The lounge fell silent in an instant.
Every member of the Skywater Team turned their eyes toward Xue Tianyu.
Xue Wu stepped forward, her beautiful eyes shining with eager anticipation.
"Captain, today is the Skywater Team's debut. Everyone's waiting for you to give the word."
"Should we send out our full starting lineup and show the other academies what we're made of?"
Xue Tianyu raised his eyes slightly and swept his gaze over them.
He didn't even reach for the roster. Instead, he picked up the hot tea on the table and took a small sip.
"There's no need to waste our energy on a bunch of minnows who can't even scrape together a Soul Ancestor."
His tone was calm, yet radiated absolute control.
"Shui Bing'er, Xue Wu, Shui Yue'er."
The three called upon immediately straightened up.
"Present!"
Xue Tianyu tapped his fingers lightly against the tabletop, producing a crisp sound.
"Just the three of you. You'll take the field with me."
The moment he said this, the atmosphere in the lounge froze for half a breath.
The team's supervising teacher swallowed, hesitating.
"Captain, only four of you?"
"The tournament rules require seven team members to compete. If we don't have enough, the head referee will rule that we're showing contempt for the rules."
Xue Tianyu set down his teacup, his gaze still as calm as a placid lake.
"Then just add three substitutes to make up the numbers."
"Once we're on the stage, have them stay in a corner and watch. They don't need to do anything."
Those words were arrogant to the extreme.
But coming from him, no one found them out of place.
After all, this was the peerless monster who had become captain at twelve, possessed six Soul Rings, and had even obtained a hundred-thousand-year God-Bestowed Soul Ring.
Shui Yue'er clenched her small fists in excitement.
"Fantastic!"
"Just thinking about fighting shoulder to shoulder with the captain on the arena gets me pumped!"
Shui Bing'er was much more composed. She gently reminded him,
"But Captain, our first opponent is Oakland Academy."
"They aren't one of the Five Elemental Academies, but they do have two Soul Elders at level thirty-nine, and their style is extremely fierce."
Xue Tianyu's gaze fell on Shui Bing'er.
Seeing how serious she was, he felt a faint trace of approval.
"Is level thirty-nine very strong?"
Those few brief words cut off everything Shui Bing'er had been about to say.
Her face flushed, and she hurriedly lowered her head.
"No."
"Before the captain, they're not even ants."
Xue Tianyu stood and casually draped his coat over his shoulders.
"You three will lead the attack in this match."
"Unless we run into a problem you can't handle, I won't step in lightly."
He didn't want a bunch of pretty ornaments who could only hide behind the others and cheer.
Now that he had taken charge of the Skywater Team, he naturally intended to forge it into a sharp blade capable of sweeping across the entire continent.
Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu exchanged a glance, then immediately nodded solemnly.
"Understood!"
They quickly finalized the lineup.
Xue Tianyu would hold the center, Shui Bing'er would provide crowd control with her ice attribute, Xue Wu would support and boost them by manipulating the weather, and Shui Yue'er would roam the flanks as an agility-type attacker.
For the remaining three spots, they picked three peripheral team members at random to bring the total to seven.
After changing and getting ready,
the group pushed open the lounge door and headed toward the main arena passage.
The corridor was dimly lit, with teams from the various academies crossing paths as they hurried through.
They had just rounded a corner
when they came face-to-face with a team dressed in shit-green uniforms.
Shrek Academy.
The air temperature plunged to rock bottom in an instant.
A bone-piercing chill seeped unconsciously from Xue Tianyu, making the temperature around them drop sharply.
Tang San, across from them, stopped abruptly.
He clenched both fists so tightly that his knuckles cracked.
His steady breathing instantly grew as heavy as a bull's.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he stared fixedly at Xue Tianyu, who stood at the very front.
Hatred.
Hatred as searing and boiling as magma surged from Tang San's eyes, threatening to spill out.
Dai Mubai was equally tense, instinctively taking half a step back.
The sight of the ground littered with ice shards in Spring Breeze Alley that night flashed through his mind again, and his legs went weak.
Oscar bit his lip hard, not daring to breathe too loudly.
Yu Xiaogang stood at the very front of the Shrek team.
His face was livid as he glared at Xue Tianyu, veins standing out on the back of his hand.
"You still dare to show your face here, bold as brass?"
Yu Xiaogang gritted his teeth, his voice steeped in venom.
"Justice has long arms. You've slaughtered so many people. Aren't you afraid of retribution?"
Hearing the accusation,
Xue Tianyu didn't get angry. Instead, he gave a soft laugh.
