Chapter 211 Ning Rongrong's Highlight Moment
"Is it really that bad~..."
Ye Chen grumbled.
"Brother Chen, you're like a full man who doesn't know the hunger of an empty one! When will us poor folks be able to straighten our backs and speak loudly!"
Ma Hongjun said with a sigh.
Ye Chen was furious: "..., go to hell!"
When the match began, even though Ning Rongrong had defeated two of their main players, the Plant Academy team did not surrender directly. After Yao Zi's defeat, they immediately sent out their third member.
This member was also the last of the three Spirit Ancestors from the Plant Academy.
Although Ning Rongrong's two Soul Bone Skills were currently in a cooldown state, the normal attack mode of the External Soul Bone: Dark Gold Fear Claw had no cooldown.
Even without using the Spirit Ability attack mode, and only using the claws for basic attacks, the power of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw was still impressive.
This Four-Ring Spirit Ancestor from the Plant Academy had a black vine as his Spirit, which Ye Chen, whose Spirit knowledge wasn't very good, didn't recognize, but he also followed the control system path.
While control system Spirit Masters tend to counter other types of Spirit Masters, most of them, similar to Ye Chen's situation, lack powerful offensive Spirit Abilities.
And after Ning Rongrong applied five amplification Spirit Abilities to herself, stacking her buffs, her five attributes of strength, speed, spirit power, defense, and attack all surged by more than double.
With high attack and fast speed, and her opponent lacking instant kill methods, relying on the incredibly sharp Dark Gold Terrorclaw, even if Ning Rongrong's combat experience wasn't very strong, she still blazed through, cutting down countless black vines and powerfully defeating her opponent.
It could be said that of the three battles, this one truly showcased Ning Rongrong's actual combat prowess. The previous two matches were merely mindless instant kills, relying on the powerful Soul Bone Skills.
Watching Ning Rongrong still achieve victory without using Soul Bone Skills, Ye Chen nodded in satisfaction.
The three Spirit Ancestors from the Plant Academy had all been eliminated, so the remaining four Spirit Elders were naturally no match for Ning Rongrong.
Soon, the Plant Academy suffered seven losses in seven battles. In the first round of the promotion competition, Shrek Academy won, and Ning Rongrong, a support system Spirit Master, accomplished the feat of defeating seven opponents in a row.
In the very first match of this year's Soul Master Competition promotion competition, such a formidable opponent capable of defeating seven in a row appeared, which greatly frightened the other weaker academies.
Winning or losing was one thing, but being completely swept was a bit embarrassing.
And that wasn't even the main point; the key was being swept by a support system. It could be said that the Plant Academy had suffered a great humiliation in this year's Soul Master Competition.
Ye Chen sincerely hoped that these seven Misses from the Plant Academy wouldn't be scolded too badly when they returned.
"Damn! Damn! Damn! Plant Academy got swept!!! Three seconds of silence for the Misses of Plant Academy..."
"Good heavens, that claw Spirit Bone is amazing! It actually transformed a support system Spirit Master into a battle Spirit Master!"
"That's right, all control system Spirit Abilities are no different from rotten straw under that claw Spirit Bone!"
"Tsk tsk~, Shrek Academy team is so powerful, I wonder how many academies will be swept in this promotion competition?"
...
Returning victorious, Ning Rongrong held her head high, a joyful expression on her pretty face as she looked at Ye Chen triumphantly.
"Rongrong is amazing!"
Without a word, Ye Chen immediately offered a compliment.
"Hmph hmph~, that's right, this Miss is no ordinary person!"
Looking at Ning Rongrong, if she had a tail, it would surely be wagging to the sky.
"Rongrong, is this Brother Chen's combat-type support?"
Recalling Ning Rongrong's powerful display on the competition stage, Oscar asked with an expectant look.
After all, he was a food system Spirit Master, similar to a support system Spirit Master in that he lacked combat power. Now that he saw Ning Rongrong's combat support gradually taking shape, he naturally wanted to learn from her.
"Mm-hmm, don't worry, Little Ao, you'll also be able to become a combat-type food system Spirit Master in the future!"
Ning Rongrong pretended to be an older brother and patted Oscar's shoulder.
In fact, combat-type support, to put it plainly, is just that: a support's lack of combat power is merely due to a lack of offensive Spirit Abilities, which can be compensated by refining Spirit Bones and acquiring Soul Bone Skills.
With Soul Bone Skills, and then accumulating some actual combat experience, one is enough to become a combat-type support.
