Douluo Continent: Starting with the Burning Blade, he was then entangled with Ma Xiaotao.

Chapter 85 Six Red Soul Rings

"Those people should be thankful it happened during the Soul Fighting Tournament, otherwise they wouldn't have survived to seek revenge against the Star Luo Emperor."

Jin Peng's eyes flashed with a fierce glint as he looked at the three young men who had just entered the Star Emperor Hotel. Those three were none other than the three Soul Kings from the Sun Moon Empire's escort team.

Under his guidance, Lin Feng and his two companions passed through the secret passage without incident and successfully returned to Xingluo City.

The atmosphere in the city was noticeably more tense than when they left. There were more soldiers patrolling the streets, and the aura of high-level Soul Masters could be seen sweeping through from time to time. Even the Star Emperor Hotel had increased security, and people had to be questioned before entering or leaving.

"Mr. Jin, that's enough for now. Please be careful. Keep those five storage devices safe. I have a competition to participate in later, so it's not safe for them to stay with me."

"Alright, see you at the sect after the competition."

After saying goodbye to Jin Peng, Lin Feng went straight back to the hotel. Because he was a member of the Shrek Academy team, the guards simply verified his identity and let him through without giving him any trouble.

For the next week, the Star Luo Empire put on a show, publicly declaring a full-scale investigation into the theft of auction items and deploying a large number of soldiers to search the area, causing quite a stir. But it was clear to everyone that this was just a facade for the Sun Moon Empire.

Although the Sun Moon Empire was furious, they couldn't produce any conclusive evidence to identify who did it, and since no one had been killed, they could only swallow their anger and suffer in silence.

As for the 100 million gold soul coins offered by the Adventurers' Guild—Jin Peng and Lin Feng both knew that now was definitely not the time to claim it. This money could only be temporarily recorded in their accounts.

The city was on high alert due to the auction robbery, and martial law was imposed throughout the city. However, the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament was not suspended, and the competition proceeded as scheduled.

The competition quickly moved to the semifinals, which consisted of team matches, individual elimination rounds, and a best-of-three format.

On the first day, two team battles were held.

The lottery results are in.

Shrek Academy will face off against the host Star Luo National Academy; the other match will be between Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy and Di'ao Academy.

On the competition stage, the seven members of the Star Luo National Academy were already in place. Centered around Princess Xu Jiujiu, there were a total of seven Soul Kings. This was the strongest lineup that the host Star Luo Empire could field.

On Shrek Academy's side, seven figures slowly walked onto the stage.

Six unfamiliar faces—Ma Xiaotao, Ling Luochen, Dai Yueheng, Xixi, Tang Ya, and Lin Feng—stood side by side for the first time on the highly anticipated semi-final stage.

Jiang Nannan, who was standing next to them, had already proven her strong strength through numerous victories in many matches.

"The match begins!" The referee, Huang Jinxu, the Heavenly Fiend Douluo, shouted.

The next moment, the dazzling light of both soul rings suddenly burst forth, with yellow, purple and black light intertwining and rising!

Wait a minute—red?

One, two, three — six red spirit rings in total?

A Soul Saint with a seventh soul ring after 100,000 years of cultivation?

There's another Soul King with five 100,000-year Soul Rings?

How is that possible?!

Huang Jinxu, the Heavenly Fiend Douluo who was closest to the scene, suddenly narrowed his eyes, gasped, and could hardly believe what he was seeing.

The entire Xingluo Square seemed to be suddenly gripped by an invisible giant hand, falling into a deathly silence. In the audience, countless faces froze, filled with near-dumbfounded shock.

Soon, the immense pressure of the 100,000-year-old soul ring spread out without reservation, instantly dissipating the aura created by the seven Soul Kings of the Star Luo National Academy.

After regaining his senses, Huang Jinxu, the Heavenly Fiend Douluo, confirmed that this was not a simulated soul skill, but the genuine pressure of a 100,000-year soul ring.

Soul Emperors under the age of twenty are extremely rare, even in the history of the competition.

Not to mention the Soul Saint, who hasn't appeared in over a hundred years.

