The morning in Star Luo City was bright and sunny, a cool breeze carrying a refreshing chill.
For most people, it was just another ordinary day. But for the teams participating in the All-Continent High-Rank Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament, every single day was filled with uncertainty and pressure.
The members of the Sun Moon Royal Team had gone a bit wild the night before, but they were Spirit Masters after all. With their outstanding physiques, a short session of calming their minds and regulating their breathing was enough to restore them to peak condition.
"Let's go. Even though we don't have a match today, we should still take a look at the other teams," Liu Yuan said as he changed into a clean team uniform and stepped out of the room, looking refreshed.
Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and the others followed behind him, all wearing relaxed smiles.
When they arrived at the spectator stands of Star Luo Plaza, the appearance of the Sun Moon Royal Team immediately caused a small stir.
Yesterday's match had been far too shocking.
Liu Yuan's overwhelmingly dominant figure was still deeply etched into the memories of countless spectators.
Seeing him appear in person, many people instinctively cast looks of awe and admiration.
Liu Yuan had long since grown accustomed to such gazes. Calmly, he found a seat, turned his eyes toward the arena, and began carefully observing the day's matches.
On the opposite side, the Shrek Academy rest area was a completely different scene.
A gloomy haze seemed to hang over the entire area.
All the members of the Shrek team were present, but each of them looked dispirited, like eggplants struck by frost—utterly wilted.
Dai Yueheng sat slumped in his chair, staring blankly at the ground. His fists clenched and loosened repeatedly, betraying the fierce struggle raging inside him.
Chen Zifeng and the others wore dark expressions and remained silent.
Even the usually lively reserve members like Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi were uncharacteristically quiet, confusion written all over their faces.
For people accustomed to failure, losing one more time might simply add another scar.
But for these Shrek students—raised from childhood on the belief that Shrek is invincible and I am a genius—yesterday's crushing defeat was like being dragged from the clouds into a muddy swamp.
It didn't just break their bones. It shattered the pride and faith they relied on to stand tall.
This psychological blow was far harder to heal than any physical injury.
Especially when their eyes unintentionally drifted toward the Sun Moon Royal Team across the arena and they saw Liu Yuan chatting and laughing casually, that feeling of frustration and helplessness surged like a tide, drowning what little fighting spirit they had left.
"That guy… is he really human?"
Xu Sanshi stared at Liu Yuan in the distance and muttered under his breath, his voice filled with bitterness.
Jiang Nannan beside him said nothing, but the dimness in her eyes spoke volumes.
This lifeless atmosphere made Xuan Zi, seated at the very front, feel extremely uneasy.
He stuffed chicken legs into his mouth while secretly glancing back at the team members.
The chicken legs tasted the same as always, yet to him they felt like chewing wax—dry and hard to swallow.
"Ahem…"
Xuan Zi cleared his throat, trying to break the suffocating silence.
"Uh… everyone, cheer up a bit!"
"Yesterday was just an accident. Victory and defeat are common in battle. As long as we learn from it, we'll win it back next time!"
"You're Shrek's geniuses—a gathering of monsters! How could a single setback knock you down?"
Unfortunately, his attempt at encouragement fell completely flat.
The team members merely glanced at him briefly, their eyes dull and numb, before lowering their heads again.
Xuan Zi grew anxious.
He knew all too well that if this continued, the Shrek team would truly be finished.
The round-robin stage was still manageable—they had already qualified, so it didn't matter much.
But once the round-robin ended and they entered the brutal top-sixteen elimination stage, if they had bad luck and ran into the Sun Moon Royal Team early…
With their current state—intimidated before the fight, morale completely broken—forget winning. They might not even have the courage to fight back and would be eliminated outright.
That would become Shrek Academy's greatest humiliation in ten thousand years!
"No… this absolutely can't go on."
Xuan Zi took a vicious bite of his chicken leg, his brow tightly furrowed.
That freak Liu Yuan was indeed terrifying, but aside from him, Shrek wasn't actually inferior to the Sun Moon Royal Team in overall strength.
As long as morale could be lifted and tactics arranged properly, they wouldn't necessarily be powerless.
The real problem was that these kids had lost their spirit.
He had to find a way to divert their attention and change their mindset.
Over the next few days, the competition continued.
Although the Shrek team was resting, that heavy, oppressive atmosphere never lifted.
Xuan Zi watched it all, his anxiety growing by the day.
Finally, four days later, an opportunity appeared.
After the matches ended that day, Xuan Zi mysteriously summoned all the team members into a room.
"Ahem… I have some good news for everyone," Xuan Zi said, rubbing his hands together and forcing a friendly smile.
"I just heard that tonight, the largest auction house in Star Luo City is holding a top-tier auction."
"I hear there'll be all kinds of good stuff—rare metals, high-rank spirit tools, and even spirit bones."
At the word auction, a faint glimmer finally appeared in the eyes of the previously lifeless group.
They were young, after all, and instinctively curious about lively, unknown events like this.
Seeing their reaction, Xuan Zi was secretly delighted and immediately pressed on.
"Everyone's been under a lot of pressure lately. I was thinking—why don't we all go relax tonight? Consider it a chance to broaden your horizons."
At this point, Xuan Zi gritted his teeth as if making a huge decision and patted his chest.
"And tonight, as long as it's something you like—and the price isn't too outrageous—I'll buy it for you!"
"Consider it a reward for all your hard work!"
"Really?!"
Xu Sanshi was the first to jump up, his eyes wide as saucers.
"Elder Xuan, you're not joking, right? You're really paying?"
"Nonsense! When has this old man ever gone back on his word?" Xuan Zi snapped, though his heart was bleeding.
This was money he'd saved up for a long time, originally meant for top-quality food and fine wine. Now, for the sake of these kids' morale, his wallet was about to take a massive hit.
"Wow! Long live Elder Xuan!"
With Xuan Zi's promise, the atmosphere in the room finally became lively again.
Though they hadn't fully recovered their former vigor, at least they no longer looked like walking corpses.
Watching this, Xuan Zi secretly let out a sigh of relief.
Money could always be earned again. But if these kids' spirits truly broke, he wouldn't know how to face Elder Mu when he returned.
…
Meanwhile.
On the top floor of the Star Emperor Grand Hotel, inside Liu Yuan's room.
Liu Yuan had just returned from watching the matches and was about to rest when a familiar mechanical prompt suddenly sounded in his mind.
[Ding! A limited-time mission has been triggered!]
Liu Yuan raised an eyebrow in mild surprise.
With a thought, he immediately checked the mission details.
[Mission Name: Raiders of the Lost Treasure]
[Mission Objective: Attend tonight's top-tier auction in Star Luo City and successfully obtain the key item—Gold of Living Beings (Spirit Devouring Carving Knife).]
[Mission Reward: Random Pokémon World Item ×1]
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