Immortal Reincarnation Tribulation

Chapter 332 Another Melee

"Ever since our battle at the Temple of Fallen Leaves Returning to Their Roots, I have intended to lose to you in the second round of the competition." Liao Mingyu said this after only a slight hesitation, which greatly surprised Du Fan.

"Why?" Du Fan frowned.

"I came to the Hainan Rendez-Vous on a whim, but if I could win first place in the competition, that would be a great honor."

But to my utter surprise, an extremely annoying guy, for some unknown reason, also came here to join the fun. Given our strength, if we continued fighting, we would inevitably run into each other after a few rounds.

Therefore, upon first seeing this person, I decided to give up on this grand competition. But then I thought, "Why let the good stuff go to outsiders? I and Daoist Du have hit it off at first sight, so I'll see you off."

"Of course, that was just a side effect. The main thing was that I managed to get away successfully, hehe." Liao Mingyu chuckled.

"I understand what Fellow Daoist Liao means, but there is still one thing I don't understand." Du Fan found the other party's way of thinking somewhat inexplicable and difficult to comprehend, but he did not intend to press the matter further.

"Speak freely," Liao Mingyu waved his hand.

"In my opinion, Fellow Daoist Liao has reached the pinnacle of cultivation and supernatural abilities in the Qi Refining Realm. I find it hard to imagine who else could make you so wary," Du Fan said solemnly.

"That's him, the red-haired guy on the second arena right now. I wonder which island his fellow Daoist is from. He's really unlucky." Liao Mingyu glanced at the arena and immediately raised his arm, pointing to the second arena.

"Sima Lie of Blazing Flame Island!" Du Fan's pupils contracted slightly.

The man was burly and had a cold expression. He had a head of bright red hair, and his arms were thick and powerful, with muscles that bulged and contracted, seemingly full of boundless power. It could be said that he was a true muscle man.

Du Fan recognized him at a glance. This red-haired, muscular man, like Liao Mingyu, was one of the fifteen people that Zi Yan had listed for him.

However, when he turned his gaze and saw the cultivator fighting the muscular man, his expression turned strange, revealing a hint of pity.

At this moment, the person competing against Sima Lie on the same stage was Zhou Dahai, another cultivator from Crescent Island who had advanced to the top 100...

Du Fan silently mourned for Zhou Dahai, but the instant kill scene that Du Fan had imagined did not occur. He could vaguely see Sima Lie with his arms crossed, his expression cold, and his mouth slightly open as he said something.

Zhou Dahai, however, showed gratitude and bowed to Sima Lie with clasped hands. Without hesitation, he directly conceded defeat. Immediately, the protective light barrier around the arena dissipated, and the two stepped off the arena one after the other.

At this point, all the participating cultivators on Arena No. 2 had finished their battles, making it the first arena to complete this round of the competition.

"Fellow Daoist Liao, are you really... no match for him?" Du Fan withdrew his gaze, looked at Liao Mingyu, and hesitated before speaking.

"Nonsense! If I could beat him, I would have gone up on stage and beaten him to a pulp!" Liao Mingyu's eyes widened, looking fierce, but quickly his face fell, and he sighed, saying helplessly:

"Although I hate this person, I have to admit that if I were to face him in a match, I would definitely be the one who gets beaten to a pulp."

But then again, how could I possibly give him that chance? I don't care who I lose to, I just can't lose to him! Especially not in such a public setting, I absolutely cannot accept this!

"Liao Mingyu's combat strength has reached the peak of Qi Refining. So how strong is Sima Lie, whom Liao Mingyu fears so much? If this person were to meet Chen Ru back then, who would be stronger? And how much weaker am I compared to them?"

Du Fan's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and for a moment, his emotions were stirred.

"Fellow Daoist Du, I recall that some of the seniors on your island once gave you a list, instructing you to immediately admit defeat whenever you encounter someone on that list."

Liao guessed that there should be exactly fifteen cultivators on the list. Just as Du Fan was lost in thought, Liao Mingyu glanced at Du Fan and spoke calmly.

"Fellow Daoist Liao is wise; that is indeed the case." Du Fan was taken aback.

"Fellow Daoist Du is cautious by nature and would never easily reveal his true strength to others. Therefore, Senior Guidao's assessment of your strength must have contained some errors."

In my opinion, apart from that red-haired guy, you can fight all the others on that list of fifteen. It's really hard to say who will win in the end. Fellow Daoist Du, please don't make the mistake of admitting defeat right away.

"If you can rank in the top five of the competition, you will get a chance to enter the Falling Sand Illusion. This opportunity is extremely rare and will greatly help your foundation building in the future. You must not give it up easily." Liao Mingyu's expression became more solemn as he looked at Du Fan and spoke earnestly.

