"Oh!" The young girl in green suddenly appeared beside Wu Hao, instantly prompting the injured freshmen around to cheer with great excitement. With Xun'er defeating her opponent at this crucial moment and stepping forward to assist Wu Hao, it was clear that this would be a decisive advantage for Xiao Yan's side—something capable of turning the tide of the match. "Are you all right?" Xun'er asked casually, her eyes fixed on the "Black Shad" team member whose face looked pale. "I'm fine," Wu Hao replied, his body slightly trembling as he clenched his teeth, his complexion pale. "I'll take care of him—you rest for now," Xun'er said softly, the golden light in her palm growing stronger and more intense. "No, he's already been struck by my earlier palm strike and is injured. If we work together and defeat him quickly, otherwise, Hu Jia and the other freshmen won't be able to hold out much longer." Wu Hao took a deep breath, his pale face flushing with color. As soon as he finished speaking, he cut off Xun'er's chance to respond, drawing upon the scarce qi he still possessed and charging straight at a member of the "Black Devastation" team with fierce determination. "Ah..." Seeing Wu Hao dare to advance and attack so boldly, Xun'er quickly called out, her body moving swiftly, surpassing Wu Hao in a single breath. Between her palms, golden light surged violently, then a long golden energy whip rapidly extended, finally snapping with a crisp, clear crack that echoed through the air. A faint golden flame seemed to shimmer subtly along the length of the whip. As it whipped through the air with lightning speed, the member of the "Black Devastation" team felt a flash of golden light before a hot gust of wind surged down upon his head, causing him to instantly pale and roll backward in a clumsy, hurried motion. The golden whip, carrying a fierce, scorching wind, struck the ground from a short distance ahead. Instantly, the slightly damp soil began to dry out visibly, and within a moment, a half-meter-long streak appeared on the surface, hardened by the intense heat as if turned to stone. The member of the "Black Devastation Team" glanced at the stone-like ground, his lips slightly twitching. He swallowed hard, trying to steady himself, but before he could rise, a blood-streaked figure suddenly darted from the side and delivered a powerful kick to the chest of the one who had not yet reacted. "Hmph…" The impact sent a flush of red to the member's face. He forced the blood that threatened to rise to his throat, emitting a low, muffled groan. With the relentless blows, a growing sense of irritation flickered in his eyes. He drew in a deep breath, his abdomen sinking back, and then forcefully expelled a surge of air. As it exhaled in a single surge, the qi that had accumulated upon its body suddenly burst forth from its chest, radiating like ripples of energy, ultimately striking Wu Hao's foot. Instantly, the latter—already weakened—spewed out a mouthful of blood under the impact of this rebounding qi wave, and after retreating several meters, collapsed softly into the dry leaves. "Puff!" Just as the "Black Death" team member had been momentarily stunned by the injury to Wu Hao and was still too preoccupied to celebrate, a slender, agile figure materialized like a ghost before him. Her delicate, refined face now carried a touch of frost, and her right palm glowed with golden light. As she closed the remaining half a span between them, a golden hand seal erupted from her palm and struck her chest with a resounding thud. "Pfft!" "Solidly struck by Xun with a powerful blow, the member of the 'Black Devastation Team' finally could no longer hold on, spitting out a stream of blood as his body was driven backward by Xun's force. His feet skimming the ground, he retreated steadily until he crashed heavily against a thick tree trunk, the momentum radiating from his back even causing several cracks to form in the trunk. The battle scene—spanning from Wu Hao's sudden assault to the final defeat of the 'Black Devastation Team' member—unfolded almost entirely within under a minute. Many of the new recruits could only witness Wu Hao charging forward, then being pushed back by the counterforce, before finally seeing Xun's decisive, weighty palm strike." However, regardless of whether they had fully grasped the course of the battle, the defeat of that member from the "Black Death Team" was real and undeniable. Once it was confirmed that the latter had no further strength to fight, cheers erupted once again across the open ground. Many new recruits who had been unable to participate in the combat now grew flushed with excitement. With the fall of these two fighters, the chances of Xiao Yan and his team securing victory were no longer merely slim—they had become tangible and promising. By now, out of the opposing five, two had fallen, while on Xiao Yan's side, only Wu Hao had lost his combat capacity. This clearly demonstrated that, thanks to Xun'er's outstanding performance, their team had transformed a previously extremely unfavorable situation into one that was now