Douro Continent

Chapter 411 Star Luo Royal Academy Team (Part 1)

The first round of draws is undoubtedly very important. Being able to draw a relatively weak opponent is quite advantageous for any team.

This is especially true for teams like Shrek Academy, who get a bye in the second round. If they can easily win in the first round, they can conserve their energy and focus on the third round. The real competition begins from the third round.

Flanders returned quickly, looking much better and beaming with joy. Judging from his smug expression, it was clear he had drawn a very good lot.

Suddenly, Flander's expression turned serious, and he addressed the crowd: "One bad news, one good news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then Dai Mubai said, "Let's start with the bad news."

Flander said in a deep voice, "The bad news is that your first-round opponent is Blazing Academy."

"Blazing Fire Academy?" Everyone frowned as expected. Since the Blazing Fire Academy team devised a way to deal with Tang San during the qualifying rounds, and two other students advanced to level 40 or above, they have become one of the strongest teams on the Heaven Dou Empire's side, not much weaker than Divine Wind Academy.

Don't be fooled by Shrek Academy's easy victories in the qualifying rounds; they suffered a lot in the preliminary rounds.

Of course, Blazing Academy is not enough to stop their progress, but encountering such a strong team, especially in the first round, is not a good draw.

Tang San couldn't help but say, "How come we always run into them in every competition? It's such a coincidence."

The master calmly asked, "Flander, what's the good news?"

Flander chuckled, "The good news is that Blazing Academy has forfeited the finals and automatically withdrawn."

LOL... Almost everyone at Shrek Academy had this expression.

Liu Erlong said, "Blazing Fire Academy has put in a lot of effort to reach the finals, why would they suddenly forfeit?"

Flander spread his hands and said, "Don't ask me, I don't know either. The news came out suddenly. But anyway, it's good news for us. We got a bye in the first two rounds."

Ning Rongrong chuckled and said, "That's not bad, they've already made it into the top ten before even playing."

Flander said, "The competition is about to begin. You all need to take a good look at your opponents. This is an elimination tournament, so it's not easy to hide your strength. The biggest advantage of having a bye in the first two rounds is not that you don't have to fight, but that you can better understand your opponents' strength. Those who can enter the third round will not be weak, at least not weaker than the Blazing Academy."

The grand opening ceremony of the finals was nothing like what I had imagined. Everything was simple: a cardinal from the Spirit Hall took the stage, announced the start of the finals, and simultaneously announced the matchups and the bye list. The matches began under the direction of referees specially selected by the Spirit Hall.

Neither side in the first match was particularly strong, and the Shrek Seven Devils couldn't help but whisper among themselves in their rest area.

Oscar said, "This final doesn't seem as grand as the qualifiers. There wasn't even an opening ceremony. And the number of spectators is pitifully small. Maybe a few thousand at most."

Tang San said, "Although there are only a few thousand people, don't forget that they are all Soul Masters. And the vast majority of them should belong to the Spirit Hall."

The Spirit Hall's policy of not allowing civilians to watch the matches must have its reasons. Didn't the teacher say that the final three-way battle would be held in front of the Pope's Palace? That's when the real climax of the finals will occur. The current calm is likely preparation for that climax.

The first match ended quickly. In the second match, Shenfeng Academy faced Longkui Academy of the Xingluo Empire.

"What?" When the Shrek Academy students saw the lineup of the Divine Wind Academy, they couldn't help but stand up in surprise.

Among the lineup of Shenfeng Academy, four people were surprisingly different, and these four people were actually from Chihuo Academy.

The dozen or so academies on the Star Luo Empire side were fine, but the Heaven Dou Empire side was in an uproar. How did members of the Blazing Fire Academy end up in the Divine Wind Academy?

The master frowned, and Flander couldn't help but say, "What's going on? I'll go ask the organizing committee." With that, he quickly walked away.

The commotion below naturally had no impact on the match. Huo Wu was positioned at the rear, while Feng Xiaotian and Huo Wushuang stood at the very front of the team. When they all revealed their spirit rings, their opponents felt a chill run down their spines.

The seven people representing Shenfeng Academy were undoubtedly all Soul Masters of level 40 or above. The entire match was practically a one-sided massacre. Huo Wu didn't even have to use her Fire Resistance Ring.