"That's right, Little Ao, when you advance to Five-Ring Soul King, you'll be able to possess the combat power of a battle Spirit Master of the same rank."
Ye Chen also stepped forward and said, although he was not a support system Spirit Master or a food system Spirit Master, he could still imagine the bitterness in the hearts of gifted support system Spirit Masters and food system Spirit Masters.
After all, reality is different from games; there's only one life.
On the Douluo Continent, where strength is revered, although food system Spirit Masters and support system Spirit Masters have a slightly higher status compared to other systems, it still doesn't change the fact that they are protected individuals.
Presumably, if Oscar could choose, he would definitely wish to become a battle Spirit Master.
However, fortunately, there is a Spirit Beast like the Mirror Image Beast in this world, which allows Oscar, a food system Spirit Master, to still forge a grand path even without obtaining top-grade Spirit Bones.
"Five-Ring Soul King, sigh~, that's too slow, it'll still take several years!"
Oscar was a bit troubled. Although his spirit power level increased very quickly compared to most people, even so, it would be basically impossible for him to advance to Five-Ring Soul King without several years of effort.
"Haha, Little Ao, lighten up! You're already a Spirit Ancestor and still sighing here. How are other Spirit Masters with less talent than you supposed to live!"
Ma Hongjun was amused by Oscar's unintentional humblebrag.
Oscar was a great genius with innate full spirit power, and he even consumed an Immortal Herb: Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, yet he still complained about slow cultivation speed? He wouldn't be afraid of being beaten to death if he said that out loud!
Sure enough, Oscar immediately saw Tai Long, Jiang Zhu, Jing Ling, and Huang Yuan, all with dark faces.
"Go! Beat this show-off to death!"
Saying that, Tai Long gestured to Jing Ling and Huang Yuan, and they cornered Oscar to 'discuss' with him.
...
After the first round of the promotion competition ended, shortly after returning to the temporary barracks at the Royal Hunting Ground, Ye Chen saw Ning Fengzhi arrive with Gu Rong.
"Uncle Ning, Grandpa Gu!"
Ye Chen greeted the two, inviting them to sit by the bluestone table in the courtyard and serving them tea.
"Father, Bone Grandfather!"
Upon seeing the two arrive, Ning Rongrong was very happy. After all, she had made quite a splash on the competition stage today. She had already received praise from her companions, but she hadn't yet received praise from her own family elders!
Clearly, Ning Rongrong's vanity was still quite significant~!
"Rongrong, Father never imagined that you would become so powerful!"
To be honest, if Ning Fengzhi hadn't witnessed today's match with his own eyes, he definitely wouldn't have believed that his precious daughter could defeat a Four-Ring control system Spirit Ancestor.
Chapter 212 It's Beautiful to Think About It
"That's right, Rongrong, you've given Bone Grandfather a huge surprise!"
Gu Rong affectionately stroked Ning Rongrong's head.
"Of course! I'm a combat-type support now, different from before!"
Ning Rongrong proudly puffed out her chest.
"Uh~, combat-type support?"
Ning Fengzhi was a bit confused; what in the world was a combat-type support? He was the number one support system Spirit Master in the world, so why had he never heard of such a thing?
"Cough cough~, Uncle Ning, a so-called combat-type support is a support system Spirit Master who possesses powerful combat capabilities.
The reason support system Spirit Masters lack combat power and require teammates' protection is due to the absence of offensive Spirit Abilities. If they could acquire a full set of Spirit Bones, their strength would absolutely not be inferior to combat Spirit Masters of the same rank.
Furthermore, if they could obtain a full set of 100,000-year Spirit Bones, after becoming a support system Titled Douluo, as long as their spirit power level increased, they would absolutely be invincible among Titled Douluo!"
After speaking, Ye Chen took a sip of tea to moisten his throat.
"100,000-year Spirit Bones? And a whole set?"
Upon hearing this, Ning Fengzhi and Gu Rong exchanged glances. This kid's dreams are certainly grand, why doesn't he just fly to the heavens?
No, compared to obtaining a set of 100,000-year Spirit Bones, flying to the heavens is much simpler. After a Spirit Master advances to Titled Douluo, regardless of their system, they can fly through the air.
Moreover, one 100,000-year Spirit Bone means hunting a 100,000-year Spirit Beast. A set of Spirit Bones consists of six. It sounds easy to say, but not to mention the question of whether one has the strength to hunt 100,000-year Spirit Beasts, simply finding six 100,000-year Spirit Beasts is no easy task.
