Ling Yun and the others had barely left the arena when Ma Hongjun started complaining. "I don't care who we fight next, I'm going in. My hands were itching watching from down here today, but you guys finished in no time. I didn't even get a chance to curse anyone out."
Tai Long was drinking water and nearly spat it out. "Who else do you want to curse out? Those guys from the Heaven Dou Second Team didn't even dare lift their heads when they left. Chasing them down to curse at them would be bullying."
"Bullshit. Why didn't they think they were bullying us before the match?" Ma Hongjun leaned back. "Every last one of them bragged like they were hot shit, then ran faster than the chickens outside my house once the fighting started."
Standing behind him, Ling Yun glanced at him. "That's all you've got? This was only the first match. You'll have plenty of chances to show off later."
"Remember you said that." Ma Hongjun instantly perked up. "Next time we get someone easy to bully, you've got to let me fight."
Dai Mubai's mouth twitched as he listened. "So you specifically pick on easy opponents?"
"Obviously." Ma Hongjun sounded perfectly justified. "Do I have to pick someone who can beat me to death just to show off? I'm not brain-damaged."
They headed toward the lounge, laughing and joking, unaware that quite a few eyes in the VIP seats were now following Ling Yun.
After watching for a while, Salas suddenly turned to Ning Fengzhi beside him. "You don't seem surprised at all, Sect Master Ning."
Ning Fengzhi smiled. "How surprised do you think I ought to be, Bishop Salas?"
"Do you know that boy?"
Ning Fengzhi did not answer directly. He merely tapped the armrest lightly. "I've met him."
Salas's eyes immediately narrowed.
For the sect master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to personally say he had met the boy was enough.
"Interesting."
Salas looked back toward the competitors' passage where Ling Yun had disappeared and beckoned to someone beside him. "Hurry up with what I asked you to do. Before today's matches end, I want whatever you can dig up on that kid."
Down below, Ling Yun naturally had no idea that Spirit Hall already had its eye on him.
He had barely returned to the rest area when Zhao Wuji slapped him on the shoulder, nearly shaking the table beside them over.
"Less than thirty seconds!" Zhao Wuji grinned almost from ear to ear. "You really didn't leave the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy a shred of dignity, you little bastard. I thought you'd at least fight for a while, but you went up there and herded them straight off like ducks."
Flender was clearly in a good mood too, though he still put on an act and cleared his throat. "Enough. Stop acting like you've won the championship. The Heaven Dou Second Team isn't some powerhouse. You can be happy about giving them a good thrashing, but don't let it go to your heads."
"Now that's something I like hearing, Dean." Ling Yun sat down. "Trash is trash. Beating up a bunch of scrubs isn't going to keep me awake at night."
Sitting on the other side, Yu Xiaogang finally spoke after hearing that. "Good that you understand. The Heaven Dou Royal Academy's real first team doesn't even participate in the preliminaries. The second team you faced today was never particularly strong."
The others, who had been chatting so lively a moment ago, all turned to look.
Ling Yun turned too. "Grandmaster, that hindsight of yours sure came fast."
Yu Xiaogang frowned. "I'm merely reminding you not to let one victory go to your head."
"Why didn't you remind me how lousy they were before the match?" Ling Yun laughed. "When I said we didn't need Tang San, weren't you worried I'd crash and burn? Now that we've won, you say they were no good to begin with. You've got an answer for everything, huh?"
Yu Xiaogang's expression immediately darkened. "When did I ever say you would definitely lose?"
"Fine, fine. You didn't."
Ling Yun waved a hand, looking too bored to argue. "Anyway, if I win, it's because the opponents were too lousy. If I lose, I suppose it'll be because I don't know how to arrange a lineup. Whatever makes you happy, Grandmaster."
Even Dai Mubai nearly laughed at that.
Yu Xiaogang was about to continue, but Tang San spoke first. "Teacher, there's no need to argue about this."
Tang San's tone was calm.
Because on this matter, his thinking was actually much the same as Yu Xiaogang's.
The Heaven Dou Second Team really was weak.
