Complete Victory and Advancement! The Knockout Stage Begins Soon!

The entire process took no more than five seconds.

The three opponents had already had their formation scattered; the agility-type soul master was half-crouched on the ground rubbing their back, while the support-type stood deathly pale behind their captain.

"Huabin." Zhu Lu returned to his side, her voice very soft.

"Hmm?"

"They're so weak."

This remark was heard clearly by the three people opposite them.

The captain of Class Four flushed red, but he did not act impulsively.

He stared at the badge on Dai Huabin's chest, then looked at Dai Huabin's exceptionally striking long golden hair, and a name suddenly flashed through his mind.

"Are you... Dai Huabin from Class Nine?"

Dai Huabin nodded.

The Class Four captain took a deep breath and turned to check the state of his two teammates. The agility-type had yet to stand up, and the support-type's hands were shaking.

He gritted his teeth and raised his right hand: "We concede."

When the referee teacher announced the result of the match, students from several surrounding examination fields looked over.

Less than thirty seconds.

The first round at Examination Field Seventeen had ended just like that.

According to the rules of the academy's freshman assessment, the first day of competition was mainly to let everyone familiarize themselves with the venue and the rules, so only one round of combat was scheduled.

Dai Huabin led Zhu Lu to the rest area by the side of the field and sat down.

Zhu Lu pulled a piece of dry rations from her pocket and took two bites, her expression as indifferent as if she had just finished a set of warm-up exercises, not even breathing any harder than usual.

The referee teacher from the adjacent field couldn't help but peek over several times, his face full of sympathy.

He was sympathizing with the other teams in Examination Field Seventeen who would have to face these two monsters next.

"Let's go, there's nothing left for us to do today." Dai Huabin stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes.

Zhu Lu swallowed the rest of her rations and obediently followed his pace.

The two had not walked far from the assessment area when they ran into the trio of Wang Dong'er, who had also finished their match early.

Wang Dong'er was radiating a restless irritation, her hands on her hips, her face practically shouting the words "not enough of a fight."

"Out so soon?" Dai Huabin walked up to them.

"Don't even mention it! There wasn't a single one worth fighting!"

Wang Dong'er began to complain, her powder-blue hair swaying with her movements.

"This Lady had only just unfurled the wings of the Radiant Goddess Butterfly, and the three of them were already so scared they surrendered!

I didn't even get to use my second soul skill before the referee announced the end. What's even more infuriating is that there's only this one match today!"

Cui Yajie added from the side:

"The opposing captain was a level-20 power-attack type; he had just charged up when he was knocked back by Xiao Xiao's Cauldron Shock. Then I used Charm, and they couldn't even stand steady."

Xiao Xiao raised her hand, a slightly embarrassed smile on her small face:

"I didn't even get to use my Three Cauldrons as One today. But it's good that we only have one match on the first day; we can go back and rest early."

Dai Huabin nodded; this result was entirely within his expectations.

The strength of their teams was a dimensional strike against the others during the initial round-robin.

"The first day is just a warm-up, don't get carried away." Dai Huabin glanced at them.

"What we really need to watch out for are the next two days. The remaining nine rounds of the round-robin will all be packed into those two days. The teams Teacher Mu Jin mentioned—we'll run into them sooner or later."

Wang Dong'er hummed: "I'm not afraid even if we do. I actually hope the opponents can take a bit more of a beating."

"You talk big, but tell me what you've ever been afraid of." Cui Yajie retorted out of the blue.

"I'm afraid of..."

Wang Dong'er stopped halfway through her sentence, paused to think, and then very unwillingly admitted:

"Though, the Hell White Tiger martial soul fusion skill of the class monitor and Lulu... that seems a bit hard for us to deal with."

Xiao Xiao muttered softly: "It's fine, the class monitor will definitely go easy on you when the time comes."

"Hmph! Who needs him to go easy on me!" Wang Dong'er stomped her feet in anger.

Dai Huabin ignored their bickering.

He scanned the teams that were walking out one after another and happened to see the trio of Ning Tian walking over from another exit.

Ning Tian's pace was steady, with Wu Feng on her left and Nanmen Yun'er on her right.

There were no traces of battle on the three of them; there wasn't even an extra wrinkle on their school uniforms.

"How did it go?" Dai Huabin asked.

Ning Tian smiled:

"Easily taken. Wu Feng's Dragon Fire is too much of a hard counter to low-level soul masters; one exchange and it was over. Though it was only one match today, it didn't even count as a warm-up."

