Those who fall by my hand are never considered my rivals

The smoke of the team battle had dispersed, but the atmosphere in Star Luo Plaza grew increasingly heavy.

In the rest area of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy, Xiao Hongchen stared fixedly at the calm-faced youth not far away, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, drawing beads of blood.

"Damn it! Damn it! How could I lose? I am the greatest genius of the Sun Moon Empire!"

Proud as he was, he simply could not accept the fact that he had been crushed by Huo Yuhao alone during the team battle. That sense of powerlessness was like an ant looking up at a dragon.

"Brother, don't be like this." Meng Hongchen held her brother's hand with a pained expression, comforting him softly, "We still have a chance. As long as we win tomorrow's individual knockout round, we can drag the match into the two-two-three format. With our advantage in Soul Tools, we might still be able to turn the tables."

Xiao Hongchen took a deep breath, a frantic fighting spirit reigniting in his eyes: "That's right, I haven't lost yet! In tomorrow's individual matches, I will make them pay the price!"

However, what he did not know was that Huo Yuhao had no intention of giving them a chance to turn the tables.

In the Shrek rest area.

Huo Yuhao was tidying his cuffs in a leisurely manner, his tone as indifferent as if he were discussing what to have for lunch: "The two-two-three is too much trouble; let's just end it in the individual matches. Finish it early and send them home."

The Lan Sisters waved their small fists on the side: "Class monitor is mighty! Beat them all into the ground!"

The next day, the individual knockout round officially began.

Although Xiao Hongchen's face remained pale and his mental trauma had not yet healed, the fierce glint in his eyes was even more intense than the day before.

This was their last chance; if they lost, the label of "perennial runner-up" would be slapped onto them once again.

Unfortunately, reality is often far more cruel than ideals.

On the Shrek side, the first to take the stage was Ma Xiaotao.

Phoenix flames swept across the entire arena, giving her opponents no chance to catch their breath.

First match, victory!

Second match, victory!

Third match, victory!

Ma Xiaotao was unstoppable, piercing through three people in a row, directly making the Sun Moon Team doubt their lives. This continued until the captain of the Sun Moon Team, Ma Rulong, took the stage.

Ma Rulong held a pitch-black greatsword—an eighth-rank melee Soul Tool, the Judgment Sword!

This sword was not only incredibly sharp but also contained dual attributes of darkness and light, specifically designed to incite the negative emotions within a soul master's body.

"Ma Xiaotao, your death day has arrived!"

Ma Rulong gave a sinister laugh, the Judgment Sword shining brilliantly, and a strange power instantly invaded Ma Xiaotao's body.

The Evil Fire that had already been suppressed erupted instantly like a volcano under the influence of this power!

"Ah—!"

Ma Xiaotao roared in agony, her eyes turning blood-red in an instant as her sanity rapidly slipped away.

"Oh no! Sister Xiaotao is losing control!" Wang Dong exclaimed in shock.

Huo Yuhao's eyes turned cold as he instantly saw through the opponent's sinister intentions.

They wanted to force Ma Xiaotao to completely fall into becoming an Evil Soul Master and destroy a genius of Shrek!

"Referee, we forfeit this match!" Huo Yuhao made a prompt decision and shouted loudly.

However, Ma Rulong on the stage acted as if he hadn't heard, the light from the Judgment Sword in his hand growing even brighter as he clung tightly to Ma Xiaotao, refusing to give her any chance to leave the stage.

"Want to forfeit? Too late! Turn into a monster for me!" Ma Rulong laughed wildly in his heart.

"You're courting death!"

Huo Yuhao was furious.

His figure flashed, and he instantly charged onto the arena. His Ultimate Ice domain was fully unleashed, and the terrifying cold instantly froze the entire stage.

"Get lost!"

Huo Yuhao struck out with a palm, the Great Cold No Snow carrying an irresistible force, directly blasting Ma Rulong, along with his sword, dozens of meters away.

Following that, he caught the swaying Ma Xiaotao, continuously pouring his Ultimate Ice soul power into her body to forcibly suppress the rampaging Evil Fire.

"Yuhao..." Ma Xiaotao regained a sliver of clarity, leaning weakly into Huo Yuhao's arms.

"It's okay, Sister Xiaotao, leave it to me."

