Divine Seal: Fire Kirin Fly Template, shattering the Demon God Pillar!

Chapter 24: Sixteen to Eight, no suspense whatsoever.

Let's announce the result. This battle is now a foregone conclusion.

The referee, as if waking from a dream, shakily raised his hand and loudly announced: "Group 3, Warrior Temple, Li Hao, wins!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire Knight Trial Grounds fell silent for a moment, then erupted into a cacophony of voices.

"You won? Just... just like that?"

"What's with that finger? I couldn't see anything clearly."

"This is terrifying! That Long Haochen, who was once a genius with a winning streak, is like a three-year-old child in front of Li Hao, completely powerless!"

"Warrior's Temple, where did they dig up such a monster from?!"

Amazement, awe, fear... a range of emotions spread through the audience.

At this moment, Li Hao's name seemed like a heavy mountain pressing down on the hearts of all the contestants.

Medical personnel quickly carried a stretcher onto the platform and hurriedly carried the unconscious Long Haochen off the platform for emergency treatment.

Li Hao didn't even glance at the chaos over there, and turned to walk off the stage.

His steps were steady, and his breath was long and deep.

It was as if the crushing battle he had just fought was nothing more than a warm-up before a meal for him.

The atmosphere on the platform was extremely strange.

"Ahem!" Ren Wokuang cleared his throat, his face flushed, and straightened his back.

His smug expression made it seem as if he had personally won the battle.

He glanced sideways at Han Qian, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and chuckled, "Old Han, you flatter me, you flatter me!"

"It's normal for young people to get a little heated when they're sparring. Our Li Hao is very careful with his moves. Look, he didn't even break the skin."

Han Qian puffed out her cheeks and gritted her teeth.

No broken skin?
Are you blind or just heartless?

Long Haochen's plate armor was almost turned into a pancake, and you're telling me there wasn't a scratch?
But unfortunately, he couldn't have his condition flare up.

Li Hao's final finger strike, though seemingly dangerous, was actually incredibly skillful. It merely severed the spiritual energy and stunned Long Haochen, without causing any real internal injuries.

This is called "stopping at the point," a textbook example of martial arts style.

What could he say?
You played too well, so don't play like that next time?

"Humph!"

Han Qian could only exhale a heavy breath through her nostrils, turn her head to the side, and sulk.

"Hey, Lao Han, don't be angry!" Lin Chen from the Magic Temple picked up his red tea again, smiling as he tried to smooth things over.

"Isn't that great! I think Haochen has a solid foundation, but he lacks practical experience and adaptability."

"It's a good thing that Li Hao gave him a wake-up call, making him realize his shortcomings in advance!"

"So that if we go to the battlefield and get hit by the demons, we won't have anyone to complain to."

These words sound like words of comfort, but the upturned corners of his mouth look more like he's stirring up trouble.

Han Qian was so angry that his beard stood on end, but he couldn't refute it.

……

With the group stage concluded, the Demon Hunter Selection Tournament has officially entered the more intense knockout stage.

With eight wins out of eight matches, Li Hao secured his qualification for the next round without any suspense, becoming the nightmare that all the top 16 contestants least wanted to face.

The round of 16 was moved from the ordinary trial arena to the more magnificent and solemn Knight Trial Arena.

This is the heart of the Knights' Temple, a huge circular arena paved with pure white sacred rock, with tiered seating all around, enough to accommodate tens of thousands of people.

The stage was packed with people, with almost all the high-ranking officials from the six major temples of the Temple Alliance present.

The scale of the event far surpassed that of the previous group stage matches.

The atmosphere in the athletes' rest area was even more somber.

When Li Hao, dressed in a warrior's uniform, slowly walked into the rest area, almost everyone's eyes were instantly focused on him.

Fear, curiosity, fighting spirit, and a hint of... dread.

Previously, Li Hao was just a nightmare for the third group.

Now, he has become everyone's nightmare.

Everyone was silently calculating their chances of winning if they were to face this guy.
The answer is mostly a disheartening zero.

"Brother Li!" A surprised voice broke the silence.

Yang Wenzhao eagerly came over, a warm smile on his face.

"You've finally arrived! I thought you overslept."

His attitude towards Li Hao has now changed from initial gratitude to near-reverence.

There was no way around it; the scene of that finger suppressing Long Haochen was simply too deeply ingrained in people's minds.

Yang Wenzhao asked himself, if he were to face that finger strike, his fate would definitely not be much better than Long Haochen's.

The strong rule; this is an irrefutable truth.

