Chapter 34:The Cruel Soul Master Competition, the Terrifying Evil Soul Masters.
Lin Fan's eyes had never been so resolute as they were at this moment.
For a day and a night, Lin Fan hadn't slept. He cultivated, pondered, and felt the abundant soul energy of the peak of the Soul Fighting Mountain. Lin Fan was confident he could break through another level on the last day of the competition.
This would give Lin Fan three chances to draw prizes. Moreover, encountering Bibi Dong on the arena might trigger a special mission prize draw. He had previously completed a mission to save the goddess and another to move her heart; what would it be this time?
Lin Fan silently prayed in his heart, "I might not lose. Whether I can successfully escape with Bibi Dong after the competition and protect the child I, Lin Fan, was single for twenty years in my previous life, depends on these few chances to draw prizes. Ling'er, you must do your best, otherwise you'll never see your master again."
"What? Master wants to draw prizes? Master still has one chance left." Ling'er's voice echoed in his mind.
"Not now." Lin Fan replied coldly to himself, giving up in his heart. Although Ling'er's voice was cute, she never cared about his life or death. Even if he was about to die, this silly Ling'er could only say those two sentences.
"Master, do you want to draw a prize?"
"Master doesn't have a chance to draw a prize yet."
But thinking this way, Lin Fan relaxed. What was there to be afraid of? Even if he died, so what? Maybe he could just go back to playing King of Glory.
Thinking about this, Lin Fan was no longer afraid of anything. He started to reminisce about the songs from his previous life's cultivation. He thought that if he went back, he would have to rush to the Star Glory promotion tournament. That day, he had reached Diamond I and was one game away from Star Glory, but he lost five games in a row. Lin Fan was not convinced and kept playing, until his phone exploded and he was transported to another world.
"Xiao Fan seems to be alright..."
Seeing Lin Fan walking and humming a little tune leisurely, Liu Erlong said to the Haotian team members with surprise.
Tang Huo'er glanced back at Lin Fan's current state, pursed her lips, and said, "This guy seems to have something wrong with his head. He looked like he was about to die just now, and now he's in the mood to sing."
"Never mind, I'm used to it." Liu Erlong gave Lin Fan a speechless look.
Lin Fan didn't care. Looking at Tang Huo'er's sexy and tall back in front of him, he thought, "Although there's no game in this world, there are definitely a lot of beautiful girls." He couldn't help but say, "Senior Sister, your legs are so long! How will a girl who's this tall get married?"
As soon as Lin Fan finished speaking, he suddenly felt a gust of wind in front of him, and he felt like he was flying. Then he landed instantly, feeling a bit sore all over.
Lin Fan looked up and suddenly realized that he had been thrown from the back of the group to the front by Tang Huo'er. The people walking in front were all elders and sect leaders.
Tang Hao happened to turn around and glanced back. Lin Fan quickly got up and swiftly charged back to the back of the group.
This was so embarrassing.
How could this girl be so fast? He didn't even have time to use his skills.
She's not someone to mess with...
Lin Fan obediently shut his mouth and dared not say another word.
The Clear Sky Sect's group entered the architectural complex atop Douhun Mountain. The buildings here were all very antique, consisting of courtyards, pavilions, and terraces. At this moment, a middle-aged man came out, politely greeted Tang Xiao and Tang Hao, and then led them into the manor.
After the Clear Sky Sect's group entered the manor, other major sects and families followed suit, entering the architectural complex atop Douhun Mountain.
The architectural complex on Douhun Mountain was large enough to accommodate ten thousand people, but only sects and families with sufficient influence in the Soul Master world could stay inside. Many smaller sects and families pitched tents outside.
At the summit of Soul Fighting Mountain, there was a tacit rule: outside the arena, no one dared to make a move, even if they witnessed a sect disciple die on the arena. All grudges could only be settled after descending the mountain.
The Clear Sky Sect occupied two pavilions within the manor complex. At this time, Lin Fan didn't know where Bibi Dong was, and that night, he diligently cultivated in his room.
The next day, the Elite Soul Master Tournament officially began. The arena was on the plains at the summit. All sects qualified to participate could watch. On the vast plain were four enormous arenas, each larger than the Clear Sky Sect's arena. The arena floors were forged from pure iron and soul tools, powerful enough to withstand the attack of a Soul Saint.
