Qin Chu used his Sword Intent to contend against Ye Ming's pressure, which combined energy and Concept.
Ye Ming's pressure grew stronger and stronger. His goal was to leave only one person remaining, and that person would be the top-ranked individual in the first wave. The others would be ranked according to the length of time they persevered.
As Ye Ming's pressure intensified, fewer and fewer people could endure. In the end, only a handful remained: Qin Chu, Shang Tiandu, Shangshuchun Xie, Shangshuyu, and Zhen Ji. These five were the most outstanding individuals at this Azure Cloud Ranking General Assembly.
As long as there were still people enduring, Ye Ming continued to increase the energy and Concept suppression.
After a moment, Zhen Ji could no longer withstand it, and her body was pushed backward by the pressure.
The remaining few continued to hold on. A wicked gleam reappeared in Shangshuchun Xie's eyes, but it flickered and then extinguished. His body was then pushed out, leaving only Qin Chu, Shang Tiandu, and Shangshuyu.
After enduring for another moment, Shangshuyu was also forced to retreat.
Qin Chu, who was still holding on, noticed Shangshuyu being forced out. After a moment of thought, he decided to continue. If Shang Tiandu left first, he would also leave, not giving Shang Tiandu a chance to challenge Shangshuyu. In the current situation, he could greet Shangshuyu and tell her not to challenge Shang Tiandu. Then, only Shang Tiandu would challenge him to a fight. If he dealt with Shang Tiandu, Shangshuyu would be out of danger.
With only two people left, this was not the result Ye Ming wanted. He, who had been facing Qin Chu and Shang Tiandu sideways, turned around, and his energy and Concept surged towards them.
When Ye Ming's Concept rose to the sixth level, Shang Tiandu's face flushed red. He then stood up and voluntarily retreated. He knew he was about to collapse, and rather than revealing his embarrassment when he could no longer hold on, it was better to retreat proactively.
At this point, only Qin Chu remained on the grand arena, facing Ye Ming's surging pressure.
"The ranking list for the first round is out. Next up is the challenge match," Ye Ming announced the end of the first round after withdrawing his energy.
"Excuse me, Vice City Lord, can I challenge others in the challenge match?" Qin Chu stood up from his cushion and cupped his fists towards Ye Ming.
"No, you cannot! Challenging from behind to ahead is to snatch a ranking. Challenging from ahead to behind is to kill. I do not oppose killing, but it cannot be done at the Azure Cloud Ranking General Assembly," Ye Ming said to Qin Chu, directly stating his point. In fact, Qin Chu did intend to kill.
Cupping his fists to Ye Ming again, Qin Chu descended from the arena.
At this time, the City Lord's Mansion staff had arranged the seats for the top twenty on the Azure Cloud Ranking. Qin Chu was in the first position on the left, followed by Shang Tiandu, Shangshuyu, Shangshuchun Xie, and Zhen Ji. The others were ranked according to how long they had endured.
The challenge matches began from the back. Those who had made it this far were naturally not cowards. The last person began their challenge.
Qin Chu watched the battles on the arena, absorbing others' strengths and expanding his own knowledge.
"You won't be able to hold the top spot on the Azure Cloud Ranking," Shang Tiandu said. He was very displeased about being suppressed by Qin Chu. No one had ever suppressed him before, so he naturally didn't accept the current situation.
"If you have the ability, you come and take it. If you don't challenge, if you admit defeat, then you're a grandson!" Shang Tiandu provoked, and Qin Chu retorted directly and impolitely. He was already worried about not being able to fight those behind him, and now Shang Tiandu had actively provoked him.
A murderous intent appeared in Shang Tiandu's eyes. "It will be as you wish shortly."
The battles continued in waves, with some succeeding in their challenges and others failing. After all, those who had endured for a longer time generally had deeper strength and foundations.
"Shangshuyu, the third position is mine!" Zhen Ji declared.
Shangshuyu turned to look at Zhen Ji. "If you want to be arrogant, you need to have the capital to be arrogant. If you want to sit in third place, why didn't you endure a little longer?"
