Chapter 112: The Rift (Two-in-One)
The dust on the stage gradually dispersed.
At this moment on the stage, only seven people could still stand.
A deep pit, reaching two meters and covering nearly half of the stage, appeared before them.
Du Qianjue stood with his arms crossed at the edge of the pit, expressionlessly watching the seven people from the Spirit Fighting Academy across it.
"Cough cough cough…"
Violent coughing rang out. The captain of the Spirit Fighting team, Gu Zhu Jian, propped himself up, his face covered in dirt and soot, with fresh blood streaming from his orifices like tiny snakes.
Only he, with the highest cultivation level and protected by a defensive Soul King, retained consciousness.
The others had passed out.
Fortunately, there were no severe injuries or deaths, just fainting caused by the complete depletion of soul power and the violent impact of soul force. They owed this to the Starbreaking Douluo.
Among the audience and the titled Douluos, only Du Qianjue clearly saw the movements of Starbreaking Douluo.
"How can you be so strong?!" Gu Zhu Jian's voice was somewhat desperate, and the terrifying power of Du Qianjue, like a celestial might, completely woke him up.
Before the match: Utterly unbeatable!
After the match: Still utterly unbeatable!
"My strength today is all thanks to my own efforts," Du Qianjue said with a slight smile. "If you're not strong enough, it just means you haven't worked hard enough!"
Gu Zhu Jian was stunned, then fainted from anger after hearing this.
What kind of nonsense was that?
Behind Du Qianjue, Wei Feng and others twitched their lips as they watched his back.
If effort was so useful, what would be the point of having geniuses?
Nobody believed Du Qianjue's words.
Not a bit.
"The match is over, the first round, team battle."
"Di Ao Academy wins!"
Starbreaking Douluo grabbed the referee's role and announced loudly, his voice, under the profound soul power of the titled Douluos, clearly reaching everyone's ears.
"Woah woah woah...!!!"
"Di Ao! Di Ao!!"
"Instant kill! Domination!!"
...
Amidst endless cheers, Du Qianjue walked off the stage with his hands in his pockets, an invincible look on his face.
The other six exchanged glances and quietly followed Du Qianjue's steps.
As for subsequent matches?
There were no more, as the Spirit Fighting Academy fled the scene in terror, surrendering overnight and retreating back to the Spirit Fighting Empire.
Shrek's standby area.
"What do you all think?" Wang Yan adjusted his glasses and asked with a serious tone.
Even as a senior teacher at Shrek Academy, he had never seen such an overpowered player; Du Qianjue's power was simply unmatchable!
How could someone evolve into a Primordial Heavenly Sovereign and still come back to fish in a pond?
Unfilial!
"What can we think? There's nothing we can do," said Dai Yueheng with a bitter smile, feeling an immense pressure as the strongest soul master of Shrek's team.
"Lin Luochen, what about you?" Wang Yan then looked towards this cold and beautiful ice controller.
"I can't control it. My soul power level is too low, and the attributes are not strong enough. If I had the ultimate ice, maybe I could control him for a few seconds," Lin Luochen also shook her head, a hint of disappointment on her cold, pretty face.
Being a top student at Shrek's inner court, Lin Luochen had never felt such suffocating pressure in front of her peers.
The feeling of defeat she experienced was unparalleled.
The other three from the inner court felt similarly, even the usually quiet Xi Xi looked helpless.
"Didn't we say we have a secret weapon?"
As everyone was overshadowed by gloom, Xu Sanshi's mischievous laugh sounded.
"Hm? Xu Sanshi, go ahead," Wang Yan said, eagerly looking at Xu Sanshi.
He really didn't want Shrek's centuries of undefeated streak to end on his watch!
Xu Sanshi didn't speak, just grinned and then turned his gaze towards the transparent little loli, Xiao Xiao.
Everyone else realized, but Wang Yan was still confused.
"Don't look at me! Why are you looking at me?" Xiao Xiao's little face turned red, and she shyly stomped her foot.
Xu Sanshi knew what he meant, but she didn't really believe she could make Du Qianjue hand over the championship willingly.
Although Xiao Xiao did have a good impression of Du Qianjue.
"Look at our secret weapon. Just let her play, and Du Qianjue definitely won't bear to eliminate you," Xu Sanshi grinned.
