Above the Sky Screen, light and shadow flowed.
[Black World, Star Luo City, inside the hotel room where the Shrek Team was staying.]
[On the evening of the third day after the knockout tournament ended, Teacher Wang Yan finally gathered all the team members together to hold a summary meeting. Over these three days, more than a hundred teams had taken turns on stage, and it wasn't until this afternoon that the knockout tournament finally concluded.]
["134 teams, 67 advanced." Teacher Wang Yan stood in front of the tactical board, his expression calm. "Exactly half have been eliminated."]
[He flipped through the materials in his hands, his tone gradually becoming solemn: "Do not think that because the first match was easy, the subsequent opponents will be the same. In this knockout tournament, many veteran academies have encountered trouble. The Star Luo National Academy took fifteen minutes to resolve their opponents, and the Heaven Dou Empire Academy was even pushed to a desperate situation by an ordinary academy."]
["Even the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy spent over ten minutes."]
[The room went quiet. The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy was a recognized favorite to win the championship. The fact that they had to spend over ten minutes showed the intensity of this competition.]
["The good news is that Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochen are recovering well." Teacher Wang Yan changed the subject. "According to the current progress, they will be able to fight within half a month."]
[Bei Bei frowned slightly: "Half a month... Can we hold on until then during the round-robin tournament?"]
["That is why we need tactics." Teacher Wang Yan's gaze swept across everyone. "The rules of the knockout tournament were 7v7, one match deciding life or death. But the round-robin tournament is different."]
[He wrote a few words on the tactical board — "Group Round-Robin".]
["There are eight groups in the round-robin tournament. Our group only has eight teams, and each team must play seven matches. The top two from each group will advance to the round of sixteen."]
["Seven matches; the margin for error is much larger than in the knockout tournament. If we lose one or two matches, there is still a chance."]
[Everyone breathed a slight sigh of relief, but Teacher Wang Yan's next words made them tense up again.]
["But the problem is — we exposed too much in the last match." He looked at Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong. "Six hundred-thousand-year spirit rings, plus a Spirit Fusion Ability. Now all the teams are watching us, studying our background."]
["Therefore, in the upcoming round-robin tournament, we will not let Yuhao take action unless absolutely necessary." Teacher Wang Yan pushed up his glasses. "Just his standing on the sidelines is the greatest deterrent."]
[Huo Yuhao was silent for a moment, then nodded.]
["Then the problem arises." Teacher Wang Yan turned to the other reserve members. "In the situation where Yuhao does not take action, we need to rely on you to win."]
["I need to know each of your abilities."]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
In the tavern, the commoners listened intently.
"134 teams only advanced 67; this elimination rate is too high."
"Even the Sun Moon Empire spent over ten minutes? It seems this competition is indeed intense."
"Shrek's group only has eight teams, seven matches; the margin for error is indeed large. As long as we don't lose too many matches, we can advance."
"But the problem is, Huo Yuhao cannot take action casually. Can the others do it?"
"Regardless, those Shrek students are one in ten thousand, and those reserve team members are even more so, having broken through layer upon layer of selection. Their strength goes without saying; they surely have some trump cards."
"With Shrek Academy's foundation, challenging those of a higher level is not difficult!"
"You're right!"
Shrek City, Inner Court.
Xuan Zi nodded slightly: "Teacher Wang Yan's line of thinking is correct. Huo Yuhao's deterrent power is more valuable than his combat strength. As long as he stands on the sidelines, the other teams will not dare to act rashly."
Yan Shaozhe said: "But the round-robin tournament requires seven matches; relying solely on deterrence won't win them."
"Therefore, he needs to understand the strength of the other team members." Xuan Zi looked at the Sky Screen. "Let's see what those children can bring to the table."
[Inside the room, Bei Bei, as the captain of the reserve team, was the first to stand out.]
["My Spirit is the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, attack system." He raised his hand, and arcs of electricity faintly flickered in his palm. "Four Spirit Abilities — Thunder Dragon Claw, Thunderous Might, Thunder's Fury, Thunder Dragon Head."]
