Within the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Wu Qi had already reached the peak of Level 49 half a month ago.
Given his talent, even breaking through to the Titled Douluo realm would not present a bottleneck. Under normal circumstances, he should not have remained at Level 49 for long.
However, instead of rushing to break through, he chose to squeeze every last bit of benefit from the Ice and Fire spring while still at the Spirit Ancestor stage, pushing his physical body to its greatest possible limit.
Of course, he was not soaking in the spring every moment of every day.
After all, he was still human, not a god. If he did not eat, he would starve.
While they were eating that day, Dugu Bo asked.
"Kid, the tournament begins in just a few days. Aren't you worried at all?"
Wu Qi smiled and shook his head.
"A team battle isn't an individual battle. My own growth alone doesn't mean much. The team's growth is what really matters."
"Don't worry. Even without me, they'll only lose their anchor for a short while. They'll regain their rhythm soon enough."
Even if they were temporarily off their game, Feng Xiaotian and the others possessed more than enough individual skill to win their matches.
Since the person involved was unconcerned, Dugu Bo naturally saw no reason to worry either.
"Oh, right," Dugu Bo added. "I've already found a suitable Spirit Beast for you in the forest. A 21,000 year Windshadow Demon Bird. What do you think?"
Thanks to the knowledge he had gained during his years at a junior Spirit Master academy, Wu Qi was familiar with this rare Spirit Beast.
The Windshadow Demon Bird resembled a phoenix in appearance, though it possessed no phoenix bloodline. Instead, it was known for its extraordinary intelligence, which was why it carried the title "Demon."
Wu Qi laughed.
"Perfect. I'll take it. I'll be ready to break through in a few days, and then we'll go."
He could already feel the Ice and Fire spring becoming less effective. Before long, it would no longer benefit him.
Five days later, above Sunset Forest.
Two figures, one blue and one green, were hunting the Windshadow Demon Bird.
Although Wu Qi had not fought in quite some time, his combat skills had not dulled.
Against the 21,000 year Spirit Beast, his attacks were unable to inflict significant damage, but thanks to his superior speed, he effortlessly toyed with it.
Watching the scene, Dugu Bo sighed helplessly.
"Kid, stop playing around. I'll capture it. Hurry up and absorb the Spirit Ring."
No matter how careful someone was, accidents could still happen.
He was worried Wu Qi might overestimate himself and end up seriously injured by the Windshadow Demon Bird, preventing him from participating in the tournament.
Wu Qi silently nodded before quickly withdrawing from the battlefield.
Dugu Bo stepped in front of him.
The pursuing Windshadow Demon Bird let out an unwilling cry before immediately turning to flee.
But could it really escape from a Titled Douluo?
With a casual move from Dugu Bo, it was poisoned and crashed to the ground.
Wu Qi immediately rushed forward and controlled his wing blades, effortlessly delivering the killing blow.
Landing beside him, Dugu Bo shrugged.
"Kid, I know I'm nagging, but you have to know your limits. Even a 21,000 year Spirit Ring is something that would leave a peak Spirit King with only a slim chance of survival during absorption."
Wu Qi simply replied.
"Old man, have you forgotten how much my body has been strengthened?"
His physical body was more than capable of enduring the pressure of a 21,000 year Spirit Ring.
As for his spiritual strength, there was even less to worry about.
After all, with a 100,000 year spirit bone protecting him, what threat could the remnant soul of a mere ten thousand year Spirit Beast possibly pose?
Dugu Bo laughed awkwardly.
Thinking about all the extraordinary opportunities Wu Qi had obtained, he realized there truly was little to worry about.
Three hours later, five Spirit Rings shone beneath Wu Qi's feet.
Yellow, yellow, purple, black, black.
His successful absorption of the fifth Spirit Ring was complete.
Rather than asking about the Spirit Skill immediately, Dugu Bo analyzed the situation first.
"Your fifth Spirit Ring is 21,000 years old. That means your sixth Spirit Ring could rival the standard Spirit Ring configuration of a Spirit Sage, while your seventh Spirit Ring could match that of an ordinary Spirit Douluo."
