Communication Through Thoughts

While the discussion raged off the field, the course of the game gradually became clear.

Feng Xiaotian, who flew back into the sky, had an extremely solemn expression.

Chen Feng had only used his sword dance once before, when he fought against Huo Wu.

It was that match that sparked Feng Xiaotian's interest in Chen Feng's sword dance, and he wanted to see what it was all about.

However, because this sword dance only appeared once, and it was to counter the Huo Wu's ranged attacks, Feng Xiaotian made a misjudgment.

He had thought that Chen Feng's sword dance was just a superb parrying technique, but he never expected that there was such a strange and intricate method involved.

However, Feng Xiaotian was not one to give up easily, and he was somewhat unwilling to accept defeat, so he wanted to try again.

Chen Feng naturally welcomed this. "If you want to try, then I'll kill you." He let Feng Xiaotian unleash three consecutive slashes, and then took a half step back again on the fourth strike.

But this time Feng Xiaotian was clearly on guard. When Chen Feng took half a step back, he began to withdraw his strength, and the wings that his other hand had transformed into flapped forcefully, making him spin in the Airborne.

Clearly, Feng Xiaotian skipped this series of attacks, saving his momentum for the next strike.

Even if this means he'll waste his time, at least his buildup of momentum won't be interrupted.

However, Chen Feng would not let him achieve his goal. After taking half a step back, Chen Feng did not turn his sword around as he had done before. Instead, he thrust out his sword in the direction that Feng Xiaotian was withdrawing his strength.

Feng Xiaotian was greatly alarmed and dared not continue to gather his strength, so he took to the air once more.

The combo was thus broken once again.

The two had already exchanged two blows, but because Feng Xiaotian's slashing speed was so fast, it only appeared to outsiders to be a matter of a few breaths.

So much so that some people didn't even understand the intricacies of their fight.

Looking at Feng Xiaotian in the sky, Chen Feng smiled, "All's fair in war. Want to continue playing rock-paper-scissors with me?"

Chen Feng taking a half step back doesn't necessarily mean he will turn his sword around; he might retaliate directly, and the choice is entirely in his hands.

If Feng Xiaotian doesn't want to slam his head into the ground again, he'll have to hold back when he strikes, otherwise he might be caught off guard.

However, this would greatly weaken the effectiveness of Feng Xiaotian's combo attacks. Even if the restrained thirty-six-hit combo were executed thirty-six times, how much power would it actually have?

If Feng Xiaotian is like a player who's lost in the game, then Chen Feng is now a super-duper monster who attacks without any wind-up, with random speed and slow attacks, and can even dash forward like lightning.

If there's any weakness, it's probably that he can't fly, which is why Feng Xiaotian hasn't completely lost his fighting spirit.

Feng Xiaotian also realized his predicament, and he said with some helplessness, "It seems that my Self-Created Soul Skill still has quite a few flaws."

"Nothing is perfect. Your Thirty-Six Consecutive Wind Slashes is actually not bad, it's just that my fighting style is more effective against it," Chen Feng said with a smile.

The so-called 36-hit combo sounds intimidating, but as long as you find a way to disrupt its rhythm and prevent it from building up momentum through combos, then the 36-hit combo is not much of a threat.

"Alas, I wanted to see who was better at creating their Self-Created Soul Skill, but it seems I've completely lost in that regard. However, I won't give up easily. I'll use my Soul Skill for one last desperate attempt."

After saying that, Feng Xiaotian's First Spirit Ring lit up, and his wings kept flapping forward, instantly sending ten wind blades slashing towards Chen Feng.

These ten wind blades were extremely fast and completely blocked Chen Feng's escape routes.

Chen Feng frowned slightly, parrying repeatedly with his longsword, and finally managed to deal with these wind blades.

But then a huge blue wolf head descended from the sky, Entanglement a blue whirlwind, accompanied by a loud wolf howl.

This is Feng Xiaotian's Fourth Soul Skill, Demon Wolf Storm.

If Chen Feng wanted to dodge at this moment, he could actually avoid the Demon Wolf Storm using his Shunatsu movement, which would be a relatively safe approach.

But at that moment, he suddenly didn't want to play it safe anymore.

Since Feng Xiaotian had already used his ultimate move in a final desperate attempt, if he dodged now, it would feel like something would be missing from the match.

Since Feng Xiaotian wants to achieve his goal in one battle, then Chen Feng will oblige.

"Heh." He chuckled softly, and earthen-yellow and golden light began to shimmer on his sword.

Victory is assured.

The longsword traced an arc, pointing towards the sky from behind Chen Feng, and then, just as the blue wolf's head was about to strike, it slashed down fiercely.

