Semifinals Begin: Dragon Eyes vs. Shadow

On the first day of the semifinals, the Heaven Dou Royal Academy Team faced Shadow Academy!

This match drew enormous attention. One side was a veteran powerhouse team with top-tier martial souls such as the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon and Jade Phosphorous Serpent, reborn after Ling Yun's special training. The other was a dark horse team led by a mysterious and eerie gray-robed youth capable of devouring life force.

The spectator stands were packed, and the atmosphere was electric. In the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's private box, Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, and Bone Douluo were all present, while Ling Yun sat quietly to one side, watching the match.

"Yu Tianheng and the others should be fine, right?" Ning Fengzhi was somewhat concerned. That gray-robed youth from Shadow Academy was simply too strange.

Ling Yun said calmly, "As long as they hold their formation and don't let that gray-robed youth pick them off one by one, they have a strong chance of winning. Yu Tianheng's lightning power has a certain restraining effect on this kind of dark attribute."

The match began!

Both sides released their martial souls. On the Heaven Dou Team's side, Yu Tianheng charged ahead, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon roaring as four soul rings shone around him! Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphorous Serpent waited for an opening, Shi Mo and Shi Mo defended with their Black Tortoise martial souls, Yu Feng Osrow prowled along the flanks, and the light of Ye Lingling's Nine Heart Begonia flowed around her as she stood ready to heal at any moment.

On Shadow Academy's side, gray-black Soul Power surged uniformly. Most of their martial souls were shadow-, bat-, or corrosion-type, all brimming with an ominous aura. The gray-robed youth standing at the center slowly raised three soul rings beneath his feet—two yellow and one purple! A Soul Elder? He was only a Soul Elder? Yet the deathly stillness he exuded was even more terrifying than that of a Soul Ancestor!

"Attack!" Yu Tianheng roared, launching the first strike! His Fourth Soul Skill, Blue Lightning Divine Dragon Swiftness, shot straight for the enemy's core!

The other Shadow Academy members tried to intercept him, but Dugu Yan's poisonous mist and Yu Feng Osrow's speed kept them occupied. Shi Mo and Shi Mo stood at the front, their defense airtight.

Facing Yu Tianheng's ferocious attack, the gray-robed youth remained expressionless. His body flickered, splitting into several afterimages. Like a ghost, he evaded Blue Lightning Divine Dragon Swiftness and rushed directly toward the rear of the Heaven Dou Team—Ye Lingling! Capture the king first!

"Don't even think about it!" Yu Tianheng had been prepared. Lightning erupted from him, sealing off the youth's path. Dugu Yan's poisonous mist condensed into needles and shot toward the gray-robed youth.

Yet the gray-robed youth's body seemed to have no substance. He passed easily through the poison needles, his shadowy claws reaching for Ye Lingling!

Just then, an inconspicuous jade pendant on Ye Lingling's chest suddenly lit up with a gentle glow, forming a barrier that blocked the gray-robed youth's attack! It was the Calming Heart and Concentrating Spirit Soul Tool Ling Yun had given her before. After Ling Yun's simple refinement, it possessed a certain degree of protective power.

Having failed to land his blow, the gray-robed youth retreated sharply, a trace of surprise flashing through his eyes.

"Now's our chance!" Yu Tianheng seized the moment, joining Yu Feng Osrow in a pincer attack. Lightning and claws struck at the gray-robed youth simultaneously!

Just as the gray-robed youth was about to be hit, he suddenly raised his head. His indifferent eyes fixed on Yu Tianheng, and an eerie curve seemed to form at the corner of his lips.

The next instant, his third soul ring—the purple thousand-year soul ring—flared brightly! Darkness as thick as ink exploded outward from him, instantly spreading across and enveloping the entire arena!

"Shadow Domain!" the gray-robed youth's icy voice rang out.

A domain skill?! The audience erupted in uproar! A Soul Elder possessed a domain? How was that possible?!

Within the Shadow Domain, the Heaven Dou Team's vision and senses were greatly weakened, and their movements became sluggish. Meanwhile, Shadow Academy's members moved like fish in water, their attacks becoming even stranger and more vicious!

