blogombal Chapter 151 Martial Soul City
Chapter 151 Martial Soul City
Chapter 151 Martial Soul City
After a twenty-day journey, the group finally arrived at Wuhun City, the venue for the finals.
All the soldiers did not follow into Wuhun City, but instead stayed outside the city. Crown Prince Xue Qinghe led sixteen teams into Wuhun City together.
Although Wuhun City doesn't appear to be as large as Tiandou City, it is exceptionally magnificent.
The walls of Wuhun City are 80 meters high and over 30 meters thick. In particular, its location is not like it was built directly on flat ground, but rather like a mountain that was leveled and built on top of it. In terms of its strategic importance, it probably far surpasses Tiandou City.
Moreover, unlike major cities, where ordinary cities use soldiers as patrol teams, Wuhun City is entirely patrolled by Soul Masters, all in uniform and looking exceptionally formidable. According to Yang Podi's own estimation, the patrolling soldiers are mainly Soul Masters, with some Soul Kings or Soul Emperors, and occasionally even Soul Saints.
Seeing the towering city, the sturdy defenses, and the formidable patrol team, Yang Podi couldn't help but exclaim: "The Spirit Hall truly lives up to its reputation as the holy land of spirit masters and the most powerful spirit master organization on the entire continent. Its strength far exceeds my expectations."
Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the hexagonal Spirit City was actually built around a hill, on which stood two striking buildings. The one halfway up the hill was the most magnificent; even from a distance, its columned structure and dome were clearly visible, its exterior covered in a golden material that shimmered in the sunlight. That must be the Papal Palace, and also the so-called Elder Palace; these two halls controlled the development of the entire Spirit Hall.
To become an elder of the Spirit Hall, with very few exceptions, one must generally reach the level of a Title Douluo.
The other building, perched atop the hill, was much smaller than the Papal Palace, about a third its size. Its structure was somewhat similar, though its exterior was a pristine white. It was far less conspicuous than the Papal Palace. According to Yang Podi's conjecture, that should be the so-called Douluo Palace, perhaps even encompassing the entire Angelic Temple, and representing the highest symbol of the entire Spirit Hall.
After entering Wuhun City, the group found it less bustling than Tiandou City, but the shops and people there were far from ordinary. The shops mainly sold items for soul masters, including various types of soul tools, the corpses of soul beasts, and even valuable parts of soul beasts, such as rhinoceros horns and soul beast hides—virtually everything imaginable.
The pedestrians in Wuhun City are mostly Soul Masters; ordinary people are rarely seen.
Since entering Spirit City, his entire body, spirit, and even soul seemed to have undergone a transformation, showing a newfound reverence and piety towards the gods. This was likely due to the divine power of the Angel God enveloping the entire Spirit City. The Angel God's power seemed completely different from that of the City of Slaughter. If the City of Slaughter was filled with bloodshed and carnage, the Angel God's power seemed to possess a purifying force. Perhaps cultivating under the Angel God's power would lead to a clearer mind and a more open-minded disposition.
Upon entering Wuhun City, they were received by a cardinal, and under his guidance, the group of over two hundred people were accommodated in a large hotel.
After entering the restaurant, Grandpa Yang Wudi and Grandpa Niu Gao exchanged a glance, nodded slightly, and then left together.
One of the purposes of their visit to Wuhun City was to receive the title of Title Douluo.
The two first arrived at the Papal Palace, where they seemed to have a conversation with Pope Bibi Dong. Then, led by Bibi Dong, they went to the Douluo Palace to receive their investiture.
When the two returned to the hotel, they took Yang Podi, Niu Mang, and Dugu Bo directly into the room.
Yang Podi noticed that the two men's expressions seemed a bit off; they were much more serious than when they first arrived.
Yang Wudi and Niu Gao both gave a wry smile, then each pulled out a golden book of investiture from their bodies, which also contained a papal decree.
The golden book contains detailed information about two people, including their martial spirits and soul power, but what on earth is this papal decree? Normally, the conferment of a titled Douluo wouldn't involve issuing a papal decree.
According to the golden book, Grandpa Yang Wudi was titled Soul Breaker Douluo, and Grandpa Niu Gao was titled Plate Armor Douluo. One signifies powerful attack, and the other signifies plate armor-like defense.
Yang Wudi remained silent for a while before slowly speaking: "Normally, papal decrees are not issued, but Old Rhino and I are no longer part of the three upper sects. We each have our own power and family. The Pope specially ordered the creation of these two papal decrees, which can be considered a symbol of our respective power."
Yang Podi's expression changed slightly upon hearing this: "This Pope Bibi Dong is truly cunning. He wants to use a mere papal decree to put us in the same precarious position as the Upper Three Sects. It can be considered a form of provocation."
"Grandpa, Grandpa, why didn't you two refuse?"
Yang Wudi shook his head: "Although this is a hot potato, we two have no choice but to accept it. Actually, this is also Bibi Dong testing our attitude. If we don't accept it, she might think that we still have various connections with the Upper Three Sects. Taking this Papal Decree can be considered a way of severing ties with the Haotian Sect."
