The person who arrived was naturally Chicken Drumstick Douluo, Xuanzi. Although most of his face was covered by messy hair, his signature pose of holding a wine gourd in his left hand and a chicken drumstick in his right hand immediately revealed his identity.
At Shrek Academy, besides him, Huo Yuhao had never seen anyone else dressed like a beggar, akin to cosplaying as Hong Qigong.
"I've been busy these past few days, preparing for this selection match, haven't I?" Huo Yuhao wasn't very polite to Elder Xuan.
This old guy never spoke kindly and always tried to scheme against him. However, his intelligence was quite lacking, and his plans seemed like child's play to Huo Yuhao, utterly devoid of any substance.
"Humph!" Elder Xuan was helpless in response to Huo Yuhao's attitude and turned to Wang Yan.
"Xiao Yan, is everyone here?"
Wang Yan respectfully replied, "Everyone is here. There are twenty-six students from the Martial Soul Department, ranging from second to fifth grade, and only one from the Soul Tool Department."
"Hmm. Then let's go in." With that, Elder Xuan staggered as he turned and walked into the Battle Zone.
Inside the Battle Zone, everything was as usual, but today, there were no teachers or students present to engage in soul battles.
Elder Xuan walked to the center of the Battle Zone and stopped, with the core disciples standing still under the guidance of their teachers.
Elder Xuan took a bite of his chicken drumstick and mumbled, "Listen up, kids. The rules for the upcoming selection are very simple. I call it a collective battle royale. This means that within the Battle Zone, you can attack anyone at will, however you want. There are no rules."
"Those who surrender or are rescued will be eliminated, and only seven will remain. Those seven will be the winners. Alright, teachers, please leave. When I shout 'start,' you can begin fighting."
"Is this even allowed?"
Upon hearing Elder Xuan's words, the students were stunned, looking at each other in disbelief. They had never seen such a selection method before. Twenty-seven people, with different cultivation levels and specialties, how could such a chaotic battle assess anything?
The class teachers, naturally, did not defy Elder Xuan's orders and exited the Battle Zone one after another.
Before the students inside the Battle Zone could react, Elder Xuan suddenly raised his wine gourd and shouted, "Begin!"
In an instant, Elder Xuan's body disappeared, leaving only the twenty-seven core disciples in the Battle Zone.
The change was so sudden that all the students experienced a brief moment of stupefaction when Elder Xuan called for the start. Quickly, the twenty-seven students responded in various ways.
With his omniscient perspective, Huo Yuhao was aware of the so-called battle royale rules and had already positioned himself in front of Ning Tian, forming a defensive stance with Wu Feng, protecting the support spirit master in their team.
At this moment, almost all the second-year core disciples looked towards Huo Yuhao's direction. Meanwhile, the senior students focused on Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, and Jiang Nannan, the three Spirit Ancestors.
Seeing the hostile gazes around them, Bei Bei shouted, "Sanshi, Nannan, let's team up!"
The three fifth-year outer courtyard students were the only ones participating in the selection, and they were all four-ring Spirit Ancestors, making them prime targets. If they weren't eliminated early, the remaining participants wouldn't stand a chance against them in the later stages.
Their relationships were already complicated, with most believing Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi were rivals. In reality, they were very good friends.
Although Jiang Nannan didn't have a deep connection with Bei Bei, she wouldn't make the wrong choice at this moment, especially since she was also friends with Tang Ya.
Students from the third and fourth grades also formed groups. Naturally, the Lan sisters, Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo, teamed up with Huang Chutian, while Zhou Sichen and Cao Jinxuan formed another small team, vigilantly watching their surroundings.
Among everyone present, the only one not forming a group was the tallest and most robust core disciple of the Soul Tool Department, He Caitou.
While others were forming groups, He Caitou looked like a steel machine, with numerous metal tubes emerging from different parts of his body, resembling a giant hedgehog.
He Caitou had followed Fan Yu for many years. He was brought to Shrek Academy by Fan Yu from outside, so the Martial Soul Department disciples had no impression of him.
When all the metal tubes appeared, four spirit rings shone on He Caitou's burly body, two yellow and two purple. He was also a four-ring Spirit Ancestor.
With all the metal tubes in place, He Caitou mercilessly launched a volley towards the most crowded area. Over twenty beams shot out from him, instantly shocking everyone with the burst of soul power.
The unluckiest were Zhou Sichen and Cao Jinxuan. Just as they reached Huang Chutian, before they could release their soul skills, they were hit by the terrifying beams.
The attack was too sudden, too fast, and their soul skills required a long charge-up time, resulting in an instant defeat. Both felt their bodies lighten as if soaring through the clouds, disappearing from the arena.
"You two are eliminated."
With a wine-scented breath, Elder Xuan, drinking heavily, declared.
Zhou Sichen and Cao Jinxuan, in shock, realized they were now airborne, enveloped in a faint white soul power halo.
Huo Yuhao's group encountered opponents as well. In a battle royale, the strongest and the weakest are usually targeted the most.
As second-year students without many Spirit Elders, Huo Yuhao's team was naturally deemed weak, facing attacks from senior students.
Wang Dong was quick-witted, knowing that the strongest in this battle royale might not be Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Jiang Nannan, or He Caitou, but the ordinary second-year student Huo Yuhao.
His ability to easily defeat the almost-Spirit Ancestor Dai Huabin in the promotion exam indicated his strength was far above that.
Thus, at the first sign of attack, Wang Dong led Xiao Xiao towards Huo Yuhao, and they positioned themselves in front of Ning Tian. The four formed a defensive circle, protecting Ning Tian in the center.
"Step aside, you trash. You haven't taken down these three Spirit Ancestors yet. Let me do it!"
He Caitou roared, aiming all his soul tool barrels at Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, and Jiang Nannan, preparing to eliminate them first.
Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi exchanged wary glances, and Jiang Nannan's body shimmered with the purple light of her fourth spirit ring, ready to use her invincible Golden Body skill.
The students who had been attacking Bei Bei's group backed off, waiting for He Caitou's strike to land on the trio.
At that moment, the two massive metal cannons on He Caitou's shoulders glowed white-hot like the sun.
"Boom!"
A thunderous explosion erupted as two beams of black light shot from the cannons, not towards Bei Bei's group, but landing at Huo Yuhao's team's feet.
"The power of a third-level fixed soul tool cannon, you can't possibly withstand it. Goodbye, Huo Yuhao!"