After Xu Sanshi left the arena, the subsequent matches were not so smooth for the Shrek Team.
Two of the three Spirit Emperors from Shrek Academy had already appeared. Among the remaining five who had yet to take the stage, there was Ning Tian, a pure support system Spirit Master. In truth, those who could continue to fight were only one Spirit Emperor and three Spirit Kings.
The three Spirit Kings who took the stage next truly gave it their all, placing their respective trump cards on the arena without reservation,
but even so, their battle of attrition only eliminated one Spirit Emperor from the Holy Ghost Team.
Consequently, the ultimate burden fell upon Bei Bei's shoulders.
After Bei Bei underwent the Awakening of his Bright Holy Dragon Spirit, it possessed a natural suppressing effect against Evil Soul Masters.
Therefore, even when facing Evil Soul Masters with cultivation higher than his own, he was still able to defeat them in battle.
And that was precisely the case; he swept away his opponent like rolling through withered weeds.
His next opponent was none other than the vice-captain of the Holy Ghost Team, Tang Ya!
Standing on the arena, when he saw that face opposite him—one engraved deep into his bones—all of his tactics and ruthlessness were, in that single instant, drained of their core support as if pulled away.
Tang Ya stood on the opposite side of the arena, her dark blue eyes vacant and devoid of Spirit, as if she didn't recognize the person before her at all.
Her attacks were sharp and decisive, without the slightest hesitation, and every strike carried a merciless intent to kill.
Under Tang Ya's offensive, Bei Bei retreated step by step. He blocked blow after blow, the injuries on his body growing more and numerous, yet he never truly fought back.
He was merely defending and dodging, completely failing to truly strike out at Tang Ya.
Otherwise, given his strength, even though Tang Ya was a Spirit Saint, it wouldn't have come to the point where he lacked the power to fight.
In the preparation area, Xuan Zi's fists, as large as sand pots, clenched so tightly they creaked, his knuckles turning pale and veins bulging.
His gaze was locked dead onto the arena, his lips tightly pressed into a thin line.
By now, anyone could see that Shrek Academy was already out of the running for the championship this term.
At this moment, Tang Ya's entire body was enveloped in a layer of dark blue halo. That light was not bright, but it carried a disturbing sense of heaviness, as if even the surrounding air had been dyed with a dim color.
Her right index finger pointed forward, and the direction of her fingertip pointed precisely at Bei Bei opposite her.
By her side, a long spear emitting a dark golden glow throughout its body had already condensed and formed. Its shaft was slender, its surface flowing with fine patterns, and its sharp spear tip vibrated slightly in the air, emitting a low hum.
The Blue Silver Grass that had originally been floating and dancing around her now seemed to hear some sort of summons, turning into streams of dark blue afterimages that instantly merged into the long spear, making its aura even more condensed and sharp.
Bei Bei could clearly sense a sharpness emanating from this long spear—a piercing sensation that was pure to the extreme, as if locked on by some unstoppable force.
However, facing this impending strike, the solemnity in his eyes slowly dissipated, replaced by a gentleness that caused one's heart to tighten at a glance.
That gentleness carried a bit of calmness and a bit of release, as if he had long since prepared himself for something.
Following that, he actually took the initiative to disperse the power of light and thunder on his body. The golden and blue-white lights that had originally flowed across his skin rapidly receded like a receding tide, stripping away all defenses from his entire body.
He just stood there in the center of the arena, looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar figure opposite him, his lips moving slightly as he gently called out: "Xiao Ya, I miss you so much."
The voice was very soft and almost drowned out in the noisy arena, yet it clearly entered Tang Ya's ears.
Tang Ya's originally vacant gaze seemed to flicker slightly in this single instant.
But it was already too late for her to withdraw her hand. Her Spirit Ability had already been unleashed, and the fully charged long spear was projected forth with an irreversible momentum, leaving a streak of dark golden light in mid-air as it flew straight toward Bei Bei's chest.
Bei Bei did not dodge or attempt to block. He just stood there quietly, allowing the long spear to pierce into his right chest, accompanied by a muffled sound of tearing flesh, before passing straight through his body.
In the Shrek Academy preparation area, the moment Xuan Zi saw that dark golden long spear pierce through Bei Bei's right chest and fly out from his back with a burst of blood, he could no longer hold back.
"Boom!!!"
His entire figure leaped into the air from the preparation area, charging straight toward the direction of the arena. That unmasked Super Douluo aura exploded across mid-air.
