C21 Defeated with Ease

Participants who received their numbers made their way to their respective arenas. Yang Rui glanced at the wax ball in his hand and nonchalantly crushed it, revealing a slip of paper with the number twenty-two. In this way, the three siblings from the Yang family found themselves dispersed across different stages. The allocation was random, which seemed fair enough.

With a calm stride, Yang Rui headed toward Arena Twenty-Two. Pressure? That was nonexistent. If he couldn't handle this, it would be a real shocker. Nonetheless, he knew the importance of keeping a low profile to avoid becoming a lightning rod for criticism.

As he watched each contender ascend the stage, Yang Rui silently offered a prayer for them, hoping they wouldn't meet too harsh a fate.

The arena was already bustling with competitors, each one wearing a cold smirk as they watched the newcomers arrive. That smirk turned into a sneer of contempt when they saw Yang Rui's leisurely approach.

Yang Rui took mental note of those mocking faces, vowing to take them down when the time came.

Yet, there he stood, alone on the edge of the arena, not daring to get too close to anyone. In this competitive state, any unwarranted approach could be met with hostility, even if he appeared weak. His strategy was to stay under the radar and quietly secure his fortune, not to mingle with the crowd.

Groups began to form among the competitors, alliances of two or three, seemingly with the intent to band together to eliminate the outsiders before devising a strategy to advance. Clever move! These lads showed promise.

Once everyone had taken their positions, the City Lord of Chiba City declared, "The first round of the Spirit Selection begins now!"

At his command, the Trial Field fell silent. All eyes were fixed on the thirty-two arenas, where the outcome of each battle hung in the balance.

The contestants sprang into action. Yang Rui couldn't speak for the other arenas, but as soon as the City Lord gave the signal, everyone on his stage was on the move. He saw clearly that the first to strike were those who had arrived early.

Their attacks were swift; several contestants were knocked out of the arena before they could even react. The ones who managed to respond put up a desperate fight. Without the time to form teams, their initial alliances crumbled after a few more were sent flying. After all, with only eight spots available for fifty contenders, a temporary truce meant little.

Yang Rui was constantly evading into the corner when suddenly someone spotted him and charged in his direction, launching a punch from a distance.

"Level 9 of the Qi Gathering Stage!" Yang Rui instantly assessed the assailant's strength based on the fluctuations of Yuan Qi.

Yet, Yang Rui chose not to retaliate but instead yelled, "Stay back!"

He continued to call out as he ran backward, his impressive psychic force of 38.4 ensuring he missed none of the commotion on the Trial Field. In his feigned panic, he dashed backward, prompting his pursuer to follow suit.

Out of nowhere, a palm strike aimed at Yang Rui from the side, but he narrowly escaped the range of the attack. The person behind him wasn't so fortunate, taking the full force of the blow to the chest and being sent flying out of the arena.

Yang Zhantian, from his vantage point in the stands, watched the unfolding chaos with a mix of amusement and disbelief. Moments before, Yang Rui had been eager to join the Spirit Selection, and now he was scurrying away in defeat.

"That kid, he managed to dodge that one too," Yang Zhantian chuckled, shaking his head, at a loss for words.

"Ouch!" Yang Rui, who had been darting about, suddenly tripped and pitched forward, narrowly avoiding a sword light that grazed his scalp!

That was too close for comfort! Yang Rui thought to himself.

The sword light that had narrowly missed Yang Rui's head fortuitously struck the person behind him. A flash of blood signaled a serious injury as the man clutched his chest and staggered back. His face contorted in regret; had he not been so focused on eliminating the perceived weakling, he might not have met his downfall.

If Yang Rui had been aware of his thoughts, he would have simply laughed it off. Why should he be responsible for someone else's foolishness?

And so, the No. 22 arena witnessed a comically tragic scene: some fighters engaged in a life-or-death struggle, others chasing a single target, only to be inadvertently wounded and then eliminated.

When Yang Zhantian and the elders of the Yang family witnessed the scene, they couldn't help but twitch at the corners of their mouths. "Damn, this kid is way too timid. What's with this bizarre tactic of scurrying away with his tail between his legs while being chased?"

Some members of the Yang family felt too embarrassed to even acknowledge him. "I don't know him, hehe... seriously!"

However, City Lord Ye of Chiba City watched Yang Rui with relish. "This little guy is quite interesting, hehe."

City Lord Mangyu of Light Feather City, sitting next to him, was puzzled. "What do you mean, City Lord Ye? I don't see anything particularly interesting about this kid."

"Haha, Mangyu, you don't actually believe this kid is just incredibly lucky, do you?" City Lord Ye asked with a teasing tone.

"Hmm?" Prompted by City Lord Ye, Mangyu had a moment of clarity. Looking again, he noticed something different about Yang Rui. It all seemed like a series of accidents and coincidences, but could it be a deliberate strategy?

"This kid is clever; he's playing dumb!" Mangyu exclaimed, finally catching on.

Seeing the amused expressions around him, Mangyu felt a wave of embarrassment. Was he the only one who hadn't noticed? His face flushed with embarrassment, but he stubbornly retorted, "I was focused on the other arenas, that's why I didn't notice..."

His voice trailed off, betraying his lack of conviction.

As the competition progressed, the top eight contenders from each arena emerged. In arena twenty-two, Yang Rui 'accidentally' kicked an opponent off the stage, concluding the top eight selection.

"Whew, that was a close one. I've finally made it into the top eight. I'm so lucky; it nearly scared me to death!" Yang Rui said with feigned fear, patting his chest and chuckling.

The other seven contestants on the stage felt a sense of weariness. "How much longer will you keep up this act? Whose luck is so good they make it to the top eight unscathed? Were all those 'accidental' injuries self-inflicted? Can't you drop the act? We all know what's really going on. Those who were duped by you, well, that's their bad luck," they thought. It was clear to them now; this kid was playing the fool to catch the wise. Almost everyone who had been with him was eliminated by others, while he barely lifted a finger! Well, that's not entirely true; the last person was indeed kicked off by him.

The spectators on the platform wore looks of disbelief. What on earth was happening? Were they really watching some kid on the stage evade by sheer luck? And now, inexplicably, he's made it into the top 256?

Yang Zhantian and his companions could only facepalm, at a loss for words. He actually managed to blunder his way into the top 256? Good grief, could his luck be any more outrageous?

But at that moment, Yang Rui had no time to concern himself with their reactions, because... a new mission had just popped up from the system!