The Final Tactic — You Two, Come Together
Yan Shaozhe, who was seated among the spectators, naturally noticed that something was wrong with his disciple. His brows were tightly furrowed, and his heart was filled with anxiety. However, recalling Mu En's previous instructions and reminders, he ultimately forced himself to suppress the unease rising within him.
"Xiao Tao, hold on a little longer," Yan Shaozhe muttered silently in his heart. "Once Dai Yueheng and the others finish eliminating the remaining members of the Noumenon Academy, you'll be able to withdraw safely."
...
As the evil fire within her surged and expanded, Ma Xiaotao's combat power increased explosively. For a short period of time, she and Yu Hao fought to a standstill, neither gaining a clear upper hand, nor falling into an obvious disadvantage.
However, on the main battlefield on the other side, the balance of the situation was instantly shattered due to the arrival of Dai Yueheng, a level sixty-four Soul Emperor.
If Yu Hao had not previously suppressed Ling Luochen so thoroughly that she temporarily lost her combat effectiveness, then with the combined strength of one Soul Emperor and several Soul Kings, the Shrek Academy team would have been able to completely overwhelm the Noumenon Academy within just a few exchanges.
Even so, as the battle continued, the Noumenon Academy gradually fell into a passive position. One by one, their members were eliminated from the competition stage, losing the ability to continue fighting.
By the end, apart from Yu Hao, only Long Aotian and Zhen Yue were still standing on the field.
Moreover, both of them were already in a semi-disabled state, having suffered heavy injuries earlier in the battle.
Naturally, the Shrek Academy team was not unscathed either. Gongyang Mo, Xixi, and Chen Zifeng had all been eliminated successively.
However, before Gongyang Mo was forced off the stage, he activated his fifth soul skill at the last moment. The powerful recovery-type ability instantly restored a large portion of Dai Yueheng's previously exhausted soul power. At the same time, Ling Luochen, who had been severely weakened, also regained her basic combat capability.
Looking at Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen, whose conditions were clearly much better than their own, Zhen Yue and Long Aotian exchanged glances. Both of them understood the same thing—this was likely their final opportunity.
They prepared themselves to fight to the death, determined to drag at least one opponent down with them.
But at that very moment, a thin black line quietly appeared beneath Zhen Yue's feet.
In the next instant, the surrounding space trembled violently.
When Zhen Yue came back to his senses, he discovered in shock that he was no longer in his original position. Instead, he had appeared directly behind Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen.
At the same time, the two soul skills that had already been prepared in advance were released without hesitation.
A cold, frozen halo rose rapidly beneath Zhen Yue's feet. Before he even had time to react or activate his defensive soul skills, his entire body was instantly encased in ice.
Immediately afterward, Dai Yueheng struck decisively. The White Tiger Fierce Light Wave erupted with terrifying power, blasting Zhen Yue straight off the competition stage.
At the position where Zhen Yue had originally been standing, Xu Sanshi's figure quietly appeared.
That's right—it was Xu Sanshi who had used Xuanming Displacement to forcibly exchange positions with Zhen Yue.
And precisely because of this perfectly timed tactic, Zhen Yue was eliminated by Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen, who had already coordinated their strategy.
It could be said that Zhen Yue's elimination was entirely due to Xu Sanshi's initiative.
The remaining Long Aotian's expression instantly turned extremely ugly. He had never expected that even at this stage of the battle, the Shrek Academy team would still have such unexpected tactics hidden up their sleeves.
Driven by anger, Long Aotian activated his strongest state—Unity of Heaven and Man. His aura surged explosively as he gathered all his remaining strength into a single punch, aiming directly at Xu Sanshi.
"Referee! I surrender!"
Xu Sanshi shouted loudly and raised both hands high, openly admitting defeat without the slightest hesitation.
Tiansha Douluo had been paying close attention to this area. In an instant, he appeared in front of Xu Sanshi and firmly blocked Long Aotian's furious strike.
Glancing back at the shameless figure behind him, Tiansha Douluo announced in a cold voice:
"Xu Sanshi is eliminated!"
Although Xu Sanshi's method was undeniably despicable, it was still a completely legal use of the competition rules.
Moreover, his actions had successfully forced Long Aotian to expend a large amount of energy.
It was truly killing two birds with one stone.
...
Seeing Xu Sanshi resort to such a method, Long Aotian became even more enraged. However, he had no choice but to suppress his fury and turn his attention toward Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen, who were still standing on the stage.
"No matter what," Long Aotian thought grimly, "I must drag at least one of them down. Only then can I be worthy of helping the young master."
Unfortunately, Long Aotian had still underestimated the combined strength of Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen.
