As Su Ming finished snacking a bit, he finally asked, "Old monster, how did Thunder Academy, Blazing Fire Academy, and Tianshui Academy fare in their matches?"
Dugu Bo paused before replying, "Thunder Academy was lucky; they had a bye in the second round. Unfortunately, Blazing Fire Academy went up against the Spirit Hall team. Even with Huo Wu combining her fourth soul skill with support from two teammates, they still lost to Spirit Hall's fusion technique."
"Honestly, Spirit Hall's team is strong. Under normal circumstances, Blazing Fire Academy would have had a chance to win, but the Spirit Hall team's fusion skill is designed around illusions and can suppress an opponent's overall attributes. In the end, Blazing Fire Academy lost fairly."
Su Ming could only feel a bit of regret; he hadn't expected Blazing Fire Academy to face Spirit Hall so soon. Hu Liena and Xie Yue's fusion skill, which produced a red mist, was known to dull the five senses and suppress all attributes. Considering the difference in mental strength, Huo Wu's team would have had a hard time resisting.
And Thunder Academy was certainly lucky to have drawn a bye.
"In the first round, one of the bye teams was randomly drawn from the Heaven Dou, Star Luo, and Spirit Hall teams, with Spirit Hall receiving it," Dugu Bo added.
"Old monster, how strong is Spirit Hall's team?" Su Ming asked, curious.
Dugu Bo was silent for a moment before replying, "Among Spirit Hall's seven members, four are close to level 50, two are mid-level Soul Kings, and one is a high-level Soul Emperor."
"The two Soul Kings, Yan and Xie Yue, are at levels 55 and 56, respectively, and are quite formidable. But individually, they wouldn't match Yan Yan or Xiao Wu."
"The Soul Emperor is Hu Liena, a level 67 Soul Emperor, who's reportedly chosen by Bibi Dong as the future Holy Maiden. She's Xie Yue's sister, though her level is much higher. I suspect Bibi Dong may have given her some special assistance."
This puzzled Dugu Bo. Hu Liena and Xie Yue were siblings, yet their power gap was so vast. Did Bibi Dong somehow learn about Su Ming's group's strength and boost Hu Liena with soul bones to bring her to this level?
Bibi Dong: Who are you calling shameless!?
Even Su Ming was surprised by the Golden Generation's strength, which was far above what he remembered. Yan and Xie Yue's improvement made sense due to the butterfly effect from his presence, but they were still Soul Kings, which he could accept. However, Hu Liena being at level 67 felt excessive. It wouldn't be out of character for Bibi Dong to have given her several soul bones.
Given Bibi Dong's maternal view of Hu Liena, treating her like a second daughter, it wasn't impossible that she'd helped her advance.
Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing looked over at Xiao Wu and the others, who nodded in agreement, confirming the information. Still, she relaxed, realizing Hu Liena was likely in her twenties and thus older. By the time she reached that age, she might be a Titled Douluo herself.
"What about Tianshui Academy? Which team did they face?" Su Ming asked.
He didn't care why Hu Liena's strength had increased so quickly; he knew she wasn't his match either way, whether it was in individual battles or fusion techniques.
Dugu Bo took a sip of wine before replying, "Tianshui Academy went up against the Godwind Academy. And those girls from Tianshui are quite strong. Feng Xiaotian, Godwind's captain, didn't stand a chance and was ultimately defeated by Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu's fusion technique."
"Only Feng Xiaotian could hold out briefly, while the rest were no match for Tianshui. Shui Bing'er's control was overwhelming. I wonder how you'd fare against them."
If things went as expected, after the Heaven Dou team faced the Star Luo team, the following round would be Heaven Dou versus Tianshui in the five-to-three round.
Su Ming shook his head, unconcerned. Tianshui Academy's fusion technique didn't threaten him much. For the others without resistance, it could be more challenging, but his enhancement could likely offset it.
However, Su Ming didn't realize that Tianshui Academy possessed not just a two-person fusion skill but also a three-person one, which was incredibly formidable.
After dinner, Su Ming returned to his room. He was tired from two days of soul beast hunting but planned to finish his journal entry before resting.
Journal Entry:
Sigh, today we finally returned from Death Valley, and the gains were fantastic. I have to say, Zhuqing has been incredibly lucky.
Both her fourth and fifth soul rings gave her soul bones, which is exceptionally rare. But that's likely due to her defeating stronger soul beasts and absorbing rings beyond her level.
This trip to Death Valley ended perfectly. I didn't expect to find a lone Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear there. It's the king of bear-type soul beasts.
If I recall correctly, Xiao Wu's mother was killed by the Bear King of this species, who currently resides in the Star Dou Forest's core Life Lake, absorbing the power of that big snake.
Zhuqing was fortunate. Not only did she gain a powerful fifth soul skill, but she also obtained the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear's right paw bone—a rare external soul bone. It has two features: the soul bone skill itself and a secondary function to aid in creating soul tools.
In future eras, Huo Yuhao, the fated protagonist, used this bone's passive ability to aid his soul tool creations.
But I'm unsure if Zhuqing has any interest in making soul tools. If not, that ability won't be used.
Additionally, Zhuqing became Ghost Douluo's disciple in Death Valley. He proved himself a responsible teacher, whether by wounding the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear for her or letting her absorb the external soul bone. I truly admire him now.
