The Shrek Team incident happened very suddenly, and many people didn't even have time to react.
These people only heard someone shout "Stop thief!" and then felt a terrifying aura. The thief was caught, and then the Shrek members fainted. The whole thing took less than a minute.
The general public may not be aware of this, but this is a Soul Master Tournament. In addition to the members of each team, their team leaders also participate, and these team leaders are at least Soul King or Soul Emperor, and there are even quite a few Soul Sage.
They could clearly sense that the two Shrek members seemed to be stunned by the sudden burst of power. However, Huo Yuhao had been extremely arrogant, especially after displaying six Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, which amazed everyone, suddenly fainted. Moreover, judging from his appearance, it seemed that he had collapsed due to exhaustion of his Soul Power.
Everyone was extremely puzzled. Was Huo Yuhao truly powerful, or was he just a paper tiger posing as someone else?
The members of the Star Luo Imperial Family, seated in the VIP section, were equally puzzled, even Emperor Xu Jiawei was completely bewildered.
The referee approached Ma Rufeng, his expression somewhat grim. This was, after all, a grand event hosted by the Star Luo Empire, and yet a thief had appeared, and not only that, Ma Rufeng had caught him, but had even knocked out the two Shrek students.
But from beginning to end, Ma Rufeng did not actually attack any of the Shrek Academy members; those two were just a bit weak and frail.
With a wave of his hand, the referee instantly summoned five guards, all of whom appeared to be quite powerful.
Ma Rufeng glanced at the referee. "It's just catching a thief, is it really necessary to make such a big fuss?"
The referee's lips twitched, but he quickly suppressed his anger. "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, but as the host, it's only natural that our Star Luo Empire must severely punish a thief in the venue. Arrest him and interrogate him rigorously."
Five guards quickly subdued the middle-aged man in black and put him in shackles. Clearly, the five guards and the referee all hated this thief.
The referee, with a forced smile, looked at Xu Zhengyang and asked, "Gentlemen, you've come from afar. Has anything been stolen from you?"
Xu Zhengyang said, "I didn't have anything stolen from me, but I just saw him stealing something. You can search him if you don't believe me."
The referee remained silent for a moment before speaking, "No need. Rest assured, everyone, our Star Luo Empire will strengthen security measures for all personnel, and there will be no more thefts."
"You all have your competitions coming up soon, so I won't keep you company."
After the referee and several guards escorted the thief away, the others still seemed confused, as if something was amiss.
After this minor hiccup, the second match is about to begin.
The Sun Moon Team, led by Xiao Hongchen, consisted of seven members.
The team consists of Xu Zhengyang, Xiao Hongchen, Mi Jia, Chen Fei, Chen An, Xiao Xiafeng, and Lin Xi, a total of seven people. Except for Xu Zhengyang and Xiao Hongchen, the other five are all main force members.
Moreover, apart from Xu Zhengyang, all of these people are Soul King and Level 5 Soul Engineer.
It's important to understand that while there are 133 participating teams in the entire Soul Master Tournament, their quality varies greatly. Apart from the teams that are heavily supported by the major empires, most of them are Soul Ancestor and Soul Elder. A team with three Soul King is considered a strong team, and there are fewer than five teams with Soul Emperor.
The Sun Moon Team sent out six Soul King and one Soul Ancestor, which would absolutely crush more than 90% of the teams. In this way, they demonstrated their strength while also holding back.
Ma Rufeng's original plan was to send out four substitutes plus three main players, which would be a lineup of all Soul King and Level 5 Soul Engineer, enough to sweep all teams without any problem.
Moreover, according to his plan, he intended to hide Xu Zhengyang, Xiao Hongchen, and Meng Hongchen as a trump card for a crucial moment.
However, it was only after Xu Zhengyang's communication that the current lineup was achieved, and that Xu Zhengyang himself and Xiao Hongchen appeared on stage together.
In Xu Zhengyang's eyes, the only ones in the entire Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy who truly deserved to hide their strength were Ma Rulong and Meng Hongchen. Ma Rulong was the only Soul Emperor in the team, and was even close to becoming Level 7 Soul Engineer, making him one of the strongest teams.
Meng Hongchen's Martial Soul is unique, capable of striking unexpectedly at crucial moments and severely injuring enemies, especially in team battles where it can even wipe out the entire opposing team.
Moreover, in Xu Zhengyang's eyes, the elimination rounds and preliminary rounds are excellent training grounds, allowing the team members to adapt to battles against top-tier Soul Master geniuses from the Douluo Continent.
Especially Xiao Hongchen, who only appeared once in the original work, and under these circumstances, he did not play any role for the team because of his lack of combat experience.
Rather than letting him hide, it's better to let him lead the entire battlefield and train him more; perhaps he can unleash even greater strength at crucial moments.
Xu Zhengyang's appearance is due to his status as the team's only Control Department Soul Master, which can mislead any enemy.
Moreover, Xu Zhengyang had already communicated with Ma Rufeng and Ma Rulong. During the Soul Master Tournament, he would only use Soul Tool Soul Tool control his enemies and would not actively reveal his strength. This way, he could both cover his battle record and create some confusion.
Once on the stage, Xu Zhengyang looked completely different from before. He carried Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear on his back, wore level 5 Soul Tool Armor, and had Level 5 Soul Tool, Freezing Ray and Paralysis Ray, on his arms. He also carried a level 5 flamethrower on his shoulder.
As for those Level 6 Soul Tool and Level 7 Soul Tool, those are for use in the later stages of the finals and will not be exposed now, nor will the others.
When Xu Zhengyang and his six companions stepped onto the arena, and when they revealed their Martial Soul and Soul Ring, the audience was once again shocked.
