The influence of the Spirit Hall extended across the entire continent, and not every branch hall was guarded by a Super Douluo.
If Tang Hao went mad with revenge and specifically targeted the weaker branch halls, wouldn't the entire Spirit Hall end up in a state of panic, with everyone living in fear?
If that happened, a large number of people would inevitably leave the Spirit Hall to protect themselves.
Moreover, Tang Hao was operating from the shadows, and the Hall's experts would be unable to track him down in a short time.
If this continued, the Spirit Hall would inevitably decline, while other forces would seize the opportunity to rise and perhaps even replace it.
The disadvantages far outweighed the benefits. This was absolutely not something they could do.
Xue Qinghe felt fortunate. If he hadn't discussed the matter with Wu Qi beforehand and had actually recruited his enemy's son, he truly would have been a complete fool.
Of course, after being humiliated by Prince Xue Xing, the Shrek Seven Devils already regarded the imperial family as their enemy, so they would most likely never accept Xue Qinghe's recruitment.
"Your Highness, it's always best to be cautious. Tang San isn't someone we can't have contact with, but we need to know our limits. Since recruiting him isn't possible, why not squeeze some value out of him instead?" Wu Qi asked with a smile.
Xue Qinghe nodded thoughtfully.
On the arena below, Chen Ping relied on his Turtle Shell Shield combination techniques to force Cui Xia out of bounds, securing victory and defending his position as a main team member.
After all, he was only a defense-type Spirit Master, and his martial soul had very little offensive power.
Cui Xia, on the other hand, possessed a Tiger martial soul and had formidable attack power.
Under normal circumstances, assault-type Spirit Masters naturally countered defense-type Spirit Masters. Since Cui Xia had chosen Chen Ping as his opponent, he had clearly done his homework beforehand.
Unfortunately, when it came to combat techniques, Chen Ping, after receiving the team's training, far surpassed him.
"My thanks."
Chen Ping cupped his fists and turned away gracefully, no longer bothering with his opponent.
Cui Xia slammed the ground in frustration before leaving resentfully.
To account for the team's stamina consumption, the rules stated that a member could not be challenged by multiple people in quick succession.
The referee immediately announced, "If anyone still wishes to challenge contestant Chen Ping, you must wait at least half an hour. Challenges against other contestants may begin immediately."
Changkong was only thirteen years old. According to the rules, only students under sixteen could challenge him. However, very few people in that age group had reached the Spirit Elder level.
He had originally thought he could relax because of that, but to his surprise, the next contestant specifically called him out by name.
Chen Ping chuckled.
"Changkong, it seems your luck isn't very good."
Feng Xiaotian frowned.
"That person's name is Huang Qi. He's the young heir of an imperial marquis's estate and is extremely talented. Rumor has it his innate spirit power reached Level 8. With the resources of his family backing him, he's already reached Level 37."
Changkong rarely enjoyed the advantage of overwhelming resources. Most of the time, he was the one challenging opponents above his level.
However, he had always had a habit of underestimating his opponents. Huang Qi had a record of defeating Spirit Elders despite being at a lower level, so even the slightest carelessness could lead to an upset.
Huo Wushuang couldn't help but remind him,
"Changkong, remember what the captain said. Never be arrogant. If you lose, don't blame us for refusing to acknowledge you as our teammate."
Changkong laughed awkwardly.
In truth, he had already begun trying to change this flaw and had made some progress.
At the very least, when it came to matters concerning his reputation, he wouldn't be too careless.
On the viewing platform, Ning Fengzhi had returned, his face carrying the same warm smile as always.
"You've finished talking?" he asked with a smile.
Wu Qi cupped his fists.
"Uncle Ning, I'll head back first. If I stay away for too long and someone challenges me, they might not be able to find me."
Ning Fengzhi smiled and waved his hand.
Anyone with eyes could see that challenging Wu Qi was simply asking for humiliation.
After all, Wu Qi's spirit power level wasn't even the highest in the team. Before they left for their training expedition, his level had actually been lower than that of the Huo siblings after they absorbed the immortal herbs.
Even so, he still became the captain, and none of the others objected, especially Feng Xiaotian. That alone was enough to show just how powerful he truly was.
Moreover, a captain represented the soul of a team and could not be changed lightly. Unless someone possessed exceptional personal charisma, even if a newcomer managed to defeat the captain, they still might not gain the trust of the other team members, ultimately causing the team to fall apart and forcing it to be rebuilt from scratch.
Meanwhile…
Compared to the lively atmosphere at Seven Treasure Academy, Shrek Academy seemed exceptionally deserted.
This year's enrollment season had been disastrous. The number of new students couldn't simply be described as being cut in half, it was down by a full seventy percent compared to previous years.
Moreover, if they hadn't extended the registration period themselves, the number of new students would have been even lower.
Most of the new students were also those who had failed to make it into Seven Treasure Academy and had nowhere else to go, leaving Shrek Academy as their only option.
The reason Flender was unwilling to seek revenge against Dugu Bo was fundamentally because he was worried about the academy's current situation.
A decline in student enrollment for one or two years might not seem serious, but if it continued for a long time, the academy would eventually be unable to make ends meet and would face closure.
After a night of waiting, Grandmaster finally woke up.
Seeing that he was no longer in danger, the Shrek Seven Devils, under Grandmaster's urging, had no choice but to organize their training on their own.
As they walked out of the dormitory building and looked at the academy grounds, Yu Tianheng couldn't help but mutter.
"What's going on today? Why does the academy suddenly feel so empty?"
The Shrek Seven Devils had all been by Grandmaster's bedside the previous night and knew nothing about what had happened at the academy, so they headed to the dean's office to ask Flender.
As for where the students had gone, they had all gone to Seven Treasure Academy.
Unlike Shrek Academy, where the team members had been predetermined with no possibility of change, Seven Treasure Academy's team was also preselected, but that didn't mean others had no chance to compete for a spot.
At Shrek Academy, however, Flender had completely shut the door on any changes. The identities of the main team members had already been fixed and could not be altered.
It wasn't hard to understand why he had done this. Back then, Ma Hongjun had only been a Spirit Grandmaster. If an open selection tournament had been held, he would have been the first to be eliminated, followed by Zhu Zhuqing.
Although the two of them had now advanced to the Spirit Elder level, their spirit power levels were still relatively low and they would still struggle against mid- and high-level Spirit Elders.
For the sake of his own disciples, Flender inevitably showed favoritism toward them.
Inside the dean's office, after listening to Flender's explanation, the Shrek Seven Devils all wore strange expressions.
"A team selection tournament at Seven Treasure Academy? Why would they allow students from other academies to watch?"
To protect each member's trump cards, selection tournaments like this were usually held internally and outsiders were not allowed to observe.
The Shrek Seven Devils couldn't understand Seven Treasure Academy's intentions, and neither could Flender.
However, after giving it some thought, the matter was actually quite simple. Ning Fengzhi was confident that the members of the Seven Treasure Team were strong enough that none of them would be replaced, and he also believed that the core members would not expose their true abilities during the challenges.
Unfortunately, Flender and the others kept viewing everything through the lens of conspiracy, so they couldn't make sense of it.
Ma Hongjun snorted.
"They're definitely plotting something. If we go, they'll surely take the opportunity to humiliate us. In my opinion, Teacher, you should issue an order forbidding any students from going to watch."
But in this matter, Flender was powerless.
Not to mention how he had obtained his position as dean, even if Liu Erlong personally stepped in, she still wouldn't be able to stop the teachers and students from making their own choices.
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