Douluo Continent II: The Dragon King Suppresses the World!

Chapter 52 One Wave Takes It All

The seven students from Changning Academy rushed onto the competition stage at lightning speed immediately after the draw. Although they had not yet fully retreated to their battle positions, they had already quickly formed a wedge formation, and standing at the very front was none other than the arrogant and domineering captain.

After Ye Qi'an finished his long-winded explanation, Gu Yuena and the other two nodded repeatedly, and then they followed each other onto the competition stage.

At this moment, the referee saw that only three members of Shrek Academy had come up on stage, and a look of doubt appeared on his face. He said loudly, "This is a team battle. Please have the rest of your team members come up on stage quickly, otherwise it will be considered that they have forfeited."

Hearing the referee's words, the captain of Changning Academy's face revealed an even more contemptuous smile. He laughed loudly, "Shrek Academy is really no good these days. They're so nervous that they make such basic mistakes. Alas, what a pity for the reputation of the continent's number one academy. Although our Changning Academy is not the number one academy on the continent, defeating the number one academy on the continent today is still a good experience."

Gu Yuena didn't even glance at the group from Changning Academy, and said in a calm voice, "You don't really think you're that strong, do you? No matter how many ants there are, they're still just ants. Crushing you is a piece of cake." As she spoke, she led Huo Yuhao and Ling Luochen to one side of the competition stage.

The referee was taken aback and couldn't help but ask, "Are there really only three of you participating?"

"Remember to protect them." Ling Luochen nodded and said, then walked away slowly.

Ling Luochen had retreated to the edge of the arena. She stood in front, Huo Yuhao behind her, and Gu Yuena beside them. At this moment, Ling Luochen, whose expression was already icy, became even more frighteningly cold, as if she could freeze the surrounding air.

The opponent finally retreated to the edge of the playing platform. The referee raised his right hand. "Both sides are ready, the match begins!"

As his right hand fell instantly, the seven members of Changning Academy quickly released their respective martial souls. Apart from their captain, who was a Soul King, the other six were all Soul Master level members. Moreover, their captain's soul rings were the best combination of two yellow, two purple, and one black.

Ling Luochen also released her martial soul, displaying two yellow, two purple, and one black rings, while Huo Yuhao behind her had two white spirit rings, and Gu Yuena had four golden spirit rings. Gu Yuena's fourth golden spirit ring shone brightly, instantly activating the Devouring Heaven and Earth Domain. Instantly, the elemental power within the arena began to shift towards ice, surging towards the members of Changning Academy. Huo Yuhao immediately released his Ultimate Ice, amplifying Ling Luochen's power.

Ling Luochen raised her right hand, and with the arrival of her first spirit ring, the Ice Staff appeared in her grasp. The surrounding air grew even colder, and feeling the enhancement from the extreme ice attribute, she directly activated her fifth spirit ring.

The seven students from Changning Academy on the other side had just released their martial souls when they sensed something was wrong, because they all felt the temperature drop sharply, and then they saw a circle of ice-blue light instantly expand outwards from the other side.

"Shrek Academy is insane, everyone be careful!" Captain Changning cursed under his breath, immediately releasing his soul skill to prepare for a cautious resistance.

In his view, a soul skill with such a large coverage area couldn't possibly be that powerful. After they withstood it, it would be time to counterattack, but was it really as easy as they thought? You must know that Gu Yuena had already used the Devouring Heaven and Earth Domain to completely transform the arena into an ice battlefield, greatly enhancing ice-attribute abilities. All that awaited them was freezing.

Soon, everyone from Changning Academy witnessed a scene that left him speechless. In his view, the referee, who was quickly retreating from the center of the arena, froze on the spot, instantly turning into an ice sculpture, remaining motionless in his retreating posture.

Before the people from Changning Academy could react, they all felt the extreme cold, one after another. The intense chill made each of them feel a sudden coldness, and then their vision blurred. In an instant, they were frozen into eight ice sculptures, and even half of their soul-guiding shields were frozen, clearly separated from the positions where Gu Yuena and the other two stood.

Huo Yuhao's heart clenched inwardly. He thought to himself, "Why would they need my help? Looking at the iceberg in front of him, these students from Changning Academy will be frozen for at least a few days."

The audience and representatives from each college were stunned. Then the ice broke, and the referee emerged. However, he shivered several times, wanting to say something, but ultimately swallowed his words.

Gu Yuena looked at the seven students from Changning Academy frozen in ice, recalling Ye Qi'an's arrogant boast during the lottery draw, and her anger flared. A massive azure wind blade materialized before her, radiating a chilling aura, as if it were a blade capable of slicing through everything in the world. The air around the wind blade was distorted and twisted, emitting a sharp whistling sound.

