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

Chapter 25: Another Battle with Long Haochen, Victory with a Single Sword!
The quarterfinals began as scheduled the next day.

The atmosphere was even more tense than yesterday. Everyone who made it this far was a genius among geniuses, an elite among elites.

The draw was still conducted by Han Qian.

In the first match, Wang Yuanyuan's opponent was another assassin from the Assassin Temple who had reached the peak of the fourth tier.

Warriors have an advantage against assassins, especially since Wang Yuanyuan's rank is significantly higher.

Her terrifying power and defense, granted by the "Giant Spirit Bloodline," rendered the assassin's pride in speed and unpredictable techniques a joke.

As expected, Wang Yuanyuan won again, becoming the first to advance to the semifinals.

However, when the results of the second draw were announced, the entire Knights' Trial Arena erupted in chaos.

On the enormous golden light screen, two names shone brightly.

"Warrior's Temple, Li Hao!"

"Knight's Temple, Long Haochen!"

It's them again!

In the quarterfinals, the group stage draw protection mechanism has become ineffective.

Even if Li Hao and Long Haochen are from the same group, they could still be drawn together.

But no one expected that this extremely low probability would actually happen!

Long Haochen looked at the name on the screen, slowly tightened his grip on the two swords in his hands, his eyes more solemn than ever before.

But they showed no sign of backing down; instead, they were burning with fierce fighting spirit.

……

On the podium, Han Qian's face instantly turned even uglier than yesterday.

"This is not fair!"

He stood up abruptly and said in a deep voice to the several hall masters and the alliance leader beside him, "The two of them have already faced off in the group stage!"

"Moreover, Haochen has the ability to compete for the top three, so it's too unfair for him to stop at the quarterfinals!"

"I suggest we draw lots again!"

This statement immediately sparked a discussion.

Ren Wokuang immediately objected, puffing out his beard and glaring, "Why? Old Han, you're blatantly breaking the rules!"

"A lottery is a lottery; there's no reason to start over if you're not satisfied."

Lin Chen shook his head and said slowly, "Brother Han, you are mistaken. Rules are rules. If they are changed arbitrarily, what will become of the Temple's authority?"

Just as the bigwigs were about to start arguing again, Yang Haohan, the leader of the Holy Alliance who had been silent all along, slowly opened his eyes.

He didn't look at the arguing group, but instead turned his gaze to Long Haochen in the center of the room. His aged yet gentle voice rang out, carrying an undeniable authority.

"Luck is also a part of strength."

"Haochen is still young, and he has a long road ahead of him."

"The outcome of one competition doesn't determine anything. More experience will benefit him."

"He can continue to work hard in the next competition."

The Holy Alliance Leader, Yang Haohan, personally made the decision!
Han Qian opened her mouth, but ultimately slumped back down and let out a long sigh.

He knew that this match was inevitable.

Finally, the match between Li Hao and Long Haochen proceeded smoothly amidst great anticipation.

……

"when--!"

The crisp sound of the bell rang, and the competition began!
"For the glory of knights!"

Long Haochen roared, this time holding nothing back and making no attempt to test him.

From the very beginning, they went all out.

"Holy Sword!"

"Thrust!"

His spiritual power of light erupted without reservation, and he seemed to transform into a golden lightning bolt, becoming one with his sword, and thrusting straight at Li Hao's chest.

He learned from his previous experience and concentrated all his strength into this attack, achieving his current peak in speed, power, and momentum!

However, faced with this earth-shattering blow.

Li Hao's reaction, however, was extremely simple.

He didn't even move an inch; he simply slowly raised the heavy sword on his back.

There were no fancy moves, no dazzling spiritual energy.

He simply and directly struck down at the oncoming golden lightning bolt!

"Om-"

The air seemed to let out a mournful cry of unbearable pressure. As the jet-black greatsword fell, it seemed to tear through space, leaving a visible black trail in its wake.

fast!
Incredibly fast!

weight!
Unparalleled weight!

Time seemed to slow down in everyone's eyes at that moment.

They could clearly see that the golden lightning that Long Haochen had transformed into collided violently with the black trajectory.

There was no earth-shattering roar, nor any explosive collision of energy.

"Crack!"

A crisp cracking sound echoed throughout the venue.

The Holy Sword of Light in Long Haochen's hand, that heavy iron weapon, shattered into pieces the instant it came into contact with the black heavy sword, just like fragile glass!

Immediately afterwards, an irresistible and terrifying force, passing through the shattered sword, slammed into Long Haohaochen's body.

"puff!"

Long Haochen was struck dumb, spitting out a mouthful of blood, and his armor instantly caved in.

He flew backward like a baseball hit with full force.

He flew dozens of meters and crashed heavily onto the ground outside the arena. After struggling for a moment, he completely lost his fighting ability.

one strike!
Just one blow!
It can't even be considered a complete confrontation!

In the previous match, Li Hao spent half an hour "teaching" Long Haochen.

This time, when Li Hao got serious, the battle was over the instant it began.

The entire venue fell into a deathly silence once again.

If the last match was a crushing defeat, then this match was divine punishment!

Li Hao slowly sheathed his heavy sword, placed it back on his back, glanced calmly at Long Haochen who was already unconscious below the stage, and gently shook his head.

"I told you, there's something wrong with how you're applying force."

After saying that, he turned around and walked off the stage.

The referee was stunned for a moment before remembering his duty and quickly announced, "The winner is Li Hao!"

In the third match, Saint Cai'er of the Assassin's Temple advanced.

Her match was ridiculously simple: the bell rang, a gray shadow flashed by, and her opponent clutched his neck and collapsed unconscious—all in less than three seconds.

In the fourth round, it was finally Yang Wenzhao's turn.

His luck wasn't particularly good or bad; he drew an opponent who was also from the Knights' Temple, a genuine fifth-tier Earth Knight.

A fierce civil war among the knights thus began.

"The light of the sun!"

"Holy Sun Slash!"

His golden spiritual energy shone as brightly as the sun, and each of his sword strikes was powerful and sweeping, filled with an aura of holiness and majesty.

After a hard-fought battle, he seized an opening in his opponent's defense and successfully defeated him, advancing to the semifinals.

"Huh...huh..."

Yang Wenzhao leaned on his sword, panting heavily. Although he had won, he was also greatly exhausted.

But his face was filled with the joy and pride of victory.

As soon as he stepped off the field, Yang Wenzhao, without even having time to recover his spiritual energy, rushed excitedly to Li Hao.

"Brother Li! Brother Li! Did you see that? My performance was pretty good, wasn't it!" he boasted, desperately seeking recognition.

"Hmm." Li Hao opened his eyes and nodded.

Yang Wenzhao's smile widened even more after receiving affirmation.

However, Li Hao's next words were like a bucket of ice water poured over his head.

"Not bad." Li Hao's tone remained calm, with a slight smile. "But from now on, you'll probably miss out on the top three."

"what?"

Yang Wenzhao's smile froze instantly, and he collapsed like a punctured balloon.

"No...no, Brother Li!" he said urgently, his face contorted with grief. "Isn't this a bit too harsh? There are only a few of us left in the final four!"

"What if? What if I'm lucky and draw Wang Yuanyuan?"

"Although she's very strong, if I give it my all, I might still have a chance!"

"Besides, even if... even if I draw that assassin girl, I can still put up a fight with her in an open area, right?"

"What if I'm lucky..."

(End of this chapter)