Qin Chuan's appearance had been little more than a flash in the pan. The only thing worth noting was that he possessed the Death Spider Emperor Martial Soul. Because of Pope Bibi Dong a thousand years ago, this Spirit Hall pope, who had left an indelible mark on history and founded the Spirit Hall Empire, had once nearly unified the entire continent single-handedly.
She had been the greatest enemy of the two empires of Heaven Dou and Star Luo at the time.
Even now, the Library Pavilion of the Star Luo Empire held records about Bibi Dong. Its descriptions of the Death Spider Emperor matched exactly what Qin Chuan had displayed.
News that Qin Chuan possessed the Death Spider Emperor Martial Soul spread like wildfire, drawing the close attention of the Star Luo Empire, as well as the Tianhun and Douling Empires. What if this little fellow really was a descendant of Pope Bibi Dong?
But on second thought, Spirit Hall had been destroyed ten thousand years ago. Even if it rose again now, what threat could it possibly pose?
Besides, Shrek Academy was still around. What were they worried about?
Thinking it over, they relaxed. After all, if anything happened, Shrek Academy would take care of it.
Wait, no!!!
That little fellow called Qin Chuan was from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. Keep an eye on him! Pay extra close attention!
The Elimination Tournament lasted three days. During that time, Qin Chuan stayed in his dormitory, only occasionally coming out to find something to eat.
He noticed at least three or four pairs of eyes secretly watching him. Clearly, the Star Luo Empire was keeping a close eye on him.
Even with the Death Spider Emperor Martial Soul, Qin Chuan couldn't escape the attention of the three empires and Shrek Academy.
If word gets out that I'm Bibi Dong's youngest son, the three empires and Shrek Academy will go berserk. Qin Chuan thought about it, but didn't pay any mind to the rest of it.
A year earlier, the stone heads of the Shrek Seven Devils had been cut off, and eight large characters had been engraved across the sky: "A ten-thousand-year blood feud, settled today."
The incident continued to spread across the continent. As time passed, it had spiraled completely out of control.
On the final day of the Elimination Tournament, shocking news suddenly broke.
"Have you heard? While dealing with Evil Soul Masters recently, Shrek Academy lost another four Inner Court Students."
"What?! Four Inner Court Students? That's Shrek Academy! What kind of Evil Soul Master are they dealing with?"
"They say the guy can control skeletons, and every skeleton has the fighting strength of a Soul Ancestor. Shrek Academy made one wrong move, and the Evil Soul Master used overwhelming numbers against them. They were outnumbered, and four Inner Court Students died in battle."
"No wonder only one Soul King from Shrek Academy competed in the Elimination Tournament. It seems those four dead Inner Court Students must have been their official team members."
"Shrek Academy has had terrible luck. Remember what happened a year ago? Now four Inner Court Students have been killed. The person who left those eight characters must be someone important."
"..."
News that Shrek Academy had only three official team members left, who might also be seriously injured, spread like wildfire. Instantly, the other sixty-six competing teams were fired up.
After all, Shrek Academy had won the championship for nearly a thousand years. Taking the title from them would make one's academy truly famous across the Douluo Continent.
They were short on official team members, and those who remained were seriously injured. Among the reserve team, there were also two Soul Grandmasters and a Soul Elder. It was an opportunity heaven-sent, like a pie falling from the sky.
For a time, the competing academies began studying Shrek Academy and planning how to counter them.
The atmosphere in the meeting room was somewhat tense.
"Who leaked the news?" Zhou Yi's aged face showed a trace of anger.
"Only the academy and the Star Luo Empire knew about this. The latter couldn't possibly have done it at a time like this," Dai Yueheng said first.
"Then it must have been that Evil Soul Master. He spread the news to catch us off guard." Ma Xiaotao had been forcing down her anger for days. Her battle with the Evil Soul Master was the greatest humiliation of her life.
Bei Bei looked at Zhou Yi, then continued, "But they got one thing wrong. Our three official team members are safe and sound. They weren't seriously injured."
Zhou Yi nodded slightly. "That's both our advantage and our disadvantage. We could have kept it hidden, but at a time like this, the more we try to cover things up, the more suspicious it'll look."
Xu Sanshi immediately followed up with a question. "Has the academy found anything out?"
Zhou Yi shook her head. "Dean Yan and Dean Xian have already gone to the Mingdou Mountains to search for the Evil Soul Master. As for the person who released this news, it was undoubtedly that Evil Soul Master. And... he might even be the one who left those eight characters back then."
"A ten-thousand-year blood feud, settled today."
Everyone's expressions turned solemn, and they all furrowed their brows.
Those eight characters had become a taboo at Shrek Academy. No one dared to say them aloud; they could only refer to them as "the eight characters."
"Enough. Let's not talk about this anymore. Your mission is this year's tournament. The academy will handle the rest, so don't be afraid."