At this moment, Shrek Academy actually produced a Soul Saint with a 100,000-year-old seventh soul ring and three Soul Emperors.

And a bizarre Soul King with five 100,000-year Soul Rings —

This is a hopeless level of dominance.

It's worth noting that among the other two semi-final teams, only Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy and Emperor Academy each have a Soul Emperor.

At the highest VIP seat, the Emperor of the Star Luo Empire lingered on Ma Xiaotao for a long time, his face revealing neither joy nor anger. He spoke calmly, "A Soul Saint with a seventh soul ring after ten thousand years, a three-headed fire phoenix—she has the potential to become a Limit Douluo—how wonderful it would be if she were a citizen of the Star Luo Empire. And that strange Soul King, can you see through him, my worthy brother?"

"Judging from the way he releases his martial spirit and his fighting style, it's very likely that he has a true body martial spirit, or even that he might be from the True Body Sect of the Heavenly Soul Empire. As for those five red spirit rings, I can't see much of a clue either, but he definitely has twin martial spirits." Duke Dai Hao of the White Tiger, who was sitting next to him, said with a solemn expression.

"The Body Sect of the Heavenly Soul Empire—" Emperor Xingluo also had a solemn expression. The Body Sect does not appear easily, and when it does, it will definitely make a big move.

After a long while, he remembered Dai Yueheng and suddenly praised, "Yueheng is quite a good child. In five years, he has already reached the Soul Emperor realm. He is a prodigy and a blessing to the empire. My good brother, you have raised a fine son."

Duke Dai Hao of the White Tiger, sitting beside him, said respectfully, "Your Majesty flatters me. Yao Heng's achievements today are entirely due to the joint cultivation of the Empire and Shrek Academy. Although Princess Jiu Jiu is younger, her talent is no less than Yao Heng's. Given time, she will surely surpass my son."

The emperor nodded slightly, saying nothing more, and turned his gaze back to the arena below. But a faint, obscure glint flashed in the depths of his calm eyes.

With the appearance of a Soul Saint and three Soul Emperors, the suspense of this semi-final match had essentially vanished.

The seven Soul Kings of Xingluo National Academy, having honed their skills over many years, were incredibly resilient. They gave it their all, and the brilliance of their Soul Skills shone brightly on the stage.

But faced with an absolute gap in strength, all efforts seem futile and scattered.

"Semifinal Match 1, Team Battle, Shrek Academy wins."

In the short time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the competition came to an end with the cold, emotionless announcement from Tian Sha Douluo.

In the VIP section, Emperor Xingluo's expression was calm, but the back of his hand resting on the gilded armrest was slightly tense.

The atmosphere behind him, filled with high-ranking imperial officials, was even more tense—

In the second half, the team battle between Di'ao Academy and Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy began.

In this team battle, Ma Rulong, the captain of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, made his first appearance. His performance can only be described as breathtaking and effortless.

Despite being a Soul Emperor, he was able to control two incredibly powerful level-seven soul tools, almost single-handedly suppressing the entire Imperial Academy team. His powerful firepower and control demonstrated the terrifying strength of the young leader of Mingde Hall.

The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy emerged victorious in this team competition.

On the second day of the individual elimination rounds, Xingluo National Academy opted to forfeit. Facing Shrek Academy, which boasted Soul Saint Ma Xiaotao and three Soul Emperors, Xingluo National Academy, lacking even a single Soul Emperor, had absolutely no chance of winning.

Shrek Academy advanced to the finals with a best-of-three record.

The other semi-final individual elimination match was particularly intense. Jiang Peng, the captain of Di'ao Academy, was the first to take the stage. As the first genius in the academy's history to break through to Soul Emperor before the age of 2,000, his strength was extremely formidable.

But in the end, he was no match for Ma Rulong, who even accomplished the feat of taking on seven opponents at once, displaying his invincible prowess.

Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy also won two out of three matches, advancing to the finals.

The finalists have now been decided.

As in previous editions, the two destined rivals will ultimately stand on the stage of the Star Plaza showdown.

Shrek Academy and Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.