Chapter 197

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Chapter 197: The First Round Ends

As the grenade-like fireballs fell, the entire light curtain was engulfed in flames.

The screams of the three tower defense disciples echoed from the Live Stream Light Curtain.

Soon, three more participants were eliminated.

"Alright, this one-sided massacre has concluded. Now let’s take a look at how other brothers are performing," the girl commentator explained.

The live stream shifted, and the focus landed on Qian Bing.

At this moment, he found himself surrounded by a group of swordsmen.

"Brothers of the swordsman faction, it would be wise for you to let me go. Otherwise, even if you succeed in eliminating me, you’ll lose over half of your numbers."

"That would be pointless."

With that, Qian Bing pointed to the fire cannon behind him.

"One shot from this cannon, and all the swordsmen within a hundred meters will be eliminated."

"Letting me go would be beneficial. If I encounter any isolated swordsmen later, I will show them mercy." Qian Bing said calmly, watching the five swordsmen not far away.

If it weren’t for the last fire cannon shell being useful, he would have been confident in defeating the five swordsmen before him.

The five swordsmen exchanged glances and silently nodded; it was indeed not worth it.

"Are you five searching for Xiong Li? We share the same goal. How about forming an alliance?"

"If Xiong Li reaches the arena, we all lose our chance at being first."

As Qian Bing spoke, he took out a spherical temporary Communication Artifact that he had prepared earlier and tossed it to one of the swordsmen.

"When you run into Xiong Li, simply crush this, and I’ll receive the message and rush over."

"If I encounter Xiong Li and crush it, your temporary Communication Artifact will vibrate and guide you in the direction to find me and Xiong Li."

Thus, Qian Bing formed a temporary alliance with the five swordsmen.

In the audience, Ji Muhua watched as Xiong Li was targeted and asked in confusion, "Why are they all ganging up on Xiong Li?"

"Because Xiong Li is the strongest among this generation of disciples; powerful beings are often lonely."

"Another reason is that in previous regular arena matches, Xiong Li almost defeated all disciples from this generation."

"So, he has become somewhat hated."

"Don’t think he is being targeted in the game; outside of the game, Xiong Li is truly the big brother and the spiritual leader of this generation in the sect."

"Oh," Ji Muhua nodded, somewhat understanding.

At that moment, in a concealed corner of the battle royale world, Yu Qianshan and Qiu Ziyuan blended in together.

They exchanged a glance and smiled.

Looking at the giant stone spirit beast, Qiu Ziyuan remarked, "I can understand your beast control techniques."

"After all, our sect has a high overall fighting strength level; it’s not your fault if your early fighting strength isn’t outstanding."

Hiding under the giant stone, Yu Qianshan replied gloomily, "Many of my treasures haven’t been cultivated yet. If I had a few decades more time…"

"The first place would definitely belong to us, the beast control faction."

Yu Qianshan looked at Qiu Ziyuan curiously and asked, "Why is the Great Steward joining the Sect Competition? Aren’t you afraid of getting ganged up on by the brothers you usually discipline?"

"I’m just here to secure a ranking. Since all the first-generation disciples are participating, how could I not join?" Qiu Ziyuan replied with a smile.

"Don’t worry about fitting in. You’re such a busy man, you don’t have many friends anyway," Yu Qianshan teased.

Just then, an invisible space butterfly brought Lei Wenxi to their side. "Luckily, Little Butterfly remembered the scent of the giant rock, or we wouldn’t have found you," Lei Wenxi said. "The brothers outside are fighting fiercely, and over fifty have already been eliminated. If we hold on a bit longer, we’ll advance."

Lei Wenxi sat down by the giant rock and turned to Qiu Ziyuan. "Brother Qiu, you haven’t been eliminated yet."

"Why does everyone say the same thing when they see me?" Qiu Ziyuan sighed.

"Because you tend to rub people the wrong way," Lei Wenxi said with a grin.

"Well, I’m just doing my job to maintain order in the sect," Qiu Ziyuan replied, shaking his head.

"I get it," Lei Wenxi said.

At that moment, the space butterfly flew above them, flapping its wings and releasing a shimmering light that concealed the three of them. "My fighting strength might not be impressive, but my real talent lies in escaping. I’ve already applied to the Grand Elder, and soon I’ll be able to advance freely without being restricted by the challenge puppets," Qiu Ziyuan explained.

Hidden away, the three chatted casually while chaos raged outside. The atmosphere inside was peaceful, filled with nothing but lighthearted gossip.

Not far from them, Xu Lingtai and Xiong Li crossed paths. With just a glance, they understood each other’s intentions. "See you in the arena. I look forward to experiencing the junior brother’s skills," Xiong Li said. He had a keen interest in this top disciple under the Grand Elder, who was said to have inherited the Grand Elder’s true teachings—something Xiong Li deeply admired.

"I understand what you mean, Brother Xiong Li. We’ll meet in the arena," Xu Lingtai replied before the two went their separate ways.

