Zi Linling sneered, "Dao heart covered in dust? When you all admitted you were the weaker ones before, why weren't you afraid of your Dao heart being covered in dust?"
"..."
The two thousand people were rendered speechless by her question, lowering their heads in shame.
Zi Linling sighed and said, "Fine! I'll give you one more chance, but only this once. There won't be another."
This sudden turn of events caught everyone off guard.
They were shocked for a moment, then spoke in unison, "Thank you, President Zi!"
Zi Linling said coldly, "Don't thank me yet! Answer my question: are you the weaker ones?"
"No!"
The two thousand people shouted in unison, their voices reaching for the sky.
Zi Linling nodded and said, "That's more like it! How about this, the original group free-for-all will be changed to a one-on-one match! Two thousand people against seventeen. Do you have the confidence?"
"Yes!"
The two thousand people spoke as one, their aura grand and magnificent.
A hint of satisfaction flashed in Zi Linling's eyes. "As long as you can defeat all seventeen of them, then these fifty-plus spots will be decided among you. Conversely, if even one of them remains on the stage, you will all be eliminated. Do you understand?"
"This..."
The two thousand people hesitated.
Zi Linling's condition was too harsh. She didn't just want a win, she wanted a complete victory!
"What? Afraid?" Zi Linling taunted, "When paths cross, the brave ones win! If you don't even have the courage to challenge the strong, how can you say you aren't the weak ones?"
"No matter how strong those seventeen are, they haven't surpassed the Great God Realm, and what's more, one of them is a burden. So, what are you afraid of?"
"You were so valiant just now, but when it comes to action, you've become cowards? You deserve to be considered a burden! Forget it! I don't think you can be saved, you're just wasting everyone's time!"
"Now, I announce that the ones entering the Danzun Secret Realm are..."
"We'll fight!"
Before Zi Linling could finish speaking, she was interrupted by a voice.
She followed the sound and saw a young man brimming with fighting spirit, looking at her with firm eyes.
The icy, winter-like aura emanating from Zi Linling's body subtly softened.
She scoffed, "You? Can you represent them?"
"This..."
The young man was rendered speechless.
"We'll fight!"
Another voice rang out.
"We'll fight!"
A third voice followed.
"We'll fight!"
"We'll fight!"
"We'll fight!"
The fourth, fifth, and sixth voices came in quick succession.
Then, the fighting spirit of the two thousand people was ignited, and the deafening three words echoed throughout the arena.
Finally, the two thousand voices merged into one, their soaring battle intent piercing the heavens!
"We'll fight!"
"We'll fight!"
"We'll fight!"
"..."
The icy aura around Zi Linling rapidly dissipated.
She smiled and said, "That's more like it!"
The strong can be defeated, but they never shy away from a fight!
Zi Linling turned to look at the seventeen people and said, "Don't you always consider yourselves strong? I assume you won't object to this arrangement."
"More trash is still trash, what is there to fear?"
"A bunch of ants, what is there to fear?"
"The strong are the strong, how can they fear a bunch of weaklings ganging up on them?"
"Come on! Let's see if too many ants can bite an elephant to death!"
"Miss, please step back. Let us deal with these burdens!"
"Fight!"
"Fight!"
"Fight!"
As the three shouts of "Fight!" fell, the atmosphere on the stage was ignited to its peak.
"Good! I'll count down to three, and the free-for-all begins!"
Zi Linling said with heroic spirit, "One!"
"Two!"
"Three!"
As the word "Three!" was uttered, both sides charged forward, and in the blink of an eye, they were engaged in combat.
"Clang, clang, clang..."
"Bang, bang, thud..."
The sound of weapons clashing, the sound of bodies hitting the ground, intertwined to form a strange melody.
On the stage, roars erupted constantly, and groans rose and fell.
In just a moment, the battle between both sides had entered a white-hot state.
Although there were two thousand people, they were fighting individually, with no sign of coordination.
Therefore, in less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, a tenth of them were kicked off the stage.
The seventeen people weren't faring any better.
That white lotus woman, having lost her protection, was immediately in grave danger, forced to the edge of the stage.
But the other sixteen were surrounded so tightly that they couldn't possibly offer her any assistance.
She wanted to feign weakness to gain sympathy, but at this moment, everyone's eyes were red, and who had the time for pity?
So, soon, that white lotus woman fell off the stage amidst the chaos.
She glared at Zi Linling in a corner of the stage, a trace of venom flashing in her eyes.
After another incense stick's worth of time, a quarter of the two thousand people had been kicked off the stage.
And on the side of the seventeen, they had all sustained injuries to varying degrees.
However, not only did they not stop their actions, but their fighting spirit grew even higher.
Zi Linling nodded with satisfaction, quietly noting down those who performed exceptionally well.
Time ticked by, and in a blink, half an hour had passed.
The situation for the two thousand people was dire, with half of them already thrown off the stage.
On the side of the seventeen, apart from the white lotus woman who had already been eliminated, eight others were also out.
This meant the current situation had become one thousand versus eight.
The onlookers' eyes were wide open.
Such a spectacular arena battle, the outcome was no longer that important.
Many of the spectators were moved by the fighting on stage and began to clench their fists.
"Hold steady!"
Among the two thousand people, the young man who had led the challenge earlier stepped forward to direct the battle.
After half an hour of fighting, he had understood one truth: a scattered pile of sand was a major taboo. To win, they had to unite.
"Divide three hundred people to focus their attacks on one person, and the remaining seven hundred will surround and hold back the other seven, delaying them."
As the young man's voice fell, the two thousand people immediately changed their tactics.
On the side of the seventeen, someone immediately shouted, "Four people per group, coordinate your attacks, don't give them a chance to pick you off one by one!"
Those who could cultivate to the Great God Realm were not fools.
Therefore, after the change in tactics, both sides were evenly matched and once again entered a stalemate.
Both sides understood that to win, they had to maintain their composure and avoid rash advances.
Another half an hour passed.
On the side of the seventeen, only four people remained, while on the side of the two thousand, only five hundred remained.
And both sides were in a sorry state.
Zi Linling smiled without speaking, but her mind had already made a calculation.
The onlookers also cheered for those on stage.
An incense stick later, the battle on the stage finally stopped, and the result was...