In the vast ocean, there are indeed many Sea Soul Beasts over 100,000 years old; Ning Fengzhi is aware of this.
Land-based 100,000-year Spirit Beasts, whose species are not support-type, can basically rival a Level 95 Titled Douluo. Even powerful ones like the Sky Azure Bull Python are not opponents for ordinary Level 95 Titled Douluo.
And Sea Soul Beasts are generally much larger than land Spirit Beasts. Although fights shouldn't be judged by size, a larger size brings more obvious advantages in terms of strength, defense, life, and recovery.
Coupled with the home-field advantage of the ocean, apart from a few geniuses who can challenge opponents above their rank, Titled Douluo with spirit power levels below Level 96 who venture into the ocean to hunt 100,000-year Sea Soul Beasts are simply asking to be defeated.
Furthermore, if Sea Soul Beasts can't defeat human Titled Douluo, they can hide beneath the surface, and basically no one would dare to pursue them, as human Spirit Masters' combat power is suppressed even more significantly underwater.
Looking across the entire Douluo Continent, Titled Douluo with the strength to hunt 100,000-year Sea Soul Beasts are absolutely few and far between.
Moreover, among the vast Sea Soul Beasts, the oldest ones are not just 100,000 years old. If one were to encounter even older ones, they might very well perish.
Therefore, even though Ning Fengzhi knew there were many Sea Soul Beasts over 100,000 years old in the ocean, he had never considered acquiring Spirit Bones from the sea.
After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School's only masters were Chen Xin and Gu Rong. Any problem with either of them would shake the very foundation of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School.
In short, in Ning Fengzhi's eyes, the idea of a combat-type support was good, but it was just an idea.
However, Ye Chen's claim of being invincible among Titled Douluo was not an exaggeration.
One 100,000-year Spirit Bone comes with two Soul Bone Skills. If a Titled Douluo possessed twelve 100,000-year Soul Bone Skills, plus the enhancements brought by six 100,000-year Spirit Bones, they would absolutely be an invincible existence among Spirit Masters of the same rank.
"Alright, let's not talk about combat-type support anymore. Rongrong, how did you get these two Spirit Bones?"
Ning Fengzhi asked with some curiosity.
"My head Spirit Bone is called the Illusion Wisdom Skull. Brother Chen found it outside Heaven Dou City during the preliminaries. As for that other one…"
Before Ning Rongrong could finish, Ning Fengzhi interrupted her, looking at Ye Chen with suspicion: "Found it? Where did you find it, kid?"
"Cough cough~, didn't Shi Nian of Canghui Academy try to ambush me back then? Unexpectedly, a head Spirit Bone dropped, and it happened to be a support-type gem Spirit Bone, so I gave it to Rongrong."
"So that's it~!"
Ning Fengzhi suddenly understood, but he hadn't expected that Shi Nian, a mere Spirit Saint, would actually possess a rare head Spirit Bone?
Indeed, if Shi Nian had revealed the news of him possessing a head Spirit Bone back then, he most likely wouldn't have been able to keep it. A Level 7 Spirit Saint Spirit Master, without a powerful backer, would not be enough to deter those coveting Spirit Bones.
Moreover, head Spirit Bones are different from limb Spirit Bones. If a Spirit Master possesses limb Spirit Bones and realizes they can't keep them, they can cut off their limbs and hand them over, possibly saving their life.
But for head Spirit Bones and torso Spirit Bones, that would definitely not work.
Without limbs, with a Spirit Master's tenacious vitality, they could still survive, and even find a Spirit Master with the ability to regenerate severed limbs to regrow them. But without a head and torso, they would absolutely be dead.
"Wait, is that head Spirit Bone's Soul Bone Skill a support-type? Not mental control?"
Suddenly, Ning Fengzhi remembered the key point. Judging from the performance in the arena, the Illusion Wisdom Skull's Soul Bone Skill was clearly not a support-type, was it?
"Father, the Soul Bone Skill: Illusion Space, although it possesses mental control ability, that's for enemies. For our own teammates, it leans more towards support. The Illusion Wisdom Skull focuses on support abilities, supplemented by mental control."
"I see~, very good! Oh, right, what kind of Spirit Beast did your claw-type external Spirit Bone come from?"
Ning Fengzhi didn't ask further. Compared to the Illusion Wisdom Skull, he valued Ning Rongrong's external Spirit Bone more.
