The Top Twenty-Five, the Hall of the Strong

The brief lunch break ended with the sound of Niujiao, and the afternoon's battles were about to begin. The atmosphere on the training ground was even more intense and tense than in the morning. The duels among fifty strong fighters meant that every match would be a tough battle.

The number of arenas has been reduced to five, with five matches held on each arena to determine five winners, for a total of twenty-five people who will advance to tomorrow's final competition. The reduction in the number of arenas has made the audience more concentrated, with a dense crowd surrounding the arenas, a silent yet imbued with immense anticipation.

Yan followed the referee to his assigned ring. He was scheduled to fight in the second match. The match-up list for the first match had already been announced, immediately drawing murmurs from the surrounding audience.

"Match 1: Dali vs. Huangye!"

Huangye, the renowned chieftain of the Bison Tribe, is known for his bravery and endurance. He is tall and muscular, but when he steps onto the ring and sees his opponent, his expression instantly becomes unusually serious, even carrying a hint of a wry smile.

Dali! The second younger brother of Jianshi, the current leader of the Fire Tribe, and one of the tribe's recognized pinnacles of strength, Dali's already exceptional talent has been further enhanced by years of ample nutrition and relentless training. His physique has become increasingly robust, making him resemble an iron tower, radiating an invisible sense of oppression. Even members of the Bison Tribe who pride themselves on their strength, such as Mangu and Juti, privately admit that they are inferior to Dali in terms of pure strength.

Huangye inwardly groaned, "What bad luck! Why did I have to run into him..." He had originally hoped to break into the top 25, but now he could only adjust his goal to try to hold out for as long as possible and not lose too quickly or too badly.

"Start!"

As soon as the referee's voice fell, Dali moved. Without any fancy probing, he roared and his massive body burst forth with astonishing speed. He swung the wooden spear in his hand, which was obviously thicker than the standard training spear, with one hand, creating several impressive spear flourishes. The whistling wind instantly enveloped the Huangye!

Huangye felt a chill run down his spine. He hurriedly gritted his teeth and raised his spear to parry, but the sheer power of the Dali was terrifying. Those seemingly ornate spear flourishes actually contained terrifying force and exquisite control. Every collision made Huangye's arms ache and his feet unsteady. In just a few breaths, he was forced to become flustered and retreat repeatedly.

With his Dali combat experience, Dali immediately recognized that Huangye's actions were driven by instinctive fear and distorted movements due to the disparity in strength. Seizing the opportunity presented by Huangye's slightly slower retreat after a parry, a glint of light flashed in his eyes. He abandoned his fancy moves and instead gripped his spear with both hands, unleashing a simple yet Galloping Thunder strike that slammed down towards Huangye's head! The move was expansive and powerful, carrying an invincible aura!

Huangye was horrified; he absolutely could not take this attack head-on! He tried to dodge, but found that his dodge route seemed to have been predicted by the Dali. Under the shadow of the spear, there was no way to avoid it! Helpless, he could only grit his teeth, hold the spear horizontally with both hands, and use all his strength to block upwards!

"Bang--!"

A deep, resounding thud shook the very core of him! Huangye felt a violent jolt in his arms, as if he had been struck by a Jushi. The ground beneath his feet seemed to tremble. He groaned and stumbled back five steps before barely managing to regain his footing. His arms were numb, his tiger's mouth was split open and bleeding, and his chest was churning with blood. He almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

In a single, direct clash, the difference in skill was immediately apparent!

Huangye looked at Dali with fear in his eyes. Dali did not immediately pursue him, but stood with his spear in hand, calmly watching him. Huangye took a few deep breaths to suppress his surging blood. He knew that he absolutely could not confront the other party head-on again, otherwise he might lose his weapon or even be injured in the next attack.

The ensuing battle almost turned into a one-sided chase. Huangye completely abandoned direct confrontation and began to run and dodge around the arena with relatively agile movements. Only when he felt absolutely safe or when Dali's attacks slowed down did he dare to turn around and quickly thrust out a spear or two to harass and counterattack, intending to wear down Dali's stamina. However, Dali's stamina seemed inexhaustible. His pursuit Chenwen and powerful, and the wooden spear in his hand was like a persistent thorn in Wilderness's side, always accurately blocking Huangye's retreat and forcing him to make difficult dodging maneuvers.

