Xie Huanyue felt a strange suction force coming from the direction of Caelus's palm; the defensive Soul Power on his body seemed to be forcibly torn by something, surging toward that point.
Immediately after, an indescribable sense of sharpness arrived.
"Chi—!" With a soft sound, Xie Huanyue's thick skin and defensive Soul Power, which were enough to withstand the full-force strike of an attack system Soul Elder, were easily sliced open, like a hot knife through butter.
There was no bleeding, but that precise cutting and the stinging sensation of an instantaneous defense break made Xie Huanyue break out in a cold sweat.
His pride-and-joy defense was so vulnerable before Caelus's strange Qi blade.
One must know that even against attacks from a Spirit Ancestor, he had the confidence to block them.
Caelus did not pursue; instead, his figure flashed again. The Wind of Time transformed into countless tiny wind blades, wrapping around Xie Huanyue like maggots on a bone, constantly testing and cutting at his weak defensive points, forcing him to push the defensive power and flexibility of his Pipi Elephant Martial Soul to the limit.
Xie Huanyue also gave it his all, whether charging, trampling, or swinging his elephant trunk, displaying everything he had learned. Although he could never touch the hem of Caelus's clothes, his tenacious fighting Martial Soul and solid defensive foundation were indeed displayed to the fullest.
This one-on-one contest lasted for several minutes. To outsiders, it looked extremely intense; Xie Huanyue used all his means, while Caelus calmly responded by relying on future prediction and the Wind of Time.
Finally, the moment Xie Huanyue's Soul Power was mostly exhausted and his movements became slightly sluggish, a sharp light flashed in Caelus's eyes.
He dodged another pounce, then instantly closed in. The dangerous transparent ripple at the edge of his palm appeared again—the Super-Pressure Air Blade.
This time, the Qi blade stopped precisely half an inch in front of Xie Huanyue's throat, which was covered in fine beads of sweat.
The lethal cutting sensation and the suction force of the air being torn made Xie Huanyue's whole body stiffen, unable to move anymore.
"I... lost." Xie Huanyue said bitterly, yet with a trace of relief.
He had done his best.
Caelus dispersed the Qi blade in his hand and nodded slightly: "I accept your concession."
Almost at the same time Xie Huanyue conceded, the battle on the other side also settled instantly.
Gu Yuena flicked her silver dragon spear, directly sweeping the struggling Luo Tianlong out of the circle.
Ye Guyi unleashed a burst of Holy Light, striking a concise hand blade onto Luo Tianba's blade arm. Under the impact of the holy energy, Luo Tianba groaned and flew backward, having already lost his combat capability upon landing.
The battle ended.
The Caelus team advanced to the final four.
The referee announced the result loudly.
On the spectator stand, many teachers nodded slightly.
Although Xie Huanyue lost, the defensive ability and tenacious will he displayed when facing a strong enemy clearly left a good impression on them.
And the Caelus team's effortless, well-coordinated, and absolutely powerful strength was deeply imprinted in everyone's hearts.
After this match, they only needed to win two more to win the championship. Among the upcoming opponents, the only team that still had a Soul Elder was the Dai Huabin team; they were old rivals.
At this moment, Dai Huabin, leading Zhu Lu and Cui Yajie, walked straight to Caelus.
His gaze was like a torch, carrying undisguised Battle Intent, and he said in a deep voice: "Caelus, this time, I will not lose again."
Upon hearing this, Caelus's lips curved into a very faint arc, not in mockery, but in a calmness derived from absolute self-confidence.
He suddenly remembered a sentence from his previous life that fit his state of mind quite well. With a bit of mischief, he said softly: "Enemies who have been defeated by my hands are never regarded as opponents by me."
His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears, carrying an indescribable sense of aloofness and arrogance.
"I will give you time to catch up."
He looked calmly at Dai Huabin, whose eyes suddenly sharpened, and slowly spat out the second half of the sentence: "Until you... can no longer see me."
As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere instantly froze.
Dai Huabin's expression sank at a speed visible to the naked eye, turning iron blue.
Why hadn't he noticed before that this guy Caelus was not only strong, but his ability to act... no, to say such things, was unfathomable.
The contempt in these words made him feel more stifled than direct mockery.
In stark contrast to him, the charming and bewitching nine-tailed fox Soul Master Cui Yajie beside him had her beautiful eyes light up with brilliant colors. Her gaze, without any avoidance, fell directly on Caelus's calm yet handsome face, examining him with great interest.
Even Gu Yuena beside Caelus turned her head slightly, a trace of imperceptible surprise flashing through her purple eyes, as if she were re-examining this teammate who usually looked gentle and calm.
Ye Guyi's eyes were glowing, and she almost wanted to clap her hands in her heart, feeling that this line was simply... too much to her taste.
She had already decided that if there was a chance in the future, she would "commandeer" the copyright of this sentence.
Dai Huabin, completely "sunk" by Caelus's understated yet heavy-as-a-thousand-pounds sentence, finally just squeezed a cold snort from between his teeth, turned around with a dark face, and left without looking back.
Zhu Lu immediately followed, glancing back at Caelus with complex eyes.
Before turning to leave, Cui Yajie paused, looked back, and gently winked her left eye at Caelus. As her eyes shifted, her Charm was natural and incredibly moving.
"Hmph, vixen." Seeing this scene, Ye Guyi immediately snorted coldly, her tone full of undisguised dislike.
Gu Yuena also frowned slightly, imperceptibly. A trace of coldness flashed through her cold purple eyes, clearly quite displeased with Cui Yajie's blatant, bewitching actions.
As for Caelus himself, he didn't have much of a reaction on his face.
Cui Yajie was indeed beautiful and charming, but to him, that was all.
Could anyone be more beautiful than Gu Yuena?
In the early morning, the first ray of magnificent rosy light spread from the eastern horizon, announcing the beginning of a new day.
Caelus ate breakfast unhurriedly, and then performed his customary period of Soul Power meditation before setting off for the assessment area.
When he met up with Gu Yuena and Ye Guyi, he found that the spectator stand today was far more crowded and noisy than the previous few days.
It was no wonder; the teams that could advance to the final four were all outstanding among the new students of this session, naturally attracting more attention.
When all twelve freshmen who had finally entered the final four stood in formation, the appearance of one figure made all the students perk up.
The person in charge of drawing lots today was not the Outer Court Martial Soul Department Director, Director, but a middle-aged man dressed in simple white, with a temperament as gentle as jade, but eyes as deep as the sea.
It was exactly the Dean of the Martial Soul Department of Shrek Academy, Bright Phoenix Douluo Yan Shaozhe, whom Caelus had met once in the Star Dou Great Forest.
Yan Shaozhe's gaze swept gently across the audience, lingering especially on Gu Yuena, Ye Guyi, and Caelus.
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