[He demonstrated simply. Blue electric light flashed in the room, with astonishing momentum. Teacher Wang Yan nodded and recorded quickly in his notebook.]
[Next were Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan. Xu Sanshi's Spirit was the Mysterious Turtle, defense type; Jiang Nannan's Spirit was the Soft Bones Rabbit, agility-attack system. The two cooperated tacitly, and their strength was not bad.]
[Teacher Wang Yan recorded one by one, yet his brows remained unfurrowed.]
[Until the last person —]
["He Caitou, it's your turn." Teacher Wang Yan looked at the dark-skinned youth in the corner.]
[Everyone's eyes were focused over.]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
In the tavern, someone stared at He Caitou's skin color and suddenly frowned.
"Look at He Caitou's skin color... brown?"
"What's wrong? Sunburned, probably."
"No. Have you forgotten? The people of the Sun Moon Empire royal family, the Xu family, have this kind of brown skin!"
The tavern suddenly went quiet. Everyone carefully scrutinized the dark-skinned youth on the Sky Screen, and the more they looked, the more they felt he resembled them.
"Could it be that he is a member of the Sun Moon Empire royal family?"
"But his Spirit is a cigar. The Xu family's Spirit is the Sun; what does that have to do with a cigar?"
"That is true... Perhaps it's a coincidence?"
White World, Sun Moon Empire, Bright Capital.
The commoners were also discussing spiritedly.
"That He Caitou, his skin color is the same as our royal family."
"Spirit is a cigar? The Xu family doesn't have this kind of Spirit."
"Then who is he? He couldn't possibly be a prince lost outside, could he?"
"You're thinking too much. The Spirits awakened by the royal bloodline are all the Sun; this is common knowledge. His Spirit is a cigar; he is definitely not from the Xu family."
"But that skin color..."
"A coincidence, surely."
Sun Moon Empire Imperial Palace, in a certain great hall.
A middle-aged man dressed in magnificent clothes gazed at He Caitou on the Sky Screen, his brows locked tightly. That skin color was indeed too similar. But the Spirit did not match... He shook his head and did not continue to think about it.
[He Caitou's face flushed red, and he stood in front of everyone, stammering, unable to speak for a long time.]
["He Caitou?" Teacher Wang Yan urged.]
["I..." He Caitou scratched his head, his face full of embarrassment. "My Spirit... perhaps everyone might not be willing to use it."]
["What kind of Spirit is so mysterious?" Xu Sanshi asked curiously.]
[He Caitou took a deep breath, as if he had made a great determination: "My Spirit is... a cigar."]
[The room was quiet for a moment.]
["A cigar?" Xu Sanshi was stunned. "What is that thing?"]
["It is... a type of tobacco product." He Caitou's voice became smaller and smaller. "My first Spirit Ability is called..." He gritted his teeth. "I Have A Thick Cigar."]
[Pfft —]
[Xu Sanshi was the first who couldn't hold it back and laughed out loud. Bei Bei and Xiao Xiao were also holding it in, their shoulders shaking. Even the usually serious Teacher Wang Yan had the corner of his mouth twitch.]
["Don't laugh!" He Caitou's face turned bright red. "Although its name is... a bit like that, its effect is very strong!"]
["Fine, fine, fine, we won't laugh, we won't laugh." Xu Sanshi endured his laughter. "Then show us, just how strong is it?"]
Black World, Douluo Continent.
In the tavern, the commoners laughed until they were bent double.
"I Have A Thick Cigar? What kind of bizarre Spirit Ability is this?!"
"Hahahaha, He Caitou is too miserable. Who wouldn't laugh when this Spirit Ability name is said out loud?"
"But he dared to say it out loud, he's a man. If it were me, I wouldn't even dare to open my mouth."
Someone wiped away the tears of laughter: "Stop laughing, let's see the effect first. What if it's actually very strong?"
[He Caitou took out a brown cigar from his storage spirit tool and handed it to Xu Sanshi. "Light it, take a puff."]
