Time passed quickly.
The preliminary matches were proceeding as expected.
Judging purely by the strength shown on paper, only the Shrek Academy and the Five Elements Academy teams posed any threat to the Qianyu Academy.
After all, although Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu had exceptional spirit ring combinations, the Qianyu Academy team only had three Spirit Elders.
The remaining four Spirit Elder with three rings each were relatively weak.
And this—
Was a mistaken judgment made by Li Yu when he evaluated the tournament participants from his own perspective—very weak.
That assessment only held true for him.
From the standpoint of the Qianyu Academy team, there was indeed a lot of room for improvement.
To put it bluntly
If they were to face the Five Elements Academy or Shrek Academy
The other four members of the Qianyu team would truly be nothing more than burdens.
However
Perhaps it was because both Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu possessed the same 'two yellow, one purple, one black' four-ring configuration
The Shrek Academy and Five Elements Academy teams, which might be secretly cooperating with Emperor Xue Ye, had yet to face the Qianyu Academy.
Of course
Li Yu believed the most likely reason was that the lottery handler, Salas, was secretly manipulating things.
And just as expected
In the previous rounds, Qianyu Academy secured easy victories.
With the explosive power of Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu, the opponents simply couldn't hold out.
Only in the fourth round, when Qianyu Academy faced the Elephant Armored Academy
Did the battle become difficult…
Having corrected his "mistaken assumption," Li Yu watched this match in secret.
Although Qianyu Academy still emerged victorious
It was a hard-fought win!
And unexpectedly, it was thanks to Wang Changzhi!
Even though both sides had three Spirit Elders and four Spirit Experts, and the highest spirit power on the Elephant Armored team Hu Yanli was two levels lower than Zhu Zhuqing's, only at level 43
Still—
All seven members of the Elephant Armored team possessed the martial soul [Diamond Mammoth], with outstanding defensive power.
This effectively countered Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu's abilities.
Like assassins facing tanks—
The battle was extremely tough.
Especially when the seven members of the Elephant Armored team formed their formation, their defense became even stronger, making it nearly impossible for Qianyu Academy to break through.
Moreover—
The remaining four members of the Qianyu team suffered significant injuries during this process.
Only Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, and Wang Changzhi remained to struggle on the battlefield.
Fortunately
Their disadvantage was also an advantage.
While the Elephant Armored Academy had incredible defense, they were very sluggish.
With Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu specializing in speed and agility, and even the not-so-fast Wang Changzhi able to dodge attacks with ease, their movements proved to be elusive.
Coincidentally
The Elephant Armored Academy had faced Shrek in the third round.
Although Li Yu knew about it, he didn't mention the fact that Hu Yanli had a head-type soul bone. These battle details were thoroughly analyzed by Cai Xu.
With this knowledge, Zhu Zhuqing and the others were able to prolong the fight
Moreover, Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu, with the 'Gate of Life' within their bodies, had significantly faster recovery speeds than normal.
Hu Yanli and the others grew anxious.
So they expanded their formation, trying to force the trio out of bounds!
After all, the stage had borders—falling outside meant elimination.
What they didn't know was—
Zhu Zhuqing and the others had been waiting for them to expand the circle!
Just as Hu Yanli plan seemed about to succeed, the usually inconspicuous Wang Changzhi suddenly unleashed his power!
The [Black Hand] that had been floating outside his right arm suddenly merged into it!
Then
The muscles in his right arm began to swell frantically, and within moments, it was even thicker than Hu Yanli thigh, which weighed over 500 jin!
Only now did Wang Changzhi reveal his true martial soul!
But that wasn't all—
A dark glow suddenly flashed within his right arm!
Wang Changzhi roared, "Rend the Earth!"
No soul rings flashed!
That was a skill from a soul bone!
Wang Changzhi possessed a soul bone—and coincidentally, it was in his right arm, matching his martial soul!
Then—
With thick black energy, he slammed his fist onto the ground. Hu Yanli, who had seen Wang Changzhi as the weakest and was closing in for a kill, suddenly changed expression.
A sense of unease surged.
But it was too late!
The [Diamond Mammoth] granted them tremendous defense—but also made them terribly clumsy.
The stage cracked violently from the spot where Wang Changzhi's fist landed!
The platform began collapsing!
Hu Yanli stumbled and nearly lost his balance. Even their previously unbreakable formation started to show signs of collapse.
But Hu Yanli was experienced and had been taught by Hu Yanzhen—he wouldn't be so easily disrupted.
He quickly shifted his weight to stabilize himself.
From his perspective: So what if the ground cracks and sinks? Our formation can still hold! Though only three of you remain, with terrifying ring configurations and personal strength, against our seven—defeat is inevitable!
But just as this thought crossed his mind—
Another burst of force surged from beneath the ground!
Wang Changzhi grinned and added, "Shatter the Heavens!"
Earth Rend and Heaven Shatter!
This was the true form of his soul bone ability!
The upward force combined with the sinking motion completely disrupted the Elephant Armored Academy's formation.
Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu, who had been preparing, moved instantly.
Xiao Wu used 'Teleport' to appear in front of Hu Yanli and activated 'Charm.'
Seeing Xiao Wu strange eyes, Hu Yanli instinctively activated his head-type soul bone—forming a "helmet" that protected his head.
Which was exactly what Xiao Wu wanted.
She teleported again—appearing behind another Elephant Armored Spirit Elder.
A light tap on his back, followed by 'Waist Bow' in one smooth motion he was flung out of the ring.
So effortless.
But this was when everyone's spirit power was nearly exhausted.
Meanwhile, Zhu Zhuqing activated her fourth spirit skill, creating four more condensed clones, and easily eliminated the remaining four Spirit Experts.
She then joined Xiao Wu in eliminating the third Spirit Elder.
Boom!
At this point, Hu Yanli—thrown off balance by Earth Rend and Heaven Shatter—had just landed.
Furious, he glared at Xiao Wu.
His head-type soul bone could have greatly boosted his defense—
But because of Xiao Wu's glance, he had used it too early, and she didn't even bother attacking him.
Now—
The skill duration had expired.
It was utterly wasted.
And now he had to face three Spirit Elders in unison. Though Wang Changzhi was clearly spent, he was still no match.
So—
Hu Yanli conceded with frustration.
Qianyu Academy wins!
That was how the match unfolded.
But the cost was high. Even now, after using his right arm soul bone skill Earth Rend and Heaven Shatter, Wang Changzhi had not fully recovered.
The subsequent battles were entirely supported by Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu.
As for the Five Elements Academy and the other four elemental academies Blazing , Skywater, GodWind, and Thunderclap
They had yet to face them…