Before taking the stage, Shui Ling and Xu Wei had already devised a strategy.
The start of the match is the signal to attack!
Shui Ling remained calm and composed, her ten fingers moving almost imperceptibly in front of her, her Fourth Soul Ring shimmering quietly.
The Puppeteering Spirit Thread, barely perceptible to ordinary people, had already silently spread out under her exquisite control, precisely Entanglement around the wrists, ankles, and even sword hilts of the seven members of the Heavenly Sword Sect!
At the very instant that Shui Ling's Soul Skill took effect...
Xu Wei's body erupted with dazzling blue-white lightning, transforming him into a bolt of lightning that tore through the void!
Xu Wei's First Soul Skill, Lightning Flash, truly lives up to its reputation as a divine skill; even at the Soul Emperor level, it can still be used as a versatile starting move.
Fast! Extremely fast!
His speed was so fast that it exceeded the limits of most people's visual perception. The audience only saw a flash before their eyes, and a blazing blue-white lightning bolt had already rushed into the sword formation that the seven members of the Heavenly Sword Sect had just formed!
His specific movements were impossible to see with the naked eye; all that could be seen was that the lightning bolt, like a Life, angry dragon, twisted and flashed among the seven people at an extreme speed!
It's like a flash of lightning, gone in an instant.
The next moment, the violent lightning bolt returned to its original position, Xu Wei's figure reformed, and the arcs of electricity swirling around him slowly subsided.
He didn't even look at his seven opponents again, but simply raised his head, looked at the Level 8 Soul Engineer was also somewhat stunned in mid-air, and shouted loudly, "Referee, shouldn't you announce the result?"
This referee, being an eighth-level Soul Douluo, possessed far superior eyesight and experience compared to most of the people present, even though he specialized in Soul Tool.
Xu Wei's lightning-fast "operation" just Xu Wei might have gone unnoticed by others, but it was all captured by his eyes.
He never expected that this highly anticipated showdown would end in such an unexpected way, in the blink of an eye.
A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by composure.
Clearing his throat, he announced loudly, " Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy wins!"
"Whoa!!!"
The moment the result was announced, the audience erupted in uproar.
Many people were unclear about what had happened. The seven members of the Heavenly Sword Sect were standing perfectly fine in the same spot, their posture upright, and they appeared to be unharmed.
How... how could we lose so suddenly?
Not only the audience below the stage, but even the members of the Heavenly Sword Sect on the arena were somewhat bewildered.
One of them looked up at the referee and shouted indignantly, "How did we lose?!"
Before the shouts subsided, Xu Wei had already stepped forward slowly.
He shook his head slightly, letting out a barely audible sigh.
"How pathetic."
His voice wasn't loud, but thanks to the amplifying Soul Tool built into the arena, it clearly reached everyone's ears. "You don't even know how you lost, yet you're spouting nonsense here."
The man who had just shouted changed his expression suddenly, his blood rushing to his head, and he immediately wanted to point at Xu Wei and berate him.
But the moment he activated his will, he was horrified to find that his arms were completely immobile, and he seemed to be bound in place, only able to make some minor movements.
Xu Wei took in the panic that flashed in their eyes, and coldly snorted, "Not convinced? Then let me ask you, of the seven of you, who can move right now?"
The questions echoed throughout the arena, but the Heavenly Sword Sect Sect's camp fell into a deathly silence.
The seven people stood frozen in place, their faces ashen.
Only now did they truly feel the omnipresent constraint.
What chilled them to the bone was that they had absolutely no idea when or how they had fallen into the other party's trap.
It was Shui Ling, who stood quietly behind Xu Wei, who created his current predicament.
It would be absolutely impossible for her to subdue seven enemies simultaneously using only her own Martial Soul power.
However, her Fourth Soul Skill can do just that.
Her Fourth Soul Skill is called Spirit Thread: Thousand Weaves.
Or, to put it another way, it has a more fitting name: Thousand Thread Cage.
This is an extremely rare domain-type Soul Skill. At this moment, countless Puppeteering Spirit Thread have already silently woven into a large net, covering the entire area of the opponent.
Within this domain formed by spiritual threads, the seven members of the Heavenly Sword Sect were like insects caught in a meticulously woven spider web, unknowingly becoming prisoners from which they could not escape.
Xu Wei raised his right hand slightly, and a jet-black dagger moved nimbly between his fingers.
When his movements suddenly stopped, he firmly gripped the hilt of the knife and raised it high above his head.
Under the Yangguang, a glaringly bright red bloodstain on the deep black blade was incredibly conspicuous.
Xu Wei's gaze swept over the seven people opposite him, and he said calmly, "I already showed mercy just now."
He paused deliberately, then snorted, "Otherwise, you would all be... dead by now."
As soon as the words fell, the seven members of the Heavenly Sword Sect seemed to be awakened by them, and a slight but clear stinging pain belatedly came from their necks.
Unable to look down and examine their own condition, their gazes met in a flustered exchange, and they both saw the almost identical, thin line of blood on the side of each other's necks.
It is not deep, yet it precisely reveals that life and death were once separated by a hair's breadth.
The referee's gaze fell on Xu Wei, a hint of relief and gratitude flashing across his face.
He knew better than anyone that if the boy hadn't chosen to hold back, he wouldn't have had time to stop him given the speed of the attack.
If seven contestants were to die on the spot, then he, as a referee, would have committed a grave dereliction of duty.
He took a deep breath, quelling the growing commotion in the arena, and announced loudly once more, "The outcome is decided! The first match is over. Both teams, please prepare for the second match immediately!"
Shui Ling retracted the Thousand Thread Cage. The seven opponents, realizing they could move again, said nothing more and slunk off the stage.
The second match was between the Thousand Waters Academy and Myriad Wonders Sect, both little-known forces on the continent. The audience wasn't paying much attention, as they were still immersed in the brief but thrilling clash of the previous match.
Even those viewers who were certain that the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy would win never expected that the victory would come so decisively.
This has fueled many people's curiosity about the other members of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, making them even more eager for their appearance.
When Shui Ling and Xu Wei returned to the preparation area side by side, they were greeted by the sincere smiles and enthusiastic applause of their teammates.
After all, those two really got their team off to a good start.
The aftershocks of the previous match left Shrek Team's preparation area in a prolonged silence.
The strength displayed by Shui Ling and Xu Wei deeply impressed every team member present.
They had been focusing most of their attention on Kong Xuan's unfathomable strength, but they never expected that the other members of his team would also grow to such a terrifying level.
A heavy pressure spread outwards, and they asked themselves if they, as individuals, had been on the field just now, they might not have been able to defeat their opponents.
The deafening cheers all around formed a stark contrast to the deathly silence here.
After a moment, Wang Dong broke the silence first, his voice tinged with disbelief. "If I remember correctly, two years ago during our exchange program, Shui Ling and Xu Wei's Soul Power was practically at the bottom of their team..."
She didn't say anything more, but her words made everyone's hearts sink even deeper.
As the team captain, Bei Bei took over the conversation, saying seriously, "Perhaps, this year's Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy team... is a lineup entirely composed of Soul Emperor."
This conjecture was already astonishing enough, but Xu Sanshi's subsequent addition sent a chill down everyone's spine.
"Don't forget, Kong Xuan was already Soul Emperor when he left Shrek."
"With his talent and the resources of the Sun Moon Empire, he is now... very likely already a Soul Saint!"
The words "Soul Saint " struck like a heavy hammer, resounding deep in everyone's hearts.