"Dragon Ascending Sword!"

With a muffled thud, the enormous, eye-catching blue wolf head was cleaved apart by Chen Feng's sword.

Following closely behind, Feng Xiaotian revealed himself. He seized the moment when Chen Feng's old power had not yet dissipated and his new power had not yet been generated, and grabbed at Chen Feng with a claw.

But at that very moment, a flash of lightning illuminated his eyes.

Chen Feng's figure flashed past Feng Xiaotian, and when he reappeared, he was already behind Feng Xiaotian.

"Are you admitting defeat?" Chen Feng asked in a gentle tone, as if inquiring of an old friend.

Feng Xiaotian glanced at the long sword resting against his neck and said with a wry smile:

What else can we do if we don't admit defeat?

Feng Xiaotian was a respectable man; after Chen Feng sheathed his sword, he conceded defeat to the Referee.

Furthermore, due to the bet with Chen Feng, Godwind Academy also announced its withdrawal from the match.

This also means that Nine-Headed Serpent Academy advanced to the Finals with a 29-game winning streak in this Ranking Tournament. As the top team in the Ranking Tournament, they will be placed into the pool of three seeded teams.

In other words, Nine-Headed Serpent Academy will not be drawn against any of the three seeded teams in the Finals.

With the end of the Ranking Tournament, Xue Ye's promise took effect automatically, and all members of the teams that qualified from the Ranking Tournament were granted the title of Viscount.

Of course, there are also 5,000 hectares of land.

"Speaking of which, will those of us who didn't participate also receive titles?" On the way back to the hotel, Xiao Wu suddenly thought of this question.

"There probably are. You're just nominal Substitute, so you're no different from us. I don't think the emperor would be so petty," Meng Yiran said.

Dai Mubai chuckled, "If this old emperor doesn't want to acknowledge it later, you might as well come to my side. If the Heaven Dou Emperor doesn't acknowledge it, the Star Luo Emperor definitely will."

"Come on, Boss Dai, not a single Academy from the Star Luo Empire made it out of the Ranking Tournament this time. The Star Luo Emperor can't even claim the throne anymore," Ma Hongjun complained.

Dai Mubai's face darkened. "That's because outstanding Soul Master are directly recruited into the army. The situation in the Star Luo Empire is quite different from here."

"Oh, right? It's that saying again, 'Our Great Star Luo Empire has its own national conditions,' isn't it?" Ma Hongjun said, as if he knew everything.

Chen Feng burst out laughing. He had said those words in casual conversation before, but he never expected that Old Ma would pick them up.

Dai Mubai was rendered speechless by Ma Hongjun's provocations, so he had no choice but to resort to his traditional skill—physical persuasion—which made Ma Hongjun scream and yell.

Chen Feng left some space for the two of them to get together, and asked the girl beside him:

"Zhu Zhuqing, do you miss your family?"

"I do want to, but I've been communicating with my family occasionally over the past year, and I'll be able to see my sister once we get to Spirit City, so I feel okay about it," Zhu Zhuqing said.

"We'll go see your sister together then," Chen Feng said.

"Okay." Zhu Zhuqing's face flushed slightly.

Ning Rongrong pouted slightly, a little unhappy, but didn't say anything, which was taken as tacit acceptance of the relationship between Zhu Zhuqing and Chen Feng.

Xiao Wu looked to the left and then to the right, a look of disappointment on her face. It was no fun at all if she didn't see a river of blood.

"Speaking of which, although we won't encounter seeded teams in the first round, it's still possible in the second round, right?" Gu Yue Ling's cool voice rang out at this moment.

"That's certainly possible." Tang San had also considered this possibility. "The three seeded teams are actually quite difficult to deal with; the Four Element Academy is probably no match for them."

"I hope we run into the Heaven Dou Royal Team. We've at least fought them before, and we won," Oscar prayed.

"The Heaven Dou Team is quite strong, but compared to the other two, they are indeed easier to deal with," Tang San agreed.

However, Chen Feng Bu Le. "The opponent in the Finals is determined by drawing lots, and the location is Spirit City."

He didn't say much, but everyone understood what he meant.

In the lottery in Spirit City, the outcome is probably not just a matter of luck.

In fact, if Bibi Dong were to appear during the draw, Chen Feng might have a chance to draw a favorable lot.

That is to have the Grandmaster go up and draw lots, and then have Flender and Liu Erlong stand together.

This might give you a chance to draw a good lot.

However, if it's just a lottery, Pope Bibi Dong obviously won't be there, and the rules stipulate that only the dean of the Academy can draw the lots; no one else can do it on his behalf.

