Ye Yin remained standing in place, a hint of anticipation on his face. He watched Feng Xiaotian's determined figure grow closer, and a slow smile spread across his lips.
His second spirit ring suddenly flickered.
"Second Spirit Ability: Soul Skill Curse!" he thought, targeting Feng Xiaotian's self-created ability. The effect was simple: the Storm Devil Wolf Thirty-Six Consecutive Slashes would be increased to Seventy-Two Consecutive Slashes. The side effect? Each attack required the user to dance, and the dance moves had to become more alluring with each successive strike.
The curse took hold instantly.
Feng Xiaotian's body stiffened in mid-air. He felt the power of the wind blades in his hands drain away as if they were leaking. Worse, his body and wings were no longer under his control. What should have been a wild and powerful diving slash transformed, in front of everyone, into an exaggeratedly elegant leap, like a swan spreading its wings. His Storm Devil Wolf wings were no longer sharp blades but had become soft, gliding feathers. The first slash became a gentle, flowing pose.
Feng Xiaotian's mind went blank. The audience stared in confusion. The members of Shenfeng Academy looked on in horror.
The determination on Feng Xiaotian's face froze, replaced by utter bewilderment. But his body, still following the rhythm of his original ability, immediately moved into the second strike. He began to spin rapidly, but instead of a powerful and aggressive slash, he performed a light, ballet-like pirouette. His wings fluttered around him like a skirt, kicking up a few fallen leaves from the stage.
No! he roared frantically in his mind.
The third strike. After landing, what should have been a deadly, ground-skimming attack became a rhythmic tap dance. Da da da! Da da da! His feet stomped on the ground at an astonishing speed, kicking up dust in a comical display.
The fourth strike, the fifth... Feng Xiaotian's body, now completely under the control of the curse, began its solo dance show. His movements grew faster and faster, and his dance moves became more and more alluring. He transitioned from ballet to tap, from jazz to tango, and even mixed in some bizarre folk-dance-like movements. Every so-called "attack" was now a graceful flourish that softly brushed past Ye Yin's clothes, unable to even stir the air around him.
Feng Xiaotian's face was twisted in a mask of agony, tears and snot streaming down his face as he let out a desperate howl. "Stop! Please, stop! I'm not dancing anymore! Ahhh!"
But his body, incredibly honest and moving at a speed beyond its normal limits, flawlessly completed all seventy-two consecutive dances. When the final, dramatic, curtain-call-like front flip was complete, Feng Xiaotian collapsed to the ground as if his strings had been cut, staring blankly at the sky. His clothes were tattered from the high-speed dancing, and his soul seemed to have left his body.
The entire world once again fell into a deathly silence, with only his heavy, desperate gasps echoing across the stage. The referee's mouth hung open. It took him a long time to find his voice, which was filled with a mix of endless sympathy and a barely suppressed laugh.
"The… the first round, Shrek Academy… uh… Ye Yin wins!"
After a brief, stunned silence, the crowd erupted in an even more frenzied uproar.
"Oh my god! Thirty-Six Slashes turned into Seventy-Two Dances?! What just happened?!"
"Captain Feng Xiaotian… he… he has ascended again!"
"From Fart Boy to Soul Dancer?! Ye Yin, you are a true artist of humiliation!"
"Hahahaha, I can't breathe! This is even worse than the leg-finding incident!"
In the Shenfeng Academy rest area, there was a desperate, deadening silence. The team members covered their faces, unable to watch any longer. It's over, they all thought. The captain is completely finished…
In the Thunder Academy rest area, Yu Tianxin, who had finally recovered from his "old injury," had come to the arena specifically to watch Feng Xiaotian challenge Ye Yin and learn from the experience. He had just sat down when he witnessed the entire transformation. His expression shifted from anticipation to astonishment, then to disbelief, and finally to extreme horror and deep sympathy.
When Feng Xiaotian collapsed onto the stage like a broken doll, Yu Tianxin's face instantly turned ashen white. He remembered Ye Yin's terrifying curse. He thought of his own unforgettable "beautiful legs" incident, and a chill shot from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head. He suddenly stood up, knocking over his chair.
"C-Captain?" Vice-Captain Lei Dong said in surprise.
Yu Tianxin clutched his chest, a look of extreme pain on his face. His voice was weak and hurried. "Quick! Help me back! My old injury… it seems to have… flared up again! I can't breathe! Quick! To the infirmary!"
He practically scrambled away from the spectator area with the help of his teammates, moving faster than he ever did in a match, as if a monster were chasing him from behind.
On the stage, Ye Yin watched as Feng Xiaotian was carried away by medical Spirit Masters like a corpse. He lightly brushed some non-existent dust from his sleeve and gave the remaining Shenfeng Academy members a gentle, harmless, and innocent smile.
"Next?"
All the Shenfeng Academy members shivered in unison and collectively took a step back, their faces filled with terror. Seeing their complete lack of fighting spirit, the referee reluctantly announced, "Shenfeng Academy forfeits! Shrek Academy wins!"
On the third day of the promotion matches, the curtain fell amidst the soul-storm created by Ye Yin. The name "Curse King Ye Yin" became a nightmare for every team in the tournament. He could not only achieve overwhelming victories as a "support-type" but could also use his incredible means to make his opponents suffer a social death in front of the entire world.
The rest of the promotion journey was a triumphant march for Shrek Academy. After fourteen matches, they had fourteen consecutive victories. Among all fifteen teams, Shrek Academy ranked first, securing the top position in the Heaven Dou Empire's division.
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I was on vacation, so I couldn't upload chapters for the past 10 days. From today, chapter uploads will resume daily without breaks. Starting tomorrow, bonus chapters will also be released.
You can read advanced chapters here: patreon.com/GregariousLion