Jiang Nan Nan rolled her eyes, clearly disgusted, and stepped away from Xu Sanshi.
"Alright, stop joking. This is a big competition. Du Qianjue might not attack Xiao Xiao, but he still has other teammates," Dai Yueheng shook his head, dismissing Xu Sanshi's idea.
Only Wang Yan's eyes flashed with insight.
"Xu Sanshi, tell me in detail, is there something between Du Qianjue and Xiao Xiao that I don't know about?" Wang Yan adjusted his glasses, his eyes gleaming with wisdom.
Hearing Dai Yueheng's words, Xu Sanshi was about to drop the subject, but then Wang Yan seemed very interested, so Xu Sanshi described what had happened between Du Qianjue and Xiao Xiao while walking in Star Luo City the day before.
Of course, he didn't embellish anything.
When discussing tactics, there's no room for even a hint of bias or personal subjectivity, as it can easily cloud the judgement of the coaching staff.
Wang Yan listened seriously to Xu Sanshi's story, nodding thoughtfully.
"Perhaps... Xu Sanshi's idea might be worth a try."
"Ah?"
Everyone was stunned, feeling a bit absurd.
Everyone could hear Xu Sanshi was joking, trying to lighten the mood.
And you, Wang Yan, took it seriously?
Especially Xiao Xiao, who had already blushed, now felt utterly embarrassed and incredulous.
"We cannot give up any chance of victory, you know. We represent not just ourselves but the honor of the academy," Wang Yan persuasively said.
"The honor of the academy must not be destroyed in our hands!"
"Xiao Xiao, I know this is hard for you, but please forgive your teacher. I have made this decision out of necessity."
Faced with Wang Yan's 'sincere' appeal, Xiao Xiao could only nod her head with difficulty.
With such a heavy burden of 'Shrek's honor' coming down, how could Xiao Xiao, a little girl, bear it? She had no choice but to accept.
"Teacher Wang, are we really letting Xiao Xiao play?" Xu Sanshi scratched his head, shocked.
Shoot, did I actually cause trouble?
"If there were any other choice, I wouldn't want to put all this pressure on Xiao Xiao, this little girl. But we really have no other way," Wang Yan said with a bitter smile.
"We have no tactics that can defeat Du Qianjue. This is an absolute difference in strength, not something any tactic or soul guidance device can make up for. To defend the honor of the academy, we can only do this."
Everyone fell silent.
Wang Yan was right; they really had no way to defeat Du Qianjue. The only breaking point was Xiao Xiao.
This chance also depended on whether Du Qianjue really had feelings for Xiao Xiao and didn't care whether Di Ao Academy would win or not.
After all, Du Qianjue was from the Body Sect, not Di Ao Academy.
From this perspective, Wang Yan's method was even the best available.
"Teacher Wang, no need to say more. For the academy, I will comply with the arrangement this time," Xiao Xiao raised her head, her face no longer flushed, only resolute.
"This time, I will try to cooperate with your tactics, but after this competition, I will withdraw from the academy."
She chuckled self-deprecatingly.
"This also counts as repaying the academy for the two years of nurturing."
"Xiao Xiao, you…" Xu Sanshi opened his mouth, not knowing what to say.
Xiao Xiao didn't speak further, nor did she stay any longer, getting up and leaving the Soul Fighting arena alone. Her petite figure appeared exceptionally frail at that moment.
Jiang Nan Nan looked at Xu Sanshi with disgust, got up, and chased after Xiao Xiao.
Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong exchanged glances, then followed Xiao Xiao and Jiang Nan Nan's departing directions.
Beibei sighed, patted Xu Sanshi on the shoulder, and left alone.
He Caitou opened his mouth, not knowing why, but when Xiao Xiao's blushing face came up in the context of Du Qianjue, it made him feel sour; yet, seeing her desolate departure, that sourness turned into heartache.
A bewildered He Caitou could only follow Beibei.
Only Xu Sanshi was left alone, silently watching the departing six.
"What did I do…" Xu Sanshi muttered to himself in his heart.
Needless to say, Xiao Xiao would definitely do as she said, not just leaving Shrek Academy, but likely leaving Tang Sect as well after leaving Shrek, then heading back to her hometown alone.