After more than twenty rounds, Huangye's stamina was rapidly depleted from the high-speed escape and intense tension, his speed noticeably slowed, and his breathing became heavy. Dali seized the opportunity, suddenly exerting force with his feet, instantly closing the distance. His wooden spear transformed into two swift shadows, one thrusting into the left shoulder, the other sweeping the lower body!

Exhausted from the Huangye, he barely dodged the first thrust, but was powerless to evade the subsequent sweeping attack. His calf was struck by the spear shaft, and he stumbled forward and fell. Before he could get up, the Dali spear tip was already pointing at his back.

"Match 1, Dali wins!" the referee announced loudly, his tone reflecting on the lopsided yet "persistent" duel.

Huangye lay on the ground, panting heavily, then struggled to his feet. He clasped his hands in a Dali, and limped off the stage. He had already done his best to fight Dali for more than twenty moves.

"Prepare for the second match! Flame, versus Nitan!"

Yan stepped into the circle with his spear. His opponent was Nitan, the former leader of the White Pig Tribe. Muddy was of medium build but sturdy and steady, known for his tight defense and great resilience. The moment Nitan saw Yan, his eyes became serious. He took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

He had heard of Yan's reputation and his clean and decisive victories in the previous rounds, and had even witnessed two of them firsthand. He knew how formidable this young opponent was, and he had absolutely no confidence in winning. His only thought was: defend! Defend with all his might and see how long he could hold out against his opponent!

The two men assumed their fighting stances. Yan calmly observed the Nitan, where the man had adopted a completely defensive posture, his center of gravity low, and his wooden spear firmly pointed forward. He knew his opponent was determined to wage a war of attrition. Since that was the case...

Yan moved. Without using any feints, his steps were Xunjie and steady, instantly closing the distance by three steps. The wooden spear in his hand transformed into two straight black lines, stabbing swiftly into the Nitan's chest! Simple, direct, yet as fast as lightning, carrying an indomitable momentum.

Nitan felt a tightness in his chest and dared not be negligent in the slightest. He concentrated fully, swinging his wooden spear left and right, accurately sweeping away the spear shaft that Yanci was about to unleash.

Clang! Clang!

Two crisp impacts! Although the Nitan successfully parried the attack, the powerful force from the spear shaft made his arms tremble and his tiger's mouth go numb. He was shocked. "What great strength! And this was just a probing thrust!" In just two moves, he deeply felt the huge gap in strength between himself and Yan.

Nitan immediately changed his strategy, refusing to engage in any direct physical confrontation with Flame. When Flame missed his attack and pressed forward again, Nitan immediately retreated, always maintaining a relatively safe distance. Whenever Flame launched an attack, Nitan would parry or deflect it with his spear at lightning speed, withdrawing immediately without lingering. At the same time, he moved quickly, constantly changing position, trying to disrupt Flame's offensive rhythm. He perfected his defensive style, his entire being like a mud ball covered in Houpi skin, slippery and unyielding.

Yan launched a seven-round attack. Although the Nitan was in a sorry state, it managed to withstand the onslaught with its tenacious will and tight defense. Despite facing numerous close calls, it never revealed a fatal flaw.

However, the cost of passive defense is also enormous, especially under the continuous attacks of an opponent of Yan's caliber. Nitan's breathing began to become erratic, sweat appeared on his forehead, and his movement and blocking speed also decreased slightly.

Yan keenly noticed this, and during the brief interval at the end of the seventh round, a knowing glint flashed in his eyes: it was time to end it.

In the next two rounds, Yan's offensive suddenly became even more fierce! The pressure on the Nitan increased dramatically, and the defense line that had been barely holding on before became precarious in an instant. He tried his best to block and dodge, but under Yan's offensive, he finally revealed a flaw. After desperately blocking Yan's diagonal slash, he was a little slow to return his spear, leaving his center wide open!

How could Yan miss this opportunity? Nitan was shocked and before he could react, Yan's figure was already close like a ghost, and a clean and neat side kick hit him right in the waist and abdomen.

