Yet, in the face of Feng Piaoling—who had revealed his true strength—she could not even hold out for a single round. The stark contrast left many onlookers utterly dumbfounded.
As the saying goes, laymen watch for the spectacle, while experts look for the skill!
Most of the audience only knew that Feng Piaoling was immensely powerful and possessed an endless arsenal of combat techniques, unable to discern the subtle intricacies of that fleeting instant. However, several discerning Titled Douluos saw through to the core—such as sword intent...
Aboard the imperial city wall, Xu Jiujiu looked at her elder brother with confusion and asked, "Brother, what was that just now?"
Xu Jiawei pondered for a moment before offering his answer. "It seems somewhat akin to the rumored sword intent, yet it differs as well. In my understanding, sword intent shouldn't be so formidable. That power just now cleaved through the void and eradicated even the evil aura of the Black Phoenix. Otherwise, no matter how extraordinary Feng Piaoling's combat techniques were, he couldn't have shattered the Phoenix Meteor Shower released after Ma Xiaotao's martial soul mutated."
"An ability that nullifies all adverse factors against oneself?" Xu Jiujiu nodded, her gaze toward Feng Piaoling filling with a bit more curiosity and scrutiny.
At that moment, another unexpected turn occurred. Ma Xiaotao, who had just fallen to the ground unable to rise, actually hauled herself back up.
Moreover, her soul power had been pushed all the way to Rank 70, and those black phoenix flames were elevated directly to the level of Ultimate Fire.
This scene terrified many people, and even Titled Scourge Huang Jinxu was startled. At this very moment, he actually felt a thread of threat from her.
Feng Piaoling was never one to grow complacent after striking down an opponent; he had been on guard against Ma Xiaotao all along.
Seeing Ma Xiaotao rise once more, he held the Azure Lotus Sword in a reverse grip with his right hand and slashed diagonally outward.
"Reverse Style: Golden Brilliance Quake-Kill Sword"
If the Golden Brilliance Quake-Kill Sword derived from Feng Piaoling's right-arm external soul bone—the Dark Golden Terrifying Claw—was his most destructive combat technique, then the Reverse Style was derived from his left-arm Dark Golden Terrifying Claw. Though three tenths slower in raw power, it was more than twice as fast in execution speed.
It was Feng Piaoling's fastest combat technique.
With a single strike of the sword, a dark-golden sword beam tore through Ma Xiaotao's body just as she prepared to launch an attack, seemingly about to cleave her in two.
At the crucial moment, a starlight suddenly manifested in front of Ma Xiaotao as Titled Scourge Huang Jinxu seemed to teleport right before her.
A pentagram-shaped shield appeared in front of him, blocking the descent of that dark-golden sword light.
Crack! The pentagram shield shattered completely, and the dark-golden sword beam dissipated along with it.
Glancing at Ma Xiaotao once more, the black phoenix flames had already vanished, leaving a gruesome, terrifying sword wound extending from her left shoulder down to her lower right abdomen.
Her face instantly turned deathly pale as she lost all capability to fight on.
The entire arena erupted in an uproar—
Everyone was shocked. No one expected Feng Piaoling's strength to have reached such a staggering level—to the point where even a Titled Douluo like Huang Jinxu, while focusing purely on defense, had his protective shield formed by the Heavenfiend Lonestar broken.
It was truly mind-boggling.
"Feng Piaoling wins."
Huang Jinxu looked at Feng Piaoling with a complex gaze, his heart filled with astonishment. Although that shield was something he had casually condensed just now, an ordinary Soul Saint would definitely be unable to shatter it.
It would require at least a Soul Douluo level of power.
Moreover, the offensive power was only secondary; the crucial factors were the speed of his execution and his mastery over timing.
Without a doubt, it had vastly exceeded the standards of ordinary soul masters.
This kid's future is beyond measure! Huang Jinxu marveled inwardly.
For the first time, this Titled Scourge—who had brought misfortune upon his own parents and relatives due to his Heavenfiend Lonestar martial soul—felt a sense of anticipation for a young man.
