CHAPTER 277: The Fall of Shrek’s Mask

Chapter 277: The Fall of Shrek's Mask

Huo Yuhao's simulated soul skill concealed the figure of Beast King Gong Changlong. However, Xiao Qiang, sensing that something was off, scanned the area with his spiritual sense and instantly detected Gong Changlong's concealed presence.

After all, Huo Yuhao's third soul skill was only around 3,000 years old—not a 100,000-year soul skill like those wielded by Xiao Qiang. The limitations of Huo Yuhao's ability were significant; it was only thanks to most people not paying close attention that it remained undetected until now.

Xiao Hongchen furrowed his brow. "Interesting things? What interesting things do you mean?"

Xiao Qiang didn't respond immediately. He simply shook his head and said, "Just wait and see. You'll understand soon enough. Haha… I guess this proves it—Shrek really can't afford to lose."

"Huh?"

…

While Xiao Hongchen was still confused, following Beibei's defeat, Vina was about to enter the stage when she was stopped by Huo Yuhao. Instead, Huo Yuhao stepped up himself.

The moment he walked onto the competition stage, his temperament shifted entirely—becoming wild and arrogant.

"Hmph, just a bunch of clowns. Do you think absorbing a hundred-thousand-year soul ring ahead of time makes you better than Shrek? For ten thousand years, Shrek has stood at the top—we don't need to stoop to your level!"

With a loud stomp forward, eight blood-red soul rings, each representing a 100,000-year-old soul ring, emerged from beneath Huo Yuhao's feet. A terrifying aura surged, making the entire audience tremble.

"Is this for real? Shrek has an eight-ringed Soul Douluo—and every soul ring is a hundred thousand years old! That's even more than Nana!"

"I knew it! I knew Shrek wouldn't lose to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy! This must be their trump card!"

Supporters of Shrek went wild in the audience, clinging to the belief that as long as Shrek had stronger soul rings than Nana's, they would remain the invincible number one academy on the continent.

Xiao Hongchen was less convinced. "Wait, this doesn't add up. Even with a soul skill, soul rings transformed by a soul's ability can't exceed one-tenth of the soul's lifespan. Something's off here…"

"What else could it be?" Xiao Qiang said coldly. "It's just a simulated soul skill. I'll admit, Shrek's education system is disappointing—but their propaganda is first class. Even after they surrendered and lost so disgracefully, people still believe they're the best."

He stepped forward, calmly walking onto the stage.

Seeing Xiao Qiang, who had become synonymous with Shrek's repeated failures, Huo Yuhao began to sweat internally—but kept his expression composed.

"What? Can't the Sun Moon Royal Soul Instructor Academy afford to lose now? So they sent you—the Soul Hall Master—into the ring?" Huo Yuhao sneered mockingly.

But Xiao Qiang didn't respond. Instead, he raised a single finger—and released the Ice Emperor Scorpion's 400,000-year palm bone soul skill: Freezing Ray.

Without warning, a freezing beam shot forth, striking directly behind Huo Yuhao. The concealed figure of Beast King Gong Changlong was instantly turned into a statue of ice.

The cold behind him and Xiao Qiang's terrifying pressure overwhelmed Huo Yuhao's 3,000-year soul skill—it shattered instantly, revealing the hidden Titled Douluo.

"Ice sculpture?"

"No—he's not just a sculpture, he's a frozen person!"

"Who even is that? Isn't it just supposed to be the two teams and referees up there?"

"I don't know… could he have stepped in to help because Shrek was about to lose?"

Someone in the crowd blurted out the truth by accident—and suddenly, the entire audience fell silent.

"No way. Shrek is the number one soul master academy on the continent—well, used to be. They wouldn't stoop so low as to cheat."

As a section of the audience grew quiet, others began to realize something was seriously wrong. The idea that Shrek had cheated spread like wildfire.

"Come on, not again! I watched the last All-Continental High-Level Soul Master Competition five years ago. Shrek was caught cheating back then too. They claimed it was just a student's personal misconduct. But this…"

People stared at the frozen figure on the field. It was clearly a man who had lived for decades, maybe centuries—this couldn't be dismissed as a student's personal action.

"Wait… isn't that Gong Changlong? The Titled Douluo known as the 'Beast King'? He's a top-ranking official in Shrek Academy!"

The instant someone recognized the frozen elder's identity, chaos erupted in the stadium.

"The students couldn't win, so they had a Titled Douluo secretly intervene?! How low can they sink!"

"They cheated in the last competition and made the students take the blame. I believed them back then! And now—Shrek's losing again, and they still cheat! This is their true face! Bah!"

The arena exploded with outrage. Earlier, Shrek's defenders had drowned out criticism. Now, even those defenders had fallen silent.

Caught red-handed once more—and this time involving a Titled Douluo—no one could argue it was merely a student's fault.

"It was the Sun-Moon Empire who colluded with soul beasts first!" Huo Yuhao shouted, still trying to make excuses.

But Xiao Qiang laughed coldly. "We colluded with soul beasts? That's rich. Ten thousand years ago, I don't recall which academy relied on a 100,000-year-old soul beast to form the legendary Shrek Seven Devils… They're the ones who started the legacy."