Swish, swish...
As Shen Yao rose and stepped into the crowd, black dust seemed to stir beneath him, spreading towards the side halls!
"Witchcraft is extremely dangerous. Participants enter at their own risk!"
The Great Elder's voice settled, and he raised his staff, pointing towards the entrances of several side halls on the south side of the palace.
"Eight side halls. Participants will enter in order. Those who last for more than three minutes will be deemed qualified and can proceed to the next stage!"
This rule was already very clear to those who had participated in the大会 before, and they also knew what lay within these side halls.
However, for Ling Feng, who was participating for the first time, this was naturally unknown.
But through the discussions of the people around him, Ling Feng deduced that there must be a considerable number of蛊虫 (gu worms) inside the side halls.
And their attack power was likely not weak.
Upon entering, these蛊虫 would launch their attacks.
Therefore, the longer a participant lasted, the stronger their demonstrated strength would be!
For example, the previous year's Witchcraft Champion, Shan Hanyi, had once set a record of half an hour.
It was rumored that at that time, the entire palace was covered with蛊虫, numbering in the millions, with a vast variety of species!
One could imagine how dangerous these蛊虫 were, and also judge how formidable Shan Hanyi's strength was!
"Ji Yunyue! I'm going in first!"
As expected, Shan Hanyi was the first to step forward. As he passed by the Saintess Ji Yunyue, he left a rather playful remark.
Ji Yunyue's cold eyes glanced at Shan Hanyi, and then she also entered the second hall!
However, after these two entered, the surrounding participants were not in a hurry to enter. They were still whispering and discussing amongst themselves.
Ling Feng did not want to attract too much attention, so he did not step in first.
Tu Jintong, however, glanced at Ling Feng and then scanned the surroundings, laughing, "Heh, what? Should people from our Eight Great Families not set an example? Should we let others go in first to scout the path in these eight side halls?"
Scout the path!
These two words stung many people!
That's right, the reason why others were not in a hurry to enter was to let others go in and scout the path.
Because the rules for the first round of preliminaries were the same every year, but the蛊虫 inside were not. Some of the eight were stronger, and some were weaker. However, without entering, no one could know!
Therefore, the first person to enter, after coming out, even if they were unwilling to reveal what was inside.
Others could still judge the strength of the蛊虫 inside based on this person's performance.
Thus, no one was willing to be the first bird, or rather, the cannon fodder, to scout the path for others.
"Hahaha, Tu Jintong, you're shouting so loudly, why don't you go in yourself?"
Feng Wujiang shook his fan, sneering and mocking Tu Jintong.
"Of course, I'm not in a hurry. The Saintess and Shan Hanyi have already occupied two side halls. I believe they will last for a long time. If I go in again, won't I be taking up another spot? This would be unfair to the other participants!"
Tu Jintong said with an arrogant laugh. His ugly face was truly annoying.
However, few people thought his words were mere boasting. Tu Jintong was notorious, and his performance in the first round of preliminaries would surely not be bad.
Feng Wujiang, however, curled his lips in disdain, "Hmph, empty talk is useless, Tu Jintong. This time, let's see if you can beat me!"
With that, Feng Wujiang was about to occupy the third side hall first!
But at this moment, a person wearing a bamboo hat and veiled in gauze walked out from the crowd first.
Everyone looked sideways!
At this time, someone else came out to compete with the elites of the Eight Great Families for a side hall? Wasn't this clearly asking for trouble!
"Such a graceful posture, why not show your true face?"
"Heh heh, it's a woman. She has a good figure, but she might be an ugly monster, too ashamed to show her face!"
"This little girl has some temper! She actually entered right next to Shan Hanyi's side hall. You know, the蛊虫 between these side halls might connect with each other. In the previous session, the descendants of the Eight Great Families who were next to Shan Hanyi all had bad luck!"
"Tch, perhaps it's some little girl who knows nothing, just pretending to be mysterious!"
The surrounding discussions were full of contempt.
Clearly, they did not take this mysterious girl seriously.
Ling Feng's gaze, however, lingered slightly on the back of the mysterious girl.
"Hahaha, Feng Wujiang, your spot has been taken!" Tu Jintong seized the opportunity and mocked incessantly!
Feng Wujiang snorted coldly, "Hmph, a little girl who popped out from nowhere. She probably won't last even a minute before coming out!"
"I'm not waiting for you all!"
Another person from the Eight Great Families stood up, left a sentence, and directly entered.
Following that, the people from the Thirty-Six Families also stood up and entered.
And this included Shen Yao, who had lost an arm earlier.
Ling Feng completely ignored Shen Yao's resentful gaze. Such a minor character was not worth his attention.
When only one spot remained, Feng Wujiang shook his fan and walked in.
Tu Jintong's lips curved into a cold smile, and then he subtly approached Ling Feng: "Heh heh, brother, haven't seen you before? Why don't you go in and try?"
Ling Feng glanced at the other's ugly face and responded coldly, "No rush!"
"Oh? Heh heh, it seems brother is confident."
A cold glint flashed in Tu Jintong's eyes, and then he smiled and pointed to the two hourglasses above the side halls!
"See those two hourglasses? The rule for the first round is simple. There is a total of one hour. That means, if you don't enter at the beginning, it's difficult to get a good result. If you are late, you might even lose your qualification due to no available side halls."
"Then why aren't you going in quickly?"
Lin Shuainan suddenly darted out from behind Ling Feng, startling Tu Jintong!
How could this kid walk without making a sound?
"Oh? Brother, are you also here to compete?" Tu Jintong's mouth twitched.
He knew a little about this Lin Shuainan. The incident where he risked his life to save Xiuxiu in the mountains last time left a deep impression on Tu Jintong.
However, from what Tu Jintong knew, this Lin Shuainan seemed to have some issues with his brain.
"I'm not here to compete, I'm Brother's exclusive cheerleader! I'm here to cheer for Brother!"
Lin Shuainan patted his chest, looking proud of his cheerleader position.
Tu Jintong was completely speechless at this, rolled his eyes, and left on his own.
He originally wanted to take the opportunity to test Ling Feng's strength in witchcraft, but this kid Lin Shuainan jumped out and interrupted him. What's the point of talking to a lunatic...
"Tch, you insidious scoundrel, trying to get my Brother to go in and scout the path for you, dream on!"