on par with the "Black Death Team." For the first time, the new recruits finally saw a real chance of victory. By the side of the open space, a group of people—Su Xiao, Ling Bai, and Xiu Yan—leaned against the tree trunk, watching the ever-shifting battlefield. Especially when they saw Xun'er defeating two members of the "Black Shad" team who were nearly on par with their own strength, they couldn't help but be stunned. Now, only then did they cast serious, attentive glances upon the strikingly beautiful girl whose presence they had previously found hard to look away from. "Xiao Xiao's team truly is strong," Su Xiao said with a wry smile, sighing. "If Xun'er and Hu Jia had chosen to attack us instead, we would have lost much more quickly." Ling Bai and Xiu Yan nodded in agreement, both smiling slightly. These two seemingly delicate girls possessed such formidable strength. A team of five fighters each rated at the level of Five-Star Grand Combatants—such a composition. Simply recalling this, Ling Bai found herself almost ready to roll her eyes. For a team of this caliber, even within the Inner Academy, it would be considered only average. "If White Mountain doesn't pull out of the fight at the critical moment, it's truly hard to say who will emerge victorious in their clash against the Black Death Squad..." Xiu Yan tightened his fists, speaking with steady resolve. When he mentioned White Mountain's name, the disdain on his face was barely concealed. His nature, much like the Qi he cultivated, was straightforward and direct—thus, his contempt for White Mountain remained unmasked. "The disadvantage caused by White Mountain's departure has now been offset by the young woman named Xun'er. As long as she can unite with the remaining few newcomers to defeat another member of the Black Death Squad, their momentum will reverse." "Su Xiao spoke slowly. As he finished, he paused, his gaze sweeping toward Xiao Xiang, who was fighting fiercely against Sha Tie and still showing no signs of defeat—his eyes flashed with admiration. He murmured, 'Of course, this assumes that Xiao Xiang can hold Sha Tie firmly in place until Su Xiao defeats the other members of the 'Black Shad' team. Otherwise..." "Hmm." Ling Bai and Xiu Yan nodded slightly. Though the current situation seemed to be shifting in favor of the newcomers, if any problem arose at Xiao Xiang's end, the hard-won momentum would surely be reversed. Thus, although Su Xiao now appeared to be a crucial element in the battle, it was actually Xiao Xiang's performance that held the decisive influence. If Xiao Yan falls, then the new recruits will have absolutely no hope. However, if Xiao Yan successfully drags the Sha Tie team into battle and defeats the other "Black and White Shattered" teams, then this year's participants might well create a miracle for the "Fire Hunting Tournament" that has never been seen before—never before have any new recruits managed to defeat both the Black and White Shattered teams. And now, Xiao Yan and his teammates are steadily forging this unprecedented miracle! Yet though Sha Tie's attacks grew stronger and stronger, Xiao Yan remained tightly pressed with his lips, his figure standing firm amidst the relentless waves of punches—like a small boat navigating through a storm, enduring even the fiercest tempests without ever capsizing. At this moment, Xiao Yan had clearly pushed his own strength to its absolute peak, and he was well aware that his current objective was not to defeat Sha Tie, but simply to hold him in place. The increasingly intense battle captured everyone's attention, so that not a single movement could be spared, for even the slightest lapse might mean the difference between victory and defeat. Watching the figures darting and leaping across the field, everyone silently held their breath, deeply concerned—this clash had become truly intense and unyielding. Time flowed like water slipping through fingers, passing silently. Just five minutes after Xun and Wu Hao had jointly defeated a member of the Black Fury team, within the battlefield still hosting three fresh recruits, the Black Fury member who had clung on with grit was finally caught off guard by Xun, who seized her opening amid a fierce assault from one of the newcomers. As golden light surged, a deep, resonant sound echoed—then the dark figure arced through the air in a parabolic path, crashing down heavily to the ground, fresh blood gushing from her mouth and staining the dry leaves a deep crimson. "Move!" With her second victory, Xun's forehead, though clean, now bore a few beads of sweat. Without pausing for a moment, she shouted sharply to the remaining three fresh recruits beside her, then immediately charged once more toward Hu Jia's battlefield. Another five minutes passed, amid the cheers and roars from the surrounding newcomers. Aside from Sha Tie, the last Black Shad member was completely overwhelmed and driven out of the fight by a combined effort from Xun'er, Huo Jia, and the three new recruits. By this point, the momentum of the match had decisively tilted in favor of Xiao Yan's side.