A dense crowd of heads remained silent, their eyes fixed on the image of the figures in the background, visibly embarrassed and whispering. Faces were stiff, stunned, or expressions of surprise—everyone was at a loss. Initially, when Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn pulled down his trousers to reveal the corpse, the scene erupted into uproar, as if boiling over. Yet before the audience could recover, he did it again—right there, in front of everyone—urinating publicly. How could he have done such a thing? You are Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn, the symbol of official transcendence, the very face of the official elite stage! With so many people watching, how could you remain so composed, with absolutely no sense of pressure? Are you losing your dignity? Is the official dignity being compromised? But when Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn himself stepped forward to report the incident, and celestial spirits from the heavens descended to impose judgment, the crowd's most profound reaction was—“Oh my goodness, this is actually happening!” Someone gasped out, and the silence shattered, rising into a roaring wave of excitement across the audience. "If I'm not mistaken, just now, Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn uncovered several rules—his attempt to report the Yin Shi failed, but his own report succeeded, and the fishing-for-accusations strategy worked out perfectly. That's impressive—this is exactly the efficiency and thinking of a top-tier prodigy." "Wow, truly amazing! Among the eight finalists, only Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn managed to uncover the reporting rules. This clearly shows the gap—those who have cleared the S-tier threshold are simply different from the others." "Looking at it this way, the gap between Tian Xia Gui Huo and Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn becomes immediately apparent. He might be an outstanding performer among ordinary spiritual realm practitioners, but when facing true elite strength, his differences become evident." "The way he tested the rules—so unconventional in his thinking—I honestly don't know what to say. Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn truly lives up to his name." Tian Xia Gui Huo has a solid reputation in terms of dungeon conquests, and even more so due to his status as a Fire Master, making him particularly distinguished. Prior to this, although everyone believed Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn to be stronger than Tian Xia Gui Huo, they had no clear sense of just how much stronger he was or in what specific aspects. The first round was essentially a showcase of the suspect's personal strengths, leaving Tian Xia Gui Huo with no opportunity to display his talents. It wasn't until the second round began—when everyone stood on an equal footing, under the same rules and conditions—that the comparison became fair. Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn quickly grasped several key rules within just a few minutes. "Ugh! If he's got the ability, then why hide? Just let it happen—let him go full-blown, plain and simple! I'll concede right here, even if I blink!" "Such a pity, elders, could you please adjust the angle? We'd like a full 360-degree view!" "Indeed, indeed—we're particularly interested in Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn's dimensions." Serious young ladies looked embarrassed and shy, while the elder maids were flushed with excitement, eagerly requesting a closer look. After all, this was Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn! "Mom! Mom! If you keep Xie Mama maintained the pose of holding her daughter like a shield, stretching her neck to intensely focus on the image, her face full of regret: "Everything seems so blurry—really dull. The baby hasn't reached adulthood yet, so I'm still protecting you." Xie Lingxi felt both regret and satisfaction. Regretful to have missed the chance to see Yuan Shi's physical dimensions, yet pleased that such beautiful, yet ordinary, women—like her mother and so many others—hadn't managed to secure a place with Yuan Shi. At the same time, he seriously considered whether to expel Yuan-Shi Tian-Zun from the Bái Hǔ Wèi. With nearly eighty percent of the official members present, the standing and reach of the spiritual realm practitioners were unquestionable. Should Yuan-Shi make such a move, it would be easy to imagine that his unseemly actions would spread throughout the Wǔ Xíng Alliance and Tàí Mén. There could be no room for someone with a tarnished reputation within the Bái Hǔ Wèi! On the elder's bench, the elders remained silent. After a long pause, the white tiger elder, clad in armor, forcefully praised: "There's no image baggage, the thinking is fresh and innovative. For the sake of uncovering the rules, he's willing to make significant sacrifices—this is truly commendable. Master Yuan Shi's approach deserves praise." "This child truly is..." "Indeed, but this is a competitive arena—impact matters." "Still, he's showing restraint, aware of the need to avoid certain pitfalls. After all, the image strategy