He stopped and looked over the Shrek team's ragged formation with utter disdain.
One less chubby fellow, one less vice dean leading the team.
They looked like a pack of stray dogs.
"Retribution?"
Xue Tianyu's tone was indifferent. He couldn't even be bothered to look Yu Xiaogang in the eye.
"A bunch of trash who hide in the shadows to launch sneak attacks, use Hidden Weapons, and carry out ambushes. You think you're fit to talk to me about justice?"
Tang San's reason shattered in an instant.
He strode forward, his right hand already reaching for the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges.
"Xue Tianyu!"
Tang San roared, the veins in his neck bulging.
"You killed my brother and cut down my teacher!"
"I'll collect that blood debt from you with my own hands!"
As his roar rang out, the aura of a level-forty-two Soul Ancestor surged from him.
Blue Silver Grass vines writhed faintly beneath his feet, poised to strike.
Shui Bing'er's expression darkened at once.
Without hesitation, she stepped forward and stood in front of Xue Tianyu.
A pure ice-blue radiance burst from her body.
Four Soul Rings, two yellow and two purple, rose from beneath her feet. The extreme chill instantly pressed toward the opposing team.
"You want to fight?"
Shui Bing'er stared straight at Tang San, her voice brimming with unyielding resolve.
"You're just a defeated loser. How dare you shout at our captain?"
"This is the Soul Master Tournament venue. If Shrek wants to get eliminated early, by all means, go ahead and try!"
Xue Wu and Shui Yue'er stepped forward at the same time, their Soul Power surging as they shielded Xue Tianyu.
Even though they knew their captain had no need for protection,
as members of the Skywater Team, they had to make their stance clear at a time like this.
Xue Tianyu looked at the graceful figures standing in front of him, a hint of satisfaction passing through his eyes.
He raised his hand and gently patted Shui Bing'er on the shoulder.
The touch was light,
yet Shui Bing'er's tense body immediately relaxed.
"Step aside."
"There's no point wasting our breath on a bunch of walking corpses."
Xue Tianyu strode forward and brushed right past Tang San.
The moment they crossed paths,
he tilted his head slightly, looking at Tang San as if he were a corpse.
"I'll be waiting for you to collect your debt."
"Don't keep me waiting too long. Your dear brother down below will get lonely."
Every word struck straight to the heart.
A tightly suppressed rasp came from Tang San's throat as he shook violently with rage.
A thread of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
He dug his fingers into his thigh, forcing himself not to draw his poisoned Hidden Weapons here.
Yu Xiaogang grabbed Tang San by the arm, his face deathly pale.
"Xiao San, hold it in!"
"Any fighting inside the venue will get us disqualified on the spot!"
"We'll avenge ourselves openly and honorably on the arena!"
Without sparing another glance for Shrek's impotent fury,
Xue Tianyu led the girls of the Skywater Team calmly through the passage.
They headed toward the dazzling arena.
At the towering entrance to the venue, brilliant beams of light poured down from above, illuminating the end of the passage.
The master of ceremonies' loud, penetrating voice rang out from beyond.
"Next, let's give the warmest applause as we welcome one of the Five Elemental Academies—the Skywater Academy team!"
A deafening roar of cheers swept through the venue like a tsunami.
Countless ribbons fluttered down from the stands.
The Skywater Academy was already hugely popular, since every member of the team was a beauty.
What was more, this time the one leading the team was a remarkably rare male face.
Xue Tianyu walked at the center of the passage.
His ice-blue uniform showed off his tall, lean figure to perfection.
His strikingly handsome face and bone-chilling air that kept people at a distance set off an uproar throughout the venue.
"Who's that?"
"How does Skywater Academy have a male student?"
"He's at the front. Could he be the Skywater Team captain?"
The stands buzzed with speculation, countless curious and astonished eyes converging on him.
Facing the overwhelming roar, Xue Tianyu's expression didn't waver in the slightest.
He stopped at the edge of the arena and quietly regarded the Oakland Academy team, already standing ready across from him.
The seven brawny men were knotted with muscle, looking his way with open hostility and mockery.
"Has Skywater Academy run out of people?"
"They got some pretty boy to lead the team?"
The Oakland Team captain rolled his neck and let out a coarse laugh.
Xue Tianyu didn't even look at him.
He turned to Shui Bing'er, standing beside him with the phantom of her Martial Soul already summoned.
"Two minutes."
His tone was casual, as if he were talking about something trivial.
"Within two minutes, I want to see every one of them flat on the ground."
Shui Bing'er nodded firmly, a fierce fighting spirit rising in her beautiful face.
