Boom!
A thunderous crash rang out as the Hell Three-Headed Dog's enormous body was sent flying backward. Dark blood streamed through the air and splattered onto the ground.
Roar!
The Hell Three-Headed Dog let out an agonized howl and slammed heavily into the ground.
A deep, bloody gash now ran from its foreleg to its waist across its powerful body.
Dark blood kept pouring out. It tried to get up, but the movement pulled at its wound, making the blood flow even faster. The excruciating pain left it unable even to stand.
Feng Li's expression changed drastically. She had been following Jiang Feng's matches all along, but she had never seen him use such a powerful skill.
That single sword strike had nearly cleaved the Hell Three-Headed Dog in two.
The Hell Three-Headed Dog still wanted to stand up and keep fighting, for it had no understanding of death and knew no fear.
Feng Li, however, had no intention of losing her summoned beast in this battle. She hurriedly shouted, "I surrender!"
Then she quickly ran to the Hell Three-Headed Dog's side and extended a fair-skinned hand. A six-pointed star flashed in her palm, rapidly expanding to envelop the beast's enormous body.
The next moment, the Hell Three-Headed Dog turned into a streak of dim light and vanished into the black doorway.
The door closed, and Feng Li headed off the arena floor.
"Ding! Congratulations, host, on defeating a level-six Hell Three-Headed Dog. Calculating rewards." "Congratulations, host, on receiving 500 system coins. Your balance is 4,101 system coins."
The match was over. Clearly, she was no match for Jiang Feng.
Jiang Feng had also confirmed something: this girl probably had only one summoned beast.
Even so, she was already very powerful.
Jiang Feng could personally attest that the Hell Three-Headed Dog was no weaker than the Gold-Patterned Twin-Blade Demon he had encountered during the qualification test for a place in a Demon Hunt Squad.
With a cultivation level at the middle of level six, it rivaled a Sixth Order Gold-Patterned Twin-Blade Demon in strength. Clearly, the Hell Three-Headed Dog was a magical beast with an exceptionally powerful bloodline.
Jiang Feng merely wondered why the name "Hell Three-Headed Dog" sounded so down-to-earth.
Down in the underworld, that was.
"In the fourth match of the ninth round of the Round-Robin Tournament, Jiang Feng wins!" the referee loudly announced.
Jiang Feng secured nine consecutive victories, advancing to the final sixteen as the top competitor in Group One.
Among the other nine competitors, Feng Li had the best record, with seven wins, one loss, and one draw, which also guaranteed her advancement.
Wang Yuanyuan, in third place, could only compete with the third-place finishers from the other six groups for the four remaining spots in the final sixteen.
None of this mattered much to Jiang Feng, though. He only wanted to collect his reward for placing in the top ten of the Preliminary Round as soon as possible.
"Brother Jiang, congratulations! You advanced with a perfect record of nine wins!" Lin Xin was the first to come up and congratulate him.
"Heh, don't make such a fuss. Keep it low-key." Jiang Feng hurriedly waved his hands, then suddenly looked toward a spot in the stands, only to find nothing there.
It was strange. Throughout the matches lately, he kept feeling that someone familiar was watching him.
After saying goodbye to Lin Xin, Jiang Feng returned to the hotel. He had intended to let Jiang Xinran know, because if he ended up being gone for three days like Long Haochen, she would definitely be angry when she couldn't find him.
However, when Jiang Nan returned to the hotel, Jiang Xinran's door was already firmly shut, with a "Do not disturb" sign hanging on it.
Jiang Feng found an attendant and instructed him to tell Jiang Xinran that he had gone to collect his reward if he had not returned by the time she finished her secluded training.
Having made the arrangements, Jiang Feng was about to leave when he ran straight into Yang Wenzhao.
"Martial Uncle, how did it go? Did you advance with nine straight wins?" Yang Wenzhao asked with a smile.
"Was there ever any doubt? You got nine straight wins too, kid," Jiang Feng said with a laugh.