"Lingling, Purification Light!" Yu Tianheng shouted urgently.

Ye Lingling activated her Nine Heart Begonia with all her strength. Emerald light tried to disperse the darkness, but the effect was minimal! This Shadow Domain was of exceptionally high quality!

The gray-robed youth was like a sovereign within the domain, appearing and vanishing unpredictably. Every time he emerged, a Heaven Dou Team member was injured and had their life force devoured! Even Yu Tianheng had his arm slashed by one of the youth's bizarre attacks. The wound darkened and refused to heal!

The situation took a sharp turn for the worse! The Heaven Dou Team was plunged into a bitter struggle!

Inside the private box, Ning Fengzhi and the others wore grave expressions. Sword Douluo said in a low voice, "This domain... is no simple matter! It contains a trace of the Power of Rules! There must be an expert behind that boy!"

Bone Douluo nodded as well. "Yu Tianheng and the others are in danger!"

Ling Yun looked at the dark domain covering the arena, his gaze turning slightly cold. He knew this domain's aura all too well. It was precisely the nauseating deathly energy of the Holy Spirit Cult! That gray-robed youth truly was an important pawn of the Holy Spirit Cult!

Just as the Heaven Dou Team was about to collapse, Ling Yun slowly rose to his feet.

"Elder Ling Yun, you..." Ning Fengzhi looked at him in confusion.

Ling Yun did not answer. His gaze merely pierced through the private box's glass and settled on the gray-robed youth in the arena. His lips moved slightly as a condensed Spiritual Sense transmission, sharp as a sword, pierced directly into the other party's mind:

"Holy Spirit Cult trash, get off the arena. Otherwise, die."

The gray-robed youth, who had been rampaging through the domain, suddenly stiffened. It was as though he had been targeted by a venomous snake, and for the first time, terror appeared on his face! He whipped his head toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's private box and met Ling Yun's icy gaze!

He felt it! That terrifying aura, like a primordial beast, was far deeper and more frightening than his Shadow Domain! It was absolute suppression on the level of Life Level!

"Y-you... who are you?!" the gray-robed youth transmitted through Spiritual Sense, his voice trembling slightly.

"I'll give you three breaths." Ling Yun's voice carried no emotion whatsoever.

The gray-robed youth's expression changed repeatedly. His orders had been to achieve the best result possible and display the Holy Cult's strength. But the threat from this mysterious expert before him made him feel a deadly danger! He had no doubt that the other party possessed the ability to kill him instantly!

After weighing the pros and cons, he gritted his teeth and shot a resentful look toward the private box. The dark energy around him withdrew, and the Shadow Domain instantly vanished.

Light returned to the arena. The gray-robed youth stood there with a pale face, while Shadow Academy's other members stared at him blankly, unable to understand why the domain had suddenly disappeared.

"We concede." The gray-robed youth spat out the words coldly, then walked off the arena without looking back.

The entire venue was in an uproar! What was going on? Shadow Academy had clearly held an absolute advantage, so why had they suddenly conceded?

The Heaven Dou Team members were stunned as well. Having narrowly escaped disaster, they looked at one another in bewilderment.

Only Ye Lingling seemed to sense something. She looked toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's private box and saw that calm figure. Warmth and understanding rose in her heart. It was him... He helped us again.

Though the referee was puzzled, he still announced that the Heaven Dou Royal Academy Team had won and advanced to the finals!

A match that should have been brutal ended in such a bizarre manner. Only a few powerful experts vaguely sensed the heart-palpitating fluctuation that had come from the direction of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's private box in that fleeting instant.

The gray-robed youth left the arena and disappeared into the shadows of the contestants' passageway, his eyes filled with resentment and a trace of fear.

"Ling Yun... I'll remember you! The Holy Cult... will not let you go!"

The Holy Spirit Cult's scheme had suffered its first setback. Ling Yun had also officially entered this mysterious organization's sights. The coming finals would surely be even more turbulent and unpredictable.