The bloodshed and deathly silence in the forest had long been abandoned. After leaving the Dai residence, Jiang Li did not immediately leave Xingluo City as usual.
He carried a gold note containing fifty million gold soul coins, strolling through the streets and alleys of Star Luo City. His steps remained light and slow, his aura concealed, making him indistinguishable from ordinary passersby. Everywhere he looked, he saw figures dressed in various soul master attire, and passersby were discussing the upcoming Continental Elite Tournament of Advanced Soul Master Academies.
As one of the host cities for this competition, Xingluo City had already gathered teams of Soul Master academies from all over the continent. The young Soul Masters were full of vigor, and various forces were secretly plotting. The entire city was enveloped in a strong competition atmosphere, far more lively than usual.
Jiang Li found a secluded inn in the city center and stayed there, showing no sign of anything unusual. He wanted to stay in Star Luo City to watch this grand gathering of young soul masters.
This action was not about profit or entrustment; it was merely a spur-of-the-moment decision.
Having traveled the continent for many years, witnessing countless battles and transactions, he had long since become indifferent to everything around him. Only towards this group of passionate young Soul Masters, who competed with their Soul Skills, did he harbor a tiny, insignificant curiosity. Moreover, the Shrek Academy team would also be participating, and he wanted to witness firsthand the devastating impact of Huo Yuhao's death on them.
The inn's room was simple yet clean. Jiang Li sat cross-legged, maintaining perfect concealment. There was no fluctuation of soul power around him, and even his aura was extremely faint. The inn was filled with soul masters, many of whom released their soul power, their auras mingling, yet none of them noticed that in the next room, there was a ruthless assassin who had killed a Shrek Academy genius.
In the following days, Xingluo City became increasingly lively.
Teams from various academies arrived one after another, and the area around the arena was packed with spectators. Spies from various factions lurked among the crowd, gathering intelligence from all sides. As a long-established noble family in the Star Luo Empire, the Dai family was involved in the entire event preparation. Dai Huabin was busy with family affairs all day and had no intention of participating at all, so naturally he hadn't thought of Jiang Li again.
He had already disposed of Huo Yuhao's body thoroughly, believing the matter to be flawless, and was just waiting to see Shrek Academy suffer a crushing defeat in the Soul Master Competition and become a laughingstock.
A few days later, the Continental Elite Tournament of Advanced Soul Master Academies arrived as scheduled.
The central arena of Star Luo City is vast, with towering stands capable of accommodating hundreds of thousands of spectators. At the center of the arena is a wide fighting platform paved with solid black iron stone, strong enough to withstand the fierce impact of soul skills. The arena is heavily guarded, staffed by elite soul masters dispatched by the Star Luo Empire's royal family to maintain order.
On the opening day, the stands were packed and filled with the noise of the crowd.
Cheers, murmurs, and applause mingled together, echoing throughout the arena in a lively atmosphere. Nobles from various empires, veteran powerhouses of the Soul Master world, and teachers from various academies all took their seats, their gazes fixed on the center of the arena, awaiting the start of the competition.
Jiang Li mingled among the crowd at the very edge of the stands, choosing a corner with a wide view yet extremely secluded.
He was dressed in ordinary gray cloth, his face hidden in the shadows, his aura completely blending into his surroundings, as if he were just an inconspicuous onlooker in the crowd. He had no soul power, so he didn't need to worry about the perception of soul masters. Even among a group of soul masters, no one could detect his abnormality.
On the field, the emcee loudly announced the opening of the competition, and rousing music resounded throughout the venue.
Each participating team entered the arena in turn, wearing uniform team attire and marching in formation across the center of the field. Some teams displayed imposing presence, while others remained calm and composed. The young Soul Masters stood tall and proud, their eyes sharp, showcasing the talent and spirit of promising young people.
When the Shrek Academy team appeared, a commotion instantly erupted in the stands.
Shrek Academy has always been a favorite to win the Soul Master Competition, repeatedly emerging victorious in previous tournaments and earning a renowned reputation throughout the continent. However, this time, the team seemed unusually subdued.
The team members looked solemn, their eyes filled with deep sorrow and exhaustion, devoid of their usual high spirits. At the front of the group, Wang Dong, Jiang Nannan, Xiao Xiao, Dai Yueheng, Ma Xiaotao, and others stood side by side, their auras somber, remaining silent throughout, their oppressive presence clashing sharply with the lively atmosphere around them.
Huo Yuhao's death was a devastating blow to the team.