Huo Yuhao handed Ma Xiaotao over to the approaching teacher Wang Yan, then slowly turned to look at Ma Rulong, who was just climbing back up.

At that moment, the killing intent in Huo Yuhao's eyes made the surrounding air seem to freeze.

"Referee, for the next match, I will represent Shrek."

Huo Yuhao's voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone in the arena.

The match continued.

Ma Rulong wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, staring at Huo Yuhao with a vicious gaze. Although he had been repelled just now, he believed it was because he had been careless, and that Huo Yuhao had been distracted by suppressing Ma Xiaotao.

"Huo Yuhao, you are indeed strong. But in the end, you are only a Soul Ancestor, and I am a Spirit Emperor! Plus, with the Judgment Sword, what are you going to use to beat me?!"

Ma Rulong roared, all his Soul Tools fully activated, countless cannon barrels aimed at Huo Yuhao, and the Judgment Sword erupted with an unprecedented black light.

"Die!"

Facing this overwhelming onslaught, Huo Yuhao stood his ground, not moving an inch.

He merely raised his head slowly, and within those Spirit Eye, it was as if stars were falling and abysses were opening.

"Soul... Deprivation!"

This was the perfect fusion of the Necromancy bestowed upon him by Electrolux and his own spiritual power.

There were no flashy light effects, only an invisible ripple that instantly pierced through layers of soul tool shields, ignored all physical defenses, and struck directly into the depths of Ma Rulong's Sea of Consciousness.

"Urgh..."

Ma Rulong's charging figure came to an abrupt halt.

The light in his eyes vanished instantly, and his entire body, like a shell drained of its soul, collapsed straight to the ground.

"Bang!"

The sound of a heavy object hitting the floor was exceptionally jarring in the silent arena.

Dead?

The hundreds of thousands of spectators in the arena, including the referee, were all stunned.

A one-hit kill?!

And he killed a fully armed Level 7 soul master, a Spirit Emperor-level powerhouse?!

"Captain!!!"

The Sun Moon Team's rest area erupted instantly. Xiao Hongchen and the others were so furious their eyes were splitting; they rushed to the edge of the stage and roared, "Murder! He's committing murder! This is a foul! He must be severely punished!"

The referee also panicked and rushed forward to check, only to discover that although Ma Rulong was still breathing, his Sea of Consciousness had been completely shattered, turning him into a vegetable—a fate even worse than death.

Facing the accusations from the Sun Moon Team and the questioning from the referee, Huo Yuhao spread his hands with an innocent expression.

"My apologies, everyone. My cultivation is still shallow, and I only just gained Satori regarding that move; I couldn't control its power. It was an accidental slip, I am truly sorry."

Although he spoke of apologies, was there even a hint of regret on his face? It was clearly saying: I killed him, so what are you going to do about it?

Following this, Huo Yuhao's gaze swept over the remaining members of the Sun Moon Team, and the corners of his mouth curled into a cold arc.

"Does the match continue? I don't mind seeing it through to the end. However..."

He paused, his voice becoming incomparably chilling, "I cannot guarantee whether the next person to step up will be able to walk away alive. After all, my soul skill... is truly 'hard' to control."

A naked threat!

Xiao Hongchen was trembling with rage, his finger pointing at Huo Yuhao shaking uncontrollably: "You... you..."

But he dared not gamble.

Even the strongest, Ma Rulong, had been taken out in one hit; anyone else who went up would just be throwing their life away. Furthermore, looking at Huo Yuhao's posture, it was clear he had developed a murderous intent.

In the end, Xiao Hongchen could only swallow his pride and grit his teeth.

"We... forfeit!"

As these two words were spoken, it felt as if all his strength had been drained away.

But he was unwilling to accept this!

"Huo Yuhao! Don't get cocky! I, Xiao Hongchen, have noted today's humiliation! Five years from now, at the next tournament, I will definitely make you pay the price! I will make you kneel before me and repent!" Xiao Hongchen roared hysterically.

Facing the wailing of a defeated dog, Huo Yuhao merely glanced at him indifferently and turned to walk off the stage, leaving behind only a solitary, arrogant back and a light, airy remark:

"Enemies who fall by my hand have never been regarded as rivals by me."

"I will give you time to catch up, until you can no longer even see my shadow."

The entire arena fell silent, with only those domineering words echoing in the wind.