Dad, I don't like Cao Mengde

Brothers.

Release your Martial Souls.

Dai Mubai had been the one who originally intended to say those words.

To show that he had the strength to fight, Tang San called them out first.

But he never expected what happened next.

The moment he circulated his Soul Power and prepared to summon his Martial Soul-

Pfft!

A great mouthful of blood sprayed from his mouth.

The searing pain in his lower back grew even more pronounced, forcing Tang San to reach down and support his uncooperative back.

"Little San..."

"Third Brother..."

Dai Mubai and the others left their positions, hurried over to Tang San, and held him up.

But at that moment,

the Blazing Fire Academy members standing opposite them did not take advantage of his predicament.

Huo Wu spoke instead.

"Tang San, you're injured. Have someone else take your place."

She had lost to Tang San at the Heaven Dou Academy competition venue.

She badly wanted to defeat him and vent her frustration.

But Huo Wu knew that taking advantage of someone in a predicament was not in her nature, so she offered him a kind word of advice.

By now, sweat was beading on Tang San's forehead.

The pain in his lower back made his whole body tremble.

Even in such a terrible state,

he gritted his teeth and persisted.

"Boss Dai, I'm fine."

"Have everyone start fighting."

Dai Mubai and the others could all see that Tang San had no strength to fight.

But he was so stubborn that none of them could sway him.

They all knew Tang San's character.

He would never compromise until the very last moment.

"Everyone, return to your positions and continue the fight."

"Brothers, release... your Martial Souls."

Tang San frowned deeply and circulated his Soul Power.

The shape of Blue Silver Grass began to emerge from his right palm.

As his Soul Power surged, the pain in his lower back grew increasingly intense, making it extremely difficult to summon his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul.

Some time passed.

The Blue Silver Grass had only grown halfway out of his palm.

Tang San began to pray.

I have to hold on.

He had to take part in this battle.

Without him, how could the Shrek Team possibly win?

And so,

Tang San forcibly suppressed the agonizing pain and continued summoning his Martial Soul.

Finally,

the illness plaguing him worsened sharply as he strained himself too hard.

Pfft!

Another mouthful of blood sprayed from Tang San's mouth.

This time,

before Dai Mubai and the others could even reach him, Tang San's strength gave out, and he fell facedown on the Soul Fighting platform.

Standing on the second floor, Bibi Dong held her scepter and watched everything happening below.

Seeing Tang San like this,

she was overjoyed.

Heavens above.

Earth below.

Which angel sister helped me vent that grudge?

"Tang San, you can't even release your Martial Soul. What are you still fighting for?"

"Get off the platform. Don't delay the competition."

She had sent people to kill Tang San before, but they had failed.

Now things had worked out nicely.

Even though Tang San was alive and well, he could not take part in the battle.

"Brother..." Xiao Wu ran forward and crouched beside Tang San, her eyes full of sorrow.

"Brother, don't push yourself anymore. Get off the platform."

Because Tang San had used his Soul Power to suppress the pain, he had already lost more than half of it before the fight had even begun.

Worse still,

the piercing pain in his lower back, as though something were drilling into his flesh, continued unabated.

Even after he brought out every Tang Sect healing method he knew, it did not lessen in the slightest.

"Xiao Wu... I... I have to compete."

Tang San cared too much about winning.

Deep down, he had long believed he could take the championship.

If he stepped down, how could his teammates defeat Blazing Fire Academy?

With Xiao Wu's help, Tang San stood up again and continued trying to release his Martial Soul.

The result was exactly the same.

The pain brought on by that strange illness was extraordinarily intense.

The more Soul Power he used, the worse the pain became.

After a long while,

Tang San still had not summoned his Martial Soul.

Bibi Dong, the competition's chief judge, lost patience at that point.

She turned to look at Yu Xiaogang.

"Shrek Academy, stop wasting time."

"Tang San doesn't even have any Soul Power left, yet he's still occupying the Soul Fighting platform and refusing to come down. I'll have someone throw him off."

Yu Xiaogang's expression was exceptionally ugly.

On the one hand, he was worried about Tang San; on the other, Bibi Dong's words made him feel humiliated.

This was the Soul Master finals, watched by Soul Masters across the world.

They could not afford to make fools of themselves any longer.

His face cold, Yu Xiaogang shouted sternly,

"Mubai, Ma Hongjun, carry Tang San down."

"Your Holiness the Pope, please give Shrek Academy a few minutes. I'll send a substitute student onto the platform."

Bibi Dong said nothing more.

She had tacitly granted Yu Xiaogang's request.

She did not take the substitute student seriously at all.

"Little San, go rest. Leave the match to us."

Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun carried Tang San off the Soul Fighting platform.

Even so,

Tang San's desire to win had not faded. He gripped Dai Mubai's and Ma Hongjun's wrists tightly.

"Boss Dai, Fatty, you have to win."

"I'm counting on you."

The same point remained.

He had long set his sights on the championship. How could he let Blazing Fire Academy stop him?

The Spirit Hall Team had not even taken the field yet, so Tang San was more anxious than anyone.

"Little San, focus on recovering. Leave the rest to us."

"All this time, you've been the one leading us in battle. This time, please believe in us."

After saying those words,

Dai Mubai felt the weight of his responsibility, and his body filled with strength.

For Little San,

and for the team's honor, he had to win the match.

"Tai Long, take Little San's place. Jing Ling, Huang Yuan, carry Little San back to the lounge."

"Yes."

As Tang San was carried away, his eyes remained fixed on the Soul Fighting platform.

Boss Dai, come on.

Shrek has to win.

He...

really could not accept defeat.

"Hahaha..."

"This is the first time I've seen a Soul Master who can't even release his Martial Soul."

"Tang San, next time you enter a competition, make sure you remember: don't go looking for fun at Red Romance. Your body's been hollowed out. How could you have the strength to fight?"

Dark lines covered Tang San's face.

As the jeers and sneers surrounded him, he could distinctly feel blood surging up from his chest, ready to burst from his throat.

Fortunately, he kept his mouth tightly shut this time and did not spit it out.

He absolutely could not disgrace himself in front of this bunch of lackeys.

Hold it in!

Before long,

Huang Yuan and Jing Ling carried Tang San back to the academy lounge.

"Third Brother, get some rest. If you need anything, just say the word. We'll be waiting outside the door."

No one knew what to do about Tang San's illness.

The two of them could only do this much.

Tang San was grimacing in pain and had no strength to respond.

The two had barely left

when a fierce gust of wind swept past the window.

The next moment,

a tall man appeared in the room.

"Dad?" Tang San called out in delight.

Tang Hao's face was gloomy.

He both loved and hated Tang San's strong-willed nature.

"Let me ask you."

"Why didn't you go to Rejuvenation Hall and ask Cao Mengde to treat you?"

Tang Hao could guess what Tang San was thinking.

He intended to take this opportunity to teach him a proper lesson and help his son grow.

Tang San stammered, unsure how to answer.

Tang Hao's expression rapidly changed, turning exceedingly fierce.

"Speak!"

That single word

made Tang San experience an unparalleled pressure.

Even Tang San, steadfast as a rock, was frightened into talking under Tang Hao's imposing presence.

"I..."

"Dad, I don't like Cao Mengde."