Meng Hongchen’s face turned red, and she retorted in embarrassment, “So what? One fight doesn’t say anything. I like him, so what? Compared to him, all other guys are trash!”
Xiao Hongchen was speechless as he touched his nose. He replied, “Your criticism is too broad. I’ll tell grandpa.”
Meng Hongchen snorted at him and said, “I’ll just add these four words, ‘of the same age’. Anyway, you are nothing compared to him in my eyes!”
Xiao Hongchen was angry. “It’s hard to keep a woman at home! I’m your biological brother after all. How can you say something like that about me?”
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The third elimination round of the tournament was too tragic, and was beyond the expectations of most people. The fights were very intense, as every team wanted to book their place in the round-robin stage. In this round, five people were killed, and more than twenty people were seriously injured. On average, every clash between competing teams involved some form of casualty. With regard to the situation, many teams also pointed out their doubts about the referees to the tournament’s organizing committee.
The Sun Moon Empire was also vexed over this issue. They could only promise everyone that their referees would try to control the rhythm of the fights in the future rounds so as to reduce the number of casualties.
Although the Tang Sect conceded defeat in this round, they were able to qualify for the round-robin stage because of Huo Yuhao’s dominant performance in the first elimination round and the stable foundation they had set in the second round. The only downside was that their ranking was quite low.
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After the third elimination round ended, there was a one-day break before the lot-drawing ceremony for the round-robin stage was held. The Radiant City Elite Soul Engineering Tournament organized by the underground world also officially commenced on the same day.
When Huo Yuhao and the other three arrived at the Green Hotel, Chen An was already at the door to welcome them. Now that they had the exact time, they didn’t arrive late.
“You are here!” Chen An looked at Huo Yuhao and hurriedly stepped forward before bowing respectfully.
“Yes,” Huo Yuhao snorted, “Have you done what I asked you to do?”
Chen An hurriedly said, “Don’t worry. It’s all prepared. I didn’t reveal that you’re here to compete to anyone, either! Follow me to the VIP room to rest first. I’ll pass the materials that I’ve sorted out to you.”
“Please lead the way.” Huo Yuhao maintained his cool look.
Chen An brought them to a room in the basement before instructing his subordinates to serve them fruits and drinks. He retrieved a document before passing it to Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao received the document and glanced at it before saying, “Explain it to me.”
“Yes!” Chen An replied. “This tournament was organized to facilitate the participation of ordinary people by exploiting the massive crowds currently in Radiant City. As a result, we’ve already opened the betting tables, starting from the qualifiers. This round of betting is very simple. As there are too many soul engineers – one hundred and nineteen! – betting on single individuals can be very troublesome. It’s better to bet on the number of people remaining, or whether there’ll be an odd or even number of people remaining. There are also multiple bets. The smaller the number of multiples, the lower the payout. The greater the number of multiples, the higher the payout. For example, your payout will be one point three times your wager if the number of soul engineers who qualify for the next round is a multiple of two. If you bet directly on the number of soul engineers who qualify, your wager will be multiplied by this number to generate your returns.”
As he spoke, he passed a black-gold card to Huo Yuhao and said, “This is the money from your previous bet. We’ve already generated your payout. Don’t worry, I’ll be the only one who knows everything related to you, and I won’t report to any superiors. However, I need to warn you that I’ll only be the chief referee for the first two rounds. From the third round onwards, there’ll be a more authoritative figure here to referee.”
Huo Yuhao nodded and replied, “Please tell me about the rewards.”
“Yes! If you pass the qualifiers, your reward will be five thousand gold soul coins. I’ve already added it into your card. The winner of today’s round can choose one of the twenty-eight rare metals that we have on offer as rewards. You can take one kilo of it. If you win in the next round, you can take three kilos. Every round will see an increase. When there are fewer than ten people left, we’ll introduce five very rare metals. We haven’t decided what the detailed quantities will be though.”
“The main show will be our final fight against the other two powers. At that time, all three parties will send their victorious soul engineer to compete in the finals. The eventual champion will obtain one percent of our revenue made in this tournament. At the same time, the champion can leave with one hundred kilos of rare metals. He can choose whatever amount of each rare metal to leave with, as long as the final number comes up to one hundred kilos maximum. In addition, he’ll also be rewarded with one kilo each of five special and rare metals. Altogether, it will be worth more than ten million gold soul coins. It’s because of these rewards that many outstanding soul engineers have been drawn to this tournament. Since you and your brother are both Class 6 soul engineers, it’s highly likely that you can win this tournament! I rate the both of you highly.”