Dai Mubai asked the master, "Didn't they say that participating academies can't change their members midway through the competition?"

The master's eyes suddenly lit up. "They must have exploited a loophole in the rules. While participating academies can't change members mid-competition, that doesn't mean they can't temporarily switch academies once they've already registered. There's no explicit rule on that. Huo Wu's students are all on the list for this year's finals. As long as the Spirit Hall approves, they can switch academies."

Xiao Wu said, "Then can't we do that too?"

The master shook his head. "It's too late. The competition has already begun, and the final spots for each team in the finals have been determined. Moreover, they will all participate today, and once they have participated, it's impossible to change the academy's position. Besides, which academy would give up its place in the finals? Blazing Fire Academy has gone all out this time. I wonder what they paid to get the Spirit Hall to be so accommodating."

A short while later, Flander returned with a gloomy expression. The Spirit Hall's reply was simple: within the scope of the rules, the organizing committee would not interfere.

Although the two academies merged into one, they ultimately gave up a spot in the finals. In a sense, Shrek Academy is still the beneficiary.

Shrek Academy wasn't the only one protesting; many academies from the Heaven Dou Empire lodged similar protests. However, they experienced the Spirit Hall's firmness for the first time. The Spirit Hall's final response was simply: those who didn't want to participate could withdraw. The organizing committee was absolutely fair.

The Heaven Dou Empire did not intervene in this matter. After all, the strengthened Divine Wind Academy still belonged to the Heaven Dou Empire, and if they could achieve good results, it would not be bad for the Heaven Dou Empire.

Currently, the relationship between the two great empires and the Spirit Hall is at least outwardly harmonious. They certainly wouldn't intentionally offend the Spirit Hall over such a trivial matter.

The first two rounds of the competition ended quickly, and the top ten of the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament were determined.

The third round of the competition is about to begin. In this round, Shenfeng Academy and the Star Luo Empire, which finished second in the qualifying round, will receive a bye. Shrek Academy will also be playing its first match in the finals.

If nothing unexpected happened in the first two rounds, then the atmosphere in the finals suddenly became tense after the draw results for the third round were announced.

Shrek Academy's good luck seemed to have run out in the first two rounds. Their opponent in the third round was the Star Luo Royal Advanced Soul Master Academy, the one selected by the Star Luo Empire among the three seeded teams.

However, this was not the most eye-catching match. What was even more surprising was another match: the Spirit Hall Advanced Soul Master Academy versus the Heaven Dou Royal Advanced Soul Master Academy.

The clash between the two seeded teams seems to indirectly prove the fairness of the finals.

Without a doubt, both of these matches are of paramount importance.

With half an hour to go before the start of the competition, the top ten finalists have entered the arena to make their final preparations and warm up.

"Brother Dai, what's wrong?" Ma Hongjun asked, somewhat puzzled. Ever since learning the draw results, Dai Mubai seemed to be in a very low mood, remaining silent throughout his journey from his residence to the competition venue. This was completely different from his usual demeanor.

Tang San naturally noticed that Dai Mubai's emotions were off, but his feeling was different from Ma Hongjun's. Although Dai Mubai was very silent, Tang San could sense that he seemed to be holding back something.

Either erupt in silence, or perish in silence. Given Dai Mubai's personality, the former is undoubtedly the case. His inner fighting spirit seems to have reached its peak.

It wasn't just Dai Mubai who was emotionally unstable; Zhu Zhuqing was too. However, Zhu Zhuqing's expression was different from Dai Mubai's; her usually cold eyes were now filled with excitement.

Dai Mubai did not answer Ma Hongjun's question, but Zhu Zhuqing stood up. She bowed to everyone.

"Zhuqing, what are you doing?" The master frowned slightly.

Zhu Zhuqing glanced at Dai Mubai, "We must win this match. This is our only chance."

Oscar asked, "What exactly happened? Do you have enemies at the Star Luo Royal Academy?"

Zhu Zhuqing shook her head and said, "No. This is a struggle between families. Mu Bai and I are both from the Star Luo Empire, belonging to two major families. The relationship between our two families is extremely close, with a custom of intermarriage. In each family, only the most outstanding person can become the future heir. Neither Mu Bai nor I are the eldest sons of our families. My sister and Mu Bai's brother were betrothed since childhood, as were Mu Bai and I."

(End of this chapter)