Word Count: 2,864 Words
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Ten days later, on the top floor of the Star Emperor Hotel.
"Cheers!!!"
Twelve wine glasses, filled to the brim with the imperial family's exclusive fine wine, collided with a crisp clinking sound.
Wang Yan stood up, his eyes slightly reddened as he raised his glass and said. "Seven consecutive victories in the round-robin tournament! Shrek advances as first in the group! Although we encountered many difficulties, you maintained the academy's ten-thousand-year glory through courage and strength. I offer this toast to everyone!"
He downed the wine in one gulp, then refilled his glass to the brim. With a flushed face, he turned to Ling Bai. "Ling Bai, Shrek Academy was fortunate to have you holding the fort. Only because of you were we able to navigate the elimination tournament and the most arduous first two rounds of the round-robin by the skin of our teeth. I'll finish this drink in your honor; you may drink as you please!"
In the group stage, their two strongest opponents had been Ye Wuqing's Justsky Academy and Shen Ce's Thousand Spirits Academy. The remaining five teams were progressively weaker. Ling Luochen returned in the third match, patching the gap in Shrek's 2-2-3 formation.
In team battles, they had the super combination of Ling Bai, Ning Tian, Ling Luochen, and Huo Yuhao. With a 5-ringed Seraphim and 5-ringed Ultimate Ice joining forces, ordinary academies often couldn't even last a minute.
Having witnessed the stunning display of two Ultimate Martial Spirits fighting together, the various academies, led by the Sun Moon Imperial Academy, no longer dared underestimate Shrek Academy despite its mere eleven registered members. Whenever Shrek took the stage, opposing teams would have their entire squads present, sitting in rows, their supervising teachers diligently recording the abilities and weaknesses of Shrek's students in small notebooks.
Wang Yan drained his large glass. Shrek had advanced smoothly as the group leader in the round-robin, and the weight that had been hanging in his heart finally lifted.
Ling Bai smiled faintly as he raised his glass and emptied it.
"Everyone, don't stand on ceremony. Tonight's my treat!"
At these words, Wang Yan suddenly exuded an aura of grand generosity. Waiters entered with trays of delicacies from land and sea, covering the table with an array of magnificent dishes. The tempting aromas made everyone's mouths water.
Unable to resist any longer, the group began feasting. Xu Sanshi raised his glass with a grin.
"Ling-ge, I toast you!"
He harbored no ill will toward Ling Bai and deeply understood that the other party's future was limitless. Disregarding their three-year age difference, he actively sought to build rapport, warmly addressing him as 'Ling-ge' at every opportunity.
After finishing his drink, Ling Bai tipped his empty glass toward Xu Sanshi in acknowledgment.
"I'll toast you too!"
"And me!"
Seeing Ling Bai give Xu Sanshi such face, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and even Bei Bei and He Caitou couldn't remain seated. They all raised their glasses with broad smiles, though Ling Bai detected hints of playful mischief in their expressions.
Before he could raise his glass, Ning Tian stepped forward to block them. "It's unfair to only make Bai-ge drink. I'll drink with you all!"
With that, she downed a large glass of wine in one go. Her pretty face flushed a rosy red that made her look quite alluring.
"Junior Sister Ning is showing her concern!"
Everyone laughed heartily as they drank, though from the corners of their eyes, they noticed Ling Bai, who remained seated, also drinking along with them.
"A heroine no less than any hero! Another glass!"
Someone playfully encouraged them. They had known each other for some time now and were comrades who had fought side-by-side. Ning Tian's battle against Ye Wuqing's Blood Wolf had thoroughly earned everyone's recognition; no one could find the slightest fault with her.
The more they drank, the more excited they became. By the end, all of Shrek's members had completely let loose, only remembering to constantly ask the waiters for more wine. The atmosphere grew so fervent that even Ling Bai relaxed and had a few more glasses.
Spirit Masters possessed physical constitutions far surpassing ordinary people. Everyone present was at least a Spirit Grand Master, so their ability to process alcohol was naturally extraordinary. However, even they couldn't withstand the continuous, heavy gulping of one glass after another.
