The tournament host's voice was loud and infectious as he introduced each member of the two teams in turn.
When the names of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy members were read, cheers erupted from the crowd one after another.
And when the Giant Axe Sect members were introduced, there was no lack of shouts to encourage them.
The host continued to stir up the atmosphere, gradually raising the audience's emotions.
The tension and heat on the field grew more intense as the introductions went deeper.
Just as the atmosphere reached its peak, the host suddenly dropped a bombshell, instantly causing an uproar throughout the arena.
The chief judge for this Continental Soul Master Tournament will be personally served by the Fiend Douluo, Huang Jinxu!
The Fiend Douluo Huang Jinxu was a genuine Titled Douluo powerhouse with formidable strength, and he rarely appeared in public.
Yet for this tournament, they had actually invited a Titled Douluo to preside as the judge starting right from the first round of the knockout stages.
This was enough to show the extreme importance the Star Luo Empire placed on this tournament, and it also indirectly highlighted the high standard and weight of the event.
One must know that in previous tournaments, a Titled Douluo would only serve as a judge once the competition reached the Late Stage finals.
This arrangement by the Star Luo Empire undoubtedly made all the participating teams and the audience feel an unprecedented level of importance.
At the same time, it raised the authority and fairness of the tournament to a higher level.
After the introductions of both teams were finished, the judge gave the order, and the long-awaited first match officially began.
The result of this match had no suspense from the very beginning.
The absolute gap in strength meant that even if the Giant Axe Sect fought with all their might, they could hardly withstand the offensive of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
Ma Rulong and the others cooperated tacitly, firmly controlling the rhythm of the match throughout with their cultivation that far surpassed their opponents', leaving the Giant Axe Sect with no chance of a comeback and playing with ease.
Before long, the match came to an end, and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy easily defeated the Giant Axe Sect team with an absolute advantage, taking the first victory of this tournament.
With an undisputed victory, they once again proved the formidable strength of the champion team.
After taking the first win, Ma Rulong and the others left the stage calmly.
Xu Tianhao and his group didn't leave immediately to act showy or arrogant; they remained quietly in the academy's rest area, watching the subsequent matches one by one.
On one hand, they took this opportunity to observe the strength of other participating teams and get a sense of the overall level of this tournament.
On the other hand, Xu Tianhao had a target he had been following in his heart.
He particularly wanted to see what kind of performance Tang Wutong would put on and what level of strength she would display in this tournament.
Time passed bit by bit, and intense matches took place one after another, with teams from different Sects and academies showing their strengths.
Spirit comparisons, Spirit Ability collisions, and tactical gambits played out in turn, with brilliant duels emerging one after another on the field.
The cheers and shouts of the audience rose and fell, and the tense and heated atmosphere of the tournament was pushed higher and higher as each match progressed.
In the process of continuously watching the matches, Xu Tianhao did indeed gain a lot of unexpected information and saw many young powerhouses he hadn't noticed before.
But what concerned him the most was still the Clear Sky Sect team where Tang Wutong was located.
When the Clear Sky Sect team took the stage, it didn't cause much of a stir.
After all, the Clear Sky Sect had been in seclusion for many years, and many young Spirit Masters on the continent didn't know much about it.
But when the members of this team released all their Spirits and revealed their cultivation auras, the whole place instantly boiled over, creating an unprecedented sensation!
The Clear Sky Sect team had only seven members in total, without any reserve members, yet they possessed formidable strength enough to intimidate the entire field.
Within the team, there were actually three six-ring Spirit Emperors!
One must know that even for the two top academies that appeared before, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy and Shrek Academy...
The strongest configuration they showed in the first round was only one Spirit Emperor and six Spirit Kings.
(Ma Xiaotao didn't play in the first match.)
Yet the Clear Sky Sect directly brought out a lineup of three Spirit Emperors; such strength directly crushed all the other teams on the field.
What was even more shocking was that the cultivation levels of these three Spirit Emperors were all top-notch, reaching level sixty-nine, sixty-five, and sixty-three respectively.
Especially that level sixty-nine Spirit Emperor, who was only one step away from the Seventh Ring Soul Sage Realm.
Just the aura being emitted made many participating Spirit Masters feel fear in their hearts.
Besides the three core Spirit Emperors, the remaining four members of the Clear Sky Sect team all reached the five-ring Spirit King level, which included Tang Wutong.
Her Spirit was still that beautiful and dazzling Radiant Butterfly Goddess, but her spirit ring configuration was completely different from the original work.
Now Tang Wutong had a top-tier spirit ring configuration of two purple and three black, far exceeding the conventional configuration of Spirit Masters of the same generation.
Such strength and spirit ring configuration were both unexpected and yet within reason for Xu Tianhao.
The current Tang Wutong was completely different from the Wang Dong in the original work.
Relying on her innate top-tier talent, plus the support of top-tier resources...
Cultivating to the five-ring Spirit King level and having such a top-tier spirit ring configuration was not something surprising.
However, what Xu Tianhao absolutely did not expect was...
Throughout the entire match, he had been focusing his attention on Tang Wutong, silently observing her strength and performance.
After the Clear Sky Sect team easily defeated their opponent and the match ended...
Tang Wutong seemed to sense his gaze and looked directly in the direction where he was.
There was a hint of agile craftiness in her eyes, and she even threw a slightly provocative look at him.
It was as if she was declaring her strength, and also as if she was issuing a silent challenge to him.
Feeling Tang Wutong's gaze, the corners of Xu Tianhao's mouth curled up slightly: "Did she notice me?"
Xu Tianhao knew very well in his heart that some things simply couldn't be avoided.
The Clear Sky Sect had been silent for many years, and now they suddenly appeared at the tournament with such a formidable lineup.
Coupled with Tang Wutong's current extraordinary strength and state, Xu Tianhao didn't believe there wasn't Tang San's hand behind this.
Xu Tianhao was naturally very concerned about Tang San's existence and schemes.
The Clear Sky Sect's high-profile appearance this time and Tang Wutong's deliberate provocation must hide some unknown intentions.
Since it couldn't be avoided, then face it calmly and see what kind of tricks the other party was going to play.
As for the powerful lineup of three Spirit Emperors and four Spirit Kings from the Clear Sky Sect, it did indeed bring some pressure to Xu Tianhao.
After all, such strength was already at the top level in this tournament, enough to crush any other team.
But such pressure was still within his range of tolerance and didn't make him feel timid.
Xu Tianhao had absolute confidence in his own strength.
As long as no powerhouse at the Soul Sage level acted on the field, then among the younger generation in this tournament, he was an invincible existence.
Unless Tang Wutong used unconventional means and invited Tang San to possess her for a substitute fight.
Otherwise, relying solely on the current strength of the Clear Sky Sect team, he wouldn't be afraid at all.
Even in a direct confrontation, he had full confidence in contending with them.