Chapter 1660: Zi Zhaoyan
Before long, the fortune power behind everyone gradually dissipated, transforming into special inscriptions that condensed at the center of their brows.
The longer the Dragon of Fortune, the more intricate the inscription became.
As for Ling Feng, his situation was completely outrageous.
It was not just his brow.
Golden lines spread across his entire forehead and even half his face, radiating dazzling brilliance so bright that people could barely keep their eyes open.
Thankfully, those inscriptions could retract back into the body on their own. Otherwise, Ling Feng would truly have wanted to cry. He had only come to participate in a tournament, yet somehow ended up looking like he had covered his face with flashy tattoos.
"Huh? There's writing on my palm!"
Soon, many people noticed that aside from the inscriptions on their brows, every participant now had a golden number appearing in their palm.
Ling Feng raised his hand and saw the number "Ten."
That meant he had been assigned to Arena Number Ten for the competition.
The rules of the Sunset Heaven Selection had long since been memorized by the elders of every sect, so they immediately explained the details to their disciples and clansmen.
At last, the crowd began to move.
Ling Feng was not assigned to the same group as Tuoba Yan, Fairy Qingping, or Yu Linglong. After exchanging brief farewells, he departed and headed straight for Arena Number Ten.
By the time he arrived, nearly everyone was already there.
A full thousand people packed the arena area.
Everywhere he looked was a sea of heads, making it difficult to tell one person from another.
Yet amidst the crowd, Ling Feng suddenly sensed a sharp hostile gaze stabbing into his back.
Turning around, his brow lifted slightly.
Liu Donglin was glaring at him with eyes full of murderous hatred, looking as though he wanted to devour Ling Feng alive.
Ling Feng merely shrugged indifferently.
If this fool still refused to learn his lesson, Ling Feng would not mind personally sending him out during the first round.
Soon, Ling Feng noticed that it was not only Liu Donglin. Quite a few experts from the martial gathering had also been assigned to Group Ten.
For example, Wang Qian and Yuan Huaji from the Yunluo Sacred Land had both ended up in the same group as him.
Even the mysterious violet-eyed girl from the Wulei Sacred Land, Zi Zhaoyan, who had never once made a move during the martial gathering, had also been assigned here.
So there was a real chance they might encounter one another during the first round.
However, the first round used a point-based system.
Every martial practitioner would have the opportunity to fight ten matches, and the top hundred scorers would advance to the second round.
"Ling Feng!"
Yuan Huaji clearly stood on the same side as Liu Donglin. He shot Ling Feng a provocative glare and cursed loudly, "You'd better pray you don't run into me. Otherwise, you're going to suffer!"
Although Wang Qian said nothing, Ling Feng had humiliated the Yunluo Sacred Land thoroughly during the martial gathering. Liu Donglin had become a complete laughingstock, and even Wang Qian himself, as the chief disciple, had been scolded harshly by the elders.
Naturally, he hated Ling Feng just as much.
If they met in battle, he intended to make Ling Feng suffer miserably.
Ling Feng could not have cared less about their threats.
From beginning to end, the only thing he had his eyes on was the throne of first place.
Wang Qian was not weak, but he still was not someone Ling Feng regarded seriously.
Suddenly, the inscription on Ling Feng's brow flashed, and a burning sensation spread through it.
At the same time, a message appeared within his mind.
"The rules of the Sunset Heaven Selection prohibit killing."
Only one rule.
Ling Feng had already known this beforehand, so his expression remained calm.
The others, however, visibly tensed.
The rules prohibited killing, but they did not prohibit severely injuring or permanently crippling an opponent.
Everyone participating in the Sunset Heaven Selection was a heaven-defying genius.
Under normal circumstances, fellow experts of the continent would not viciously cripple one another unless they held personal grudges.
But if someone encountered a twisted or cruel opponent, then they could only consider themselves unlucky.
Once permanently crippled, their martial path was essentially over.
