Douluo Dalu II: The Peerless Tang Sect

Chapter 357 Clash between the Academic School and the Sect School!

After Orange finished speaking, the chief referee of the competition naturally read out the competition rules. Zhu Ziyang and the others already knew the rules beforehand, so there was nothing to say. After the rules were read out, the competition officially began.

As the opening match of the tournament, the previous champion Shrek Academy team should have participated. However, since Shrek Academy received a bye in the first round and directly advanced to the second round, the qualification for the opening match naturally passed to the previous runner-up team, Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team.

Therefore, the first match is between the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team and the Dragon Slayer Sect team!

The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team were all familiar faces, so Zhu Ziyang didn't pay them much attention. However, the seven members of the Dragon Slaying Sect team looked confident and fearless. They couldn't possibly be unaware of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy's reputation; the only explanation was that they were genuinely confident and looked down on the academy faction from the bottom of their hearts.

That's quite normal. Soul Masters from sects are generally stronger than those from academies. This has been an unchanging rule since ancient times. However, are these sect-trained Soul Masters a bit too closed off and overconfident?

Zhu Ziyang shook his head with a helpless smile, seemingly feeling sorry for the Dragon Slaying Sect.

The match began, and the first player sent out by the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team was Vice Captain Meng Hongchen. After all, it was the opening match, and it was on their own country's home turf, so they had to win the first match as well as neatly and decisively as possible!

As soon as Meng Hongchen stepped onto the stage, she was greeted with a thunderous roar of cheers. This was because Meng Hongchen's beautiful figure appeared simultaneously on the soul-guided light screen projecting the arena into the air above the audience, along with a line of subtitles.

"Meng Hongchen, 19 years old, vice captain of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team, student of Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, member of Mingde Hall."

This simple introduction immediately ignited the emotions of all the citizens of the Sun Moon Empire present. Everyone cheered for this beautiful girl, as if she represented their own country.

The Dragon Slayer Sect players who came on from the other side did not receive such treatment. In fact, only the members of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team received this treatment. It is perfectly normal for the home team to receive some special treatment when playing on their home turf. This kind of treatment only affects the audience and does not have much impact on the players who are actually participating in the competition.

"Wow, what a grand gesture!" Ma Xiaotao couldn't help but exclaim in amazement. "I'm even a little envious. I wonder if we get this kind of treatment."

"Hehe, don't even think about it, Sister Tao. If we had that kind of treatment, that would really scare me," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile.

"Brother, watch the game, don't talk!" Jiang Nannan pulled Zhu Ziyang's gaze away, a hint of jealousy on her pretty face, and said.

The match on the arena was actually a foregone conclusion. Although the Dragon Slayer Sect's contestant was a Soul King with the best Soul Ring configuration, it was still too much of a challenge for Meng Hongchen, who also had the best Soul Ring configuration but was already a Soul Emperor. Meng Hongchen easily defeated the Dragon Slayer Sect's first contestant and then defeated the Dragon Slayer Sect's second contestant in the same way.

Meng Hongchen, who had defeated two opponents in a row, did not seem to have much energy. Just when everyone thought that Meng Hongchen could win seven games in a row, she actually chose to concede defeat and leave the game.

The second player from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team was a Soul King, or rather, a Level 5 Soul Master. The Dragon Slayer Clan team sent out their captain, who was also a Soul King. After a fierce battle, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team narrowly defeated the Dragon Slayer Clan team captain by using flexible and varied soul tool tactics.

With their captain's defeat, the Dragon Slayer Sect team had virtually no chance of advancing. This clash between the academy and the sect faction ended in a complete victory for the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team!

Indeed, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team advanced to the second round with eleven points. Apart from some arrogant and closed-off sects that failed to grasp the situation, no one else was surprised by the result.

After the opening match, the second round began immediately. Because the first round had the most teams, the schedule was also the most tight. There were 366 teams and 183 matches, which needed to be completed in five days. This meant that at least 38 matches needed to be completed each day, making the time very tight.

