Liu Ke’er fell into Li Qing’s embrace. Her face was pale and she said weakly, “Am I useless? Even if I had the Wind Fiend Flag, I would lose!”

“How could that be? Being surrounded by several Xiantian Tenth Layer elites at this level, it’s already pretty good to be able to fight like this.” Li Qing comforted.

“Li Qing, thank you!” Liu Ke’er forced a smile and fainted in his arms.

Li Qing checked it for a while and found that it was just a drop in strength. He didn’t suffer any injuries, so he felt relieved.

In the next few days, the rest of the group matches ended one after another. In the end, a hundred advancers were selected.

The list of these 100 people appeared in the sky. Everyone looked at it and found that there was basically no explosive situation. Most of the powerful characters had advanced.

After Song Zan came out of the Star Chessboard, he looked at Li Qing provocatively and made a throat-cutting gesture, full of arrogance.

Li Qing glanced at him indifferently, smiled casually, and then pointed at his arm.

Song Zan’s expression stiffened. He lowered his head and saw that the sleeve of his arm was empty. It was precisely because Li Qing had interrupted him that he had turned into a disabled person.

Without the divine medicine, he probably wouldn’t have a chance to recover in the future, and this would become a thorn in his heart.

“Li Qing, don’t be arrogant. The Xiantian realm is only the beginning of the path of cultivation. There’s still a long way to go! When I break through to the Void realm, I’ll definitely teach you a lesson!” Song Zan gritted his teeth.

“You won’t have a chance. I will kill you before you break through to the Void Realm!”

“Kill me? Haha, what a joke. You can’t even protect yourself. How can you still have the strength to kill me? I’m afraid you don’t know how many powers are watching you right now, right?” Song Zan sneered.

“I don’t need much strength to kill you! Even if I’m hunted down by countless people, I can still find a chance to kill you!”

“You just have to keep your mouth shut. I don’t know how you’ll die then.” Song Zan said loudly, but his heart was somewhat scared. If he provoked such a powerful enemy, if he failed to kill him this time, then what should he do if he retaliated in the future?

“Impossible. How could he not die after being stared at by so many great powers? I don’t believe his life is so hard!”

…

The second round of the competition had already ended. Everyone dispersed and Li Qing returned to the Heavenly Thunder Manor.

Fang Zhi Rou and Thunder Sovereign had both entered the top 100. The two of them were the only two candidates for promotion in the Heavenly Thunder Sect. After a few days of frustration, Wen Xiaoxian and Liu Ke’er quickly recovered. After all, they had long been prepared. It was not easy to achieve such results.

“What will be the next round of the competition?” Li Qing asked.

The Thunder Sovereign said, “In the next third round, there will be a total of 100 martial artists advancing. They will be divided into ten groups of ten. Each group will have ten people.”

“Every opponent in the group has to play against each other. This means that everyone needs to play nine matches!”

“Nine matches? So many?” Li Qing was stunned.

Lei Zun nodded, “That’s right. You can get two points if you win one match. You can get one point if you draw one match. If you lose, you’ll get zero points!”

“Then we will rank them according to this score. Those ranked in the top 32 will be able to advance to the next round!”

“That’s why!”

“This can also avoid some unexpected factors to the greatest extent. For example, if a person with good strength accidentally meets Li Qing, the result will definitely be a loss. However, losing a match will not eliminate him. There is still a chance in the future. As long as he can win, he will be promoted.”

“The strong are promoted and the weak are eliminated. This shows the greatest fairness.”

“In the third round, the preparation time for the contestants is very short. Every day, they compete for nine consecutive days. This will test everyone’s strength and recovery ability.”

“This means that if you get hurt in a game, you may be at a disadvantage in the upcoming game and you will not be given time to rest. So everyone has to make a trade-off and give up appropriately to avoid overconsumption.”

“For example, if someone encounters you and thinks they are not your opponent, they may abstain from voting directly in order to stay in better shape for tomorrow’s match.”

“Under normal circumstances, there is not much difference in strength between Xiantian Level 10 experts. Therefore, it will be a great challenge for them to compete for nine days in a row.”