After all, external Spirit Bones are different from ordinary Spirit Bones. The age of ordinary Spirit Bones is fixed, but external Spirit Bones can increase in age as the Spirit Master's level increases. That claw-type external Spirit Bone has limitless potential in the future, far surpassing the Illusion Wisdom Skull with its fixed age.
"It's a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear!"
"Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear?!"
Instantly, Ning Fengzhi's eyes widened. Although he had considered the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, a super Spirit Beast, based on its appearance and color, he was still somewhat shocked when Ning Rongrong personally confirmed it.
The claws of ordinary Spirit Beasts are naturally far inferior to those of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.
This is like the Blue Silver Emperor and Blue Silver Grass. Although both are grass and the same species, one is in the heavens and the other on the ground; the difference is vast.
Gu Rong smacked his lips: "I've also learned about Spirit Beasts like the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. Most of its abilities lie in those claws. With these claws, as long as Rongrong's practical combat experience isn't lacking, her strength will absolutely not be weaker than Spirit Masters of the same rank."
Chapter 213 The Fear of Being Dominated
"That's right! From now on, I will definitely become an even more powerful master than Bone Grandfather and Grandpa Sword!"
At this moment, Ning Rongrong's aura was full of vigor, and Ye Chen felt a surge of domineering presence wash over him.
"Haha~, then Bone Grandfather will be waiting for Rongrong to surpass him!"
Gu Rong said with a smile.
"Uncle Ning, has your Spirit evolved?"
Ye Chen remembered the Qiluo Tulip he gave Ning Fengzhi yesterday and wondered if his father-in-law had succeeded.
However, if there were no surprises, it should have been fine.
After all, Ning Rongrong consumed one Qiluo Tulip and was able to transform her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda into a Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. Although Ning Fengzhi's talent was slightly inferior to Ning Rongrong's, it was still enough for his Eight Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda to evolve.
"Hmm, thanks to you, it has already evolved into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda," Ning Fengzhi said with a smile.
"That's good!"
Ye Chen nodded. Now that his father-in-law's Spirit was no longer restricted, he should be able to become a support system Titled Douluo within ten years.
Having consumed one mature Qiluo Tulip, plus one semi-mature Star Luo Spirit Plant, and with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's abundant resource supply, Ning Fengzhi, at the Eight-Ring Spirit Saint level, should have no problem increasing his spirit power by one level per year.
"By the way, Uncle Ning, are all your Spirit Bone slots full?"
Suddenly, Ye Chen thought of this.
If Ning Fengzhi's Spirit Bone slots were full, then when he advanced to level 90 and hunted a 100,000-year Spirit Beast, wouldn't the Spirit Bone that dropped be left unused?
Although Ye Chen could use a Spirit Bone Age Enhancement Card to increase the age of a Spirit Bone, a 100,000-year Spirit Bone enhanced in this way was inferior to a truly original one. It would only have one Soul Bone Skill, significantly reducing its value.
"They're full. Is there something wrong?"
Ning Fengzhi was a little confused. What did Ye Chen mean by this?
As a weak support, Ning Fengzhi himself lacked combat power, so he had naturally gathered a set of Spirit Bones all over 10,000 years old early on.
Of course, the quality of this set of Spirit Bones was not particularly high; they could only be considered ordinary, all over 10,000 years and under 50,000 years. Furthermore, the Soul Bone Skills of this set of Spirit Bones were all defensive types.
As the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he had plenty of strong fighters under him. When encountering danger, Ning Fengzhi didn't need to personally deal with enemies; it was enough for him to just stay alive.
The reason he refined Spirit Bones of a lower age was that Ning Fengzhi initially believed he would at most reach the 79th-level Spirit Saint in his lifetime.
Therefore, he didn't want to refine high-quality Spirit Bones. Instead of him refining high-quality Spirit Bones, it would be better to give them to the excellent talented battle Spirit Masters in the Sect, where they could be more effective.
10,000-year defensive Soul Bone Skills, not very high in age, were sufficient for a Seven-Ring support system Spirit Saint, but for a support system Titled Douluo, they would be quite out of place.
If he could regret it, Ning Fengzhi would definitely have gathered a set of top-tier Spirit Bones for himself.
"No, if your Spirit Bone slots weren't full, Uncle Ning, for your ninth spirit ring, you could go to the vast sea to hunt a 100,000-year Sea Soul Beast."