Zhou Yi swept her gaze over everyone and spoke calmly. "You did well in the first match and showed the true spirit of Shrek Academy. The Elimination Tournament has now come to an end. Our group in the Round Robin consists of nine teams, and every one of them is a strong contender from a long-established academy. The Round Robin will be especially brutal, so I hope you're all mentally prepared."
Bei Bei smiled warmly. "That's what makes it interesting."
"Bring it on. I've got a bellyful of anger and nowhere to vent it." Ma Xiaotao rubbed her fists together, flames dancing in her eyes.
But Zhou Yi immediately poured cold water on her enthusiasm. "Unless absolutely necessary, Xiaotao, you're still our secret weapon in the Round Robin."
Ma Xiaotao: -`д´-
"Teacher Zhou, what do you think of this year's Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy?" Huo Yuhao suddenly asked.
"Yuhao, why are you asking about that all of a sudden?" Zhou Yi looked at Huo Yuhao.
"I have a feeling this year's Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy will be a very difficult opponent, especially Qin Chuan's Death Spider Emperor poison. It's impossible to guard against. We don't have a healing-type Soul Master on our team. If we're poisoned by the Death Spider Emperor and don't get treated in time, we'll be in danger. The other teams would love to see something happen to Shrek Academy. They won't be like Ning'an Advanced Soul Engineer Academy last time and willingly detoxify us."
"Yuhao's concern isn't unfounded." Zhou Yi nodded gravely. "The Death Spider Emperor's poison is extremely vicious. This kind of Soul Beast has long since vanished from the world. Aside from a few records in ancient texts, we have no way to protect ourselves against it."
"I'll say it again: everyone must take care of their own safety. If it comes down to it, surrender if you have to. Your safety comes first."
Everyone nodded solemnly, with the sole exception of Ma Xiaotao, who didn't care in the slightest. In her view, absolute strength was enough to crush anything.
Besides, what right did Zhou Yi have to order her around?
"Shrek Academy really has had terrible luck. Looks like the championship of this year's All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Fighting Tournament is as good as ours—the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy's." Xiao Hongchen's hearty laughter rang out. By coincidence, he ran straight into the Shrek Academy group as they left the meeting room after their meeting.
The two sides stared at each other. The atmosphere in the corridor turned awkward.
"Dare to say that again?" Ma Xiaotao gritted her teeth, her voice icy as a terrifying aura radiated from her.
Xiao Hongchen frowned slightly. He sensed that the voluptuous red-haired woman before him was unfathomably strong. Even a lean camel was bigger than a horse; he couldn't afford to underestimate Shrek Academy.
That was what he thought, but he said, "This year's championship belongs to us, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy."
The atmosphere immediately turned hostile. Dai Yueheng stood in front of Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, and the others, rubbing his fists as if he'd been waiting ages for a fight.
It was no wonder. Their official team members had suffered a crushing defeat in the Mingdou Mountains, and the deaths of four Inner Court Students had left Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochеn full of pent-up anger.
Now they'd finally run into someone with a death wish, and he was from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. It was time to settle both old and new scores.
Even Xiao Hongchen felt the pressure. He chose to stand his ground, meeting the three people in front of him with his chin up, refusing to back down.
At the critical moment, two figures arrived almost simultaneously.
"Shrek Academy is really something! You want to bully someone from my Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy? Do you really think we're pushovers? Or has Shrek Academy reached the point where it can do whatever it wants, daring to attack someone in private during the tournament? Don't you know that means you'll be disqualified?"
Qin Chuan walked over slowly with his hands behind his back. An old man with a gaze sharp as lightning followed beside him, sweeping his eyes over the people from Shrek Academy with undisguised disgust.
Ma Xiaotao, Ling Luochеn, Dai Yueheng, and the people behind them—Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Huo Yuhao, and the others—all felt an unprecedented pressure. It was... a Titled Douluo!!!
"Don't go too far!" Xuan Zi suddenly appeared. With a wave of his hand, the pressure bearing down on everyone vanished without a trace.
"You were the ones who wanted to hit someone first."
"You were the ones who provoked us first."
The old man and Xuan Zi met each other's gaze, sensing the depth of one another's Soul Power. Neither made a move.
Qin Chuan spoke up. "We're just stating the facts. Shrek Academy hasn't committed any crimes. Are you saying nobody else is allowed to talk about you?"
"If you've got the nerve to talk behind our backs, then face me in a match!" Bei Bei glared at Qin Chuan and Xiao Hongchen.
"Face you in a match, then have you twist the story around and claim someone from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy attacked you? You'd play the victim and get us kicked out of the tournament. What a clever plan."
"My Shrek Academy isn't as despicable as you make it out to be!" Xu Sanshi snapped.
"Oh, really? I seem to remember that your team leader, Zhou Yi, loves expelling students. She expels students without the academy's permission. How is a teacher like that even allowed to stay at Shrek Academy? Is it really to weed out bad students, or is it to improve the graduation rate and line her own pockets?"
Before you continue