Xu Nanhong's Spiritual Qi struck Qian Duoduo's shoulder, pushing him off the Martial Arts Stage.
His force was neither too strong nor too weak.
It wasn't strong enough to injure Qian Duoduo.
But it was enough to make Qian Duoduo grimace in pain.
"Qian Duoduo passes!" Xu Nanhong roared.
He stomped on the ground, shaking a bamboo slip out of a bamboo tube on the Martial Arts Stage, and with a trembling hand, he grabbed the slip. "Next up, Ni Youmou."
Ni Youmou slowly stood up, took out his newly purchased Cold Flame Pure Snow Spear, and pointed it at Xu Nanhong.
"What are you howling about? Did Left Ear Peak catch fire? You can shout later, once I've given you a good beating."
He was quite bold.
However, Right Eye Peak had always been at odds with Left Eye Peak, and since Xu Nanhong had provoked first, Ni Youmou naturally couldn't let Right Eye Peak's momentum falter.
Xu Nanhong was about to say something else when Ancestor Zeng's cold voice echoed above everyone's heads, "All Grand Elders draw lots."
Xu Nanhong immediately lowered his head.
He had made his fifth move against Qian Duoduo and had drawn lots first; it was already good that Ancestor Zeng hadn't reprimanded him.
In this round, Guan Xuansheng and Pang Yunhan were chosen.
"Don't resist too hard. If you really can't block it, just concede," Qian Duoduo advised them.
Guan Xuansheng and Pang Yunhan nodded.
Guan Xuansheng was not a key Disciple for Nose Peak to Cultivate, nor did he aim to gain cultivation resources by breaking into the top ten.
Pang Yunhan was a direct Disciple of a large Family and didn't need to fight desperately.
Despite not needing to resist fiercely, Guan Xuansheng and Pang Yunhan still fought with great strategy.
Guan Xuansheng's fighting style was extremely unique.
As soon as he stepped onto the stage, his Tianji Abacus began to clatter.
With the sound of the abacus, Guan Xuansheng continuously shifted his position.
Every place he stood was where the opponent's attack was weakest.
His perspective was definitely different from Qian Duoduo and the others.
Facing an extraordinary Great Cultivator like the Grand Elder, if he truly couldn't evade, Guan Xuansheng immediately brought out a corpse puppet. If one wasn't enough, he took out two; if two weren't enough, he took out three.
He lasted until the end of four moves, surprisingly without a single injury.
Pang Yunhan's fighting style, however, was much simpler and cruder.
He simply used corpse puppets as shields, enduring the Grand Elder's attacks with fully armed corpse puppets.
But what made him stronger than Guan Xuansheng was his much more exquisite control over the corpse puppets; the corpse puppets could even coordinate with each other.
Finally, he sustained minor injuries and advanced to the next round.
After the second round, among the five of them, only Fei Ming was eliminated.
There were a total of thirteen Protectors remaining on the stone platform.
Among these thirteen, Sima Qiankun, Gong Dian, Qu Hui, and Ni Youmou were still in!
However, in the eyes of the Ba Ling Sect members, their continued presence was not surprising.
After all, they had always been the cream of the Ba Ling Sect, having achieved The Righteous Foundation Establishment.
But Qian Duoduo, Guan Xuansheng, Ming Huanhuan, and Pang Yunhan still being in was extremely unexpected.
Qian Duoduo and Pang Yunhan only advanced to Foundation Establishment after arriving at the Ice Cellar Cave Heaven.
Guan Xuansheng and Ming Huanhuan quietly advanced to Foundation Establishment.
Undoubtedly, these four were all shining dark horses.
Ancestor Zeng stood up from the high platform.
"It seems the Grand Elders are quite serious; only this many people are left by the third round."
"This time, you must withstand five moves from a Grand Elder. If the number of people advancing to the next round is less than ten, then replacements will be chosen from those who were eliminated, based on the duration they lasted on the Martial Arts Stage. Continue drawing lots!"
"Qian Duoduo!" A Grand Elder, wearing a Heavenly Thunder Daoist Robe and with prominent cheekbones, called out Qian Duoduo's name.
Qian Duoduo's right eye twitched.
This Grand Elder was Xin Changfu of Left Eyebrow Peak; his body, from playing with thunder, was like a bolt of lightning.
In the first two rounds, he had struck three Protectors dead with lightning and injured five.
He didn't look benevolent, and his actions were even more vicious and ruthless.
Qian Duoduo flew before him and said to Purple Eyes in his mind:
"Wake up, the chance to eat thunder has arrived!"