Ye Chen couldn't very well say he was eyeing the Spirit Bone that would drop from him in the future, so he could only put it this way.
"While 100,000-year spirit rings and Spirit Bones are good, Sea Soul Beasts are not easy to provoke, especially 100,000-year Sea Soul Beasts; they are even harder to deal with.
Even powerful individuals like Grandpa Sword and Bone Grandfather, although they can defeat a 100,000-year Sea Soul Beast, might not be able to capture it. Even if I wanted a 100,000-year ninth spirit ring, I wouldn't go to the vast sea to look for it.
The Star Dou Great Forest is so vast; there must be 100,000-year Spirit Beasts inside. If you put in the effort to search, you will definitely find one."
Ning Fengzhi shook his head at Ye Chen, not planning to target the vast sea for his ninth spirit ring.
Ye Chen: "..."
Were the 100,000-year Spirit Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest referring to Xiao Wu's younger brothers: Da Ming and Er Ming?
This snake and monkey were Xiao Wu's younger brothers, and Ye Chen couldn't let Ning Fengzhi harm them.
"Uncle Ning, don't worry, leave this to me. I'll definitely help you catch a 100,000-year Sea Soul Beast by then!"
To prevent Da Ming and Er Ming from facing danger from an ally, Ye Chen patted his chest and assured Ning Fengzhi.
Sea Soul Beasts are difficult to hunt, not only because of their powerful strength but also because they can dive under the sea and escape, making it basically impossible for those with insufficient strength to chase them into the water.
But Ye Chen was confident that as long as the strength gap between them wasn't too large, one strike would definitely not give the opponent a chance to escape.
"Is that so? Then I'm looking forward to it."
Seeing Ye Chen so confident, Ning Fengzhi raised an eyebrow. However, thinking of Ye Chen's powerful control effects from various Spirit Abilities, perhaps this could actually work?
Ning Fengzhi was very much looking forward to it.
...
Time flew by, and in a blink of an eye, it was the last day of the promotion rounds.
Over these days, the Shrek Academy Team had thirteen wins in thirteen matches. With the same record as Shrek was the Shenfeng Team.
However, although both teams had identical records, compared to the Shenfeng Team, the Shrek Team's reputation was undoubtedly louder, and it instilled a sense of dominating fear in the other participating teams.
In the thirteen matches, excluding those where opponents forfeited early, only one of the three: Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, or Zhu Zhuqing, appeared in each match.
When facing relatively weaker academy teams, such as the Barak Academy Team, Ye Chen would send Ning Rongrong to compete. For stronger teams, he would have Xiao Wu or Zhu Zhuqing take the stage.
Even though Shrek only sent one person to compete in each match, they still achieved a record of defeating seven opponents in a row.
Excluding Shenfeng Academy, whom they were to face in the final round today, all other academy teams, including Tianshui Academy, Blazing Fire Academy, and Thunderclap Academy, were completely defeated by Shrek.
The spirit power levels displayed by Xiao Wu and the other two on the field all reached Five-Ring Soul Kings. Due to the vast difference in strength, coupled with their striking good looks, the contestants couldn't even feel jealousy; only admiration and envy.
This led to Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing also acquiring new titles, following Xiao Wu's 'Hanyue Fairy': 'Nine-Colored Fairy' and 'You An Nüwang'.
Needless to say, 'Nine-Colored Fairy' was Ning Rongrong, and 'You An Nüwang' was Zhu Zhuqing.
However, Ning Rongrong was initially not very satisfied with the nickname 'Nine-Colored Fairy', grumbling to Ye Chen at night that she wanted to be called 'Nine-Colored Queen'.
After completely defeating thirteen academy teams, Flender, as the dean of Shrek Academy, was on one hand very proud, as this represented the strong strength of his academy. On the other hand, he felt immense pressure.
After all, those leading the various academies to participate in the Soul Master Competition were basically the top experts from their respective academies.
Although there were no Titled Douluo, they were all Spirit Douluo or high-level Spirit Saints. Spirit Saints were fine; Flender wasn't afraid at all, but facing other Spirit Douluo, Flender couldn't ignore them.
Chapter 214: Kamikaze Team's Small Goal
Especially the teachers leading the three Elemental Academies, who were either deans or vice-deans, all three of whom possessed the combat power of high-level Spirit Douluo.
Let alone three, even if it was just one, Flender, who had just advanced to Eight-Ring Soul Douluo, couldn't beat them.