This thwarted Chen Feng's plan.

"What's there to be afraid of? Even if we run into a seeded team, we'll still play. A champion should beat all teams," Dai Mubai said after dealing with Ma Hongjun.

Chen Feng shook his head. "It wouldn't be a problem if we ran into the Spirit Hall Team in the second round. The real trouble would be if we won against a strong team and then had to fight the Spirit Hall Team again before we were fully recovered."

He has already prepared a comprehensive plan for the Spirit Hall Team, so he is confident that he can deal with the Spirit Hall Team alone. However, if he is not in full condition, his confidence will naturally be much lower.

"It's all down to luck."

The journey to Spirit City was smooth and uneventful.

Since the Clear Sky Hammer was not exposed, the Spirit Hall naturally wouldn't react rashly and send several Titled Douluo to carry out the assassination.

As a result, all the participating teams arrived in Spirit City smoothly. The Spirit Hall arranged for a Cardinal to greet them, which was considered quite a show of respect.

The participating teams were assigned different accommodations. For example, Chen Feng and his team were placed in a Hotel. After they were settled, someone from the Spirit Hall came to inform Flender to draw lots for their team.

Just as Chen Feng had predicted, it was unlikely that he would draw a good lot in Spirit City. The results of the draw are as follows:

Nine-Headed Serpent Academy vs. Blazing Fire Academy.

Star Luo Royal Academy VS Skywater Academy.

Heaven Dou Royal Academy VS Thunder Academy.

Godwind Academy VS Spirit Hall Elite Team.

The top four teams belong to one half of the bracket, and the bottom four teams belong to the other half. This means that if Chen Feng and his team successfully advance to the Finals, their opponent will be either Star Luo Royal Academy or Skywater Academy.

If they can win again, they will then face the winner of the second half of the bracket, which is basically the Spirit Hall Elite Team.

"They're trying to make us raise poisonous insects, that woman really has no good intentions." Liu Erlong looked at the schedule in Flender's hand, her face extremely ugly.

The Grandmaster stood aside, pondering a solution, without speaking.

As can be seen from the schedule, Nine-Headed Serpent Academy, Skywater Academy, and Star Luo Royal Academy, three Academy that pose a certain threat to the Spirit Hall Team, are all placed in the same region.

The latter two both possess Martial Soul Fusion Skill, while the Nine-Headed Serpent Academy's Ten Thousand Year Spirit Skill have not yet been fully utilized.

From Covert Scheme theory perspective, there's clearly a reason behind this schedule, though it could also simply be bad luck.

However, no one clearly believed it was a matter of luck, because they had been scammed once before.

"Actually, this draw isn't too bad; at least it's not the worst-case scenario yet." Because he was mentally prepared, Chen Feng was able to maintain a good attitude.

"Could there be a worse fortune than this?" Liu Erlong asked, puzzled.

"Yes." Chen Feng smiled, then glanced at Tang San.

"If I were to draw this lots, I would switch the positions of the Blazing Fire Academy and Skywater Academy. That way, we would have to face two teams with Martial Soul Fusion Skill consecutively."

Tang San and Chen Feng exchanged a glance, and Tang San continued the conversation:

"We've already revealed our methods for dealing with Martial Soul Fusion Skill, and we've used up all our trump cards. As long as these two teams are prepared, successfully unleashing their Martial Soul Fusion Skill shouldn't be a problem."

"Our trump card." Ma Hongjun had barely uttered a word when Oscar elbowed him. In that instant, he reacted with the fastest speed he'd ever displayed:

"Once we run out of resources, we won't be able to stop their Martial Soul Fusion. If we encounter two Martial Soul Fusion Skill in a row, even if we win in the end, we'll probably be out of form."

Oscar gave him a secret approving look, and Ma Hongjun raised an eyebrow smugly.

Jun-ge, I'm just slow to react, not really stupid. I've learned a thing or two from hanging out with Bro Feng for so long. Tell me, wasn't my change of address clever?

The others continued the conversation with normal expressions, discussing how to deal with the Martial Soul Fusion Skill they would encounter in the second round of the competition after "using up all their trump cards".

However, since the Martial Soul Fusion Skill is a top-tier Soul Skill in the Spirit World, the group discussed it back and forth but couldn't come up with any useful solutions. They had no choice but to reluctantly say that they would deal with the first round of the competition first.

Then everyone returned to their rooms to rest, looking dejected, and the Hotel floor fell silent.

As night fell, a dark figure silently emerged from a corner and then left without attracting anyone's attention.

Inside the room, a slight smile appeared on Chen Feng's face.