The most ironic part was that the first to fall and wave the white flag was not Ning Tian, Jiang Nannan, or the other girls, nor was it the relatively weak Spirit Grand Master Huo Yuhao. It was, in fact, the oldest among them, their supervising teacher Wang Yan. He had proven one thing with his actions: alcohol tolerance has nothing to do with age or cultivation.
Wang Dong, Huo Yuhao, Jiang Nannan, and He Caitou followed shortly after.
"I... I can't... go on."
With a thud, White Tiger Spirit Emperor Dai Yueheng slid under the table. Beside him lay the Outer Courtyard's Twin Stars, Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, sprawled out and tangled together.
The three young women, Ning Tian, Ma Xiaotao, and Ling Luochen, had managed to hold on until now. They couldn't help but exchange glances, noticing the competitive fire in each other's eyes, and promptly began to vehemently ply each other with drinks.
"Hic... Y-you... take off your clothes."
Ling Luochen hiccupped while clinging to Ling Bai's left arm, refusing to let go. Her cool small hands groped around, seemingly wanting to remove his shirt to see what was really inside that left arm of his.
Ning Tian immediately stormed over and slapped her hand away. With a flustered glare, she said:
"I knew you two bad women were up to no good! You... you've exposed yourself... You just covet Bai-ge's body!"
"N-No... I don't..."
"You definitely do..."
Arguing back and forth, Ning Tian and Ling Luochen gradually drifted off to sleep. Only Ling Bai and Ma Xiaotao remained, staring at each other. Because Ling Bai had absorbed Life Gold, his physical endurance far surpassed a typical Spirit Emperor's, so it wasn't surprising he was still standing. Ma Xiaotao, however, had held on purely through her cultivation and sheer alcohol tolerance.
After so much wine, Ma Xiaotao's bewitching face grew even more alluring, her eyes like silk. Her pinkish-red eyes stared intently at Ling Bai. She raised a glass and staggered toward him, her face a deep crimson as she leaned down with her fiery red hair cascading like a waterfall. She mumbled indistinctly:
"Why... didn't you... use your full... strength?"
In the last five matches of the round-robin tournament, Shrek had drawn one individual battle, two 2-2-3 formation battles, and two team battles.
The opponents in the individual battle were too weak for Ling Bai to participate. The four Spirit Ancestors had dispatched the seven opponents with a few punches and kicks. In the 2-2-3 battles, he had taken the stage only once with Ning Tian.
The Seraphim paired with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda had overwhelming power. The Evil-Banishing Slash delivered a critical hit of 999, sending opponents scrambling across the stage, begging the referee for salvation.
In team battles, Huo Yuhao unleashed his second Martial Spirit, the Ice Jade Scorpion, while Ling Luochen underwent Ultimate Transformation. Ling Bai launched Ten Thousand Blades Radiant Glory from above. Their large-area attacks—Ultimate Ice and Ten Thousand Blades Radiant Glory—covered the entire field. The Spirit Ancestors merely rushed in to land finishing blows. The matches were won as smoothly as clouds and flowing water.
"Conserving strength," Ling Bai replied matter-of-factly as he sipped from his wine glass.
"D-Don't believe you. You just... you just don't care!"
Ma Xiaotao stubbornly stared into his dazzling golden eyes, attempting to discern his true thoughts.
Ling Bai lightly inhaled the intoxicating fragrance emanating from her, a mixture of her natural scent and alcohol, and offered a noncommittal smile.
He had participated in the matches he was supposed to and won the battles that needed winning. You couldn't expect a student to fight with their life on the line every single time, could you?
Having fought battles his whole life, what was wrong with slacking off in a couple of matches!
Regarding Ling Bai's blatant slacking, the Sun Moon Imperial Academy was so frustrated their noses were nearly bent out of shape. Across eight matches in the elimination and round-robin stages, they had only witnessed two of the Seraphim's spirit skills: the second spirit skill, Evil-Banishing Slash, and the fourth spirit skill, Ten Thousand Blades Radiant Glory.
