Seeing this, a faint hint of surprise flashed in the depths of Huang Jinxu's eyes, and his eyebrows twitched slightly.
However, as a Titled Douluo, he instantly and perfectly masked this emotional fluctuation, showing no signs of it.
In his original expectation, it would be best if someone were crippled in this duel.
Although Xu Tianhao's cultivation hadn't been crippled, he looked pale, his spirit power was in disarray, and his whole body was in a wretched state.
Clearly, he had paid a heavy price.
Such a result met his expectations.
After the audience below clearly saw the situation on the stage, there was a brief moment of silence, followed by deafening cheers.
Shouts and cheers rose and fell, nearly lifting the roof off the entire Soul Fighting Arena.
"Won! The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy won! The one standing at the end is Xu Tianhao!"
"My god, the Prodigy with five ten-thousand-year spirit rings really lives up to his reputation!"
"Contending against three Spirit Emperors on his own and forcefully securing victory in the team battle—is this the top-tier strength of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy? How terrifying!"
"His Highness Xu Tianhao is too strong; he truly is the Genius prince of the Sun Moon Empire!"
Cheers echoed throughout the venue. In Shrek Academy's rest area, Yan Shaozhe watched the outcome on the Soul Fighting Platform with a furrowed brow and a face full of disbelief.
He had originally expected both sides to suffer losses, ideally with both sides perishing.
But he never expected that after a fierce battle, the person who could still stand steadily would be Xu Tianhao.
This young man's strength had far exceeded his expectations.
His potential was even more unfathomable.
If allowed to grow, he would surely become a major threat to Shrek Academy and even the Three Great Empires of the original Douluo Continent.
At this moment, a killing intent suddenly rose in Yan Shaozhe's heart as he stared coldly at Xu Tianhao's figure.
This child's talent is terrifying; he must not be allowed to stay!
If there's an opportunity in the future, this hidden danger must be completely eradicated; he cannot be allowed to continue growing.
Tang Wutong, in the Clear Sky Sect team's rest area, also stared blankly at the figure on the Soul Fighting Platform.
Although Xu Tianhao's clothes were tattered and he was covered in blood, looking extremely wretched,
his body remained as upright as a pine tree. Even though his spirit power was heavily depleted, he still maintained his pride and aura.
Tang Wutong's brow furrowed slightly, her eyes filled with complexity. She couldn't help but mutter to herself, her voice so soft only she could hear:
"Xu Tianhao... the mysterious person my father repeatedly mentioned, could it be you?"
On the Soul Fighting Platform, Huang Jinxu looked at the "tragic" scene before him and spoke with a flat expression and an indifferent tone.
"First match of the first round of the Round Robin Stage: Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy vs. Mingluo Sect. In the team battle, Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy wins!"
As the announcement fell, the cheers from the audience became even more fervent, rising wave after wave.
Applause and shouts intertwined, lasting for a long time.
The medical team, which had been standing by, rushed forward. Dozens of healing-type Spirit Masters boarded the Soul Fighting Platform one after another, using their Spirit Abilities to treat the fallen team members.
To make the act convincing, Jing Hongchen immediately strode to Xu Tianhao's side, his face full of anxiety and concern.
He reached out to carefully inspect Xu Tianhao's body and injuries, his brow tightly furrowed, while constantly whispering instructions.
Jing Hongchen looked extremely distressed and worried, playing the role of a protective teacher perfectly.
On the Mingluo Sect's side, the mysterious person who had been wearing a black robe and a mask also walked slowly to Qiu Hetian's side.
He appeared to be checking his injuries, but in reality, he was secretly using spirit power to monitor the surroundings, ensuring this charade didn't reveal any flaws.
Jing Hongchen and the masked man in black inadvertently made eye contact. Both were acting at their peak; intense anger and hostility instantly surged in their eyes,
as if they viewed each other as irreconcilable enemies, wishing they could step forward and fight right then.
This fake match, relying on the powerful Domain concealment of Xu Tianhao and Qiu Hetian,
combined with the seamless cooperation of the team members, even the sharp-eyed Titled Douluo experts below the stage didn't notice anything unusual.
Everyone thought it was an evenly matched, life-and-death duel where both sides gave their all, and they were convinced of the final result where both sides were injured.
The only regret for the Shrek Academy group was that both the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy and the Mingluo Sect teams only ended up heavily injured, without any deaths.
This was far from the situation they had hoped for.
In the hearts of the Shrek group, they had already regarded the Sun Moon Empire and the Mingluo Sect as their greatest threats.
If these two teams had suffered heavy casualties in this match and completely lost their competitiveness for subsequent matches, that would have been the most ideal outcome.
Even so, the current result of both sides being injured was still quite good.
At least their goal of suppressing the two major forces had basically been achieved.
Especially after witnessing the terrifying talent and strength displayed by Xu Tianhao and Qiu Hetian,
the Shrek group grew even more wary of them, and in their hearts, they didn't want these two peerless geniuses to leave the Soul Fighting Arena alive.
Some even secretly plotted that if a suitable opportunity arose later, they must find a way to directly cripple these two highly threatening geniuses to eliminate the problem forever.
With the entire Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy and Mingluo Sect teams heavily injured, even without casualties, it was destined that their path in the subsequent competition would be fraught with difficulties.
Under severe injuries, recovering spirit power and nursing wounds would require a lot of time.
And the Round Robin Stage schedule was tight; they simply wouldn't have enough time to rest and reorganize.
The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy was still okay, as they still had their official team members.
But the Mingluo Sect only had seven people in total. Now that they were all heavily injured, they might not even be able to pass the subsequent matches of the Round Robin Stage.
Even if they managed to scrape through the Round Robin Stage, in their unhealed state, they would definitely be nothing to fear and could no longer pose a threat to other competing teams.
For all the competing teams from the original Three Great Empires of the Douluo Continent, this situation was undoubtedly developing in the most favorable direction.
With two strong competitors out of the way, their chances of winning the championship greatly increased.
They didn't have the strength of Shrek Academy or the Clear Sky Sect, and it would have been nearly impossible for them to defeat the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy or the Mingluo Sect.
But now that these two teams were both injured, their confidence soared.
If they had a chance to defeat such strong teams, even if it was an unfair victory, it would still be a win.
If they could directly deal a heavy blow to the people from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, it would be a contribution to the Three Great Empires of the original Douluo Continent.
Xu Tianhao's talent was too terrifying; such a person growing up would be a devastating blow to them.
Even though these Spirit Masters all had their own agendas, their intention to deal with the Sun Moon Empire was the same.
They could fight among themselves at home, but they absolutely couldn't let outsiders take advantage.
As for Xu Tianhao and Qiu Hetian, who had finished the fake match, it didn't matter what these people thought.
This was the perfect opportunity to play sweet and then backstab them.
When everyone thought their strength was greatly reduced and let their guard down, their counterattack would be even more effective.