Zhen Ji looked at Shangshuyu, momentarily unsure how to retort, because the shorter time she had endured indicated she was inferior to Shangshuyu.
"Princess, what does it matter if you let her sit in third for a moment? Your subordinate will take her head," Shangshuchun Xie said to Shangshuyu beside him.
"If she dares to jump around, I will deal with her!" Shangshuyu said to Shangshuchun Xie. Zhen Ji's strength was inferior to hers, so she was not afraid. Although she didn't fight much, she was not a mere pretty face.
At this moment, Qin Chu smiled. "Senior Sister, it's fine if you yield a bit."
"Junior Brother says so too? Then Senior Sister will consider it!" Shangshuyu said with a smile.
Shangshuchun Xie nodded to Qin Chu, with a hint of gratitude in his eyes. His second task in participating in the Azure Cloud Ranking was to compete for a spot, but his primary task was to protect Shangshuyu. If Shangshuyu didn't listen to advice and clashed with Zhen Ji, and something went wrong, it would be his dereliction of duty.
The battles in the back continued. Qin Chu watched, observing that the members of the White Tiger Saint Clan had sharp and fierce attacks, the Black Tortoise Saint Clan excelled in strength and defense, the Flame Thunder Saint Clan members had flame and thunder energy protecting them after their break out, and the Azure Dragon Saint Clan members had no weaknesses, being well-balanced in all aspects. Their speed was not as good as the Vermilion Bird Saint Clan, but it surpassed the other three Saint Clans. Their defense was not as good as the Black Tortoise Saint Clan, but it also surpassed the White Tiger Saint Clan, Vermilion Bird Saint Clan, and Flame Thunder Saint Clan.
Understanding the characteristics of each Saint Clan would benefit Qin Chu in his upcoming battles.
Soon, the challenges from the back concluded, advancing to the top ten. This was mainly because the challenged individuals were greatly exhausted and no longer had the ability to continue challenging.
The challenges continued, and soon it was Qin Mo's turn. Qin Mo used his Vermilion Bird Body and defeated his challenger.
After Qin Mo returned to his seat, Qin Chu shook his head at him, signaling Qin Mo not to challenge in this round, to maintain his current position, and conserve his strength. After the next few waves of challenges, when others were more exhausted, there would still be a good chance to improve his ranking.
Qin Mo unconditionally accepted Qin Chu's arrangements; even if they were wrong, he wouldn't question them.
A member of the White Tiger Saint Clan challenged Zhen Ji, but was not Zhen Ji's opponent and was defeated by her.
Subsequently, two others did not challenge, feeling they could not defeat Zhen Ji and Shangshuchun Xie. As for Shangshuyu, who was in third place, they were not qualified to challenge her even if they wanted to.
Soon, the challenge progressed to Zhen Ji's position. Zhen Ji stood up and looked at Shangshuyu. "Come on! You can't hold the third position."
At this moment, Shangshuchun Xie looked at Shangshuyu. "Princess, if she wants third, then let her have it. If she dares to sit there, your subordinate will take her life."
Upon hearing Shangshuchun Xie's words, Zhen Ji's expression changed. "Boastful! This time, all of you will be behind this Princess!"
Shangshuyu looked at Qin Chu, wanting to see his attitude.
"Give it to her, and rest quietly for a while," Qin Chu smiled.
Shangshuyu cupped her fists to Ye Ming, directly conceding, and then swapped positions with Zhen Ji.
As Zhen Ji was about to sit down, Shangshuchun Xie stood up. "Wait a moment, I challenge you now. You cannot sit in that position."
"Then I'll deal with you first, and then this Princess will sit," Zhen Ji's face was filled with anger, because Shangshuchun Xie was deliberately opposing her.
Shangshuchun Xie and Zhen Ji went up to the stage. At this moment, Shang Tiandu looked at Qin Chu with cold eyes. "You'll only be able to sit in the top spot of the Azure Cloud Ranking for a moment."