"Conditions? Haha, I knew you would have conditions." Mu En smiled as he spoke. "What are your terms? Go ahead."
"The sect leader mentioned a condition in front of you earlier. I've already left Shrek Academy and am fully part of the Body Sect now. In this upcoming competition, I also have the right not to represent myself as a member of Shrek Academy, correct?" Huo Yuhao asked with a cheerful grin.
"That's correct," Mu En nodded in acknowledgment.
"However, since I'm using Shrek Academy's slot to compete, I feel it's somewhat inappropriate," Huo Yuhao said with a smile.
"How about this—let me participate in this competition under dual identities, representing both Shrek Academy and the Body Sect. Officially, I'm a Shrek Academy team member, but when competing individually, I'll use the name 'Huo Yuhao of the Body Sect.'"
"What?! Absolutely not!" Elder Xuan almost leaped off the ground in shock. "You brat, you've got some nerve! You want to piggyback off Shrek Academy's thousand-year reputation to promote your Body Sect? I knew you had some ulterior motives!"
"Xuan Zi!" Mu En waved his hand to calm the agitated Elder Xuan.
Meanwhile, Du Bushi stood off to the side, slightly dumbfounded. This kid, Huo Yuhao, truly dared to strike while the iron was hot! Even Du Bushi himself wouldn't have the guts to make such an audacious request in front of Mu En—this was practically uprooting Shrek Academy's foundation. Yet Huo Yuhao made the suggestion so naturally, without even blushing.
*Cough cough* "Dragon God Douluo, I personally have no objections to Yuhao's proposal. Plus, Yuhao is now part of our Body Sect. Since Shrek Academy wants to have him as a core team member, it should count as a loan."
"And we, the Body Sect, don't ask for any payment—just some advertisement will do."
Hearing Du Bushi's words, Elder Xuan was enraged, nearly bursting with fury. However, Mu En once again raised his hand, stopping him from speaking.
"Elder Mu, as you can see, the strength of the Body Sect is beyond doubt. In this competition, we are joining forces with Shrek Academy, and I serve as the link between the two factions. With two of the three most powerful forces on the continent—Shrek Academy and the Body Sect—standing together, wouldn't this make the Mingde Hall of the Sun Moon Empire think twice before acting?" Huo Yuhao asked.
A glimmer of light flashed in Mu En's eyes, and Elder Xuan was momentarily stunned, falling into deep thought.
Indeed, if Huo Yuhao were to compete under both Shrek Academy and Body Sect banners, it would at least give the Sun Moon Empire the impression that the two forces were allied.
This illusion would undoubtedly be a huge deterrent to the Sun Moon Empire, possibly forcing them to expend significant resources on defense.
If they could make the enemy waste any energy, it would increase their own chances of victory. From this perspective, Huo Yuhao's suggestion actually brought more benefits to Shrek Academy than harm.
As for whether it would be embarrassing for Shrek Academy to have a Body Sect member in their team, well…
Come on, if Shrek Academy were eliminated in the preliminaries, *that* would be the real embarrassment!
"Alright, Huo Yuhao, I agree to your conditions," Mu En nodded. "But, I want to know—if the Academy doesn't provide you with any inner court members as support, how far can you lead Shrek Academy?"
Huo Yuhao smiled faintly, raising his hand above his head.
"Of course, to the championship!"
If this competition were held in the Heavenly Soul Empire, Dou Spirit Empire, or even the Sun Moon Empire, Huo Yuhao wouldn't have taken it so seriously. The success or failure of Shrek Academy's team was irrelevant to him.
But this time was different—this was Star Luo City, the capital of the Star Luo Empire, just fifty miles away from the White Tiger Duke's estate.
Both Duke Dai Hao and the duchess's family, the Star Luo Empire's royal family, were watching this competition closely.
The young boy with Spirit Eyes who left the White Tiger Duke's mansion had grown up, and this time, he would defeat all his opponents under the name of Huo Yuhao, proving his strength to everyone!
---
"I did some research today. A total of 133 advanced soul master academies and advanced soul engineering academies are participating in this tournament, and they're all staying in this hotel. The first round of preliminaries is a knockout match, meaning the losing team will be directly eliminated. The format for the first round is a seven-versus-seven team battle, and the drawing will take place tomorrow. The first round is expected to take three days to complete."
In the conference room, Shrek Academy's eight competing members, along with their instructor Wang Yan, were holding a pre-competition strategy meeting.
"We'll discuss the remaining match formats after we survive the first round. For now, your focus should be on the opponent in the first round. Only by getting through that can we move on to the elimination rounds."
Upon hearing that the first round was a knockout match, everyone's expressions became noticeably more serious.
If the renowned Shrek Academy, the top soul master academy on the continent, were to be eliminated in the first round, it would be a laughingstock.
Their names would be forever etched into Shrek Academy's wall of shame, impossible to remove.
Don't think Elder Xuan's speech about taking all the blame was helpful—no one knew who that old man munching on chicken legs was. At the end of the day, all the pressure and ridicule would fall on these competitors.
"But you don't need to worry too much. Once the matches begin, you'll see that your opponents are weaker than you expect."
"Although they're all around twenty years old, most teams will be hard-pressed to have members above three soul rings. It's rare to encounter teams with four-ringed opponents. I dare say unless you meet the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy in the first round, you won't face any five-ring Soul King-level opponents."
Wang Yan leaned back into his chair, exuding confidence. However, no one noticed the cold sweat soaking his back.
This was his first time leading a team, just as it was their first time competing. The incident at Mingdou Mountain Range hadn't resulted in Elder Xuan being dismissed, so who would take the blame for any failure was clear.
Wang Yan's only hope of redemption lay in securing results that satisfied the Academy.
Despite his confident words, the reality was that most competitors were among the elite of their respective academies. The majority of their opponents would likely be at the Soul Ancestor level. Facing a life-or-death battle in the first round against Shrek Academy, their opponents would undoubtedly give it their all.
Could they win?
---
"Teacher Wang."
In the midst of Wang Yan's anxious gaze, Huo Yuhao stood up and calmly said:
"I request that for tomorrow's opening match, I compete alone—one versus seven!"