In contrast to the cheerful mood in the Heaven Dou Second Team's lounge, the Shrek Team's lounge was utterly somber.
Apart from the gravely injured Ma Hongjun, who was still receiving treatment in the Great Soul Arena's infirmary, everyone sat with their heads lowered, saying nothing. A falling pin would have been audible in the room, and every heavy breath rang out clearly.
Upon receiving the news, Flender hurried back to the lounge. The sight of their expressions filled him with heartache.
Yu Xiaogang, in particular, had suffered a devastating blow. He sat on the sofa with unfocused eyes, as though he had lost his soul.
As for Dai Mubai and the others, it went without saying. Before the match, each of them had been brimming with fighting spirit, only to suffer a crushing defeat in the arena and be mocked afterward. How could they accept it?
With their temperaments, they naturally wanted revenge on the Heaven Dou Second Team. Yet tonight's defeat was like a silent warning: they were no match for the Heaven Dou Second Team, so how could they take revenge?
"Will holing up here change the fact that you lost?" Flender berated them, furious that iron had failed to become steel. "This was only a match at the Great Soul Arena, not the soul master tournament."
"Losing now is actually a good thing. At least it exposed the shortcomings in our training and our responses. Train hard from now on, and the day will come when we repay today's humiliation."
But the Shrek Six Monsters had sunk so deeply into self-doubt that none of his words could reach them.
Helpless, Flender could only sternly order everyone back to the academy, leaving their consolation for later. The Great Soul Arena was crowded with prying eyes. If they