Phainon turned his gaze back to the Soul Fighting Arena.
On the field, Keleradra had already walked to the center of the Soul Fighting Arena.
The moment the audience saw her, a wave of chatter broke out in the stands.
"Just a little girl?"
"Is she really a support type? She doesn't look like she can fight."
"Gulai's on a forty-win streak. Isn't she about to get knocked out in one hit?"
"Amphoreus is way too bold. Do they really think winning just now makes them invincible?"
Faced with all the doubts, Keleradra remained completely unfazed.
Standing opposite her was a pale-faced, gaunt man.
Gulai licked his lips and looked her up and down.
"Little girl, are you sure you want to fight me?"
Keleradra raised her eyes, not even glancing at him. Her voice was utterly indifferent.
"Enough chatter. If you want to fight, then fight."
Gulai wasn't angry. Instead, he grinned lewdly.
"If you're that eager to taste defeat, then I'll grant your wish, little girl. Don't worry, I'll go easy on you."
The referee stepped between them.
"Both sides, get ready! Release your Martial Souls!"
Gulai moved first.
Three Soul Rings—two yellow and one purple—rose from beneath his feet.
His body began to twist. A pair of black bat wings spread from his back, and sharp fangs emerged from the corners of his mouth.
Vampire Bat, possess!
Cheers rang out from the stands.
Gulai was well-known. His record of forty consecutive victories spoke for itself, and many of the spectators were longtime fans.
"Gulai! Tear her apart!"
"Show her what a forty-win streak looks like!"
Gulai grinned, turned, and waved to the stands. Then he faced Keleradra again.
"Your turn, little girl."
Keleradra slowly raised her right hand. Three Soul Rings rose from beneath her feet.
Yellow, purple, purple.
The entire arena fell silent for a moment. Once again, the Soul Rings were yellow, purple, and purple.
The last time they'd seen that combination had been two days ago, when Phainon fought Tang San.
Come to think of it, Phainon was also from Omphalos Academy, wasn't he?
Good heavens. Was Omphalos Academy the real Monster Academy?
On the field, Gulai's smile faltered when he saw the two purple Soul Rings.
"Well, well. That's interesting."
Keleradra ignored him and gave a slight wave of her hand.
Then, her Martial Soul, the Scales of Justice, appeared in the air.
But in the next instant, the scales suddenly shattered, scattering into countless points of light.
The lights touched the ground and rapidly spread outward.
Blue energy patterns radiated from her, covering the entire Soul Fighting Arena in the blink of an eye.
The whole arena became a giant chessboard.
Its gridlines intersected, blue light flowing across them.
What was even more astonishing was that Keleradra's figure vanished at that very moment!
In the VIP seats, Phainon shot to his feet.
"Where did she go?"
Ye Qiong leaned back in his chair, smiling without a word.
Anaxa stared at the chessboard, a gleam flashing in his one eye.
He looked at Phainon and Ye Qiong, then spoke in a low voice.
"Interesting... She's merged with the chess pieces."
Phainon turned to him.
"What do you mean?"
Anaxa pointed to the blue phantom chess pieces floating on the field.
"Her body has become part of these pieces. You could say every piece is her avatar. She's merged with the pieces, so the entire battlefield is under her control."
"She's turned herself into a chess piece?"
Phainon was astonished.
Was Keleradra really this powerful too?
On the field, Gulai's smile had completely vanished.
He looked around, but couldn't find Keleradra anywhere.
Meanwhile, the blue chess pieces on the board kept moving.
A blue phantom horse leaped three squares sideways and blocked his path.
Gulai instinctively took a step back, but then a blue phantom rook rose behind him.
He was trapped between them.
"What the hell is this..."
Gulai gritted his teeth, beat his wings, and took to the air, trying to break through from above.
But the moment he rose, another blue chess piece appeared in midair, blocking his way.
Gulai had no choice but to drop back to the ground.
Then he raised his hand and unleashed a blast of Soul Power, smashing the phantom horse in front of him with a single strike.
But the shattered chess piece only remained still for an instant before reforming on the spot.
Gulai's expression darkened.
He began attacking the chess pieces one after another.
But every time he shattered one, another appeared in its place.
The pieces didn't attack him. They only kept changing positions, trapping him in an ever-shrinking area.
The spectators watching were all left gaping.
"What the hell is this fighting style? She's disappeared!"
"Is she really a support type? This looks like a control type to me!"
"A support type can put out this kind of pressure? Are you kidding me?"
"What kind of academy is this? They're all more ridiculous than the last!"
A short while later, Gulai was panting heavily.
He kept swatting the annoying phantom pieces apart with his claws.
But no matter how hard he fought, he couldn't get rid of the pieces.
His stamina was rapidly draining, and he hadn't even touched his opponent.
At last, Gulai stopped moving and stood in the middle of the chessboard, cursing up a storm.
But before he could finish, every chess piece on the board lit up at once.
Then a clear voice rang out from above the board.
"Thou art checkmated!"
As the words fell, the entire chessboard exploded.
A wave of blue energy erupted from the Soul Fighting Arena and roared outward.
Gulai had no time to react. The blast sent him flying, and he crashed heavily beyond the edge of the platform.
The match was decided.
At the sight of this,
the entire arena fell silent for two seconds.
Then applause like a roaring sea surged in from every direction.
"Holy crap! She won!"
"That was so cool! She blew up the chessboard!"
"A support type just blasted a forty-win streak champion off the stage? Who'd believe that?"
"Omphalos Academy rocks! Caesar rocks!"
The referee was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly announced in a loud voice.
"The match is over! The winner is Caesar of Omphalos Academy!"
As the light faded, Keleradra's figure reappeared in the center of the Soul Fighting Arena.
There wasn't a trace of victory's joy on her face.
It was as if this had been no more than a victory she'd expected all along.
In the VIP seats, Phainon took a deep breath and sat back down.
He looked at Ye Qiong, his eyes filled with both shock and admiration.
"Teacher... what kind of monsters have you brought here?"
Ye Qiong smiled but didn't answer.
Anaxa looked toward the passage below, a glint flashing in his one eye.
"Interesting... This academy really is different from the others."
Shrek Academy.
Flender sat at his desk, staring at a ledger as his face grew darker and darker.
"Another loss... another loss..."
He slammed the ledger shut and brought his palm down hard on the desk.
"That damn Omphalos Academy! Stealing my students, stealing my publicity! And they even made me lose a pile of money betting at the Soul Fighting Arena!"
"This is too much!"
He jumped to his feet and paced back and forth around the room, fuming.
At that moment, he was like an ant on a hot pan.
The academy's coffers were nearly empty.
If no money came in soon, he and the students would be left with nothing to eat.
But just then, a voice suddenly came from the doorway.
"Oh? Boss Flender, what's got you so troubled?"
Flender stopped in his tracks and looked sharply toward the door.
A thin, middle-aged man stood there.
The moment Flender saw him, his expression changed from gloomy to overjoyed.
"Xiao Gang?!"
Before you continue