Watching the tournament progress, Wu Zhangkong tapped on his leg repeatedly. The tournament itself was growing well with Mu Xi quickly dominating the blacksmithing portion and and Xie Xie swiftly destroying all his opponents in the lower division.
None of Class 0 participated in the team section but their names were quickly spreading regardless. Unfortunately, there were two exceptions. Mu Xi was not allowed to participate in the singles at Wu Zhangkong's command and Xu Xiaoyan didn't quite stack up to her peers in terms of combat. Ultimately though, that was a good thing.
As of now, they were all so powerful that their group battles were essentially just them fighting their own battles near one another. To put it bluntly, their strength made teamwork a foreign concept to them. Xu Xiaoyan, as a dedicated control soul master, would make those single battles into one cohesive group endeavor. In the future that is.
Regardless, that wasn't important currently. What took all of Wu Zhangkong's attention was the battle that would soon ravage the city. The two local Dragon Kings were running around making their own preparations and Wu Zhangkong had enlisted the help of the Tang Sect. If it weren't for his connection to the Vice Master he would be all out of contribution points by now.
Additionally, he had invited one of his junior sisters from his days at Shrek to remain in the city for just a while longer. In the end, that was the most he could do. He wasn't sure if that was enough or not but it would at the very least limit casualties.
The issue was the upper echelon of the opposing forces. One Hyper Douluo was dangerous but with Wulin taking care of her that was essentially taken care of. What worried him was the rest of the Title Douluos that would be sent.
Wu Zhangkong wasn't naive enough to think that this Empress of theirs would send an important Hyper Douluo by themselves. He wasn't sure about their number but there were definitely going to be Title Douluo in attendance.
He was confident in taking on a rank 92 Title Douluo with his three word battle armor but it would be close so he wasn't sure how the rest of them would manage. At best the military present in the city had one Title Douluo and maybe they could deal with another.
But that was relying on heavily unlikely situations. The Tang Sect had brought one newly promoted Title Douluo and the Spirit Pagoda had one as well meaning their forces equated to one God, at most five Title Douluos, and plenty of other high ranking soul masters.
"So are you going to tell me why you want me to stay? I mean you didn't even come to see me and now you demand I stay?" Though her words were harsh Shen Yi's tone revealed that she didn't care all that much.
"We're going to be attacked by a gathering of evil soul masters." Rather than playing the fool Wu Zhangkong unhesitatingly revealed the crux of the matter. Shen Yi was fairly weak in terms of combat but her role as a life element healing was impossible to avoid. In many ways, she was the centerpiece of the entire operation.
"Are you serious?" Normally the emotion one would feel at the news would be doubt but Shen Yi's eyes were completely devoid of it. Wu Zhangkong was not the type to lie much less about something so serious.
"Mhm." Merely nodding in response Wu Zhangkong couldn't help but ponder what exactly those two dragon kings he found himself teaching were doing. They had preparations of their own to make and Wu Zhangkong didn't doubt that and yet each time he saw them with his spiritual sense they would be simply wandering the streets.
"Have you told the academy?" Gazing at him in worry, Shen Yi's spiritual sense spread out, the wave of her energy caught not only by Wu Zhangkong but surely any hidden evil soul masters should they be present. For that reason, he unhesitatingly glared at his junior.
"How could I?" Scoffing at the mere idea, Wu Zhangkong once more felt regret for that day. It was because of his brash attitude that he left Shrek, it was because of his nativity that he forsook all his bonds, and it was his desire for revenge that made him blind to the world.
"Your teacher doesn't hate you. If you came back and sincerely apologized he'd welcome you back in a heartbeat. And for a matter as important as this… I don't think anybody would refuse whether they're from Shrek or not." Comfortably resting her hand on his own Shen Yi spoke softly to him.
Ignoring her words and her touch, Wu Zhangkong instead focused on the battlefield below them, the children innocently fighting one another with smiles and grimaces. Nobody should be allowed to steal the childhood of the youth and yet that very thing would happen.
However, his thoughts were shattered when a large plume of smoke rose into the sky and the earth rumbled beneath their feet. It was different from the previous fire that had been contained in one shopping center. This flame spread and grew endlessly at a rapid pace.
Instantly leaping into the sky his battle armor manifested around him, his wings propelling him forward even faster. In the end, he reached the burning area in only a fraction of a second and unleashed his martial soul.
Frost spread from his blade, the flames clashing against the bone chilling cold and dying out while the frost continued to grow. Quickly arriving at the scene not long after was not an ally but instead a muscular hooded feature who didn't even try to hide his cultivation.
'A Title Douluo…' Frowning deeply Wu Zhangkong focused intently on his opponent, a man with the rank of around 93 or 94. That was above his pay grade but he didn't exactly have a choice in the matter.
A smirk was all the warning the Cold God received before a fist was thrust forward, billowing winds battling against the shards of ice Wu Zhangkong had conjured to protect himself. In that single moment, it became immediately obvious that the Cold God of Eastsea had changed.
At level 73 he shouldn't be able to combat a Title Douluo even with a three word battle armor assisting him. However, not only had he been able to defend against the man's assault but even go as far as to…
Looking down at his palm in surprise, the Title Douluo found blood staining his palm. His chest had been torn open from shoulder to hip, a deep crimson line marring his flesh. In that single moment, Wu Zhangkong had both defended and attacked effortlessly
"Wonderful! I, the Undead Lord Douluo, accept you as my opponent!" Cheerfully declaring his name with a cackle, the wound covering his chest healed in the blink of an eye.
****
Hey there, hope you liked the chapter.
The climax of this arc is beginning! The evil soul masters are attacking the city, Wulin has to deal with their leader, Wu Zhangkong will be fighting somebody two major realms above him, and plenty more! As the kids say, "Waku Waku."
If you want more chapters, head to patre*on.com/TrapOverlord for up to 25 extra chapters. It isn't required but it'd be much appreciated.