Chapter 248. Tang San switched to practicing the Clear Sky Hammer Ghost Shadow Step.
How could it be?
Tang San was absolutely certain that Lan Lan's move was the Ghost Shadow Step, but how had she learned it?
Could there be someone else reborn from the Tang Sect in this world? If not, then there was only one possibility—
Tang San's eyes flashed with murderous intent as he looked at Ye Yang, who had just come down.
The unique skills he had passed down to him, as his father had requested, were passed down to the Shrek Seven Devils, including Ye Yang!
It must have been Ye Yang, that cowardly fellow, who had passed on his unique skills.
Tang San decided to ask after the match.
"Xiao Wu, admit defeat after you go up there," Tang San said, as if he had made up his mind.
"Why, Sangiegie?" Xiao Wu asked.
"Once you're captured, there's no point in wasting time. I don't want to see you hurt again," Tang San said, gazing at Xiao Wu affectionately.
Xiao Wu shook her head and said, "Sangie, I know you're doing this for my own good, but I also want to contribute to Shrek Academy."
Xiao Wu refused Tang San's plea and took the stage. The dead rabbit, with a short memory, thought his backbend and explosive eight-stage throw would trick Lan Lan, but he was once again taught a lesson.
Xiao Wu was tied up right in front of Tang San and hung upside down to absorb his spirit energy.
While hanging, Xiao Wu was still wearing a pink dress, and then—
"Xiao Wu—" Tang San roared, his eyes red with anger and a heavy breath, wiping the blood from his nose.
Xiao Wu was thrown off the stage. Tang San ran to Xiao Wu, picked her up, and glared at Lan Lan angrily. He had already mentally marked Lan Lan's death with another note.
Later, Tai Long and Jing Ling took the stage and consciously chose to give up.
Because Blue Silver Drain gave Lan Lan the ability to fight a protracted battle without fear of attrition, if she couldn't inflict damage on her opponent, continuing to fight would only replenish their Spirit Power. After the two of them left the stage, Ma Hongjun finally stepped forward with his head held high, looked at Tang San, and said, "San, giegie, in the end, it's still me who's going to save the day. If you had put me on first, our Shrek Seven Devils wouldn't be in this mess."
"Fatty, stop bragging," said Dai Mubai, who was recovering his Spirit Power.
Ma Hongjun laughed, "I'm a big shot. Boss Dai, have you forgotten what my Martial Spirit is? It's the Phoenix, and its Fire element specifically counters Grass-types. Lan Lan has Xiao San's Blue Silver Emperor Martial Spirit and the Blue Silver Domain. I honestly don't believe she can be immune to my Fire!"
"Fatty is right. The Blue Silver Emperor isn't Fire-Immune. Fatty, go in and defeat the opponent while preserving your own Spirit Power. We Shrek Seven Devils can't be defeated by one person," Tang San said.
Ma Hongjun nodded.
Having lost five teammates in quick succession, they were now two against seven. Considering the strength of the opposing team, including two Soul Kings, several Soul Masters, and their super-limited spirit rings, the Shrek Seven Devils could not devise a plan to win.
All they could do now was to ensure they wouldn't be completely defeated.
Ma Hongjun took the stage and generously unleashed his spirit. A phoenix shrieked. After consuming Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower, his spirit was no longer a chicken; it had become a phoenix.
His first move after summoning his spirit was to say with a lewd smile, "Burning with lust."
Flames enveloped Ma Hongjun tightly, and Ma Hongjun smirked, "Come on, little sister! Come and tie up your brother, Hongjun."
"As you wish," Lan Lan's eyes narrowed. She pointed a finger at Ma Hongjun, and several blue-silver vines spread out towards him.
Seeing the vines, Ma Hongjun showed no sign of panic. Instead, he flapped his wings and lunged towards them, intending to burn through the Blue Silver Grass and reach its core.
However, to Ma Hongjun's surprise, the Blue Silver vines, undeterred by the flames within them, entangled his arms, legs, and neck.
"Sorry, my Blue Silver Emperor spirit is fire-immune," Lan Lan explained.
And so, Ma Hongjun's fate was instantly shattered.
After Ma Hongjun was gone, he lay on the stretcher, glancing at Tang San and saying, "Sangie, I'm sorry, I didn't realize her spirit was fire-immune."
