The one supporting Tianshui in the finals, is actually Spirit Hall!

Under the night sky, Spirit City was ablaze with brilliant lights.

A graceful, purple-clad figure, who had deliberately restrained all her majesty and aura, appeared quietly near the hotel where Tianshui Academy was staying.

Bibi Dong, the Pope who commanded Spirit Hall and struck awe into the hearts of countless people, wore an exceptionally rare, gentle smile on her face at this moment.

Her entire demeanor was like that of an eighteen-year-old girl, enough to leave anyone infatuated.

She brought no attendants and alerted no one, simply using a special channel to convey a brief request for a meeting.

Yang Teng was not particularly surprised by Bibi Dong's proactive visit.

After the incident in the canyon, he knew this Pope must be filled with wariness and doubt. Accompanied by Gu Yena, he met her in a quiet reception room within the hotel.

"To what do I owe the honor of the Pope's late-night visit?"

Yang Teng's tone was flat, revealing neither anger nor joy; he was neither flattered nor deliberately distant, as if he were merely receiving an ordinary guest.

Bibi Dong set aside all thoughts of probing, her face maintaining a gentle smile.

"Young friend Yang Teng."

Bibi Dong's voice was soft.

"This Seat has come for no other reason than to congratulate Tianshui Academy on its historic entry into the grand finals, creating a glory that belongs to you all."

She paused, observing Yang Teng's reaction. Seeing that his expression remained unchanged, she took a jade box that emitted a gentle fluctuation of spiritual power from her Storage Soul Tool.

When the jade box opened, it revealed a skull soul bone! Moreover, judging by the energy fluctuations it emitted, its age was definitely not low!

Bibi Dong pushed the jade box toward Yang Teng.

"This skull soul bone comes from an 80,000-year-level spirit-attribute soul beast. It has miraculous effects for enhancing spiritual power and stabilizing the soul."

"I believe that with your strength, young friend, absorbing and fusing it overnight should be no problem. Consider this a small token of my sincerity regarding the minor misunderstandings in the canyon, and an early wish for your victory tomorrow."

A gesture of goodwill—a naked, blatant gesture of goodwill!

And a generous one at that!

An 80,000-year-level skull soul bone was not something that could be casually produced, even for a behemoth like Spirit Hall.

Bibi Dong's move was undoubtedly an act of lowering her own status, attempting to use tangible benefits to make up for the previous conflict.

Yang Teng glanced at the soul bone, then looked at Bibi Dong, who maintained a peaceful expression while hiding deep wariness and scrutiny in the depths of her eyes. He understood.

He truly had no good impression of this scheming "madwoman" who would stop at nothing to achieve her goals, but he had to admit that she was indeed a "powerful backer."

Yang Teng did not hypocritically decline. He took the jade box quite readily and nodded, his tone fluctuating slightly:

"Your Holiness is too kind. Since you have such intentions, let the matter of the canyon be put to rest."

He did not say "thank you," only "put to rest." His attitude was perfectly judged; he accepted the gift while maintaining a detached posture.

Hearing this, Bibi Dong felt a slight sense of relief, knowing that this move of hers had been the right one.

The smile on her face became a bit more natural as she continued:

"Young friend Yang is indeed a straightforward person. The doors of Spirit Hall will always be open to a peerless genius like you. Regardless of what you may need in the future, as long as it does not violate the fundamental principles of Spirit Hall, This Seat will certainly do her best to assist."

"Tomorrow's final will surely be a fierce battle. I wish you, young friend Yang, a triumphant start and the capture of the tournament crown!"

After finishing these pleasantries, Bibi Dong did not linger. She rose to take her leave, her purple figure quietly merging into the night as if she had never appeared.

The atmosphere in the hotel where Shrek Academy was staying was heavy.

Flender, the dean who always presented himself as a profiteer and a cynical man, was filled with rare seriousness and worry.

He looked at the Shrek Seven Devils before him—all injured and with unstable auras despite their victory—and spoke in a hoarse voice:

"Children... in the past, I always told you that if you didn't win the championship, I wouldn't let you graduate! I pushed you to the brink..."

