On the morning of the third day of the exchange competition, Thunder Academy faced off against the Elephant Armor Academy. The match ended faster than anyone expected— Thunder Academy's Lightning Attribute Soul Skill completely overwhelmed Elephant Armor's defensive formation, and the outcome was decided in less than half an hour. Thunder Academy emerged victorious.
In the afternoon, Shenlun Academy faced off against the Blazing Fire Academy.
The deans of the Five Elements Academy were already seated. Yu Leiting and Huyan Zhen sat next to each other—they had just finished their match that morning, so the atmosphere between them wasn't particularly warm. Yu Leiting casually asked, "Who do you think will win this match?" Huyan Zhen, with his usual smile, didn't reply. Yu Leiting waited a moment, and seeing no reaction, stopped talking and turned to look at the center of the arena.
After the referee finished announcing the start of the match, both teams released their Martial Soul. Feng Xiaotian did not participate this time, but sat on the sidelines watching the game with his arms crossed and his gaze calm.
The team representing Godwind Academy consisted of Lu Qing, Feng Lingtian, Ji Ning, Su Mei'er, Zhong Yue, Ye Qingyu, and Bai Yu. Blazing Fire Academy was led by Huo Wushuang, followed closely by Huo Wu. The seven of them formed a formation, and the aura of flames caused the air at the edge of the arena to distort slightly.
The referee raises his flag. "The match begins."
Blazing Fire Academy launched a fierce attack right from the start. Huo Wushuang Fire Wolf charged head-on at Zhong Yue's tortoise-shell defense, followed closely by Huo Yu's powerful attacks, while Huo Yun flanked from the flanks to harass the back row. Blazing Fire Academy's fighting style was as fierce as ever, with its flame Soul Skill exploding into crimson orbs on the field.
Su Mei'er started with her first Soul Skill. The Wind Lightning Chain flew out from her side, the cyan chains wrapped in purple lightning, moving close to the ground. Every time the Blazing Fire Academy team members tried to change formation, the chains blocked their movement in advance. She didn't rush to exert her power - Feng Xiaotian said before the match that he would let her make her own judgment, and she felt that now was not the time.
Huo Wu's Fire Shadow attempted to break through the Wind Lightning Chain ' blockade three times from the flank, but each time the chains entangled her ankles and pulled her back to her original position. On the fourth attempt, she finally lost her patience.
The Soul Ring beneath her feet lit up, and the Repelling Fire Ring suddenly erupted from her center—a ring of crimson Lie Yan violently rippled outwards. The Wind Lightning Chain were struck head-on by this immense force, and a crisp cracking sound came from the surface of the chains. The broken chain links turned into cyan light spots and dissipated in the air.
Huo Wu retracted her Fire Ring, a slight smile playing on her lips. "Is this all the Control System skill you've got?"
Upon hearing this, Su Mei'er raised an eyebrow, a slight smile curving her lips. A thought suddenly popped into her mind: Since you look down on such limited abilities, then let's find something more interesting to play with. She retrieved the broken chain's remaining light to her side, and her Third Soul Ring lit up.
The Wind and Water Confinement flew out from her palm—a light blue halo condensed in the air, mixed with wisps of frost, and fell straight towards Huo Wu. Huo Wu immediately raised her hand to release Repelling Fire Ring to try to deflect it, but this time she encountered not chains. The Lie Yan of the Repelling Fire Ring collided with the water curtain of the Wind and Water Confinement, and fire and water exploded in the air, creating a cloud of white mist.
Before the fog had even dissipated, the blue halo of Wind and Water Confinement had already pierced through the white mist and precisely encircled Huo Wu's arms—the heavy pressure of water attribute pressed down from all directions, mixed with bone-chilling cold. Huo Wu felt as if her arms were wrapped in icy lake water, and every movement was three times slower than usual.
Huo Wu's expression changed. This wasn't ordinary water-attribute control—her fully unleashed Repelling Fire Ring had at least deflected 70% of the force of the Wind and Water Confinement in that instant, but the remaining 30% water pressure and cold air were enough to slow her movements. Ordinary water-attribute Soul Skill couldn't withstand the full impact of the Repelling Fire Ring. What on earth was going on?
" Huo Ling! Huo Ming!" Huo Wu shouted in a low voice.
Two Support System Soul Master from the Blazing Fire Academy simultaneously unleashed their Soul Power into Huo Wu's body. Flames surged around Huo Wu, and the Repelling Fire Ring erupted once more. A crimson halo exploded beneath her feet, finally shattering the Ice Ring that had Wind and Water Confinement.
