He delved deeply into the top-tier Mimicry Training Ground.
He spent the night embracing warm, fragrant jade.
Early the next morning, Xu Zi felt only that the Light-Fire Soul Power within him was stable, and steadily improving.
He stretched in bed and could not help giving a thumbs-up in admiration. "My cultivation rises even while I sleep. Truly top-tier teaching staff!"
Beside him, Ling Yuan tugged down the white fleece Xu Zi had pushed up, covered her face, and continued sleeping.
Xu Zi knew that, to sleep in, Ling Yuan had deliberately moved the third round's starting time to nearly noon-after eleven, to be precise.
So he did not disturb her, but quietly went downstairs:
Steep tea, mix milk, dissolve sugar...
While waiting, Xu Zi also fried two bird-beast eggs specifically to replenish the protein depleted last night.
After finishing breakfast, he took out the two sets of information from last night:
"Wind Fire Team: a new team jointly formed by three members from Godwind Academy and four from Blazing Fire Academy."
"Feng Xiaotian: captain of the Wind Fire Team, former captain of the Divine Wind Team, rank 45 dual power-and-agility attack system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: Gale Twin-Headed Wolf."
"Huo Wushuang: vice-captain of the Wind Fire Team, former captain of the Blazing Fire Team, rank 43 power attack system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: One-Horned Fire Tyrant Dragon."
"Huo Wu: vice-captain of the Wind Fire Team, former vice-captain of the Blazing Fire Team, rank 44 control system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: Fire Shadow."
"Feng Ji: member of the Wind Fire Team, former vice-captain of the Divine Wind Team, rank 42 agility attack system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: Wind-Chasing Sword."
"Feng Xiao: member of the Wind Fire Team, former vice-captain of the Divine Wind Team, rank 42 power attack system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: Wind-Chasing Sword."
"Huo Lie: member of the Wind Fire Team, former vice-captain of the Blazing Fire Team, rank 42 agility attack system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: Fire Leopard."
"Huo Yun: member of the Wind Fire Team, former member of the Blazing Fire Team, rank 41 agility attack system Soul Ancestor. Martial Soul: Flame Crane."
"Substitutes: Feng Lin, Feng Cun, ..."
"Seven top-tier Martial Souls, an entire roster of Soul Ancestor combatants."
Xu Zi could not help frowning after reading it.
"The key is that four of these seven are actually agility attack system."
Xu Zi distinctly remembered that, in the original plot, the Wind Fire Team had certainly not fielded this many agility attack system members against the Shrek Team.
But he immediately understood why: countering them.
The Spirit Hall Second Team's front line had always used a lineup of three power attackers and two defenders.
Moreover, the seven lacked a control system Soul Ancestor. Although the Dragon Pattern Staff Formation provided a degree of control once formed, its coverage was limited, and it had to be deployed at close range.
Anyone fast enough could dodge it entirely.
Thus, as long as the opposing decision-maker had any brains at all, they would not field too many power attack and defense system members, avoiding a head-on battle of attrition against the Spirit Hall Second Team.
So playing to their strengths and using speed to kite those five frontliners to death was the key to their victory!
Yet Xu Zi still shook his head with a smile, slowly savoring his drink.
Because...
Who said he could only serve as a power attacker and support?
He moved the first document aside, revealing the black lettering on white paper beneath:
Ranking of favorites to win this tournament (overall combat strength).
Xu Zi looked down and saw the names of five teams.
First: Spirit Hall Academy Primary First Team;
Second: Star Luo Royal Academy Team;
Third: Godwind Blazing Fire Mixed Team;
Fourth: Spirit Hall Academy Secondary Second Team;
Fifth: Shrek Academy Team.
Seeing the bottom line, Xu Zi could not help raising an eyebrow.
Just then, with his considerable spiritual power, he sensed movement upstairs.
Before long, Ling Yuan, wearing a loose sleeveless top and shorts, skipped the stairs and leaped straight down.
Clearly, the aroma of breakfast had roused her.
Xu Zi took the opportunity to push over one serving of fried eggs and the other cup of milk tea.
As Ling Yuan cut her eggs, she gestured and asked, "Seen it? The ranking."
"I have." Xu Zi nodded. "I just didn't expect the top-five ranking to have come out yesterday, before today's semifinals have even started."
Ling Yuan smiled. "Don't doubt our intelligence network spanning the continent."
"We have all these members' information in hand. A little tabulation and compilation, and the top-ten ranking naturally becomes clear."
"Then this..." Xu Zi pointed to the final line on the ranking sheet.
"Oh, Shrek." Ling Yuan said indifferently, "Star Luo Royal Academy had an audience last night and said they wanted to take the knife to them in today's semifinals."
"Unfortunately, Her Majesty agreed. Otherwise, I would have liked to arrange for them to be your stepping stone."
"Hm?" Xu Zi shook his head in surprise, his smile a little strained. "No, do you know Shrek Academy's true strength?"
Biting her silver fork, Ling Yuan nodded. "Of course. Aren't they just the former Blue Tyrant Academy merged with some rural academy and collectively renamed? What about it?"
"Besides, among their seven starting members, three have been Soul Elders in every match."
"And their three substitutes are one Soul Elder and two supports."
"This 'lineup that isn't entirely Soul Ancestors' should have ranked sixth. If they hadn't gone undefeated all this way, they probably wouldn't even have made the top five."
Looking at the line in Shrek's substitute column that listed only names, without cultivation ranks or Martial Souls, Xu Zi could not help shaking his head.
"Ah, it seems this Yu Xiaogang does have a little strategic ability. No wonder he managed to catch the Primary First Team off guard in the grand final."
"Hm? Yu what? Her Majesty's old lover?" Ling Yuan seemed to have heard Xu Zi's muttering.
As a strong woman who had fought her way through Spirit Hall for years, she had naturally heard of that scandal from over a decade ago.
After all, the Pope Hall's Holy Maiden had brought the youngest son of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect's master along and openly flaunted their love during the campaign to the West Sea. Anyone who wasn't blind would have seen it.
"Nothing. The Wind Fire Team suits my appetite." Xu Zi changed the subject.
"Mm, then be careful." Ling Yuan lifted her chin, indicating the first document.
She added, "You've heard of our Douluo's Seven Great Sects, haven't you?"
Xu Zi picked up the document on the table again, not quite understanding, and asked, "What about them? The Upper Three Sects and Lower Four Sects, each claiming a world's number one."
"Didn't I just crush one world's number one last night?"
Ling Yuan did not respond directly, answering with a question instead. "Have you heard of the world's number one agility attack system Tool Martial Soul and the world's number one fire-attribute Beast Martial Soul?"
"You mean...?" Xu Zi suddenly realized something: he seemed to have overlooked two details.
His gaze swiftly scanned the Wind Fire Team: two Wind-Chasing Sword Soul Masters and one Fire Leopard Soul Master.
His pupils contracted slightly: Wind Sword Sect, Fire Leopard Sect.
Third among the Lower Four Sects, fourth among the Lower Four Sects.
In this tournament, the Seven Great Sects:
Clear Sky, Blue Lightning Tyrant, Seven Treasure Glazed Tile;
Elephant Armor, White Tiger, Wind Sword, Fire Leopard.
They had all come!
Because of three Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones.
Ling Yuan continued, "In previous tournaments, Godwind Academy always had a sword-chasing Soul Master as captain, and Blazing Fire Academy was also led by a Fire Leopard."
"This tournament is just a little special."
"I'm going to adjust the pre-match arrangements." Leaving those words behind, Xu Zi swiftly rushed out the door.
Of course, he had not exposed Yu Xiaogang's scheme to conceal their abilities, either.
Because the Primary First Team and the Golden Trio of Fools were both obstacles to his championship.
With nothing to gain, why help?