Published: December 25, 2024
“Miss Zhi Wei is right. A low-tier dynasty without any background really wants to apply to become a medium-tier dynasty; they are just asking for humiliation.”
Xi Men Yu and the others scoffed.
They had been eager to show off in front of Zhou Zhi Wei earlier, but they had forgotten that this was a competition organized by the Tian Ji Pavilion. If that brat dared to step on stage, there would naturally be someone to teach him a lesson.
As Xi Men Yu and the others were discussing, the time set by the Tian Ji Pavilion finally arrived.
In the end, out of the more than twenty forces that initially applied, only eleven forces actually came to compete.
Apart from the five low-tier dynasties controlled by the five high-tier dynasties and Qin Chen's group, the remaining five forces either lacked self-awareness or wanted to take a gamble, unwilling to give up easily.
“Alright, time is up. All contestants please come to the front.”
As Qin Chen and the others walked forward, the steward of the Tian Ji Pavilion announced the rules of this competition.
The rules for this round of competition were simple. There were five sub-stages set up on the central platform. Any force could choose to occupy one sub-stage, becoming the stage master, and arrange for one of their contestants to stand on the stage to accept challenges.
The remaining forces could challenge any stage, but once they chose a stage, they could not change.
Each force had only one chance to challenge, and each contestant only had one chance to fight. If defeated, they would be eliminated; if they won, they would continue to challenge the next opponent until one side lost all five of its contestants and withdrew from the competition.
The competition ended when only five forces remained occupying five stages.
The five forces that occupied the stages in the end would be the ones that passed this assessment, and the Tian Ji Pavilion would approve their application to advance and become a medium-tier dynasty.
“Only one chance to choose a challenge? Once five are defeated, they are completely eliminated, with no second chance?”
Aside from the five forces supported by the five high-tier dynasties, the remaining forces all had serious expressions.
Even the dumbest force had heard rumors that this competition had signs of being rigged. The forces predetermined by the five high-tier dynasties would certainly occupy one stage each and would not fight against each other.
In this case, the forces that genuinely applied for the assessment could only succeed in advancing by defeating those with high-tier dynasty backgrounds; otherwise, they would not obtain a spot for advancement.
This was almost an impossible challenge for them.
But no matter how impossible it was, they had to try.
Among the remaining six forces, only Qin Chen's side remained calm.
“Alright, the competition officially begins now. This time, the Tian Ji Pavilion does not designate a stage master. Those who want to become stage masters can ascend to any sub-stage and accept challenges from others.”
After the steward of the Tian Ji Pavilion announced the rules of the competition, he stepped aside.
After a brief silence in the crowd, a martial artist quickly swept onto the first stage.
“Since it’s a stage challenge, let our Da Hui Dynasty occupy the first stage,” the martial artist said with a faint smile, standing on one of the stages. Meanwhile, the remaining four contestants from Da Hui Dynasty intuitively gathered at the base of stage one.
“Haha, then let the second stage be occupied by our Da Han Dynasty,” the martial artist from Da Han Dynasty said without hesitation after Da Hui Dynasty took the stage.
Following them, the Liu Dynasty, backed by the Tang Dynasty, quickly occupied the third stage.
The Tian Feng Dynasty, controlled by the Yuan Emperor Dynasty, took the fourth stage.
Seeing these major dynasties hastily occupy the stages, the remaining forces felt their hearts sink.
They had naturally heard the rumors: the Da Hui Dynasty was backed by the Da Yong Dynasty, the Da Han Dynasty was supported by the Long Yuan Dynasty, the Liu Dynasty served the Tang Dynasty, and the Tian Feng Dynasty was controlled by the Yuan Emperor Dynasty. Lastly, there was the Da Jin Dynasty, which was a subordinate of the Da Qian Dynasty.