From initial doubt towards Li Chonglou to absolute certainty in his strength, Wu Long’s mindset had undergone a subtle transformation.
At this moment, he no longer pondered whether Li Chonglou could achieve consecutive victories. Simply the fact that Li Chonglou could endure even facing Wu Ying without retaliating had already surpassed most of the ‘Jie Cai’ present.
Based on Li Chonglou’s scores in the first two rounds, Wu Long offered a favorable prediction.
"Three more matches. If you can hold your ground for three more rounds, your spot is secured."
Wu Long’s eyes gleamed. Initially, his interest in Li Chonglou was primarily based on intuition, believing he would be a reliable helper.
Now, Li Chonglou’s performance had far exceeded his expectations. Such strength, such talent, coupled with a sufficiently calm disposition, what better choice could there be?
And if Li Chonglou could successfully secure his spot as he anticipated, his plan for this forbidden area excursion would advance with one hundred percent certainty!
There was no such thing as a free lunch. Wu Long’s actions were naturally driven by his own objectives, a fact Li Chonglou had understood from the beginning and thus was not surprised by Wu Long’s reaction.
Nodding slightly, Li Chonglou also considered the optimal time to enter the arena.
In a擂台 (leitai) defense match, each participant had only one opportunity to initiate a challenge. Once a defense was lost, one could only be challenged passively.
While this seemed to offer a glimmer of hope, the points gained or lost were vastly different.
Those who successfully challenged only received half the normal points and, if they lacked the qualification to defend, had to exit after their challenge. More importantly, if those without the qualification to defend lost, they would be penalized double the points!
This very rule deterred people from challenging recklessly.
It was important to note that if one did not lose the qualification to defend, the points deducted for a loss were only one-third of double points. This meant that as long as one retained the qualification to defend, losing three matches was equivalent to losing one.
Because of this, this round was also the most time-consuming.
After someone stepped up to defend, those confident in their ability to defeat the opponent would not act immediately. Everyone was waiting for their designated opponent to make their move first.
So, before Li Chonglou could decide on the best time to enter, as soon as Uncle Quan announced the official commencement of the third round of defenses, a man in the third layer, without a second thought, jumped onto the擂台 (leitai) first.
There were naturally many stronger individuals, but none showed any intention of stepping forward. Firstly, allowing their perceived opponents to go first would help wear them down. Secondly, it offered an opportunity for others to showcase themselves.
However, since consecutive victories in defenses would accumulate bonus points, such situations generally did not exceed three matches.
This meant that within three matches, someone stronger would definitely be unable to resist making a move, especially those with close scores.
After the man stepped onto the stage, only a few seconds passed before three men simultaneously intended to move, but one acted faster and intercepted.
"Xiao Liu, this first match, let me take it."
Coincidentally, these two individuals had a slight connection to Li Chonglou. The one called Xiao Liu, the first to enter the擂台 (leitai), was the same person Li Chonglou had knocked out with a single punch.
And the one challenging him was also one of those who had voluntarily conceded before even stepping onto the stage.
As for the others, they were all recovering from the second round, focusing on regaining their strength, their minds not on the擂台 (leitai).
The match began swiftly. At Uncle Quan's command, the two on the stage immediately turned into shadows, colliding.
Fist against fist, foot against foot, with their strengths comparable, both used traditional martial arts in close combat, a true battle of brute force, igniting passion. It was certainly more exciting than the previous bouts.
Li Chonglou, whose stamina was not a concern, watched intently. Although their skills were inferior to his, the application of some of their martial arts techniques possessed unique personal characteristics worth learning.
Li Chonglou was not surprised by the intensity of the battle.
Those with sufficient strength would naturally conserve their internal energy and stamina to strive for more victories. However, not everyone had that opportunity. The two currently on the stage were both seizing the moment while others recovered to gain points.
If they had the ability to use their skills now, they would, but they feared it might be too late when they wanted to later.
Therefore, it wasn't long before Li Chonglou once again had the pleasure of witnessing a battle of secret techniques.
Both individuals conjured illusory projections of unknown beasts. One, with four limbs on the ground, was massive, resembling a magnified giant bear. The other, standing on two feet, had a pointed beak and a long neck, with a pair of wings behind it, resembling a crane yet not quite.
Having experienced various phenomena before, Li Chonglou was no longer surprised by such effects. Although seemingly illusory, they were in reality a contest of internal energy, simply existing in a different form.
However, he still spoke into the soul bottle to the others, "Has anyone figured out these two?"
Old Lin replied with frustration, "I've thought of another method, but I need to go out and test it to confirm."
Having a head full of theories but unable to verify them made him, who had experienced the world anew, extremely uncomfortable.
As the philosopher said, before seeing the light, one would not reject the darkness!
He had now witnessed the beauty of the outside world and experienced the wonder of being reborn. When theories required practical application, it became exceptionally painful!
However, this was not the opportune moment. Even if Li Chonglou wished for him to go out and test, he could only refuse, "Bear with it a little longer. Everyone with ideas, first confirm your thoughts, and then we'll test them one by one after we get out."
This was an unexpected gain. If he mastered more secret techniques, Li Chonglou would possess more trump cards! And his own greatest trump card, the latent pulse, could be even more surprising.
At this moment, the match on the stage concluded, and surprisingly, the one Li Chonglou had previously knocked out with a punch emerged victorious.
Uncle Quan quickly called for the next participants. The second contestant was also a man in the third layer. Li Chonglou had watched his previous matches and, from the moment he stepped onto the stage, had a rough idea of the outcome.
As expected, this second contestant also lost his match, and the man called Xiao Liu's face lit up with a brilliant smile.
Given his strength, winning one more match would certainly be considered a minor upset.
After all, points were limited, and rankings were based on points, not strength. His winning two consecutive rounds in this third stage had already earned him points beyond his apparent strength.
"Really, don't they even have this much foresight?"
The other contestants in the third layer were hesitant to step up and easily grab a victory, yet they also worried about the embarrassment of losing at this stage. It wasn't until Yu Hui, unable to bear it any longer, personally stepped forward.
"Damn, why did that guy from the Yu family go up?"
This move utterly confused the other third-layer contestants who were still hesitating. Because once someone with fourth-layer strength stepped onto the stage, it often meant that they, in the third layer, had lost their chance!