There was only one rank difference between 98 and 99, but at their level, even that one rank was like the difference between heaven and earth!

Blood One turned to look at Zhang Huanyun. "If that day ever does come, I have a request."

Zhang Huanyun asked, "What is it?"

Blood One said with a serious expression, "I want the legion to stand with Wulin when he revives Shrek Academy."

Zhang Huanyun faltered slightly upon hearing this. "You're saying, you want the legion to help him rebuild the academy?"

Cao Dezhi nodded in response. "Shrek Academy stood for over 20,000 years and developed countless bright talents for the federation and left behind countless legacies; how can it just be destroyed like this? As the current leader of Shrek's Seven Monsters, Tang Wulin has a duty to revive the academy."

Zhang Huanyun said in a grim voice, "But you should know that no matter how independent the Blood God Legion is, it's still an entity that belongs to the military, and it was founded by Shrek Academy, the Tang Sect, the Battle God Hall, and the Spirit Pagoda."

Cao Dezhi nodded in response. "I'm naturally aware of that, but let me ask you this; do you think we'll be able to eradicate the threat of the abyssal plane on our own?"

Zhang Huanyun asked, "Are you saying that we'll be able to do that with Tang Wulin's inclusion?"

A faint smile appeared on Blood One's face. "At the very least, it'll be possible. Hence, what I'm asking is, if he can really play a pivotal role in eradicating the threat of the abyssal plane, would the Blood God Legion be willing to stand with him?"

Zhang Huanyun's brows furrowed slightly. "I get what you're saying, and in fact, at least half our legion would be willing to support your Tang Sect and Shrek Academy. However, we still have soldiers from the Spirit Pagoda and the Battle God Hall among us, and we can't just neglect to consider them."

Cao Dezhi said, "I'm not asking them to rebel against the federation; I only want them to stand with Tang Wulin and lend him their support. At the very least, they have to support him on a surface-level so Shrek Academy isn't discriminated against during its rebuild process. Is that too much to ask?"

Zhang Huanyun's expression changed slightly. "No, that should be well within reason."

Cao Dezhi continued in a calm voice, "The Blood God Legion needs a purpose. The purpose of our existence is to protect the continent, yet the Holy Spirit Cult is currently at the height of its arrogance, causing so many tragic disasters on the continent. If we can eradicate the threat of the abyssal plane, don't you think they should become our new enemy?"

Zhang Huanyun immediately replied without any hesitation, "Of course! If I could leave my post here, I would've joined the hunt against them long ago!"

"Alright, then we have ourselves a deal." Cao Dezhi smiled and didn't say anything further.

In the Blood God Legion, he was undoubtedly a Tang Sect representative, and the highest-ranking Shrek Academy representative in the legion was Blood Three. However, among all of the troops in the legion, Shrek Academy representatives took up the largest proportion, and to a certain extent, Zhang Huanyun could represent the soldiers from the Battle God Hall. In terms of influence, no one in the legion could compare with Zhang Huanyun.

The Blood God Legion was comprised of four major factions, but in reality, the legion was a unified unit, and everyone's past allegiances gradually became less important over time.

As Blood One, Cao Dezhi was well aware of the future tasks that Tang Wulin would have to face, which was why he was doing everything in his power to help lighten the load on his shoulders.

The Holy Spirit Cult was definitely going to be the greatest enemy Tang Wulin was going to face in the future, and they were going to stoop to any lows required to kill him. If the Blood God Legion could help him oppose this enemy, at the very least, it would buy him a lot of time to rebuild Shrek Academy.

"The match is about to begin," Blood One suddenly said.

Everyone turned their attention to the large screen up ahead again. On the screen, the spectator stands were already completely filled. Everyone who owned Star Cabins and were willing to issue a large fee could watch the match "in person". The tickets were quite expensive, but they were still sold out very quickly. Compared to the other semifinal, this one was most likely going to be more exciting.

This was a matchup between Saber Demon and Golden Dragon King, and it was very hard to say who was going to win. One of them had the second-highest odds, while the other had the third-highest odds, so a thrilling match was definitely on the cards.

It was almost certain that the two of them were fighting for a chance to face the one with the highest odds in the final as the other semifinal was most likely just going to be a formality.