Of course, they were all people of status, and the high-level experts maintained their dignity; currently, no one had sought out Flender for a full-blown fight.
But from their unfriendly gazes, Flender could tell that after the promotion rounds ended, he would be in danger!
However, compared to the Shrek Team shaving the heads of all participating teams in the promotion rounds, this small risk seemed insignificant.
"Kid, today is the last match of the promotion rounds. Since the deed has been done, it must be done perfectly, not halfway. Shave the heads of the only remaining Shenfeng Team too!"
As the morning sun rose, in the temporary residence of Shrek Academy, Flender said with a smile to Ye Chen, who was ready to depart.
They had already shaved the heads of thirteen advanced Spirit Master academies, so one more, Shenfeng Academy, wouldn't make a difference. When doing things, one must always see them through to the end.
"Dean Flender, don't worry! Is the Shenfeng Team not just a matter of having hands?"
Ye Chen patted his chest and guaranteed.
For this match, he was prepared to go personally. Now that more than half of the Soul Master Competition schedule had passed, if he didn't participate, it would be almost like coming for nothing.
As the captain of the Shrek Team, he couldn't just participate in the final championship, could he? That wouldn't give him much sense of involvement.
Furthermore, a man doesn't waste his youth if he doesn't show off. Although Ye Chen had no intention of being a show-off king, he still needed to maintain a certain level of swagger.
"Mm!"
Flender nodded with satisfaction.
At this moment, Flender felt that recruiting Ye Chen and Xiao Wu into Shrek Academy in Soto City was the wisest decision he had ever made in his life!
If it weren't for Ye Chen's suggestion, Shrek Academy would still be a dilapidated household in Nuoding City right now! No, it might even have closed down.
Unlike now, Shrek Academy had become the most prestigious advanced Spirit Master academy within the Heaven Dou Empire. Look at the contestants from other academies; anyone who had been on stage, which one hadn't felt the fear of being dominated?
As the dean of Shrek Academy, Flender's greatest wish was to develop and strengthen Shrek Academy into a famous advanced Spirit Master academy on the continent.
It now seemed that Shrek Academy was getting closer and closer to this goal.
Besides that... thinking that he wouldn't be a single dog after the Soul Master Competition, Flender looked at Liu Erlong with deep affection.
"Flender, the competition is about to start, what are you looking at!"
Liu Erlong, feeling a bit embarrassed by Flender's gaze, said with a shy expression.
Of course, given Liu Erlong's fiery personality, in Ye Chen's opinion, when Liu Erlong was shy, it was almost the same as when she was furious.
"Right, right, right, children, it's getting late, let's go!"
Others had tigresses, but his own was a dragon. So Flender immediately became timid and changed the subject.
"Dean Flender, I'm not criticizing you, but you're a big man after all, can't you show some masculinity in front of Teacher Erlong?"
Ma Hongjun, Flender's disciple, whispered to Flender on the side. Ma Hongjun felt that Flender being so afraid of his wife was simply a disgrace to men.
"Hm?"
Although the voice was very soft, for Liu Erlong, whose spirit power level had reached Spirit Sage (7 Rings) and was not far away, she heard Ma Hongjun's words clearly. She immediately glared at Flender, like the 'Gaze of the Dragon'.
"Slap--"
"Ow--"
At Liu Erlong's gaze, Flender's scalp immediately tingled, and he slapped Ma Hongjun on the back of his head.
"Little Fatty, I heard you're very brave! Well, the competition is about to start, so I'll let you off for now. After the competition, I will put you through special training to improve your strength, hoping you'll perform better in the finals."
Flender said to Ma Hongjun with a 'gentle' expression.
"No way~!"
At the mention of special training, Ma Hongjun immediately showed a look of horror, shaking his head like a rattle-drum.
"Oh? You said yes? And you want more? Not bad, not bad, you truly are my good student, Flender!"
Flender nodded with satisfaction.
Ma Hongjun: "..."
Everyone: "Haha~"
...
When the Shrek Team arrived at the resting area of the arena, they immediately attracted the attention of many academy teams who had arrived earlier.
"They're here, they're here, the Shrek Team is here!"
"I just don't know if the Shenfeng Team can break the streak of seven?"
"I think it's unlikely. The strongest member of the Shenfeng Team, Feng Xiaotian, has a spirit power level of Spirit Ancestor (44). Aside from the Nine-Colored Fairy being a support, the Hanyue Fairy and You An Nüwang are both Five-Ring Soul Kings. How can the Shenfeng Team stop them?"