Although time was tight, the match was undeniably exciting and entertaining, with top-notch viewing pleasure. Because it was a knockout tournament, all teams gave it their all, at least on the surface. The battles were exceptionally intense, so some brutal and unexpected situations were inevitable, but overall, there were no deaths.

The refereeing panel of the Sun and Moon Empire is quite professional.

Soon, the morning's matches ended. After the twelve matches, twelve teams advanced to the second round, and twelve teams were eliminated. The eliminated teams could actually leave, as they had no further role to play.

Of the twelve teams that advanced this morning, besides the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy team, the only team worth paying attention to is the Snow Demon Sect team from the Heavenly Soul Empire. They are also the second team to reach eleven points in the morning's matches. As the de facto royal team of the Heavenly Soul Empire, their captain is naturally Princess Vina, but the one who took the stage was the girl who had been following behind Vina earlier, the young sect master of the Snow Demon Sect, Mu Xue, a Soul King.

The midday break was very short, only half an hour. Few spectators left their seats, but almost all the participating teams left.

The afternoon matches began, with fifteen games following in quick succession, the intensity of which surpassed even that of the morning. After a short dinner break, the evening matches commenced, consisting of only eleven games, but they once again showcased the advanced nature of the Sun Moon Empire's soul-guided technology to everyone.

The competition venue was brightly lit, almost like daytime. Nearly a hundred soul-guided lights hung in the sky, emitting a bright but not dazzling soft light, making people feel as if they were in daylight.

Around 9 PM, the first day of competition concluded. A total of 38 matches were played, with 38 teams advancing. Among them were established powerhouses and rising dark horses. The established powerhouses were naturally some academy teams, while the rising dark horses were undoubtedly the sect teams. However, despite the presence of many strong teams, the thrilling and highly anticipated "one-versus-seven" victory did not materialize. Which team will achieve the first one-versus-seven win remains to be seen in the remaining matches.

After returning to the hotel, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan went to the hotel's tea restaurant. They ordered two drinks and then nestled on the soft sofa, lazily and comfortably observing the people coming and going.

"Brother, if only it could always be like this." Jiang Nannan curled up in Zhu Ziyang's arms, her arms wrapped around one of his arms, her delicate hands playfully counting his fingerprints, her voice sweet and languid as she spoke.

"Okay, I'll do whatever you say." Zhu Ziyang rested his chin on Jiang Nannan's head and said affectionately.

"Hey, Zhu Ziyang, Nannan, you two are going too far! Showing off your love in public like this, have you ever considered how other people feel?" Just as Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan were being all lovey-dovey, the spoilsport arrived. Judging from the voice, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan knew who it was without even looking.

"Xiaoya, why are you only coming back now?" Jiang Nannan was still nestled in Zhu Ziyang's arms, showing no intention of getting up, and her voice was lazy.

Tang Ya plopped down on the sofa opposite them, her pretty face filled with helplessness and envy. "We went to gather information about our opponents," she said. "Unlike you guys, you don't even need to think about these things. Sigh, I'm so envious!"

"Senior brother, Senior sister Nan Nan." Huo Yuhao pulled Xiao Xiao's hand and sat down. They followed suit, with Xiao Xiao curling up in Huo Yuhao's arms, and Huo Yuhao cooperating by wrapping his arms around her petite body.

"Hey, Yuhao, Xiaoxiao, why are you two like this too?" Tang Ya couldn't help but widen her eyes and exclaimed speechlessly.

"Hehe, Teacher Xiaoya, this feels really comfortable," Xiao Xiao said with a sweet smile. "Right, Yuhao?"

"Mhm!" Huo Yuhao nodded sincerely in agreement. He and Xiao Xiao had been a couple for half a year, and their relationship was rapidly heating up. Although Wang Dong'er was an unstable factor in their lives, it was fair to say that they were inseparable.

As for what to do about Wang Dong'er, well, Huo Yuhao could only awkwardly scratch his head. He was learning from his senior brother and idol, and had already made some progress.

(End of this chapter)