Before his voice had even faded, the black-and-red fire lotus—radiating a terrifying aura of destruction—had already left Xiao Huo's palm, plunging straight toward Liu Yuan's head!
In that instant, time seemed to slow.
Every pair of eyes was locked on the arena, wide open, waiting to see how Liu Yuan would deal with this near-certain killing blow.
This time… he had nowhere to run, right?
But Liu Yuan didn't run at all.
He directly activated his First Spirit Ability.
Extreme Speed!
In the next moment—
A streak of white light flashed past, faster than sight itself!
Xiao Huo's vision blurred violently.
His prideful perception—his greatest advantage—completely failed him at this critical moment!
Before he could even react, before the Buddha's Fury Fire Lotus could detonate—
An indescribably terrifying force slammed straight into his chest!
Bang!!!
Under the horrified gazes of the entire audience, Xiao Huo was blasted backward like a black-and-red meteor!
The fire lotus, having lost its spirit power control, flickered twice in midair before collapsing entirely, dispersing into a rain of embers.
As for Xiao Huo himself, he smashed heavily into the protective barrier outside the arena, then slid down limply like a puddle of mud.
"..."
Silence.
Absolute, deathly silence.
The once-roaring Star Luo Plaza fell completely quiet.
Everyone stared blankly at the youth still frozen in his striking posture on the arena… then at Xiao Huo, unconscious below.
Was it… over?
Hadn't Liu Yuan just been scrambling around, forced on the defensive moments ago?
How had everything changed in the blink of an eye?
"I get it now…"
After a long pause, a dry voice finally rose from the stands.
"There was never such a thing as evenly matched."
"Earlier… Liu Yuan was just playing around."
The moment those words fell, the entire crowd exploded!
---
Shrek Academy rest area.
Clatter.
The half-eaten chicken leg in Elder Xuan's hand finally dropped to the ground.
At this moment, his expression was a chaotic mix of shock, disbelief, fury—and deep wariness.
"This… this kid's burst power…"
Elder Xuan's voice came out hoarse.
As a Rank 98 Super Douluo, his eyesight was far beyond that of ordinary people.
In that instant just now, the speed and strength Liu Yuan displayed were on an entirely different level from before!
"Damn it! How many trump cards is this brat hiding?!"
Elder Xuan stomped hard, crushing the fallen chicken leg beneath his foot, his face dark enough to drip water.
---
Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy rest area.
"Beautiful!"
Xiao Hongchen pumped his fist into the air, grinning from ear to ear.
"It's settled—completely settled!"
"Once Dragon Dance is fully stacked, it doesn't matter who they send up. Brother Liu Yuan will kick them around like a ball!"
Meng Hongchen's eyes sparkled as she stared at the domineering figure on the arena, stars practically shining in her gaze.
"Brother Liu Yuan is way too cruel. That hit just now probably left a lifelong psychological scar on that guy, didn't it?"
---
Chiyan Academy preparation area.
The atmosphere was oppressively heavy.
Several team members rushed to carry Xiao Huo back.
After a quick examination, they finally let out a breath of relief.
Though Xiao Huo looked utterly miserable, his life was not in danger.
Clearly, Liu Yuan had held back at the last moment.
After all, this was a competition—not a life-and-death battle. Liu Yuan was not a bloodthirsty person.
"Cough… cough…"
Xiao Huo slowly regained consciousness, fear and confusion from that instant still lingering in his eyes.
"Cap… Captain…"
Struggling to sit up, guilt and unwillingness filled his face.
"I'm sorry… I lost…"
"It was clearly… clearly just a little bit more…"
In his mind, if the Buddha's Fury Fire Lotus had detonated even a second earlier—if he could have held on just a little longer—the outcome might have been different.
Chi Xiao took a deep breath and patted Xiao Huo on the shoulder.
"Say no more. You did very well."
"That Liu Yuan is a monster—but you still forced out one of his trump cards."
"That kind of burst just now definitely cost him a lot."
Turning to the next team member, Chi Xiao's eyes flashed coldly.
"Huo Yun, you're up."
"Xiao Huo has already paved the way."
"The current Liu Yuan is nothing but a spent force. Go up and finish him."
Huo Yun nodded heavily, flames of vengeance burning in his eyes.
"Don't worry, Captain! I'll avenge Xiao Huo!"