Tang Wulin was sitting in his resting suite with his eyes closed. His Golden Dragon Spear was resting on his knees, and he was silently sensing this divine weapon that was virtually a part of his own body.

No spear intent was emanating from his body whatsoever. In his mind, the Golden Dragon Spear had already become a part of his body, and a very integral part as well.

He had reviewed the battle between Sima Jinchi and Ye Xinglan in great detail, and he'd watched their match footage more than once.

Sima Jinchi's weapon was the Dragonslaying Saber, so in a sense, that unique martial soul of his had an advantage over his martial soul. Of course, that was going to depend on whether his Dragonslaying Saber could rise above the Golden Dragon King. In this regard, Tang Wulin had a lot of confidence in himself.

In terms of cultivation rank, Tang Wulin was definitely at a disadvantage. During his previous matches, Sima Jinchi had already proven himself to be an eight-ring Soul Douluo, yet Tang Wulin was currently only at rank 65 in soul power. Despite the fact that he possessed two major energy cores, there was a disparity between the two in terms of total soul power reserves.

However, that wasn't the most important factor setting the two of them apart; the most important differentiating factor was their understanding of their respective weapons. Sima Jinchi had already attained his own saber soul, which was extremely wild and violent. Ye Xinglan had only just attained her sword soul, so it was no surprise at all that she was defeated in the end.

In contrast, Tang Wulin hadn't even attained his own spear soul. At most, he could only say that he had achieved a good degree of mastery over his own spear intent. This was the true gap between them, and it was also why the vast majority of people were rather pessimistic about his chances in this match.

Sima Jinchi's combat prowess was simply far too powerful. He had once defeated an entire mecha corps on his own with ease without even releasing his suit of battle armor.

A mecha corps consisted of 100 mechas, and this was an elite mecha corps with a black-grade mecha pilot as their commander. At the time, Sima Jinchi was only a seven-ring Soul Sage, yet he'd crushed his opponents without giving them even half a chance.

From that epic tale alone, one could imagine just how powerful he was.

However, Tang Wulin was still very confident in himself. If he could defeat his opponent, he would definitely be able to deepen his understanding of his Golden Dragon Spear, and that was an integral part of his cultivation.

As such, he had already entered a state of complete immersion, immersing himself in his Golden Dragon Spear. The pressure of facing this powerful enemy was making him tap into his latent potential, and the more powerful his enemy was, the more powerful he would become, to the extent that he could even make breakthroughs during battle; this had almost become a set rule in his cultivation history.

Only after the server came to knock on his door did he slowly rise to his feet, emerging from the resting suite with his Golden Dragon Spear in his hand. Faint golden light shimmered within his eyes, and in his heart, Old Tang's figure appeared over and over again as he replayed Old Tang's demonstration of Fury of the Masses in his mind.

Deafening cheers erupted up ahead, and the electrifying atmosphere was enough to elevate anyone's heart rate, but Tang Wulin remained largely unaffected. He had cut out all of the noise in the outside world, and he was in a state of complete tranquility. He was only focusing on the feeling of his bloodline power flowing through his Golden Dragon Spear.

Wild Gale Saber Demon Sima Jinchi had already emerged on the other side. His Dragonslaying Saber was clearly his martial soul, but he was already holding it in his hand and carrying it on his shoulder. As long as he didn't release any of his soul rings, releasing his martial soul prior to the commencement of the match wasn't against the rules.

Sima Jinchi looked on as Tang Wulin strode forward on the other side of the competition venue, and an intense look appeared in his eyes.

Is he the one? The leader of Shrek’s Seven Monsters and Zhengyu's captain?

Among all of the participants, he was most likely the only one who was aware of Tang Wulin's identity aside from Tang Wulin's friends.

The Southern Legion was an extremely tight-knit unit under the control of the Holy Angel clan, and even the federation couldn't influence it. Sima Jinchi was far from popular in the legion, but he was well trusted by the legion commander, so he knew some things that other people didn't.

This man was of a similar age to Yue Zhengyu, yet he was able to make it to this point, so he most definitely possessed extraordinary aptitude.

Sima Jinchi had reviewed Tang Wulin's past competition footage, and he was really fond of Tang Wulin's explosive battle style. The multitude of explosive abilities that Tang Wulin possessed had left a very deep impression on him.

In particular, the last attack that he had used to turn the tables and defeat Yuanen Yehui was insanely powerful!