Although Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong were all Five-Ring Soul Kings, in the eyes of others, Ning Rongrong, who possessed two Spirit Bones, still had slightly weaker individual combat power than Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing.
This could be seen from previous matches.
Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing, regardless of their opponent's strength, crushed every match.
As for Ning Rongrong, due to a lack of offensive Spirit Abilities, she could only use the Soul Bone Skill: Illusion Space and Dark Gold Terrorclaw to instantly kill the two strongest opponents, then apply buffs, and use Dark Gold Terrorclaw for normal attacks to eliminate the remaining five relatively weaker opponents.
Listening to the discussions of the other academy's contestants, the faces of the Shenfeng Team members were not very pleasant.
"Boss, are you confident you can make the Shrek Team use a second person?"
A member of the Shenfeng Team said to Feng Xiaotian.
These words sounded very unmotivated. The Shenfeng Academy, one of the dignified Elemental Academies, with seven main players taking turns, and their goal was merely to defeat one opponent from the Shrek Team?
Unfortunately, even for this very unmotivated goal, Feng Xiaotian was not very confident.
If the opponent's spirit power level was still at Spirit Ancestor (49), then within the same major rank, Feng Xiaotian felt he still had some chance of winning. After all, at the Four-Ring Spirit Ancestor stage, the difference in each spirit power level was not too great, and challenging higher ranks was not very difficult.
But if it was a Five-Ring Soul King, with the all-around improvement brought by absorbing the fifth spirit ring, Feng Xiaotian felt he didn't have that ability.
He was a genius, true, but the reality was that his opponents were even more genius than him.
"To be honest, I'm not very confident either."
Looking at Ye Chen and the others in the distance, Feng Xiaotian shook his head helplessly.
During the previous preliminaries, when Ye Chen asked Shenfeng Academy to throw the match, Feng Xiaotian thought that only Ye Chen, the captain of Shrek Academy, was a Five-Ring Soul King!
But he never expected that besides Ye Chen, there were actually three more.
Chapter 215 I can't do it!
'Good thing I agreed to Ye Chen's fake match back then, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten Huo Wu!'
Thinking of this, Feng Xiaotian chuckled. What were matches compared to Huo Wu? They weren't important!
"Feng Xiaotian, what are you grinning about?"
Just as Feng Xiaotian was daydreaming, Huo Wu's voice rang in his ears. It was Huo Wu who had come to find him.
"Which idiot said I was grinning? You're tired of living... Uh, it's Huo Wu, I wasn't grinning~"
Feng Xiaotian was about to lash out, but then he turned around and realized it was his beloved Huo Wu who had spoken, and he immediately deflated.
Indeed, Feng Xiaotian was not only a major simp but also a severe 'henpecked' man.
"Feng Xiaotian, I'm telling you, today you must defeat a member of the Shrek Team to restore some honor to our Elemental Academy, otherwise you're in for it!"
Huo Wu said to Feng Xiaotian with a serious expression.
In the preliminaries, she already had some minor issues with the Shrek Team, and in the promotion rounds, the Chi Huo Battle Team was completely defeated by Zhu Zhuqing, which made Huo Wu's impression of the Shrek Team even worse.
If the final Shenfeng Team was also completely defeated, how would the four great Elemental Academy be able to hold their heads high in front of Shrek Academy in the future?
Yes, it was the four great Elemental Academy, because Elephant Armor Academy was backed by the Elephant Armored Academy, and the Elephant Armored Academy had become a lackey of Spirit Hall, so the other four Elemental Academy all subtly ostracized Elephant Armor Academy.
"This~..."
You're making it difficult for me!
Didn't Feng Xiaotian want to defeat the Shrek Team and win Huo Wu's affection honorably? He really did! But his strength was insufficient, he couldn't do it!
"What's 'this' about? Are you even a man?!"
Huo Wu glared at Feng Xiaotian.
"Of course I'm a man!"
Being questioned about whether he was a man, how could he tolerate that? Feng Xiaotian immediately straightened his back and said righteously.
Just kidding, he couldn't back down on something like being a man. Even if he had to pretend to be strong, he had to prove he was a real man, otherwise, it was foreseeable that the girl would leave him.
"Good, that's good, go for it! I look forward to your performance!"
Seeing Feng Xiaotian full of fighting Spirit, Huo Wu nodded in satisfaction, made an 'Oli Gei' gesture, and then returned to the Blazing Fire Academy team.