Li Qing smiled and said, “When that time comes, everyone will encounter me and abstain from voting. Then wouldn’t I be very bored?”

“This is really possible. It has happened in the history of the Martial Arts Convention. If I encounter a pervert like you, I will definitely abstain from voting.” Venerable Thunder laughed.

“Hmph, I won’t! I must have a good fight with him then!” Fang Zhi Rou said.

“If you want to fight, you can fight here at any time! Why do you have to use your emotions in the match?” Venerable Thunder said.

“You don’t understand. Only in the competition can you unleash your greatest potential. Perhaps it will cause you to explode and defeat Li Qing in one fell swoop.” Fang Zhi Rou was excited.

“Sigh, with your strength, no matter how much you explode, it’s impossible to defeat Li Qing!” Venerable Thunder shook his head.

“That’s not necessarily the case. I’ve been comprehending the Thunder Emperor’s Eye for the past few days. I’ve become more and more proficient, and the power I can exert is also becoming stronger and stronger. If I take it a step further, I can stimulate a tenth of my strength, and perhaps I can defeat Li Qing!”

One tenth of the power of a Dao Artifact could no longer be underestimated. Defeating Li Qing was not a lie. No wonder Fang Zhi Rou was so confident.

Any opponent who possessed a Dao Artifact could not be underestimated.

“You’ve said so much. Don’t really encounter it then. That would be miserable.” Lei Zun said helplessly.

There was still a month to go before the next round. The Great Zhou Dynasty had done this very humanely. Every round would give the contestants enough time to rest in order to maintain their peak condition.

Inside the Great Zhou Imperial City, the streets and alleys were discussing the top 100 figures of this Martial Arts Convention. Everyone would be taken out and analyzed carefully, and all sorts of news would fly everywhere.

However, to everyone’s surprise, Li Qing had never used the Dao Artifact in his hand at such a time!

Rumor has it that Li Qing has several Dao Artifacts in his hand, including a purple broadsword and a Yin Yang Grinding Wheel. Is this true or false?

This matter unexpectedly became the focus of everyone’s discussion.

Some people said that Li Qing didn’t have any Dao Artifacts at all. The previous news was all fake. After all, where did a rogue cultivator get so many treasures?

Others thought that Li Qing was too powerful and thought that he didn’t need to use a Dao Artifact to win, so he didn’t use it.

Others felt that this was probably because the origin of the Dao Artifact in Li Qing’s hand was too shocking. It contained a huge secret, so it was not convenient to take it out to prevent others from recognizing it.

In short, there were all sorts of speculations, some of which were close to the truth.

The major casinos also opened their doors, betting on who would be the first place in this Martial Arts Convention, who would be able to advance to the top 32, and so on.

Li Qing and Dongfang Xueqing were the most popular figures among them. Most people supported the two of them. This time, the first place must have been chosen from these two people. Basically, they all thought so.

Ever since Little White earned a fortune from Thunder Sovereign, he had a taste for marrow. When he heard that there was a plate opening, he also wanted to place a bet.

Unfortunately, Li Qing’s odds were too low. If he could not earn any money, he would give up.

As for the unpopular gamblers … this is too unreliable. No matter how you look at it, Li Qing will definitely win! Xiao Bai had full confidence in him.

Li Qing ignored the storms outside and stayed in the mansion. There were countless gazes staring at him. He didn’t dare to make any special moves now.

He didn’t even dare to take out his Heavenly Saber. If a Dao Realm expert was watching him, he believed that he would definitely be able to pierce through the defense of the Heavenly Lightning Palace and see everything about Li Qing.

On this day, another guest came from Li Qing’s mansion. It was Phoenix Goddess.

“May I know why Phoenix Goddess came to my place?” Li Qing looked at her with a faint smile.

The Phoenix Goddess remembered what happened before and blushed. She said, “I have already reported your matter back to the Fire God Sect.”

“Oh? I wonder how you plan to deal with it?” Li Qing’s expression froze.

