The anomaly at Shrek Academy had lasted for quite some time.
When the golden light covering the sky vanished, it also signified that Mu En's fusion with the Gold Tree had ended.
"Everyone, I apologize for worrying you."
Mu En's voice echoed throughout Sea God's Pavilion.
"Elder Mu!"
"Teacher, you've succeeded!"
Elder Song, Elder Zhuang, and Xian Lin'er, among others, revealed expressions of excitement and joy upon hearing his voice.
"It was a success."
"And it feels quite good, hahaha."
Mu En laughed heartily and said at ease, "Furthermore, after fusing with the Gold Tree, I discovered that I now possess some miraculous abilities, which may be of great help to Shrek Academy in the future."
What he referred to was the ability to briefly merge with another person, enhancing the combat strength of the fused individual.
If he could merge with Xuan Zi, then for a brief period, they could create a 99th-level Ultimate Douluo, or perhaps even stronger.
This was an unexpected joy indeed.
"That's really great."
Satisfied smiles appeared on everyone's faces.
But.
Those smiles were all feigned.
They didn't want to appear too sad, fearing their emotions would affect Mu En.
It was the same old story.
If there had been any other choice, who would willingly imprison their spiritual will within a big tree?
Wasn't that akin to constructing one's own prison?
At that moment, Xian Lin'er said, "Teacher, Xuan Zi returned earlier. However, before we could finish telling him about your situation, he left again."
"Oh? What exactly happened?" Mu En pressed for details.
Then, Xian Lin'er recounted to Mu En everything that happened after Xuan Zi's return.
A long while later.
Mu En sighed, "Let him be. With his cultivation level, he shouldn't encounter any trouble. The only ones who will suffer are the Evil Soul Masters."
...
Early in the morning.
Star Luo Plaza was buzzing with voices.
Today's audience was even larger than yesterday's, occupying one-third of the venue.
Xu Jiawei, seeing this, was deeply moved and felt like crying.
Every time it came to this, he would lament, if only there hadn't been so many unnecessary troubles earlier... a loss of tens of millions.
"Come on."
"Boss, today we are cheering for you from the stands."
"Qin Xiao, don't be nervous. Don't put too much pressure on yourself, just open your spiritual sharing, and we'll have won. Just perform normally,"
Chen Fei, Chen An, and Lin Xi, sitting in the stands, were cheering for Qin Xiao, Ma Rulong, and the others.
Elder Ma waved his hand to cut off everyone, "Alright, let's not talk too much. I've booked a restaurant, just waiting to treat you all to a big meal."
"Hehe, then today Elder Ma will have to bleed a bit,"
Qin Xiao chuckled, then followed Ma Rulong, Mika, Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and the rest onto the stage.
It wasn't until they took their place on the arena that they saw The Fighting Spirit Royal Advanced Soul Master Academy's team also making their way onto the stage.
Among their seven members, there were five men and two women.
Seizing the opportunity, Ma Rulong quickly introduced them: "The Dou Ling Battle Team captain is Gu Zhu Jian, the one who just spoke. Martial Soul: Purple Glowing Bamboo, a 57th-level Direct Attack Class War Soul King. As a Tool Soul Direct Attack Class Battle Soul Master, his combat power is formidable.
Their vice-captain is the burly young man standing beside Gu Zhu Jian, named Qian Yuan, with a rare Direct Attack Class Beast Martial Soul, the Dreadclaw Bear. The Dreadclaw Bear's Martial Soul has immense strength and excellent offense and defense. It's one of the top-tier Martial Souls. His Soul Power is also at level 53."
"The core of the Dou Ling Battle Team is the slender young man standing at the back, named Xiao Feng, 'Feng' as in crazy. His Martial Soul is the rare Spiritual Martial Soul, named Enigmatic Orb. However, his Spiritual Martial Soul doesn't directly affect the opponent but mainly aims at the environment. Extremely formidable. He is one of the five great Soul Kings, with Soul Power only less than the captain, Gu Zhu Jian, and a level higher than the vice-captain Qian Yuan, at level 54."
"Besides them, there are two Soul Kings, who are the 52nd-level Defense Class War Soul King, Chi Hengyu, and the 51st-level Agile Attack Class War Soul King, Han Ling'er. Han Ling'er is one of the two female members."
"The remaining two Soul Ancestors are Tang Niuniu of the support class and Qing Feng of the control class, each with their characteristics."
After listening to Ma Rulong, everyone silently nodded, committing his words to memory.
Just as Ma Rulong finished speaking, the seven members of the Sky Spirit Royal Team also arrived at the arena, standing across from Qin Xiao, Ma Rulong, and the rest, ready for a showdown.
The young man leading the Fighting Spirit Royal Academy Team was tall but skinny, his cheeks slightly gaunt. Yet, his eyes were bright and alert.
Taking a few steps forward, he approached the referee's side, as if facing a formidable enemy: "Dou Ling Battle Team, we request your guidance."
Ma Rulong crossed his arms and smiled faintly, "If I remember correctly, your name is Gu Zhu Jian, right? Don't be nervous, just do your best. Even if you lose, no one will blame you."
Gu Zhu Jian was briefly startled and then somewhat exasperatedly said, "Ma Rulong, don't think just because you are from the Sun Moon Team that you can take us for granted. I'm telling you, our strength isn't weak either."
The Sun-Moon Empire and the Sky Spirit, Dou Spirit, and Star Luo Empires had always been at odds, each seizing opportunities to scorn and suppress the other whenever possible.
The air was thick with tension.
That picture of mutual humility and respect was almost exclusively reserved for dreams.
Ma Rulong smiled faintly, "I'm looking forward to it."