A perfectly fine Guardian squadron mission had actually turned out like this.
If he had known earlier, he should never have easily allowed an unreliable fellow like Zhou Yi to be the team leader. How wonderful it would have been to let his grand-disciple, Wang Yan, lead the team instead.
Although he didn't highly regard Wang Yan, the man at least possessed the virtue of being steady and prudent. Had he been the leader, perhaps the Shrek students would not have suffered such heavy casualties, and Elder Mu's great-great-grandson wouldn't have been turned into a eunuch because of it.
As things stood, the only way to give an explanation to the academy and to Elder Mu was to secure the championship. This was also currently his only means of atonement.
Shortly after Xuan Zi left, Zhou Yi retrieved a spare old woman mask from her storage soul tool and put it on her face. In the past, she had only worn the mask to deliberately disguise herself as an old woman to increase her so-called intimidation factor. But now, for the rest of this life, she feared she would never be able to take this mask off.
Star Luo City.
As the capital of the Star Luo Empire, it possessed a history of over ten thousand years and was an indisputably magnificent city. The city walls stood a hundred meters high and were equally a hundred meters thick, constructed entirely from hardened rock. It spanned an area of over a thousand square kilometers, which was sufficient to accommodate a population of twenty million residents.
The core of the entire city lay within the inner city at the center of Star Luo City—the former Star Luo Imperial Palace. This palace had been constructed back when the Duke of White Tiger's lineage still comprised the imperial family. Following years of renovations, its scale had grown grander and grander, and its architecture was magnificent to the extreme.
The Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Duel Tournament was being held right on Star Luo Square in front of the imperial city. Not far to the east of Star Luo Square stood the seven-story Star Emperor Hotel. It had been specifically cleared out to serve as lodging for the participating contestants from the advanced soul master academies and advanced soul engineer academies of various nations.
As the reigning champions and the number one soul master academy on the continent, Shrek Academy's participating team members were arranged to stay in the luxurious rooms on the very top floor. Each person had an individual bedroom, and a dedicated conference room was provided for their use.
Also arranged to stay on the top floor was the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. Located on the western side, they stood in direct opposition to Shrek Academy on the east, separated only by a single wall in the middle.
When Xuan Zi, feeling irritable and anxious due to the heavy losses Shrek had suffered in the Ming Dou Mountain Range, came out to the corridor to catch some fresh air, he happened to see a youth around twelve or thirteen years old walking into the hotel from outside.
The person was dressed in the uniform of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. He possessed a handsome face, and despite his young age, his soul power fluctuations had already reached approximately Rank 40.
Yet, Xuan Zi merely cast a single glance before instantly losing interest. As far as he knew, the students of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy all relied on drugs with side effects to raise their cultivation bases. They could not compare to the students of their Shrek Academy at all; they were not even worth mentioning.
Only, he wasn't sure if it was just an illusion, but Xuan Zi felt a vague sense of familiarity from this person. In his haste, however, he truly couldn't recall where he had seen him before. Xuan Zi simply cast the thought aside, unstopping his wine gourd and producing a roasted chicken leg he carried with him, using the alcohol and meat to calm his vexed mood.
...
The youth was naturally Feng Piaoling. Back when he was still at the academy, he had seen Xuan Zi from afar. At that time, because of Wang Yan, the old man seemed to have secretly observed Huo Yuhao for a period, and had observed him as well. It was only because Feng Piaoling had grown a fair amount over the past year and had changed his attire that the other party failed to recognize him.
"Never mind. Shrek will have people who recognize me during the tournament anyway. When the time comes, I'll just have this fellow Xuan Zi ask Zhang Lexuan out alone to persuade me to return to Shrek Academy."
Thinking this way, Feng Piaoling walked up to the hotel front desk. After inquiring clearly about the rooms assigned to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, he rode the specialized soul tool elevator up to the western suites on the seventh floor.
The entrance to the western wing opened into a five-hundred-square-meter conference room, with twelve rooms lining each of the two walls—more than enough to accommodate the participating soul master or soul engineer students.
Inside the conference room, Teacher Ma, Xuan Ziven, and Mu Jin sat in the primary seats. The seven official team members of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, led by Ma Rulong, sat on the left side, while the ten preparatory team members—Jiang Nannan, Xiao Xiao, Nanmen Yun'er, Cui Yajie, Zhu Lu, Lan Susu, Lan Luolo, Na Na, Huang Chutian, and Wang Gang—sat on the right. An honest-looking young man whose appearance bore a thirty to forty percent resemblance to Mu Jin sat at the very end.
"A total of one hundred and thirty-three advanced soul master academies and advanced soul engineer academies are participating in this Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Duel Tournament. The participating age limit is under twenty years old."
"The tournament is divided into three stages."
"The first stage is the knockout rounds, which employ a team battle format of seven-versus-seven. This will take place over three days, and any team that loses will be directly eliminated."
"The second stage involves group division, with roughly eight to nine teams per group competing in round-robin matches. The round-robin stage features three formats: the first is the single-elimination match, the second is the three-two-two cooperative format, and the third is the seven-versus-seven team battle. Lots will be drawn before each match, and whichever format is drawn will dictate the method of competition. The top two from each group will advance to the round of sixteen."
"The third stage is the finals, which will also be conducted via a knockout format. The ultimate victor will be crowned the champion."
When Feng Piaoling walked into the conference room, he happened to hear Mu Jin explaining the tournament rules to everyone. He pushed the door open and stepped inside. Upon seeing Feng Piaoling, everyone rose to their feet one after another.
"Teacher Mu Jin, it looks like you've adapted quite well," Feng Piaoling remarked as his first sentence upon seeing them.
"Haha, Piaoling, by going out this time, you've picked up an absolute treasure for our Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. Although Teacher Mu Jin's soul power isn't high, her foundation in soul master theory and the fundamental knowledge of soul power application is incredibly solid. Our students have benefited immensely over the past few days. Furthermore, the dean has already decided to officially hire Teacher Mu Jin as a special guest lecturer for our academy."
The one speaking was Teacher Ma, the leader of the official team. Soul master theory had always been a shortcoming of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, and it was evident that Mu Jin had won his approval through her knowledge and capability.
"Teacher Ma praises me too highly." Mu Jin smiled, then turned to Feng Piaoling and said, "Piaoling, I've already arranged a room for Tang Ya to settle into. In addition, I brought my younger brother, Mu Zhan, over as well. Mu Zhan, hurry up and greet the Boss."
Hearing Mu Jin's words, the honest-looking young man immediately stood up and called out respectfully, "Boss."
"Mm. Work hard from now on, and do not disappoint your sister's expectations." This statement from Feng Piaoling served as his official acceptance of the young man.
This was entirely out of respect for Mu Jin. After all, Mu Zhan's inherent talent was not particularly outstanding, and he had not known Feng Piaoling prior to this. Accepting him into the Soul Hall was purely a favor to Mu Jin.
Having received Feng Piaoling's acknowledgment, Mu Zhan instantly became excited beyond measure. Over the past few days, he had truly witnessed the strength of the people within the Soul Hall. He was already fifteen years old, yet his soul power was only at Rank 31, ranking him fourth from the bottom in cultivation within the Soul Hall. Yet even Wang Gang, who possessed the lowest cultivation at a mere Rank 23, could knock him down with a single punch.
Once he received Feng Piaoling's guidance in the future, it would not be difficult for him to secure achievements far exceeding his inherent talent, even if he couldn't stand shoulder-to-shoulder with those monsters of the Soul Hall.
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