Because news of Liu Donglin's humiliation had already spread, most disciples of the Yunluo Sacred Land now viewed Ling Feng as exactly that sort of terrifying fiend.
Even disciples of the Dongling Immortal Pool felt somewhat wary of him.
Still, they were all from the same sect. No matter what happened, if they truly crossed paths with Ling Feng, he would probably show some mercy... right?
In the next instant, all ten arenas flashed with azure light simultaneously.
Each group immediately had two participants teleported onto the stage.
The two martial practitioners selected for Arena Ten's opening match were clearly caught off guard, having never expected to be chosen first.
The elimination phase of the first round used completely random matchups.
However, under the tense atmosphere of the tournament, both quickly adjusted themselves and began fighting.
One of them was a disciple from the Wulei Sacred Land, while the other came from an ordinary sect.
Although both possessed the cultivation of a third-stage Extreme Human Emperor, the ordinary sect disciple could not even withstand the second move of the Wulei Sacred Land disciple before being instantly eliminated.
The difference in foundation between the three Sacred Lands and ordinary sects was immediately obvious.
The match ended in moments.
The winner's brow inscription brightened slightly, while the loser's dimmed somewhat. However, advancement would still depend on the total points accumulated afterward.
Once all elimination matches concluded, rankings would be determined and the top hundred experts selected.
With ten opportunities per person, luck naturally played some role, but overall the system was still fairly balanced.
As for those lucky individuals, their fortune power was often slightly stronger than average to begin with.
From a certain perspective, those who advanced into the second round merely became nourishment for the truly powerful experts to harvest fortune power from.
Under normal circumstances, though, if the difference in fortune between two people was not too great, the effect on one's personal fortune would remain negligible.
Only after reaching the top hundred, or even the top ten, would the influence of fortune become amplified to an astonishing degree.
Over the next several matches, Ling Feng quietly observed.
Shua!
Two figures appeared upon the arena.
Looking closely, it was actually Liu Donglin versus He Lingyun.
Ling Feng became somewhat interested.
He had already experienced Liu Donglin's trump cards himself, and honestly speaking, they were merely average.
He Lingyun, meanwhile, was an expert of the Wulei Sacred Land who cultivated both lightning arts and body refinement. His strength was certainly respectable.
The two had previously sparred during the martial gathering.
At that time, both had concealed part of their strength, though He Lingyun had ultimately chosen to concede.
"He Lingyun will lose."
A fragrant breeze drifted over.
A young woman dressed in violet robes floated gracefully over and naturally seated herself beside Ling Feng.
Her expression remained calm and tranquil, like a still ancient well without ripples. Yet her pair of violet eyes drew immediate attention.
"Hmm?"
Ling Feng felt slightly puzzled.
He and Zi Zhaoyan had never even spoken before. At most, they had merely crossed paths once during the martial gathering.
Still, Ling Feng had indeed been curious about this violet-eyed girl.
He simply had not expected her to approach him on her own initiative.
"Ahem."
Ling Feng coughed lightly and said calmly, "Isn't He Lingyun your fellow disciple? Shouldn't you at least cheer for your senior brother?"
Zi Zhaoyan brushed aside a strand of hair with her delicate fingers and shook her head lightly.
"A loss is a loss. Cheering changes nothing."
Ling Feng smiled faintly.
This woman really was straightforward.
To be fair, although Liu Donglin had lost to him, the man had still managed to defeat both Helian Xiao and Xu Ming consecutively. He definitely possessed genuine skill.
"Still, I think very highly of you. You're strong. Perhaps... you might even be capable of contending against Ye Ting?"
Zi Zhaoyan added softly.
A strange glimmer flickered through her violet eyes.
Even she herself seemed uncertain about the second half of that statement, which was why she phrased it more like a question.
"Heh, Senior Sister thinks that highly of me?"
Ling Feng chuckled but neither confirmed nor denied it.
Instead, he shifted his gaze back toward Arena Ten.
Compared to the previous matches, the battle between He Lingyun and Liu Donglin was finally beginning to show some real excitement.
Comments