Even after activating Unity of Heaven and Man, and even with the powerful boost from the second awakening of his body martial soul, he was still unable to gain any real advantage against their coordinated offense.
In the end, amidst Ling Luochen's drifting ice and snow, Long Aotian was regretfully defeated and eliminated.
Although Long Aotian did not directly eliminate any opponent, he had successfully exhausted all of Ling Luochen's remaining soul power.
Thus, after Long Aotian left the competition stage, Ling Luochen also stepped down, no longer able to continue fighting.
As she walked off, her gaze could not help but drift toward Yu Hao, who was still locked in battle with Ma Xiaotao.
The lingering feeling of having her power completely restrained and controlled by Yu Hao still sent a chill through her heart.
At this point, only Yu Hao, Ma Xiaotao, and Dai Yueheng remained on the competition stage.
From the perspective of soul power cultivation alone, Yu Hao was merely a Soul Sect who had not even obtained his fourth soul ring, while Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng were both sixth-ring Soul Emperors.
Logically speaking, there was no longer any need for this battle to continue—Yu Hao could have simply admitted defeat.
However, in reality, both the spectators and the two Soul Emperors present clearly understood that even in a situation of two versus one, even when facing a Soul Sect, the final outcome was still far from certain.
...
"Xiao Tao, are you alright?"
Dai Yueheng attempted to move closer to Ma Xiaotao, intending to stand beside her. However, before he could get too close, a scorching heat wave surged toward him, forcing him to retreat several steps.
At this moment, Ma Xiaotao could no longer hear Dai Yueheng's voice. Her eyes were locked firmly onto Yu Hao, and the flames surrounding her body had been completely eroded by a deep, pitch-black color.
At this point, Ma Xiaotao had almost completely transformed into her evil martial soul—the Dark Phoenix.
Seeing this scene, Dai Yueheng felt a chill spread through his heart. Nevertheless, he forced himself to remain calm and comforted himself silently.
"Let's finish this match first," he thought. "The academy will definitely find a way to deal with Xiao Tao's condition afterward."
As he spoke, Dai Yueheng activated his soul power. The soul rings beneath his feet lit up in alternating succession as he prepared to launch his attack on Yu Hao.
Facing the two Soul Emperors who were ready to strike, Yu Hao smiled faintly. He calmly crossed his fingers and spoke in an even tone:
"You two… come together."
Such blatantly provocative words instantly ignited Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng's anger.
Without caring about the embarrassment of attacking together, the two of them unleashed their soul skills simultaneously.
"Phoenix Ray!"
"White Tiger Fierce Light Wave!"
Black flames and brilliant white beams erupted from their mouths, shooting straight toward Yu Hao.
Facing the combined attacks of two powerful soul skills, Yu Hao remained astonishingly calm. He raised both arms and met the attacks head-on.
Laugh!
呲!
The two terrifying energy attacks were actually blocked by Yu Hao with his bare hands. Even more shocking was the relaxed expression on his face.
Upon closer inspection, one would notice that Yu Hao's arms were covered in countless ice crystal particles. His palms, in particular, were sealed beneath a thick layer of condensed ice.
Against the attacks of two Soul Emperors, Yu Hao's physical body alone was naturally insufficient. What truly supported him was the powerful augmentation from the Ice Emperor's strength.
Seeing that their soul skills were ineffective, Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng immediately charged forward, attacking Yu Hao from both sides.
Yu Hao showed no fear whatsoever and instantly engaged the two in close combat.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Fists clashed, shadows intertwined, and soul power erupted violently. The forces of ice and fire collided repeatedly, scattering chaotic energy in all directions.
Relying solely on his arms, Yu Hao fought fiercely against two Soul Emperors without falling behind in the slightest.
Ma Xiaotao could not accept this result. With a furious cry, her black flame wings spread wide as she soared into the sky. At the same time, the sixth soul ring around her body lit up brilliantly.
"Phoenix Meteor Shower!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Countless black fireballs descended from the sky, relentlessly bombarding Yu Hao and the surrounding area, leaving him no room to dodge.
In response, Yu Hao activated the Ice Emperor's Golden Body.
Although the duration of the invincible golden body was extremely short, the Ice Emperor's Golden Body still greatly enhanced Yu Hao's defensive power.
Enduring the Phoenix Meteor Shower posed no real problem.
However, at that critical moment, Dai Yueheng seized the opening. He unleashed a White Tiger Strike, blasting Yu Hao backward in an instant. Yu Hao's clothes shattered under the impact, revealing a strong, well-defined body brimming with explosive power.
If you want, I can continue correcting the next chapter, align terminology even more strictly with the novel, or increase the intensity of the final clash while keeping canon consistency.
JOIN MY PATREON TO READ ADVANCE 30 CHAPTERS