Notes-Read advanced chapters in patreon.com/Shadow_D_X, i have finished uploading the whole series in patreon, thanks for supporting me and special thanks to all the patrons for joining
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Bibi Dong was surprised while reading Su Ming's diary; she hadn't expected Ghost Douluo to resist the allure of an external spirit bone. He was truly a good teacher.
The other heroines seemed to agree, feeling that Zhuqing was lucky to have such a teacher—a stark contrast to a certain "theory master."
"But you know, I, Su Ming, am not one to take advantage without giving back. I've already promised Ghost Douluo that I'll give him a celestial herb as a thank you when the time is right. Plus, I let him absorb the ten-thousand-year-old Shadow Devil Lizard left leg bone that Zhuqing had."
"Since Ghost Douluo is Zhuqing's teacher, it's best if he's as strong as possible. That way, if I'm not around, he can protect her well."
Reading this made Zhu Zhuqing feel warm inside. Su Ming genuinely thought of each of them, and perhaps this was one reason Xiao Wu and Rongrong wanted to stay by his side.
"According to Old Monster, we'll be facing the Star Luo Royal Academy team the day after tomorrow. The outcome is already clear—Star Luo has no chance. Even if I just play a supporting role and let Zhuqing and Xiao Wu take the lead, they don't stand a chance."
"Even if they use their martial soul fusion technique, Hell White Tiger, what difference will it make? With Zhuqing and Xiao Wu's attacks, Dugu Yan's snake venom, and my enhancements, there's no way we'll lose. Absolutely no chance."
"My only dilemma now is how to get a read on Zhu Zhuyun's true intentions. Were her actions in the original story driven by some hidden reason, or was she just being calculated?"
"Even if I reassure her about the Star Luo Empire, convincing her to speak honestly might still be a struggle. She probably won't want to reveal the truth."
"This is tough. If only the system could give me a truth-telling ability, even if it was just one-time use! But this system has been eerily silent lately. I called out to it during my last training session, and it didn't respond."
"If it weren't for the daily diary rewards, I'd think the system was broken. Are you there, System?"
"I'm sure this lazy system is watching me write right now and won't even pop out to say a word!"
The system: …
Su Ming continued to write playfully, waiting for a response that never came. After a few seconds, he gave up, realizing the system only seemed active when the midnight rewards rolled around.
The girls couldn't help but laugh at Su Ming's grumbling. They didn't understand why the system stayed silent, but it was amusing to see him try.
Dugu Yan looked thoughtful, pulling out the Mind Reading Card the system had given her previously. Originally, she'd planned to use it on Yu Tianheng in a match, to hear him confess why he'd tried to get close to her. Now, she had a different plan: finding out what Zhuqing's sister was truly thinking.
If there really was a reason for Zhu Zhuyun's actions, Su Ming could find a way to help. The Star Luo Imperial Family's competition was harsh, and Zhuqing's family was bound tightly to them as subordinates for life.
Since the system ignored him, Su Ming continued writing, mentally cursing it. Not even an explanation? Fine!
"After we returned, we asked Old Monster about the recent matches. It was unfortunate that Blazing Fire Academy had the bad luck of facing the Spirit Hall team and ended up losing."
"I wonder how Huo Wu feels about it. I guess I'll see her in a couple of days."
Huo Wu, reading this, was reminded of her frustrating match against Spirit Hall and clenched her teeth. From the start, she'd known her team was at a disadvantage, but Hu Liena's Spirit Emperor-level strength struck her hard.
At the beginning of the match, while her support teammates were still on the field, Huo Wu used her fourth soul skill, Fire Dance, combined with auxiliary support to unleash the maximum power of their fusion. She'd hoped this might clinch victory, but Spirit Hall's team anticipated the move. As soon as she began, Hu Liena and Xie Yue activated their own fusion technique.
The red mist their fusion created covered the arena just as Huo Wu's fusion neared completion, and she couldn't move or dodge. As the mist enveloped her, her senses dulled, and she felt her attack weaken. The debuffs were from Spirit Hall's fusion.
Even her mental strength was affected, preventing her from locking onto her opponents. Her attack went off course, and she had to surrender. Their ultimate move wasn't enough, so they had no choice.
Huo Wu's sense of defeat gnawed at her. "It's only because they've had more time with the diary that their cultivation is so high! Hmph!"
Hu Liena wasn't much older than her, yet her strength was leaps and bounds above Huo Wu's, leaving her feeling indignant.
"Another surprise was Hu Liena. I mean, has she hacked the game or something? Her soul power is actually at level 67, which is ten levels higher than in the original story. It's unreal!"
"I get that my presence could cause unexpected changes in a parallel world, but this one's too much!"
"Xie Yue and Hu Liena are full-blood siblings, yet the level gap is this big? Did Bibi Dong give Hu Liena a bunch of soul bones or something to boost her quickly, worried about my strength?"
Bibi Dong: Just because I'm the Pope doesn't mean I can casually dip into the Spirit Hall's treasure trove!
Although Spirit Hall had the largest soul bone reserves on the continent, the demand among talented spirit masters and elders was high. Without a compelling reason, even Bibi Dong couldn't distribute them freely without causing unrest.
It was likely for this reason that she offered three soul bones as the championship prize, intending them for the Golden Generation. She hadn't expected Shrek to claim them in the end.
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