"Boom!"
A deafening explosion erupted as a black sun rose over the stage.
A terrifying shockwave radiated from the impact point, sweeping across the platform in a violent hurricane.
The force even made the spatial barriers around the platform ripple, as if on the verge of collapse.
Within the blinding black light, the shield wall—once so strong—was torn apart like paper.
Metal was shredded into fragments, then swallowed mercilessly by the darkness, vanishing without a trace.
All was reduced to nothing by that overwhelming strike.
When the black sun finally faded, the once-impenetrable metal fortress was gone, leaving only a giant crater, its edges still glowing faintly with black light—a silent testament to the attack's power.
At this point, Chi Hengyu, Qing Feng, and Tang Niuniu were each protected by a faint golden shield.
It was this one-use soul tool—the Invincible Barrier—that had saved their lives in the face of the black sun.
Without it, they'd have been eliminated and rescued by Dan Heng long ago.
Even so, Chi Hengyu was gravely wounded.
He spat blood, pale as paper, collapsing limply, unable to fight.
Though shielded, his martial soul, the Diamond Shield, had been destroyed by the black sun, inflicting devastating backlash.
A dragon's roar shattered the brief calm.
The red orb beside Gu Yue transformed into a blazing fire dragon, which soared skyward, bringing a surge of heat as it charged at Gu Zhu Jian.
Wherever the fire dragon passed, the air rippled with heat. Even Ma Xiaotao, watching outside the arena, twitched at the sight.
Her eyes went blank, lost in self-doubt. Though her phoenix flames were strong, Gu Yue's fire outstripped them—how could she not feel frustrated?
"Fifth Soul Skill: Bamboo Sword Descends!" Gu Zhu Jian dared not be careless, his fifth soul ring flaring.
A massive purple bamboo sword fell from the sky, slicing toward Gu Yue's fire dragon.
Meanwhile, Dou Ling Royal's Xiao Feng wielded his Mystery Bead, soul rings glowing.
Purple light spread from his hand, enveloping most of the stage.
Within this light, everything became blurred and dreamlike, as if inside an illusion.
Dou Ling's team used this cover to hide, making it difficult to pinpoint their positions.
Seeing this, Firefly's third soul ring flashed black, and a red glow spread from her.
Sweeping the field, everyone saw the Dou Ling team—previously hidden—now each marked by a red flame above their head.
This was Firefly's third soul skill—Death Star Overload.
It inflicted a fire-attribute weakness on all opponents, regardless of their own powers or martial souls. Marked targets were clearly visible, perfectly countering the Mystery Bead's concealment.
With her targets marked, Firefly launched herself like a comet of flame at Xiao Feng.
Xiao Feng's face changed instantly—how could Firefly have seen through his illusion so precisely?
"Protect me!" Now wasn't the time to ponder. He knew he couldn't withstand Firefly's terrifying attack.
As a control-type soul master, a single hit from Firefly would put him down.
He urgently called for help.
Vice-captain Qian Yuan instantly unleashed his martial soul.
His arms became massive bear claws, which he crossed before Firefly.
After transformation, Qian Yuan grew to three meters tall.
His claws, tipped with five razor-sharp talons, gleamed with cold light.
His martial soul was the Terrorclaw Bear—a lesser form of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, yet still possessing a trace of its bloodline and incredible attack power.
He now blocked Firefly head-on.
"Boom!"
With the force of a charging locomotive, Firefly's fire-wrapped fist crashed into Qian Yuan's crossed arms.
"Crack!"
The air fractured like a spiderweb as shockwaves burst out.
Qian Yuan was sent flying like a broken kite, his resistance utterly crushed.
Unluckily, his body slammed into Xiao Feng before the latter could react.
Both were knocked spinning, golden Invincible Barriers flaring around them.
"Bang! Bang!"
They crashed into the spatial barrier, pinned comically and shockingly in place.
Han Linger, focusing on the battle, stared in disbelief as her teammates flew past, then saw Firefly's silver-white mecha striding toward her through the smoke, eyes full of cold, metallic light.
Terror seized her heart. Instinctively, she turned and ran, her frantic steps betraying her panic.
Tang Niuniu was preparing to use another soul skill to support Captain Gu Zhu Jian against Gu Yue.
But she was a second too slow—Lu Jingming appeared before her.
His expression calm, he gently touched his pale fingertip, where black-red lightning flickered, to her forehead.
A surge of spiritual power, mixed with black-red lightning, rushed into her mind.
Tang Niuniu had no time to react. Her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed, instantly asleep.
Qing Feng, right beside her, turned ashen.
Knowing the situation was hopeless, he tried to run, but before he could take a step, a black spear struck his abdomen.
A tide of spiritual energy overwhelmed him—he went black, dizzy, and collapsed unconscious.
Lu Jingming looked at his work, satisfied.
His method of knocking out Tang Niuniu and Qing Feng was a new technique he had developed.
By fusing his spiritual power, spear intent, and soul power, he created a unique attack.
This strike was all-encompassing—physical, spiritual, and mental.
The black-red lightning at his fingertip was the manifestation of this fusion, not true natural lightning, but the result of his will and the world's rules colliding.
In a sense, it was a self-created soul skill.
At this point, the outcome was clear—St. Freya Academy, with only three members, had crushed Dou Ling Royal Academy in no time.
Han Linger was still fleeing for her life, but Firefly's first soul ring suddenly flared.
Silver mecha jets burst with fire, propelling Firefly forward in three blinding dashes.
She instantly appeared before Han Linger.
This was Firefly's first soul skill—Flame Blink. It enabled three consecutive flame dashes, increasing her speed and attack.
Without a word, Firefly punched, wind whistling. Han Linger's face went pale, activating her Invincible Barrier in panic.
"Another Invincible Barrier!"
Lu Jingming raised his eyebrows.
Dou Ling Royal Academy was well-prepared and wealthy, equipping almost every member with these expensive, single-use soul tools.
Meanwhile, green winds raged on the stage, Gu Yue's green orb shining brightly.
With the wind boosting it, the fire dragon's power surged, overwhelming Gu Zhu Jian's sword and erasing it in a flash.
Gu Zhu Jian dodged the dragon's deadly breath by a hair.
He glanced at Gu Yue's elemental orbs, then at Han Linger, who had surrendered, and at Xiao Feng and Qian Yuan, still stuck in the air, and couldn't help twitching.
So little time had passed—just a few exchanges with Gu Yue, and all his teammates were already down.
"We surrender!"
Gu Zhu Jian, recalling the next matches, immediately raised his hand and conceded.
He knew they still had trump cards left but had never planned to use them in this match.
With St. Freya Academy's displayed strength, even their full effort would be futile—just meaningless struggle.
Thus, he wisely chose to surrender.
With two advancement spots in the group, fighting St. Freya to the bitter end would be unwise.
"First group round-robin, St. Freya Academy wins!"
Dan Heng reappeared at the center of the field, calmly announcing the result with no emotion.
The battle ended far too quickly!
That was everyone's unspoken thought.
They had expected a fierce clash between top teams, but Dou Ling Royal Academy was completely overrun by St. Freya.
The whole fight was a whirlwind—smooth and unstoppable.
The audience hadn't even had time to blink before it was over.
Even Gu Zhu Jian, with all his abilities, could do nothing but surrender.
At this moment, both Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy and Shrek Academy wore grave expressions.
The strength St. Freya Academy displayed exceeded all expectations.
What was more alarming, Lu Jingming's trio had fought with ease, never seeming to go all out.
And with four team members yet to show their strength, it was impossible to imagine the terror of St. Freya Academy's full power.
One had to wonder—was there any academy that could withstand their full-force assault?