As for the most important fifth spirit skill, the Angelic Domain, spirit bones, and so on, they remained completely in the dark.
The members of the Sun Moon contingent nearly spat blood. If not for maintaining the face of the Sun Moon Empire, they would have loved to rush over to Shrek Academy, grab Ling Bai by the collar, shake him back and forth, and cry out with tears in their eyes:
"Fight! Fight seriously!
Please, we beg you, show us something real!"
Their analysis of Ling Luochen's spirit skills and abilities filled an entire book, but for Ling Bai, they had only a single page, filled entirely with 'unknowns.' How could anyone endure that!
"I think you—"
Knock, knock, knock!
Just as Ma Xiaotao's red lips parted, a sudden knock came from the door. Ling Bai rose and went to open it, leaving Ma Xiaotao to gaze at his departing back with burning eyes.
A woman in a long purple dress stood outside. She appeared to be around twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old, at that age when women possess mature charm without losing the vigor of youth.
Ling Bai's striking appearance momentarily dazed the woman. Regaining her composure, she bowed politely and said softly, "Greetings, esteemed guests of Shrek Academy. I am Qing Ya, a Purple-ranked auctioneer from the Starlight Auction House. May I ask if Teacher Wang Yan is present?"
Qing Ya was the auctioneer who had presided over the specialized Spirit Guidance Device auction. Wang Yan had led all the Reserve Team members—aside from Ning Tian and Wang Dong—to attend that event, and returned with many Spirit Guidance Devices.
Since Ling Bai had intercepted the Ominous Soul-Devouring Knife beforehand, he hadn't attended that auction and stayed at the hotel to look after Ning Tian. Ma Xiaotao had still been recuperating from her injuries at the time, so neither of them had met Qing Ya.
"One moment."
Ling Bai flicked his fingertips, sending ten rays of golden light that precisely entered the bodies of the ten unconscious people. Using the Seraphim's purifying power to neutralize alcohol was complete overkill, like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. A series of sharp popping sounds echoed through the room.
"Bei Bei, give me back my innocence!"
"Bah! Why were you hugging me, you damned rogue!"
Upon waking, Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi discovered they had been wrapped around each other. They immediately began to retch violently, unable to stop themselves from trading insults even as they did.
"Teacher Wang Yan, Auctioneer Qing Ya is looking for you," Ling Bai called out.
"Coming."
Wang Yan shook his groggy head and stepped to the door.
Seeing Wang Yan appear, Qing Ya's eyes brightened slightly. "Hello, Teacher Wang. I apologize for disturbing all of you.
It's like this: for the Star Luo Empire, the Spirit Master Tournament is a grand festival that occurs once every twenty years. Our Starlight Auction House will be holding a top-tier auction tonight, and only the most distinguished guests have been invited.
If you are all free this evening, you are most welcome to attend this Starlight Grand Ceremony. I am certain that today's auction will feature items of interest to Shrek Academy."
She produced a stack of auction invitations and handed them to Wang Yan with both hands. With a smile, she bowed again, slowly backed away, and closed the door as she left.
Wang Yan clutched the invitation cards and looked around at the group. He could see the sparkle of anticipation in their eyes. They were the most outstanding Spirit Masters of their age, but they were also a group of youths, immensely curious about new things. Missing such a once-in-twenty-years top-tier auction would undoubtedly be a lifelong regret.
"Let's arrange our tactics first, then attend the Starlight Grand Ceremony tonight."
"Hooray!"
After the waiters had cleaned up the chaotic mess, everyone resettled in their seats. Wang Yan began to speak:
"Yesterday afternoon, the sixteen teams that advanced from the round-robin drew lots. We drew the Dou Spirit Imperial Academy—one of the top four from the last tournament and one of this year's five seeded teams."
