The air froze for a moment, then exploded violently!

What started as a somewhat conservative battle instantly escalated into a relentless and frenzied slaughter, and the situation completely spiraled out of control!

Shen Yunhao watched from the tree with a furrowed brow.

"These people... don't even know what the points are for, yet they're so ruthless in trying to score them? If these points are simply meant to incite conflict..."

"But I must say, Sword Pavilion's move was indeed brilliant! Using this method, they probably won't even need a month to quickly reduce their numbers to below fifty!"

Thinking of this, he looked down at the jade pendant at his waist, which displayed a number... 10,500.

This surprised him slightly.

He clearly remembered that at the end of the first stage, his score was over 9,800 points. When did he gain 250 more points?

"Could it be... that killing local monsters can also earn points?"

"So that means these points will definitely come in handy later on, and they're definitely not just for starting fights..."

"But... what use could it possibly be? Could it be a reward for this kendo tournament?"

After thinking for a long time, Shen Yunhao shook his head and directly ruled out the reward option.

The Azure Sky Sword Pavilion is not a charitable sect. The fact that it offered the Void Illusion as the final reward for hosting this sword tournament is already extremely generous. It is definitely not for training disciples for other sects...

"Even if it can be redeemed for rewards, they'll probably just be some low-value trinkets. So, in that case..."

"If the points aren't used to redeem rewards, then they're most likely related to the subsequent progress of this conference, such as..." Thinking of this, Shen Yunhao's eyes flashed, "such as those who won by doing nothing but getting low scores not being able to enter the final stage?"

If the only rule were "the last 500 people to survive wins," countless weaker cultivators would definitely choose to hide in a secluded place for a month.

If a large number of such cultivators enter the third stage, it will not only affect the viewing experience of the third stage arena competition, but may even lead to some weakling remaining in the final top ten due to bad luck...

"What a fine 'no rules' thing! Look, Angzi, the Azure Sky Sword Pavilion is planning to give us contestants a big surprise..."

"I was originally planning to find a quiet place to hide until the very end, but now it seems I have to find a way to score!"

"The 'lying down and winning dog' Shen Yunhao sighed helplessly."

While they were pondering, the chaotic battle below quickly came to an end.

Of the original ten people, only three remain standing, all wounded and weak.

But their faces were filled with ecstasy, because the scores on the jade pendants at their waists had skyrocketed to between seven and eight thousand!

In just a short time, the gains far exceeded those of the first stage!

Moreover, judging from the scoring situation just now, eliminating one person only yields about half of the opponent's original score.

This results in the score changing hands multiple times, making the scoring efficiency increasingly lower.

Simply put, if you eliminate two people with 3,000 points, you will gain 3,000 points.

But if you wait for one person to eliminate another before dealing with the remaining one, you'll only get 2250 points.

Thinking of this, Shen Yunhao looked at the people in the room, his eyes flickering.

The three people below were seriously injured, and the excitement brought by the surge in points made them less vigilant.

If he were to launch a sneak attack right now, based on his assessment of the current situation, he would be 90% certain to eliminate all three of them and gain their points!

After hesitating for a moment, Shen Yunhao suppressed this tempting idea.

It wasn't out of kindness or soft-heartedness, but rather out of a sense of apprehension.

One reason is the fear of the opponent's desperate counterattack.

Secondly... it's like the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind!

He vaguely sensed that in the shadows of the dense forest further away, there seemed to be an extremely faint aura lurking, almost blending into the environment, like a venomous snake patiently waiting for its prey to tire.

Going up now might give you an early advantage, but if someone else takes advantage of the situation, losing your kill is a huge loss.

"I don't believe... you can hold back! Let's see who has more patience..."

...

Current plot:

Meanwhile, in another direction of the vast ancient forest, two women were swiftly traversing the dense woods.

"Junior Sister..."

The woman behind them, dressed in a tight-fitting sword outfit that accentuated her beautiful figure, spoke with a hint of helplessness; it was Guan Yingying.

"Is it really okay for us to keep running around like this without rejoining the team?"

Ning Yuyao, walking ahead, remained calm and said indifferently, "In the first phase, we will fight individually and do not need to rely on the strength of the team..."

But the rules for this second phase are clearly much stricter!

Guan Yingying just sighed, "I know you want to find that kid, but this secret realm is so big, and there's no way to communicate here. How are you going to find him?"

Ning Yuyao's profile looked exceptionally beautiful in the dappled light and shadow. She tilted her head slightly, her long eyelashes drooping, and her voice remained cool: "Senior sister, you're overthinking it. I'm going to find Senior Sister Wu."

"Wu...Wu Yun'er?"

"Wu...Wu Yun'er?" Guan Yingying stumbled, almost tripping over a tree root, her eyes widening in disbelief. "You...what do you want with her?"

"Let's fight!"

"..."

I'm really out of my mind. So, there's a power gap outside that prevents me from fighting, but I found an outlet for my anger after coming in, right?

This second phase encourages teamwork, and instead of teaming up, you're thinking of killing your teammates?

Isn't that a bit too much?

Just as Guan Yingying was racking her brains trying to figure out how to persuade her jealous junior sister, Ning Yuyao suddenly stopped without warning, her body tensing instantly, and a chilling aura silently spreading out.

Guan Yingying felt a chill run down her spine and immediately looked over warily.

Beneath an ancient, giant tree ahead, a figure stood silently, seemingly out of nowhere.

The man stood tall and straight like a pine tree, dressed in a simple black outfit, and carried an ancient longsword on his back.

His face was stern, his eyes deep, as if containing millennia of ice and endless starry skies. He stood there casually, yet he seemed to be the core of the entire forest's energy, the surrounding air becoming stagnant and sharp because of his presence.

It's no wonder Ning Yuyao reacted so strongly, because the man in front of her was actually... Xiao Luoyang, the leader of the Fengyun Record!

Xiao Luoyang's gaze passed over Guan Yingying and landed precisely on Ning Yuyao. There was no hostility or scrutiny in his eyes, only a pure... fighting spirit!

“Ning Yuyao…”

His voice was calm and even, yet possessed an undeniable penetrating power, "I have long admired your name, and I, Xiao, have yearned for a battle for a long time..."

He took a step forward, and an invisible sword pressure slowly rolled over like a mountain, causing the leaves around him to rustle mournfully without any wind.

"Such an opportunity is hard to find in the outside world. Today, we meet in this secret realm, and since our cultivation levels are the same, it is the perfect time to test our swordsmanship. I humbly request your guidance, Junior Sister!"