After Dai Youheng's "regrettable" departure, the free-for-all inside the maze continued.
Although he had unexpectedly eliminated the formidable Xu Sanshi, he had also helped Jiang Nannan deal with Mu Shengsheng and Gui Jiankui, two troublesome opponents at the peak of the Soul Elder rank.
With those losses and gains balancing out, the overall pressure on Huo Yuhao, Bei Bei, and their little group was actually somewhat lighter than in the original story.
When the constantly shrinking maze finally forced everyone into the central plaza for the final showdown, sixteen contestants remained.
The situation had become six against ten.
Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, He Caitou, Bei Bei, and Jiang Nannan faced the other ten, led by Dai Huabin.
Compared with the original story's seven against twelve, Huo Yuhao and his companions were actually at less of a numerical disadvantage.
Huo Yuhao still employed the tactics he knew best, issuing precise commands from the god's-eye perspective provided by Spiritual Detection Sharing. He had the four others apart from himself and Wang Dong break out in four different directions, each successfully drawing two opponents into pursuit.
Then, taking advantage of the maze's constant changes, Huo Yuhao calculated their routes precisely and cleverly maneuvered all eight of those diverted opponents into a single straight line!
"Now, Yuhao!" Wang Dong cried.
Dazzling golden light and pure blue-gold light instantly mingled, forming a one-hundred-percent perfect Martial Soul Fusion Skill: Withering in Splendor, Golden Road.
The Martial Soul Fusion Skill of the light goddess butterfly and Spirit Eyes swept through that straight passage like the light of judgment!
When the light faded, all eight opponents, along with the maze walls around them, had been painted a dazzling gold. Unable to move, they instantly lost their ability to fight!
The names of the eliminated contestants rang out one after another over the broadcast.
However, with Xu Sanshi absent, they lacked a sufficiently tempting lure, leaving no one to draw away Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu, the strongest and most vigilant of their opponents. Those two had been searching throughout the maze for Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong.
When they sensed something was wrong and returned to the central area, they found eight golden "statues" and Huo Yuhao's group of six, ready and waiting.
It was now six against two!
Zhu Lu's face paled, and she immediately assessed the situation. Even if the two of them unleashed Hell White Tiger, they could never defeat so many opponents, especially when three were Soul Ancestors.
The purpose of this selection was to choose seven people. Since only eight remained on the field...
Zhu Lu raised her hand without hesitation and declared, "I concede!"
With a flash of light, she was teleported out of the arena.
That left exactly seven people on the field-Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, He Caitou, Bei Bei, Jiang Nannan, and Dai Huabin, whose expression was dark with resentment, though he secretly felt relieved to have won without lifting a finger.
The match was over.
On the raised platform outside, Xuan Zi, Yan Shaozhe, and the others looked displeased. They had organized this free-for-all hoping to see the students adapt to changing circumstances, form impromptu groups, and demonstrate their combat intelligence and teamwork.
But what had they ended up with? Huo Yuhao's group of six worked together seamlessly, employing ingenious tactics. Dai Huabin, meanwhile, was a complete outsider who even had deep-seated conflicts with the other six!
Zhu Lu, the only person who could work with him, had voluntarily withdrawn. The newly selected reserve team was already divided from within.
Xuan Zi took a swig of liquor and finally bit the bullet. "Rules are rules! The seven winners of this selection will form the new Shrek Seven Devils Reserve Team! They are Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, He Caitou, Bei Bei, Jiang Nannan, and Dai Huabin!"
The roster was announced, but there were few cheers either inside or outside the arena.
Huo Yuhao's brows knitted tightly. Making him and Dai Huabin teammates? That was nothing short of torture.
Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, and the others also looked displeased. Dai Huabin's own face was livid. He felt as though his advancement had been handed to him as charity, with no glory to speak of-especially since he would now have to stand on equal footing with his bitter enemy, Huo Yuhao.
This might well have been the most internally discordant lineup of the Shrek Seven Devils in Shrek Academy's history.
Dai Youheng leaned "weakly" against a wall nearby, watching this dramatic scene without a ripple of emotion. He even felt a little like laughing.
The sisters Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo came over to him, their little faces filled with indignation.
"Hmph! This is so unfair!" Lan Luoluo stamped her foot. "If you and that Xu Sanshi hadn't fought until you were both badly hurt and exhausted, Big Brother Youheng, someone as strong as you would definitely have secured a spot! How could there have been any room for someone like Dai Huabin, who just scooped up the scraps and had his girlfriend give up her place for him?"
Lan Susu nodded vigorously as well. Neither sister particularly minded being eliminated herself. Instead, they felt terribly sorry for Dai Youheng and thought he had been treated unfairly.
Watching their heartfelt indignation on his behalf, Dai Youheng smiled inwardly. On the surface, however, he merely shook his head, his voice calm and unruffled. "It's all right. I don't care."
He truly did not care.
He had no interest whatsoever in the hollow prestige of a mere academy tournament, or in a team operation destined to be full of trouble and internal power struggles. What would participating accomplish? It would do almost nothing to improve his strength.
Using this time to obtain that Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring in peace, then returning to Star Luo City to scour the auction house for the resources he needed-that was what truly mattered.
His gaze had already turned beyond the academy, toward the wider and more dangerous world outside. The glory of the Shrek Seven Devils? Let Dai Huabin enjoy it. Hopefully, he could withstand the "surprises" that would soon follow in that glory's wake.
Just then, two figures approached, one behind the other.
They were Huo Yuhao and Jiang Nannan.
Huo Yuhao's face showed unmistakable guilt and a trace of frustration. He walked up to Dai Youheng with his head lowered, his voice somewhat subdued. "Brother, I'm sorry."
Dai Youheng looked up, arranging just the right amount of puzzlement on his face. "Why are you apologizing to me? You made the team. That's a good thing."
"No, that's not it!" Huo Yuhao clenched his fists, his voice growing agitated. "I mean that bastard Dai Huabin! He ambushed you. I wanted to eliminate him during that final melee and avenge you! But..." He gritted his teeth. "He and Zhu Lu hid too well, and then there were exactly seven people left on the field, so the match ended. I never got the chance. I'm sorry, Brother. I let that scoundrel get away with ambushing you!"
His voice was full of genuine remorse and indignation. Clearly, his failure to help his brother settle the score still weighed on him.
Dai Youheng understood, but a faint, relieved smile appeared on his face. He reached out and patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder. "It was nothing. What is there to apologize for? Those are the rules of the match. Being able to seize an opportunity is a skill of his, too
. The most important thing is that you made the team. As for revenge, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future. There's no need to rush."
His magnanimous words only made Huo Yuhao feel even more strongly that his brother was putting him first despite having been wronged, deepening his loathing for Dai Huabin.
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