Douluo Continent: A Thousand Miles of Cultivation

Yin Jin pointed to the still-warm seat and said incredulously, "Isn't this just sore loser?"

"It's not necessarily a loss. After all, Shui Shui is too strong. Just like we were back then, the team leader was there to cover for us. But that kid isn't the team leader after all."

On the battle stage, Shui Bing'er stood at the very front. The moment the match began, she moved—not forward, but backward. Ning Rongrong, the team's strategist, immediately understood Shui Bing'er's tactic.

"Go back!"

But it was too late. Shui Bing'er's blue hair and Xue Wu's black hair instantly merged into one, transforming into a dazzling ice-blue pillar of light that shot into the dark clouds in the sky. Shui Bing'er and Xue Wu's bodies disappeared simultaneously, and their martial soul fusion skill was unleashed.

This is a typical deceptive tactic. If the two stand together, it is to clearly tell the other that they will activate their Martial Soul Fusion Skill at the start, or it is a kind of intimidation.

However, Shui Bing'er was clearly smarter. When she went on stage, she saw that the Royal Fighting Team 2 was not united, especially the Evil Eye White Tiger and the Netherworld Spirit Cat from the Star Luo Empire. Although they had never used the Netherworld White Tiger, no one knew if they would.

The strange atmosphere in the Royal Fighting Team 2 clearly told Shui Bing'er that there was a conflict between the men and women.

However, the individual strength of the Royal Fighting Team 2 is truly strong. Instead of choosing a king-on-king or general-on-general match, it would be better to take advantage of the opponent's weaknesses and use area attacks to clear the field at the start. Take down as many as you can, and eventually create a one-to-many situation, then victory will be assured.

In fact, Shui Bing'er did exactly that, just using a little trick. Ning Rongrong isn't stupid; she would definitely be wary of the Martial Soul Fusion Technique, and might even arrange for a concentrated attack on either Shui Bing'er or Xue Wu beforehand.

Shui Bing'er took advantage of this point, deliberately placing Xue Wu at the back of the team to give the opponent a false impression. She was protecting the activation of the martial soul fusion skill in a very traditional way, but not activating it at the very beginning.

Shui Bing'er turned and ran towards Xue Wu in the icy rain, while the other five quickly gathered together and stood in front of the two.

Xiao Wu, who used teleportation to run the fastest, arrived at the destination first, but was briefly blocked by Shui Bing'er's first soul skill, which used an area-of-effect ice seal. Qian Shui Shui and Zhu Zhu Qing, who were following closely behind, could not catch up.

When the icy blue beam of light shot into the sky, Ning Rongrong's warning was too late. All of her Soul Master teammates had already rushed out. In reality, with the two of them providing support, it was a five-on-two battle on the front lines, as the remaining three had all gone to capture Xue Wu.

At this point, all Ning Rongrong could do was to amplify Qian Shui Shui with all four of her soul skills in an attempt to turn the tide.

The icy rain turned into snowflakes that danced in the air, but each snowflake was as sharp as a blade. As it spun and drifted down, it turned into a vortex of ice and snow that swept towards Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, and Qian Shuishui in an instant.

Qian Shuishui was the only one who reacted. She activated the external soul bone of the Spider Spear, firmly pinning herself to the Soul Arena while protecting her body and activating the Thorn Aura.

Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing had no time to react and crashed head-on into a martial soul fusion skill called "Falling Snow".

After completing their mission of blocking Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, the other five members of Tianshui Academy immediately retreated from Xue Wu Piaoling's attack range. The combined martial soul fusion skill unleashed by a Soul Master and a Soul King was close to the power of an attack at the Soul Saint level.

As the snowflakes danced and swept through, they blew away Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing. Then, a loud phoenix cry rang out from the soaring ice-blue pillar of light. A huge ice phoenix took shape, and the dazzling blue phoenix descended from the sky without a trace of fire. It transformed into a dazzling ice-blue light and floated down, rushing in a straight line towards the remaining people.

Despair was Ning Rongrong's feeling at this moment; this battle was beyond their level.

If the teammates work together, it shouldn't be a big problem. Oscar's flying mushroom sausage is still there, so let's take off sooner.

