Tang Wulin reached out with his left hand, fingers spread as if grasping at the air.
The Tang Sect Ultimate Skill—Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon!
A force burst from his palm, pulling Wang Zhi toward him.
But at that very moment, he saw a faint smile appear on Wang Zhi's face.
It was a subtle smile, yet it filled Tang Wulin with a sense of foreboding.
The next second, he passed straight through Wang Zhi's body.
No—that wasn't his body!
It was just an afterimage!
Tang Wulin's pupils contracted. He tried to steady himself, but he had already rushed to the edge of the platform, and his momentum made it impossible to stop.
Half his body was over the edge. His footing unsteady, he was about to fall.
Just then, a dark shadow appeared behind him.
The Ghost Shadow Ninja struck with one palm, hitting Tang Wulin squarely in the back.
A helpless expression crossed Tang Wulin's face as he flew off the platform and crashed heavily to the ground.
The referee glanced at him and raised a hand.
"Sea and Land Academy, Wang Zhi, wins!"
The crowd erupted in enthusiastic cheers.
Wang Zhi stood at the edge of the platform, looking down at Tang Wulin's bewildered face, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
Tang Wulin was still rather naive at this point.
So Wang Zhi had used his Second Soul Skill, Light Shadow Refraction, to project his image at the edge of the platform.
Tang Wulin hadn't realized that what he saw was only an afterimage, and had charged straight toward the edge.
That was how he'd lost so easily.
Tang Wulin climbed to his feet, brushed the dust off his clothes, and looked up at Wang Zhi on the platform.
His gaze was complicated, but he soon accepted the result.
A loss was a loss.
He took a deep breath, gave Wang Zhi a slight nod, then turned and left.
Just then, Gu Yue and Xie Xie came over to comfort him.
Xie Xie patted Tang Wulin on the shoulder, sounding somewhat relieved.
"Wulin, don't take it to heart."
"Even Shrek Academy's people lost. It makes sense that we did too."
"There's no shame in losing to a monster like that."
Tang Wulin looked up at him. The corners of his mouth tugged into a somewhat forced smile.
"I'm fine."
Gu Yue stood to one side, her gaze fixed on Wang Zhi in the distance.
He was walking toward the spectator stands. From behind, he looked ordinary, with nothing remarkable about him.
But for some reason, Gu Yue felt she couldn't quite see through him.
She narrowed her eyes slightly and focused her Spiritual Power, trying to sense him.
However...
When her Spiritual Power reached Wang Zhi, it was as if a stone had sunk into the sea, creating not even the slightest ripple.
It was as though the person before her wasn't a Two-Ring Soul Grand Master, but an indescribable being.
The thought had barely surfaced when Gu Yue herself froze.
Then she shook her head, amused at herself.
I must be overthinking it.
She was the Silver Dragon King, after all.
Even if the Divine Realm still existed, not even the five God Kings could make her feel that someone was unfathomable.
How could a human boy barely over ten do that?
She turned her gaze away and thought no more of it.
By now, Wang Zhi had returned to the spectator stands.
He sat in his chair, expression calm, his gaze drifting over the competition arena.
As far as Tang Wulin was concerned, he felt little one way or the other.
Just some stranger he didn't know.
He could ignore him.
He had no interest in becoming the sidekick to some protagonist, nor in playing games to steal the protagonist's halo.
After all, Tang Wulin's grandfather, the Clear Sky Douluo, was now the Plane Master of the Douluo Plane.
Getting rid of a little nobody like him would be laughably easy.
Back in the day, Immovable Ming King Zhao Wuji had merely taken his examination seriously and caused Tang San a little trouble.
That very night, Tang Hao had given him a brutal beating.
Wang Zhi wouldn't underestimate Tang Hao's pettiness and assume he could do whatever he wanted without getting beaten to death.
Of course, Wang Zhi also had a vague feeling that once he reached the Titled Douluo level, he might be able to fully control the Black Shadow Kingdom.
Given the Black Shadow Kingdom's standing...
By then, he would fear nothing.
After all, when the Ten Generals of the Black Shadow Kingdom gathered, they could unleash ultimate darkness and forcibly conquer a world with the foundation of a God!
What's more, after Shendu entered Valmont's body, he had shown great respect in the way he spoke to Jade, even back when she was still the queen of the Black Shadow Kingdom.
All of this showed just how terrifying the Black Shadow Kingdom's standing was.
Two more days passed.
The Tianhai Competition Three-Person Team Match had reached the Round of 16.
Today's match drew an exceptionally large audience.
One team was the three-person group from Sea and Land Academy, with Wang Zhi among them. The other consisted of Tang Wulin, Gu Yue, and Xie Xie.
Zhou Tian'er looked at the three people across from them and couldn't help remarking,
"Who would've thought we'd run into the team of the opponent Xiao Zhi faced in the Individual Match again?"
Zhou Hanyou remained cool and silent.
Wang Zhi, meanwhile, looked at Gu Yue standing beside Tang Wulin, a trace of gravity in his eyes.
Although Gu Yue's strength had greatly diminished by now, she had already comprehended several Elements of the Heart, giving her far greater control over the elements than Zhou Tian'er and Zhou Hanyou.
That was also why, in the Original Work, Zhou Tian'er and Zhou Hanyou had needed to use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill they couldn't fully control to fight their opponents.
Wang Zhi didn't think much of it.
A competition was about who was stronger...
Not about who was more pitiful.
The Tianhai Competition had been held for over two hundred years. Countless competitors had been injured during matches, some seriously.
Weapons didn't distinguish between friend and foe; injuries were simply part of the competition.
But Wu Changkong had made a scene at the Tianhai Competition just to stick up for his students. Wang Zhi found that hard to make sense of.
What was that supposed to mean?
If he was afraid his students might get hurt...
Then he shouldn't have let them compete!
This was a competition, not child's play!
And that was nothing compared to the Soul Fighting Tournament for Advanced Soul Master Academies across the Continent that Huo Yuhao had entered ten thousand years ago.
In the finals, Ma Xiaotao had killed two students from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
Later, Xuan Zi had dismissed the matter by saying, "Deaths and injuries are normal in a competition."
And Meng Hongchen had only poisoned the Shrek Academy contestants. She hadn't killed anyone. Yet Xuan Zi had used his Level 98 Super Douluo strength to force her to hand over the antidote.
This showed just how deeply ingrained Shrek Academy's double standards were. It had been their tradition since time immemorial.
Just then, the referee walked to the edge of the platform and signaled for both sides to come forward.
The competitors came out of the Contestant Passage and stepped onto the platform.
Wang Zhi led the way, his expression composed. Zhou Tian'er and Zhou Hanyou followed behind him, one lively and spirited, the other cool as frost.
Across from them, Tang Wulin and the others came up from the opposite side.
The moment Xie Xie saw Wang Zhi, his expression turned a little strange.
He leaned toward Tang Wulin and whispered,
"Wulin, that guy..."
"He looks like the one who knocked you off last time."
Tang Wulin nodded, his gaze fixed on Wang Zhi, serious and intent.
Gu Yue stood beside Tang Wulin, her dark eyes sweeping casually over the three people across from them...
Then lingering on Wang Zhi for a moment.
The referee signaled for both sides to step forward.
The six of them took their places in the middle of the platform and briefly introduced themselves.
"Sea and Land Academy, Wang Zhi."
"Sea and Land Academy, Zhou Tian'er."
"Sea and Land Academy, Zhou Hanyou."
"Eastsea Academy, Tang Wulin."
"Eastsea Academy, Xie Xie."
"Eastsea Academy, Gu Yue."
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