Lucifer, seated next to Metatron, was much calmer. His face was calm, and there was no hint of emotion.
Both Qi Mu the Wolf King and Jiang Yuan the Dark Magus had made it to the elimination round. This was good news for the Dark Citadel, but it was also a testament to their strength.
Jiang Yuan and Qi Mu's strength made it to the round-robin stage.
As for the Pontiff's Citadel, they only had Constantine left. Although he looked stronger than the Dark Citadel, who knew what other cards they had up their sleeves?
Comparatively speaking, Skyfire Avenue wasn't doing so well. The Pharmacist, Seamstress, and Bartender were all in the losers bracket. Their chances of elimination were much higher.
Especially if they were drawn against each other, someone would be eliminated.
Even if they won, there was a chance they wouldn't be chosen in the final vote.
Of the next two competitors, two caught Lan Jue's attention. One was the Adept from the Great Conclave, the one the Pharmacist called Titan. The other was Skyfire Avenue's last remaining Adept, Lan Jue's old friend. The Driver, Thunderclap, pilot of Thunderclap's Thunderclap.
Fortunately, they weren't drawn against each other. If they were, Skyfire Avenue would be in a much worse position.
The Driver's opponent was an independent Adept, and so was Titan's.
The two matches began at the same time!
The Driver's opponent was from the Western League. He wasn't a representative of either of the Citadels, but he was a powerful Adept in his own right.
The electronic voice announced the start of the match. His opponent, number thirty-two, unleashed a powerful aura. His growling grew louder and louder.
His body grew in size.
He had actually transformed into a huge baboon that was over three meters tall.
His body was covered in dark purple fur.
He pounded his chest with his massive arms, then charged at the Driver.
The Driver was as domineering as ever.
He took a step forward with his left foot, and in the blink of an eye he was like a bolt of lightning. There was a flash of silver light, and he collided with his opponent.
"Rumble!" Amidst the dazzling lightning.
His opponent was sent flying.
His body flickered in the air as he flew backward. Although layers of purple halos constantly appeared on his body, they could not completely neutralize the lightning.
Next up was the Driver's performance.
Silver lightning crisscrossed in the air, making it impossible to see his figure clearly. Every strike was instantaneous, sending his opponent flying amidst violent rumbles.
The shape-shifter, Number 32, could only run around and defend himself.
Against the Driver's explosive power, however, they couldn't do anything.
His defense could only crumble bit by bit, and he had no choice but to admit defeat.
Because it was a double-elimination match, admitting defeat to preserve one's strength when one felt that one was clearly inferior to the opponent was undoubtedly the wisest choice.
On the other side, the Hercules race ended even faster than the other racers.
Hercules was like a younger version of the Terminator.
He strode onto the stage.
He looked at his opponent expressionlessly.
The moment the electronic voice rang out, he took a step forward and threw a punch at his opponent.
The punch in the air caused the entire arena to shake violently. It was as if the air in the arena had been completely compressed, and then suddenly exploded.
The terrifying explosive force forced his opponent to take it head-on.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Three punches.
Yes.
Three punches and the match was over.
There was no technique to speak of, just pure crushing.
Crushing in terms of strength.
On the surface, this Hercules did not seem to have changed at all. Everything seemed so simple and unadorned. However, this battle seemed to be the most symbolic of all the previous matches.
After all, his opponent was also a Rank 5 Arcanist!
But in front of him.
He did not even have a chance to fight back.
Leaving the ring expressionlessly, the Hercules returned to the resting area with the same footsteps and sat back down.
"Absolute pure strength.
Troublesome! "Lan Jue frowned.
An ability user like Hercules was too rare, and the power he displayed was not something a normal human could possess.
Because the human body could not withstand such power.
Even if you had such power, when you used it, your muscles and bones would break first. You would be finished before you could hurt your opponent.
How could he be considered strong?
Without a doubt, Hercules's body had been specially modified to become extremely strong, far surpassing the scope of ordinary humans. Under such circumstances, when he erupted with power, it was too terrifying.
According to Lan Jue's calculations, Hercules' three punches were as strong as a power-type mecha.
In other words, he was a machine in human form. Or rather, a weapon in human form!
The only way to defend against his attacks was to have enough energy to do so.
But Hercules' strength was so great that even a Adept of the same rank would not be able to withstand it. He was at the peak of ninth rank!
