That very night, the River City Team boarded a Flying Boat home.
The teams that had failed to advance did not need to prepare for the Elimination Tournament. They could spend a few days enjoying Starsea City... if they were still in the mood.
The teams that had advanced had to return home to prepare, however. Time was particularly tight for those in the upper half of the bracket.
The first round of the Elimination Tournament would begin in seven days, using the "Wasteland Zone Ignition Battle" format.
The two teams each needed to mark out a plot of standard size in the Wasteland Zone outside their own city, incorporate it into a Secret Realm, and set up formations to turn it into a competition venue.
More than ten Demon Domains would be placed within the venue, imprisoning demons, monsters, and evil spirits.
The home team's advantage lay in their greater familiarity with the terrain of their city's Wasteland Zone, as well as knowing which evil spirits were imprisoned in those Demon Domains.
Before the match began, the Four Seas Dragon Palace would send a Dragonkin envoy to hide five pieces of immortal goods, Starfire Stones, inside any five of the Demon Domains under conditions of absolute secrecy.
This aspect was completely fair to both the home and visiting teams.
Each team's starting location would have a fire pool. Dropping three Starfire Stones into the pool would ignite the Celestial Star Divine Fire within, illuminating the heavens!
Once the match began, the competitors from both teams would enter the Demon Domains to search for Starfire Stones. If they found none, they would have to move on to another Demon Domain. If they encountered enemies, they could also kill the opposing competitors. A competitor's death would still only eject them from