The undead have descended upon the world? I possess a sword that can cleave the heavens once more!

The first round of qualifying matches quickly came to an end, and the remaining randomly assigned torchbearers also finished their battles one after another.

The second round of qualifying matches began immediately afterward.

With the first round of observation, everyone had a basis for choosing opponents: some avoided their nemesis, some sought out familiar opponents to spar with, and some challenged stronger opponents.

The atmosphere in the hall was more lively than before.

With his eyes closed, Wu You continued to study the pivotal form of the Seven Tribulations Sword Chapter in his mind.

At this moment, he turned his head slightly and opened his eyes.

A young man with slightly messy hair, who looked like he didn't take care of himself, and who exuded a kind of decadent, almost lifeless, dejected aura, walked up to him.

There was no sharpness in those half-open, half-closed eyes.

"Hello, Senior Wu You." The decadent young man's voice, like his dejected appearance, was languid. "I'd like to challenge you, is that alright?"

This is not over yet.

Lu Chenzhou, the defensive ability user whom Wu You had glanced at earlier, also came over, his expression serious and earnest: "Senior Wu You, I also want to challenge you."

Then, another female voice rang out: "Me too."

A girl with short, neat hair and resolute eyes stepped forward. Her steps were steady, her gaze direct, without the slightest hesitation.

Wang Qi opened his mouth, then closed it again.

This was completely different from what he had imagined.

Wu You glanced at the three people: out of more than a thousand people, there were three sixth-level experts, and they were all here.

He nodded slightly: "Of course. But the rules..."

Seeing this, the crew-cut man beside the arena also curled up the corners of his mouth slightly. He announced loudly, "Players of level six and above can choose to have multiple people challenge the same opponent."

Upon hearing this voice, everyone turned to look in the direction where Wu You was.

The only one who could be chosen as an opponent by multiple sixth-tier opponents at the same time is that seventh-tier opponent.

After all, torchbearers wouldn't gang up on their peers or even those of lower rank.

Their desire to challenge Wu You was simply to see just how big the gap was between themselves and the seventh rank.

On this kind of competitive arena, being able to fight against a stronger opponent is bound to be rewarding.

Upon hearing this, Wu You nodded slightly: "Then there's no problem."

He stood up and looked at the two men and one woman who wanted to challenge him: "You can all come at me together. I might be a little stronger than you think."

After saying that, he did not walk to the arena, but instead leaped slightly, and then, as if stepping on invisible steps, walked through the air towards the arena.

Each step felt like walking on air, yet as steady as walking on solid ground, with white hair gently swaying behind him.

Upon seeing this, everyone's eyes widened once again.

"Walking on air?!" someone exclaimed.

"Seventh rank plus stepping into the air..." another voice murmured, its tone full of disbelief.

"Huh? This isn't an eighth-tier talent..."

"Goodness, this must be a bonus of his ability..."

"Wow, once he's in the air, it'll be difficult for anyone else to even attack him. How are we supposed to fight him..."

The man with the buzz cut was also slightly taken aback: "Brother Lie, what kind of monster did you bring here? Not only is he so monstrous in appearance, but his strength is also abnormally high."

He quickly regained his composure and added loudly, "A battle of attrition, or all at once, is fine!"

Wu You landed gently on the arena and nodded slightly to the three people.

The three exchanged a glance, then, without further hesitation, stepped onto the arena.

Three sixth-tier opponents versus one seventh-tier opponent.

Those in black trench coats around them held their breath slightly upon seeing this, none of them wanting to miss a single detail of the upcoming battle.

Even the man with the buzz cut next to him seemed to be more focused than before.

"Xia Wan, ID HN-24, Rank 6," the short-haired girl spoke first, her voice clear and crisp.

"Lu Chenzhou, ID SH-23, Rank 6." The burly young man Wu You had glimpsed before.

"Huang Shaoqi, ID SC-23, Rank 6." The last one was that unkempt, decadent young man.

Wu You nodded in response: "Wu You, ID LH-36, Rank 7."