He took a deep breath, scanning every young and determined face:

"But now, I want to tell you that for tomorrow's final... the championship is not important! It really isn't! I would rather see every one of you walk off the arena safe, sound, and whole!"

"Dean!"

Yu Xiaogang stood to the side. He walked over to Tang San, patted his shoulder heavily, and said in a deep voice:

"Xiao San, your body... the overdraft is too severe. Can you recover to your peak state before tomorrow's match? If not... I don't want any of you to be hurt further for the sake of victory."

He said this to Tang San, but also to everyone else.

Not far away, Liu Erlong, who had just recovered, sat in a chair. Her face was still somewhat pale, and her breathing was unsteady.

She held Xiao Wu tightly in her arms, like an ordinary mother worried about her daughter's safety, comforting her in a low voice with eyes full of heartache.

Tang San felt the concern of his teachers, and a warm current surged in his heart, but it was accompanied by an even greater sense of responsibility and resolve.

He shook his head, his tone firm: "Teacher, Dean, Teacher Erlong, please rest assured. I have precious herbs for strengthening the foundation and nourishing the essence that I obtained from Senior Dugu Bo."

"Recovering to my peak is absolutely no problem!"

Tang San's words reignited the flames in the eyes of Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, Oscar, and the others.

That's right, they had come this far; how could they give up so easily!

The quiet room where Yang Teng resided.

Three hours later, the door to the quiet room opened.

Yang Teng walked out slowly. While his aura did not show any obvious surge, his eyes had become significantly deeper and brighter.

Having absorbed that eighty-thousand-year-level skull spirit bone, the strength of his mental power was now enough to rival that of an ordinary Spirit Saint-level powerhouse!

For his already unpredictable use of spatial abilities, this was undoubtedly a massive boost.

Yang Teng stretched, a smile that mixed excitement with playfulness appearing on his face as he muttered to himself:

"Although... there is absolutely no pressure in beating them."

"However, to be able to personally trample the so-called 'Child of Destiny' and his team underfoot on such a stage, under the gaze of thousands..."

"I still can't help but... tremble with excitement at the feeling!"

The day of the finals finally arrived.

On the wide main road leading to the arena, the Tianshui Academy team moved forward slowly under the gaze of countless eyes.

Shui Bing'er, Xue Wu, and the others wore solemn expressions, carrying unprecedented tension and anticipation.

On both sides of the road were spectators from various academies and factions.

Their gazes were complex, their thoughts varied.

There were those who had been defeated before, such as Feng Xiaotian of Shenfeng Academy and Huo Wu of Chihuo Academy.

There were members of the Elephant Armor Sect, their faces gloomy, clearly unhappy to see Tianshui Academy.

There were also Dugu Bo and Ning Fengzhi.

Almost everyone cast their gazes toward the Shrek Academy team that was walking over from the other side.

Yang Teng also felt those gazes, some overt and some covert, most of which were not friendly.

Watching the mountain-like, tsunami-like waves of cheers for Shrek ahead, the curve of his lips became even more pronounced.

"This scene... is truly familiar!"

"I never expected that I would end up being the big villain on this final stage!"

Just as his thoughts turned, his gaze inadvertently caught sight of the Spirit Hall team: Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan.

When they saw the Tianshui Academy team, Hu Liena and the others actually made a clear gesture from afar toward Yang Teng's direction.

It was a gesture representing victory and well-wishes! Although Xie Yue and Yan looked displeased, they also nodded slightly.

Yang Teng was slightly taken aback, then immediately understood something.

This, too, was likely part of the intentions of that Pope.

He withdrew his gaze and looked toward the massive arena in the center of the grounds.

A sense of unprecedented pride and fighting spirit surged within his chest.

He took a deep breath.

"I never expected that the ones supporting us in the end would actually be Spirit Hall."

"But so what?"

Yang Teng's gaze passed over the Shrek Seven Devils, as if seeing a higher and more distant future, and a flamboyant, confident curve hooked at the corner of his mouth:

"From today on..."

"The title of the number one academy on the continent will be rewritten at this very moment!"

"And its new name will be..."

"Tianshui Academy!"