Chapter 115: Victory, Advancing to the Top Eight
Agility-type soul masters naturally don't have the robustness of power-type soul masters; they are the classic high-offense, low-defense assassins. In Chen Xiao Jie's relentless attacks, Yang Lian had no room to dodge and was forced to clash head-on. Yet, Chen Xiao Jie, completely fearless of injury and bolstered by the Star Guardian, was like a wild dog in his ferocity. Yang Lian was ultimately eliminated by Chen Xiao Jie, but not before depleting a significant amount of Chen Xiao Jie's soul power, evident from his heavily heaving chest.
Ouyang Qian, unable to assist Yang Lian in the air, could only support Wei Feng, who was engaged in a direct confrontation with Huang He Yun. Wei Feng was also struggling. Initially, he could suppress Huang He Yun because Huang He Yun dared not face his Soul-Cleaving Knife directly, fearing blood with each cut. However, Xu jiujiu, unscrupulously, directed a third of the Star Guardian's power to Huang He Yun, transforming the Dark Magic Tiger into a frenzied beast. The tables turned, and now Wei Feng was the one parrying with his Soul-Cleaving Knife, blocking Huang He Yun's repeated claw strikes, as Huang He Yun unleashed a flurry of wildcat punches.
Fortunately, Ouyang Qian's Frost Thorns helped control Huang He Yun, restraining his attacks on Wei Feng. Although the opponent's wind control soul master was also limiting Wei Feng, she was alone without fire control cooperation, rendering her largely ineffective. Otherwise, with Huang He Yun's reckless attacks, Wei Feng would hardly have remained unscathed—his clothes would have been shredded.
It was lucky that Lin Mo had neutralized the opponent's fire control soul master early on; otherwise, a combo from the wind and fire control would have allowed Wei Feng an early exit from the stage.
Dugu Shangshan didn't make any significant moves, engaging with the defensive soul master Zhao Jian, who felt virtually no pressure. Even though Zhao Jian's soul-guided shield was hefty, as a Plate Armor Giant Rhinoceros soul master, his speed was excruciatingly slow.
Zhao Jian was well aware of his disadvantage; his role was to tie down Dugu Shangshan.
Lin Mo could no longer stay silent. His gaze shifted to Huang He Yun, and his eyes, as if transforming into abysses, darkened.
"Dark Demon Scream—"
Lin Mo's fifth soul ring lit up, and a phantom Dark Demon appeared behind him, unleashing a fierce scream at Huang He Yun. The scream was silent, being a mental attack rather than a physical sound.
Struck by the attack, Huang He Yun's vision darkened, and seizing the opportunity, Wei Feng kicked him back, breaking free from Huang He Yun's grasp.
"Boss, how are you holding up?" Lin Mo looked towards Wei Feng.
"Not great, my soul power is severely depleted. With Xu jiujiu's support, he only needs to attack, while I have to use a lot of soul power to block his attacks," Wei Feng shook his head, breathing heavily.
"We can't damage them without breaking their shield!" Lin Weiwei, as a bystander, spoke urgently.
"Qian Qian, you don't need to help me anymore. The wind control isn't a big restriction on me; I can hold off Huang He Yun alone. Try to control that Ghostly Wild Lion, and let Ah Jian hit him hard!" Wei Feng spoke rapidly.
"We need to break the deadlock. Originally being six against seven put us at a disadvantage, and now with Yang Lian eliminated and Chen Xiao Jie recovering, it's going to be even tougher!"
Ouyang Qian nodded, her Frost Thorns wildly flailing on the stage, stealthily creeping towards Dugu Shangshan. However, Dugu Shangshan, ever cautious, quickly distanced himself from Ouyang Qian's Frost Thorns upon noticing something amiss.
This move made one can't help but lament that Dugu Shangshan was indeed very prudent.
Ouyang Qian sighed regretfully, and Wei Feng's heart sank.
The battle was tensely deadlocked, but this tense situation was broken as soon as Chen Xiao Jie recovered. Wei Feng was the first to be eliminated. Already worn out from handling Huang He Yun and distracted by Chen Xiao Jie, he exposed a significant weakness, which Huang He Yun seized to knock him off the stage.
However, before being eliminated, Wei Feng also took out Chen Xiao Jie, who was already low on soul power.
Huang He Yun was also nearly depleted of soul power. As just a Soul King, even without using any soul power for defense, it wasn't easy to exhaust a Soul Emperor.