The official and reserve team members listened with rapt attention. Wang Yan continued, "The Dou Spirit Imperial Academy's official team members include five Spirit Kings and two Spirit Ancestors. They are powerful and adaptable. It is both the empire's foremost Spirit Master academy and its foremost Spirit Guidance Master academy.
Through observing the Dou Spirit team during the round-robin, I've noticed that all their participating members are equipped with Spirit Guidance Devices. With Spirit King rank cultivation combined with Spirit Guidance Devices, this team's strength is likely second only to the Sun Moon Imperial Academy. Therefore, we must deploy our full lineup this time."
"That's fantastic!"
Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng nearly jumped three feet in the air. They had actually fully recovered by the fifth round of the round-robin, but Wang Yan had deemed the opponents relatively weak, believing Ling Bai and Ling Luochen could handle them steadily, thus seeing no need to prematurely reveal the two Spirit Emperors.
The two of them had been sitting on the bench, itching to showcase their skills.
"Don't be hasty; let me finish."
Wang Yan signaled for the two to calm down. "Starting from the round of sixteen, each knockout match will consist of both a team battle and an individual competition. Losing the team battle does not mean elimination. If, in the individual competition, a team can defeat all seven members of the opposing team using three or fewer of their own members, they can turn defeat into victory. Conversely, a team that wins the team battle only needs to defeat three of the opposing team's members in the individual competition with their seven members to secure advancement.
Unlike the round-robin, the knockout stage places more emphasis on individual heroism. We have the Seraphim, Evil Fire Phoenix, and White Tiger—three members arguably among the strongest in this tournament. These rules favor us greatly.
For the team battle, it's straightforward: Ling Bai, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochen – you four official members, plus Ning Tian, Huo Yuhao, and Wang Dong. The individual competition will be handled by Bei Bei and the other three Spirit Ancestors from the Reserve Team. Ling Bai and Ling Luochen will serve as the final backup."
Arranging the match tactics didn't take too long. The Shrek team members each returned to their rooms to cultivate for the afternoon. After dinner, they changed into casual attire. Shadow Dragon Douluo Xie Qin hid within Ning Tian's shadow, and the group of thirteen set off for the Starlight Auction House.
A quarter of an hour later, they passed by a hotel with a suggestively decorated pink exterior. The hotel's sign prominently displayed the words 'Rose Hotel.'
Upon seeing it, Dai Yueheng's expression changed drastically. "That name... I believe it's where the Body Sect's Spirit Emperor Chen Yu was killed..."
As the legitimate eldest son of the White Tiger Duke, Dai Yueheng possessed the most current information. He recounted vividly, "On that day, Death Abyss Douluo killed two Body Sect Spirit Douluo and still wasn't satisfied. That very night, he found his way to the 'Red Romance' room in the Rose Hotel. The imperial guards dispatched by His Majesty were like mere decorations.
It's said that Chen Yu had called for two ladies and was lost in a world of passion, oblivious to everything, when Death Abyss Douluo went up and, with one swing of a scythe, cleanly lopped off his head.
Afterward, Death Abyss Douluo gave the two ladies five hundred spirit gold coins as compensation for their mental distress. They were reportedly so moved to tears that they practically wanted to offer him the full range of services on the spot…"
Everyone wiped cold sweat from their foreheads upon hearing this. What a character this Death Abyss Douluo—even compensating the ladies for mental distress!
"Not harming the innocent... Death Abyss Douluo doesn't seem that bad," Jiang Nannan suddenly remarked.
Ma Xiaotao snorted coldly. "Once an Evil Spirit Master, always an Evil Spirit Master! We Shrek Guardians swear to fight evil to the very end!
Ling Bai, you are the Seraphim. In the future, you must take on the responsibility of confronting that demon, Death Abyss Douluo! Avenge Elder Xuan and bring justice to the wronged souls!"
'Uh, me???'
Ling Bai's mind went blank for a moment, but facing Ma Xiaotao's hopeful gaze, he slowly nodded and spoke in a firm and powerful tone:
"That's right, I am the Seraphim!
Never shall I share the sky with evil!"