"We surrender!"
The captain of the Heavenly Spirit Advanced Academy team lay sprawled on the ground, his muscles taut, every fiber straining against the oppressive gravitational force. Beads of sweat rolled ceaselessly from his forehead, dripping onto the arena floor and forming dark puddles.
Yet, the invisible but incredibly heavy pressure bore down relentlessly, like an unmovable, towering mountain. Beside him, his teammates one by one succumbed, their legs giving out, collapsing heavily onto the ground with painful grunts. Their young faces, etched with unwillingness, were now contorted in agony. Ultimately, the Heavenly Spirit Advanced Academy team captain could only manage to move his lips with immense difficulty, using every ounce of strength to utter each word:
"The match is over!"
Dan Heng's voice immediately rang out, shattering the almost solidified silence of the arena. He spoke while looking at Lu Jingming. Lu Jingming's expression was calm as he unhurriedly retracted his left hand. As he did so, the invisible gravitational force receded like a tide, vanishing without a trace. Seeing this, Robin and the others also withdrew their soul rings.
From the very beginning of the match, they knew that this first encounter was merely a formality for them. Lu Jingming had no intention of letting them make a move. After all, to establish the might and reputation of St. Freya Academy, they needed to crush their opponents with overwhelming force, like an autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves. His hundred-thousand-year soul bone skill, Sovereignty, derived from the hundred-thousand-year Mountain-Moving Ape's left arm bone, was undoubtedly the perfect choice.
Sovereignty, a hundred-thousand-year soul bone skill of the gravity type, could unleash terrifying gravity, ten or even a hundred times the normal, completely suppressing opponents. However, its use heavily depleted not only soul power but also spiritual energy.
Yet, the more energy consumed, the more powerful Sovereignty became, with the gravitational multiplier increasing proportionally. Unless Lu Jingming explicitly allowed it, no one could stand upright under the immense suppression of Sovereignty.
This was a soul bone skill with an extremely high potential; its power was intrinsically linked to the user's strength. The stronger the user, the more potent the effects of Sovereignty. Although the skill had certain limits due to the soul bone's age, Lu Jingming possessed Honkai Energy. It was well-known that Honkai Energy was versatile.
It could slowly refine the soul bone, which had already fused with Lu Jingming's left arm, gradually increasing the soul bone's age and strength, continuously expanding the power limits of Sovereignty.
The match was over, yet hundreds of thousands of live spectators and millions more watching remotely remained immersed in deep shock, unable to recover for a long time.
A hundred-thousand-year soul ring appearing on a Soul King! Such an incredible, unimaginable event filled them with both extreme awe and an uncontrollable excitement. Even the most ordinary commoners had some knowledge of the Soul Master profession, and they clearly understood the significance of a hundred-thousand-year soul ring.
It was a precious soul ring that many Titled Douluos could not acquire in their entire lives; it symbolized the demise of an incredibly powerful hundred-thousand-year soul beast, representing unparalleled might.
"Let's go," Lu Jingming said calmly, glancing at the Heavenly Spirit Advanced Soul Master Academy members who were now on the stage, helping their comrades and dejectedly leaving. He then turned and walked off the arena. The Soul Master competition was just this brutal. The Heavenly Spirit Advanced Soul Master Academy wasn't actually weak. With good luck, they might have advanced from the elimination rounds. But unfortunately, their luck was poor this time; they encountered Lu Jingming.
After the shocking opening match, the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Fighting Grand Competition continued to rage on. Although Lu Jingming was full of confidence in himself and his teammates, they didn't leave the arena.
Firstly, March 7th and the others were all intensely interested in the competition and loved watching the matches. Secondly, they also wanted to observe other teams' performances to understand their opponents' strengths and characteristics, knowing themselves and their adversaries.
In the subsequent matches, Shrek Academy's performance was unexpected, delivering an unforeseen spectacle to the audience. Since Ma Xiaotao and the others were injured and unable to compete, Shrek Academy had no choice but to send Bei Bei and other reserve members into the elimination rounds.
Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao's noticeably young appearances, looking only twelve or thirteen, immediately sparked heated discussion among the audience upon their entry. Everyone speculated about what Shrek Academy was up to, wondering why they would send such young-looking members to compete.
However, as soon as the match began, Huo Yuhao unleashed his Imitation Soul Skill. In an instant, six crimson hundred-thousand-year soul rings appeared on him, emanating a powerful aura. Not only that, but he also used his soul skill to help Bei Bei and the others simulate six soul rings each.
Suddenly, all of Shrek Academy's contestants seemed to have become powerful Soul Emperors, especially Huo Yuhao with his six hundred-thousand-year soul rings. The scene was no less shocking than when St. Freya Academy's Lu Jingming had appeared earlier, perhaps even more so.
Their opponents, already intimidated by Shrek Academy's formidable reputation, and further rattled by Lu Jingming's astonishing performance earlier, were now terrified and thrown into disarray upon seeing Huo Yuhao's simulated six hundred-thousand-year soul rings. Just as their opponents were unstable and their formation was chaotic, Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong seized the opportunity, cooperating perfectly to unleash their Martial Soul Fusion Skill: Golden Road. A dazzling golden light flashed, and with just one strike, they directly defeated their opponents, winning the match.
Although Shrek Academy's performance in this match was extremely shocking, leaving the entire audience stunned and silent for a time, once the match ended and everyone calmed down, they reflected upon it and found the matter too peculiar, full of suspicious points.
When Lu Jingming possessed one hundred-thousand-year soul ring, some already suspected they were hallucinating. Fortunately, Lu Jingming's powerful ability to suppress the entire arena with a single hand dispelled those doubts, forcing everyone to believe it was indeed a genuine hundred-thousand-year soul ring.
But what about Huo Yuhao? Six hundred-thousand-year soul rings, a Soul Emperor-level cultivation, yet he still needed to use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with his comrades to defeat his opponents, and the process wasn't as clean and effortless as Lu Jingming's. How could such a performance not make people suspect foul play? Soon, some sharp-witted and intelligent spectators saw through Huo Yuhao's disguise. However, they simply regarded it as a competition tactic by Shrek Academy and didn't consider that Shrek Academy's lineup might be compromised.
The first day of the Soul Master Grand Competition quietly concluded amidst one fierce elimination match after another. As night fell, even though the first day of the competition had ended, discussions about the day's matches grew even more intense. Especially Lu Jingming's domineering "Kneel!" on the arena and the shocking scene of him suppressing the entire crowd with one hand seemed to be deeply imprinted in the hearts of countless spectators, leaving them agitated and unable to sleep. Furthermore, besides St. Freya Academy, several other academies that competed on the first day also became hot topics of discussion.
In the Cloud Perch Sky Realm suite of the Daydream Hotel, Lu Jingming lay comfortably on Robin's soft lap, looking utterly content. Robin gently massaged Lu Jingming's temples in circles, her movements soothing and tender. She softly hummed a melodious tune, her voice like a clear mountain stream or a winding bird song in the forest, bringing comfort to anyone who heard it.
"Sister Robin, you don't actually believe A'Ming's nonsense, do you?" March 7th said, her arms crossed, her face full of disdain as she looked at the content Lu Jingming. It turned out that upon returning to the hotel, Lu Jingming had feigned that his hundred-thousand-year soul bone skill had caused immense spiritual energy depletion and required a massage from a young lady to recover. But anyone with eyes could tell this was just an excuse; he simply wanted to enjoy a lap pillow and a massage. Yet, even knowing it was an excuse, Firefly and Castorice both offered to help. However, Robin was quicker and snatched this "job" first.
"It's fine," Robin said with a gentle smile, shaking her head slightly. Her smile was as bright and captivating as a blooming spring flower.