"Fellow Daoist Liao is joking. Although I really want to enter the Falling Sand Illusion, as for the top five in the competition... I think I should just give up." Du Fan smiled wryly and shook his head repeatedly.

"I have said what I needed to say. If you are afraid of exposing your strength and therefore do not strive for any opportunities, it would be a loss. Fellow Daoist Du, please reconsider." Liao Mingyu said meaningfully, his eyes flashing.

"In any case, I will remember what Fellow Daoist Liao said. Thank you!" Du Fan said with a stern expression, clasping his hands in greeting.

"One last piece of advice: you can fight anyone else, but that red-haired guy, whether in the ring or on ordinary days, run away the moment you see him!"

"Alright, I'll take my leave now." After saying this, Liao Mingyu didn't wait for Du Fan to say anything, and turned to leave under the other's surprised gaze. He didn't go towards the special stone platform inside the arena, but towards the outside.

"Why would this person tell me all this? How much of what he said can be believed?" Du Fan looked at Liao Mingyu's back, his brows furrowed, and murmured to himself.

An hour later, all the battles on all the arenas ended, and the top fifty cultivators of the Hai Tian Sheng Yan were now determined.

After a two-hour break, the second half of the second round of the competition will officially begin.

On Crescent Island, Du Fan became the only cultivator to break into the top fifty, while Zhou Dahai was really unlucky and actually faced the red-haired muscle man from Blazing Flame Island, and surrendered without even fighting.

The four Golden Core protectors of Crescent Island did not make things difficult for Zhou Dahai. Instead, they comforted him and told him to go to the back to meditate and rest.

What secretly pleased Du Fan was that two cultivators from the list of fifteen actually faced off in the second arena of the Group of Death. Naturally, one of them was eliminated, which was definitely a good thing for Du Fan.

"Du Fan, the situation on Crescent Island is very delicate right now. If you can make another step forward and enter the top twenty of the competition, our Crescent Island's ranking among the Seventy-Two Islands of Earthly Fiends will improve significantly compared to last time. However, if we lose, it will drop considerably."

The ranking of the islands in the Hainan Rendez-Vous is crucial to every island except the three main islands. The distribution of benefits among them is unimaginable; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it affects the fate of an island for the next hundred years.

Therefore, you must do your best in the upcoming competition.

I know you may have some shady methods, but here, I, Liu, can promise that in the upcoming competition, no matter what supernatural powers you use or what special things you reveal, no one will investigate, including me!

"If you can secure a place in the top twenty of the competition, Crescent Island will certainly not treat you unfairly. Of course, you don't need to feel any pressure. If you are truly outmatched, we will not make things difficult for you either." Liu Zhongtian said solemnly.

After a moment of contemplation, Du Fan made his decision and slowly nodded.

Two hours later, Lin Musen, who was on the special platform, suddenly stood up.

"The second half of the second round of the Sea and Sky Grand Competition is about to begin. Fellow cultivators, listen to me."

To save time, we just had a detailed discussion and decided to abandon the original battle format. In the upcoming round of fifty to twenty, we will still hold a free-for-all, just like the first round!

Lin Musen's loud voice echoed throughout the entire venue in an instant.

"What? Another melee?"

"In the first round of the competition, three-quarters of the cultivators died directly. Now, another chaotic battle is about to begin. This year's Hai Tian Grand Feast is truly a nightmare!"

"I'm so glad I didn't participate in the Haitian Grand Competition this time."

As soon as Lin Musen finished speaking, the vast majority of cultivators present changed their expressions and were agitated, but no one dared to utter a sound.

"A total of fifty cultivators participated, divided into ten groups. Five people were randomly selected from each group to fight in one of the arenas."

There is no time limit for the competition, which continues until three people are eliminated. The last two to survive will advance directly. The competition rules are the same as those of the first round.

As for the specific arrangements for the melee, the Foundation Establishment Hall Master in the arena will make those arrangements for you.

Oh, and Mr. Lin would like to add one more thing.

In the upcoming competition, the use of auxiliary items such as talismanic soldiers and magical soldiers, and the summoning of magical beasts and spirit beasts to assist in battle, will not be considered a violation. However, the use of despicable methods such as defensive magic arrays is absolutely prohibited. Violators will be disqualified from the competition and all rewards will be confiscated!

At this point, Lin Musen glanced at Du Fan, a half-smile playing on his lips. Then he looked away, his expression turning serious, and said in a deep voice, "Alright, you may enter now."

After speaking, Lin Musen ignored everyone else, sat down again, and began to close his eyes to rest.