"Bang!"

The Nitan were kicked off the ground and flew backward, landing with a "plop" outside the arena, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Yan wins the second match!" The referee's announcement and the enthusiastic cheers from the audience rang out at the same time, and the core members of the Youth Team jumped up and down with excitement.

Yan sheathed his spear, walked off the stage, and reached out to Ni Tan, who was struggling to his Nitan. Nitan grabbed Yan's hand and stood up, rubbing his aching back and abdomen, and said with a wry smile, "Leader Yan, you're amazing! I admit defeat wholeheartedly." He had given his all to last nearly ten rounds against Yan, and though he lost, he was still honorable.

Yan returned to the rest area, Dali came over, patting his shoulder forcefully with his large, fan-like hand, laughing heartily, "Good lad! Your progress these past few years is truly frightening! Those moves just now were clean and swift! I think now, even if I want to beat you, I'll have to put in a lot of effort, and I might not even be able to beat you!"

Yan was jolted to the side by the slap, but quickly steadied himself and said modestly, "Second Uncle is too kind. I still have a lot to learn from you."

Dali chuckled and stopped dwelling on the topic, but his gaze towards Yan was filled with even more satisfaction and pride.

As Yan had predicted, the next three matches lasted much longer. Those who had reached this stage were all exceptionally strong, with the difference in strength often being extremely subtle. Many duels were exceptionally close, with both sides using their wits and courage to frequently switch between offense and defense. They often fought for more than thirty rounds before a winner was decided by physical strength, willpower, or a small mistake. The exciting scenes were endless, drawing cheers from the audience.

As the sun gradually set in the west, turning the martial arts arena a golden hue, the final duel finally came to an end, and twenty-five victors emerged from the five arenas.

Led by the referee, the twenty-five warriors representing the pinnacle of the Fire Tribe's martial prowess gathered once again on the side of the platform. The registrar solemnly engraved their names on the roster, preparing for the next round of drawing lots.

Yan's gaze slowly swept over the twenty-four companions (including himself). He recognized every face, and every name represented a legend: Dabang, Dali, Dazhuang, Jianya, Shimao, Yandun, Jushi, Shibang, Yingmu, Jianyan, Liebao, Liehuo, Yehuo, Xunyu, Mangu (Bison Tribe), Juti (formerly of the Buffalo Tribe), Houpi Hide (Bison Tribe Buffalo Tribe), Tunyong (formerly of the White Pig Tribe Bison Tribe), Liaoya (formerly of the White Pig Tribe), Houzong (formerly of the White Pig Tribe), Chongzhuang, Qingti (formerly of the Deer Tribe), Changjiao (formerly of the Green Sheep Tribe), Shinian (formerly of the Green Grain Tribe).

Of the twenty-five, more than half were warriors from the Fire Tribe headquarters or early core subordinate tribes. This reflects both the tribe's strength and the importance of systematic training and ample resources. The rest were the strongest warriors from various tribes that were later incorporated. It can be said that these twenty-five people represent the true essence of the Fire Tribe after its military consolidation.

The draw began. Thirteen numbers were placed in a wooden box. Twelve of the numbers had two wooden tokens each, and the winners would face off against each other. The thirteenth number had only one wooden token – a bye.

The atmosphere was slightly awkward. Although everyone was full of confidence for getting this far, being drawn a bye and advancing directly to the next round would undoubtedly conserve more energy and give them an edge in the final top ten or even higher rankings.

Yan reached into the wooden box and took out a wooden tag – number "seven". He calmly registered it; he didn't insist on having a bye.

Soon, all the results of the lottery came out, and the lucky one who got the bye draw was - Jushi! This warrior, who is known for his solid defense, looked at the only "No. 13" wooden sign in his hand and was stunned for a moment. Then he smiled honestly and bowed his hands to his companions who cast envious glances around him.

This means that tomorrow morning, twelve matches will be held to determine twelve winners, plus the Giant Jushi who received a bye, making a total of thirteen people. After registering the draw results, Jianshi briefly encouraged everyone and then told them to go back and rest to recharge.