108: Chapter 108 Blazing Fire Team

A week passed in a flash, and the Soul Master Tournament preliminaries were still in full swing.

Inside the Shrek Team's resting area.

Yu Xiaogang faced Tang San and the others, his brows knitted tightly. "Little freaks, your next opponent is Blazing Fire Academy."

As his voice fell, the expressions of everyone present became extremely grim.

They had watched Blazing Fire Academy's previous matches.

Their captain, Huo Wushuang, was a level 53 attack system Spirit King. His violent fire attacks were almost invincible during the preliminary stage.

Blazing Fire Academy was undoubtedly one of the favorites to win this tournament.

Yu Xiaogang sighed. "For today's match against Blazing Fire Academy, I suggest we forfeit."

"Forfeit?!"

Everyone immediately became agitated.

Since the preliminaries began, they had been on a winning streak, earning the expectations of countless spectators. Being told to surrender without a fight now was clearly hard to accept.

Yu Xiaogang raised a hand to suppress the noise. "Listen to me finish. I know you are not reconciled."

"But with our current strength and trump cards, facing the Blazing Fire Academy team with a Spirit King, our chances of winning are extremely slim."

"More importantly, this is not just a matter of winning or losing. If you suffer severe injuries, it will directly affect all our subsequent matches."

"Our goal is to break into the finals and achieve a better ranking."

"Not to exhaust our trump cards in the preliminary stage for a match with little chance of winning."

"Recognizing the gap and preserving our strength is the wiser course of action."

At this moment, Flender also walked over and said to everyone, "Xiaogang is right. A moment's victory or defeat doesn't mean anything. Don't forget that you are still young, and the future holds infinite possibilities."

"If you can't make it this time, then accumulate strength and participate in the next one. By then, with your strength, who will be your opponent?"

The resting area fell into silence.

The pressure brought by Blazing Fire Academy's Huo Wushuang weighed on everyone's hearts like a giant stone.

Everyone's gaze involuntarily turned to Tang San. As the core of the team, his decision was crucial.

Tang San lowered his head, his hands quietly clenching at his sides.

Indeed, facing the flames of the Blazing Fire Academy team, the control of his Blue Silver Grass would be greatly reduced, and the risk of a head-on confrontation was extremely high.

And his main goal now was to enter the finals and, incidentally, find out news about Xiao Wu.

But...

A sense of unwillingness and pride surged from the deepest part of his heart.

If he retreated upon encountering a strong enemy, would he still be Tang San?

If he didn't even have the courage to try, how could he become a powerhouse in the future?

How could he rescue Xiao Wu?

How could he eliminate the evil Spirit Hall?

Thinking of this, he slowly raised his head and looked at Yu Xiaogang and Flender. "Teacher, Dean, I understand your concerns."

"However, retreating without a fight is definitely not the way of a Spirit Master like us."

"If we give up easily when encountering a strong enemy, do we still deserve to be called freaks?"

"Blazing Fire Academy is very strong, but we are not completely without the power to fight back. I want to give it a try."

Tang San's words instantly ignited the Battle Intent of Dai Mubai and the others.

"Little San is right." Dai Mubai was the first to speak up. "It's just one Spirit King, we'll only know after we fight!"

Ma Hongjun also yelled, "Exactly! Young Master's Phoenix flames are not for show either. It's the perfect time to compare whose flames are fiercer!"

"Alright." Yu Xiaogang pondered for a moment, then finally sighed deeply. "But you must remember, if things become impossible, concede immediately. Safety first."

"Yes!"

The Shrek Team responded in unison.

Immediately, Dai Mubai reached out his hand first, and then, one hand after another quickly stacked on top.

"Shrek—Certain Victory!!!" Everyone shouted in unison. They pressed their palms down fiercely, then separated.

Everyone adjusted their clothes, held their heads high and chests out, and strode toward the arena passage.

...

Soon, on the central arena.

Shrek's lineup included the five Shrek members excluding Oscar, as well as Tai Long and Jing Ling.

On the Blazing Fire Academy side, Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang stood side by side at the very front of the team.

"Blazing Fire Academy, Captain Huo Wushuang, level 53 attack system Spirit King!"

"Vice-Captain Huo Wu, level 54 attack system Spirit King!"

When the host loudly introduced the team members of both sides, the entire Soul Fighting Arena fell into a brief silence, followed by an uproar.

"Two Spirit Kings?! Blazing Fire Academy is so strong! They have a good chance of winning this tournament!"

"Wait, to fight a Shrek Academy, they need to deploy two Spirit Kings?! Are they that powerful?"

"Shrek's performance previously was not bad, winning many matches in a row, but they aren't strong enough to require two Spirit Kings to deal with, right? Blazing Fire is overestimating them too much."

"Could it be that Shrek has hidden some super trump card? Worthy of such a serious stance from Blazing Fire Academy?"

Gasps and questioning voices resounded throughout the entire Great Spirit Arena.

In the viewing stands, the expressions of the Golden Triangle could no longer be described as just grim; they were absolutely livid.

Flender said in shock and anger, "Xiaogang, what does this Blazing Fire Academy mean? We Shrek haven't provoked them!"

Yu Xiaogang didn't speak, staring fixedly at Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang on the arena.

He also hadn't expected the strength of the students in this tournament to be so strong, far exceeding his expectations.

Huo Wu had not appeared in previous matches; obviously, Blazing Fire Academy had intentionally hidden their strength.

But now they both appeared when facing Shrek; this was definitely not simple.

Although Shrek performed well, it was definitely not enough to force out such an exaggerated trump card from Blazing Fire.

Was it targeting Little San? Or targeting Shrek?

Yu Xiaogang's mind raced, trying to find an answer from the opponents' calm expressions and postures, but unfortunately, he couldn't see anything.

Liu Erlong, standing to the side, had a fiery temper, and her eyes were almost spitting fire. "Damn it! Does Blazing Fire Academy want to treat us Shrek as a soft persimmon to squeeze, deliberately using this method to humiliate us?"

"Two Spirit Kings appearing together, how can they have the nerve?"

Her roar attracted the attention of many nearby spectators; there was sympathy, but more was the excitement of watching the show.

Yu Xiaogang's fists clenched quietly; although Liu Erlong's words were blunt, they were very likely pointing directly to the core.

Humiliation? Establishing prestige? Or... was there a deeper reason?

...

In the VIP seats, Emperor Xue Ye's eyes revealed a bit of gratification and anticipation, and he smiled at Ning Fengzhi beside him.

"School Master Ning, this Blazing Fire Academy might really be able to represent my Heaven Dou Empire, win the championship in this tournament, and spread our national prestige."

Ning Fengzhi heard this, maintained a proper smile on his face, and nodded slightly. "Your Majesty's words are absolutely correct. Blazing Fire Academy's strength is amazing; it is the fortune of my Heaven Dou Empire."

"Fengzhi also, like Your Majesty, looks forward to them overcoming obstacles and winning supreme glory for the Empire."

Although he said so, his heart was perfectly clear. With Ji Xuan there, the championship had long since had no suspense.

His gaze swept over a certain inconspicuous viewing area.

There, Ji Xuan was calmly watching the arena, as if the surrounding clamor had nothing to do with him.

Ning Fengzhi suddenly had a terrible guess in his heart...