"Yes, Captain."
At the referee's sharp whistle,
the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament officially began.
The referee's little flag, signaling the start of the match, swept down through the air.
"First match of the qualifiers: Oakland Academy versus Skywater Academy."
"Begin!"
With this high-pitched announcement,
the Oakland Team captain suddenly stamped both feet on the ground and beat his thick arms against his chest, unleashing a deafening roar.
The two yellow Soul Rings and one purple Soul Ring coiling around him blazed brightly.
His muscles bulged like rocks, and thick brown fur rapidly sprouted across his body.
His Martial Soul, the Raging Giant Bear, possessed him!
The other six Oakland Team members also released their Beast Martial Souls. Every one of them belonged to the Power Attack System.
"Brothers, let's show these little girls what we're made of!"
"Let them learn that in the Soul Master World, the rules are made with fists!"
The Oakland Team captain charged at the front, leading six burly men toward the Skywater Team like a pack of hungry wolves.
Their heavy steps made the bluestone slabs of the arena rumble beneath them.
Facing this violent assault surging toward them like a tidal wave,
Xue Tianyu stood at the very front of the formation, his hands casually tucked into his pockets.
His expression was as calm as if he were watching a few flying insects bumping around in midair.
He showed not the slightest intention of releasing his Martial Soul.
Shui Bing'er took half a step forward, lightly positioning herself at Xue Tianyu's side.
The yellow First Soul Ring around her blazed brilliantly.
A bone-chilling Extreme Cold Storm burst forth from within her.
"Ice Seal."
Her cool, resolute voice echoed across the arena.
Crack—!
A string of crisp freezing sounds rang out, especially piercing in the vast hall.
The seven burly Oakland Team members, who had been charging forward with ferocious momentum, suddenly froze in their tracks.
Thick, solid ice surged upward from beneath their feet.
In the span of a single breath,
the frigid layer of ice sealed them all in place, along with the Soul Power they had just released.
Seven lifelike ice sculptures stood in the center of the arena.
The Oakland Team captain remained frozen in a ferocious charging pose, his eyes wide with utter terror behind the clear ice.
The entire arena fell silent.
The spectators in the stands seemed to have stopped breathing as they stared blankly at the scene.
Shui Bing'er withdrew her Soul Power and turned to Xue Tianyu.
"Captain, it's done."
Xue Tianyu gave a slight nod. Without even glancing at the ice sculptures, he turned and headed for the passage at the edge of the arena.
Not until his tall, lean figure was about to disappear into the shadows
did the referee snap out of it like a dream. He swallowed hard and raised the small flag in his hand.
"P-preliminary round, first match."
"Skywater Academy wins!"
"Time... thirteen seconds!"
The moment the announcement rang out, the stands erupted.
Thunderous cries of astonishment and roaring applause intertwined, nearly lifting the roof off the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena.
This could hardly be called a match. It was an absolute, one-sided rout.
No one could have expected a team from a high-tier Soul Master Academy to be wiped out in an instant without even having all its members release their Martial Souls.
In the VIP seats,
Emperor Xue Ye sat in the central seat, a hint of intense approval flashing in his eyes.
Beside him, Platinum Bishop Salas narrowed his eyes.
"That young man leading them—is he Xue Tianyu?"
Salas lightly tapped the armrest of his chair, his expression shifting between light and dark.
"He didn't even use his Soul Power, yet the whole team followed his orders."
"That boy is no ordinary talent."
Meanwhile, in the Great Soul Arena's waiting area,
the atmosphere in Shrek Team's private lounge was so oppressive it was hard to breathe.
Yu Xiaogang stared at the Soul Tool screen on the wall, his hands trembling slightly inside his wide sleeves.
Tang San sat on a chair nearby, both fists clenched tight.
His nails dug deep into his palms, drawing thin trickles of warm blood.
Dai Mubai's face was ashen. He slapped the table in front of him.
"That woman released ice with an Ultimate Attribute."
"Her Soul Power was so refined—no ordinary Soul Master could do that."
Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, forcing down the shock in his heart, then turned to Tang San.
"Xiao San, you saw Xue Tianyu's strength outside Sunset Forest that night."
"If we face Skywater Academy in the preliminary rounds, what chance do you think we have?"
Tang San abruptly lifted his head, his eyes bloodshot to a terrifying degree.
"No matter how strong he is."
"If I face him in the arena, I'll win!"
"I'll take Xue Tianyu's life as an offering to Fatty and Teacher Zhao's spirits in the afterlife!"
Before you continue