Li Hao glanced at him, gave a perfunctory "hmm," and went to find a corner to sit down, closing his eyes to rest. A short while later...

Han Qian, the deputy temple master of the Knights Temple, walked onto the stage with a serious expression, dressed in military uniform.

"quiet!"

Han Qian's voice, imbued with spiritual power, clearly resonated throughout the entire arena. "The Round of 16 elimination rounds begin now!"

"The rules are simple: opponents will be determined by drawing lots, the winner advances, and the loser is eliminated! Now, let's begin the draw!"

A huge golden sphere of light appeared in mid-air, with sixteen points of light spinning rapidly within it.

"The first match!"

Han Qian pointed, and two points of light flew out, transforming into two names.

"Warrior Temple, Wang Yuanyuan, versus Soul Temple, Bai Xiaomo!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuanyuan's eyes flashed with fighting spirit. She clenched her fist and prepared to go on stage.

"and many more."

Li Hao, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them.

"Hmm?" Wang Yuanyuan turned to look at him.

“That summoner,” Li Hao said calmly, “her plants are a bit strange. Watch out for those pods; they’ll fire like mortars.”

"There's also a small red fruit that explodes."

Wang Yuanyuan was stunned for a moment, then nodded emphatically: "I'll remember!"

Although Wang Yuanyuan didn't understand why Li Hao knew these things, she chose to believe him unconditionally.

The match began, just as Li Hao had predicted.

The summoner girl named Bai Xiaomo summoned all sorts of strange plants right from the start.

Peashooter-like vines, flowers that can hurl exploding cherries, and mushrooms that release paralyzing pollen... a variety of tricks emerge one after another, making it incredibly bizarre.

Any other soldier would probably be completely flustered by such an unprecedented attack method.

But Wang Yuanyuan was prepared. She held the giant shield in front of her and walked steadily, giving her opponent no chance to calmly set up the "plant base".

No matter how much the pod shells and cherry bombs bombarded her, she remained as steady as a mountain, closing in step by step.

Finally, with a shout, Wang Yuanyuan activated "Giant Spirit God's Shield," transforming herself into a human tank that crushed all the plants, forcing the panicked Bai Xiaomo to the edge of the arena and easily winning the victory.

"The second match is between Long Haochen from Knight Temple and Li Xin from Knight Temple!"

As expected, Li Xin, the older sister, immediately raised her hand to concede defeat the moment she saw her younger brother's name, giving the opportunity to Long Haochen.

Of course, more importantly, Long Haochen's strength is indeed superior to Li Xin's.

The third game...

The fourth match...

The match was underway, but the process was rather unremarkable.

"Fifth match, Warrior's Temple, Li Hao versus..."

This match was even more boring; Li Hao didn't even step onto the stage before his opponent forfeited.

There was an uproar.

Another victory without a fight—this is the reputation Li Hao has built up in previous matches!

……

The entire round of 16 was uneventful, with most victories being overwhelming wins.

Li Hao, Wang Yuanyuan, Long Haochen, Sheng Cai'er, Yang Wenzhao...

These top geniuses, whose strength is clearly superior, are almost guaranteed to advance, as long as they don't encounter them beforehand.

This left the high-ranking members of the temple on the platform with little interest.

"Sigh..." Lin Chen, the deputy temple master of the Magic Temple, yawned deeply, looking bored.

"This is the most boring round of 16 I've ever seen. There's no suspense at all. You know who will win or lose as soon as they step onto the field. It's like watching a play."

"Hahaha, old man Lin, don't be in such a hurry!" Ren Wo Kuang from the Warrior Temple laughed and grabbed Lin Chen's shoulder, making Lin Chen's mage hat tilt.

"The round of 16 is just an appetizer; the real clash of titans will be in the quarterfinals! That's when things will get interesting!"

"Hehe, that's true." Han Qian from the Knights' Temple nodded, a rare occurrence for him.

Then, her gaze swept over Li Hao in the rest area, and she abruptly changed the subject, saying sourly, "Of course, that kid Li Hao is an exception."

"In my opinion, we should just single him out and give him a championship right away, so he won't ruin other promising talents."

There was a hint of envy and jealousy in his words.

Upon hearing this, Ren Wokuang immediately laughed and puffed out his chest, saying, "That won't do! Our Warrior Temple upholds fairness and justice!"

"If we're going to fight, we have to fight them one by one until they're all convinced of our superiority!"

"..." Han Qian fell silent. He immediately turned his head away and stopped talking to Ren Wokuang.

What Ren Wokuang said was absolutely infuriating!

(End of this chapter)