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Huo Yuhao sighed slightly and said, “It’s a pity that we can’t bet on a single individual today. What are we competing in today?”
Chen An looked gloomy. He thought to himself. While you’re a huge figure, isn’t it a little ludicrous that you don’t know what the tournament is about even though you’re here to pit your skills against the others?”
While he thought of this, he didn’t dare to voice it out loud. He hurriedly said, “In this round, soul engineers are required to create a soul tool based on the given topic. The higher the quality, the better it is. As this is the first round, we are providing all the resources ,and all the soul engineers can leave with their created soul tools, but the requirements are a little stricter. There’s a slightly more difficult obstacle to overcome.”
Huo Yuhao was a little impatient. “Let’s cut the crap. I want to know what this topic is about.”
He was trying to go through the back door. However, Chen An found it normal for him to act in this manner. He hurriedly said, “This round is about the creation of a Milk Bottle. It has to be completed within six hours. The Milk Bottle must at least be Class 3 and above. Anyone who can’t complete this task will be eliminated.”
It was a Class 3 soul tool, but creating a Milk Bottle was very complex. It was comparable to an ordinary Class 4 soul tool. It was a much tougher test than the qualifiers.
Huo Yuhao nodded and said, “Interesting. You can leave first. Inform us when the tournament begins.”
“Yes.” Chen An acknowledged his words and left the room.
He Caitou was afraid that there were soul tools being used to eavesdrop on them, and only shot Huo Yuhao an inquisitive look. Huo Yuhao’s thoughts suddenly surfaced in his mind. “I want Chen An to be more convinced that we are from the Holy Ghost Sect. Elder brother, let’s do it this way later…”
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Chen An was the chief referee, and still had to arrange many things for the tournament. He was naturally very busy. His assistant was the one who came to notify Huo Yuhao and He Caitou that the tournament was about to begin.
Wang Dong’er and Na Na remained in the resting area. He Caitou pushed Huo Yuhao into the hall.
They were no longer underestimated by the others now. At the end of the qualifiers, many people were astonished by the killing. Fortunately, it was only the qualifiers, and there weren’t any important figures who came to watch. Otherwise, Chen An couldn’t conceal the truth even if he wanted to.
Everyone turned their attention away from Huo Yuhao when they saw him, and didn’t dare to look at him. Although they didn’t know how he did it, the way he had casually made a man’s head explode was still too cruel.
It wasn’t just those VIP gamblers who showed more respect towards Huo Yuhao and He Caitou. Even the working staff in the hall became more respectful when they saw the both of them. The Great King’s death had happened only a few days ago. Although they didn’t know who Huo Yuhao and He Caitou were, Chen An had issued a gag order. No one wanted to be the second Great King!
Under Chen An’s guidance, Huo Yuhao and He Caitou were led directly to the middle of a circular stage, a slightly more eye-catching spot. Two metal tables were moved together, and their silvery-white surfaces didn’t reflect any light even under the illumination of the bright lamps.
Apart from the various standard equipment used to create soul tools, there were more than ten different types of metal on the stage. Three of them were rare metals that were suitable for making the formation arrays of a Milk Bottle. The other seven weren’t that rare, but they were still high-level metals that commanded pretty high prices, and were also present in sufficient quantities. There were more than three kilos of these seven metals, while there was more than one kilo of each of the three rare metals. It was a clear demonstration of the Duskwater Alliance’s wealth.
He Caitou pushed Huo Yuhao behind one of the metal tables before he went to the other one.
At this point, all the other competing soul engineers had already arrived. Chen An had deliberately arranged for the two of them to arrive last. Chen An’s intentions was very kind, he didn’t want them to wait around for others. However, the two of them also became the focus of all the gamblers.
“Silence! The tournament will officially begin in five minutes! I am the chief referee of this tournament. Let me reiterate the rules once again! To all visitors, no one is allowed to make a sound when the soul engineers are busy creating their soul tools. Anyone who flouts this rule will be kicked out!
“Please don’t be worried. After this round, all the remaining soul engineers will be allowed to compete on the stage in successive rounds. We can use soul soundproofing barriers to block out any sound then, and all of you will be able to speak freely when that time comes. But I’ll need all of you to exercise patience in this round!
“All soul engineers, please take note! I am going to announce the goal of this round. In this round, all of you will be required to create a soul tool based on a certain topic: you need to create a Milk Bottle that is Class 3 or above! If you can create a Class 4 Milk Bottle, you’ll be exempted from the next round and advance directly to the third round. You will be given six hours for this round! Whoever can’t complete this task will be eliminated! Please get ready!”