The reaction of the reserve team was observed by Wang Yan, but he showed no reaction.
"I had no choice…" Wang Yan said to himself in his heart.
For the honor of Shrek, everything else could be cast aside.
The reserve team's seven members left, but the main team's five members couldn't leave yet; they still needed to watch the other teams' battles and discuss subsequent tactics with Wang Yan!
As for Wang Yan's operation, it was actually not surprising.
Shrek's education, cultivating soul masters like Wang Yan who are die-hard loyalists to Shrek, was really too simple; wasn't the original Huo Yuhao just like this?
For the sake of victory in the Soul Fighting Tournament, Shrek's ethical bottom line was shockingly low…
But Wang Yan was destined to be disappointed.
Du Qianjue's participation in this tournament was because he wanted to thoroughly defeat Shrek, from all aspects, to bring down this number one academy on the continent.
With this precondition, Du Qianjue would never hand over the championship to Shrek.
Moreover, he and Xiao Xiao didn't have the feelings Xu Sanshi imagined; it was just that compared to other people from Shrek, Du Qianjue had a better impression of Xiao Xiao, this little loli, and was more willing to answer her questions.
That's why Xu Sanshi got the impression that 'Du Qianjue was interested in Xiao Xiao.'
It can only be said that Wang Yan's plan was destined to fail.
Shrek was also destined to lose a genius with twin martial souls.
Too bad Du Qianjue didn't know about this interesting plot twist happening at Shrek; otherwise, he would definitely consider how to try to pull Xiao Xiao into the Body Sect.
What?
You say Xiao Xiao isn't a body martial soul?
What if she's not a body martial soul? Du Qianjue, as the young sect master of the Body Sect, inviting a soul master who isn't a body martial soul to join the Body Sect, who would dare to say anything?
Moreover, not all members of the Body Sect are body martial soul cultivators; those lucky enough to awaken a body martial soul are still relatively few.
It's just that those who are not body martial soul cultivators in the Body Sect don't have high cultivation levels.
Regardless, the rift between the Shrek Seven Devils began to form, and this was in line with the mindset Du Qianjue had when Dai Yueheng invited him, wanting to cause trouble.
Trees don't grow when you want them to, but they can flourish unexpectedly when you don't.
When he wanted to cause trouble, he didn't succeed; when he didn't want to cause trouble, with a bit of help from Wang Yan, he directly pulled Xiao Xiao out of the muddy whirlpool of Shrek.
Switching to the light!
Back at the Star Emperor Hotel, Xiao Xiao sat alone in front of the window, silently watching the busy traffic outside, her lovely emerald eyes full of confusion.
Is this really the soul master holy land, Shrek Academy, that she had in her heart?
A line of clear tears slid down Xiao Xiao's pale cheeks and fell on her skirt hem.
She could ignore Xu Sanshi's teasing and also disregard the mocking glances of others, because she genuinely had a good impression of Du Qianjue and indeed wanted to have a relationship with him.
But Xiao Xiao never expected that Wang Yan would actually use her tender and naive feelings in the tactical arrangement...
Jiang Nan Nan sat on the edge of the bed, her heart aching as she watched Xiao Xiao silently weeping.
Already very disgusted and extremely hateful towards Xu Sanshi, Jiang Nan Nan's attitude towards him worsened even more after this incident.
Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong stood at the door.
The three of them did not go to comfort Xiao Xiao, because comforting her at this time would have no effect and would only make her more fixated.
"Hopefully, Teacher Wang's arrangements won't be in vain," Huo Yuhao said with a bitter smile after returning to the room.
"Teacher Wang is really too..."
Wang Dong, after all, was not Tang Wutong, that patchwork monster; Wang Dong's character was still very good, and her relationship with Xiao Xiao, who she had known since the start of school, was also not bad.
Originally, Wang Dong thought Wang Yan, a knowledgeable and gentle teacher, was a good teacher.
But she didn't expect that Wang Yan would be so reckless and crazy in this respect...
"Alright, stop talking," Huo Yuhao shook his head, interrupting what Wang Dong wanted to say.
But he also sighed inwardly.
A broken jade can't be whole, spilled water can't be gathered.
(End of Chapter)