Melee archer with maxed-out Douluo luck

Chapter 288 Undercurrents, the Wind Blowing Towards Wuhun City

The day's competition has ended, and as the crowd disperses, so too does the news of today's matches spread.

Tang San's second spirit was only recognized and widely known after the delay.

That's the Clear Sky Hammer! It's the inherited martial spirit of the Clear Sky Sect, once the number one sect in the world. Most people don't know the truth about it, only that the Clear Sky Sect has rarely appeared in recent years, as if they have chosen to live in seclusion.

However, those Soul Masters who had some knowledge of the matter noticed the undercurrents surging beneath the seemingly calm surface of the water.

Tang San became famous, absolutely famous.

The emergence of a direct descendant of one of the three great sects, who has displayed astonishing talent, has stirred the interest of some.

They speculated about the Spirit Hall's reaction, but somehow news came that the Spirit Hall's Holy Son and Platinum Bishop had simply reported to Spirit City, and then nothing more was said.

The competition continued as usual, but some observant people noticed that the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall, who had just appeared not long ago, had quietly disappeared from the stands again.

Now, only Salas, looking utterly miserable, remains in the stands.

The spectators at the lower levels continued to watch the match with great interest, because after the qualifying spots were determined, the knockout stage began.

Five teams—Tianshui Academy, Canghui Academy, Chihuo Academy, Tiandou Royal Academy, and Xiangjia Academy—have secured their spots in the next round.

Because of Feng Xiaotian's injury, Shenfeng Academy was unfortunately eliminated at the last moment.

Facing the Elephant Armor Academy, which was weaker than them, the Divine Wind Academy, which had never lost in previous sparring matches, was worn down by the Elephant Armor Academy until their soul power was exhausted, and then lost the match, going to sixth place to accompany the seventh-placed Thunder Academy.

After the qualifying rounds began, Han Li, the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall, still did not appear. It was only when Tianshui Academy faced the second team of Tiandou Royal Academy that Zhu Zhuqing made another appearance.

She didn't say a word this time, and decisively defeated seven opponents once again. Tang San, who appeared last, didn't even have time to release his martial spirit before he fell to the shadow army's instant kill.

In the subsequent matches, Tianshui Academy's personnel were readjusted to the regular lineup. Although they were slightly weaker than other Blazing Fire, Divine Wind, and even Thunder teams in terms of top-tier combat power, they had five Soul Masters to rely on.

To be precise, there were six, but one of them had just broken through and had not yet obtained his fourth spirit ring. By simply attriting their strength, they once again maintained a perfect record.

This move has stirred up the speculations of many insiders. Is the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall simply venting his anger and expressing his dissatisfaction? It seems that there haven't been any rumors of the Crown Prince dating her for a while now.

In a short time, the number of people secretly visiting Yuexuan was much higher than before.

The qualifying rounds were much more exciting than before. All the teams, whether they were vying for a strong position in the finals or for a better future, showed their strength without any reservations, giving Canghui Academy and Xiangjia Academy a thorough beating.

Canghui Academy suffered the most. In the qualifiers, they were invincible in team battles, but in the promotion matches, they were even defeated by an academy ranked outside the top ten, which aroused a lot of people's cursing.

But that's the rule. They are still the teams participating in the finals, while Kamikaze and Raikage are not. As viewers, we can only accept it.

Today, Han Li was surprised to see two teams arrive in his courtyard: Blazing Fire Academy and Divine Wind Academy.

They had no matches for the past three days, so they came together.

"Great Sage Han, the battle we agreed on hasn't happened yet. You're not trying to renege, are you?"

Huo Wu's voice rang out as soon as she entered the door.

"Why are you here?"

Han Li used his mental power to notify the girls who were still cultivating in the training ground, and they lazily sat up from their recliners.

"I told you, it's a battle, a battle!"

Huo Wu was getting a little frustrated; she suspected that Han Li's hearing wasn't quite right.

"This was arranged in advance, the college agreed, and we also owe you a favor."

Huo Wushuang stopped his sister and answered seriously.

The moment he saw Han Li's appearance, his anxiety vanished.

These past few days, rumors have been circulating everywhere, with all sorts of speculations. Han Li and his group haven't shown up yet, even though they came here under a lot of pressure.

Han Li smiled and didn't bring up the matter of favors again.

"How do you want to lose? The same type of combat, or try a different style?"

Han Li straightened up, looking incredibly irritating, pointed at the four girls walking out of the training ground, and looked at the two teams in front of him.

Upon hearing his words, Feng Xiaotian and the other two were stunned. How did you manage to survive until now with such an arrogant question?

Seeing that the group was somewhat stunned, Han Li waved his hand and simply made the decision for them.