Yang Podi thought for a moment before speaking: "Grandpa, maternal grandpa, it's not a big deal. We have our own plans anyway. As long as it doesn't conflict with our plans, it's fine. Besides, nobody takes the papal decree seriously anymore."
Grandpa Niu Gao nodded as well: "Old Goat and I think so too. Who cares about any provocation or not? We'll stay far away and won't interfere in the messy affairs of the Clear Sky Sect and the Spirit Hall anymore."
After everyone arrived in Wuhun City, they had three days of rest before the final competition was about to begin.
Teacher Li Xiang also explained the rules of the finals to everyone in detail, including some specific matters of the finals.
The rules for the finals are simple: the first stage is entirely a knockout tournament, with winners advancing and losers being eliminated. The competition is extremely intense, with only one day of rest between each round.
The two empires plus the Spirit Hall comprised a total of thirty-three teams, including fifteen teams from the Star Luo Empire, sixteen teams from the Heaven Dou Empire, plus teams recommended by the Star Luo Empire and teams recommended by the Spirit Hall.
Two teams were guaranteed a spot, plus the winner of the Tiandou regional qualifying tournament, and three teams received a bye in the first round. The remaining thirty teams were drawn into one-on-one matches, eliminating half of them directly, leaving a total of eighteen teams advancing to the next round.
In the second round, the second-place team from the Tiandou region's qualifying tournament and the first-place team from the Xingluo Empire's qualifying tournament received byes, while the remaining teams continued to draw lots for one-on-one matches.
This brings the total number of teams advancing to the third round to ten.
The teams that received a bye in the third round were the second-place team from the Star Luo Empire's qualifying round and the third-place team from the Heaven Dou Empire's qualifying round. A total of six teams advanced to the fourth round.
If a team is eliminated early, all teams that have a bye will have their bye postponed.
In the fourth round, no teams received a bye; instead, they faced off in one-on-one matches to determine the final three.
After four rounds of elimination matches, three teams advanced to the fifth round.
After the fourth round, there will be a three-day rest period. In the fifth and final round, only three teams will remain. These three teams will first compete in a round-robin format, with each team fielding seven players to determine the strongest individual team. Then, the two losing teams will face off in a team battle, and the winner will challenge the winner of the previous individual competition to determine the final champion.
As the first-place team in the Heaven Dou Empire's qualifying tournament, Team Tian Dou 2 received a bye in the first round and could only officially play in the second round.
Yang Podi looked at everyone in the team, seemingly more serious than before: "As you all know, Grandpa Yang Wudi and Grandpa Niu Gao have just been conferred the title of Title Douluo. From now on, at least on the surface, our family is a major force. I want to win the championship in the finals to celebrate for them."
"So I will be playing from the very first game of the finals, but you can't let your guard down. This time, we can only win, we can't afford to lose."
"As you all probably already know, the reward for the final champion is three soul bones. Let me say this last: for the sake of the clan, I want the soul bones, but I want the championship even more, and I am determined to win it."
After hearing these words, everyone became much more serious. This Soul Master Competition was no longer just about individuals, but also about the two major families.
In fact, Yang Podi didn't say it out loud, but ever since they came into contact with those two papal decrees, the attitudes of the Po and Yu clans toward the Spirit Hall have become very clear, and even their attitudes toward the three upper sects have become very clear. From now on, the two clans will be independent forces, no longer dependent on any sect, nor becoming subordinate forces of any sect.
For a major sect, winning the Soul Master Tournament is not only a way of announcing their victory to the world, but also a demonstration of their future strength.
Moreover, since things have already come to this point, it's better to forge ahead than to continue retreating and enduring.
The first round of the finals was not particularly outstanding. Among the thirty teams, apart from Team Tiandou, no team had more than four Soul Masters, and there were basically no Soul Masters with Soul Power reaching level 45.
The Tian Dou region also demonstrated its strength, with all four teams advancing to the next round, bringing smiles to the faces of the Tian Dou Empire officials, led by Xue Qinghe.
The only slightly unexpected thing was that, just like in the original story, Kamikaze Academy and Blazing Fire Academy formed the so-called New Kamikaze Team.
But in Yang Podi's eyes, this so-called new Shenfeng team was not good enough. The two teams together only had four Soul Masters, and Feng Xiaotian, who had the highest Soul Power, was only at level 44.
Originally, they were dissatisfied with Tang San's Shrek Academy and felt that the two teams would have a chance to win if they combined their efforts. However, given the current strength of the Heaven Dou First Team and Heaven Dou Second Team, even if the two teams combined their efforts, they probably wouldn't have much of a chance of winning. So what was the point of combining their efforts?
In the second round of the competition, the Tiandou Second Team was officially ready to take the stage. To everyone's surprise, the opponent they drew was the new Kamikaze team, which surprised everyone.
In normal circumstances, it's rare for strong teams to meet so early in a draw. However, this newly formed Kamikaze team has encountered the highly favored Tendou 2 team.
Yang Podi couldn't help but sneer: It seems that the Spirit Hall also wants to test my strength, otherwise they wouldn't have allowed the Divine Wind Academy and Blazing Fire Academy to reunite. I just don't know if they have any other countermeasures after I showed my strength.
(End of this chapter)