Chapter 198: The Finals
Dugu Feng stood among his academy's lineup, his eyes fixed on the grand doors of the Pope's Palace, patiently awaiting Bibi Dong's appearance.
It wasn't until murmurs of impatience spread among the crowd that the golden gates finally opened.
Twelve red-robed bishops stepped out in two neat lines, their formation dignified and solemn.
"The Pope arrives!"
At their call, Bibi Dong emerged—draped in a magnificent golden gown, a regal violet-gold crown upon her head, and a radiant scepter in her hand. Her every step exuded imperial authority.
Under the crown's light, her expression was calm and commanding. Her gaze swept slowly across the assembled teams before softening into a graceful smile.
"Today," she declared, "before the Pope's Hall, I wish to see each of you unleash your full talent and strength.
The champion of this tournament shall receive Spirit Hall's ultimate reward!"
As she spoke, she gestured lightly with her scepter.
Three points of light rose into the air, spinning slowly before everyone's eyes—three sparkling soul bones, the prizes of the Continental Spirit Master Tournament.
Dugu Feng's gaze sharpened instantly.
From their shapes, he identified them at once: a skull, a right arm bone, and a left leg bone.
The most radiant—and clearly the most valuable—was the skull, shimmering with azure light like a sapphire floating midair.
It was the Spirit Condensing Wisdom Skull—the very one Bibi Dong had prepared for Hu Liena.
Its aura of power came second only to Dugu Feng's own Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone—at least fifty thousand years old.
Among the human body's six standard bones, only the torso exceeded the skull in potency. To offer such a treasure as a tournament reward revealed just how much Bibi Dong favored her disciple.
Dugu Feng's eyes drifted briefly toward the disguised Qian Renxue—Xue Qinghe—who stood watching quietly. Her face remained perfectly composed, betraying no emotion.
"These three soul bones," Bibi Dong continued, "all come from spirit beasts exceeding ten thousand years of age.
This Spirit Condensing Wisdom Skull comes from a beast over sixty thousand years old—one of the rarest of its kind.
It stands second only to external bone attachments and the hundred-thousand-year spirit bones.
It belongs solely to the champion of this tournament.
So fight with all your might, and earn what you deserve."
After her formal encouragement, she proceeded to explain the final rules:
All three teams would first compete in the individual elimination round; the two losers would then vie for the remaining spot in the final.
Chrysanthemum Douluo brought forth the draw box.
Under Bibi Dong's watchful eyes, Dugu Feng stepped forward for Gemstone Academy, alongside Feng Xiaotian for Godwind Academy and Xie Yue for Spirit Hall. Each drew a token to determine the bracket.
Yet Dugu Feng didn't even glance at his result. He already knew—the elimination rounds would never happen.
Almost immediately, Feng Xiaotian stepped forward and addressed Bibi Dong.
"Your Holiness, the members of Godwind Academy are far weaker in individual strength compared to Gemstone or Spirit Hall.
We respectfully choose to forfeit the individual match and instead compete in the consolation bracket for a chance at the final."
Bibi Dong froze for a heartbeat.
Even Chrysanthemum Douluo, presiding as head referee, was momentarily stunned.
But withdrawal was within the rules—there was no basis for refusal.
Bibi Dong glanced at the Godwind team, her expression unreadable, and then motioned for the competition to proceed.
"Your Holiness," Dugu Feng spoke next, his tone calm and measured, "Gemstone Academy likewise forfeits the individual round."
This time, even the audience went silent.
Stunned faces turned toward him.
What were they doing?
This was the finals, yet both teams were bowing out.
Never in the tournament's history had such a thing occurred.
"You forfeit as well?" Bibi Dong's eyes narrowed slightly, locking onto him.
Their shared Killing God Domains stirred faintly—she could sense it, the murderous energy within him far stronger and better contained than before.
His control over it had grown immensely.
In truth, she had planned to use this round to exhaust him—Spirit Hall's three Spirit Kings could wear down an opponent one by one, while Gemstone Academy had only Dugu Feng as a heavyweight.
But now, with him refusing to fight altogether, her meticulous setup unraveled.
"Your Holiness," Dugu Feng explained smoothly, "since Godwind has withdrawn, rather than challenge Spirit Hall directly, we would rather compete from the consolation bracket for our place in the finals."
The reasoning was seamless. The others nodded—all logic favored his choice.
"You are quite the strategist," Bibi Dong said with a cool smile. "Very well, then.
I hereby declare Spirit Hall the victor of the elimination round.
Godwind Academy and Gemstone Academy shall battle this afternoon for the remaining final berth."
Dugu Feng glanced at Feng Xiaotian and both men smiled faintly—
They understood perfectly what would happen later.
Unfortunately, when afternoon arrived, Bibi Dong did not.
Deeming the match unimportant, she remained absent; Chrysanthemum Douluo presided instead, joined by Ning Fengzhi, Dugu Bo, and Ghost Douluo as judges.
A pity, Dugu Feng mused. He would have loved to see her astonished face.
True to plan, Godwind Academy forfeited again.
Now everyone understood—the two teams were in cooperation.
Their maneuver allowed Gemstone Academy to advance to the championship with no losses at all.
Spirit Hall's representatives, Xie Yue and Hu Liena, were livid.
"Shameless!" Hu Liena snapped.
"You've broken a record," Xie Yue added, his smirk cold. "From the preliminaries to the qualifiers, through the semifinals and now the finals—not once have you entered the stage.
Not once!"
His outrage faded into grudging respect.
This bastard could really hide.
The final match—the last match—and still, Dugu Feng had never fought once.
It was enough to make even calm warriors curse aloud.
"Tomorrow," Dugu Feng said calmly, "we'll settle it on the stage."
His quiet confidence sent a ripple of unease through them both.
They remembered well—he had defeated Yan years earlier despite a difference of over ten levels.
Now, even their fusion reached Spirit Emperor power, but could they truly be sure?
Especially with Ning Rongrong's frightening amplification backing him…
And then there was Yan, grievously wounded from the battle with Zhu Zhuyun and Dai Weisi, unable to compete.
Their side had already lost a third of its power.
Anxiety began to creep into their pride.
The reward was too great to lose—the three precious soul bones glinting in Bibi Dong's chamber.
That night, in the Pope's assembly hall, tension filled the air.
Bibi Dong sat high upon her throne.
Below her stood the seven members of Spirit Hall's team, led by Xie Yue and Hu Liena.
Flanking her were Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo—the famed Yin-Yang pair.
The day's events had left her students restless, their fighting spirit unsettled.
So Bibi Dong called this meeting herself—
—to calm the golden generation before their battle with the one man even Spirit Hall had begun to fear.
(END CHAPTER)
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