"Yes." Yang Wenzhao nodded. Even with his steady temperament, he couldn't help feeling delighted at winning nine consecutive matches in the Round-Robin Tournament.
"Where are you headed, Martial Uncle?" Yang Wenzhao asked.
"To collect my Preliminary Round reward. Most of my equipment is ruined, so I need replacements," Jiang Feng said with a rueful smile.
"Perfect timing, then. My grandfather heard that your equipment had been badly damaged during the matches, Martial Uncle. He told me to take you to the Temple Alliance Treasure Pavilion to collect your reward once the Round-Robin Tournament ended," Yang Wenzhao said.
"That's great. Let's go now," Jiang Feng said.
"Yes, Martial Uncle," Yang Wenzhao replied.
With Yang Wenzhao leading the way, Jiang Feng soon arrived at the Temple Alliance Treasure Pavilion.
Although Jiang Feng knew roughly where it was, he had never been there before.
The Temple Alliance Treasure Pavilion was part of the Temple Alliance Grand Trial Grounds and, like the Grand Trial Grounds, was jointly managed by the Six Great Temples.
From the outside, it was another hexagonal building, and it occupied only a few hundred square meters.
It was still fairly early, with the last rays of the setting sun lingering.
Outside the Temple Alliance Treasure Pavilion, a fat old man lay leisurely in a chair, basking in the sun. He was somewhat bald, with a bulging belly and a bare chest.
"Greetings, Senior. I am Yang Wenzhao. On the Alliance Leader's orders, I have brought Jiang Feng, an Earth Knight of the Knight Temple, to collect his Preliminary Round reward." Yang Wenzhao and Jiang Feng stepped forward and bowed.
The fat old man looked at Jiang Feng with a smile and said, "Let me see your token."
Yang Wenzhao handed over a token with both hands.
"You may go back. Jiang Feng, come with me." The fat old man rose unsteadily from his chair and walked into the Treasure Pavilion.
"Yes," Jiang Feng answered, following him.
He had originally thought Yang Wenzhao had also come to collect a reward. He hadn't expected that his only task was to bring him to the Treasure Pavilion.
Inside the Treasure Pavilion was a hall of about a hundred square meters, with a six-pointed star pattern on the floor.
A huge mural was carved into each of the six walls. Each depicted a person whose clothing represented one of the professions of the Six Great Temples.
Jiang Feng guessed that these six people might be the founders of the Six Great Temples.
Once they were inside, the fat old man turned around and looked kindly at Jiang Feng. "Young man, do your best."
Then he stepped on the point of the six-pointed star that represented the Knight Temple. At once, the mural depicting the Knight Temple lit up.
Strange lines then glowed across the entire wall, resembling a magic array. Afterward, the mural seemed to become insubstantial.
"Go on. Your reward is inside that mural," the fat old man said cheerfully.
"Thank you, Senior." Jiang Feng bowed, then stepped toward the mural. Rather than colliding with it, he entered a world filled with birdsong and the fragrance of flowers.
There were mountains, waters, trees, flowers, and grasses, like a secluded paradise.
Jiang Feng looked around curiously at everything.
Outside the Treasure Pavilion, just as the fat old man returned to the entrance, a figure as thin as a bamboo pole suddenly stepped out of the void. Had Jiang Feng and Yang Wenzhao still been there, they would certainly have recognized him as that old bastard, Saint Moon.
After learning that Jiang Feng would be coming to the Treasure Pavilion that day to collect his reward, Saint Moon had hidden himself before his arrival.
His gaunt face was now covered in bruises, leaving him too ashamed to face Jiang Feng. Yang Haoyu had inflicted them using a special technique, making them impossible to remove anytime soon.
The frustration and resentment he had felt lately were beyond words.
Who could have imagined that casually teaching a junior a lesson would draw Yang Haoyu out?
When it came to protecting his own, Yang Haoyu was no less fierce than Saint Moon. When it came to cultivation and strength, he completely outclassed him.
What misery!
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