He was the team's core control-type Soul Master, possessing the ultimate ice martial soul, and an indispensable figure in the team's soul. Now that the core has fallen, the team's strength has been greatly reduced, and even their teamwork has become rusty and stiff.
The audience in the stands were abuzz with discussion, their voices rising and falling in a cacophony of doubt, regret, and mockery.
"Is that the Shrek Academy team? Why do they look so lifeless?"
"I heard that Huo Yuhao, the core member of their team, died unexpectedly not long ago. No wonder he looks like this."
"Without their core player, Shrek Academy probably won't even make it past the preliminary rounds this time."
Such words reached the ears of the Shrek students, but no one paid them any attention.
Their hearts were filled with grief and hatred. The murderer who killed Huo Yuhao was still at large, and the titled Douluo experts of the academy were still doing their best to investigate, but they still had no clues. Now, standing on the field, they could only force themselves to complete the competition process. Even though they knew they had no hope of winning the championship, they could not lose face for Shrek Academy.
Wang Dong stood in the queue, her hands clenched tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms. Her gaze swept across the stands, her eyes sharp as knives, searching again and again for that dark figure she hated to the core.
She would stop at nothing to avenge Huo Yuhao, as long as she could find Jiang Li.
On the field, the competition officially began.
In the first round of competition, teams took turns on the field, their soul skills clashing and radiating brilliance. The intense battles drew continuous cheers from the stands. Various martial souls appeared, with beast martial souls and weapon martial souls intertwined, their soul rings swirling around them, creating a magnificent and awe-inspiring spectacle that showcased the charm of soul master combat.
Jiang Li sat in the corner, his expression indifferent, quietly watching the fight in the arena.
His gaze was calm and unwavering as he watched the young soul masters exert all their strength to unleash their soul skills, as they fought fiercely for victory, and as they expressed their joy or sorrow, remaining completely unmoved.
In his eyes, these fights were nothing more than children's games, far less brutal than the life-or-death duels in his past commissions. He had witnessed too much bloodshed and the fall of too many powerful figures; such arena battles could not stir his emotions at all.
He would occasionally glance at the Shrek team, watching them struggle in the competition, watching Wang Dong erupt in anger and unleash his ultimate power soul skill to fiercely attack his opponent, watching Jiang Nannan nimbly dodge, and watching Dai Yueheng and Ma Xiaotao provide full cover.
This team, having lost its core player, is riddled with weaknesses in its teamwork and relies entirely on its past experience and tenacity to survive, making every match extremely difficult.
The team members gradually sustained injuries, their breathing becoming increasingly erratic, yet they still gritted their teeth and persevered. Wang Dong's attacks grew increasingly fierce and ruthless, unleashing all the grief and hatred in his heart upon his opponents.
Flames erupted around Ma Xiaotao, their intense heat engulfing the arena, yet they couldn't conceal the exhaustion and anger in her eyes. Dai Yueheng, filled with self-reproach, fought with all his might to protect his teammates, wanting to make up for his previous mistakes.
Jiang Li watched all this with an indifferent expression.
He never regretted his actions. Accepting the commission, killing the target, and taking the bounty were all perfectly reasonable. The grief of the Shrek Seven Devils was irrelevant to him, and he never took Huo Yuhao's talent and potential seriously.
He was merely an observer, coldly watching the upheaval he had caused, observing the struggles and perseverance of these young soul masters.
The competition was in full swing, and after round after round of matches, many teams were eliminated, leaving only the strongest and top-tier academies.
The Shrek team, with their tenacious will, barely made it into the semifinals, but they were already battered and bruised, and their morale was low. The discussions in the stands never stopped; everyone knew that this once-dominant team had already fallen on hard times.
The undercurrents around the stadium are becoming increasingly turbulent.
Various powerful forces are eyeing the strong teams, plotting to win them over and scheme against them; Shrek Academy's spies are spread throughout the arena and Star Luo City, still searching for Jiang Li's whereabouts; the Star Luo Empire's royal family and various nobles are also secretly making arrangements, using the competition to consolidate their power and expand their influence.
Dai Huabin also appeared at the competition, sitting in the seats reserved for the elites of the Star Luo Empire. Watching the Shrek team's pathetic state, a smug smile remained on his lips. He was in high spirits, and his gaze towards the Shrek team was filled with undisguised mockery and schadenfreude.
He never imagined that Jiang Li, who helped him complete the task, was sitting in a corner of the arena, quietly watching everything.
Jiang Li remained motionless in his fixed corner, like a statue. He didn't talk to anyone, didn't participate in any discussions, and when he was hungry, he would simply take out the dry food he carried with him to eat. He was focused on the competition throughout, yet he seemed to be detached from the entire arena.