was designed by the chieftains; we elders have little control. Should Master Yuan Shi resort to his old tactics again..." "Indeed, among our official young talents—Fu Qingyang, Jiang Ju, Feng Du Ghost King, and others—everyone places great emphasis on image. Master Yuan Shi is rather different." "Then what? You haven't seen him bow down and pay homage at once?" said a terrier. Senior Sun interrupted them with irritation: "As long as he wins, what's the point of all these formalities? Master Yuan has real talent." "So you admit you're confused?" a senior elder from the Water Deity Palace scoffed. "You..." Sun Elder remained silent, suddenly feeling a pang of tenderness. It had already reached the level of the elders... "The core rules of the 'mass reporting era' are: 'plausible deniability' and 'the saintly persona.' You don't need to induce your opponents—you just need to observe. No one is truly a saint; nobody is flawless. Anyone who speaks harshly, or makes even the slightest mistake, will be relentlessly reported on and swiftly eliminated." Zhang Yuanqing concluded his thoughts and began leading the shadowy figure on a haphazard pursuit of his rivals. With his current strength, if he fully deployed his reserves, he could defeat any opponent outside the top three within three minutes. To the other competitors, the strategy of this battle was clear: first, form alliances with teammates; second, seek out the battle armor; and third, find ways to provoke opponents into making errors, then report them. To Zhang Yuanqing, however, forming alliances could be postponed—indeed, it wasn't even a top priority. Since the highest-scoring player was his primary adversary, his most advantageous course of action was to swiftly eliminate rivals and reduce their threat. The sky above was overcast, heavy with gray clouds. The wind howling through the ruins carried a cold, crisp breath, rustling the green wild grass caught The city had fallen into disuse for several years. The stone paving along the main roads was now covered by a dark layer of mud, with only the slightly raised center of the road stubbornly exposing the cracks between the stones. Zhang Yuanqing maintained a distance of fifty meters from the deceased, allowing the first corpse to move prominently ahead, while he himself concealed his form behind successive fallen walls and scattered ruins, quietly following. After walking for about fifteen minutes, hardly any intact buildings remained—only crumbling walls and dust-laden webs of cobwebs, all conveying a sense of desolation and decay. Houses constructed of blue bricks and wood were particularly vulnerable to the passage of time. "The time has nearly reached thirty minutes," Zhang Yuanqing decided, and thus ordered the corpse to halt, hiding it within an abandoned residence, and waited quietly. A few minutes later, suddenly, a brilliant light erupted skyward, piercing the clouds and stirring the dark masses. "It's not far—about two hundred meters from me," Zhang Yuanqing exclaimed, immediately commanding the corpse to rush toward the source of the radiant glow, while he followed from a distance. Not long after, through the vision of the shadowed corpse, he saw stretches of the inner city's wall collapsing, and floating above the ruins of the city gate towers, a dark, heavy breastplate. The brilliant light shooting upward emanated from the breastplate. Zhang Yuanqing steered the shadowed corpse toward the wreckage to seize the breastplate. "Hoo!" As the shadowed corpse drew within ten meters of the breastplate, a compressed fire ball struck it from the slope. Unable to dodge amid its full-speed charge, the corpse extended its arms horizontally, and the fire ball exploded against its chest, sending out cascading waves of flame and stirring up dust from the ground. Among the scattered flames, a young man emerged—tall, athletic, with a strong, fighter's presence and sharp, focused eyes. Fire element! In the air, Tianxia Guihuo spread out her palms, and the flowing flames around her seemed alive, gathering spontaneously and quickly coalescing into a hot, spherical mass of fire. Tianxia Guihuo then descended, placing one palm firmly against the shadowed corpse's chest, where another thunderous explosion erupted, sending a violent gust of air that pushed both of them apart. Leveraging the thrust from the "Boom! Boom!" The gunfire erupted, two streaks of deep crimson flame flashing briefly. Tianxia Guihuo did not retreat. As a Level 3 Fire Master, he possessed exceptional fire resistance; the explosive-handled pistol wielded by Yuan Shishen could only cause minor injuries. As long as he secured the breastplate, these minor wounds were nothing. Ding! Ding! Two sharp impacts, accompanied by brilliant sparks, sent the floating breastplate flying. Zhang Yuanqing's target was not the opponent, but the artifact itself. Immediately after sending the breastplate flying, he activated Night-Wander mode, charging toward the object while issuing attack orders to the undead. "Hoo-hoo~" The damaged vocal cords of Wanheng No. 1 emitted a low, wild roar, like that of a beast. It bent its back, made a brief surge, then leapt three