Entering the Second Round

As Liang Bo and Zhao Wu walked and chatted, Zhao Wu suddenly tugged at him and said with a low chuckle, "Liang Bo, look—it's my sister. She's looking at you!"

Liang Bo hurriedly looked in the direction Zhao Wu pointed. There, a striking figure appeared—a young girl dressed in fitted green clothes. Her skin was fair, her figure slender, her legs exceptionally long, with curves in all the right places. On Earth in his previous life, she would have been the quintessential athletic goddess.

Liang Bo's heart gave a sudden leap, and a name flashed through his mind: Zhao Zhao.

This girl had been the original Liang Bo's secret crush. She was also from the Zhao Clan and Zhao Wu's cousin, though she was actually only a few months older than Zhao Wu.

Zhao Wu naturally knew all about the original Liang Bo's feelings for Zhao Zhao, and he had hoped the two would end up together. If not for his deliberate matchmaking back then, Liang Bo and Zhao Zhao would never have gotten to know one another.

But the current Liang Bo was no longer the man he had been. Though he had inherited some of the original owner's memories, he had not inherited all of his emotions. Thus, his gaze upon Zhao Zhao remained calm. It was like seeing a beautiful woman on the street in his previous life—there was appreciation, but no further thoughts.

"Liang Bo, I heard that a few days ago, when you sparred with one of your Liang Clan elders, you were beaten so badly that you suffered serious injuries. Are you recovered now?" Zhao Zhao walked over openly and generously, patting Liang Bo on the shoulder as she asked.

"Not bad. After resting these past few days, my injuries are basically healed."

"Liang Bo, you were injured?" Zhao Wu asked in surprise. He had been busy cultivating every day lately, so he had not known about Liang Bo's injury.

Liang Bo briefly explained what had happened.

Zhao Zhao frowned and said in a low voice, "Liang Bo, I think that clan uncle of yours did it deliberately, so you wouldn't be able to take part in the clan tournament."

"Whether he did it deliberately or not, it doesn't matter. As long as it doesn't affect this Martial Academy Grand Competition, that's enough." Liang Bo waved a hand dismissively.

By then, the three had arrived at a registration point and began lining up to register.

By convention, registration and the preliminary selection were conducted at the same time. The preliminary rules were simple: on the open ground before the registration point stood a massive boulder weighing two thousand jin. Anyone who could lift it above their head and hold it there for five seconds would pass the preliminary selection.

Generally speaking, a ninth-rank Martial Path warrior possessed about one thousand jin of strength. With every subsequent increase in internal-force cultivation, their strength would rise by roughly another five hundred jin. Thus, anyone who had reached the seventh rank of the Martial Path could basically pass the assessment.

Both Liang Bo and Zhao Wu were above that level, while Zhao Zhao had even reached the sixth rank of the Martial Path. The three therefore passed the preliminary selection without incident and each received an identity token. Next, they would take part in the second-round selection.

The number 138 was written on Liang Bo's identity token, meaning he would be the one hundred and thirty-eighth person to undergo the second round. Though Zhao Wu and Zhao Zhao had registered together with him, for some reason their token numbers were not consecutive with his. One was 344, and the other was 256.

Zhao Wu shook the token in his hand, his face full of worry. "Looks like I'm the last of the three of us to take the second round. I wonder how my luck will be today. I just hope the demonic beast I encounter later isn't too strong."

Liang Bo laughed. "I told you to work harder every day, but you wouldn't listen. What, getting anxious now?"

"Of course I'm anxious. Aren't you?"

"Me? I'm really not anxious." Liang Bo laughed, then turned to Zhao Zhao. "By the way, Zhao Zhao, will you challenge a fifth-rank demonic beast or a sixth-rank one later?"

"Mm, I'll probably challenge a fifth-rank demonic beast."

"A fifth-rank demonic beast? Are you confident you can succeed? What if you fail?" Zhao Wu asked worriedly.

"If I fail, I'll come again next year. The Martial Academy Grand Competition is held once every year anyway."

Unlike the preliminary selection, the second round was meant to further distinguish the strength of the warriors. Therefore, the examiners provided demonic beasts of the sixth, fifth, and fourth ranks for the warriors to challenge. Each warrior could choose the rank of demonic beast they wished to face based on their own strength.

Generally, anyone who successfully challenged a sixth-rank demonic beast could pass the second round and enter the final arena battles. However, whether such warriors would ultimately catch the eye of a sect force was another matter.

Those who successfully challenged fifth-rank demonic beasts, on the other hand, were basically guaranteed entry into a sect. If they also performed outstandingly in the subsequent arena battles, they might even have a chance to enter one of the three strongest forces, such as the True Martial Sect.

As for those who successfully challenged fourth-rank demonic beasts, they could basically all enter one of the three strongest forces, such as the True Martial Sect.

Zhao Wu and the former Liang Bo had both been relatively weak and could only attempt to challenge sixth-rank demonic beasts. Zhao Zhao was comparatively stronger—her internal-force cultivation had reached the sixth rank—so she chose to challenge a fifth-rank demonic beast.

The three arrived at the second-round venue. It resembled the ancient Roman gladiatorial arenas of Earth in Liang Bo's previous life, with spectator stands surrounding the area and the grounds below serving as the battleground. At present, walls forged from refined steel divided it into three sections, each used for challenging demonic beasts of a different rank.

On the elevated platform directly before the spectator stands were the examiners' seats, already filled with people. Aside from a military representative serving as the chief examiner and overseeing the proceedings, representatives from all thirty-six sect forces had also arrived. Sitting in the central seats were representatives of the True Martial Sect, the Limitless Sword Sect, and the Purple Sun Temple. Representatives of the other sects occupied seats farther to the sides.

After entering the venue, Liang Bo and the other two found a less crowded place and sat down.

"Number 1, Wang Wei of Broad Mountain City, enter the arena!"

Not long afterward, the second round officially began. At the chief examiner's command, a thin young man strode quickly to the front.

"Choose the rank of demonic beast you wish to challenge!"

"I choose to challenge a sixth-rank demonic beast!" Wang Wei answered with cupped hands. His strength was only at the middle stage of the seventh rank, and he might not even succeed against a sixth-rank demonic beast, so naturally he did not dare challenge a fifth-rank one.

After he made his choice, an examiner immediately led him into the section on the left side of the arena, where he stood behind a safety line. Then, a passage in the left wall was opened.

"Clang..." Amid the repeated crashing of iron chains, low, muffled roars drifted faintly from the pitch-black passage. Then, a massive beast charged out from within.

"It's a sixth-rank demonic beast, a Howling Moon Wolf!" Zhao Wu cried out softly, his expression immediately turning tense.

He would also be challenging a sixth-rank demonic beast later, and there was a good chance that his opponent would be a Howling Moon Wolf as well. This was the perfect opportunity to observe this demonic beast's weaknesses.

Roar! After the Howling Moon Wolf entered the arena, it immediately let out a low roar. A ferocious gleam appeared in its narrow eyes as it glared viciously at the young man before it.

If not for the iron chain around its neck restricting the area in which it could move, it would likely have already lunged at the young man.