It was a good thing for her to take some time to calm herself down, so Tang Wulin didn't contact her. He had already rejected her, so it wouldn't be a good idea to get her hopes up again. However, he truly wished from the bottom of his heart that he could still be friends with Long Yuxue, and he really admired her personality. She was a kind-hearted girl, and Tang Wulin was hoping that Jiang Wuyue would be able to give her happiness.

Tang Wulin emerged from his group in the first position and progressed to the final 16 as a hot favorite. In contrast, he had more difficulty with his mecha battles.

All of the mecha pilots who had made it to the round-robin stage had extraordinary mecha handling skills, and Tang Wulin's own skills were constantly improving through these arduous battles.

Through the experience that he'd accumulated during these battles, he also became more and more adept at controlling his own body. Of course, it would still take him some more time if he wanted to be able to perfectly use his newfound power.

The final round-robin match of the mecha battle discipline was going to take place today, and Tang Wulin had already been guaranteed a berth in the top 16. The opponent that he was facing had also ensured their progression to the next round, so this was going to be a battle that decided who would take out the top spot in their group.

Tang Wulin's mecha was wielding its usual long spear as it stood on the competition platform. His opponent was Number 68, which was quite similar to his number of 66, and they were also wielding a spear.

If it weren't for the difference in the last digit of their respective numbers, they would be completely identical.

This match wasn't going to affect whether they'd progress to the next round, but it did affect who they were going to face in the top 16.

The top mecha pilot of a group was guaranteed to face the second mecha pilot of another group, and vice versa. Hence, this match was far from a meaningless one.

Tang Wulin wasn't really thinking about all of that; he was simply cherishing every single opportunity for him to improve himself through these matches.

He had already prepared almost all of the materials required to construct his black mecha, and the accolades he earned through soul refinement jobs had all been spent on different types of materials. He had even placed some orders to Bright City through the legion, and those materials were going to arrive in a few days.

The more proficient he became at piloting mechas, the more interested in them he became. He now understood why Mu Ye had dedicated so much of his time and effort to mecha construction, to the extent that he'd even hampered his own battle armor and cultivation.

The enhancements that mechas provided to Soul Masters were very direct. This was only the most ordinary generic mecha, yet after Tang Wulin became adept at handling it, he was able to complete many maneuvers that Soul Masters were unable to perform. Furthermore, mechas were the best form of protection for Soul Masters, and they differed greatly from battle armor in this area.

The enhancements provided by suits of battle armor were more direct and more potent, and they were also more flexible and agile than mechas. However, suits of battle armor had to be supported by the Soul Master's powers.

To some Soul Masters with lower power levels, they simply didn't possess enough energy to support suit of battle armor, so they were destined to never be able to become battle armor masters.

However, mechas were different from this. Powerful mechas could draw upon soul batteries and circuits to unleash immense combat prowess, so even if a Soul Master had insufficient soul power, they could still rely on their mechas to battle for them.

As such, battle armor was indeed very powerful, but mechas possessed advantages that battle armor didn't possess. This also made it even clearer to Tang Wulin why Mu Ye had suggested that he still needed a mecha.

He could already achieve this much with a generic mecha; how powerful would a custom-made black mecha make him become? In reality, it was impossible even for red mechas to be entirely constructed from heavenly refined metals; only the more important core components had to be heavenly refined.

Tang Wulin was very confident in his own forging, and he firmly believed that he was going to become a Divine Blacksmith someday. When that day came, he was going to construct a divine-grade mecha for himself.

What he was planning now was to construct the most powerful super-mecha that he was currently capable of creating, and that would further contribute to a solid foundation for his future endeavor to revive Shrek Academy.

At the same time, he informed his friends of this idea through soul communication, cautioning them not to write off mechas as simply inferior to battle armor. In particular, this applied quite heavily to Xu Lizhi. As a food system Soul Master, if he could possess a powerful mecha that he could control in an expert manner, then he'd be able to significantly make up for his shortcomings when it came to offensive output.

Everyone had joined the military, and even though they contacted one another relatively infrequently, they would all take occasionally take some time to communicate what they'd learned and experienced in the military, as well as through their own cultivation.

Tang Wulin could sense that he was not the only one who was developing at a rapid rate. Ever since the disaster that had befallen Shrek Academy, everyone was doing everything they could to improve, and those efforts were certainly shining through.

Tang Wulin had made an agreement with his friends, telling them not to be in a hurry to make their next major breakthroughs. Instead, they should continue to accumulate their soul power, and when they met again, everyone would be able to fuse with a 100,000-year-old soul spirit that would significantly boost their overall powers once again.

When that time came, they would truly be Shrek’s Seven Monsters.

"Three, two, one, begin!"

Number 68 swept his long spear through the air, and a vast expanse of spear projections fanned out before him. This was a customary formality prior to the commencement of a battle, and at the same time, it was a display of Number 68's mastery in spear techniques, which was meant to intimidate Tang Wulin and affect his confidence.

Tang Wulin's mecha merely raised its spear and jabbed it forward three times as an acknowledgment of his opponent.

The two of them then controlled their mechas to rush toward one another almost in unison. Neither of them had used their propellers, and both of their mechas were advancing in a very straightforward manner.

Tang Wulin's eyes were shimmering with faint light. The more powerful his opponent was, the more battle intent he was able to muster up.

He had improved very quickly in his spear techniques, but most of that came from his Fury of the Masses. His opponent was also using a spear on this occasion, and it was more important for him to learn some lessons from observing his opponent's spear techniques than it was for him to win this battle.

The two mechas instantly approached one another, and just as it looked as if they were about to clash, Number 68's spear was abruptly thrust forward. His spear projection was of an icy blue color, and as soon as it appeared, Tang Wulin could clearly sense that the air temperature around his mecha had instantly plummeted, to the extent that even the movement speed of his mecha had been hampered.

Immense bloodline power erupted from his body before spreading throughout his entire mecha, and a layer of faint golden light appeared over the surface of his generic mecha, allowing it to instantly ward off the frosty temperatures. At the same time, the spear being wielded by Tang Wulin's mecha was jerked upward toward his opponent's spear.

"Whoosh!" All of a sudden, Number 68's spear disappeared, but in the instant that Tang Wulin's spear flashed past, his spear reappeared before thrusting toward the chest of Tang Wulin's mecha like a lightning-fast viper. Several dozens of spear projections instantly appeared at the same time, and all of them were aimed at vital regions of Tang Wulin's mecha. The flurry of attacks created quite a mesmerizing sight to behold, and the speed at which the spear strikes had been unleashed was clearly superior to that of Tang Wulin.

This was not an indication of his control over his spear, but instead, an indication of the speed at which he could control his mecha. It was undoubtedly the case that the speed at which he was operating this generic mecha was at the very upper limit of its tolerance capacity.

Tang Wulin harrumphed coldly, and it appeared that there would be no way for him to evade this attack, but all of a sudden, his mecha began to sway in an unpredictable manner, unleashing the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.

One spear projection whizzed past him after another, and at the same time, he swept his own spear horizontally through the air in an extremely overbearing manner. There were no techniques or tricks to speak of; it was just a pure horizontal sweep imbued with an unstoppable will, and it appeared as if this single sweep of his spear could wipe out an entire army!