Lin Heng had considered Situ Jiannan's reminder before, but he didn't take it too seriously.
"It would be best if the Fire Clan were to honor their promise. But if they try to renege, I have ways to make them do so obediently."
Upon hearing Lin Heng's words, Sun Yuan's eyes lit up with excitement.
"I'd rather the Fire Clan weren't so obedient; otherwise, life in the Ninefold Heaven would be far too boring."
Sun Yuan is a restless and violent individual. If he can fight his way down from the Ninefold Heaven to the First Heaven, he will definitely not walk up obediently.
Only Situ Jiannan looked helpless, as if he was silently lamenting his own bitterness.
Upon seeing this, Sun Yuan patted Situ Jiannan on the shoulder and said, "Don't be afraid. After this competition, when we get back, I'll have Lin Heng get you some good stuff so you can improve your cultivation level as soon as possible. Then you can come with us and kill a few more Samsara Realm cultivators for fun."
Sun Yuan then revealed a playful smile, "Don't you like money, kid? Samsara Realm cultivators and taking their treasures is much better than slaughtering those Supreme Saint in the Ten Regions."
Situ Jiannan was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this. Although the Samsara Realm was nothing special in the entire Nine Heavens.
In the Ninefold Heaven, the Samsara Realm is still the strongest fighting force, but for Sun Yuan, they are just like money bags, as if they cultivated to the Samsara Realm just to be killed and plundered.
After Lin Heng's defense of his title, the other seven quarterfinalists also went on stage to accept their challenges.
Without exception, all the experts who came to challenge them were defeated.
To make it into the top eight speaks volumes about their inherent strength and the foundation of their sect; there's no room for exaggeration in their achievements.
With the conclusion of the title defense, the battle for the top eight contestants has begun.
The battles to come will no longer be mere contests; they will determine who is superior and who belongs to the Origin Vein.
The benefits of a Origin Vein are self-evident. After years of mining, it might even bring one or two Samsara Realm cultivators to the sect.
Faced with such enormous profits, it's essentially a life-or-death battle.
Lin Heng went to the next draw, and the red number 1 corresponded to the blue number 1 of the Ant Race's Keluoduo.
Fortunately, Lin Heng had already consumed a million-year-old spiritual herb to replenish his losses. Although he was not at his peak condition, he had recovered about 70-80%.
Keluoduo is only at the Sixth-Turn Samsara Realm, but judging from his previous battles, in terms of attack and defense alone, he is no weaker than Human Race at the Seventh-Transformation Samsara Realm.
This is also an advantage for many alien races. In terms of innate physical condition, they are mostly stronger than Human Race. In close combat at the same level, few Human Race can defeat alien races.
Of course, this does not mean that in battles of the same level, alien races can always win against Human Race.
The alien races are strong in their bodies, Human Race is strong in their cunning and soul.
In terms of magical treasures, those forged by Human Race are more powerful than those for other races.
Furthermore, Human Race are proficient in various spells and formations, which, when used in combination, can compensate for their innate physical deficiencies.
Most importantly, Human Race cultivate faster, have a larger population, and a greater chance of producing powerful individuals—something that other races cannot match.
Getting back to the main point, after Lin Heng and Keluoduo entered the arena, Keluoduo clearly hesitated the moment Lin Heng drew his Killing Sword.
Yan Ming was at the Seventh-Transformation Samsara Realm, was no match for Lin Heng. Keluoduo naturally understood the gap between himself and Lin Heng.
He just didn't expect that he would meet Lin Heng in his first battle.
It should be noted that among the top eight contestants, only Lin Heng and Yu Changfeng have reached the Seventh-Transformation Samsara Realm.
But he just happened to run into it; he can only blame himself for not being God's favorite.
Just as Lin Heng raised his right hand, preparing to unleash his Killing Sword, Keluoduo suddenly called a halt.
"Wait! I give up!"
When he said this, Keluoduo's tone revealed a deep sense of helplessness.
Admitting defeat means giving up the fight for the Origin Vein.
Faced with such a vast disparity in strength, Keluoduo had no other choice.
Sixth-Turn Samsara, facing Lin Heng who could unleash the Law of Spatial Stasis, there was absolutely no chance for him.
Keluoduo's conceding defeat did not cause much of a stir; it was the most rational choice.
If he insists on fighting Lin Heng, he might get called an idiot.
After Keluoduo conceded defeat, Lin Heng turned around and prepared to return.
Unexpectedly, Keluoduo's voice rang in Lin Heng's mind.
" Lin Heng, this newly discovered Origin Vein is quite unusual. It seems only our Ant Race has discovered it so far. If you're willing to share some of the spoils, I'll help you uncover the secrets of the Origin Vein."
As the leader of the Ant Race, Keluoduo naturally wouldn't speak carelessly.
"Sure, if the secret you're about to tell me is intriguing, we can discuss the details further."
Lin Heng agreed telepathically, but his body didn't stop at all, and he walked towards the rest area on his own.
I'll pay you a visit later!
While making a disappointed expression, Keluoduo replied to Lin Heng.
Their private conversations went unnoticed.
As Lin Heng and Keluoduo left the scene, not far away, in the battle area between Red Three and Blue Three, the person facing Sword Immortal Yu Changfeng also voluntarily chose to concede defeat.
The Sixth-Turn Samsara facing the Seventh-Turn Samsara is not much different from Nirvana facing Samsara. After all, not everyone is like Lin Heng and Sun Yuan, possessing stronger magical treasures and the ability to fight beyond their level.
Lin Heng and Yu Changfeng were the first to advance to the semifinals, and everyone present understood that the final battle would be between the two of them.
The competition among the other four sects also ended in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Knowing that they had lost the qualification to compete for the Origin Vein and were only ranked with little difference in the final benefits, these people were naturally unwilling to fight to the death and only stopped when they had a chance to win.
After the semifinals comes the final battle for the top spot. For the other two semifinalists, the most anticipated match is between Lin Heng and Yu Changfeng.
When two Seventh-Turn Samsara clash, a fierce battle is inevitable, and they may end up both suffering heavy losses.
This naturally created an opportunity for the other two.
However, to their disappointment, after drawing lots, Lin Heng was matched against Longlong Yan of the Rock Race, and Sword Yu Changfeng was matched against Chang Shan of the Heavenly Snake Clan.
The two battles began simultaneously, and Yu Changfeng's side quickly came to a conclusion, with Chang Shan of the Heavenly Snake Clan directly conceding defeat.
But when it came to Lin Heng, Longlong Yan showed no intention of admitting defeat or giving up.
As for the reason...
Lin Heng noticed that when Chang Shan of the Heavenly Snake Clan conceded defeat, Yu Changfeng glanced at Longlong Yan, and the two nodded to each other, as if they had reached some kind of tacit understanding.
Holy crap!
Lin Heng could easily guess that the two must have had some private discussions.
Longlong Yan refused to admit defeat, presumably to wear down Lin Heng and thus prepare for the upcoming battle between Lin Heng and Yu Changfeng.
Yu Changfeng must have paid a considerable price, otherwise Longlong Yan would never have dared to risk his life to fight Lin Heng.
Entering the battle, Lin Heng raised his Killing Sword and pointed it at Longlong Yan: "Although I don't know what benefits Yu Changfeng gave you, if you insist on fighting, then leave your life here!"