“Don’t be nervous. This is good news. Are you willing to join the Fire God Sect?”

“What? Join the Fire God Sect?” Li Qing was stunned.

“I heard that you are just a rogue cultivator without a sect or sect. There shouldn’t be any problem joining the Fire God Sect, right?”

Li Qing shook his head, “Your invitation is too sudden. Please forgive me for having difficulty agreeing. I feel that it is a little strange. Why did you have such an idea?”

“To tell you the truth, our Fire God Sect is now withered. It has been a long time since any powerful figures appeared.”

“You guys are really straightforward. You even told me your shortcomings.” Li Qing smiled.

“There’s nothing to hide. Everyone in the world knows about this matter. We won’t deceive ourselves. It’s better to tell them openly. The decline of the Fire God Sect is already inevitable.”

“Is that why you want to recruit talents and invite me to the Fire God Sect?”

‘”That’s right. I’ve seen your talent these past few days. The Spirit of Fire is a very difficult technique. The first thing you need to do is to plant a fire seed in your dantian. Just this condition alone has stunned most people, but you’ve done it.”

“Is it very difficult to find fire seeds in this world? Or is it very difficult to plant them in your dantian?”

“There are two reasons. Fire seeds are extremely rare, and it is not easy to plant them in our dantian. The fire seed technique originally belonged to the Southern Barbarian Tribe, but it is not the orthodox martial arts technique in the world. Every fire seed takes a long time to nurture. There are not many people in our Fire God Sect who possess fire seeds.”

“The Fire God Sect knows that I have fire seeds, so I don’t want to miss it?”

‘”This is only one reason. If the fire seed is not deliberately destroyed, it can last forever. If we really want the fire seed, we can kill you directly and obtain the fire seed. If I’m not wrong, the fire seed in your body is the Nanming Li Fire, right?”

“That’s right, Phoenix Goddess’s eyes are as sharp as a gleam of light. I admire him.”

‘”I am an expert at playing with fire. How can I not recognize you? Under normal circumstances, it is impossible for us to let the fire seed of Nanming Li Fire be outside. Besides, you have the unique technique of our Fire God Sect, so you should have been killed quickly. But now that we see your talent, the sect has changed its mind and changed its mind for you.”

“Your talent is simply too outstanding. In our Fire God Sect, if Xiantian experts want to condense an Eight Desolate Fire Dragon, they need to consume at least half of their True Essence, but you can condense ten of them in one breath!”

“As for controlling these ten Eight Desolate Fire Dragons and condensing the phantom images of the Heaven and Earth Great Smelt, it is even more impossible for a Xiantian expert to do so. Only when a Void Realm expert possesses divine sense can they succeed.”

“True essence is so rich, you should be a high-grade Xiantian Foundation, right? There should even be other methods. True essence is ten times deeper than ordinary people!”

“Such talent is extremely rare in the history of our Fire God Sect!”

“Therefore, it is only natural for our Fire God Sect to change its mind for you.”

“If you can become a disciple of our Fire God Sect, there will definitely be a lot of benefits. This will be mutually beneficial to both sides. Don’t waste our goodwill.”

Li Qing shook his head. “I’m very sorry. I can only reject your kindness.”

‘”Alas, you’ve repeatedly rejected our good intentions. It seems like you really don’t take us seriously. Although the Fire God Sect is in decline now, a skinny camel is bigger than a horse, so it can definitely take care of you.”

Li Qing asked curiously, “The development of Chaos City is like the sun in the sky, but the Fire God Palace is gradually declining. As mortal enemies, why hasn’t Chaos City attacked you?”

“Hmph, our Fire God Sect is at least one of the strongest forces in the Southern Domain. Even if Chaos City is stronger than us, can it succeed if we want to destroy us?”

“Our Fire God Sect’s subdued treasure, the Heaven and Earth Great Smelt, is so powerful that it can destroy heaven and earth. What will Chaos City use to destroy us?”

“Furthermore, it’s not like you don’t know the location of our Fire God Sect. It’s located at the crater of the Southern Domain’s Hongfu Volcano. It’s the largest volcano in the world. It’s easy to defend but difficult to attack. Outsiders have to pay a huge price if they want to attack!”