Lin Mo was quick to seize opportunities. As Huang He Yun eliminated Wei Feng, his guard was momentarily lowered. It was during this brief moment that Lin Mo shifted his Dark Demon's mental control from the opponent's fire control soul master to Huang He Yun, paralyzing him on the spot.
Unable to move, Huang He Yun was quickly entangled and flung out of the arena by Ouyang Qian's Frost Thorns.
Remaining competitors for Di Ao Academy: Du Qianjue, Lin Weiwei, Lin Mo, Ouyang Qian, Zhao Jian. Remaining competitors for Sun Moon Royal Academy: Xu jiujiu, Dugu Shangshan, and the Giant Winged Eagle soul master who hadn't acted and had been protecting Xu jiujiu, along with two sisters of ice and fire control.
Five against five.
Of course, excluding Du Qianjue, since he said he wouldn't act. So it was actually four against five, with Zhao Jian being a defensive soul master, and Ouyang Qian and Lin Mo both being control-type soul masters.
"We have no choice, junior Du, it's time for you to act. We can't handle them without you," Lin Mo said with a wry smile.
Xu jiujiu 's Star Guardian soul skill was too tough. Absorbing star power from eighteen nights in advance, just to use in this one battle, made the shield incredibly tough to break for anyone below a Soul Saint.
In the original story, Xu jiujiu hadn't spread the Star Guardian's shield among everyone but had placed it directly in front of everyone.
It was broken by Huo Yuhao's combination of the Golden Road (weakening) and the Emperor's Hammer (defense breaking).
It took two twin martial souls' fusion skills to pinpoint and break this Star Guardian.
Moreover, there was Electrolux secretly helping Huo Yuhao. Without Electrolux's guidance, Huo Yuhao would have been at a loss.
And Xu jiujiu still had an eighth-grade absolute defense soul-guided device she hadn't used.
"Yeah, our soul power is almost depleted too. We can't last much longer without you acting," Ouyang Qian also spread her hands helplessly.
Her Frost Thorns, nearly covering the entire arena, were draining her soul power like a pump every second.
"Alright, then let me handle it," Du Qianjue chuckled.
He had watched the show long enough.
To be honest, Wei Feng and the others really hadn't performed poorly. Xu jiujiu one Star Guardian skill was enough to perplex everyone in the tournament except for Du Qianjue.
As long as the shield wasn't broken, the opponent could unleash relentless attacks that would be unbearable.
Everyone was fighting, but one had a health lock, only consuming mana, while the other was draining both health and mana bars.
How could they possibly win?
Lin Mo and Ouyang Qian breathed a sigh of relief, Lin Mo retracting his martial soul and Ouyang Qian dissipating the Frost Thorns covering the arena.
Even Lin Weiwei withdrew her soul skills.
Zhao Jian, who was still engaging Dugu Shangshan in a real man's battle, felt the boost on him suddenly disappear, paused for a moment, then turned his head and saw Du Qianjue leisurely stepping out from the formation.
Zhao Jian decisively retracted his uneven soul-guided shield.
And turned to run.
Du Qianjue's full-power attacks were always devastating, and he didn't want to stay on the receiving end of a friendly fire incident!
Xu jiujiu, observing the battle, saw the other side just stop fighting and immediately looked towards Du Qianjue, smiling helplessly.
Now that Du Qianjue was entering the fray, was he finally going to act?
At this moment, Xu jiujiu 's mindset was unexpectedly calm. Before the match, she was frantic about how to defeat Di Ao Academy, but now that Du Qianjue was about to act, she felt that losing didn't seem so bad.
Losing to Du Qianjue wasn't a disgrace.
"So, how do you plan to eliminate us?" Xu jiujiu smiled brightly, her large eyes curving into crescents, looking at Du Qianjue cheerily.
"How about using thunder?" Upon hearing Xu jiujiu 's words, Du Qianjue paused, seriously considering for a moment.
"Can you not be so violent, please? I am a princess after all, go easy," Xu jiujiu said with a wistful tone.
Du Qianjue blinked and nodded.
"Alright."
Du Qianjue waved his hand, using his soul power to sweep Lin Weiwei and the others off the stage. They did not resist, knowing Du Qianjue was concerned about accidentally harming his teammates.
He was about to unleash his power!
His arms shook, and his seven soul rings rose instantly, the second ring illuminating.
Permafrost Domain combined with Polar Bear Storm!
An extreme chill instantly released from Du Qianjue, spreading across the entire arena, turning the stage into a giant vortex of snow and ice.
"Ice Emperor's Wrath!" A deep green light flashed in Du Qianjue's eyes as his right hand turned icy blue, throwing a punch through the air.