zhang high, crashing directly into Tianxia Guihuo. Shadows poured over him, and Tianxia Guihuo's muscles suddenly swelled, flames erupting across his body. He lowered his upper body, used his right hand to brace the ground, and then powerfully kicked his right leg upward. The first Wandering One took a hard kick, neither defending nor feeling the pain, gripping the kicking foot with both hands and driving her fists into the knee. As they closed in for close combat, Zhang Yuanqing had already reached the breastplate lying among the scattered stones, ready to bend down and pick it up—when suddenly a pleasant voice sang: "Over here, the handsome one, over here, over here—our performance is truly splendid!" Unconsciously, Zhang Yuanqing found himself deeply intrigued by the woman singing. The breastplate beneath his feet suddenly seemed less appealing. Following his bodily instinct, he turned his head. A few meters away, a faint, graceful figure swayed and danced with a vibrant, passionate rhythm, singing a melodious tune. This was a female spirit, yet her presence was somewhat blurred, lacking the purity of other spiritual forms. On the other side, the Heavenly Fire also couldn't resist the allure, turning his head to watch—only to be delivered a fierce beating by the first Wandering One. A servant of music? A mere musical prop? Zhang Yuanqing lightly bit his tongue, letting the pain sharpen his mind, and thus broke free from the musician's influence. When he looked down, he found his breastplate had vanished. A hazy figure raised the breastplate and swiftly drifted toward the halfway wall. A young man with a delicate appearance stepped out from behind the wall, his left hand adorned with various bracelets, holding a black bamboo flute. With his other hand, he took the breastplate from Le Nü and shouted to Tian Xia Gui Huo: "Got it!" Tian Xia Gui Huo responded with a hearty "Huh!" "Excellent. Proceed as planned—hold off Yuan Shi Tian Zun." Then, he leapt back, evading the attack from No. 1 of the Departed, and roared from deep within his chest: "Yuan Shi Tian Zun is here!" The sound echoed across the ruins. "Damn!" Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help but let out a string of expletives. At this very moment, the other contestants were undoubtedly drawn by the radiant light and were likely nearby, rushing toward the breastplate. However, Tian Xia Gui Huo's roar might very well cause them to reconsider their strategy and instead take cover in the vicinity. Thus, on his retreat, he was likely to face an ambush. "We must move quickly..." The thought struck him, and immediately he recalled the deceased No. 1, intending to take it for a night journey away. As the flames surged around Zhong Xiang Guihuo, transforming into a flowing stream of fire aimed at the shadow corpse, he fought desperately to delay the advance. The graceful female servant once again twisted her body, launching a vibrant dance while singing a melodious song: "Over here, handsome man! Over here! Over here!" Zhang Yuanqing's mind buzzed with the music, once again captivated, though this time, having prepared in advance, he bit his tongue, the pain helping him resist part of the allure. Then, Zhang Yuanqing raised his gun, aimed it at the music-impaired man, and fired. The music-impaired man retreated behind the city wall, where the bullets exploded into deep craters, sending stones flying. The strong control support was truly bothersome—had only he possessed the Purifying Staff of the Demons of the Realm, it would have been ideal. Zhang Yuanqing swiftly adjusted his plan, ignoring the music-impaired man and entering the night journey, advancing toward Zhong Xiang Cannot engage in a prolonged battle. First, coordinate with the Shadow Corpse to repel this intelligent Fire Master, then retreat with the Shadow Corpse. Upon seeing Zhang Yuanqing vanish, the mute instinctively becomes alert. As the world falls under the dominion of fire, he roars, "Play the flute—his target is me!" He then withstands the direct punch from the One of the Dead, using the force to push himself back. At the mute's command, he swiftly brings the flute to his lips. "Wooow—ahhh…" A mournful, deep flute melody rises, like needles piercing the soul, bringing a splitting pain across his head. Hmph. What good is a mutual destruction strategy? Forced to withdraw from the night journey, Zhang Yuanqing retreats, shielding his head while issuing retreat orders to the Shadow Corpse. The One of the Dead halts his pursuit of the Fire Master and turns to sprint. Suddenly, as he sprints, a vibrant, emerald vine lashes out, ensnaring his ankle like a touch. With sheer force, the One of the Dead dislodges it. Yet more vines emerge from the ground, wrapping around his ankles, legs, neck, and wrists. Dozens of Amidst a dense thicket of wild, unruly vines, Qing Songzi stood tall, arms folded. At the same time, several figures arrived—Zhao Chenguang with his shadowed corpse, Yuan Ting, and the land god dressed in leather garments. Except for Sun Miao Miao, who had not come, all six contestants reached on time and encircled Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn.