The moment the Clear Sky Hammer Avatar appeared, the entire arena was enveloped by its heavy pressure.
Tang San didn't pause. He raised his right arm, holding the Clear Sky Hammer, and brought the first hammer down. There were no fancy movements or unnecessary pre-swings; it was just a clean and crisp strike.
" Zhong Yue!"
Feng Xiaotian's voice rang out just before the hammer wind landed. Zhong Yue had already stepped forward, the Tortoise Shell Shield of the Wind Armor Black Tortoise fully unfolded in front of him, its thick shell gleaming with a rock-like gray light.
The first hammer blow struck the shield with a deafening roar that made everyone on the arena's eardrums vibrate. Zhong Yue's legs buckled, and two thin cracks appeared in the stone slab beneath his feet, but he withstood the impact.
"Hold on!" Feng Xiaotian didn't wait for Zhong Yue's reply and immediately stepped in from his side.
The second hammer blow followed immediately. Another layer of cracks appeared on Zhong Yue's Tortoise Shell Shield. Feng Xiaotian moved to his side, his voice booming before the hammer struck. "Hold on, I'm here to help you!"
The two simultaneously exerted force behind their shields, catching the second blow. The Wind Scale Armor exploded with a burst of blue light, and Feng Xiaotian took a step back.
Then came the third strike. Su Mei'er, Jiang Lin, Cheng Luo, and Lu Qing moved simultaneously— the Ultimate Fire slammed into Tang San's hammer-wielding wrist from the side. The light of his Spirit Eyes flashed in Jiang Lin's eyes, and he immediately shouted out the direction of Tang San's strike, "Slightly to the upper left!"
Cheng Luo's Wind-Binding Vine sprouted from the ground, intertwining Entanglement around Tang San's feet, restricting his lower body stability. Lu Qing's Wind Scythe swung out from the air, grazing the edge of Tang San's line of sight, forcing him to distract himself and turn his head to dodge.
Tang San's third hammer blow veered off course by half an inch in mid-air. It was this slight deviation that allowed Feng Xiaotian to catch it with 20% less force. He took two steps back, his hands starting to go numb, but he held on.
The fourth strike. This time, the Godwind Academy's coordination had formed a rhythm: Zhong Yue took the first wave of impact, Feng Xiaotian relayed the attack from behind the shield, Su Mei'er continuously interfered with Tang San's hammer-wielding arm, Jiang Lin reported the enemy's position in advance, Cheng Luo restricted their movement, and Lu Qing constantly created interference at the edge of Tang San's vision.
Although Tang San's fourth hammer blow was heavier than the first three, his rhythm was disrupted. The Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer emphasizes continuous stacking, with each hammer blow becoming heavier than the last, but the Godwind Academy didn't give him any complete space to swing his hammer.
Jiang Lin's Spirit Eyes captured the moment Tang San's right shoulder muscles tightened—a warning to everyone that this hammer would strike the right side of Zhong Yue's Tortoise Shell Shield.
Zhong Yue parried with his shield, Feng Xiaotian seized the opportunity to cut out from the left, Wind Blade Slash hammer handle with a wind blade, causing Tang San's point of force to deviate slightly.
Lu Qing's Wind Scythe swept over Tang San's head, and Su Mei'er's Ultimate Ice exploded into a thin layer of ice at his feet— Tang San had to take half a step back to steady himself, and the Clear Sky Hammer he had already raised paused for a moment in mid-air.
"This is the fifth strike," Feng Xiaotian said in a low voice. His arms were already trembling, and blood was seeping from the base of his thumbs, but he was still holding on.
He knew in his heart that Tang San's hammer technique had already reached extremely high power by the fifth strike, and he might not be able to withstand the sixth strike. He gritted his teeth, and the cracks on his Wind Scale Armor were widening.
Just as Tang San raised his sixth hammer, Lu Qing's Wind Scythe once again swept past the edge of Tang San's vision, Su Mei'er's Ultimate Fire directly attacked his hammer-wielding arm. Tang San had to distract himself again to block, but in the instant his gaze shifted—
No one noticed that the gray shadow in the sky had disappeared.
Feng Lingtian's Peregrine Falcon Martial Soul made no sound during its dive. He aimed at the moment when Tang San was halfway up his sixth hammer and his attention was completely diverted to the four people in front of him.
Jiang Lin's Spirit Eyes had already drawn an arc behind Tang San's head that only Feng Lingtian could understand.
Blind spot.
Feng Lingtian landed, less than three steps away from Ning Rongrong. When Ning Rongrong saw him, her face had already turned pale. The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda was still spinning in her palm, and her hand could not be removed from the pagoda.
Without hesitation, Feng Lingtian precisely slashed at the connection point between the base of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda and Oscar's palm with his claw.
"Smack!"
With a crisp snapping sound, the transmission link broke.
Oscar's hand was knocked away from the bottom of the tower, and he fell backward.
Next came Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing —the entire golden light path broke in the middle, and the Soul Power of the seven people simultaneously lost its convergence point.
The backlash of Soul Power exploded instantly. Tang San's body shuddered violently, but the Clear Sky Hammer Avatar did not dissipate; instead, it became even more ferocious than before.
Without Ning Rongrong's assistance and harmonization, the seven strands of Soul Power had become a chaotic mess within his body, colliding, repelling, and oppressing each other.
Tang San's eyes changed—they were bloodshot, filled with madness, and devoid of any rationality.
Out of control, Tang San raised the Clear Sky Hammer.
" Tang San!" Dai Mubai shouted, but he was still shaken by the backlash and couldn't stand up straight.
Tang San did not respond. His body continued to act on instinct, raising the Clear Sky Hammer and aiming it at his side and rear.
Xiao Wu is there.
"Stop—" Tang San's own voice screamed in his mind, "Stop! That's Xiao Wu— "
But his hands wouldn't obey him. The dark golden patterns on the Clear Sky Hammer flickered uncontrollably, and the seven streams of Soul Power surged and collided within his body, squeezing all his will into a corner.
Tang San could see Xiao Wu's face, and he could see her standing still, unable to dodge—but he couldn't stop.
Just as the hammer was about to fall—
"Concentrate!"
An old and heavy voice exploded in Tang San's mind like a thunderclap.
Tang San's movements suddenly froze. A moment of clarity flashed in his eyes, which had been filled with chaos.
He seized that moment, using all his strength to forcefully twist the trajectory of the Clear Sky Hammer by a third.
The hammer grazed Xiao Wu's side before slamming into the ring.
The deafening roar shook the entire plaza. The granite arena shattered, cracking from the center to the edge, sending shards of stone flying and dust billowing everywhere.
When the dust settled, the Clear Sky Hammer Avatar had vanished. Tang San knelt on one knee in the center of the arena, trembling all over, his forehead pressed against the ground.
Xiao Wu stood there, her face deathly pale, her lips trembling slightly. She was less than three steps away from Tang San; the hammer had just grazed her shoulder as it fell.
The aftershocks of the shockwave swept across her wrist, and she glanced down—a thin crack had appeared on the surface of the bracelet.
Feng Lingtian landed a short distance away. He glanced at Xiao Wu, then at the crack on her wrist, and silently looked away.
The referee's voice came from the sidelines. " Shrek Academy's entire team is incapacitated— Godwind Academy wins and advances to the finals!"
Feng Xiaotian straightened up from his defensive stance, his arms hanging at his sides, blood dripping from his fingertips from his tiger's mouth.
He didn't celebrate; he simply turned around silently and walked towards his own group. Feng Lingtian met him.
"We won," Feng Xiaotian said. His voice was very soft, as if he didn't even have the strength to say another word.
Feng Lingtian glanced at him, his gaze lingering on Feng Xiaotian's bleeding hand hanging by his side. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly before he finally spoke, "Brother, your hand..."
Feng Xiaotian paused for a moment, then smirked, "We'll talk about it when we get back."
Feng Lingtian nodded, not pressing for further questions. But his gaze unconsciously swept towards Xiao Wu again—
The crack was short, just a thin scratch in the sunlight. He knew the bracelet was used to conceal his presence, but he didn't say it aloud. He kept this discovery to himself and followed Feng Xiaotian.
On the other side of the arena, Tang San was still kneeling on the spot. His father Tang Hao's voice had disappeared, but the echo of his father's words still resonated with him. He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into the flesh of his palms.
It was so close. So close—he almost hurt Xiao Wu. The moment the Clear Sky Hammer fell, he couldn't control anything.