At this moment, Ye Yu and Ning Rongrong entered the Sunset Forest, while Wang Sheng waited in a nearby inn.
At this time, Lanba Academy.
The third-round match opponents are already known, and Master said in a serious tone, "The third-round team is very strong. I'll give you three choices: surrender, and being in the top five in the Tian Dou Grand Soul Arena district will allow you to enter the advancement round. The second choice is to go with the lineup from the first match, but it's bound to lose. Third, wait for Ning Rongrong to return, and you Seven Monsters go up, but even if you can defeat them, your strength will be fully exposed."
Upon hearing this, Tang San and the others were surprised.
Tang San asked, "Teacher, who is this third-round team? Are they that powerful?"
Master nodded, "Have you heard of the Xiangjia Sect?"
Tang San and the others were taken aback and nodded.
They naturally had heard of it. Xiangjia Sect is one of the Seven Great Sects of the Continent. Among this continent, there are the Upper Three Sects and the Lower Four Sects. Needless to say about the Upper Three Sects, the Lower Four Sects are the White Tiger Sect, Nine-Hearted Begonia Sect, Xiangjia Sect, and Wind Sword Sect.
Xiangjia Sect is the sixth largest sect on the continent.
If the Seven Treasure Glaze Sect is the strongest support sect, then the Xiangjia Sect is the strongest defense sect. The Martial Soul is the Diamond Mammoth, a Martial Soul with extremely high defense.
At the same level of strength, no one can break the defense of the Diamond Mammoth.
Furthermore, the Xiangjia Sect's Sect Leader is an eighty-seventh level Soul Douluo, capable of withstanding attacks from some non-primary attack Titled Douluos! This shows the defense's strength and the Martial Soul's extraordinary nature.
Master said, "This time, the Xiangjia Team consists of elites from the Xiangjia Sect, with six people at level forty and above, their soul power level is no less than yours, their soul ring configuration is similar, and their Martial Souls are equally strong. So even if you Seven Monsters join forces, it will be difficult to win easily. On a wide battlefield, you could rely on mobility to wear them down, but the arena is only so big, so that strategy won't work. Therefore, I suggest you best give up; losing one match is nothing, the important thing is to hide your strength."
Master added, "However, this is just a suggestion, you decide for yourselves."
Tang San and the others exchanged glances, all with determined glints in their eyes, without any hesitation, they said in unison, "We choose to fight!"
Master was not surprised; it was expected.
Oscar said, "If Boss Yu were here, he would definitely want to fight too. Even if we lose one match and can still advance, Boss Yu wouldn't be happy. Boss Yu pursues perfection in everything."
Master nodded, "Yes, indeed, but until the finals, I won't let Ye Yu on the field; even if he goes on, he won't do anything."
Tang San said, "Let me arrange for this match, so we can both hide our strength and have the confidence to win against them. However, let's discuss it further when Brother Yu returns."
Master nodded, "Alright, then I'll leave it to you to decide."
...
At this moment, in the depths of the Sunset Forest.
Ye Yu and Ning Rongrong had been searching for an hour after entering. Ning Rongrong's fourth soul ring needed to be between eight thousand and nine thousand years, and it had to be a defense-type soul beast at the very least.
Ning Rongrong's first three Soul Techniques were strength, speed, and soul power, so Master suggested absorbing a defense-type soul ring for her fourth.
During the search, Ye Yu came across two eight-thousand-year-old defense-type soul beasts, but they were quite ordinary, not what Master described as the most perfect.
As Ye Yu and Ning Rongrong went deeper, they heard the sound of a dispute coming from afar.
In the depths of the Sunset Forest, two teams were facing off in a heated argument, each side consisting of twelve people.
In front of them was a soul beast, a Nine-Thousand-Year-Old Scale Armor Beast, which was top-notch among defense-type soul beasts. Their argument was naturally about this Scale Armor Beast.
One team was made up entirely of bald heads, while the other team consisted entirely of members wielding long swords on their backs.
The leading teacher was a middle-aged man in white attire, who said in a deep voice, "Bald Sect, this Nine-Thousand-Year-Old Scale Armor Beast was first discovered by us of the Wind Sword Sect. How dare you snatch it from us? This provokes one of the Seven Great Sects, the Wind Sword Sect!"
However, the other party was not afraid at all.
"One of the Seven Great Sects? You act as if you're on par with the Upper Three Sects. You are the last among the Lower Four Sects." The bald man in a lecherous tone retorted.
"Hah, we're still one of the Seven Great Sects on the continent, who are you?"
"Who are we, the Bald Sect? Hmph, through painstaking cultivation, our sect's strength already rivals your Wind Sword Sect. We are not far from replacing you as the new seventh great sect, and soon, we will surpass you."
The Bald Sect, is next in line after the Seven Great Sects, the strongest among the first-class sects. Furthermore, the members of the sect train diligently, and there is a faint trend of surpassing the Wind Sword Sect, so there is no fear.
The lecherous bald man said, "What do you need this Scale Armor Beast for anyway? You are an attack-type sect while we are all beast martial souls, focusing on body refining. This Scale Armor Beast is very useful to us."
The white-clothed man snorted coldly, "It is useful to us too, it can enhance the defense of our flying swords, making them tougher and naturally increasing their power."
"Is that so, then there's nothing more to say. Anyway, we, the Bald Sect, are determined to get this Scale Armor Beast! To become strong, our sect has paid a great price. We train rigorously every day, 10,000 push-ups, 10,000 sit-ups, 10,000 squats, and a 100 kilometers long run every day, persevering tirelessly through harsh weather. We have become stronger, but at the cost of becoming bald... However, even though we became bald, we also became stronger!"
"All members of our sect lost their once luscious hair, and our sect's name changed from the Hundred Beasts Sect to the Bald Sect."
The lecherous bald man spoke with a hint of bitterness, in a serious tone, "So, now you understand the hardships we endured, don't you? We who strive hard must obtain what we deserve, and this Scale Armor Beast, we are determined to have! Nothing can stop us, so says Bald Qiang!"
When the man's words ended, his companions admired him greatly: "Teacher says it well!"
"As expected of our Bald Sect's most outstanding Hall Master, Bald Qiang."
Not only did they become bald, they also changed their names. The man's original name was Li Qiang, then he changed it to Bald Qiang. Other sect disciples also followed the same pattern of bald heads and names.
The white-clothed man frowned, "Hmph, so what if you've become stronger, our Wind Sword Sect isn't afraid of you."
The atmosphere instantly grew more intense.
The white-clothed man felt angry; if Bald Qiang wasn't as well a sixty-five level Soul Emperor like him, he would have already taken action.
"Stop fighting, this Scale Armor Beast belongs to our Xiangjia Sect."
A voice echoed, instantly causing a change in expression among the members of the Bald Sect and Wind Sword Sect.
They looked towards the source of the voice, their expressions immediately turning grave.
The white-clothed man recognized them; it was the Xiangjia Team, formed from the elite of the Xiangjia Sect, highly favored in this Soul Master competition.
Leading the group was a middle-aged man with bulging muscles, someone they feared, one of the hall masters of the Xiangjia Sect, Huyan Jue, a level sixty-five Soul Emperor, and beside him, a burly young man of twenty-four, the Xiangjia Team leader, level forty-three Defense Type War Soul Sect, Huyan Li.
The Xiangjia Sect also consisted of twelve people.
"Brother Li, we are in luck, originally we had six people above level forty, and Old Qi just reached level forty today, this soul ring is perfect for him. If Old Qi absorbs it, our team's strength will be enhanced, defeating the Shrek Team the day after tomorrow will be guaranteed."