Everyone's expression was identical.
Even Uncle Quan, the strongest among them, looked at Li Zhonglou's figure with a face full of shock.
What happened?
"He actually lost to Ying Shen?"
"Damn it! Can someone tell me what just happened!"
Uncle Quan, regaining his senses, immediately knitted his brows tightly. His strength was a level higher than Wu Ying's, but he was just as clueless about what had transpired!
It wasn't until Li Zhonglou's gaze fell upon him that Uncle Quan remembered they were still in the midst of the competition.
"Li Zhonglou, wins!"
As soon as this was announced, not only the crowd below the stage but also those below the large screen erupted into a frenzy of discussion.
"This is definitely the biggest dark horse of the year! Can someone tell me who this guy is?"
"It's Qiqi, this person was brought in by Qiqi, she must know!"
Below the screen, everyone's gaze turned to Mu Qi, even her best friends.
An An murmured, "Qiqi, do you really not know Brother Li's identity? Is he really coming to the East District for the first time?"
Mu Qi gave a wry smile, "I honestly don't know. I met Brother Li when I came in, and at that time he..."
Mu Qi recounted the events of that time in detail for the first time, and the four of them had the same thought after listening.
"If what you're saying is true, then Brother Li must really be coming to the East District for the first time. Otherwise, how could he not even know Feng Tian's rules?"
Mu Qi immediately said, "Exactly! If it weren't for this, I wouldn't have chosen Brother Li. I'm not stupid."
Although the matter of Qiqi was settled, Li Zhonglou's identity remained a mystery. For a moment, everyone secretly harbored the thought of leaving and using external means to investigate the background of this person who could instantly defeat Ying Shen, the strongest of the younger generation!
"Now that even Ying Shen has lost, the competition should end soon, right?"
So, everyone's gaze returned to the screen. According to the usual rules, if no one challenged the person on the stage, it meant the competition was over. In the third round, there was no voluntary withdrawal from the stage.
However, just then, a sudden change occurred in the field of vision of Mu Qi and the others.
Li Zhonglou, who hadn't been touched by anyone, suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, then stumbled several steps back, half-kneeling.
Mu Qi instinctively became nervous, "Brother Li!"
Below the arena, the crowd, still in shock, couldn't help but exchange glances at this scene.
"This, he seems to have suffered internal injuries?"
"But no one touched him!"
"Don't you understand? He instantly defeated Ying Shen. Do you really think that's something that can be done casually? If you were to face someone of the same level, could you defeat them instantly without taking any damage?"
Everyone immediately looked enlightened.
I get it, this guy must have used some secret technique we don't know about, and that's how he caught Ying Shen off guard and knocked him off the stage!
And Ying Shen clearly wasn't harmed at all! On the contrary, he was spitting blood wildly on the stage!
Almost instantly, everyone grasped the reasoning again: in terms of strength, Li Zhonglou was definitely inferior to Wu Ying!
His victory at this moment was purely opportunistic, using the competition rules to win!
"Damn it! I understand now, this brat is no match for Ying Shen at all, he just used underhanded tactics, taking advantage of our lack of knowledge about him to catch Ying Shen off guard and knock him off the stage!"
"Does this guy always win like this? But what's the point? In a real death match, if he used this move, the enemy would be unharmed, but he himself would lose his combat effectiveness first!"
"This guy is relying on the protection of the competition rules!"
In an instant, Li Zhonglou's reputation took another turn.
One moment everyone was shocked by his strength, the next they were resorting to personal attacks.
To them, someone who won by exploiting the competition rules was not worthy of their respect!
Even Wu Long was momentarily swayed by the crowd's議論, "Is Brother Li really winning by exploiting the rules?"
He glanced at Li Zhonglou, who was still half-kneeling on the stage, head bowed as if enduring some pain, then looked at Wu Ying, whose face had become grim but was clearly unharmed.
It really did seem to be the case!
Unknown to everyone, Li Zhonglou, with his pained expression on the stage, was actually very calm internally, even chatting with Old Lin and the others in the Soul Bottle.
"What, are there new developments with the secret techniques? How many moves have you summarized now?"
Old Lin summarized, "Although they haven't been tested, there are five moves I'm confident about, three that need testing to confirm, and four that I only have half confidence in, but the success rate should not be high."
This meant at least five new moves!
Although he should try not to use them in Shangjing, as they were other people's ultimate skills, it would be difficult to explain if they were discovered. But that didn't mean they were useless!
Not to mention that at a critical moment, each additional move was equivalent to an extra trump card. More importantly, after completing the mission, he would have to travel abroad to a lost land!
There, he would encounter experts from all over the world. If he wore a mask then, who would know who he was?
This secret technique could be considered a lifeline for Li Zhonglou!
However, it was best not to attract attention, and his current acting was also carefully considered.
But while some believed him, others did not. Besides Wu Ying, the party involved, Uncle Quan also held a skeptical attitude towards Li Zhonglou's reaction.
However, it was not appropriate for him to say much in such an occasion, so he could only frown and ask, "Are there any more challengers? If not, the strongest young generation competition of this year will be over."
This statement seemed innocuous, but to others, it carried a strong sense of urgency. Logically, with Wu Ying having lost, no one else would go up.
Either everyone goes up, or no one does. But if someone goes up, the person in front would undoubtedly be a stepping stone, essentially leaving the opportunity to gain points to those behind them. No one wanted to pave the way for others, so typically, in such a situation, no one would go up.
But Li Zhonglou's acting had fooled most people. At least everyone began to believe that this was a victory achieved through opportunism! Even if they didn't say it was an ungraceful victory, such a victory lacked any sense of pressure!
So, when Uncle Quan spoke, a man on the third floor suddenly jumped onto the stage without saying a word.
"I'll do it!"
He was a genius from one of the sixteen great families, appearing somewhat short, but his eyes were exceptionally bright.
Since everyone believed that Li Zhonglou was truly exhausted at the moment, why not take advantage of the situation and gain some points first?
His action also caught others off guard. This guy on the third floor dared to go up?
Even if he was picking up scraps, it should be someone who could spar with Ying Shen!