Shrek City, Soul Tool Communications Department.
This was a gray building located in a corner of the academy, usually quite unremarkable.
Although Shrek Academy had always championed the supremacy of traditional Spirits and held a reserved or even dismissive attitude toward spirit tools, they were forced to establish this department to maintain real-time contact with the outside world, especially with the various imperial royalties and the frontline Supervision Team.
At this moment, Steward Li, the intelligence officer on duty, was boredly fiddling with the communication Core Formation in his hand.
"Calculating the time, the competition over there should have ended long ago, right?"
Steward Li yawned and glanced at the wall clock.
"I wonder what the results actually are..."
Just then.
"Buzz— Buzz—"
The latest model of the long-distance voice-transmission spirit tool in front of him suddenly vibrated violently without warning. The ruby indicator light on it flashed urgently, emitting a piercing red light.
This is... highest-level urgent intelligence?!
Steward Li's heart skipped a beat. He quickly cast off his lazy posture, grabbed the transmitter, and said in a heavy voice:
"This is the Shrek Academy Intelligence Center. I am Steward Li. Please speak!"
On the other end of the transmitter, there was first a burst of static, followed by the trembling, ghost-stricken intermittent voice of a frontline Scout:
"Re... reporting... something... something terrible has happened..."
Steward Li frowned, a flicker of displeasure rising in his heart. Since when had Shrek's Scouts become so easily rattled?
"What are you panicking for! Straighten your tongue and speak! Is the Sun Moon Empire making small moves again? Or did something go wrong in the match?"
"The match is over..." the Scout's voice carried a sob, as if he were shouting with every ounce of strength in his body, "Lost! We lost! The Shrek Team... in the round of sixteen elimination match... was eliminated... by the Sun Moon Team!!!"
"Clatter."
Steward Li only felt a loud 'boom' in his mind, and his entire body instantly froze in place.
The transmitter in his hand slipped weakly, crashing heavily onto the desk.
His eyes stared blankly, his mind completely void.
Top sixteen...
Eliminated...
The impact of these two phrases combined was no less absurd to him than hearing that the Sea God Lake had dried up.
That was Shrek!
The number one academy on the continent, the symbol of ten thousand years of glory!
How could they not even make it into the top eight, being kicked back home in the round of sixteen?!
Steward Li's hands trembled as he ended the communication.
He didn't rush out of the room to report immediately.
Instead, he sat slowly in his chair, gasping for air, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.
He didn't dare go.
He really didn't dare.
He knew all too well what kind of storm this news would trigger among the Elders once it reached the Sea Gods Pavilion.
That was an event big enough to pierce through the heavens!
"Huff... huff..."
Steward Li forced himself to calm down. He organized his words in his mind over and over, trying to find a slightly more tactful way to report this nightmare, lest those elderly Elders pass out from rage on the spot.
But no matter how he embellished it, the fact was the fact.
Shrek had lost.
...
At the same time.
Sea God Island, Sea Gods Pavilion.
Inside that simple yet solemn wooden pavilion, a faint fragrance of tea was currently permeating the air.
Several elders with unfathomable power sat around a long table. The atmosphere was serious, but not heavy.
"Calculating the time, there should be a result about now, right?"
The one speaking was the Dean of the Martial Soul Department, Yan Shaozhe.
He picked up his teacup and took a sip, a glint of sharpness flashing in his eyes.
"Mhm, it should be soon." Beside him, the Dean of the Soul Tool Department, Xian Liner, nodded. Although she usually didn't get along with Yan Shaozhe, their positions were aligned on such a major matter concerning the academy's glory.
"The Sun Moon Team came with great momentum this time," Elder Song sighed. "Losing Liu Yuan has had too great an impact on our Shrek. Xiaotao couldn't beat him because she was countered by him. The current situation is not good for our Shrek Team."
"Indeed..." Yan Shaozhe set down his teacup, his brow furrowing slightly. "Liu Yuan's individual combat capability is too strong. If it's one-on-one, Xiaotao is no match for him."