His existence was too inconspicuous.
Dressed in ordinary cloth, with an unassuming aura, no spirit rings, and no fluctuations in spirit power, he was like a speck of dust in the stands full of spirit masters, easily swallowed up by the crowd.
The audience around him changed batch after batch, and the shouts, cheers, and sighs of regret changed constantly, but no one ever noticed this silent spectator.
Even the spies sent by Shrek Academy, who scanned the stands repeatedly to check for suspicious individuals, never focused their attention on him. In everyone's mind, the murderer who killed Huo Yuhao must have been a powerful Soul Master, someone with Soul Rings and Soul Power fluctuations. No one would have imagined that the murderer was someone without any Soul Power.
As time went by, the competition entered its most intense phase.
In the final match of the semi-finals, the Shrek team faced off against a strong team from the Star Luo Empire, and the battle was incredibly intense.
The opponents were powerful and well-coordinated, launching a fierce attack from the start, bombarding the Shrek Seven Devils with a barrage of soul skills, instantly overwhelming them. The Shrek Seven Devils fought back desperately, but continued to be pushed back, their injuries worsening.
Wang Dong unleashed his full power, his spirit rings swirling around him, pouring out his ultimate strength. He forcefully forced back two opponents, but he himself was also hit by their spirit skills, spitting out blood and staggering backward.
"Yuhao!"
Wang Dong roared inwardly, tears welling up in his eyes.
If Huo Yuhao were still alive, with his ultimate control over ice, he could have stabilized the battle and prevented the team from falling into such a desperate situation. But now, they are left struggling to hold on, powerless to turn the tide.
Jiang Nannan quickly stepped forward, supported Wang Dong, and with a firm look in her eyes, signaled her to persevere. Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng fought side by side, unleashing the full power of their flames and beast soul martial souls, barely managing to block the opponent's attack, but they were already exhausted.
In the stands, the audience's eyes were all focused on the center of the field, cheering for both teams.
Wang Dong forced herself to stand up again, her gaze unconsciously sweeping across the entire stands, still searching for Jiang Li's figure. For the past few days, whenever she had a spare moment, she would search the entire stadium, never giving up.
Her sharp gaze swept over every corner of the stands, leaving no suspicious person unchecked.
Just then, her gaze settled on that hidden corner at the very edge of the arena.
The crowd was sparse, mostly ordinary people, all craning their necks to watch the game, their expressions excited. Only one gray figure sat there quietly, back straight, seemingly blending into the surrounding shadows.
The man had his head down, his face obscured by shadows, making it impossible to see his expression. Yet, his lonely, indifferent, and oppressive figure instantly stung Wang Dong's eyes.
That figure, that unique aura, were exactly the same as the solitary figure in the dark night who killed Huo Yuhao in the forest clearing that day!
Wang Dong's heart suddenly stopped.
Her blood seemed to freeze instantly, and an extreme hatred and rage surged from the depths of her heart, rushing straight to her mind. She stared intently at the gray figure, her hands clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white, and her whole body trembled uncontrollably.
It's him!
It's Jiang Li!
The murderer who killed Huo Yuhao, the person she hated day and night and wished she could tear to pieces, was right here, right in the stands of the arena, coldly watching their battle!
Wang Dong was instantly overwhelmed by immense shock and hatred.
She even forgot that she was on the field, forgot the competition in progress, forgot her opponent, and only saw that unforgettable figure in her eyes.
His soul power surged uncontrollably, his soul rings appeared automatically, and the aura of ultimate power suddenly erupted. He exuded a strong killing intent and locked his gaze on Jiang Li in the corner of the stands.
The opponent on the field noticed the abnormality and took the opportunity to launch a soul skill, attacking Wang Dong fiercely.
But Wang Dong was completely disregarding that at that moment.
Her gaze remained fixed on Jiang Li, her eyes red and tears streaming down her face, with only one thought in her mind:
We found him! We finally found him!
She wanted to rush over and kill him with her own hands to avenge Huo Yuhao!
Meanwhile, Jiang Li, who was in a corner of the stands, seemed to have noticed something.
He slowly raised his head, the shadow dissipating to reveal his indifferent and aloof face. His gaze calmly passed through the crowd, meeting Wang Dong's eyes across the arena.
There was no ripple, no attempt to dodge, only a cold indifference.
It was as if being discovered was of no consequence to him.
On the field, a storm suddenly arose; in the corner of the stands, a chill permeated the air.
A new confrontation has quietly begun on the stage of the highly anticipated Soul Master Competition.
.....................