Alternatively, if Qian Shuishui and the others hadn't been in such a hurry and had cleared the field one by one, the situation wouldn't have been so bad, and they could have won the game.

At this point, it was no longer a matter of winning or losing, but a matter of life and death!

Qian Shuishui did not sit idly by and wait for death. The moment the Ice Phoenix took shape, she transformed into three people and single-handedly attacked the five people who were not using the Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

The Eight-Spider Soul Bone pierced straight at Shui Yue'er. Qian Shui Shui's strength and this sudden change left Shui Bing'er, who was controlling a giant ice and snow, unable to stop in time.

Shui Bing'er broke free from her Martial Soul Fusion Skill, and her fifth Soul Ring lit up. "Fifth Soul Skill, Ice Explosion Technique!" A flash of icy blue light appeared, and the ultimate ice martial soul, the Ice Phoenix, carrying extremely cold energy, activated the Ice Explosion Technique.

Her Ice Blast technique is the complete version, not the simple ice and snow explosion that Ling Yunzhi used to be able to do.

The Ice Phoenix Martial Soul has another name ten thousand years later: the Ultimate Martial Soul!

This ice explosion technique draws upon more primal ice-attribute energy. The colder the opponent's body becomes, the more likely they are to be frozen in place. In fact, they may be directly blasted apart by this energy, leaving no trace of their body.

At this moment, Qian Shuishui had already endured a round of icy snowfall. Although her combat power was still formidable, she was not a fire-attribute soul master after all, and her body had long been frozen solid.

The life-threatening crisis made Qian Shuishui disregard everything else. Suddenly, her primordial spirit left her body and unleashed the light of destruction. At the same time, her primordial spirit accelerated and unleashed the 'First Encounter Kill'.

This moment was extremely critical. The giant ice phoenix, at the Soul Saint level, charged towards Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, Oscar, and Ning Rongrong.

Qian Shuishui and Shui Bing'er, caught up in the heat of the moment, face the danger of destroying each other's bodies and souls, one destroying the other's.

Chapter 252 The Six Martial Souls Appear in Their True Forms, Xue Ye's Confidence, Xue Qing's Comfort to Ning Rongrong [6000 words]

Everyone at the Heavenly Battle Arena felt that the ticket price was worthwhile, because they witnessed six powerful individuals unleash their Martial Soul True Forms!

Gu Rong: "Seventh Soul Skill, Bone Dragon True Form!"

Ning Fengzhi: "Seventh Soul Skill, Seven Treasures True Body!"

Ning Huahua: "Seventh Soul Skill, Seven Treasures True Body!"

Feng Jingyi: "Seventh Soul Skill, Wind Sword True Form!"

Ling Yunzhi: "Seventh Soul Skill, Ice Emperor True Form!"

Yin Jin: "Seventh Soul Skill, Jade Bracelet True Form!"

Although Qian Shui and Yin Jin were a little unhappy about losing the match, Qian Shui was off to do something important.

First, he returned to the VIP section and sat down next to Xue Qinghe.

To outsiders, it appeared that the Crown Princess had come to see the Crown Prince, but in reality, the two had switched places as a backup plan in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

Qian Shuishui, who launched the 'First Encounter Kill', cannot avoid it under the blessing of the 'Light of Destruction' unless she is overwhelmed by mental power and forcibly suppressed.

And in this Douluo Continent, apart from Qian Shui, no one else can stop Qian Shui Shui silently and without injury, so he has to take responsibility for this.

First was Gu Rong, who had come with Ning Fengzhi. He was the first to get restless, since Ning Rongrong was still on the field.

As soon as he entered the arena, Gu Rong immediately activated his seventh soul skill. A huge bone dragon suddenly appeared on the battle stage, surrounding Ning Rongrong and the other three. The icy tornadoes that were falling with snow were immediately blocked by the huge bone dragon.

Nine spirit rings surrounded the withered yet exceptionally tall Gu Rong, who stroked Ning Rongrong's head and comforted her, "Rongrong, don't be afraid, Grandpa Gu is here."

