The Eve of the Grand Competition

The next day, after Zhou Huan and the other two spent two hours wandering around Star Luo City and experiencing the prosperity and charm of this ancient city of ten thousand years, they returned to the hotel to rest and cultivate.

Although they had come with the mindset of watching the excitement, none of them were lazy. Daily Meditation Cultivation was something they could not skip.

Especially Wen Xiaoshuai. Compared to going out shopping amid the crowds, staying in the hotel was a hundred times more comfortable. However, since they had rarely gotten the chance to come out, he could not just consider his own feelings. He had to accompany his two friends for a stroll.

Just like that, time arrived at the day before the competition.

By coincidence, just as Zhou Huan and the other two reached the entrance of the Star Emperor Hotel, they ran into Wang Yan and the others.

"Yaya!" Xiao Xiao, who had been looking somewhat unwell, sprinted over the moment she saw Zhou Huan and the other two and threw her arms around Wang Qingya, nearly bursting into tears.

Naturally, Wang Qingya had no idea what had happened. She merely assumed that this little pet had been away from her for too long and had gotten clingy. "What's wrong? One day apart feels like three autumns?"

Zhou Huan immediately noticed that aside from Wang Yan and the seven Reserve Team members, who appeared unharmed, the other four all looked somewhat pale.

As for how severe their injuries were, Zhou Huan naturally could not tell.

But the four of them... had clearly undergone some changes. According to the original plot, only three main team members should have been able to come at this point: Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochen.

And now, Ma Xiaotao had naturally still come.

As for the other two men and one woman, Zhou Huan did not recognize them.

However, Zhou Huan clearly remembered one handsome senior. He was the senior who had handled his enrollment registration, though unfortunately Zhou Huan did not know his name.

The other senior looked somewhat like Dai Huabin, especially those eyes. Presumably, he was Dai Yueheng.

As for the remaining female senior, who looked icy and utterly unapproachable, if Zhou Huan had guessed correctly, she should have been Ling Luochen.

Zhou Huan did not linger on them for long. After only a quick glance, he walked up to Wang Yan. "Teacher Wang, what happened?"

Since they were all from Shrek, it was easy to see that this team had run into trouble. Zhou Huan asked directly. That was the normal response.

Wang Yan looked as though he wanted to pour out his bitterness but could not bring himself to do so. He could only say, "Let's check into the hotel first. You three... come along too."

Before Zhou Huan could speak, Ma Xiaotao opened her mouth. "Teacher Wang, that isn't appropriate."

Wang Yan narrowed his eyes. He was clearly already angry, but it was not appropriate to lose his temper in public. He merely said coldly, "I am the team leader. What I say goes. Can you find any oth-er-mem-bers?"

Zhou Huan clearly heard Wang Yan grit out the words "other members" one syllable at a time.

Upon hearing that, Ma Xiaotao instantly fell silent and lowered her head, her face pale.

This left Zhou Huan rather bewildered.

According to his understanding of the original plot, Wang Yan was not this domineering at this point. He was already snapping at Ma Xiaotao before the competition had even begun?

More importantly, was Ma Xiaotao really someone who would listen so easily?

Especially to an Outer Court teacher like Wang Yan, whose cultivation was only at the Soul King level.

So what had happened differently during this mission to eliminate Evil Soul Masters?

Was it because of Xiao Xiao?

Still, Zhou Huan would not ask about matters involving Shrek Inspection Team missions. It was not something an Outer Court disciple from the Second Year should be asking about.

In Zhou Huan's view, an organization like the Shrek Inspection Team was clearly a double-edged sword.

If the person wielding the sword exercised restraint, it could kill enemies, and the benefits would outweigh the drawbacks. But if that person deviated even slightly, it would become a disaster.

Zhou Huan had no comment on the matter. He was only a tiny Soul Ancestor right now, so there was no need for him to worry about such things.

While Zhou Huan was lost in his thoughts, Wang Yan had already finished checking into the hotel and registering for the competition. After all, the Star Emperor Hotel was the official venue designated this year to host the participating academies.

Because of Shrek Academy's status, as well as its position as the defending champion of the previous Soul Master Competition, it naturally received the best accommodations, including an independent conference room.

Thanks to the main team being short three members, it was convenient for Wang Yan to arrange for Zhou Huan and the others to stay there directly. Naturally, the three of them had no objections. A place to stay was a place to stay, and the two hotels were roughly equally luxurious.

Two hours later, in the conference room.

Zhou Huan and the other two, Huo Gua's seven-person group, and the Inner Court main team members Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, Ling Luochen, and Gongyang Mo were all seated around a long conference table.

