Flender frowned slightly, his gaze still fixed in the direction where Blazing Academy had departed. He murmured, "I didn't expect that old fellow to end up at Blazing Academy..."
Ma Hongjun, who was usually the closest to Flender, quickly leaned in and asked, "Teacher, who was that old man just now? Do you know him?"
Flender's expression turned grave as he said in a heavy voice, "That old fellow is named Shi Nian. His martial soul is highly unique--an intangible, formless special martial soul capable of creating all kinds of bizarre illusions that cause people to lose themselves within them. With his current strength, he can easily cause opponents trapped in his illusions to mutilate themselves to death while lost. We call his martial soul 'Vicious Dream.' That old fellow is extremely sinister and malicious. Don't be fooled by his calm exterior; he is actually incredibly vindictive. All of you better be careful. Back when I first met him, his soul power was already over the sixtieth rank. Now, I'm afraid... it might be above the seventieth rank."
Hearing this, the members of the Shrek Seven Devils couldn't help but feel shocked simultaneously.
Illusions? There was actually such a martial soul? Just hearing about it made it sound bizarre and difficult to defend against.
Tang San, observing from the sidelines, also felt his heart tighten upon hearing this information. "Illusion techniques? To think there's actually such a martial soul!" He immediately began to think rapidly in his mind: if he encountered this type of soul master in combat, how should he handle it? This was a subconscious habit of his when facing unknown threats, carried over from his past life to the present.
Flender continued, "His Vicious Dream martial soul is indeed incredibly troublesome. Even soul masters stronger than him are generally unwilling to fight him easily." He waved his hand, putting an end to the topic. "Alright, the opening ceremony is about to begin. Prepare to enter the arena. Mubai, Tang San, the two of you just lead everyone inside. I'll head out first and go up to the spectator stands to watch your heroic figures!"
With that, the dean once again demonstrated his speed as an agility-attack system soul master. Slipping away as if his feet were greased, he vanished into the crowd in the blink of an eye, seemingly terrified that staying for even one more second would link him to that poop-green team uniform.
Amid Tang San's continuous thoughts, the group followed the flow of people and walked into the main competition arena.
The moment they stepped into the arena, whether it was the group within the simulation or Tang San acting as the observer, everyone was stunned by the magnificent and grand sight before them!
Surrounding the huge, open plaza were countless shouting and cheering spectators, the sound waves crashing over them like a tsunami. Right in front of the central arena was a VIP rostrum with a golden background, luxurious and solemn. Behind the rostrum was the modified VIP area.
At this moment, the master of ceremonies on the stage began to use an amplification soul tool to introduce the entering teams:
"...And the last to enter is the competing team from Shrek Academy... Look at how distinct their strange attire is..."
Hearing the master of ceremonies' words, which clearly carried a mocking tone, combined with the Shrek crowd's incredibly eye-catching "Sponsorship Wanted" team uniforms, a burst of laughter instantly erupted from the spectators in the stands.
The short-tempered Dai Mubai's face had already turned as black as the bottom of a pot. His hands were clenched tightly into fists, his knuckles turning white. As he walked forward, he squeezed words out from between his teeth, "If it weren't for the tournament regulations... I would definitely tear that guy's mouth apart!"
At this time, Tang San within the simulation could also clearly feel that the soul power fluctuations from Dai Mubai beside him were violent, with the potential to erupt at any moment. He quickly reached out and pressed his hand against Dai Mubai's solid shoulder, saying in a low voice, "Mubai, calm down."
Dai Mubai took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing his anger. He understood that he was the captain; if he did something irrational in this kind of venue, how could he lead the team?
As the surrounding audience clamored and pointed fingers, Tang San the observer endured the embarrassment and calmly began to examine the surrounding environment.
The first person to catch his eye was the individual right in the center of the VIP stage. This person wore a gold and red long robe, with a Diamond Sky-Shining Crown upon his head. His face was like an ancient moon, and though he appeared somewhat elderly, sitting upright there naturally gave him an undeniable aura of majesty that could not be ignored, making him seem like the center of all attention.
"Is that... the Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire?"
As a six-year-old citizen of Holy Spirit Village within the borders of the Heaven Dou Empire, Tang San was seeing the true face of the empire's supreme ruler for the first time in this image from the "future."
The few people beside the emperor also possessed extraordinary temperaments, but Tang San did not recognize them. However, by sensing the thoughts and emotional fluctuations of the Tang San inside the simulation, the observing Tang San could perceive that his simulated "self" should recognize some of them.
At this moment, an elegant, refined middle-aged man sitting to the right of Emperor Xue Ye seemed to notice the simulated Tang San's gaze. He turned his head just in time to meet Tang San's eyes. With a warm smile on his face, he nodded gently in Tang San's direction.
The observing Tang San immediately realized that this person must be acquainted with his simulated "self." Furthermore, looking at this person's facial features, his eyes and brows bore a strike resemblance to Ning Rongrong's, suggesting a deep connection with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
Next, as the master of ceremonies on the VIP stage announced loudly:
"Next, we invite His Majesty, the Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire, to declare the opening of this tournament!"
Emperor Xue Ye, sitting in the central position of the VIP seats, rose to deliver his opening address. The content was nothing more than official rhetoric encouraging the various academies and showcasing the demeanor of the empire's soul masters.
Following Emperor Xue Ye's official and brief speech, the master of ceremonies' voice rang out once more:
"Next, we invite the Clan Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, Mr. Ning Fengzhi, to address the tournament!"
Under the gaze of the observer Tang San, the middle-aged man who had just exchanged glances with his simulated self and resembled Ning Rongrong--Ning Fengzhi--slowly stood up with a smile on his face. Warm applause thundered through the venue once again.
Ning Fengzhi elegantly pressed his hands down. Once the applause subsided slightly, he likewise delivered some official words encouraging the young soul masters and looking forward to the future of the tournament.
However, the master of ceremonies did not intend to let him off so easily and went on to ask, "Clan Master Ning, as the continent's most powerful auxiliary system soul master, on behalf of the spectators watching the match, I would like to ask you: among the twenty-eight teams participating in this Heaven Dou City division qualifiers, which one do you favor the most?"
Ning Fengzhi maintained that smile which felt like a refreshing spring breeze, replying calmly, "Aside from the Heaven Dou Royal Academy First Team, which enters the finals directly as a seed team, there is another team among these twenty-eight that I favor."
The master of ceremonies feigned surprise and pressed further, "Oh? I wonder which team is fortunate enough to earn Clan Master Ning's favor?"
Ning Fengzhi merely smiled mysteriously and said, "As for which academy this team belongs to, forgive me for keeping it under wraps for now. But what I can tell everyone is that I believe the final champion of this tournament will definitely belong to the Empire!"
After saying this, Ning Fengzhi nodded politely and sat back down in his seat.
The master of ceremonies could only say, "Regrettably, we were unable to pry the name of the favored team from Clan Master Ning's mouth. Next, we invite the Master of the Heaven Dou City Spirit Temple, Spirit Hall's Platinum Bishop, Lord Salas, to conduct the draw for the first round of the qualifiers!"
As the master of ceremonies' voice fell, an indifferent-looking elder wearing a bright red bishop's robe and a five-cornered platinum crown slowly stood up from the front row of the VIP stage, to the right of Emperor Xue Ye.
After standing up, Platinum Bishop Salas walked to the master of ceremonies' side under the guidance of a palace maid and began the drawing process.
Following the announcements of the master of ceremonies, it was soon the Shrek Academy's opponent's turn.
"Qualifiers First Round: Heaven Dou Royal Academy Second Team versus--Shrek Academy!"