A total of sixty-four sects and families participated in the Elite Soul Master Tournament. This was the limit set by the tournament. Besides sects and families with a certain status and influence in the Soul Master world, smaller families, if they also had seven disciples under the age of eighteen with Soul Venerable or higher qualifications, had to compete for a spot before they could come.
The competition is divided into preliminary rounds and finals. The preliminary rounds use a points system, with each team playing several matches. The top sixteen teams are determined within ten days. The finals are held over the remaining seven days, with each pair of teams facing off in a single duel. The losing team is eliminated.
In both the preliminary and final rounds, each sect/family team can field a maximum of seven members. The final roster cannot be changed, but the number of members can be freely chosen for each duel.
At this moment, Lin Fan had already followed the Haotian team to the stands around the arena. These prime viewing spots were reserved for powerful sects. The seats for the sect leaders and elders of the major Soul Master families, as well as the royal families of the two empires, were in the VIP section. Lin Fan immediately noticed that there were elders from the Spirit Hall in the VIP section, but Pope Qian Xunji was nowhere to be seen. They probably wouldn't be attending the first day of the preliminary rounds.
The Haotian Team originally had three matches on the first day, but their opponents conceded two. The third match was in the afternoon, so they only arrived to watch now. Here, one can watch the battles on four arenas simultaneously. The stands extend upwards, but unlike modern football stadiums or concert halls, there aren't many seats at the very top. Many smaller sects and families have gathered there to watch.
Although it's the preliminary round of the Elite Tournament, the stands are packed with people from various sects. In Tang San's era, such Soul Master duels were common in the Grand Soul Arena. But in today's Soul Master world, such a safe and untroubled place to watch, except for Soul Fighting Mountain, is almost nonexistent.
No matter how powerful the Soul Arena, there have been instances of evil sects and demonic sects causing bloodshed on-site, or sect members directly rushing onto the arena to kill their opponents. This is why this absolutely fair Elite Tournament on Soul Fighting Mountain has garnered the attention of the entire Soul Master world.
Lin Fan glanced at the front row nearby but didn't see Bibi Dong. She probably wasn't interested in watching the matches. However, there should be three matches for the Spirit Hall on the first day. Had all their opponents conceded?
In the preliminary rounds, powerful sects and families usually only send one or two people to face the opposing team's seven. Even so, there would be cases where opponents conceded. The rules of the competition were cruel; if you didn't concede beforehand, your fate on the stage was in the hands of fate.
"Now, two matches will be held simultaneously. The first match is between the Demon Sect and the Azure Cloud Sect. The second match is between the Ice Phoenix Clan and the Mad Battle Clan. Now, please invite the participating teams from both sides to step onto the stage."
The voice belonged to a woman, but she wasn't on the stage; instead, she was on a floating platform above it, holding a soul tool that resembled a microphone. There were also amplifying soul tools in various places around the stage.
"The Demonic Sect?"
Seeing members of the Demonic Sect appear in the very first match surprised Lin Fan slightly. Disciples from the surrounding sects also began to discuss among themselves. After all, the Demonic Sect remained the largest evil soul master alliance. Their ideology was slaughter, leveling up by plundering and absorbing the soul power of others. Many evil soul masters in the Demonic Sect possessed beast spirits with this ability to absorb the soul power of others.
In the original story, Ma Hongjun, one of the Seven Devils, also possessed this ability with his Evil Fire Phoenix. Ma Hongjun, in the original story, only plundered and absorbed the soul power of soul beasts. The evil soul masters of the Demonic Sect, however, mostly absorbed the soul power of other soul masters directly; absorbing human soul power was much easier than absorbing soul beast soul power.
Tang Huo'er said calmly, "In Douhun Mountain, disciples of the Demonic Sect are qualified to participate in the competition. Outside the arena, no one can attack them. To kill them, one must do so on the arena. However, if they encounter teams from the Clear Sky Sect or the Spirit Hall, they usually concede defeat early. Last year, the Demonic Sect, knowing that I had defeated five teams in a row, tried to use seven people to devour my soul power, but I killed five of them on the stage."
"I see, Senior Sister did a great job." Lin Fan had just finished praising Tang Huo'er when he saw that both matches were about to begin.
Three members of the Demonic Sect entered the arena, while all seven members of the Azure Cloud Sect entered.
The Demonic Sect's attire was the same as what Lin Fan had seen in the Star Dou Great Forest—black robes with a strange bat pattern.