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao was startled and quickly stepped forward, saying, "Sister Nana, isn't this going too far? They've already been punished."

Ling Luochen frowned slightly and said, "A lesson is enough. There's no need to go to extremes. After all, this is just a competition."

Gu Yuena looked at the two of them, remained silent for a moment, but still released the wind blade in her hand. The cyan wind blade swept across the arena, bringing with it a sharp whistling sound, and struck the iceberg directly. The iceberg shattered into pieces, and the seven people frozen in the ice were sent flying straight out of the arena along with the iceberg breaking apart.

"No need to thank me. I got them out for you, saving you time. Consider this a lesson learned," Gu Yuena said with a cold snort.

A murmur rippled through the audience, who were speechless with shock at Gu Yuena's domineering action. The members of the various academy teams exchanged bewildered glances, their awe of Shrek Academy growing even stronger.

The referee was stunned. He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say. After a while, he came to his senses, cleared his throat, and loudly announced, "Shrek Academy wins!"

"Boom—" The entire audience erupted in uproar.

Huo Yuhao and Ling Luochen exchanged a glance, shook their heads helplessly, but still breathed a sigh of relief. They knew Gu Yuena's temper; once Ye Qi'an was involved, it was difficult to change her mind.

The students of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy all had stiff expressions on their faces. As if they had lost the ability to think, they stared at the iceberg they had just seen, wondering to themselves, "Was that really a ten-thousand-year soul skill?"

As Gu Yuena, Ling Luochen, and Huo Yuhao stepped off the stage, the rest of the Shrek Academy students exchanged bewildered glances. It was all because their opposing captain had so arrogantly said something about Ye Qi'an that Gu Yuena had nearly sent dust flying from their faces.

Xiao Xiao, Wang Dong, and Jiang Nannan's gazes towards Ye Qi'an and Gu Yuena all changed. What kind of domineering, protective, and icy older sister is this?

When Gu Yuena came to his side, Ye Qi'an gently took her hand and whispered, "Don't be so impulsive next time."

Gu Yuena raised her chin slightly, a hint of stubbornness flashing in her eyes: "They shouldn't have offended you."

Gu Yuena's words warmed Ye Qi'an's heart. He knew his important place in Gu Yuena's heart. At this moment, the audience around the arena was still immersed in the shocking scene just now, and the discussion was rising and falling.

The students of Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy were deeply moved and began to re-evaluate the gap between themselves and Shrek Academy. Meanwhile, other academy teams were also secretly considering how to deal with Shrek Academy if they encountered them in the later matches.

As usual, the Shrek Academy team didn't linger, quickly leaving the venue and returning to their hotel after the match. The round-robin tournament had entered its fourth round, the middle stage. Shrek Academy's Group 1 consisted of only eight teams, with each team playing seven matches to complete one round.

In the next three matches, Shrek Academy did not encounter any opponents who could pose a threat to them. Ye Qi'an and Gu Yuena simply did not participate in the following matches, leaving all the matches to the seven reserve team members. Through two singles elimination matches and one team battle, they defeated their opponents one after another, finally advancing as the top team in their group with a perfect record of seven wins. Along with them, Zheng Tian Academy, whose finger was crushed by Ye Qi'an, also advanced from the first group.

Because there were still nine teams in the other groups, they were given three days of rest after the Shrek Academy competition ended, and Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng had fully recovered from their injuries.

In the past few days, Xiao Xiao broke through the bottleneck of level 30. Now all that is missing is the third spirit ring. Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong, with the help of Hao Dong power, continued to cultivate and their spirit power increased by one level in a short period of time. They also improved the next few spirit fusion skills. With everyone's injuries healed, the Shrek Academy team also returned to its peak state.

"The bracket for the knockout stage has been released." Wang Yan said in a deep voice, his brows slightly furrowed and his expression solemn.

"Our opponent in the round of 16 is an old rival, the number one academy of the Douling Empire, the Douling Royal Academy."

Upon hearing the words "Douling Royal Academy," Ma Xiaotao frowned deeply, Dai Yueheng's expression turned serious, and Ling Luochen narrowed his eyes, gazing thoughtfully ahead.

Ma Xiaotao frowned and said, "We ran into them so early?"

Xiao Xiao asked curiously, "Is the Douling Royal Academy very strong?"

Ma Xiaotao said, "The top four from last year, do you think they were strong or not?"

Wang Yan said, "The current roster of the Douling Royal Academy includes five Soul Kings and two Soul Masters, making them very strong. Almost every member of their team possesses a Soul Guidance Device and is proficient in using it during the competition."

"I have the most experience in fighting Soul Kings. I can win one-on-one, crush two, easily defeat three, win four, and have the advantage in five. My record is verifiable." Ye Qi'an stood up, his voice firm and powerful.

