The referee took a deep breath, his booming voice carrying throughout the arena:
"Skywater Academy wins!"
The instant his words fell, the cheers of eighty thousand people swept through the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena like a tidal wave.
Some waved Skywater Academy flags, some leaped from their seats in excitement, and others roared Lan Fo'er's and Shui Bing'er's names.
But there were also those who felt sorry for Blazing Fire Academy.
That team, undefeated in five matches and possessed of ferocious offensive firepower, had ultimately fallen beneath the Ice Phoenix's wings.
In the VIP seats, Xue Ye leaned back in his chair, a trace of complicated emotion flashing through his eyes.
Surprise.
Yes, surprise.
On paper, Blazing Fire Academy and Skywater Academy looked evenly matched.
By rights, this should have been a grueling battle between equals.
But judging from how the match had unfolded, Blazing Fire Academy's defeat had been all but inevitable. It had only been a matter of time.
Xue Ye's gaze settled on that sea-blue figure.
Lan Fo'er.
The girl publicly claimed to be rank forty-nine, but her actual fighting strength had probably already touched the threshold of Soul King. She had kept Lia suppressed throughout the match.
No, not suppressed. Crushed.
Rank forty-eight against rank forty-nine—a mere one-rank difference in Soul Power—yet in her hands, it had felt like the overwhelming advantage of an entire realm.
Every time they collided, Lia was the one blasted backward.
Every time they exchanged blows, Lia had to make up for her lack of strength with skill and willpower.
But in the end, she had still lost.
And then there was that pair's Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu, two Soul Ancestors around rank forty-five, had joined forces to unleash Frostfall · Ice Phoenix, and the