Following Huang Jinxu's declaration of the match result, a figure swiftly rose from the Shrek Academy waiting area and landed on the tournament stage.
Xuan Zi first stopped Ma Xiaotao's bleeding and stabilized her injuries, then chuckled playfully at Feng Piaoling. "You kid, you really beat my students quite ruthlessly, didn't you?"
If it had been anyone else doing this, Xuan Zi would have flown into a rage long ago, perhaps even erupting in slaughter.
But Feng Piaoling was different. He was a student of Shrek, and although he had left for a time due to that fool Zhou Yi, he had already agreed to return under Zhang Lexuan's persuasion.
This was more important than anything else.
Saying this, he turned his gaze to Huang Jinxu. "Alright, there's no need to continue this match. Our Shrek Academy concedes to the Soul Hall."
Huang Jinxu looked at the unconscious Huo Yuhao and Dai Huabin, his mouth twitching slightly, before announcing in a loud voice: "Shrek forfeits the individual elimination match. I announce that the overall champion of this Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Duel Tournament is the Master of the Soul Hall, Feng Piaoling, representing the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy team."
These words effectively avoided offending either party.
After all, neither Shrek Academy nor the Sun Moon Empire was an easy target.
If he blindly favored Shrek, it would inevitably spark dissatisfaction from the Sun Moon Empire, and they might even use it as a pretext to initiate war.
As a Guardian Douluo of the Star Luo Empire, this was the last thing Huang Jinxu wished to see.
However, Xuan Zi was clearly not satisfied with just this. In front of the Star Luo Empire's dignitaries and the hundreds of thousands of spectators in the audience, he picked up the severely injured Ma Xiaotao and laughed loudly at Feng Piaoling:
"Hahaha, good kid, you actually managed to defeat these youngsters! You really have something going for you. Alright, now that you've vented your anger, it's time to return to Shrek Academy!"
As soon as these words were uttered, the entire venue went wild. Except for those dignitaries who already knew Feng Piaoling's "background," almost no one had expected that Feng Piaoling was also a student of Shrek.
"Why should I return to Shrek Academy?" Feng Piaoling let out a cold laugh, unhurriedly retrieving a soul tool milk bottle to silently restore his soul power.
"Alright, alright, aren't you just still angry? Rest assured, as soon as I get back, I will cripple that fool Zhou Yi's soul power. As for the mastermind behind the ambush on you guys back then, I'll also make them give you a satisfactory accounting. Will that satisfy you now?"
Xuan Zi failed to notice the severity of the situation in the slightest, speaking in a casual, carefree manner.
Right at that moment, Teacher Ma, the leader of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, stepped onto the tournament stage. "Referee, I want to report a violation."
Below the stage, Dai Yaoheng's heart skipped a beat as he thought to himself that things were going downhill fast.
Titled Scourge naturally knew what was going on. Looking at Teacher Ma with a bit of awkwardness, he knowingly asked, "Report what?"
"I want to report Shrek for cheating," Teacher Ma stated with full confidence.
"Where is the proof?" Xuan Zi's expression instantly darkened, lacking any of the gentle warmth he had shown toward Feng Piaoling just moments ago.
"This is the proof." Teacher Ma spoke as he produced a golden orb. "This is a specialized Shadow Recording Pearl crafted by Director Jing Hongchen of our Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. It is capable of detecting spiritual power fluctuations."
"During the match earlier, I noticed that Huo Yuhao from Shrek Academy repeatedly used his Spiritual Detection skill to assist Wang Ying, Dai Yaoheng, Ma Xiaotao, and others in committing acts of cheating."
"In the final fight against Ma Xiaotao, at the critical moment, he even fused his soul power with Dai Huabin to launch a spiritual attack against our team member."
-----------------------------------
Dear readers, due to my university studies and current financial circumstances, I have decided to take a temporary break.
Thank you so much for reading and supporting me over the past year—I hope to return and continue this journey with you soon!