After Xiao Xiao's introduction earlier, Zhou Huan finally learned the name of that handsome senior. He was Gongyang Mo, the level fifty-nine Support System Battle Soul King with the Rainbow Dragon Martial Soul.

Wang Yan stood at the front of the conference table and began introducing the basic details of this Soul Master Competition.

There were one hundred and thirty-three participating teams alone.

The first Preliminary Round was a direct Elimination Match. In other words, every team would fight one match, directly eliminating half the competitors, except for the lucky team that drew no opponent. The format was a seven-person Team Battle.

In the second round, the remaining sixty-seven teams would be divided into eight groups for a Round Robin. The top two teams in each group would advance to the next round. The match format would be randomly selected from three options: first, a seven-person Team Battle; second, a 3-2-2 Confrontation Match; third, an Individual Single Elimination Match.

The third round, from the round of sixteen all the way to the finals, would be Elimination Matches. The format was this: a seven-person Team Battle on the first day and an Individual Single Elimination Match on the second. If a team won the Team Battle, it still had to defeat three opponents in the individual matches to claim victory. If it lost the Team Battle, it had to defeat all seven opposing members in the individual matches with no more than three of its own members in order to turn the tables.

After hearing all these competition rules, Zhou Huan felt his head ache.

It was just a fighting competition, yet they had to make it so complicated. Zhou Huan felt exhausted, but he could not simply stop listening.

At the end of the meeting, Wang Yan finally looked at the four main team members and asked, "About how long will it take for you to recover?"

Ma Xiaotao said, "Fifteen days."

Dai Yueheng said, "I'll need a bit longer. Seventeen days."

Ling Luochen said, "Ten days."

Gongyang Mo gave a bitter smile. "Twenty days."

Wang Yan was speechless. He merely nodded calmly. In truth, the pressure on him was enormous, but he could not show it for fear of affecting the Reserve Team's morale.

Zhou Huan was also speechless. That big brother who needed twenty days could practically go straight to the finals.

So aside from having one extra Gongyang Mo sitting around recovering and watching the show, Shrek's combat strength in the early and middle stages had not changed at all?

Oh, right. There were also the three of them now, but that changed nothing unless he revealed part of his strength.

But that... did not fit the spiritual ethos of being as steady as an old dog.

The meeting did not last long. Wang Yan did not say whether anyone else would come to support them. Instead, he waved a hand and told Huo Gua's seven Reserve Team members to prepare for the first Elimination Match themselves. He did not intend to interfere.

Wang Yan's reasoning was, "How strong could an opponent in the first round possibly be? You are all Shrek's elites. What is there to fear?"

He said it with passion and complete confidence.

But how many people would actually believe him was hard to say.

After the meeting, Wang Yan called Zhou Huan over, and the two left the Star Emperor Hotel.

Five hundred meters away from the Star Emperor Hotel, inside a quiet private room in a teahouse.

Wang Yan skillfully warmed the water, rinsed the tea, brewed the tea... and said nothing, as though he were calming his thoughts and cleansing his soul.

For those who understood it, tea ceremony was self-cultivation, art, a state of being, even life itself.

For those who did not understand it, tea was very good for quenching thirst and could also aid digestion.

It could be said to be an essential for home and travel... uh, perhaps not quite to that extent.

In any case, Zhou Huan did not understand tea. To him, tea was more like a digestive tablet.

Zhou Huan did not know whether Wang Yan understood tea either. He only knew that Wang Yan liked brewing it.

But since the atmosphere had reached this point, Zhou Huan had no choice but to put on some airs. "Teacher, your heart is unsettled."

Wang Yan cooperatively let out a sigh. "Is it that obvious?"

Zhou Huan's cheek twitched. "Teacher, you were never good at hiding your emotions. Even Huo Yuhao and the others can tell that we are isolated and without support now."

The hand holding Wang Yan's teacup trembled slightly, but he quickly steadied it. "We can only do our best. Shrek's ten-thousand-year honor..."

Zhou Huan lightly took a sip of tea. "Teacher, you are too fixated on it. Honor is not a shackle. Winning or losing this competition is important, but it is also not important. Perhaps losing would have greater meaning. Teacher, why not calm down and think carefully about why the academy has not sent anyone else?"

After saying that, Zhou Huan held his teacup with an air of profound sophistication.

This time, he felt that he was standing in the stratosphere.

After hearing those words, Wang Yan remained silent for a long while before finally smiling bitterly. "I was too caught up in the situation to see clearly."

Zhou Huan raised his teacup. "Then let us do our best, regardless of victory or defeat."

At last, Wang Yan revealed a faintly relaxed smile. "Good."

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