Jing Shaoyu walked towards Gu Yue and Xu Xiaoyan. Tang Wulin and Xie Xie also saw him and waved to him enthusiastically.
"Captain, you're here!" Tang Wulin said with a smile. "How was the mecha designer competition? Did you secure the top four?"
Jing Shaoyu smiled confidently and said, "No problem. Wait for the results."
He then sat down in the empty seat between Gu Yue and Xu Xiaoyan. He could clearly feel the subtle tension between the two girls, although they both tried their best to appear normal.
"Brother Xiaoyu, you were gone for so long this morning. Where did you go?" Xu Xiaoyan asked, her tone sounding casual but with a hint of underlying curiosity.
"I had some things to deal with," Jing Shaoyu replied vaguely, not wanting to elaborate on his 'dual cultivation' session with Gu Yue.
Gu Yue remained silent, her gaze fixed on the battle platform where the fourth round of the five-person team competition was about to begin.
"Our opponent in this round is Star Luo Academy," Tang Wulin informed Jing Shaoyu. "They seem quite strong. Their captain is a level thirty-three assault-type soul master."
"Star Luo Academy?" Jing Shaoyu raised an eyebrow. "They are one of the top academies in the Star Luo Empire. It seems we're finally facing a real challenge."
"Don't worry, captain. With you and Gu Yue, we can definitely win!" Xie Xie said confidently, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
Jing Shaoyu nodded, his gaze also turning towards the battle platform. He knew that this match would be a crucial test of their team's strength and coordination.
The referee announced the start of the match. The five members of Star Luo Academy stepped onto the stage, their expressions serious and focused.
Their formation was also a standard one, with a strong assault-type soul master at the front, flanked by two control-type soul masters and two agile attack-type soul masters at the rear.
"What's our strategy for this match?" Tang Wulin asked Jing Shaoyu.
Jing Shaoyu looked at Gu Yue, a silent question in his eyes. After their 'harmony practice', he felt a deeper connection with her, and he valued her opinions even more.
Gu Yue finally turned her head, her silver eyes meeting Jing Shaoyu's. A faint smile touched her lips. "Let's try something new. Shao Yu and I will still take the lead, but this time, we'll use the power of YuYue."
"The power of YuYue?" Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Xu Xiaoyan looked at each other, confused. They had never heard of this term before.
Jing Shaoyu, however, understood immediately. The bright silver soul power with the colorful halo that they had generated during their dual cultivation. It was a power that combined their unique martial souls and soul powers.
"Alright," Jing Shaoyu said, a hint of anticipation in his voice. "Let's show them the power of YuYue."
As the battle began, Jing Shaoyu and Gu Yue stepped forward. Their soul rings illuminated, three purple-black rings around Jing Shaoyu and three purple rings around Gu Yue. The opposing team from Star Luo Academy looked at their spirit ring configuration with a hint of surprise and caution.
The Star Luo Academy's captain, a muscular young man wielding a massive axe, roared and charged forward, his two soul rings flashing. His axe was imbued with a powerful force, aiming to cleave through their front line.
Just as the axe was about to strike, Jing Shaoyu and Gu Yue exchanged a glance. In that instant, a brilliant silver light erupted from their bodies, swirling and merging together.
The silver light expanded rapidly, forming a majestic, ethereal dragon that shimmered with a myriad of colors. It was the Origin Dragon, but this time, it felt different, more potent, imbued with a unique energy.
"Roar—!"
The Origin Dragon roared, its voice carrying a powerful resonance that seemed to shake the very air. The colorful halo around its body pulsed with energy.
"What is that?!" The captain of Star Luo Academy exclaimed, his charge faltering in the face of the dragon's overwhelming presence.
Before they could react, the Origin Dragon unleashed a beam of pure silver light tinged with the colors of the rainbow. This was the power of YuYue. Unlike the previous rainbow ray, this beam felt more focused, more intense, carrying a sense of both creation and destruction.
The silver-colorful beam struck the charging captain of Star Luo Academy directly. He let out a cry of shock and pain as a powerful force slammed into him, sending him flying backward. His axe clattered to the ground.
The two control-type soul masters from Star Luo Academy immediately activated their soul skills, attempting to bind the Origin Dragon with vines and gravity fields. However, the silver-colorful energy around the dragon seemed to distort space, causing the control skills to waver and lose their effectiveness.
Gu Yue, through her mental connection with the Origin Dragon, manipulated its movements with incredible precision. The dragon soared through the air, its silver scales shimmering, and unleashed bursts of elemental energy that were now infused with the unique power of Yuyue.
Fireballs burned with an intense silver core, ice shards carried a strange spatial distortion, and gusts of wind crackled with a subtle electric charge.
The two agile attack-type soul masters from Star Luo Academy tried to flank Jing Shaoyu and Gu Yue, but the Origin Dragon's sheer presence and the unpredictable nature of its YuYue-infused attacks kept them at bay.
In less than a minute, the battle was over. The captain of Star Luo Academy was incapacitated, the control-type soul masters were struggling against the distorted space, and the agile attack-type soul masters were unable to break through the Origin Dragon's defenses.
The referee announced Donghai Academy's victory, and the audience erupted in cheers. They had witnessed a display of power unlike anything they had seen before. The Origin Dragon, now imbued with the mysterious power of Yuyue, was a force to be reckoned with.
Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Xu Xiaoyan stared at Jing Shaoyu and Gu Yue with awe. The power of their martial soul fusion skill had reached a new level.
"What was that?" Tang Wulin asked, his voice filled with amazement. "That silver light with the colors… it was incredible!"
Jing Shaoyu exchanged a meaningful look with Gu Yue. "That, my friend, was the power of YuYue."
He knew that this new power, born from their deeper connection and the unique combination of their martial souls, would be their greatest weapon in the battles to come. The Tianhai Alliance Competition was about to witness the true potential of Jing Shaoyu and Gu Yue.