The Top Eight

The Top 32 were divided into sixteen pairs, each taking the stage one by one. At this point, everyone was serious; there were no weak fighters among the Top 32, so this was also a good opportunity to probe information about opponents. Although they had already taken note of each other earlier, opponents had grown stronger, and what they revealed was naturally more, wasn't it?

The first few matches were others going up, and Zhuge Xiang watched intently from below the stage. He did spot a few opponents requiring special attention. Although his Super Game System was very powerful, in the end, he had only comprehended Qi Energy for half a month. Compared to those who had comprehended Qi Energy for half a year or more, his foundation was still a bit lacking.

Lei Potian was the strongest fighter Zhuge Xiang had seen so far. Wielding a Great Axe with fierce power, no one dared to clash head-on with him. According to the judgments of those around, Lei Potian's Great Axe was a Two-Star Artifact. He was one of the few top geniuses who had comprehended Qi Energy half a year ago, and it was also said that he had successfully cultivated the Bloodthirsty Technique early on, though he had not yet displayed it so far.

Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer, a Two-Star offensive Artifact, and he had reached this point without using the Bloodthirsty Technique. It had to be said that Lei Potian was the biggest favorite for first place in this Grand Tournament. Of course, the main reason Zhuge Xiang paid attention to him was that after defeating his opponent, Lei Potian pointed directly at Zhuge Xiang from the Duel Platform and declared that he would let him witness his Bloodthirsty Technique.

Faced with Lei Potian's provocation, Zhuge Xiang glanced helplessly at Lu Yuling. His hostility toward him was self-evident. In response to Zhuge Xiang's helpless look, Lu Yuling just curled her lips with a faint smile and said nothing.

Besides Lei Potian, there were a few other opponents worth noting. Although she was only at Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer, Hua Nongying had cultivated Ghost Step to the Mastery Level. She was the only disciple who had reached Mastery Level in a Martial Art. When she used Ghost Step, she moved like a ghost, and even many Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciples couldn't even touch her shadow.

There was also another expert in using blades, Ling Wufeng, but the blade he used wasn't a cleaver like Zhuge Xiang's—it was a small Flying Dagger.

With Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer cultivation, his opponents often only saw a flash of dazzling blade light before they were already defeated. This Flying Dagger mastery was clearly not a Martial Art from the Martial Arts Pavilion. Aside from the Flying Dagger, no one knew what Martial Art he had learned at the Martial Arts Pavilion, and no one had ever seen it...

Lei Potian, Hua Nongying, Ling Wufeng, plus Lu Yuling—these were the biggest competitors in Zhuge Xiang's mind. These people either had formidable Artifacts or unique skills. As for the others, compared to these few, they were slightly inferior. Although there were many Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer disciples, they seemed more conventional. Of course, it couldn't be ruled out that some among them were hiding their true strength deeply. In short, no one could afford to be careless.

Soon, it was Zhuge Xiang's turn to take the stage for the Top 32 matches. However, when he saw his opponent, Zhuge Xiang frowned inwardly. His opponent was a Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciple. Although he had made it into the Top 32, it was clear that even among Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer, he was an outstanding one. But for Zhuge Xiang, not being able to fight across realms meant no experience bonus.

"Heh, I'm really lucky. My opponent is you," Zhuge Xiang's opponent said with a relieved expression.

Zhuge Xiang himself was only at Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer, and having been severely injured by Ji Wuxue earlier, he surely hadn't fully recovered. In his opponent's eyes, Zhuge Xiang seemed like an easier target.

Frowning slightly, Zhuge Xiang had no intention of finishing quickly. He continued to put on an act, controlling his speed and attacks to a relatively dangerous level. The two exchanged blows, one move after another, fighting fiercely. In just a short time, both were bleeding. This kind of intense battle was what others loved to watch, because no matter who won or lost in the end, both sides would end up battered.

It was worth noting that the Asura Sect did not provide treatment for disciples in these Grand Tournament matches, whether they were exhausted or injured, unless they lost.

According to the Asura Sect's philosophy, while combat was paramount, under the pressure of successive battles, you had to know how to preserve your strength and maintain sustained combat power. Moreover, since none of the victorious disciples received treatment, it kept everyone on a fair footing.