Moreover, those seven had clearly panicked when they saw Ling Yun's Soul Rings at the start. They had failed to execute their opening combination, then Ling Yun had repeatedly broken them apart. That was why they had lost so badly.
Tang San did not think he would necessarily have failed to do the same.
In fact, had he been commanding, he might not have let the situation become so chaotic.
So after the match, while everyone else was excited about Ling Yun's swift victory, Tang San was not the least bit convinced.
What good was beating a weak team quickly?
What truly showed someone's ability was how they fought when they hit a tough bone to crack.
Ling Yun's speed let him thrash the Heaven Dou Second Team, but could he thrash every team?
Once he faced a team that wasn't afraid of his charges and wouldn't let him close in at will, problems with his fighting style would naturally surface.
Tang San even found himself hoping their next opponent would be a difficult one.
Then, when Ling Yun needed control, tactics, and someone to stabilize the entire team, he would naturally realize who was best suited to stand in the arena.
That thought had barely surfaced when someone pushed open the lounge door.
The teacher Flender had sent to check the next round's matchups had returned.
After entering, the teacher did not immediately speak. He first glanced at Ling Yun, who had just thoroughly thrashed the Heaven Dou Second Team, with a rather strange expression.
Zhao Wuji grinned at the sight. "What's wrong? Did we draw the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy again?"
"No."
"Then what's with that look?"
The teacher placed the matchup sheet on the table.
"Our opponent for the next round has been announced."
Ma Hongjun was the first to lean over. "Who is it?"
Once he saw the name on the sheet, much of his grin disappeared.
Dai Mubai went over for a look too, and even he raised his eyebrows this time.
The Elephant Armor Academy. The room abruptly became quieter.
The Heaven Dou Second Team was easy to bully. The Elephant Armor Academy was not.
The Elephant Armor Sect behind them was one of the Seven Great Sects, and what it was most famous for could be summed up in one word-tough.
They all had the Diamond Mammoth martial soul, with hides as thick and rugged as city walls. Especially in a seven-person team battle like this, a row of those hulking men blocking the front could withstand a prolonged pounding from ordinary Soul Masters without necessarily budging.
Zhao Wuji rubbed his chin. "Now this is interesting."
After seeing their opponent, Yu Xiaogang's gaze grew considerably more serious. "The Elephant Armor Academy and the Heaven Dou Second Team are on entirely different levels. Their frontal defense is the biggest problem. Once all seven close ranks, breaking through with speed won't be so easy."
At that, he instinctively glanced at Tang San.
Tang San understood his teacher's meaning too.
Against lumps of iron like these, brute force alone would indeed struggle.
The value of a control-type Soul Master would immediately become apparent.
Yu Xiaogang said outright, "Xiao San must fight in this match."
Ling Yun looked up at him. "It's a must just because you say so?"
Yu Xiaogang's face darkened. "I'm not arguing with you. The biggest problem with the Elephant Armor Academy is that they can hold their ground. Xiao San's Blue Silver Grass can restrict their movement and break up their seven-man formation. That's the most suitable approach available to us."
This time, Ling Yun did not immediately curse him out.
Because there really was nothing wrong with that reasoning.
Tang San looked at Ling Yun as well.
This was the moment he had been waiting for.
Against the likes of the Heaven Dou Second Team, you could fight however you wanted.
But what about the Elephant Armor Academy?
Against a row of Diamond Mammoths that might not be fast but were tough as hell, how useful would Ling Yun's headlong charges still be?
Ling Yun watched Tang San for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled.
"Fine."
Tang San's gaze shifted, and Yu Xiaogang visibly relaxed a little too.
But Ling Yun's next words immediately followed. "Tang San can fight. But let's make this clear first. I'm letting you fight because your grass is useful in this match, not because I'm letting you come in and be the boss."
Tang San's expression instantly turned cold.
Ling Yun had already picked up the matchup sheet and casually tapped it. "The Elephant Armor Academy, huh? Good. We just finished beating up a bunch of soft ones. Tomorrow, we'll give some tough ones a proper pounding."
Before you continue