Outside the arena, Feng Jingyi, who had also suddenly appeared with eight rings flying around and activated her weapon spirit true form, wielded a wind sword with blood-red patterns, cleaving the giant ice phoenix in two with a single strike. At the same time, a gale arose, scattering ice and snow into the sky.

As Yin Jin activated his Soul Avatar to provide additional healing and save the lives of all the students, Ning Fengzhi and Ning Huahua exchanged a glance outside the arena and simultaneously activated their Seven Treasures Avatars.

Two gleaming Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagodas were placed on the entire Great Soul Arena to amplify the power of Qian Shuishui and Shui Bing'er, preventing them from dying from overexertion.

Similarly, Ling Yunzhi possesses the same source of power and is also the elemental martial soul 'ice'. He is attempting to control the spread of the ice explosion technique's energy.

Qian Shui was the only one who could use two martial souls at the same time. 'Thousand Illusions' covered the entire field, and his primordial spirit teleported out of his body. Without anyone being able to see or feel it, he blocked the Light of Destruction and Qian Shui's 'First Encounter Kill'.

After everything was over, Ning Huahua suddenly stood up from the VIP seats and said to the referee, "Tian Dou Royal Academy concedes defeat."

At this moment, the Great Soul Arena was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Ning Huahua's words echoed throughout the arena because everything happened so fast, and all the attacks were launched in the blink of an eye.

Viewers who didn't understand could only see the Royal Fighting Team 2 rushing forward, then the Martial Soul Fusion Skill Ice and Snow Falling was activated, an ice phoenix descended, and then all the powerful figures descended.

The referee was terrified; he was no longer capable of controlling the game. If someone hadn't covered for him, at least six players would have died in the match.

These kids all come from extraordinary backgrounds, so he won't be able to escape easily.

"Announce the results!" Ning Huahua shouted again.

Anyone could hear the anger in the young crown princess's words. The referee, who had been speechless for a moment, finally came to his senses and announced, "I declare the winner of the preliminary round to be—Tianshui Academy!"

There were no cheers, only a cacophony of voices as everyone chattered about what had happened.

Ning Rongrong, who had just regained her senses under Bone Douluo's protection, looked towards Ning Huahua's location and, sure enough, saw Ning Huahua turning and leaving.

This is the first time I've ever known this woman that she's gotten this angry.

Even in Shrek Academy, neither Dai Mubai nor Yu Xiaogang had ever angered her this much.

Ning Rongrong knew that the fire was directed at everyone on their team, and no one could escape it.

Ning Rongrong was in no mood for the awards ceremony that followed. When she received the certificate from her father, she still didn't quite understand why she cared so much about Ning Huahua's words, even though she clearly disliked her.

This isn't about winning or losing a battle; there are deeper reasons behind it, though she hasn't figured them out yet.

After the awards were presented, it was the turn of the highest-ranking person present, Emperor Xueye, to speak.

Emperor Xueye's gaze swept over the student representatives from the five academies before he smiled and said, "First of all, children, I want to congratulate you."

The other academies sent their captains and vice-captains to receive their awards, but only four academies—Tianshui, Shenfeng, Leiting, and Chihuo—were present. Tiandou Royal Academy was the most unusual; Ning Huahua walked away, leaving only Ning Rongrong.

"You have successfully qualified for this year's Continental Elite Tournament of Advanced Soul Master Academies. As the supreme ruler of the Heaven Dou Empire, I am proud of you. You are all the hope for the future of the empire. And as the captains and vice-captains of your respective teams, your strength has played a crucial role in the competition."

Therefore, the Royal Family has decided to bestow upon you ten the title of Viscount, and the other participating students from your five academies the title of Baron. After your graduation, the doors of the Imperial Family will be open to you at any time. Your fiefdoms will be allocated uniformly after your graduation.”

It's obvious to everyone that the commentary talents of the participants in this year's elite competition far surpass those of any other year, so it's only natural that Xueye would invest heavily in recruiting them.

As soon as these words were spoken, many people's expressions changed, and they looked at each other, searching for a certain figure. Ning Fengzhi, who was keeping his eyes downcast, knew that they were looking for Xue Qinghe.

