Night draped its cloak across the quiet fields outside Shrek Academy's temporary residence, but Tang San couldn't sleep. He sat atop the roof of their pavilion, gazing into the dark horizon where the stars blinked faintly behind thin clouds.
His Blue Silver Grass slowly swayed in the breeze as it extended from his palm—gentle, flexible, tenacious… and utterly powerless in this brutal arena of elite academies.
He clenched his hand, and the grass vanished.
"I've relied on Tang Sect techniques far too much," he muttered.
That last battle against Thunderclap Academy had been a wake-up call. If not for his tang sect techniques and flexible control, Shrek would have lost. His martial soul, the one he had cultivated for so many years, had barely made an impact. He remembered the helplessness he felt as Yu Tianxin summoned that terrifying Blue Divine Dragon Fury, lightning tearing across the field, and how all he could do was try to stall with Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.
Even now, his left shoulder ached faintly from absorbing the backlash of his final defense.
A choice burned inside him. A choice he had long postponed.
"I can't delay anymore."
He raised his right hand—and the air around it rippled.
Darkness gathered.
Weight crashed onto his soul.
A massive black handle extended from his palm, and an ancient hammer, coarse and cold, surged into existence.
Clear Sky Hammer.
Listening to his teacher's guidance, trusting in the vision Yu Xiaogang had for him: to prove that even a "trash" spirit like Blue Silver Grass could reach the summit of the soul master world.
But he had reached his limit. Blue Silver Grass was too weak—especially without a spirit ring on it. He could no longer afford to carry the burden of someone else's pride.
"I'm sorry, Master… but if I can't use the Clear sky hammer then Shrek can't get into top 5 and we will eliminated." he muttered.
______
The final matches of the preliminary round approached like stormclouds over a battlefield.
The rankings had shifted as the dust settled from a week of fierce combat:
1. Azure Dragon Academy – 24 wins out of 24 matches. Undefeated.
2. Divine Wind Academy – 21 wins out of 23 matches. Their fierce tactics and Feng Xiaotian's dominance made them a force.
3. Tianshui Academy – 22 wins out of 24 matches. Despite their loss to Divine Wind, their record remained stellar.
4. Thunderclap Academy – 20 wins out of 23 matches, one match remaining.
5. Shrek Academy – 20 wins out of 23 matches, with critical matche left with Divine Wind Academy. Yes due to their injuries against Thunderclap academy they cannot participate into their match against Azure Dragon Academy and thus it was forfeited and Azure Dragon Academy gained one point and remained undefeated, well even if they had fought the results would have been same. So they directly forfeited to conserve their energy and replenish their strength.
6. Blazing Fire Academy – 20 wins out of 24 matches. Despite a strong final win, they were pushed to sixth place and praying that Shrek academy could lose the match with Divine wind academy, so they will still have a chance to promote in the promotion rounds.
7. Elephant Armor Academy – 19 wins, but a lower strength differential. Eliminated from the promotion contention.
The top five teams would proceed to the promotion rounds, and the margin was razor thin.
Today was deciding battle because if Shrek academy won they will be definitely have a place in top 5 but if they lose then...
The sky above the main arena swirled with turbulent clouds as if echoing the tension on the ground. This wasn't just another fight—this was war for survival.
The match had been delayed three days to allow both teams to recover. Now, fresh battle uniforms and renewed spirit power masked the lingering injuries that hadn't fully healed.
Tang San stepped onto the stage, eyes cold and sharp. Xiao Wu followed, her pink eyes carrying quiet determination. Dai Mubai's aura was heavy, his battle spirit already radiating pressure.
Yu Xuan and Tai Long, however, were absent.
Still recovering. Still unable to stand after their sacrifice.
Now it was up to the remaining core—Tang San, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, Mei Ling—and two substitute students, freshly rotated into the roster.
On the opposite side, Divine Wind Academy stood proudly.
Feng Xiaotian, tall and sharp-eyed, flared his soul power. The aura from his body alone sent waves of pressure across the field. Around him were his teammates, each fast, deadly, and drilled in tactics. They had won their battles through surgical strikes—quick, brutal, precise.
No one doubted the match would be devastating.
From the spectator stands, a hush fell over the crowd.
Referee raised his hand. "Match—begin!"
Cheers echoed through the colossal arena as the battle between Shrek Academy and Divine Wind Academy began in full force. From the very start, Shrek displayed their trademark fiery determination.
Tang San stood at the front, Blue Silver Grass lashing out in swift, controlled arcs. His face was calm, his heart resolute. He had decided to try one last time—to fight using only his primary martial spirit.
Dai Mubai charged forward like a wild tiger, and Ma Hongjun took to the air with blazing wings, launching waves of phoenix fire at Divine Wind's formation.
Morale was high.
But that hope began to crack.
Without Yu Xuan, their usual second aerial fighter, their sky dominance was left solely to Ma Hongjun, who quickly came under pressure. Oscar was also absent from the field—his soul power exhausted after days of non-stop support. Since internal injuries were difficult to heal even for most healing-type soul masters, Oscar had pushed himself to the brink, repeatedly meditating and making recovery sausages to help Tai Long and Yu Xuan recover internally.