[Xu Sanshi took the cigar, lit it with his spirit power, and tentatively took a puff.]
[The moment the smoke entered his throat, his expression changed.]
["This..." He widened his eyes and took two more deep puffs. "My mental force... is increasing?!"]
[Teacher Wang Yan stood up straight with a start.]
["He Caitou, explain clearly!"]
Upon seeing this, He Caitou was no longer coy. He puffed out his chest and said, "My first Spirit Ability is called Mental Stimulation Thick Cigar. Each one can burn for twenty minutes. While smoking it, it helps the user focus their mind and concentrate their mental force."
He paused for a moment and added, "It provides a ten percent boost to the Spirit Abilities of mental-type Spirit Masters."
The room fell silent.
Ten percent. It did not sound like much, but in a duel between experts, it was enough to determine life or death. More importantly, the Spirit Abilities of mental-type Spirit Masters were inherently the hardest to defend against. A ten percent boost meant Huo Yuhao's Mental Detection and Mental Shock would become even more lethal.
"And—" He Caitou's voice grew more confident, "my cigars are different from those of ordinary support system Spirit Masters."
"How are they different?" Teacher Wang Yan pressed.
"Low consumption," He Caitou said. "It only takes a small amount of spirit power to make a cigar. I can make many at once, and they can be stored for two days without issue. During battle, teammates just need to light them and smoke; they don't need me standing nearby consuming spirit power the whole time."
Teacher Wang Yan's pupils constricted slightly.
He naturally understood what this meant. Ordinary support system Spirit Masters needed to continuously consume spirit power during battle to maintain their effects. Once a support system Spirit Master fell, the strength of the entire team would be greatly compromised. But He Caitou's cigars were different—they were single-use consumables. Once lit, they could be used without He Caitou himself needing to be present.
"What about your next three Spirit Abilities?" Teacher Wang Yan's voice had changed slightly.
He Caitou held up three fingers: "My second Spirit Ability is the Strength Boosting Big Cigar, which increases strength; my third is the Defense Boosting Long Cigar, which increases defense; and my fourth is the spirit power Boosting Thin Cigar, which increases spirit power recovery speed."
"The effects are the same as the first Spirit Ability. Each one burns for twenty minutes, and the boost… is about ten percent."
The room went completely quiet.
Black World, Douluo Continent. The tavern erupted in chaos.
"Ten percent?! Twenty minutes?! And no one needs to follow them?!"
"This is a food system Spirit Master? This is a treasure!"
"One person can raise an entire team's strength by a whole tier! How could Shrek hide such a talent so deeply?"
Someone said excitedly, "With He Caitou, Shrek has hope in the round-robin tournament! Huo Yuhao doesn't even need to make a move; the others can fight!"
Shrek City, Inner Court. Yan Shaozhe stood up abruptly, his face livid.
"He Caitou? A food system Spirit Master? Shrek has such a genius, and I did not know?!"
Qian Duoduo was also stunned: "He… isn't he Fan Yu's student? From the Soul Tool Department."
"The Soul Tool Department?!" Yan Shaozhe's voice changed, "A food system Spirit Master, and you guys in the Soul Tool Department hid him away?! Do you know what such a talent means to the Martial Soul Department?!"
Qian Duoduo opened his mouth but could not say anything. Xuan Zi's expression was also grim. A food system Spirit Master capable of boosting the entire team's strength by fifteen percent would be a treasure in any academy. Yet Shrek had let him remain obscure in the Soul Tool Department for so long.
"After the tournament ends, regarding the Soul Tool Department…" Xuan Zi paused, "Have they ever reported this?"
Qian Duoduo broke into a cold sweat: "This… He Caitou is usually very low-key, and his Spirit… the name really does not sound good, perhaps…"
"Perhaps what?!" Yan Shaozhe roared, "You do not report it just because the Spirit name does not sound good?! Has the Soul Tool Department lost its mind?!"
Qian Duoduo was rendered speechless by the scolding.
Teacher Wang Yan took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. "He Caitou, how many cigars can you make at once?"