“I understand. This is also the reason why your Fire God Sect is still standing!” Li Qing said, “By the way, there was a rumor about the Southern Domain Flood Furnace volcano. Have you heard of it?”

“What rumors?” The Phoenix Goddess asked.

“In ancient times, the Demon Ancestor once forged a magic saber in the crater of the Flood Furnace volcano. Have you heard of this?”

The Phoenix Goddess was stunned for a moment and shook her head, “I’ve never heard of this before! How old are things in ancient times? How could there be such rumors?”

“Alright then, forget it if you don’t know.” Li Qing didn’t say anything else.

This rumor was actually something he had found from the Eight Desolate Sect’s ancient records.

The Eight Desolate Sect’s inheritance had a long history. It could be said to be the only sect in the world that had been passed down from the ancient times until now, and it was also the oldest sect.

Relying on the protection of the Eight Desolate Demon Subduing Array, they were barely damaged.

Perhaps that was the only place where he could see the many deeds of the ancient times, right? Its credibility was extremely high.

Back then, Li Qing had also found out the origin of the Devil Saber from the library of the Eight Desolate Sect.

“Is there a very powerful place to forge weapons in the crater of this volcano?” Li Qing asked.

“Why are you asking?” Phoenix Goddess’s expression tightened.

“Nothing. I’m just asking.”

“It’s not convenient to tell you about this.” The Phoenix Goddess shook her head.

Li Qing did not ask further. It was impossible for a place like the crater of the Hongfu volcano to not have a place to refine weapons.

The main reason he asked this was because of the Demonic Saber.

Although the demonic saber was extremely powerful, it still had an unavoidable flaw, and that was that it was a broken saber that was incomplete.

In the future, he would definitely find an opportunity to retrieve that broken blade tip. At that time, he would still need to recast it, and the volcano crater was the best choice.

After all, it was the birthplace of the Devil Saber, so it could naturally revive it.

“Alright, I’ve already conveyed my message to you. Whether you are willing to accept our good intentions or not will be up to you. However, I still advise you that if you join our Fire God Sect, you will be a great backer. There is no need to worry about your life! It is also because of Patriarch Hanshan that I have said so much to you.”

“I will consider it. Thank you, Senior Phoenix Goddess.” Li Qing nodded slightly. Since the other party had come with good intentions, it was not good for him to show her a bad expression.

A month had passed, and nothing major had happened during that time. Li Qing comprehended the Dao of Heaven and Earth every day. Apart from meeting some guests, he also met some friends and so on. His life was quite relaxed.

The third round of the competition had finally begun.

First, they were grouped together. One hundred people were divided into ten groups, and Emperor Zhou Majesty would personally arrange them. This eliminated the possibility of any hidden operations.

Everyone gathered in the square, waiting for the result of the grouping.

Very quickly, this result came out.

A list appeared in the sky. It was divided into ten rows. Each row had ten names. This was the situation of grouping.

Li Qing looked up and soon found his name.

In the third group, there were a few old acquaintances among them!

“Fang Zhi Rou is actually in the same group as her. Could it be that Emperor Zhou Majesty is eavesdropping on us?” Li Qing’s expression was strange.

“Do you want to let her win?” Li Qing thought to himself.

“There’s another acquaintance behind him … Little Tyrant Blade Ye Lin! I didn’t expect to face him!”

“With their arrogance, they will definitely fight with me. If I really let them win, it seems that I look down on them and will make them unhappy.”

Li Qing continued to look behind, and another acquaintance jumped into his eyes.

“Tungus! I’ve finally met you!” A cold light flashed in his eyes.

“It’s a pity that killing is not allowed in this tournament. In front of so many Dao Realm experts, even if you want to assassinate him, it’s impossible!”

“But even if I can’t kill you, I have to leave a deep impression on you!” Li Qing thought that he was not someone who would repay vengeance, but he would never be soft-hearted towards things like Tungus and Songzan!