At this moment, in the stands, the elders sighed softly.
"Ye Xuan’s Attack Power is roughly at the 7th Layer of the Demon Spirit Realm. Meanwhile, Zhao Wuji’s physical body is equivalent to the 6th Layer of the Demon Spirit Realm, infinitely close to the 7th Layer, which is why a mid-grade Ghost-tier weapon couldn’t break his defenses. Being able to train his physical body to this extent is quite impressive."
"It’s a pity he is a Body Refiner."
Although Zhao Wuji was surprising, unfortunately, he was just a Body Refiner.
After a good while, the mushroom cloud dissipated. Zhao Wuji’s figure appeared in everyone’s line of sight. He lay sprawled face-down on the ground, completely motionless. If not for his back heaving violently up and down, everyone would have thought he was dead.
Silence fell. At this moment, apart from the sounds of fighting from the other combat rings, no one spoke. Everyone stared intently at Zhao Wuji.
Slowly, Zhao Wuji began to move. He pushed against the ground with both hands, intending to stand up. However, as soon as his body left the ground, he collapsed again. His physical form seemed to have reached its absolute limit.
"No! I can’t lose... I can’t lose." Zhao Wuji let out a hoarse roar like a wounded Wild Beast. Clenching his teeth, he eventually forced himself up. Although his movements were sluggish and he couldn’t even straighten his back, he managed to get to his feet.
Panting heavily, he raised his head and locked eyes with Ye Xuan in front of him. Without any superfluous words, he uttered a single syllable: "Fight!"
He took a step forward, but his body swayed unsteadily.
"Why do you still persist?" Ye Xuan asked, his brows furrowed.
Zhao Wuji’s gaze was resolute. "To enter... the top ten."
Zhao Wuji had persevered through fifteen years on the path of a Body Cultivator; there was no way he would concede now.
"Ye Xuan... if I’m not mistaken, your Spiritual Qi... is depleted. I bet you’ve... also reached your limit and are just forcing yourself to hold on. Otherwise... you wouldn’t be talking... so much to me." A smile cracked at the corner of Zhao Wuji’s lips. His speed seemed to increase slightly as he stomped hard and charged toward Ye Xuan.
Just as he was about to close the distance, a golden-black Spiritual Energy Bullet suddenly magnified in his vision. Although Ye Xuan also felt exhausted, the recovery speed of the Heaven-Defying Battle Intent Technique was more than ten times that of other Cultivation Techniques. His Spiritual Qi was far from depleted.
This time, Zhao Wuji’s body was sent flying out of the combat ring, pushed directly by the golden-black Spiritual Qi, because he simply didn’t have much strength left to resist.
Suddenly, a rain of blood fell from the sky. PITTER-PATTER.
Abruptly, Gongsun Xin appeared in midair. With one arm wrapping around Zhao Wuji’s waist, he reached his other hand toward the golden-black Spiritual Energy Bullet. A bizarre scene unfolded: the massive Spiritual Energy Bullet rapidly dissipated. In the blink of an eye, it faded back into nothingness.
Gongsun Xin’s strength was truly terrifying. With effortless ease, he had neutralized Ye Xuan’s attack.
Zhao Wuji didn’t thank Gongsun Xin for saving him. Upon landing, he dropped to his knees in total despair.
"I lost... I lost... Ah!" Zhao Wuji seemed to have gone mad. He smashed his head against the ground, causing the earth to tremble incessantly. A single tear hung at the corner of his eye. Fifteen years of hard work, all for today. Yet he couldn’t even make it into the top ten.
"Father, Mother, it’s Wuji who is useless." After roaring those words, Zhao Wuji collapsed to the ground and closed his eyes.
"Combat ring number ten, Ye Xuan wins." The Elder’s voice finally rang out belatedly.
As soon as the words fell, Ye Xuan’s body flashed, and he appeared beside Zhao Wuji.
"Uncle, he’s not dead, is he?"
"He simply overexerted his body too much and passed out."
"That’s good." Ye Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. He then brought out a mid-grade Ghost-tier Spirit Medicine and fed it to Zhao Wuji.
The injuries on Zhao Wuji’s body rapidly healed. Even his old scars faded considerably. However, despite his physical recovery, Zhao Wuji did not regain consciousness.
The battles continued.
The struggles for the top ten couldn’t be settled in a short time unless the disparity between the two sides was too great. Some fought for half an hour before a victor was finally decided due to sheer exhaustion.
By noon, all the battles for the top ten had concluded. Gongsun Wenjin’s voice immediately rang out across the arena.
"Congratulations on successfully entering the top ten. Go collect your Elixirs to heal your injuries and rest for two hours. In two hours, the ranking battles for the top ten will commence."
Following Gongsun Wenjin’s announcement, the victors promptly went to collect their Elixirs and rested on the spot. The spectators didn’t leave either. Two hours wasn’t actually that long.
The martial arts arena remained bustling with noise. Some were discussing the previous fights, while others debated who would have the last laugh in the upcoming matches.
"Who do you guys think will make it into the top three in this grand competition?"
"It’s hard to say. The first place was originally supposed to be cousin Gongsun Po, but now Ye Xuan has suddenly emerged out of nowhere. Even though he’s an illegitimate child, we have to admit that he is incredibly strong!"
"You’re boosting his morale while dampening our own. Ye Xuan has shown all his hidden cards just to reach this point. Have you forgotten that cousin Gongsun Po possesses extraordinary talent? It’s not like he lacks tricks up his sleeve. I heard he’s already mastered a high-grade Ghost-tier Martial Technique."
"Really? High-grade Ghost-tier Martial Techniques are incredibly difficult to learn. Did he actually master one?"
"Of course it’s true. Therefore, it’s absolutely impossible for Ye Xuan to take first place. Getting into the top three is possible for him, though. It’s just a pity about Zhao Wuji from the Side Branches."
Speaking of Zhao Wuji, the members of the Gongsun Family seemed to open up a new topic.
"I feel sorry for Zhao Wuji too. With his strength, if he hadn’t run into Ye Xuan, he would have had a high chance of entering the top three. Either way, making the top ten wouldn’t have been a problem at all."
"By the way, what exactly is Zhao Wuji’s background? How is he so powerful? And why was he willing to be beaten to death rather than admit defeat?"
"I’ve actually heard a bit about that. It seems that Zhao Wuji’s lineage has a very low status. They are on the verge of being kicked out of the Gongsun Family. That’s why Zhao Wuji wanted to enter the top ten so desperately."
"Tell me the details..."
From where Ye Xuan sat, he overheard most of the surrounding discussions. He paid special attention to the matters concerning Zhao Wuji.
After listening, Ye Xuan finally understood how much Zhao Wuji had sacrificed to participate in this grand competition. Over the years, to practice Body Refining, he had gone through hell and high water, resorting to any means necessary. His life lacked any grand ambitions. All his efforts were solely to reclaim the surname Gongsun.
Unfortunately, he ran into Ye Xuan. All his hard work had vanished like a burst bubble.
"Mother, is it impossible to reclaim the surname Gongsun without entering the top ten?" Ye Xuan asked Gongsun Yanran.
Gongsun Yanran nodded and said, "That is how the rules are set."
"Mother, can’t we bend the rules a little? How about you go talk to Grandfather about it?"
Gongsun Yanran smiled and said, "What’s this? Are you feeling guilty?"
Ye Xuan shook his head. "I wouldn’t call it guilt. I just feel that someone who works that hard shouldn’t meet such an ending."
Gongsun Yanran said lightly, "There are plenty of hardworking people in this world, but effort doesn’t always guarantee a reward."