On the training field, Zhu Ziyang silently watched the ongoing match. One side was Zhou Tianhe, a Soul Emperor at Rank 63, and the other was Wufeng, a Soul King at Rank 55. The gap in strength between them was considerable. Despite Wufeng going all out, the outcome was never in doubt—she was swiftly defeated by Zhou Tianhe.
Zhou Tianhe thus became the final official member of the main team.
To be fair, this lineup was without a doubt the strongest main team in the academy's history. Even putting aside Zhu Ziyang, a Titled Douluo, just Jiang Nannan, Qian Lingyi, and Diwu Huan'er—three Soul Saints—would be more than enough to sweep past any team from previous tournaments.
"Dai Huabin, Wufeng, Xie Huanyue, you three may return," Zhu Ziyang said calmly once the roster was finalized. Since the selections were done, there was no need to keep them around.
"Yes!" Dai Huabin responded crisply. Though arrogant and stubborn by nature, he wasn't foolish. Losing to Zhou Tianhe in a head-on clash annoyed him, but he didn't hold a grudge. After all, the result came down to strength.
Dai Huabin and Xie Huanyue left without hesitation. Wufeng, however, lingered a little and looked toward Ning Tian.
"Afeng, go back for now," Ning Tian sighed helplessly, seeing Wufeng's expression.
"…Alright!" Despite her reluctance, Wufeng could only obey and left the training field.
Once the three had left, only seven people remained on the field. Zhu Ziyang looked at them and said, "From this moment on, the seven of you are official members of Shrek Academy's main team. Half a year from now, you'll be going to Mingdu in the Sun Moon Empire to participate in the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament. Starting today, we are teammates, comrades. So let's begin with introductions. Nannan, you go first."
"Alright." Jiang Nannan smiled slightly. "My name is Jiang Nannan. I'm a Rank 79 Agility Attack System Soul Saint. My martial soul is the Lunar Jade Rabbit."
Jiang Nannan had already reached Rank 79 and was very likely to break through to Rank 80 before the tournament began.
Zhou Tianhe, Chu Hua, and Ning Tian all knew Jiang Nannan was a Soul Saint, but they hadn't known her exact level. Hearing she was Rank 79, all three involuntarily gasped and looked visibly shocked.
"I'm Qian Lingyi. Rank 76 Power Attack System Soul Saint. Martial soul: Six-Winged Angel," Qian Lingyi followed.
"Diwu Huan'er, Rank 77 Power Attack System Soul Saint. Martial soul: Suanni," Diwu Huan'er said expressionlessly, her red eyes fixed only on Zhu Ziyang.
"Suanni?" Ning Tian exclaimed in surprise. Of the three, she had the best background and the broadest knowledge, so while Zhou Tianhe and Chu Hua weren't familiar with the Suanni, she instantly recognized the name. Her shock surpassed even her reaction to hearing about Qian Lingyi's Six-Winged Angel.
"I'm Zhou Tianhe. You can just call me Tianhe or Ahe. I'm from the Dou Spirit Empire, 20 years old, Rank 63 Power Attack System Soul Emperor. Martial soul: Wild Giant Ape. I specialize in brute-force melee combat!" As the only male among the new members, Zhou Tianhe took his introduction seriously.
"I'm Chu Hua, also from the Dou Spirit Empire. I'm 20, Rank 62 Control System Soul Emperor. Martial soul: Sky Net," said Chu Hua. Among Zhu Ziyang's class, Chu Hua was the strongest Control System soul master. Although Tang Ya and Xue Weiwei were also control-type, they were better classified as auxiliary control.
"I'm Ning Tian, from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect of the Heaven Soul Empire. I'm 17, Rank 54 Auxiliary System Soul King. Martial soul: Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. I'll be relying on all of you in the future!" Ning Tian finished with a confident and proud smile.
"Alright, I won't introduce myself—you all know me." Zhu Ziyang grinned. "I only have one rule: follow my command in everything. Understood?"
"Understood!" Zhou Tianhe, Chu Hua, and Ning Tian responded in unison. They knew Zhu Ziyang was talking to them specifically. No one objected—on the Douluo Continent, strength was everything. While they were all around the same age, someone like Zhu Ziyang—with his current power—would be treated as a distinguished guest even by an emperor. Even Ning Tian, heir of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, couldn't compare.
With the main team finalized, the focus shifted to training and team synergy. And the best way to build cohesion? Real combat. So in the days that followed, Zhu Ziyang organized a sparring team to help the main team train.
It was easy for Shrek Academy's inner court to assemble a sparring team. Without age limits, they could easily create several fully specialized combat teams.
With regular sparring, the main team's cooperation and battle prowess steadily improved. From initially fighting independently and being picked off, they reached the point where they could go toe-to-toe with the sparring team. Naturally, Zhu Ziyang never participated in the matches—his strength was simply too overwhelming.
One afternoon, the main team had yet to start training, and the sparring team hadn't arrived either. But the training field was already buzzing with activity. A group of young people chatted happily among themselves.
It turned out that Xuanzi had brought the newly selected reserve team to meet the main team. He had also called over members of the Tang Sect to announce details of this year's tournament.
So at this moment, more than twenty elite young soul masters had gathered on the field.
The main team didn't need introductions, and the Tang Sect members were all familiar faces. The only ones worth mentioning were the reserve team selected by Xuanzi. Due to the special rules of this tournament, the previously eliminated Dai Huabin, Xie Huanyue, and Wufeng had been added as backup members.
Aside from those three, the other four reserve team members were all from the outer court: Zhu Lu, Dai Huabin's fiancée; fifth-year student Cao Jinxuan; and twin sisters Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo.
All four were Soul Ancestors. Zhu Lu had the highest cultivation at Rank 49 and was expected to break through to Soul King within half a year. Since she shared a martial soul fusion skill with Dai Huabin, she was Xuanzi's first pick. Cao Jinxuan came next, a time-attribute soul master with the rare "Timeflow Clock" martial soul, sitting at Rank 47. Lan Luoluo and Lan Susu were twins whose martial souls were their hair and had a fusion skill. Both were Rank 45.
"Now I'll explain the tournament system," Xuanzi began, and the crowd immediately quieted down. "Pay attention. This year's competition is very different. With sects now eligible to participate, the number of teams has exploded, and the competition will be fiercer than ever."
"After extensive review, the Sun Moon Empire has confirmed the following rules: First, this year's event is officially titled the All-Continent Advanced Youth Soul Master Elite Tournament."
"Second, due to the sheer number of teams, the preliminaries will use a direct elimination format until only 32 teams remain. From there, the 32 will be split into four groups of eight, with each group fighting for two quarterfinal spots. The format throughout—from prelims to group stage to finals—will consist of both individual elimination matches and team battles."
"Third, here are the detailed rules: each team can register seven participants, no more, no less. Once the list is submitted and the match begins, no substitutions are allowed."
"In the individual elimination segment, each team sends out one fighter at a time. Winners may continue to fight or forfeit voluntarily. Each victory earns one point. The winner of the individual round earns two bonus points."
"In the team match, a 7v7 brawl follows. Only the same seven players from the individual round may participate. No rest period is provided between rounds. If a team has fewer than seven players remaining, they must compete with however many they have left."
"The team match winner earns five points. During the preliminaries, the team with the higher total points after both segments wins the match."
(End of Chapter)
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