---
"Next contestant from Chiyan Academy, please enter the arena!"
Following the referee's announcement, the third match officially began.
However—
What happened next completely shattered Chiyan Academy's last remaining fantasies and overturned the audience's understanding entirely.
"Match start!"
The instant the words fell—
Huo Yun didn't even have time to release his Spirit, let alone shout a single line.
Whoosh—
A streak of white light flashed.
Bang!
Huo Yun was sent flying straight out of the arena.
Instant kill.
A clean, brutal instant kill.
The entire venue fell into dead silence once again.
"This… does that really look like someone who's suffered a huge toll?"
Someone swallowed hard, asking in a trembling voice.
Immediately after—
The fourth match.
Bang!
Another flash of white light. The Chiyan contestant didn't even touch the corner of Liu Yuan's clothes before being eliminated.
The fifth match.
Bang!
Another effortless kick sent him flying.
The sixth match.
Bang!
Still an instant kill!
The entire sequence was so fast it left people dizzy.
The so-called "spent force," the so-called "heavy toll," now seemed like the greatest joke imaginable.
---
Chiyan Academy preparation area.
This place had turned into a graveyard of silence.
Chi Xiao and the others, who had still clung to a shred of hope, were now pale as paper, their eyes filled with despair and terror.
"How… how could this happen…"
Lying on the stretcher, Xiao Huo stared at the calm figure on the big screen—still breathing evenly, not even panting—and his worldview completely collapsed.
"His speed… his power…"
"How is it even stronger than when he fought me?!"
Xiao Huo's voice trembled, disbelief flooding his eyes.
"When he fought me earlier, he clearly wasn't like this."
"But now…"
A horrifying thought suddenly surfaced in his mind, plunging him into icy dread.
"Could it be… when he fought me before…"
"He wasn't serious at all?!"
"He was using me to warm up?!"
The moment that thought formed, Xiao Huo felt a sharp pain in his chest, nearly coughing up another mouthful of blood.
Utter humiliation.
The battle he had given everything for… had been nothing more than a warm-up exercise in the other man's eyes.
---
"The final match!"
The referee's voice trembled slightly.
He had officiated countless major competitions, yet he had never seen something this absurd.
One person—cutting through an entire team like slicing melons, getting faster with every victory.
On Chiyan Academy's side, only one person remained.
The captain—Chi Xiao.
At this moment, all his former confidence and composure were gone.
But he couldn't retreat.
He was the captain, the final line of dignity for Chiyan Academy.
If even he lost—if he lost this disgracefully—then Chiyan Academy would be forever nailed to the pillar of shame as the backdrop to a one-vs-seven sweep!
"No matter what…"
Chi Xiao clenched his teeth, bloodshot eyes fixed ahead as he stepped onto the arena.
"At the very least… I can't let us be swept one-vs-seven!"
Standing on the arena, Chi Xiao stared straight at Liu Yuan.
The terrifying aura around Liu Yuan had already accumulated to its peak.
He simply stood there, yet he was like a dormant volcano on the verge of eruption, radiating pressure so intense it felt capable of destroying the world.
"Chiyan Academy—Chi Xiao!"
Chi Xiao roared loudly, trying to bolster his own courage.
He had already decided—
The moment the match began, he would unleash everything and activate his strongest Spirit Ability!
No matter what, he had to stop Chiyan Academy from becoming the eternal symbol of a one-vs-seven sweep!
The referee took a deep breath and slammed his raised hand downward.
"Match… start!"
Boom!!!
Within 0.01 seconds of the referee's command—
Chi Xiao's spirit power had only just begun to circulate. His Spirit hadn't even had time to possess him, and the roar in his throat was still stuck there.
In his field of vision, the white figure had already vanished.
The next instant—
An overwhelming, irresistible force smashed brutally into his abdomen.
"Ugh—!!"
Chi Xiao's eyes bulged as his body folded like a cooked shrimp.
In that instant, his heart turned ice-cold.
All strategies, all resolve, all unwillingness—before this single kick—were as fragile as paper.
Whoosh—
Under the stunned gazes of the entire audience—
Chi Xiao's body traced a tragic yet beautiful arc through the air, flying dozens of meters before landing squarely in the Chiyan Academy preparation area…
Right beside Xiao Huo's stretcher.
Bang.
Dust rose.
Chi Xiao's eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.