In the Arena Plaza.
Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Tai Long, dressed in dingy green outfits, stood at the very back of the many teams.
"Boss Dai... I didn't expect to see that senior here."
Looking at the domineering figure in the VIP section, Oscar forced a bitter smile, slightly helpless.
Oscar harbored considerable resentment toward Lin Mu. In his mind, if Lin Mu hadn't interfered, Ning Rongrong wouldn't have left Shrek Academy.
Of course, deep down he knew the main blame lay with Yu Xiaogang; if he hadn't caused all that trouble with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Sect Master Ning and the Sword Douluo wouldn't have come knocking, let alone taken Ning Rongrong away.
Even with his dissatisfaction, Oscar could only grit his teeth and swallow it.
After all, neither the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect nor Lin Mu, who overpowered many Titled Douluos, were beings he, a mere Food-type Soul Master, could afford to offend.
Mainly, Lin Mu's strength was too abnormal. Otherwise, Oscar might have tried to join the Royal Fighting Team, even if only as a substitute, just to be with Ning Rongrong again.
"He's actually here... I wonder if Zhuqing has come?"
Looking at Lin Mu standing on the high platform, Dai Mubai's eyes revealed a hint of resentment, and an uncontrollable longing.
If he possessed Lin Mu's strength, why would he be so afraid of his brother Dai Weisi? He wouldn't even care about the Star Luo Royal Family's threats.
However, reality was cruel; he couldn't even protect his own fiancée from leaving him.
"Dai Mubai, Oscar... do you know His Excellency Lin Mu?"
Tai Long noticed their reactions and asked curiously.
Hearing Tai Long's respectful address of Lin Mu, Dai Mubai and Oscar exchanged a glance, both seeing the doubt in each other's eyes.
"Brother Tai Long, you're not saying you're very familiar with this senior, are you?"
Oscar put his arm around Tai Long's massive shoulder and asked.
Although the difference in their soul power wasn't significant, Tai Long came from the Power Clan, so calling him "Brother" out of respect for his size and background was reasonable.
Hearing this, Tai Long's face showed a hint of embarrassment, and he couldn't help but recall his grandfather's fists, as big as sandbags.
A year ago, because he offended Young Master Tang San and Lin Mu, his grandfather Tai Tan was brutally beaten by Lin Mu, and Tai Long himself was beaten by his grandfather for an entire night for causing trouble, ending up in bed for several days.
"Ahem~"
Tai Long coughed twice to cover his embarrassment and said with a serious face, "Lord Lin Mu's disciple is the Young Master of our Power Clan."
"Young Master?!"
Dai Mubai and Oscar were both shocked. They hadn't expected Tai Long to be related to Tang San's faction. Didn't this mean there was a potential spy in their team?
But they couldn't do anything about Tai Long.
After all, the Power Clan stood behind him, and although the Power Clan Chief, Tai Tan, wasn't as powerful as a Titled Douluo, he was still a Soul Douluo they couldn't afford to offend.
Furthermore, if they kicked Tai Long out of the team, the Shrek Academy team would lack a strong frontal assault member and be completely ruined.
As they whispered amongst themselves, Lin Mu, standing on the platform, spoke: "You come from various advanced Soul Master academies, and your talents are not bad; some are even geniuses with innate full soul power."
His words were met with enthusiastic applause from everyone present.
The contestants were especially excited, their eyes burning with anticipation as they looked at the figure on the platform, this was the recognition of the strongest of the younger generation!
However, Lin Mu's tone shifted, continuing: "But your performance has been quite mediocre. Despite enjoying various resources, your cultivation levels are so ordinary, especially some of you who waste your energy on other things, completely putting the cart before the horse!"
These words instantly caused a stir in the arena.
Some questioned him, some were incredulous, but no one dared to openly insult Lin Mu.
Unlike other powerful figures who relied on titles, Lin Mu's reputation was entirely earned through battle; almost no one dared to cross him.
Seeing this, Emperor Xue Ye frowned and advised, "Teacher Lin Mu, although these contestants cannot compare to you, they are still geniuses among the best. Please don't discourage them too much."
"Your Majesty, Teacher Lin Mu must have his reasons for doing this. Moreover, Lin Mu is also a young man, and his blunt words can actually be encouraging to those with spirit," Ning Fengzhi said gently, turning to Emperor Xue Ye to smooth things over.
"Sect Master Ning is right."
Emperor Xue Ye nodded slightly. Young people understand each other better; Lin Mu's words were likely meant to light a fire under the contestants.
Hearing their conversation, Xue Qinghe rolled her eyes discreetly.
Knowing Lin Mu as she did, she was certain he hadn't thought that far ahead. Although Lin Mu claimed to be timid and cautious, he was utterly devoid of humility when facing those weaker than him. He probably just found them disappointing.
"Fine. You guys should just keep trying. Good luck."
Lin Mu waved casually and returned to his seat, clearly bored.
The others naturally understood the perfunctory tone, but they hadn't expected Lin Mu to be so direct, completely disregarding the twenty-eight elite teams.
Facing such a formidable opponent's disdain, the contestants, who usually considered themselves geniuses, suffered a significant blow to their pride.
"Although we can't compare to Senior Lin Mu, we can compete with his Royal Fighting Team. If we can defeat them, he'll definitely look at us with new respect. Cheer up!"
Feng Xiaotian immediately encouraged his team members, seeing their discouraged expressions.
Actually, he felt a bit aggrieved, always feeling that Lin Mu's last sentence about "wasting energy on other things" was referring specifically to him and his self-created skills. But then he thought, 'Lin Mu doesn't know me at all, how could he be referring to me? I must be overthinking it.'
Next, it was Platinum Bishop Salas's turn to draw lots.
"First round of the preliminaries: Cang Hui Academy vs. Zixing Academy."
"First round of the preliminaries: Auckland Academy vs. Flame Radiance Academy."
"..."
"First round of the preliminaries: Heaven Dou Royal Academy Second Team vs. Shrek Academy."
At the entrance of the passage.
"Heaven Dou Royal Academy..."
Flander frowned, his face turning grim.
Although it was only the Second Team of Heaven Dou Royal Academy, their strength should not be underestimated. They were elites from noble families.
For the current Shrek team, they were a formidable opponent, and even if Shrek could win in the end, they would probably pay a heavy price or reveal too many trump cards.
There was still half an hour before the opening match, so Flander could only lead everyone back to the lounge to prepare.
Not long after, they arrived at the lounge door, only to find two people sitting on the sofa inside.
One was a middle-aged man with a weathered appearance, and the other was a young man with an eerie temperament and heavy makeup. The two seemed to have been waiting for a long time.
"Xiaogang? What brings you here?"
Upon recognizing the middle-aged man, Flander was initially taken aback, then quickly stepped forward.
"Brother Flander, long time no see."
Yu Xiaogang forced a smile, saying earnestly, "I used to be a member of Shrek Academy, and I came to see you all before the match."
Hearing this, Flander's eyes filled with emotion.
Although Yu Xiaogang often caused trouble, thankfully he still valued relationships as before; otherwise, he wouldn't have traveled so far to see them.
"Xiaogang... how's Fatty doing?"
As he spoke, Flander's gaze swept over the strange-looking young man beside Yu Xiaogang, not recognizing him at all.
Now, Ma Hongjun's appearance had drastically changed due to his martial soul's evolution (or mutation), and with makeup concealing his true face, no one could recognize him as the former Fatty.