"Demonic Sect fiends, as long as you don't step down, our Azure Cloud Sect will definitely exterminate you..."
Just as the seven members of the Azure Cloud Sect finished speaking, a voice came from the sky.
"The arena is sealed off. The competition officially begins. During the competition, leaving the arena is considered a surrender, and the other side may not attack any team member who has left the arena. Any member of either side who dies, loses their fighting ability, or leaves the arena is considered eliminated. When all members of one team are eliminated, the other side wins."
After the host in the air finished reading the rules, golden halos immediately appeared around the two arenas, looking somewhat strange.
Lin Fan hurriedly asked Tang Huo'er beside him, "Senior Sister, is this the restriction on the arena of the competition? It can isolate all mental interference?"
Tang Huo'er nodded and said, "Not only that, this restriction can block all mental power. During the competition, it is impossible for people outside the arena to rush in to rescue someone. If a participating team member finds that they are no match for their opponent, they can only surrender by jumping off the arena, and their opponent may not give them a chance..."
"What, if they can't escape the arena, won't they die on the stage..."
Lin Fan was about to continue speaking when he saw that the three black-robed members of the Demon Sect on the stage had already moved. All three of them were actually Soul Masters of level 40 or above. Of the seven members of the Qingyun Sect, only two were Soul Masters; the rest were all above level 30.
"Bloodthirsty Bat..." One of the Demonic Sect members summoned his Martial Soul and instantly pounced on a Qingyun Sect disciple. Before the disciple could react, blood spurted from his neck, and he collapsed to the ground, a corpse.
"Junior Brother..."
Seeing this, the remaining six Qingyun Sect disciples' eyes turned red. It seemed they were participating in the Elite Tournament for the first time. The six immediately released their Martial Souls, the Azure Edge Sword, and attacked the three Demonic Sect members together.
Unfortunately, the three Demonic Sect members possessed powerful Beast Martial Souls. The other two Demonic Sect members had Black Raven Martial Souls, and their speed was incredibly fast, killing with a single blow. In just a few exchanges, the Qingyun Sect team suffered another four tragic deaths. The remaining two disciples frantically tried to run off the stage, but were immediately surrounded by the three Demonic Sect members.
"Hehehe, where do you think you can run? Since you dared not admit defeat before the match, then prepare to die..."
The demonic sect member with the bloodthirsty bat martial soul instantly pounced on one of the Qingyun sect disciples, biting his neck and beginning to absorb his soul power and life force.
"Ah..." The Qingyun sect disciple let out a scream of agony, but it stopped abruptly. Within seconds, he collapsed to the ground, completely unrecognizable, a withered corpse.
"My son..."
A middle-aged man shouted, frantically rushing towards the arena, but crashed into the golden barrier a few meters away from the arena. The middle-aged man, with decades of cultivation, died instantly, falling outside the arena.
Meanwhile, the Demon Sect members on the arena continued to drain the life force of the other six Qingyun Sect disciples. Then, the bloodthirsty bat-like Demon Sect member chuckled and said, "All seven of them are dead. The results of the match can now be announced."
In truth, the sounds from inside the arena were inaudible outside, but the female host on the floating platform could see the situation on all the arenas. She picked up the microphone and calmly announced, "The first match, the Demon Sect wins. The arena is now closed. Please continue to watch the second match..."
The host's voice even carried a playful tone, as if those who died on the arena weren't even human.
The next moment, the golden restrictions around the first arena vanished, and a group of people in strange uniforms immediately went on stage and cleaned the arena.
Liu Erlong, who had never participated in the Elite Tournament before, suddenly stood up and shouted at the arena, "What kind of lousy Elite Tournament is this? It's so inhumane! We just watch our fellow disciples being cruelly killed, and we can't even go on stage to save them..."
Ye Keke was so frightened that she lowered her head and cried, as if she had remembered something.
Having experienced life and death, Lin Fan wasn't particularly emotionally affected, but he was worried about what was about to happen, and his mood suddenly became heavy.
The arena's restrictions, with just a slight impact, had killed a sect elder; this showed just how powerful the four people who controlled the entire Fighting Soul Mountain were.
Shui Yue'er, however, completely ignored the Demon Sect's match. She was intently watching another arena match—the Ice Phoenix Clan, her own family.
The Ice Phoenix Clan wasn't well-known on the continent at this time, far less famous than the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, but it maintained its mystique; apart from its members, no one knew the true strength of this family.
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