There were one hundred battle platforms in the venue earlier, but now, 92 were taken out by the organizers, so there were only eight battle platforms left.

30:00

29:59

Thirty minutes left before the next part of the competition. All the remaining participants were preparing themselves with utmost seriousness. The 128 participants who passed the first round were all strong individuals and none of them were soft potatoes, so everyone did not dare waste their time.

Suddenly, the elder who was standing on top of the flying carpet announced loudly. "Participants! Prepare for the drawing of lots! The next round is a one on one battle between the remaining contestants. The pairing will go like this: 1 vs 128, 2 vs 127, 3 vs 126, and so on! Now go!"

Everyone's ears perked up upon hearing his words.

The next part of the competition was a one versus one battle, and the pairing was chosen by drawing lots. It was down to their luck on whoever they were paired with. Some of them were already praying to not be paired with the three participants who were at the 5th-rank Spirit realm.

After the elder's announcement, all the participants immediately went to draw lots. Some were nervous, while the others looked confident.

"Brother Yang, what number did you get?" Han Sen asked while peeking at the piece of paper that was in Yang Zenke's hands.

Yang Zenke ignored him as he took a look at the number that he had picked:

7

"7? That means my opponent is 122. Who could it be?" Yang Zenke muttered as he handed the piece of paper to Han Sen.

Han Sen and the others heaved a sigh of relief after knowing that they weren't paired with him.

"Number 7? Good thing no one is paired among us brothers. I got number 13, I wonder who my opponent will be..." Han Sen said.

Yang Zenke glanced at the three strongest contestants. He wanted to see who among them was the strongest. As for the others, he didn't place them in his eyes at all. It wasn't blind confidence, but he really had the strength to defeat those at the same level of cultivation as him.

Thirty minutes later.

"Participant number 1 and participant number 128, proceed to the first battle platform. Participant number 2 and participant number 127, proceed to the second battle platform..."

"Participant number 7 and participant number 122, proceed to the seventh battle platform."

"Good luck, Brother Yang!"

"Good luck, Brother Yang!"

Han Sen and the others said as they looked at Yang Zenke's figure. They also wanted to see who his opponent was.

Yang Zenke stood on the seventh battle platform and eyed his opponent with a calm look. His opponent wasn't someone famous, but he was still an early stage 4th-rank Knight Crusader. Although he could already be considered as one of the best in the younger generation, he was still nothing in front of Yang Zenke.

Yang Zenke didn't even need to draw out his sword to defeat the guy, and he ended the fight in just a few moves. It wasn't even suspenseful.

Yang Zenke didn't show any overwhelming power, but his win was very straightforward, so it still garnered a bit of attention from the crowd.

After his victory, Yang Zenke leaped off the stage with a calm look. He was already expecting the congratulations of his friends, but he suddenly discovered that their attention was not on him. Instead, he saw them looking at the eighth battle platform with shocked gazes.

Yang Zenke was curious when he saw this, so he also shifted his gaze on the eighth battle platform. There he saw a familiar figure. "Isn't this Young Master Liu Mengdi? Wait... His cultivation level! 5th-rank Spirit realm?!"

It was not just Yang Zenke, everyone from the crowd was similarly surprised when they sensed the level of cultivation that Liu Mengdi revealed. Who would have thought that this guy was actually a 5th-rank Spirit realm? The person that they treated as an arrogant silkpants was actually a top expert of the younger generation!

On top of the eighth battle platform, the expression of Liu Mengdi's opponent did not look good. Just a few moments ago, he was still glad and excited that he was paired with the renowned trash young master of the Liu Family. Looking at it now, he could only sigh as he stared at Liu Mengdi who was now wearing a light smile.

"Young Master Liu, you hid yourself well. To think that you are actually a 5th-rank Spirit realm cultivator. I still find it hard to believe, but the proof is already in front of my eyes... I admit defeat." Liu Mengdi's opponent shook his head regretfully as he looked at Liu Mengdi. He was only an early stage 4th-rank Knight Crusader and he was not confident enough that he could defeat someone who was one realm higher than him.

Liu Mengdi remained silent and he just smiled brilliantly at the crowd as he looked at everyone's faces. His gaze lingered longer on the Liu Family's people and those that met his gaze felt scared. They could feel the strong murderous intention behind Liu Mengdi's warm expression.

"Woah! I never knew that Young Master Liu is actually hiding his true strength! He is even on the same level as the fourth prince and the other two who are at the 5th-rank Spirit realm! I wonder why he is hiding his strength all this time..."

"Bro, do you not know about the current circumstances of the Liu Family? Listen closely, Young Master Liu's uncles are planning to take the patriarch position forcibly. Most of the noble families already know this, but I'm still perplexed as to why Young Master Liu revealed his strength. I mean, he could have remained hidden until he has the strength to defeat his uncles. That way, he would be able to grow without getting detected."

"Something must have happened in the Liu Family the made Young Master Liu reveal his strength."

The crowd discussed animatedly after they learned about the true strength of Liu Mengdi. The internal conflict of the Liu Family was also discussed by them after this surprising revelation.

The uncles of Liu Mengdi who were watching this competition frowned.

"This brat is actually a 5th-rank Knight Crusader?! This won't do! We have to eliminate him while he's still young. We've already provoked this father and son pair and we face Liu Mengdi's retaliation if we don't kill him now."

"It's not a good idea to kill him now. Let's wait until the competition is over before we make our moves. This place is protected by the Silveria Imperial Family and it is unwise to offend them."

"You're right. We must make sure that this brat would not see the sun after this competition is over. He is still so young, but his cultivation is already in the 5th-rank Spirit realm. Such a talent would be a very dangerous threat to us if we leave him be."

Liu Mengdi's uncles discussed among themselves. They were itching to kill Liu Mengdi after they saw his true strength. Who would not fear such a talent? They didn't want their plans to be spoiled by his sudden show of strength. They knew that they would not end well if Liu Mengdi was left alive!