Although both sides had injuries, Zhuge Xiang always managed to avoid vital spots, taking only superficial flesh wounds. Plus, by making his opponent bleed, the Blood Refinement Saber's blood-draining property made it seem like Zhuge Xiang and his opponent were evenly matched. In reality, Zhuge Xiang's injuries were negligible. He won by a narrow margin in the final move, then walked off the stage looking heavily exhausted. As expected, the Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciple only gave Zhuge Xiang 60 experience points and dropped nothing.

After Zhuge Xiang, Lu Yuling took the stage. Watching closely, Zhuge Xiang saw her use a set of Clear Wave Palm techniques, supplemented by a few Silk Threads, quickly entangling her opponent. She struck several palms in succession, sending him flying off the stage.

Although Clear Wave Palm focused on entanglement, it still had some offensive power. Moreover, Lu Yuling herself was at Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer. Even with ordinary palm strikes, the Qi Energy burst made her attacks not to be underestimated.

As for Lu Yuling, Zhuge Xiang didn't believe her strength was limited to what she had shown so far. Clear Wave Palm plus Silk Thread assistance? Was that all she had? Based on his understanding of her, she definitely had more cards to play. He didn't know what they were, but he just knew, just as Lu Yuling had never believed Zhuge Xiang was truly injured. That was the kind of understanding between them.

Among the Top 32, only twelve were at Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer, so Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer made up the majority. Soon, the Top 16 matches began. Zhuge Xiang wanted to curse—he had run into another Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciple. He put on another act, using all his strength, and finally managed to defeat his opponent, earning 63 experience points and again dropping nothing.

63 experience points, three more than before. This made Zhuge Xiang realize that even among Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciples, strength varied. So defeating them yielded different experience. But checking his Character Interface, he needed 500 experience points to Breakthrough. Currently, he was still about 200 points short.

At this point, the Top 8 had been decided. The few people Zhuge Xiang was watching had all successfully advanced: Lei Potian, Hua Nongying, Ling Wufeng, Lu Yuling, plus Zhuge Xiang himself, and three other Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer disciples.

Among the Top 8, only Zhuge Xiang and Hua Nongying were at Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer; the rest were all at Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer. Moreover, because of Zhuge Xiang's injuries, if anyone was considered the weakest in the Top 8, Zhuge Xiang was undoubtedly at the bottom. Some even said that if Zhuge Xiang hadn't been lucky enough to face two Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer opponents in a row, he would have been eliminated long ago.

Although his battle with Ji Wuxue had made Zhuge Xiang famous, the Top 8 were all deeply established top geniuses in the minds of the disciples. Whether in terms of reputation or cultivation gap, in everyone's eyes, Zhuge Xiang was a dark horse, but still a step behind them. And he was injured, having barely defeated two Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciples with great difficulty.

Zhuge Xiang ignored what others thought. Glancing at Hua Nongying among the Top 8, he felt helpless. With his ridiculously bad luck, would he end up facing Hua Nongying, another Qi Cultivation Realm Second Layer disciple? If so, it would be frustrating—not only would he get no cross-realm experience bonus, but all his previous acting would be wasted.

Fortunately, the host soon announced the Top 8 matchups. Three relatively weaker Qi Cultivation Realm Third Layer disciples were matched against Zhuge Xiang, Lei Potian, and Ling Wufeng. As for Hua Nongying, whom Zhuge Xiang was most worried about, she was matched against Lu Yuling.

"Alright, the Top 8 matchups have been announced. Now the Top 8 can rest offstage. Since the Grand Tournament needs to determine the top ten, to give the Top 8 better condition for their matches, the eight disciples who lost in the Top 16 will now continue competing to decide ninth and tenth place..."

The host on stage spoke. Instead of deciding the top rankings first, they were deciding the lower ones. This decision caught people off guard, but everyone accepted it. After all, the Top 8 were the main event. Letting them rest well to ensure exciting matches was what everyone hoped for, and it would better motivate the next batch of disciples to train.

"Decide ninth and tenth first? Then after one round of Top 8 matches, the winners should get rest time, while the losers fight for fifth through eighth? Following this pattern, the final match would be for first place?" Hearing the host's words on the Duel Platform, Zhuge Xiang thought to himself.

But that was fine. With rest, the better his opponent's condition, the more experience he could gain. As for Qi Energy consumption? So far, Zhuge Xiang hadn't used a single Qi Recovery Pill.