Tang San, too, felt a deep sense of solemnity. In his previous life, his spirit's immunity to ice and fire came from the immortal artifacts of the Yin-Yang Eyes of Ice and Fire, and both of these artifacts had been absorbed by Tang San. It couldn't be Lan Lan's luck that she had encountered both of these artifacts simultaneously.
Or was it that the Blue Silver Emperor itself was fire-immune?
"Anyway, Xiao San, the rest is up to you. The Shrek Seven Devils can lose, but don't let yourself be defeated seven at a time, especially when this player isn't even the absolute core of the opposing team." Grandmaster approached Tang San and spoke earnestly.
Tang San nodded and said, "Teacher, I will."
After Tang San entered the arena, he looked at Lan Lan and demanded, "Before the match begins, I would like to ask you three questions."
"First: How did you acquire your Blue Silver Emperor spirit?"
"Second: Why do you know the Ghostly Shadow Step?"
"Third: What is your relationship with the Spirit Hall?"
"That's the biggest joke in the world." Lan Lan sneered, "Tang San, do I need to answer these questions?"
"Humph," Tang San said, "How about we make a bet? If I win this match, you have to answer these questions. If you win, you can also make a request."
Lan Lan said, "I have no obligation to play this gambling game with you."
"Damn it! Then I'll beat you until you open your mouth."
Clang clang clang, the match officially began.
Tang San also used Blue Silver Grass, but within the Blue Silver Domain, his Blue Silver Grass, like a king, became limp and instantly devoured by the Blue Silver Emperor.
Granted, he was the son of the previous Blue Silver Emperor, the Blue Silver Prince, but before a true Blue Silver Emperor, a prince remains a prince forever.
All of Tang San's Blue Silver Grass abilities were severely suppressed by Lan Lan, the authentic Blue Silver Emperor spirit.
Helpless, Tang San could only use his Eight Spider Lance, combined with the Clear Sky Hammer, to deal with Lan Lan.
Lan Lan, who knew all of Tang San's weaknesses, also had a countermeasure against the Clear Sky Hammer. Whenever Tang San's chaotic cloaks reached a certain level, she would interrupt them.
This drained Tang San's energy and shattered his confidence.
In this battle of attrition, Tang San, wielding the Clear Sky Hammer, was the first to collapse from exhaustion.
The match also yielded a shocking outcome.
The Shrek team, previously ranked among the top three in strength, was pierced by a single member of the Rose team. Crucially, this Rose team member wasn't even the strongest. After the match, Tang San's twin spirits and Shrek's string of seven kills became hot topics during the Soul Master Competition livestream.
At the same time, Tang San's true identity was revealed. Thanks to the Spirit Hall's publicity, Tang San, the half-orc Tang San, the son of Tang Hao and a hundred-thousand-year-old spirit beast, became a household name.
However, even knowing Tang San's identity and potential, the Spirit Hall had no intention of attacking him.
In the following qualifying rounds, Team Rose suffered a setback, leaving Team Shrek feeling down and postponing several matches.
Tang San was sitting alone in the courtyard when he suddenly heard an old voice:
"Little monster, you look troubled."
"Old Poisonous Creature?" Tang San looked up at Dugu Bo and asked, "What can I do for you?"
"I'm here to tell you about the Spirit Hall team's lineup for this tournament," Dugu Bo said.
"Don't tell me, I'm not interested," Tang San shook his head.
He had experienced the Spirit Hall team in his previous life; it consisted of Xie Yue, Hu Liena, and Yan; the others were just supporting characters.
"Don't you really want to learn more? From what I understand, the Spirit Hall team selected players specifically for you, the Shrek Seven Devils, at least in terms of age," Dugu Bo said.
"Age?" Tang San suddenly piqued his interest.
Dugu Bo stroked his beard and said, "I don't know where the Spirit Hall found so many fourteen-year-old prodigies your age. As for their true strength, I'm afraid we'll only be able to determine it in the Spirit Master Competition."
Hearing this, Tang San's heart sank. The unknown was far more terrifying than the known. The Spirit Hall was very likely to have a Reborn like them. With their arrangements, this team's strength would likely be no weaker than the previous Golden Generation, perhaps even stronger. Fourteen years old, that's the level of strength of the Spirit Hall's Golden Team. This was another formidable foe.
"Actually, in this Spirit Master Competition, both the Rose Team and the Spirit Hall Team have a chance of winning. Let go of your obsession with the championship. I still believe you can achieve a good ranking," Dugu Bo said.