As the captains and vice-captains of their respective teams, these young people were all quite worldly, but the sheer number of rewards bestowed upon them by Emperor Xueye still left them somewhat bewildered. What did these titles represent?

A viscount already has his own territory and servants, and receives an annual imperial grant, which is enough to live on.

Although many Soul Masters possess titles, obtaining a title from a kingdom or duchy is relatively easy, but obtaining a title from an empire is not so simple, especially the title of Viscount, which is directly granted. A Viscount's territory can already be as large as a small city.

The key point is that Xueye has already assured the ten people in front of him that after this competition ends, they will be granted fiefdoms.

This shows that they were not just nobles with empty titles, but real nobles who owned territories.

However, at this time, the political situation in the Tiandou Empire was not one where Xue Ye had absolute power; in fact, all the power belonged to Crown Prince Xue Qinghe.

It's not that the students don't understand politics, but even Salas and Ning Fengzhi were surprised, because the real power holder, Xue Qinghe, did not support the enfeoffment and had even taken back the jurisdiction of the territories of the various kingdoms.

This kind of centralized power ensures that there are very few places within the Heavenly Dou Empire that Xue Qinghe cannot reach. This virtuous cycle also makes Xue Qinghe's authority grow stronger and stronger.

In other words, whether it's the fiefdom or the title that Xue Ye promised, it's all just empty promises if Xue Qinghe doesn't agree.

However, the person in question seemed to have learned something, and everyone ran away, seemingly to chase after the Crown Princess. But after Xue Ye said that, Xue Qinghe's actions seemed to be more complicated than they appeared.

Xueye, however, seemed completely clueless about politics, and simply continued with a smile: "The upcoming qualifying matches will still be held in the Empire. But the venue will change from the Heavenly Battle Arena to the Royal Enclosure."

At that time, ten teams from the five duchies and kingdoms, having qualified through the preliminary rounds, will come to compete against you in the finals. I hope that all five of your academies will rank highly in the finals, giving you an advantage in the grand finals.

The qualifying rounds are the best stage to showcase your individual strength. The top three students with the most wins in the qualifying rounds will have their next title upgrade provided by the Empire. You can choose the type of soul beast yourself; the Empire can guarantee all soul beasts with a cultivation level of less than 30,000 years.

Whether it was Shrek Academy or the four elemental academies, Emperor Xueye's promise at this moment was even more tempting than the previous titles. Surprised, they all looked at each other in bewilderment, except for Shui Bing'er from Tianshui Academy and the absent-minded Ning Rongrong, who remained expressionless.

While a ten-thousand-year spirit ring is desirable, given the strength of those who protect them on the field, it's not something they need to worry about.

Seeing the growing fervor in the eyes of the elites before him, Emperor Xueye smiled slightly. "The advancement competition will be held in a month. I hope you can make further breakthroughs within this month. Alright, I won't say anything more. You kids are all very smart, and I think you will make a wise choice."

After saying this, Xueye said nothing more, as if she had said nothing at all, and turned to leave, accompanied by high-ranking imperial officials.

Just as the captains and vice-captains stepped off the stage and left, Huo Wu walked up to the taciturn Ning Rongrong and said sarcastically:

"Ning Rongrong, you're so lucky! You have such a distinguished birth, so losing doesn't matter to you. Even facing such a terrifying Spirit Fusion Technique, you have a Title Douluo to back you up, so titles and such are even less important to you~"

When Blazing Fire Academy lost to Royal Fighting Team 2, Ning Rongrong and the other six watched as Qian Shuishui single-handedly swept through all seven members of Blazing Fire Academy, which was a humiliation for Huo Wu.

Seeing Ning Rongrong lose and look so dejected today, Huo Wu, whose mood suddenly brightened, couldn't help but want to mock her.

"If you like it, then accept it. As for the ten-thousand-year soul ring, why don't you join the 'Soul Alliance'? How old are you? Getting involved in politics is fine, but joining the Crown Prince's Palace would be more direct." Ning Rongrong, unlike her usual self, commented expressionlessly before walking out of the arena.

"Hey! What do you mean?"