He held out his hand, signaling them to make the first move.

The three exchanged a glance, without any politeness or hesitation, knowing the difference between the sixth and seventh ranks.

A pale golden light barrier appeared in front of Lu Chenzhou. It was his defensive ability. The light barrier was layered and arranged like fish scales. Each piece was trembling slightly, and it was obviously more solid than when he faced Ling Shuang.

Transparent currents of energy emanated from Xia Wan, the short-haired girl, and swirled rapidly around her, emitting a low humming sound.

With her palm facing upwards, a high-pressure gas cloud, condensed and constantly rotating, was taking shape, drawing in the surrounding air.

Huang Shaoqi raised his hand, and a long spear made of pure, fiery red flames condensed in his palm.

The flame was extremely hot, and the air around the gun was distorted by the heat.

The next instant, the three of them vanished from their spot.

Lu Chenzhou pressed forward head-on against the golden light barrier, his steps as steady as a mountain, each step leaving a shallow footprint on the arena.

His goal was clear: to directly restrain and limit Wu You's room for maneuver.

Xia Wan and Huang Shaoqi appeared on Wu You's left and right sides respectively.

Xia Wan's high-pressure air mass transformed into a spinning air blade, slashing towards Wu You's left rib with a sharp whooshing sound; Huang Shaoqi's crimson flame spear thrust in from the right, the flames on the spear tip leaving a long trail, like a fire snake.

The three worked together seamlessly, their attacks arriving almost simultaneously, cutting off all of Wu You's escape routes.

Wu You remained motionless.

He didn't draw his sword, didn't dodge, and didn't even look up.

The three attacks landed simultaneously, striking Wu You squarely.

"The attack hit!" someone in the audience couldn't help but shout.

But the next moment, the pupils of the three people on the stage simultaneously contracted slightly.

"No, it didn't work!"

Wu You, who had been struck by them, slowly dissipated, like a gust of wind blowing across a sand dune, gradually crumbling from the edge until it turned into nothingness.

That was an afterimage.

Three overlapping voices rang in the ears of the three people respectively.

"It's my turn to attack."

The three of them turned around abruptly.

Three identical figures each gently placed a longsword, each radiating eight different colors, on their shoulders.

The blade pressed against my neck, the icy touch penetrating my skin and seeping into my bones.

The hall was silent for a moment, then a chorus of gasps filled the air.

"What is this? A phantom? An illusion? A clone? And what is the real one?" Someone asked a series of questions, but no one could answer them.

The three on the arena felt the sharp aura emanating from the eight-colored crystal longsword on their shoulders. Although the blade did not cut down, the faint sharpness made their backs feel cold.

They understood that even if these three swords were illusions, they could unleash their full power at any time.

The three exchanged a glance and spoke in unison.

"I admit defeat."

As soon as he finished speaking, the three afterimages vanished simultaneously. Wu You, who had been standing at the edge of the arena, sheathed his sword and nodded slightly to them.

Lu Chenzhou gave a wry smile and put away the light barrier: "So all three of them were fake."

Xia Wan shook her head, her short hair swaying gently: "No, although the people are fake, the sword we're holding is real."

Huang Shaolin nodded, a rare serious expression appearing on his usually dejected face: "That's right. When that sword was on my shoulder, my sixth sense was about to explode; I felt like my head was about to be ripped off."

He looked at Wu You, a hint of something indescribable in his eyes: "Sister—no, brother. Are you really only at the seventh level? I feel like you put more pressure on me than the director of our Suzhou Investigation Bureau."

"At least I could put up a fight against the bureau chief, but fighting you feels like I'm floating on a cloud, completely clueless."

Wu You smiled and said calmly, "I am indeed only at the seventh rank. Just a little stronger than the average seventh rank."

He stumbled back to his seat, his white hair fluttering gently behind him.

The buzz-cut man's voice rang out at the right moment, with an "I knew it" tone: "Since all three of our sixth-level fighters lost together, then the position of chief trainee for this preliminary training must be determined first."

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the room: "Or is there someone else who wants to try?"