"Doesn't that mean you could start absorbing 100,000 year Spirit Rings beginning with your eighth Spirit Ring?"
Wu Qi smiled faintly.
"In theory, yes."
Dugu Bo looked at him with obvious envy before snorting.
"This old man can't deal with 100,000 year Spirit Beasts, so don't come looking for me when the time comes!"
Wu Qi simply smiled without answering.
He knew exactly what Dugu Bo meant. The old man was just hoping to hear a few comforting words.
"Old man, Dugu Yan broke through to Spirit King before I did. Her strength might not even be inferior to mine."
Dugu Bo waved his hand dismissively.
"Enough. I'm not that petty."
"Besides, Yanyan is nearly six years older than you, yet you've already caught up and will surpass her before long. There's no comparison to be made."
Before Wu Qi could respond, Dugu Bo continued.
"Alright, tell me about your fifth Spirit Skill. I'm very curious."
Wu Qi's fifth Spirit Skill was identical to Azure Luan Douluo's sixth Spirit Skill, Azure Luan Shocking Strike, one of the innate abilities of the Azure LuanMartial Spirit.
It was a single target offensive Spirit Skill with incredible activation speed. Against opponents of the same level, there was almost no time to react.
Its power was equally formidable. Unless the target possessed exceptionally strong defenses, a single strike was enough to severely wound or even kill them.
There were only two days left before the Spirit Master Tournament officially began.
Thanks to Sun Buyu's guidance, Feng Xiaotian and the others gradually relaxed.
After all, judging by their strength, among all the previous tournaments, only the Spirit Hall Academy Team could truly stand on equal footing with them. Every other team was simply outmatched.
So before the Grand Finals arrived, what was there to be nervous about?
Since Sun Buyu had given them a few days off, they spent their time around the academy resting, chatting, and discussing the lineups of the various competing teams while casually passing the time.
After returning, Wu Qi immediately reported back to the academy and learned where everyone was gathered.
When he arrived outside the lounge, he did not enter right away. Instead, he concealed his aura and quietly observed everyone's behavior.
Although the conversation was casual, none of them displayed any arrogance.
When the discussion turned to the Canghui Academy Team, Feng Xiaotian's expression became serious.
"Canghui Academy's headmaster is a spiritual-type Spirit Master. Because of that, many spiritual-type Spirit Masters have sought him out and even joined the academy."
Everyone knew that the attack methods of spiritual-type Spirit Masters were extremely difficult for others to understand.
Before the tournament began, no one knew when they might be matched against Canghui Academy.
If Wu Qi had not returned, they would have had to work out a strategy on their own.
Most academies within the Heaven Dou Empire specialized in extreme single-type team compositions.
For example, the Wind, Water, and Fire Academies each consisted entirely of members sharing the same elemental attribute. Elephant Armored Academy, meanwhile, fielded a team made up entirely of defense-type Spirit Masters.
Canghui Academy was no exception.
Every member of their tournament team was either a spiritual-type or control-type Spirit Master.
Huo Wu voiced her opinion.
"Control-type Spirit Masters all share the same weakness. Their personal defenses are usually poor, so they rely on their teammates for protection."
Aside from an anomaly like Tang San, virtually every control-type Spirit Master followed that rule.
As for Huo Wu, strictly speaking, she should have been classified as an assault-type Spirit Master. However, because she possessed the forced knockback Spirit Skill Resistance Fire Ring, she was categorized as a control-type Spirit Master.
Huo Wushuang added.
"Canghui Academy has always been considered one of the favorites to qualify through the preliminary rounds."
During the first Spirit Master Tournament, Canghui Academy competed in the Balak Kingdom preliminary division.
At the time, the tournament format was still incomplete and much smaller than it is today. Each kingdom or duchy division had only one qualification spot.
Canghui Academy finished second in their division, narrowly missing the chance to advance to the promotion rounds and the Grand Finals.
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