The icy blue beam tore through the air, turning the desperately defending Giant Winged Eagle soul master into an ice sculpture.
Dugu Shangshan and the two sisters of ice and fire control had already become ice sculptures. Now, the only ones left standing on the stage were Du Qianjue and Xu jiujiu.
The difference was that Du Qianjue was as calm as ever, while Xu jiujiu was shivering from the cold.
Du Qianjue waved his hand, and the Permafrost Domain and blizzard gradually disappeared.
Under the sunlight, four crystal-clear ice sculptures sparkled, their expressions of horror forever captured at the moment they were frozen.
"Princess, how about that?" Du Qianjue smiled slightly.
Xu jiujiu rolled her eyes and rubbed her frostbitten nose.
"We concede!"
Sky Fiend Douluo Huang Jin Xu, watching Du Qianjue with a face full of admiration, couldn't help but marvel. As a titled Douluo, he had seen many talented youths in his lifetime, but only Du Qianjue was so extraordinary.
Looking at the hundred-thousand-year soul ring on Du Qianjue, Huang Jin Xu couldn't help but feel a bit sour.
He didn't even have one!
"Sun Moon Royal Academy vs. Di Ao Academy, the first match of the team battle, Di Ao Academy wins!" Huang Jin Xu announced loudly.
The audience was stunned, silent for a moment, unsure whether to cheer or lament.
The good news: the star player Du Qianjue won, and the manner of victory was still an overwhelming crushing.
The bad news: the one crushed was their own Sun Moon Royal Academy.
After a few seconds of silence, cheers finally erupted from the stands. After all, Du Qianjue's popularity was still high, and victory or defeat was common. The only team that could last so long against Di Ao Academy was their Sun Moon Royal Academy!
Thinking this way, the citizens of Star Luo City even felt a bit proud.
Which other team wasn't defeated by Du Qianjue as soon as he entered the field?
Only their Sun Moon Royal Academy could last so long!
After self-comforting, the cheers of the Star Luo citizens became even more enthusiastic, not only for Du Qianjue but also for the Sun Moon Royal Academy...
They lost, but in a way, they won too much...
Xu jiujiu: Ah right, totally won.
Amidst the cheers, Du Qianjue walked with a faint smile to the Star Luo team's formation, and with a slap each, he collected back the Extreme Ice soul power from the four ice sculptures.
After thawing, the four simultaneously shivered and looked at Du Qianjue with a mix of awe and fear.
"You're just helping them thaw? We still haven't fought one-on-one," Xu jiujiu said, surprised by Du Qianjue's actions.
Du Qianjue tugged at the corner of his mouth, somewhat speechlessly.
"If you're not afraid of them suffering from the cold, let them continue competing. Although I helped them thaw, my Extreme Ice isn't that easy to eliminate," Du Qianjue said somewhat dismissively.
"Besides, even if they could compete, do you think you have a chance to win?"
Xu jiujiu was speechlessly muted,
What he said... really made sense...
Only after facing Du Qianjue could one feel the pressure of such an absurd level of cultivation when he became an opponent. It was simply beyond human.
But why did those words feel so irritating?
Xu jiujiu clenched her silver teeth and glared fiercely at Du Qianjue before turning and walking away.
Du Qianjue chuckled and also stepped down from the arena.
Only when he returned to the preparation area did he learn that Xu jiujiu and her team, like the Spirit Fighting Academy, had conceded...
"We didn't even go all out, why did they concede again?" Du Qianjue slapped his forehead.
The others looked at Du Qianjue, not daring to speak.
Big brother, with your strength, who would have the courage to continue fighting against you?
Conceding was already very wise!
"So, that means our Di Ao Academy's top eight spot is secured, right?" Yang Lian stroked his chin, thoughtfully saying.
"Yes, secured," Wei Feng nodded, "Scoring three points against the Spirit Fighting team and three against the Star Luo team."
"We've defeated the strongest two teams in our lower bracket; we don't need to fight anymore, just wait for the other three top-eight teams in the lower bracket to emerge."
"When is the top-eight battle?" Du Qianjue asked Wei Feng.
"In a week."
A week, huh? Should I go to the Far North to find Xue'er?
Although it hasn't been long since he parted with Xue Linglong, Du Qianjue felt he missed her a bit.
But after some thought, Du Qianjue decided against it.
It's the top-eight battle now, and the tournament will end in at most half a month. He'll go find her then.
It won't make much difference in these few days.
(End of Chapter)