Stand Tall, Don't Lose Face

The first rays of morning sunlight spilled over Star Luo Square.

At this moment, every street around it had been sealed off by Imperial City soldiers. Only participating team members coming from the Star Emperor Hotel were allowed through.

The Competition Platform faced the Imperial City's main gate.

The Star Luo Emperor and his civil and military officials could stand atop the walls, looking down over the entire arena.

The first round of the Continental Soul Fighting Tournament was an elimination round.

If a team encountered one of the top four, it could be eliminated on the spot if it was unlucky.

The area around the arena was packed with spectators.

The daily admission fees alone amounted to two million Gold Soul Coins. A month's revenue was enough to rival Star Luo City's annual tax income.

The Shrek members stood in the front row.

There were only ten of them, and seven looked exceptionally young.

Behind them

stood the members of the Sun Moon Team, with Xu Tinglan at the front.

Xu Sanshi glanced back, surprise surfacing in his eyes.

His mouth hung slightly open, and he remained dumbfounded for a long while.

As if sensing his gaze, Xu Tinglan looked over and tilted his head slightly.

Huo Yuhao lowered his voice and could not help asking Beibei, "Why does the Sun Moon Team's captain look so young? And..."

At that moment, an elderly man appeared atop the city wall.

"Silence!"

The thunderous voice reverberated throughout the entire square.

The soldiers snapped to attention and raised their spears high, a murderous aura sweeping across the arena.

"His Majesty the Emperor has arrived!"

The masses fell to their knees in great swaths, forming a vast sea of black that made for a spectacular sight.

All the soldiers present knelt on one knee, their spears touching the ground.

The academy students all bowed at ninety degrees. Even Shrek was no exception, showing respect for the sovereign.

The Sun Moon Team members exchanged looks.

They knew of the longstanding feud between Sun Moon and Star Luo. Facing the Star Luo Emperor, even Ma Rulong did not know how to conduct himself.

The team members instinctively looked toward Xu Tinglan.

The young man stood ramrod straight, with no intention of bowing whatsoever.

Meng Hongchen hesitated for a moment.

"How about a thirty-degree bow? Wouldn't standing like this be a little too conspicuous?"

Xu Tinglan smiled.

"Why bow at all? Don't let the rules of other empires restrain us."

"Stand tall. Don't lose face."

A gentleman should possess the adaptability of dragons and serpents.

My godfather isn't here, so I won't hold it against you.

But Kong Deming is at the Star Emperor Hotel now. What can a mere Star Luo Emperor do to me?

After all,

the strongest person in the Star Luo Empire was only Rank 95. Its top-level combat strength was even inferior to that of the Dou Ling Empire.

A salute with the eyes would be enough.

Upon hearing that,

Xiao Hongchen's eyes lit up. He had not wanted to bow in the first place, and his good brother's words spoke directly to his heart.

The two sides were sworn enemies. Putting on a fake bow was truly disgusting.

And so,

among all the academies, the Sun Moon Team stood alone. They remained perfectly upright and stared directly at the Star Luo Emperor.

Huo Yuhao heard the words and shot a sidelong glance beside him.

He discovered that every member of the Sun Moon Team was standing tall!

The young man's heart, overflowing with devotion to the empire, immediately burst into flame. The disgust in his gaze toward the Sun Moon Team intensified.

The Star Luo Emperor looked around.

When this middle-aged man saw the Sun Moon Team's actions, his eyes narrowed slightly, and his breathing grew a little heavier.

"Rise, my subjects."

The emperor's voice was amplified through an Amplifying Soul Tool.

Only then did the masses rise, while the students straightened their backs as well.

The emperor continued speaking.

After delivering a string of meaningless pleasantries, he finally declared that this Soul Fighting Tournament had officially begun.

The masses erupted in excitement, their emotions soaring.

One hundred and eight ceremonial cannons ignited fireworks atop the city walls, making the atmosphere lively and jubilant.

"The first match: Heaven Spirit Advanced Academy versus Shrek!"

The match host announced.

The atmosphere throughout the arena immediately boiled over.

The masses shouted Shrek's name.

"Shrek! Shrek..."

The Sun Moon Team members had already taken their seats in the spectator area, near the front.

Xu Tinglan sat on a sofa, looking toward the entrance with great interest.

He had tampered with a few things.

He just did not know whether the situation would change. If Shrek were eliminated in the very first match, would that not be interesting?

Meng Hongchen blinked her wine-red eyes, surprise in her voice.

"Shrek seems to be fielding seven reserve members. Why does one of them look a little like you?"

Xu Tinglan knew whom she meant.

"That is my cousin."

Meng Hongchen nodded in understanding and did not ask further.

On the Competition Platform, both sides entered in an orderly fashion.

Beibei led the way, with He Caitou behind him, followed by Xu Sanshi, Xie Huanyue, Xiao Xiao, Huo Yuhao, and Wang Dong.

They stood on the platform,

listening to the cheers below as their spirits reached a peak of excitement.

On the other side,

the Heaven Spirit Team captain recalled an envelope he had received last night, which roughly described what would happen today.

At first, the Heaven Spirit captain had not cared, thinking it was someone's prank.

But after reading its contents,

he hesitated briefly and did not tear it up, instead casually slipping it into his pocket.

To his surprise, his team's first opponent really was Shrek.

The Heaven Spirit captain hurriedly took out the paper and examined it carefully once more.

It listed information on every member of the Shrek Team, including even their approximate soul skills and trump cards, as well as their Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

It specifically noted that Shrek would field its reserve team tomorrow.

Ecstasy appeared on the young man's face.

In the stands,

Xu Tinglan gently waved his folding fan, a calm and composed smile on his face.

Yesterday, Xu Sanshi had come to him and even attempted to morally pressure him using the Dou Ling Empire.

He wanted Xu Tinglan to reveal information about the Sun Moon Team.

Without any concern for whether Xu Tinglan would be utterly disgraced.

Xu Tinglan thought to himself.

Since Xu Sanshi loved the Dou Ling Empire so much, he might as well write all of Shrek's information down for the Heaven Spirit Team.

The Heaven Spirit Team itself belonged to the Dou Ling Empire.

If they could defeat Shrek, they would bring glory to their nation!

With that thought in mind,

Xu Tinglan wrote a lengthy letter, then used the Nine Treasures Chamber of Commerce's black-market channels to deliver it to the Heaven Spirit captain.

That was what led to today's events.

The referee announced:

"Both sides may use most Soul Tools, but fixed-installation high-destructive equipment is prohibited."

The spectators could tell at a glance that Shrek's competitors were rather young.

They guessed that this was a reserve team.

They marveled that Shrek was indeed full of monsters, daring to do things so boldly.

They did not think Shrek was looking down on its opponents. It simply seemed natural that Shrek would do this.

The Heaven Spirit captain looked slender, and fervent emotion filled his eyes.

If he could defeat Shrek, he might very well go down in the history of the Dou Ling Empire!

Both sides spread apart.

Their captains made their final arrangements.

Hundreds of thousands of spectators watched this match expectantly, their hearts filled with anticipation.

The defensive Soul Guidance Protective Barrier rose,

protecting the spectators from being affected by area-of-effect soul skills.

The Heaven Spirit Team maintained a three-two-one-one formation. The final two were control-system and auxiliary-system soul masters, respectively.

They had also received word from their captain.

At this moment, they no longer feared Shrek's reputation, and blazing fighting spirit burned within their hearts.