After Beating Shrek, They Still Had to Be Able to Lift Their Arms

After Shrek left the arena, the Imperial Fighting Team lounge became quiet, unlike the arena itself.

Yu Tianheng sat on the bench, his right hand resting flat on his knee. The hand that could throw a punch just moments ago now struggled to even hold a water glass. Ye Lingling glanced at him, first removing the glass, then gesturing for Shi Mo to support his elbow.

"Don't move. You can turn your shoulder, but don't use force with your wrist yet."

"It's not broken, is it?" Yu Feng asked.

"No obvious bone displacement was found." Ye Lingling's white floral shadow brushed against his arm. "The muscles and meridians have just suffered a strong impact; the rest will require further examination. The Nine Heart Begonia can alleviate the damage, but it can't make up for the two hours you missed last night."

Yu Tianheng wanted to laugh, but the tug on his shoulder made him stop.

Dong Jian sat on another stool. The abrasion on his right shoulder had stopped bleeding, but his lower back felt like it was weighed down by a ring of fine stones. Every time he sat up straight, he had to find a place to support his weight. Li Man had just withdrawn the array core, and her fingertips were still trembling slightly. She took two strips of cloth from the medicine box and handed one of them over.

"Change your shoulder pads first. They were soaked with sweat."

"Change it now?"

"When Teacher Qin arrives later, she'll ask you again why you let the Eight Spider Lances graze your shoulder."

Dong Jian took the cloth strip and didn't argue anymore. Tang San's angle was extremely precise; if he had continued to make the Circular Rotation, the poisoned spear tip would have landed on his side. He forcibly stopped his movement and saved his body, but his shoulder and waist suffered the consequences of stopping the movement.

Qin Ming pushed open the door and came in, first asking Ye Lingling, "How many people need a doctor?"

"The captain's right arm, Dong Jian's shoulder and waist, and the Shi Mo tortoise shell's recoil have all been checked. Osler pulled a muscle in his calf, he can walk, but he can't run today. Dugu Yan's venom sac is functioning normally, but the reserves need to be adjusted."

What about yourself?

Ye Lingling paused for a moment. "I'll take them there first."

"You go too." Qin Ming closed the scoreboard. "I saw you used healing abilities the last two times. Healers don't automatically have their Soul Power fully restored after a match."

Dugu Yan had already summoned the academy's physician from outside. She held Ye Lingling's shoulder and gestured with her chin towards Yu Tianheng: "See? From now on, if any of you say 'we can still have a fight,' ask her first if she's willing."

Yu Tianheng nodded, offering no explanation.

Once everyone had quieted down, Yu Feng asked in a low voice, "How's it going at Shrek?"

Qin Ming glanced at him. "He's seriously injured, but there are no reports of his life being in danger. Dai Mubai was able to stand up on his own when he left the stage. Tang San voluntarily conceded defeat while they were still capable of continuing to fight."

Yu Feng suppressed his smile. He had seen things clearly from the sidelines during the final rounds: Shrek's back row was running out of buffs and supplies, yet Tang San wasn't completely helpless. If they fought a few more rounds, even the Imperial Fighting Team might not be able to hold on.

"He's calculated it all," Yu Tianheng said. "After Dai Mubai crosses the boundary, he'll continue to pressure us, forcing Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing to take even more injuries. No one in the Imperial Fighting Team has the strength to easily continue."

Dong Jian responded. He didn't open the Divine Dragon Secret Realm to create a non-existent victory model. The result was already written in the referee's record, and any counterattacks that didn't happen in the match couldn't be considered facts even if analyzed.

In the afternoon, the official schedule for the next round was released. The champion's opponent is the Spirit Hall Academy. The organizers have given the two teams that have entered the final round time for recovery and venue testing, but this is far from enough to fully heal their injuries.

Qin Ming placed three key pieces of information on the table. The first was Hu Liena. The second Xie Yue. The third was Yan. The positions of the remaining four team members were also marked one by one; no one could be considered a mere supporting character.

"Their overall Soul Power is higher, and three core members have already reached the Soul King level. They have combat records in Mental Interference, dual-blade close combat, and fire-earth suppression," Qin Ming said. "The difference is obvious at a glance; there's no point in hiding it."

Shi Mo flipped to the last page. "Hu Liena and Xie Yue's Martial Soul Fusion Skill, why is there only two words written on this record?"

"Demon Charm."

"And the results?"

"Perception, speed, and judgment can all be impaired within the red mist. What the audience outside sees, those inside may not be able to see clearly."

Dong Jian subconsciously touched his side. He could clearly discern the solid footing on the ground, but there were spiritual changes within the red mist. The Yin-Yang Mountain Domain wouldn't help him determine which face or word was true.

Li Man moved the materials in front of her. "My array's core can provide location, but it can't prove that the team members are still in the original position. When under Mental Interference, relying on visual inspection might lead to incorrect confirmation."