After Huo Wu left, the originally spirited Feng Xiaotian immediately revealed a bitter face.
Feng Xiaotian: Alas~, I'm too difficult!
It's not that our army isn't strong, it's that the enemy army is too powerful!
...
Not long after, the competition officially began.
The fourteenth round of the promotion rounds did not require drawing lots. After all, it was the final round, and the opponents for the seven matches today had already been determined after the thirteenth round's draw, only the order of appearance was different.
Perhaps due to the monstrous performance of the Shrek Team, and their opponent being the Shenfeng Academy, ranked second in overall strength, the organizing committee placed this match as the grand finale.
After six matches, the ranking of the Tian Dou Competition Zone's promotion rounds had been determined.
The Shrek Team and the Shenfeng Team competed for first place, while Thunderclap Academy, Tianshui Academy, and Blazing Fire Academy ranked in the top five.
As for the others, they were all minor academies, and Ye Chen didn't pay attention to them. Even if there were no eliminations in the promotion rounds, they would mostly just be making up the numbers in the finals.
It can be said that the Spirit Master academy teams within the Heaven Dou Empire were much stronger than those in other subordinate kingdoms and duchies.
This was not only in terms of spirit power level, but also in terms of Spirit quality. The other academies, including the Plant Academy team, were also inferior to the Elemental Academy.
"The final round of the promotion rounds, the last match, Shrek Academy versus Shenfeng Academy, please welcome the participating members of both teams to the stage!"
In this promotion round, Shrek Academy's performance has been very eye-catching. In every match, they only sent out one member and decisively defeated their opponent.
So, will Shrek Academy create another success? Or will Shenfeng Academy break the curse of one-versus-seven? Let's wait and see!"
In the VIP section, the host, holding a spirit tool megaphone, spoke passionately.
Clearly, even the host did not favor Shenfeng Academy.
Even if the Shenfeng Team's strength could make Shrek send out a second person, they still couldn't win the match, after all, the visible strength gap was simply too large.
Three Five-Ring Soul King, how could they lose?
Then, under everyone's gaze, Ye Chen ascended the stage with a dignified bearing, while the Shenfeng Team sent out a Three-Ring Spirit Elder.
Knowing his own strength, Feng Xiaotian felt that with his 44th-level Spirit Ancestor strength, he had little hope against Xiao Wu and the others. To avoid being defeated one-on-seven, he needed to use some small tricks.
First, let his six teammates go up and consume the opponent's spirit power as much as possible, then he would enter to secure the victory and break Shrek's one-on-seven plan.
As for first place in the promotion rounds? Forget it, if your fist isn't big enough, even the best strategy is useless.
"Oh my god~, everyone look! This time, the Shrek Team's participant is not the 'Hanyue Fairy', nor the 'You An Nüwang', nor the 'Nine-Colored Fairy', but the captain Ye Chen, who has never appeared in the promotion rounds.
I remember that in the preliminaries, the Shrek Team's captain Ye Chen made an appearance once, and his registered spirit power level was 39th-level Spirit Elder.
But it's obvious that player Ye Chen has definitely hidden his strength. So, what is player Ye Chen's actual strength level?
Everyone, feel free to boldly guess, will the Shrek Team have a fourth participant at the Five-Ring Soul King level?"
Seeing Ye Chen take the stage as the Shrek Team's first player, the host immediately became excited. This was very likely another explosive piece of news.
Seeing Ye Chen on stage, Feng Xiaotian was stunned, a little surprised.
'Could it be that we're really going to be completely defeated?'
Feng Xiaotian thought to himself.
Without time to think further, the Shenfeng Team still followed their original plan and sent out a Three-Ring Spirit Elder.
...
On the field.
"Both teams' members are in position, release your Spirit. The match will begin in one minute."
The referee signaled for the two to activate their Spirit.
"Spirit, possess!"
"Yan Hu, Spirit, Wind Leopard, 39th-level agility-attack system Spirit Elder!"
After the green leopard Spirit possessed him, three spirit ring, yellow, yellow, and purple, bloomed. Yan Hu, from the Shenfeng Team, proactively reported his name and Spirit to Ye Chen.
In Spirit Master duels, as long as there's no deep-seated hatred, when one party proactively reports their name and Spirit, the other party generally follows this rule.
Yan Hu knew that victory was hopeless, but by exchanging Spirit information, he could gather some intelligence on Ye Chen, which would be beneficial to his Shenfeng Team.