Brother Ning Bei, and it had been wasted just like that.
Seemingly understanding her little friend's thoughts, Ning Rongrong continued, "Later, when we go to Spirit City for the Promotion Tournament, there will be one-on-one Spirit Duels first. How about I make sure you're the first one up for every match?"
The little rabbit, who wasn't very familiar with the rules yet, immediately perked up her ears at this.
"Really? If I encounter those cowards again, Sister Xiao Wu will definitely give them a taste of the Eight Stage Throw!"
With Thunder Academy's concession, the announcer declared the Royal Fight Second Team had successfully advanced as the top team in the preliminaries. A warm round of applause erupted from the audience, both in support of the Heaven Dou Empire's main team and as mockery for those teams that had given up early.
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