"Then let's try them all."

He winked at Shui Bing'er, who nodded and led the two teams toward the training ground.

Yes, Huo Wu was covered in the mouth by Huo Wushuang and then carried away with Feng Xiaotian. On the way to the training ground, she glared at Han Li with bared teeth and claws, as if she wanted to kill him with her eyes.

Han Li did not follow them. About fifteen minutes later, the two teams came out looking disheveled.

The worst off was Feng Xiaotian. He still looked at Xiuer with fear in his eyes, and his left arm was still hanging down, clearly indicating that he had suffered a heavy blow.

Huo Wu's eyebrows were still covered with frost, and she seemed somewhat numb.

Huo Wushuang fared slightly better, except that half of his sleeve was gone and half of his hair was burned off, leaving him with a buzz cut.

The students from both academies still had expressions of disbelief in their eyes. In those brief fifteen minutes, they had been completely outmatched by the four of them. Except for when they faced Zhu Zhuqing, they were slightly better off. Against the other three, they had almost no chance to fight back.

Especially when facing Xiuer, their eyes instinctively darted away. They never imagined that their peers could withstand their attacks and rush in front of them, slapping them one by one, leaving them completely stunned.

When facing Feng Xiaotian, Xiu'er made him use all thirty-six consecutive slashes of the Gale Wolf, but that slap still left them somewhat stunned. There was still a deep pit on the training ground, just like Feng Xiaotian's original one.

"How did it feel after the game?"

Han Li's soul power surged, and a surge of life energy shot towards the group, simply healing their superficial wounds. He wanted to ensure that no one would notice anything unusual when they left. That was all he could do; compared to Ye Lingling, he was far inferior.

"It's a good thing you didn't participate."

After a long pause, Huo Wu managed to utter a sentence, looking somewhat dejected.

"Don't compare them to others; they are just isolated cases and not representative."

Han Li didn't say anything more, then added, "But I can assure you, you're definitely not good enough for the finals."

This time, Feng Xiaotian was dejected. At least Blazing Fire Academy made it to the finals, but because of his poor decision-making, Divine Wind Academy didn't even get past the threshold of the finals.

"When you get back, you can discuss it with your dean and merge the teams into one. Your attributes are complementary. The Soul Master Competition only restricts the participation of registered students, not the teams."

Han Li's words were pointed; he was referring to Huo Wushuang.

The fact that both teams came today already signifies something, so it's not unreasonable to reciprocate. Besides, even without him, the two academies in the original story still took the same action; he was merely pointing it out to further confirm their stance.

"Wouldn't this...?"

Feng Xiaotian didn't continue speaking. He noticed the light in the eyes of the teammate beside him, and he was also somewhat tempted.

"It's up to you. If you're embarrassed, you can tell others that it's because you owe me a favor."

Han Li smiled indifferently. Weren't many people testing him? Then let's add fuel to the fire and solidify this point. If he didn't do this, they would be even bolder.

"Pack your clothes and go back. Whether you tell us about the situation here or not is up to you."

Han Li gestured for them to leave. The group exchanged glances, but followed his instructions, tidied themselves up, and headed towards the academy's residence. They needed to go back and ask their parents.

At the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, after finishing his training, Tang San found a letter on the table in his room.

After reading the letter, he left the Heaven Dou Royal Academy with some excitement and headed towards Heaven Dou City. He was going to a place called Moon Pavilion.

At the city gate of Wuhun City.

Travel-worn Yu Xiaogang crossed the city gate and looked at a place he hadn't set foot in for over twenty years.

He stepped aside from the main road and stood by the roadside, gazing in the direction of the Papal Palace. He unconsciously touched his belt. When he left, he had obtained the token from Tang Hao again. Only with this token could he have a chance to see Bibi Dong.

I wonder how things are going with Xiao San. Judging by the time, the qualifying rounds should be over soon, Yu Xiaogang thought to himself, looking down as he withdrew his gaze.

Along the way, everyone was rushing, and in Wuhun City, because the competition between the two empires had not yet ended, there was no corresponding atmosphere yet.

Tomorrow, I'll go see Bibi Dong. No matter what, I'm already here, so I might as well give it a try.

Yu Xiaogang cheered himself up, peeked around, and walked into a hotel that looked decent. He needed to rest and freshen up.

Outside the Papal Palace, after receiving a response, a guard entered carrying a piece of intelligence and respectfully placed it in front of Bibi Dong.

Bibi Dong's gaze swept over the list and settled on Yu Xiaogang's name.

She quickly picked it up, read the contents, and after a long while, put the intelligence back on the table, muttering to herself:

"Xiao Gang..."

In the silent hall, a long time passed without any further sound.

(End of this chapter)