"It depends on the time," He Caitou thought for a moment. "Give me a day, and making three or four hundred is no problem."
"That's enough." A gleam flashed in Teacher Wang Yan's eyes. "Seven matches in the round-robin tournament, two per match, that is more than enough."
He turned to the others: "You should all try one."
Xu Sanshi had already been unable to resist; he lit another one, took a deep drag, and a look of enjoyment appeared on his face. Bei Bei also took one, tried it, and nodded.
When it was Xiao Xiao and Jiang Nannan's turn, the two looked at each other. Although they were a bit resistant, they still took the cigars, though they did not light them.
"I don't need it." Wang Dong refused directly, his voice somewhat cold.
He Caitou scratched his head, feeling a bit awkward: "Classmate Wang Dong does not like the smell of tobacco, I understand."
Wang Dong did not explain, just turned his head away.
Teacher Wang Yan did not force him, continuing, "There is another piece of good news. He Caitou's cigars are also useful for armies. Just one person could boost the strength of an army of thousands by several percent."
The room fell silent again.
Everyone knew what this meant. One He Caitou was a booster for an entire army. Such a talent was a national treasure in any country.
Black World, Douluo Continent. The atmosphere in the tavern became subtle.
"One person, boosting an army of thousands? This…"
"No wonder Shrek wanted to hide him. If the Sun Moon Empire found out about someone like this, would they not desperately try to snatch him up?"
"But the problem is, it seems Shrek itself did not know? Yan Shaozhe's expression earlier was clearly that of someone hearing it for the first time."
"The Soul Tool Department… kept it from the Martial Soul Department?"
"That move is legendary."
White World, Sun Moon Empire, Bright Capital. The commoners watched the Sky Screen, their eyes full of complexity.
"That He Caitou… is he really a food system Spirit Master?"
"One person boosting the strength of an army of thousands. Someone like this would receive at least the treatment of a Marshal in our Sun Moon Empire."
"Shrek actually let him go learn to be a Soul Engineer? This is a waste of talent!"
Someone sighed, "That is why I say, Shrek's selection system has huge problems. A talent like He Caitou stayed right under their noses for so long without being discovered. If it were not for the Sky Screen, he would probably still be buried."
Sun Moon Empire Imperial Palace. The middle-aged man from before frowned again. The stronger He Caitou's strength, the more suspicious his identity became. But his Spirit did not match… He shook his head, deciding to continue observing.
Teacher Wang Yan composed himself and stood back in front of the tactical board.
"I will emphasize the rules of the round-robin tournament one more time." He used a pen to draw a table on the board. "There are eight groups, with the top two from each group advancing. Our group only has eight teams, so we will play seven matches."
"The matches use a two-two-three format. Two one-on-one matches, one two-on-two match, and the last is a three-on-three match. If the first four matches are tied, the fifth match is a team battle to decide the winner."
"My plan is—for the first three matches, we will avoid letting Yuhao play if possible." Teacher Wang Yan looked at Huo Yuhao. "Your performance in the last match has already caused all the teams to study you. Your presence on the sidelines is the biggest threat. Because they do not know when you will make a move, they will keep holding back their trump cards to defend against you."
"And what we need to do is to score as many points as possible in the first three matches. He Caitou's cigars, the frontal attacks from Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, and the agility-attack system strikes from Jiang Nannan—these are enough for us to win the majority of the matches."
"In the event we reach a team battle…" He paused, "That will be when Yuhao and Wang Dong enter the field."
Everyone nodded.
Teacher Wang Yan put away the pen, his gaze sweeping over everyone's face: "Seven matches in the round-robin tournament; we need to win at least five. With He Caitou here, I have confidence."
He Caitou puffed out his chest, and a smile finally appeared on his dark face.
Black World, Douluo Continent. In the tavern, the commoners listened with burning excitement.
"Five matches? With He Caitou there, I think they can win six!"
"Huo Yuhao does not need to make a move, and the others can fight. This is a trump card!"
"Shrek might actually go far this time."