Chapter 202: Shrek, Gold Soul Duel Team (Part 1)

Qin Ming thought to himself that the Shrek Seven Devils were exactly as he had judged. That was to say, the Shrek Seven Devils before him were even younger and more exceptional than the seven students of the Imperial Battle Team nurtured by the Tian Dou Imperial Academy. He knew all too well the conditions at Shrek Academy. For an academy with such meager resources to produce these genius Soul Masters — what did that prove?

The Shrek Seven Devils' gazes were all fixed on Qin Ming at this moment. The previous battle had been incredibly difficult for them, and now their opposing team's instructor turned out to be their own senior. The feeling was bizarre to them, and more than a little strange.

Flandre turned to the Shrek Seven Devils and said, "Alright, go settle your points first. Then hurry back. Wuji, Qin Ming, let's go."

The three of them departed, leaving only the Shrek Seven Devils behind. By now, all seven had recovered a significant amount of stamina with the help of Oscar's Recovery Sausages, and their Soul Power had partially replenished as well.

Ma Hongjun muttered to himself, "So I'm already this strong — even the elites of the Tian Dou Imperial Academy couldn't beat me. Ha ha, I really am a genius."

Dai Mubai rapped the fatty on the head with no trace of amusement. "Genius, my foot. Was the Imperial Battle Team defeated by you? That was Third Brother's doing. If we'd relied on you, we'd have been beaten to a pulp long ago."

The fatty chuckled. "Boss Dai, you can't say that. Didn't the Great Master say that we're a whole unit, and everyone contributed? Sure, Third Brother was amazing, but your boy here has a few tricks too. Oh, but Third Brother — thanks, brother."

Xiao Wu looked at the fatty curiously. "What are you thanking Third Brother for?"

The fatty laughed again, and the gratitude in his eyes as he looked at Tang San was unmistakable. "Your boy here may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but I'm no fool either. When Third Brother was facing that opponent's shield attack, he refused to use Oscar's Mushroom Sausage to fly up and dodge. That was because I, Oscar, and Rongrong were behind him. Otherwise, he could have just soared into the air effortlessly — what could those two Mystic Turtle Soul Masters have done?"

Tang San smiled faintly. "Didn't you just say we're a whole unit? I couldn't very well sell out my teammates. We're all on the same side, so there's no need for thanks. If I'd been in trouble, wouldn't you have stepped up to cover for me too? Boss Dai, let's go. We'll collect our points, upgrade our Soul Duel ranks, and head back early. By the way — what kind of academy is the Tian Dou Imperial Academy, that Senior Qin Ming mentioned?"

Dai Mubai was momentarily speechless. "Third Brother, you can't be serious. You don't even know about the Tian Dou Imperial Academy?"

Tang San scratched his head. "I really don't!"

Xiao Wu nodded from the side. "I don't either. Are they that famous?"

Ning Rongrong said, "Famous doesn't even begin to cover it. The Tian Dou Imperial Academy was founded by the royal family of the Tian Dou Empire. Every head of the academy throughout its history has been personally held by the Emperor of the Tian Dou Empire. Tell me if that's famous or not? In the Tian Dou Empire, the Tian Dou Imperial Academy is the largest advanced Soul Master academy. Its facilities are beyond imagining in their completeness. If Shrek Academy hadn't accepted me, I might have gone there instead."

Dai Mubai said, "The pity is, though the Tian Dou Academy itself is excellent, its royal background places great restrictions on it. The first requirement for enrolling students at the Tian Dou Imperial Academy is that they must hold a noble title. This bars many outstanding common-born students from joining. And precisely because all the students are nobles, the academy — despite its complete facilities and formidable teaching staff — has always held the title of the Tian Dou Empire's top academy, yet surprisingly few famous Soul Masters have actually emerged from its halls."

Royal background. Tang San nodded slowly. He wasn't particularly envious of any facilities the rival academy might have — he was merely somewhat curious about the place. No wonder the members of the Imperial Battle Team had possessed such formidable Martial Souls; they had come from such a prestigious academy.

Oscar suddenly spoke up. "Boss Dai, Third Brother — how many levels do you think Senior Qin Ming is at now?"

Dai Mubai paused. "Looking at Senior Qin, he's probably in his thirties. The academy's previous record was reaching level thirty at age fourteen — two months earlier than you, actually. Going by that, Senior Qin Ming should be at least level fifty by now. Reaching over level fifty in his early thirties — truly formidable. No wonder he became an instructor at the Tian Dou Imperial Academy."

Tang San nodded slowly in agreement with Dai Mubai's estimation.

Oscar shook his head. "I don't think so. Reaching level fifty and becoming a teacher at an advanced Soul Master academy is certainly no issue. But you have to consider — Senior Qin Ming is the one leading the Imperial Battle Team. That means he must hold a very high position at the Tian Dou Imperial Academy. Could that be possible without the strength to back it up? I'd say even if he isn't at level sixty, he can't be far off."

The fatty had clearly grown impatient standing around. "Alright, let's just go. If you want to know Senior Qin Ming's level, we can ask when we get back. No need to stand around here guessing."

A full month of Soul Duels had finally come to an end. Having defeated the Imperial Battle Team, the Shrek Seven Devils had achieved a perfect record of twenty-eight consecutive victories in team Soul Duels. Moreover, according to the agreement between the Great Master and the Soto Grand Soul Duel Arena, everyone except Oscar and Ning Rongring would each gain an additional one-on-one victory record. And apart from the fatty, who had no partner, the remaining six would each earn a two-on-two victory record as well. After so many rounds of Soul Duels, everyone was rather curious about their point totals. They had no idea how high their points might have risen after this string of consecutive wins.