The torchbearers looked at each other in bewilderment.

We're a group of fifth-tier beings, so let's not waste our time and that seventh-tier senior's time.

Choosing other opponents of the same level allows you to test your skills and gain combat experience.

But facing that person... forget it, it's a complete waste of time.

The man with the buzz cut looked around and, seeing no one respond, announced loudly, "Alright, since no one else wants to try, then the chief of this preliminary selection will be—"

He dragged out the last syllable.

"Number LH-36, Wu You."

The next moment, applause rang out in the hall.

then.

"The qualifying rounds continue."

The man with the buzz cut waved his hand, and the light screen on the arena lit up again.

One by one, the torchbearers who had chosen their opponents took to the stage to compete. Some of them fought fiercely and evenly, while others decided the winner decisively.

The competition was drawing to a close. The final rankings were determined.

The man with the buzz cut stood on the central stage and cleared his throat.

"The preliminary ranking rounds are over. Next is the badge awarding ceremony."

He paused.

"Please welcome this year's chief to the stage."

Upon hearing this, Wu You, who had been keeping his eyes closed, opened them. He stepped into the air and landed on the stage next to the man with the buzz cut, his white hair gleaming silver under the lights.

The man with the buzz cut tapped his watch, and a platform rose from the ground.

He picked up an epaulette from the stage: two sword-shaped gold bars with a pair of small wings, and then showed it to the crowd.

"Outside, we usually wear the Torchbearer's Badge when we go on missions. But in Jiuli, we wear Jiuli's exclusive shoulder insignia." His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "Fifth and sixth rank wear one-stripe shoulder insignia. Seventh and eighth rank wear two-stripe shoulder insignia. Ninth rank wears three-stripe shoulder insignia. Tenth rank and above, if you can stay, you will naturally see what their shoulder insignia look like."

"Outside, you are all silver-badged—"

He paused.

"Hmm, or the Golden Emblem Torchbearer."

"But here, you are all trainees in the pre-selection training program." His tone became more serious. "Next, let your chief distribute the epaulets to you."

He glanced at Wu You and added, "By the way, these epaulets are only temporarily issued to you. If you don't pass the preliminary training, you'll have to return them."

Wu You nodded slightly, took the epaulette, and pinned it to the shoulder of his trench coat. Then he turned and looked at the torchbearers lined up below the stage.

Standing at the very front of the line was a somewhat disheveled young man—Huang Shaolin.

He beat Lu Chenzhou and Xia Wan to win second place.

Xia Wan is in third place, and Lu Chenzhou is in fourth place.

Huang Shaolin stepped onto the stage and said in his still dejected tone, "Brother, please take care of me in the future."

Wu You nodded, picked up a single-stripe epaulette from the table, and handed it to him.

"come on."

Huang Shaolin took the epaulettes and pinned them to his own shoulder, a rare hint of seriousness appearing in his otherwise half-dead expression.

Then came Xia Wan, then Lu Chenzhou, and then everyone else after her.

Wu You handed out the epaulets one by one, each one carefully placed, and each person who received one nodded to him in greeting.

Some were nervous, some were excited, and some were expressionless.

Some people laughed and said, "The CEO will protect me," while others asked expectantly, "Does the CEO have a girlfriend?" and still others jokingly asked, "Does the CEO need a playmate?"

But there was respect in each of their eyes.

They themselves were already considered geniuses at the fifth rank, and at less than twenty-five years old, they knew what a seventh rank, who was also less than twenty-five, meant.

Facing the torchbearer, whose face was either youthful, mature, serious, or quirky, Wu You also revealed a gentle smile from the bottom of his heart.

At less than 25 years old, in their previous life they might have just graduated from university and entered society.

In this world, they have experienced countless battles and life-or-death crises, and are now capable of protecting one side on their own.

"They are all a respectable and lovable group of people."

Wu You thought of his colleagues who sacrificed their lives in the Lanhe Divine Descent incident, and felt that the chief epaulet on his shoulder also had the weight it was meant to have.