In front of the Live Stream Light Curtain, the commentator girl was ready to deliver an exciting play-by-play of a fierce battle, but the two only exchanged a few words before parting ways. The Second-Generation Disciples watching from outside, who had been eagerly anticipating a showdown, collectively sighed in disappointment.

After parting with Xiong Li, Xu Lingtai glanced back in the direction Xiong Li had gone and thought to himself, "If it weren’t for my leg, I’d still want to spar with you." He took his father’s warning seriously, as he had always followed every instruction his father had given him since childhood. He didn’t dare to assume this would be an exception.

Xu Fan, watching Xu Lingtai on the light curtain, suddenly shifted his gaze to Xu Gang. "After the Sect Competition, you will challenge the junior Nascent Soul Stage puppet. If you fail, you know the consequences," Xu Fan’s voice echoed in Xu Gang’s mind. Xu Gang froze for a moment, then nervously glanced at Xu Fan on the platform.

"I wonder if Master will catch me if I run away," Xu Gang thought to himself.

As for defeating the challenge puppet, he hadn’t even considered it. Without fully mastering his skills, it was impossible for him to win.

As the poison circle in the battle royale world shrank, battles broke out everywhere.

The exciting fights from different sects left everyone dazzled.

Xu Fan noticed many talented fighters among them. Even though their current fighting strength wasn’t impressive, they had great potential for improvement in the future. With proper training, some of them might even become genius-level talents.

At that moment, Ji Muhua, watching the live stream, looked serious. He realized that the overall level of the first-generation disciples from the Hidden Spirit Sect could easily surpass the same-level disciples from Qiandao Sect.

The standout disciples could immediately rise to the level of genius within Qiandao Sect.

Next to Li Xingci, Su Rantian also gazed at the light curtain, her eyes shining with curiosity.

"Xingci, your sect’s way of recruiting disciples is impressive."

"Any one of your first-generation disciples could easily be at least an inner sect disciple in another sect," Su Rantian said, sounding a bit surprised.

"Didn’t I tell you? Every disciple of our Hidden Spirit Sect is extraordinary," Li Xingci said with a smile.

"Xingci, I’ve decided. I want to become a guest Elder of your sect."

"In the future, when the two realms merge and the human race wins, I’ll leave the Elder Council and join your Hidden Spirit Sect," Su Rantian declared.

"You should discuss this with my Master," Li Xingci said lightly, without showing any expectation or resistance.

"Alright, after the Sect Competition, I’ll talk to your Master about this," Su Rantian said happily.

At this moment, as the poison circle shrank for the last time, the final battle began.

Xiong Li patiently hid underground, observing the surroundings and looking for Qian Bing.

Xu Lingtai sat calmly on a giant rock, which coincidentally hid Lei Wenxi and others beneath it.

Only three more eliminations were needed to end the entire competition.

As Xu Lingtai surveyed the battlefield, a fire cannonball suddenly shot toward him.

"Interesting, are you targeting me?" Xu Lingtai watched as the cannonball hit him directly.

Then, the explosion rang out, signaling the end of the match.

Until the end of the competition, Qian Bing couldn’t understand why he had eliminated three people with one shot.

At that moment, Yu Qianshan, Lei Wenxi, and Qiu Ziyuan emerged with dark expressions.

Yu Qianshan looked at Qian Bing and snorted coldly,

"You’re playing with dummies; I’ll remember you. Be careful in the future."

Qian Bing: "???"

"The first round of the Sect Competition elimination match is over. Tomorrow, the arena matches will begin on Satellite Island," Grape’s voice announced from the sky.

Satellite Island was specially built by Xu Fan for the competitions.

After the first round ended, Xu Fan arrived at the small courtyard on the mountaintop where Ning Dao was, having heard that Ning Dao had woken up.

In the courtyard, Ning Dao, lying in a recliner, weakly pointed to the chair beside him, signaling Xu Fan to sit.

Half a month earlier, Su Rantian had brought the unconscious Ning Dao along with the stick he had been longing for.

"Brother Ning, you really risked your life for the Spiritual Sword."

"Given Brother Ning’s injuries, even with miraculous spirit pills, he would need at least six months to recover."

"Actually, the elder didn’t need to push himself so hard; he just needed to grab the Giant Club from the towering ape," Xu Fan said.

Ning Dao shifted to a more comfortable position, enjoying the sunlight.

"I didn’t think that much; killing the towering ape to take the club kills two birds with one stone."

"As for the injuries, it’s just a matter of resting for a while."

"Later, the Elder Council will also send some healing sacred pills."

"So I’m not at a loss," Ning Dao said.

"Brother Ning thinks clearly," Xu Fan realized, understanding that this guy had safety nets for the injuries he sustained.

"Your words seem to imply something negative about me," Ning Dao shot a glance at Xu Fan.

"Haha, I misspoke; it’s Brother Ning who is brilliant," Xu Fan replied with a grin.

"When will my new Spiritual Sword be forged? Can it be finished before I recover?" Ning Dao asked.

"Want a top-tier precious artifact Spiritual Sword? You can have it in three days."

"As for the new Spiritual Sword, it will take five years."