Tang San could feel the cracks in their rhythm.
Without Oscar's support. Without Yu Xuan's wind suppression. They were holding on—but barely.
Across the field, Feng Xiaotian and his teammates moved with chilling precision. Agile and unrelenting, Divine Wind Academy's tactics tore into Shrek's defense. The Stormwind Doubleheaded Wolf's speed was astonishing, and Feng Xiaotian took the lead in every attack wave.
"Shrek's team is tough, but Divine Wind... they're just too coordinated," someone whispered from the stands.
As if to prove it, Feng Xiaotian soared into the sky, his body wrapped in spiraling winds.
His voice echoed down.
"Let me show you the strength of my self-created soul skill—Stormwind Demon Wolf's Thirty-Six Successive Chops!"
Blades of wind burst from his claws, merging into a cyclone of strikes as he dove straight at Tang San like a living tempest.
Shrek's defense had no time to reset.
Tang San's heart pounded.
He had no choice now.
In that instant, Blue Silver Grass vanished from his hand—and dark, oppressive energy exploded from his soul.
A massive black hammer appeared, its coarse surface absorbing light itself. The air rippled. The battlefield froze for a breathless moment.
Then came the shouts of disbelief from the audience.
"That's… that's a hammer!"
"No… that's the Clear Sky Hammer!"
"Tang San… he has a second martial spirit? T-Twin martial souls?!"
On the highest seats, Emperor Xue Ye, Ning Fengzhi, and Bone Douluo Gu Rong all rose to their feet.
Ning Fengzhi narrowed his eyes. "Clear Sky Hammer… That boy… he's from the Clear Sky Sect!"
Gu Rong's face showed disbelief. "Twin martial souls. That's a monster-level talent."
But none were more shocked than Platinum Bishop Salas, his fingers curling on the edge of his seat, eyes gleaming with killing intent.
'A member of the Clear Sky Sect with twin martial spirits... Spirit Hall cannot let this child live,' he thought darkly.
In the stands of Azure Dragon Academy Jiang Yun showed a faint smile. 'Well how will you deal with the storm that is coming your way.'
His teammates were shocked to see a twin martial spirit, soul master. But they calmed down and turned towards Jiang Yun.
"What? Do you all really think that a Blue Silver Grass will have innate full level soul power? If you all studied seriously then you should have realised that a regular martial soul cannot have full level soul power, either it is unawakened or the person has another martial soul. And since Tang San has twin martial soul and the second martial soul is publicly announced and famous Clear Sky Hammer then his first martial soul Blue Silver Grass also cannot be as simple as its seems because for twin martial soul to be produced both martial soul must have same quality,means his Blue Silver Grass is not fully awakened and it's quality is on par with Clear Sky Hammer." Jiang Yun briefed them about the twin spirit situations.
After listening to his words everyone put on thinking expression and turned to watch how the battle unveils.
_____
Back on the battlefield, Feng Xiaotian's thirty-six strikes were just moments away.
Tang San's eyes turned icy.
He spun.
The Clear Sky Hammer screamed through the air—Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Technique roaring to life.
BOOM!!
The sky above the arena exploded with wind and force. Every time Feng Xiaotian struck, Tang San met him head-on with a precisely angled hammer blow. The ring beneath them cracked with each collision. The crowd could only watch, stunned, as the two forces clashed again and again, faster, louder, more violently.
Sonic booms echoed.
Neither could retreat.
But slowly—the tides shifted.
Feng Xiaotian's soul skill, though powerful, was still immature—it lacked the raw, ancient dominance of the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer, a battle technique honed by generations of Clear Sky Sect warriors.
By the twenty-fifth strike, cracks began to show in Feng Xiaotian's rhythm.
By the thirty-second, he was forced on the defensive.
At the thirty-sixth, Tang San roared, channeled all his soul power, and smashed the hammer into Feng Xiaotian's chest mid-air.
BOOM!
Feng Xiaotian was flung back like a broken kite—crashing onto the far end of the arena, unconscious.
Silence.
Then chaos.
The entire Shrek team surged forward, their morale ignited like wildfire.
Dai Mubai led a furious charge. Ma Hongjun blasted Divine Wind's support-type member with a phoenix flame bombardment. Xiao Wu knocked two already-wounded members from the platform. Mei Ling provided healing and amplification. And The two reserve members Huang Yuan and Jiang Ling distracted the Divine wind academy members by flanking them from sides.
With their leader gone, Divine Wind Academy's formation collapsed. With a final strike of Dai Mubai the last member of Divine wind academy was also knocked out.
The referee barely managed to raise his hand.
"Match over! Shrek Academy—victory!"
---
Tang San knelt, panting, gripping the Clear Sky Hammer tightly as it slowly faded from view.
He had done it.
But the battlefield wasn't where the true war would begin.
From above, Bishop Salas' eyes gleamed coldly.
Yu Xiaogang stood silently behind the resting area, fists clenched.
'You were too impatient, San… Now that you've shown your second martial spirit, the road ahead… will be filled with blood.'