"But don't forget, Shrek's advantage lies in team coordination and overall quality."
"As long as Xiaotao can stall Liu Yuan, the others have advantages that can make up for it. Defeating the rest of the Sun Moon Team early isn't completely out of the question."
"So I'd say the odds are about forty-sixty; three for us, seven for them."
"Three-seven? You're being too pessimistic."
At this point, Elder Lin, who had been silent, suddenly interjected with a mysterious smile on her face.
"Oh? Does Elder Lin have some inside information?" Yan Shaozhe asked curiously.
Elder Lin stroked her beard and smiled: "I just heard about it. Last night, that old fellow Xuan Zi seems to have finally seen the light and equipped the students with a batch of spirit tools."
"What?! Xuan Zi gave the students spirit tools?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the Elders present all showed surprised expressions.
One must know that Xuan Zi was a notorious hardliner who had always believed that a Spirit Master's own strength was the foundation, and he utterly detested spirit tools.
To think that this time, for the sake of winning, he could actually make such a concession?
"Not only did he equip them, I heard he even got Ma Xiaotao an eighth-rank melee spirit tool!" Elder Lin added. "That's an eighth-rank soul tool, enough to compensate for Xiaotao's lack of non-fire attribute attacks. With that thing, no matter how much that Liu Yuan brat counters the fire attribute, could he possibly withstand the physical slash of an eighth-rank soul tool?"
"An eighth-rank soul tool..." A glint flashed in Xian Liner's eyes. "If that's the case, then it really is different. It seems Elder Xuan is truly desperate this time, but this is also a good thing. It shows he's starting to recognize the role of spirit tools."
"Haha, if that's so, then I'd say the odds for this match are at least fifty-fifty!" The worry on Yan Shaozhe's face smoothed out, and he even looked somewhat expectant. "Maybe even sixty-forty! Six for us!"
"As long as Xiaotao can use the spirit tool to catch Liu Yuan off guard and severely injure him, the remaining members of the Sun Moon Team will be like a pile of loose sand, nothing to fear!"
The atmosphere inside the pavilion instantly became much more relaxed.
The Elders began to envision the scene after the victory, and someone even suggested that they should properly praise Xuan Zi's 'flexibility' upon his return.
Mu En, who had been resting his eyes on the main lounge chair, also slightly opened his eyes, a hint of relief flashing in his cloudy old eyes.
"If Xuan Zi can truly set aside his prejudices, then it is indeed Shrek's fortune..."
Just then.
"Thump, thump, thump."
A series of heavy and hurried footsteps broke the silence within the Sea Gods Pavilion.
Immediately after, the main doors were pushed open.
That intelligence officer named Steward Li walked in, his face as pale as paper, his forehead covered in cold sweat, and his steps unsteady.
His appearance caused the voices of the Elders, who were just chatting and laughing, to come to an abrupt halt.
Everyone keenly sensed that something was wrong.
Steward Li's expression... why did it look like his own father had died?
"Steward Li? Why do you look like this?" The ominous premonition in Yan Shaozhe's heart rose once again as he asked in a heavy voice, "Is there news from Star Luo Imperial City? What was the result?"
Steward Li stood at the end of the long table, feeling a dozen terrifying gazes pressing down on him like mountains, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
He took a deep breath, trying hard to control his trembling voice, keeping his head down and not daring to look anyone in the eye:
"Reporting to the Pavilion Master and the Elders..."
"Star Luo Imperial City... has just sent urgent intelligence..."
"This..." Yan Shaozhe was getting impatient, "Stop hesitating! Speak! Did we win? Even if the process was tragic, as long as we won, it's fine!"
Steward Li squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, as if using the last of his life's strength to spit out that cruel reality:
"The Shrek Team... in the Individual Elimination Match for the top sixteen..."
"Has been... completely eliminated!!!"
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