Loss did not grant rest.
It stripped protection.
Because the Grade Tourney was not single-elimination.
It was attrition-based progression.
Those who lost early were discarded.
Those who lost late were… tested further.
Chen Yuan and Gu Wen were called again before their breathing had fully stabilized.
Fourth match.
Lower bracket.
The warning was clear.
Prove that the previous fight was not luck.
Their opponents stepped forward.
Yan Shu & Meng Qiao
Duo Rank: Fifty-Nine
Both were Body Tempering Peak, but their auras were jagged, unstable—cultivators who pushed techniques faster than foundations allowed.
Risk-takers.
Dangerous.
Gu Wen whispered, "They'll go all-in."
Chen Yuan nodded. "Then we don't give them time."
The formation activated.
Yan Shu screamed and activated a blood-red technique immediately, qi surging violently through his limbs. Meng Qiao followed, channeling raw energy into his weapon.
No probing.
No patience.
Just explosion.
Chen Yuan moved first.
He stepped diagonally, forcing Yan Shu's charge off-center.
Gu Wen mirrored him instantly.
Their coordination was sharper than before—refined by pressure.
Yan Shu's fist slammed into empty air.
Chen Yuan struck.
Not hard.
Repeatedly.
Short blows to destabilize breath and circulation.
Meng Qiao roared and swung wildly.
Gu Wen took the hit head-on—his defensive technique absorbing just enough force.
Pain rippled through his arm.
But he held.
The system responded.
High-Risk Combat Detected
Adaptive Efficiency: Increased
Chen Yuan felt it.
His reactions shortened.
His strikes landed where resistance was weakest.
Yan Shu's blood technique began to backfire—his qi circulation unraveling under sustained disruption.
Chen Yuan waited.
Then spoke calmly.
"Now."
Gu Wen stepped in and released stored vibration again.
Stone cracked.
Yan Shu collapsed, qi imploding inward.
The formation flared.
Yan Shu — Incapacitated
Meng Qiao froze—panic flickering.
Chen Yuan closed the distance.
One palm strike.
The match ended.
This time, the victory was not quiet.
"That was clean."
"They controlled the pace completely."
"They didn't let them explode."
Chen Yuan exhaled.
His chest hurt less than it should have.
Mutation Update:
Stress Recovery Speed: Improved
Gu Wen laughed shakily. "I think… we're really in this now."
Chen Yuan nodded.
But his eyes lifted toward the upper arenas.
He saw Lin Xue's duo again.
They won.
Efficiently.
No wasted movement.
No cruelty.
Just inevitability.
Their gazes met across the arena for a brief moment.
No hostility.
Only understanding.
From another direction, something darker stirred.
Zhao Ming stood among spectators, fists clenched, eyes burning.
"Keep climbing," he muttered. "So I can break you myself."
Chen Yuan did not hear him.
But the staircase did.
And it remembered every footstep.