"So let's set the retreat order first." Yu Tianheng placed his left hand on the table. "Anyone can report a blocked road; the direction of advance or retreat should be decided locally by those who can clearly see the situation on the spot. If you can't hear me, don't just wait in place."

Qin Ming had them conduct a drill without using Soul Power. Yu Feng closed his eyes and sat near the door, Osler walked behind Shi Mo, and Li Man simply tapped the table with her fingers. Two short taps and one long tap meant retreating, three rapid taps meant stopping moving forward, and only close contact conveyed a specific direction.

He made a mistake on the first try. Yu Feng heard the knocking coming from the other side and subconsciously walked towards the door from his old position, bumping into Osler's shoulder.

"You guys can hear things from several meters away without any problem, but that might not be the case in the fog." Li Man crossed out the original long-distance communication arrow with her pen. "Everyone needs to know who should be on guard when they can't hear anything."

Shi Mo volunteered, "I'll guard Ye Lingling. Whoever is closest to me, I'll touch them with the outside of my tortoise shell to confirm their location."

"And what about me?" Osler asked.

"Don't charge in alone just because you can't find Dong Jian," Yu Tianheng said, looking at him. "Retreat to a place where you can see the boundary first. Make sure you take a proper road back; don't gamble."

Qin Ming then had the two Shi Brothers tap the ground simultaneously. One tap on the left, one tap on the right, with the same rhythm. Yu Feng, with his eyes closed, mistook Shi Mo for Shi Mo and went to tap the wrong side first. Shi Mo used his tortoise shell to stop him, preventing him from actually hitting the corner of the table.

"You can mistake this?" Yu Feng lifted the blindfold slightly.

"It'll be easier in the competition." Shi Mo placed his palm on the edge of his nail. "Our footsteps are different; you're familiar with the sound. Through the red mist and scattered rocks, relying solely on sound to identify someone could easily lead to a misjudgment."

Li Man then changed the tapping commands to two parts. The first part only had "stop" and "retreat," while the second part required someone next to her to touch her shoulder or the physical body of her Martial Soul to confirm the new direction. If the other party imitated the tapping from a distance, they could at most trick her into stopping once, making it difficult to lead all seven people astray at the same time.

Qin Ming didn't boast that the method was foolproof. He had Osler switch positions while the person turned around, but Shi Mo touched Yu Feng's wrist guard instead. Fortunately, the "stop first" command was still in effect, and Yu Feng resisted his habit of rushing forward, so the two of them didn't continue to stumble into the wrong path.

"It's slow to use," Osler said.

"Of course it's slow," Yu Tianheng replied. "We only plan to use it when we can't see clearly. Anyone who uses it as their normal offensive rhythm, I'll send them to the bench first."

Dugu Yan pushed the temporarily marked poison zone further away. "There's one more thing. My poison fog also blocks your teammates. When your judgment is unstable, it's better to narrow it than to expect Dong Jian to move the poison away for you."

Dong Jian nodded in his chair. He had already paid the price for such luck with his shoulder injury when facing Tang San's Eight Spider Spears last time; anyone who treats an attribute threat as a punch might end up with just a scrape next time.

After practicing for the third time, Dong Jian suddenly stood up from his chair, felt a soreness in his back, and sat down again.

Li Man put down her pen. "Don't move yet. Tonight's training isn't about proving you can catch two more people."

"I just wanted to see if there was any delay in transmitting passwords by touch."

"We'll measure it tomorrow."

After listening, Qin Ming turned to a blank page on the notepad and wrote three lines.

First, do not pursue based on individual judgment within the red fog.

Second, the fusion process should not exceed the body's capacity in an attempt to prolong the process.

Third, protecting the treatment positions and withdrawal routes takes priority over maintaining a neat formation.

Yu Tianheng observed for a few moments, then nodded. "Add one more thing. Anyone who hears the captain's command conflict with the actual danger at hand should prioritize survival; explanations can be provided once the fog is cleared."

Qin Ming added that sentence to the end, without emphasizing it with a red line. The final decision on whether to stop or not still rests with them on the field.

When Dong Jian left the infirmary at night, his right shoulder was already bandaged, but he still couldn't straighten his back for long. Li Man walked slowly, without flipping through the opponent's documents.

"You've been wanting to try the fourth ring," she said.

"I want to know how much Ground Perception is left."

"Try it tomorrow. We'll open it again today, and tomorrow you'll just have to sit back and watch."

Dong Jian pushed the door open with his uninjured hand. In the distance, the stadium was under maintenance; heavy stone slabs were being lifted and lowered, muffled thuds echoing into the corridor.

He used to love hearing these echoes from the ground. But listening to them today, all he felt was a lingering ache in his back and waist.

Li Man tightened his shoulder pads one notch. "Let's go. The real competition isn't here yet."

"It's already down to the final match."

"That's why we need to bring this hand up as well."

Dong Jian looked down at his left hand, which he could still move, and didn't reply. He slowly walked back to the rest area with her.