As an elder veteran of Shrek Academy, he knew Bei Bei's identity clearer than anyone else.
He was Elder Mu's only descendant. If anything happened to Bei Bei in this match, he wouldn't be able to give an explanation when he returned.
Under a single punch from him, the defensive soul tool barrier on the periphery of the arena shattered with a boom like a layer of thin ice. Zheng Zhan, the Unbroken Douluo who served as the referee, watched Xuan Zi—whose momentum was astonishing, pressing down like a mountain—as his heart suddenly tightened. He even instinctively took half a step back, a trace of panic flashing through his expression.
However, just at the moment when Xuan Zi was about to barge into the arena area, a figure appeared without warning in the sky above the arena, steadily blocking Xuan Zi's path.
That person was tall, his grayish-black robe motionless in the wind, and a pair of aged yet sharp eyes looked at Xuan Zi without any emotion.
At the same time, he slowly spoke: "Outsiders are not allowed to interfere in the match. Xuan Zi, what do you want to do?"
Xuan Zi abruptly halted his momentum in mid-air, forcing that violent aura to be pressed down.
He looked at the person before him with eyes full of dread; he couldn't beat him.
Even though he had rampaged across the continent for many years and had a fiery temper, when facing this existence whose fame rivaled Elder Mu's, he had to weigh his own worth.
The one able to stop him at this moment was naturally the Limit Douluo, Long Xiaoyao.
Xuan Zi was indeed used to being "overbearing" on ordinary days. Relying on his own cultivation and Shrek's reputation, he hardly put many people in his eyes.
Yet at this moment, the impulse to strike out instinctively was forcibly suppressed before Long Xiaoyao's abyss-like calm aura.
He had no choice but to swallow back the words that had already surged to his throat, holding that breath in his chest for several breaths before finally switching to a tone that was barely suppressed.
Glancing at the referee Zheng Zhan below, he said coldly: "Your Eminence Dragon Emperor, the match referee is inactive, and I am merely worried about the Student's safety."
Zheng Zhan never expected that this fire could still burn onto his own head, and hearing this, he felt a wave of grievance.
He stood at the referee's podium, opened his mouth, but found that he had no way to defend himself at all.
Who could have imagined that Bei Bei would actively give up resistance?
Even if his reaction was faster, it was too late to intervene and stop it within such a short time.
Yet facing the public accusation from Super Douluo Xuan Zi, he didn't dare to say much else. His expression couldn't help but sink a few shades, and he pressed his lips together without replying.
Long Xiaoyao hovered in mid-air, looking at Xuan Zi with a calm gaze, and asked indifferently: "Then what do you still want to do now?"
Xuan Zi lowered his head to look at the center of the arena. Bei Bei was half-kneeling there, the wound on his right chest still seeping blood outward, staining a small patch of the arena floor dark red.
His complexion was pale, his breathing hurried and shallow, and his whole body looked as if he would collapse at any moment.
Xuan Zi furrowed his brows tightly. He knew that time could no longer be wasted; dragging it out any further would only make Bei Bei's injuries even heavier.
He gritted his teeth, his tone carrying unwillingness, and said in a deep voice: "This match... Shrek admits defeat."
Even if Xuan Zi did not open his mouth to say this, the result was already self-evident.
With the individual matches ending in such a result, even if there were team matches afterward, with the entire Shrek Team injured and their core combat strength lost, a comeback was already impossible.
Long Xiaoyao glanced at him, said nothing more, and his figure flickered slightly before disappearing as if melting into the air, as if he had never appeared at all.
Xuan Zi landed on the arena, walked to Bei Bei's side, and squatted down.
He looked at Bei Bei's pale face, many words blocked at the edge of his mouth, yet no matter what, he couldn't speak them out.
How could he not know what Bei Bei was thinking? That was the person he had searched for years, the person he was unwilling to truly harm on the arena no matter what.
But this was a match! For Bei Bei to do this was simply casting Shrek Academy's Ten Thousand Years of glory behind his mind.
With his injuries at this moment, he wouldn't be able to take the stage for any subsequent matches no matter what. The entire Shrek Team had lost a core combatant; let alone contending for the championship, they probably wouldn't even be able to protect the third-place ranking.
In the end, Xuan Zi only let out a long sigh, saying no more words of blame.
He reached out and helped Bei Bei up from the ground, carefully avoiding the wound on his right chest, and supported him step by step down the arena.
----------------------------------------------
A/N:
5 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
1 Review = 1 Bonus Chapter
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.