But she didn't stop. With the power of the Support System infused into her, she raised her hands high above her head, and a dazzling golden fireball rapidly condensed above her palms.
Huo Wushuang, seeing that starting stance from the sidelines, paled instantly. "Sister! That's reserved for the major tournament—"
But it was too late. Huo Wu didn't care anymore. Her eyes shone brightly in the golden flames, and all her anger, resentment, and suppressed shame poured into this attack. The fireball rapidly expanded, radiating golden light, and the intense heat caused the flags at the edge of the arena to curl up.
In the stands, Huo Xiao suddenly stood up.
Huo Wu's Brilliant Sun – this was originally Blazing Fire Academy's trump card hidden for the competition, the highest temperature flame that Huo Wu could currently unleash. With the full support of two Support System, it was already infinitely close to the limit of ordinary flames. Unexpectedly, Xiao Wu, that impatient girl, used it just like that.
Faced with Huo Wu's angry behavior, Su Mei'er merely smiled slightly, and her Second Soul Ring lit up. The Wind Fire Bewildering Array Huo Wu's Brilliant Sun from different directions.
On the field, the lingering mist from the Wind and Water Confinement had not completely dissipated, while the raging Lie Yan of the Wind Fire Bewildering Array had already swept over everything. On one side, pale blue water vapor drifted in the air, while on the other side, dark red flames converged around the blazing sun. Water and fire coexisted in the same space, yet they did not interfere with each other, as if their boundaries were precisely controlled by an invisible hand.
The Huo Wu's Brilliant Sun burned fiercely in the center of the maze, golden light and dark red Lie Yan devouring each other. Soon, everyone on the field saw the result—the golden fireball grew smaller and smaller in the Wind Fire Bewildering Array, its dazzling golden light being peeled away layer by layer by the dark red flames, until it finally dissipated completely in the center of the maze.
The entire room fell silent.
Huo Wu watched as the last golden Huo Xing in the center of the arena was consumed by the dark red flames, her fingers trembling uncontrollably. Huo Wu's Brilliant Sun —her trump card, unleashed with the full power of two Support System —was extinguished.
Su Mei'er dispelled the illusion array, and the dark red flames dissipated into the air, leaving only the rising heat waves and white steam mixed with water vapor.
Su Mei'er didn't look at Huo Wu; she simply retracted the chains to her side and returned to her defensive formation, the slight smile on her lips still lingering. From beginning to end, she hadn't used the true power of the Ultimate Fire —she had only released a tiny bit.
On the sidelines, Huo Xiao remained seated. He stared intently at the dark red tail behind Su Mei'er —the purity of that flame far surpassed that of ordinary Fire Attribute Soul Master. He glanced at Feng Qingxuan, a vague guess forming in his mind, but said nothing.
Shui Lingyuan sat beside him, his brows slightly furrowed.
Behind them, on the team bench, Xue Wu whispered in Shui Bing'er's ear, "That water pressure—it doesn't seem to be ordinary water attribute." Shui Bing'er didn't answer, her gaze falling on Su Mei'er.
The battle continued. Huo Wushuang directly confronted Zhong Yue's defenses, followed closely by Huo Yu's powerful attacks. In the end, Godwind Academy won with a superior overall score.
On the west side of the stands, Yu Leiting turned to Huyan Zhen beside him and said, "This year's Godwind Academy team is quite strong." Huyan Zhen wore his usual smile and didn't reply. Yu Leiting waited a moment, and seeing that he didn't react, he said nothing more.
As the entire Godwind Academy team left the field, Feng Xiaotian stood up and simply said to Su Mei'er, "You controlled the rhythm well." His tone was flat, as if stating a fact.
Huo Wu happened to be passing by and heard this. She paused for a moment, Huo Wushuang caught up from behind, saying softly, "Sister, let's go." Huo Wu snapped out of her daze, turned around and glared at Feng Xiaotian, said nothing, turned and followed the group, but her steps were heavy.
Late that night, in the guesthouse where the Elephant Armor Academy was staying, Huyan Zhen sat alone at the table and finished writing the letter by the moonlight streaming through the window. The envelope was unsigned, with only a tiny stamp that gleamed faintly with a dark gold hue in the moonlight.
A servant silently pushed open the door and entered. Huyan Zhen handed over the envelope and whispered, "Send it out tonight."
The attendant took it, left the room, and disappeared into the night at the end of the corridor.