With the standard now set, Mira walked out of the arena under the applause of the entire Sect. Whether it be the weakest disciple or the strongest Elder, there wasn't a single person who wasn't cheering for her.
Even her competition was clapping their hands. However, their minds were on their upcoming battles instead of Mira's performance.
After Mira left, Aelina smiled and waved her hands, getting everyone to calm down. "Mira has completed this round by finishing with an astounding 16 stages won! Now that she's set an example, let me tell you how this round is scored!"
Everyone listened closely, but they couldn't help but feel that Mira was cheated a bit. She literally finished the round without knowing how she was being scored!
"This round is simple, whenever you complete a stage, another beast will be added into the mix. After you win three stages, a stronger beast will be introduced, and this cycle will be repeated until you fail. The scoring is based on how many stages you can complete." Aelina paused for a moment to let that sink in before she smirked.
"However! The starting point for each fighter will be different. Since Mira is at the 1st Stage of the Soul Transformation Realm, she was put up against a Low-Stage Rank 8 beast to start with. Each person will start against a beast of equivalent cultivation and move up from there. Each subsequent win is counted as one point. If there's a tie, the Elders and I will judge accordingly."
Nova and the others fell into thought and started to become nervous. Mira had unknowingly set a high bar, but it was one they were eager to meet or, if possible, surpass.
'Isn't this unfair for those of us at higher stages?'
'How the hell are we supposed to beat that?'
'Is Mira really that strong? And why did it seem like she could've kept going?'
Those thoughts rippled through their minds, especially Nova, Seraphina, Everly, Rayna, and Eden. Celaine and Asami had similar thoughts, as they weren't sure they could solo three Peak-Stage Rank 8 Shadowfangs, much less a Low-Stage Rank 9.
Still, they were determined to place just high enough to make it in the Top 4.
Aelina's smirk broadened as she noticed the determination in their eyes. "Nova! You're up next!"
Nova shuddered for a moment before her eyes steeled, and she walked toward the arena, which was now empty and repaired. Jumping into it, she grasped her spear and prepared for what she assumed would be an uphill battle.
In this competition, Celaine and Asami were her biggest competitors, aside from Mira.
'They should be able to reach the 12th stage. I don't know if they can defeat a Rank 9 beast, but if they put their lives on the line, they might be able to. So, I need to make it to the 14th Stage, at the very least.' Nova concluded, but her face paled slightly after she realized just how strong her opponents would be.
To beat Celaine and Asami, she'd have to fight against Late-Stage Rank 9 beasts!
'Fuck me.' She clicked her tongue and gave a wry smile. Just to make it to the Semi-finals, she might have to use some… unsavory techniques to boost her power for a short period of time.
'Whatever. I guess we'll see how far I can go first.' She took a deep breath and released a long exhale before smiling. 'Let's go!'
Suddenly, a familiar Late-Stage Rank 8 Shadowfang appeared in the arena, which she quickly knocked out.
'I'll just take things one step at a time.'
***
Not long after Nova started her Quarterfinal Round, she lay under the foot of a Late-Stage Rank 9 Shadowfang. Her spear was impaled in its abdomen, and her body was covered in black dragon scales. On her back was a pair of black Dragon Wings and Tail.
She was covered in horrible injuries. Numerous large gashes, dozens of broken bones, and blood spilling out of every orifice.
The arena around them was covered in black flames that consumed everything in their path, including the 12 other Shadowfangs.
The Shadowfang bared its teeth at Nova and dropped its neck to rip into her, but before it could, a force wrapped around it. Dragging it off of Nova, Aelina announced, "The match is over! Nova finished with 12 completed stages and 1 Draw!"
All the tension in Nova's body was released hearing that, and she collapsed to the ground. All the transformations were released, and she reverted back to her original form.
She didn't even have the energy to wave to the crowd before the medical team rushed in and dragged her out to begin treating her.
"After two jaw-dropping rounds, it's time to see if the next person can show us something even more amazing! Seraphina, you're up!" Aelina declared, not giving anyone a break.
In the crowd, Seraphina gulped and walked to the stage. Mira and Nova put on amazing performances. She wasn't sure if she could do as well as they had.
Just like Nova, as soon as she hopped into the arena, a Late-Stage Rank 8 Shadowfang was waiting for her.
Slapping herself in the face, she took out her sword and shield. 'Now's not the time for self-doubt! Let's just beat Nova! Then, even if I lose, I can rub it in her face!'
***
About two hours later, the arena was completely filled with water, like a giant fishbowl. In the center of it all was a large, liquid metal dome. The 13 Shadowfangs were swimming around it, sending countless attacks in its direction.
In response to that, Seraphina would emit a wave of Qi that would cause whirlpools in the water that were also filled with countless tiny metallic shards that would rip anyone who was caught in them apart.
For any beast that got close to the dome, she would occasionally lower a section and thrust out with her sword, hacking off pieces of her attackers.
She decided to opt for a different strategy than Nova. Instead of facing them head-on, she went for a battle of attrition.
The minutes ticked by in this rather uneventful fight until all the Shadowfangs either got too tired or too injured to continue. Trying to swim through that water was akin to swimming through thick mud, not including all the dangers. They couldn't keep up with that for hours.
On the 14th round, Seraphina tried the same strategy, but as she was running out of Qi, the beasts broke through, and she was forced to stop there.
***
Next up on the list were Everly and Eden, but they were perhaps the most disadvantaged.
Most of Eden's attacks relied on range and precision. She could fight head-on, but it wasn't her strong suit, especially against assassin-like beasts. The only saving grace was that since she was at the 6th Stage of the Soul Transformation Realm, she started off against 3 Mid-Stage Rank 8 Shadowfangs, giving her a slight edge.
She ended up with a Draw on the 12th Stage.
Everly, on the other hand, was in a completely different predicament. She really only had ultimate techniques that would work against such high-level beasts. Thus, whenever she reached a sufficiently strong opponent and was forced to use one, she was almost out of the game purely from Qi exhaustion.
Luckily, she was also at the 6th Stage of the Soul Transformation Realm and got an extra stage given to her.
Similar to her previous duel against Althea, when she reached the 13th Stage, she conjured one of her ultimate techniques [Chimeric Thunderfire Apocalypse], drowning the arena in a storm of Fire and Lightning, destroying everything in it and leaving behind a massive crater.
Afterward, she ran out of Qi and couldn't fight anymore, but Aelina was forced to stop the round for a few hours to repair the arena, giving Rayna, Celaine, and Asami time to prepare.
The latter two, Celaine and Asami, also both had shocking performances. They were both able to make it to defeat all the Rank 8 beasts and even fight against a Rank 9 beast, but the results between the two were very different.
As Asami was 1 Stage higher than Celaine, she started with 2 Low-Stage Rank 8 Shadowfangs, and when she fought against the Rank 9, Aelina called the match a draw since they had essentially knocked each other out. Thus, she drew on the 12th stage.
On the other hand, Celaine climbed her way up to face the same opponent on her 13th stage, where she actually won! However, using such high-level Saber Techniques used tons of stamina and Qi, so she wasn't able to fight another round.
Meanwhile, Rayna was the most enigmatic. She simply poisoned her way to the top before she eventually stopped at her 14th Stage. Although everyone expected her to do that, it was still surprising to see beasts so much stronger than her drop like flies because they ingested a bit of poison.
Now, with all the results in, it was time to tally up the scores and determine who made it to the Semi-Finals!