Wu Feng shook her wrists, her face wearing her habitual look of disdain: "They were all just weaklings, a total waste of time."

Nanmen Yun'er stood to the side, nodding silently in agreement.

"What about Huang Chutian and Xie Huanyue's teams? Any news?" Dai Huabin pressed.

Ning Tian thought for a moment:

"I heard Huang Chutian's side was also a one-shot victory. The Lan Twins didn't even need to use their Martial Soul Fusion Skill; they won purely through Huang Chutian's power suppression.

As for Xie Huanyue, my examination field was right next to his. I could hear the commotion from through the wall.

The defensive power of that Pipi Elephant martial soul is truly exaggerated. The three opponents unleashed their full output for half a minute, and he didn't even shift his position. In the end, he just punched them out of the arena one by one."

Cui Yajie frowned slightly.

As the captain of her trio, she was already calculating how to handle Xie Huanyue should they meet in the knockout stage.

A defensive-type Soul Elder with six full levels of soul power higher than her—a head-on collision would definitely result in a heavy loss.

"Don't overthink it." Dai Huabin saw through her thoughts, "Let's just focus on finishing the round-robin with a perfect record first."

Cui Yajie acknowledged this and stopped dwelling on it.

The group chatted for a while before dispersing to return to their dorms.

Over the next two days, the pace of the round-robin tournament accelerated sharply.

The second day saw a full four matches scheduled, and the third day was an even more intense five-match marathon.

However, the compact schedule posed no obstacle to Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu.

Their duo continued the crushing momentum they had established on the first day.

Against the vast majority of teams, Zhu Lu only needed to execute a Hell Stab to weave through the enemy formation, instantly dismantling their structure.

When they encountered slightly more stubborn defenses, Dai Huabin would blast a White Tiger Intense Light Wave, smashing both the opponents and their shields right out of the arena.

After ten rounds of the round-robin, Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu secured ten wins without a single suspenseful moment, finishing first in Examination Field Seventeen and ranking near the top in total points, easily locking in their seat for the round of sixty-four knockout stage.

Cui Yajie's record was equally dazzling: ten wins out of ten.

Ning Tian's trio also lived up to expectations, winning all ten rounds to advance smoothly.

With this, all three trump cards of Class Nine had successfully fought their way into the second stage.

On the evening of the third day, the knockout bracket was officially posted on the bulletin board at Shrek Square.

Dai Huabin stood before the board, his finger tracing the tournament tree downward.

The knockout stage used a single-elimination format, meaning one match decided everything; lose, and you were out.

The first-round opponents were nothing worth noting; he and Zhu Lu had drawn an ordinary trio from Class Five.

Cui Yajie's team had also encountered a mediocre squad with no special markings.

But Dai Huabin's finger eventually stopped at a specific intersection in the bottom half of the bracket.

Huang Chutian's team and Cui Yajie's team had been placed in the same quarter-bracket.

If both teams could successfully win their first two rounds, they would meet head-on in the match to decide a spot in the quarterfinals.

Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo's Martial Soul Fusion Skill—Heavenly Net—against the trio of Wang Dong'er, Cui Yajie, and Xiao Xiao.

Dai Huabin looked over that path twice, the corners of his mouth curling upward slightly.

He turned around to find Zhu Lu standing quietly half a step behind him.

"See something?" Zhu Lu asked softly.

"The matchups are getting interesting."

Dai Huabin pointed out the distribution of the bracket to her, his finger resting on that intersection.

"Dong'er and the others might run into the Lan Twins ahead of schedule."

Zhu Lu glanced in the direction he was pointing: "Should we go remind them, or help them set up a strategy?"

Dai Huabin thought for two seconds, then shook his head decisively.

"No. True elite teams are forged in battle, not protected.

Cui Yajie is the captain; she must learn to handle sudden situations like Martial Soul Fusion Skills on the fly. This is a necessary path for their team to mature."

Dai Huabin paused, his gaze shifting back to the top half of the bracket.

There, he and Xie Huanyue from Class Two were placed on the same side.

Pipi Elephant, a level thirty-one defensive-type Soul Elder. The only other three-ring user among the freshmen besides himself.

If neither side suffered an upset, they would meet on the stage in the semifinals.

Zhu Lu noticed the name as well. She said nothing, only quietly moved half a step closer and reached out to take Dai Huabin's hand.

The temperature from her fingertips was steady, without a trace of hesitation.

Dai Huabin gripped her hand back, turned, and strode toward the dorms.

"Let's go, get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow, the real knockout stage begins."