Tang San didn't respond to Dugu Bo's words.
Letting go? Was it even possible? If he didn't win the championship, the Spirit Hall would give away his mother's spirit bones, his mother-in-law's spirit bones, and the spirit bones of the Haotian Sect's ancestors.
In this Soul Master Tournament, Tang San had no choice but to fight for the title, but did he have the strength to do so?
Previously, Tang San's confidence would have been unwavering, but after being defeated repeatedly by the Rose Team, not to mention the Shrek Seven Devils, his own faith was shaken.
Tang San couldn't help but look up at the sky.
He was well aware of the Shura God's regard for him, but could the Shura God not see the constant stream of misfortunes?
Dugu Bo tried to comfort Tang San, telling him to let go of his obsession with the championship and simply achieve a good ranking in this tournament. This reassurance, far from lifting Tang San's spirit, only led him into deeper self-doubt.
To secure the championship, Tang San first sought out Tang Hao and told him he wished to switch to the Clear Sky Hammer.
Tang Hao agreed without hesitation.
In Tang Hao's view, Tang San's spirit, Blue Silver Grass, had been restricted by Lan Lan's spirit, Blue Silver Emperor. Continuing to cultivate in this direction would be a dead end. Even if Blue Silver Grass wasn't of the Blue Silver Emperor's descent, it was still Blue Silver Grass. And Tang Hao didn't have the ability to kill Lan Lan under Hua Qiang's protection. Switching to cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer was an option.
"Teacher, I want to switch to cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer spirit," Tang San said to the master with a firm tone.
When Yu Xiaogang heard Tang San's words, his voice trembled slightly and he said, "No, Xiaosan, don't do anything stupid. A temporary win or loss doesn't mean anything. You are wasting your future potential by practicing your Clear Sky Hammer spirit now."
Tang San said, "My Blue Silver Grass spirit can already attach Ten Thousand Year Spirit Rings, so the first four rings of the Clear Sky Hammer start with Ten Thousand Year Spirit Rings. Believe me, teacher, for the more powerful Titled Douluo, the difference in spirit rings and spirit bones is not as great as you think."
Yu Xiaogang said, "I strongly disagree, Xiaosan. It doesn't matter if you lose the Soul Master Competition, but you must not lose your potential here."
"Yu Xiaogang," Tang Hao glanced at Yu Xiaogang and said, "Xiaosan and I are just informing you. Don't think that just because you are Xiaosan's master you can tell us father and son what to do, okay?"
Yu Xiaogang looked at Tang San. Tang San said, "Teacher, I'm sorry. Winning this Soul Master Competition is really important to us."
"Or you can reconsider it," Yu Xiaogang asked weakly.
Tang Hao, his face cold, pulled Tang San away. At that moment, Yu Xiaogang felt his world crumble. He collapsed to the ground like a ball of mud.
By the time Tang San returned, his spirit power had leaped to the strength of a Level 53 Soul King, and his Clear Sky Hammer spirit possessed a full complement of ten-thousand-year spirit rings.
Returning to the team, Dai Mubai asked, "Xiao San, you've trained your Clear Sky Hammer spirit so early, won't it be a problem?"
Tang San said, "The Spirit Hall won't let us have it easy, so we certainly can't just sit there and wait for death. Expecting to be like we did in our previous lives is impossible. But don't worry, as long as you inherit the Asura Godhood, the difference between a hundred-thousand-year spirit ring and a ten-thousand-year spirit ring won't be that great."
"The difference between gods is the difference in status, not the difference in spirit rings and bones," Tang San said.
Dai Mubai suddenly realized. In his previous life, when Tang San battled Qian Renxue and Bibi Dong, Tang San's spirit ring configuration was almost all over 100,000 years old, and some even had million-year spirit rings. As for the opposing gods, Qian Renxue was fine, while Bibi Dong's spirit rings hadn't even received the slightest boost from the Rakshasa God. Yet, Tang San still died at the hands of Qian Renxue and Bibi Dong.
"Besides, these additional spirit rings are only temporary. If there's an opportunity in the future, I believe they can be replaced," Tang San said confidently. "Right now, we don't have to worry about anything else. Just focus on winning the championship and avenging our defeat."
After hearing this, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others became even more confident about the upcoming Spirit Master Competition.
In their previous lives, Soul Sect Tang San was able to lead them to victory, so why couldn't Soul King Tang San win this tournament?
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(End of this chapter)