Upon hearing Ye Qi'an's words, everyone was taken aback at first, and then different expressions appeared on their faces.

Ma Xiaotao slightly raised the corners of her mouth, a hint of admiration in her eyes: "You do have some confidence, but the Douling Royal Academy is not so easy to deal with."

Dai Yueheng nodded in agreement: "That's right. They are very strong overall and their teamwork is excellent. We can't let our guard down."

Ling Luochen looked at Ye Qi'an thoughtfully: "Do you have any specific strategies? After all, facing such a powerful opponent, confidence alone is not enough."

Ye Qi'an glanced around at everyone present and said calmly, "I have more than just confidence. If the competition didn't prohibit malicious killing, I could wipe out a team in just one move."

When Ye Qi'an said this, the entire room fell silent. Everyone stared at him in shock, their eyes filled with disbelief.

Wang Yan nodded thoughtfully. Elder Xuan had told him that Ye Qi'an possessed a soul bone, which was the external soul bone of the right paw of the Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear. He couldn't say for sure how strong its attack power was.

"Alright, Qi'an, please sit down. Let me explain the rules of the knockout stage to everyone," Wang Yan said.

"The Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament has evolved over tens of thousands of years, and its rules have been constantly changing..."

"Teacher Wang, what if someone gets injured or is too exhausted during a team match and can't participate in the individual competition?"

Wang Yan said, "Every academy that comes to participate in the competition brings a reserve team, just like you were originally a reserve team. If the main players experience the situation you described, the reserve team must step in."

"Now I'll arrange the players for tomorrow's match: Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, Ling Luochen, Ye Qi'an, Xu Sanshi, Huo Yuhao, and Wang Dong. The seven of you will participate in the team battle, with Ling Luochen and Huo Yuhao as the main controllers, and the rest of you launching a frontal assault to defeat the opponent with your overall strength. As for the rotation lineup, Nana, Beibei, Xiaoxiao, Nannan, and Caitou should also be ready to join the battle at any time."

The return of two Soul Emperors and one Soul King has filled Wang Yan with confidence that they will win. They only need to win four more elimination matches to secure the final championship. Moreover, they have at least two Martial Soul Fusion Skills.

Just then, there was a knock on the conference room door, and a melodious female voice came from outside: "Excuse me for disturbing you, I am from Starlight Auction House."

Upon hearing the somewhat familiar voice, Wang Yan was momentarily stunned. He saw a woman in a long black dress standing outside the door. She looked to be in her late twenties, a time when a woman possesses mature charm yet retains a youthful spirit.

Qingya's gaze fell directly on Wang Yan. She smiled slightly and bowed to Wang Yan, saying, "Hello, Teacher Wang. I apologize for disturbing you all."

When Wang Yan saw it was her, his gaze softened slightly, and he said in a deep voice, "What do you want? And how did you find your way here?"

Qingya said apologetically, "When you purchased the auction items last time, you paid using Shrek Academy's account, so we naturally guessed who you were from..." As she spoke, she took out a stack of invitations and placed them on the table. Then, with a smile, she bowed again and said, "I won't disturb you any longer." With that, she slowly retreated, left the room, and closed the door behind her.

Looking at the stack of exquisitely crafted gold-embossed invitations, Wang Yan narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "Thirteen invitations, not one missing, and they even managed to send them over despite the Star Luo Empire's official blockade of the hotel. Truly a grand gesture."

Dai Yueheng took the invitation, glanced at it, and said, "It is indeed a top-tier auction. The auctioneer is right; auctions of this caliber only happen once or twice a year. Professor Wang, what do you think?"

Ye Qi'an glanced at Gu Yuena, who closed her beautiful eyes slightly and nodded after a while. The two of them, using the fake identities they had previously used, had also received two invitations. To be on the safe side, Di Tian was also on standby at any time.

At this moment, Wang Yan looked around at all the students and saw a glimmer of hope in almost everyone's eyes.

"Alright. Everyone's been participating in the competition, so you should relax a bit. However, observe more and speak less to avoid any trouble. Tomorrow's competition is crucial and cannot be affected in any way. Go back to the hotel to rest immediately after the auction."

"Long live Teacher Wang!" Xiao Xiao was the first to jump up, and Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong and the others also had excited expressions on their faces.

Wang Yan laughed and scolded, "Everyone, get your minds back on track. I need to plan the tactics for tomorrow's match."

Arranging the game tactics didn't take too long. Afterwards, everyone went back to their rooms to cultivate. After dinner, they changed into ordinary clothes, took the invitations from the Starlight Auction House, and went to the Starlight Auction House. As always, Ye Qi'an and Gu Yuena declined to go with the others, citing cultivation as their reason. After everyone else had left, the two of them quietly left.

.........

(End of this chapter)