Martial arts have become extinct worldwide, yet I am forced to have a large family.

Nan Shunian shuddered, instantly waking up from her sleepy, dead fish-eye state.

She stubbornly retorted, "I don't need you to remind me! I remember everything!"

Yang Xian rolled his eyes inwardly.

Remember what?!

You've definitely forgotten everything!

Given Nan Shunian's lazy personality, she could lie there until the end of the competition if no one forced her.

If she fails to complete the task, Instructor Du will definitely give her extra training.

Nan Shunian's training intensity increased, but in the end, he was the one who suffered the most.

After all, I'm the only one in the entire school who can teach Nan Shu Nian the "Void Shadow Step".

Yang Xian felt a headache coming on at the thought of having to do extra training with this lazy guy who was in the late stages of laziness.

"Um... Yang Xian..."

Nan Shunian seemed to realize that she was in a bad situation, and her momentum suddenly weakened.

She shuffled closer to Yang Xian and asked cautiously, "Could you... help me play in the game?"

Before Yang Xian could answer, he felt his arm being lightly bumped.

Nan Shunian winked at him and lowered her voice to speak.

"If you agree, tonight... I'll do something different with you!"

"Oh?" Yang Xian became interested and turned to look at her. "Tell me, how is it different?"

Seeing that Yang Xian had taken the bait, Nan Shunian smugly snorted to herself.

Hmph! Men!

Sure enough, all that remained in my mind were those filthy little thoughts!

Nan Shunian inwardly scoffed, but outwardly she made no attempt to hide her feelings, subtly hinting:

"For example... ropes, whips, blindfolds, and things like that..."

"How about it? Aren't you tempted?"

"No way!" Yang Xian answered crisply and decisively, without the slightest hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Nan Shunian was completely stunned.

Hey Hey hey!

That's not how the script was written!

Hmph! What a greedy man! He must think he hasn't won enough!

Nan Shunian cursed under her breath, gritted her teeth, and made a small hand gesture.

"At most... at most one more small candle! That's too much..."

"Bang!"

A crisp flick on the forehead landed precisely on Nan Shunian's smooth forehead.

"Really...!" Yang Xian withdrew his hand:

"All he does all day is think about is slacking off or all sorts of random things!"

"Besides games and sleeping, can't you think of anything else that's serious?"

"Besides, how can I help you?"

"Do you think the referees on the stage are blind?"

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" Nan Shunian rubbed her forehead, wincing in pain. "Tsk! You stingy person! If you're not going to help, then don't! Why did you have to hit me..."

She rubbed her head, finally getting back to the point: "Then... tell me about the specific rules for this year..."

Yang Xian was speechless.

You really don't put in any effort at all!

The competition is about to start, and you don't even know the specific rules.

He sighed helplessly and began to explain:

"The first stage is a challenge match. Starting today, it will last for five days, with only ten qualifying spots each day."

"During these five days, each of us freshmen will have a total of three opportunities to go on stage and take on the challenge."

"Successfully defending the title for three matches will qualify you for the next round."

This rule, which is completely different from the traditional knockout tournament, puts the players to a greater test of their judgment and grasp of the situation.

Because the number of spots and opportunities to play are limited.

Therefore, when to go on stage and who to challenge becomes a question that needs careful consideration.

If you go on stage too early and are too aggressive, you may run into a tough opponent and waste a valuable opportunity to perform.

However, if you are too conservative and hesitant, and keep watching until the end, you may miss the opportunity because all the spots are taken.

Of course, if you are really strong enough, you can completely ignore these complicated rules, play only once, and win three consecutive games to advance directly.

"Oh dear!" Nan Shunian cried out in pain.

"Fighting is tiring enough as it is, but I didn't expect to have to play mind games with others too!"

"This is absolutely killing me!"

"Stop complaining!" Yang Xian interrupted her. "Let's go check how the competition is going!"

------

The venue for the freshman competition.

On the arena, a burly young man held a heavy sword, his body engulfed in flames, exuding an astonishing aura.

The referee stood at the edge of the ring and shouted, "Zhang Meng wins! Is there anyone else who dares to challenge him?"

A murmur immediately broke out in the audience.

"It's Zhang Meng from the fire element! He's at the peak of the second realm, and his heavy sword skills are unparalleled and domineering. Among our freshmen, he's definitely one of the top combatants."

"Yeah, he's already successfully defended his title twice, and he only needs one more match to advance. Going up now would just be throwing his life away, wouldn't it?"

"Forget it, I'll wait a bit longer. There's no need to waste a precious challenge opportunity just to save face."

Everyone knew that at the very beginning of the competition, those who would be the first to step onto the stage were basically tough opponents who were absolutely confident in their abilities.

It's unwise to fight this kind of person head-on and waste precious opportunities.

Most people choose to wait and see what opportunity arises.

Seeing that no one in the audience was willing to challenge him, the referee raised his voice again: "If no one else comes up to challenge, Zhang Meng will automatically advance! I hereby announce the third advancing spot of the first day..."

"Wait a minute!"

Just then, an arrogant voice suddenly rang out from the periphery of the crowd, interrupting the referee's words.

Everyone turned to look in the direction of the sound.

A blond youth swaggered over, surrounded by a group of foreign students also dressed in exorcism cult attire.

The visitor was none other than Carden.

But the most eye-catching thing was the humanoid monster with a dark silver body following behind him.

The monster had no facial features; its arms were two sharp bone blades that gleamed with a chilling light. With each step it took, it brought a tremendous sense of oppression to the students around it.

"I'll fight him!"

Ignoring the surprised and uncertain looks from the crowd around him, Carden walked straight to the bottom of the ring and pointed at Zhang Meng on the stage.

The referee paused for a moment, then politely said, "Excuse me, student, this is the freshman competition of Chengwu University, which is only open to freshmen of our university."

Kaden seemed not to hear, gave a cold laugh, and led the terrifying bladed-armed monster directly onto the arena.

"So what?"

He stood opposite Zhang Meng, looking down at all the Chinese students in the audience with a superior air.

"I heard a few days ago that you were going to hold some kind of freshman competition, and I was really itching to come and see it today."

"You won't know until you see it, and once you do, you'll be shocked..."

After a pause, Carden's face was filled with undisguised contempt and mockery.

"So all you Chinese martial artists are just a bunch of useless trash who only know how to put on a show."

"It's really... all show and no substance!"