Although it was only the second match, the lineup displayed by the Sun Moon Team was incredibly impressive. Xu Zhengyang not only had one yellow, two purple, and one black Soul Ring, but also Fourth Soul Ring that had lasted for ten thousand years, while everyone else was Five-Ring Soul King.
The moment they appeared, the crowd erupted in thunderous cheers. These spectators had come to watch the Soul Master competition, naturally hoping to witness a clash of masters, to see the performance of high-level Soul Master and Soul Engineer. And now, the Sun Moon Team had displayed—
Such extraordinary strength is truly astonishing.
Xu Jiawei, along with the team leaders and members from each team, all looked unusually serious in the stands. This was just a match, and although it was an elimination tournament, the opponents were weak. They hadn't expected the Sun Moon Empire to field such a powerful lineup.
If Xu Zhengyang knew what they were thinking, he'd probably want to spit on their faces. This was nothing compared to what the Sun Moon Team had—an all- Soul King lineup, and they hadn't even deployed Soul Emperor yet!
As soon as the referee announced the start of the match, the entire arena instantly became one-sided.
Xu Zhengyang, at the very back of the group, used his Level 5 Soul Tool, the Freezing Ray and the Paralysis Ray, in quick succession, leaving the opposing team overwhelmed.
At the very front of the group was Xiao Hongchen, a battle maniac. Suddenly, countless cannons appeared on everyone's bodies, and a barrage of fire poured down on the opposing team. Each person's attack was rhythmic and coordinated, creating a crossfire.
Even though the seven opponents tried their best to resist, and even though they used various defensive Soul Skill and Soul Tool, they were quickly defeated by the overwhelming strength and could only defend with all their might.
As Control Department Soul Master, Xu Zhengyang seized the opportunity when they adjusted their movements and continuously launched various control-type Soul Tool, especially predicting their every move.
In just one minute, the Sun Moon Team suffered no losses, while all the opposing team members were down on the ground, demonstrating an absolute crushing victory in terms of strength.
And so, in the first round of the knockout stage, the Sun Moon Team won with an absolute advantage and advanced to the round-robin stage. Now, all that's left is to wait for the draw for the round-robin stage.
Even though there were many experts present, they now looked at the Sun Moon Team with a hint of apprehension. The Sun Moon Team displayed extremely strong suppressive power. Although they showed various kinds of artillery fire, extremely strong combat skills, and good teamwork, it seemed that something was missing. It seemed that they had not shown their strength at all, or rather, the opponents could not force the Sun Moon Team to show their strength.
After the match, Xu Zhengyang and the others went straight back to the Star Luo Grand Hotel, leaving Xu Jie alone to watch and analyze the upcoming matches, looking for the strengths and weaknesses of each team.
The first round is just a knockout tournament, which will last for three days with very short intervals. For truly strong teams, it won't be a chance to show their true strength. Instead of wasting time, they'd be better off going back to rest and prepare for the next match.
Meanwhile, on the seventh floor of the Star Luo Grand Hotel, the Shrek Team looked rather pathetic.
Although he passed the elimination round, Huo Yuhao performed exceptionally well. He not only intimidated his opponents but also concealed his true strength, including the Martial Soul and Soul Power Level of everyone else.
But because of that last little mishap, all the groundwork laid before was wasted. It's unbelievable that a thief would appear, or that Titled Douluo would catch a thief.
Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong happened to be near the Titled Douluo, and were actually knocked unconscious, which made things even more troublesome.
Huo Yuhao displayed six Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, demonstrating his Soul Emperor cultivation. Yet, without any attack from the Titled Douluo, he was directly stunned. This is definitely not the performance of Soul Emperor.
With the help of their teacher, Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong slowly regained consciousness.
Team leader Wang Yan quickly asked, " Yuhao, Wang Dong, how are you two feeling now? Are you experiencing any discomfort? What exactly happened?"
Huo Yuhao held his forehead and thought for a while before speaking, "Teacher, I don't know what happened. I just felt a terrifying aura, and since my Soul Power was exhausted during the battle, I fainted under this aura."
Wang Dong nodded, "My situation was the same. It didn't seem like we were attacked. We were probably just too tired and Soul Power, so we fainted under that force."
Just then, another team leader, Zhou Yi, returned, and her expression was equally unpleasant.
Wang Yan quickly spoke up, "Teacher Zhou, what's the situation? Did that Titled Douluo from the Sun Moon Team attack Yuhao and the others? We're going to file a complaint; this is a serious violation."
Zhou Yi shook her head. "The person we caught was indeed a thief. We found stolen goods on him. And according to the referee, the leader of the Sun Moon Team didn't actually attack Yuhao and Wang Dong; they were just affected by the aftershocks of the Titled Douluo's aura."
"The referee did not believe it was an intentional act to harm our players, therefore he dismissed our complaint."
Wang Yan gritted his teeth. "What on earth is the Star Luo Empire up to? Holding a competition of this caliber, and yet a thief managed to sneak in."
Zhou Yi seemed somewhat helpless. "At least 100,000 people are watching this Soul Fighting competition. Even if a few thieves manage to sneak in, the Star Luo Empire can't do anything about it."
After saying this, Zhou Yi looked at Huo Yuhao: " Yuhao, how are you feeling now? Are you feeling unwell?"
Huo Yuhao shook his head. "I'm fine. I just think this is too coincidental. If I had left the Star Luo Empire Great Soul Arena immediately, I wouldn't have fainted or shown signs of fatigue. The battle ahead would probably have been much more difficult for us."
Wang Yan sighed, "Man proposes, God disposes. Yuhao's sudden fainting has greatly diminished the effectiveness he displayed earlier. Our upcoming battles will likely be even more brutal and difficult."