Only a Paragon would be able to withstand it.
She turned her head to look at the Pharmacist. For the first time, Lan Jue saw in her sister's eyes the desire to fight.
What would happen if the Pharmacist were to face Hercules?
Even Lan Jue couldn't help but feel excited.
What would happen if she were to face Hercules?
Today's matches passed quickly, and so did the rest.
Another representative from the Northern Alliance, the Pharmacist reminded Lan Jue to pay attention to Yan Ningya. Yan Ningya's matches also ended without a hitch. Her opponent from the Major League had forfeited, and she was guaranteed a spot in the round robin.
The other matches were also won by the strong.
The first round of the Double Elimination Tournament was over. Aside from the Pharmacist, who had deliberately allowed Lan Jue to advance to the next round, all the other Adepts from the Northern Alliance had advanced to the round robin stage.
Following that, the Double Elimination Losers Group's match would begin in an hour!
The competition was intense.
If he lost, it would mean that he would have to leave the competition.
There was no longer any need to hide their strength.
The Pharmacist easily defeated her opponent. She was strong enough to be chosen, but the other two from Skyfire Avenue were not so lucky.
The Bartender lost his match. The Seamstress had a narrow victory, but she wasn't chosen in the final round of voting. She was eliminated as well.
The top sixteen had been decided, and it was time for the round robin stage.
Skyfire Avenue was represented by the Pharmacist and the Driver. The Great Conclave was represented by Titan, Yan Ningya, and another Adept. They had the most Adepts in the top sixteen.
The Dark Citadel had Qi Mu and Jiang Yuan, the Dark Magus. The Pontiff's Constantine was alone.
If the two Citadels were counted as one, then they would have three.
In contrast, Skyfire Avenue didn't look so promising.
They had fewer people.
However, that was without taking Lan Jue into account. With the Pharmacist's help, Lan Jue was able to advance.
The Terminator slowly rose from his seat on the VIP platform. Although his body wasn't particularly eye-catching in the Conclave's stadium, when he stood up, he gave off a feeling of immensity. The air seemed to thicken as he stood up.
"This is to ensure that the competition is fair and just.
All sixteen will be drawn at random. There will be no seeded competitors.
Whichever group they draw will be the same.
Tomorrow, the round robin will begin. Every day there will be one round. Three points for a win, zero for a loss, and one for a draw.
At the end of the round robin, the top scorers in each group will advance to the semi-finals. "
With a Paragon personally explaining the rules of the tournament, the sixteen Adepts felt a strange feeling in their hearts.
It wasn't just about being valued, it was about glory and profit.
Sixteen portraits appeared in the air.
"I, the Terminator, under the witness of protogenia, confirm that the drawing is fair and just.
Let the drawing begin! "With the Terminator's confirmation, no one dared question his authority.
This was the glory of a Paragon!
The sixteen portraits flickered and changed. This time the flickering lasted longer than usual.
Lan Jue lifted his head to the sky. He didn't pray. Being the champion wasn't important. In fact, he hoped that his group would be filled with strong Adepts. Fighting them would be beneficial to his cultivation.
Lan Qing's absence from the tournament was a source of regret to Lan Jue. Although Lan Qing didn't explain, Lan Jue could guess.
If the Northern Alliance was prepared to face the unknown alien, then the Eastern Alliance was even more so.
What's more, Lan Qing was the Eastern Alliance's God of War. If he came to the Northern Alliance, who could guarantee his safety?
Therefore, it was right of him not to come.
However, as the last of the Four Divine Monarchs, Lan Jue wanted to continue his glory.
In the following matches, he had to gradually reveal his trump cards. Otherwise, he would definitely not be able to go further.
Don't pick the Pharmacist!
If there was one person Lan Jue didn't want to be in his group, it would be the Pharmacist.
Lan Jue had never fought the Pharmacist before, but at least for now he didn't want to.
Skyfire Avenue's strongest Adepts were the Pharmacist, and Lan Jue wanted her to succeed. He wasn't sure if he'd have to use all of his trump cards against her.
The light flickered, and then everything came to a halt. The groups were determined.
The sixteen Adepts looked up at the sky, their faces a mix of emotions. Some were happy, others worried.
After so many days of competition, everyone was familiar with each other. It was clear who was stronger and who was weaker.
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Asking for monthly votes, recommendation votes.
(To be continued)