Not long after, the sixteen disciples left the Black Abyss Cave one after another and presented
themselves to the spectators, who had waited a long time outside the cave for that moment.
Moore came out first. His Spiritual Infant was at the peak of the medium stage. In the second round of
the melee, no one dared to go against him, so he won a place in the next round without a fight.
Two more disciples came out after Moore, both of them having a Spiritual Infant at the middle stage.
These two also performed splendidly, so most of the people had expected this outcome. They were
allowed to join the third round now and even had the chance to compete for first place in the newcomer
contest.
The disciples with primary Spiritual Infant came out next. However, they had been in school for at least
half a year, so they already had some qualifications.
Before long, most of the disciples who stood out in the second round had already come out of the cave,
while Eunice and Carla made up the rear.
Once the two girls exited the cave, they naturally attracted a lot of attention, as they were also the only
female disciples who had stayed in the second round. Moreover, they were both breathtakingly
beautiful.
Of course, Carla's strength needed no introduction. She was regarded as a seeded disciple from the
very beginning, which was a stark contrast compared to Eunice.
Eunice came as a surprise because she was a relatively new disciple who had just entered the Sky-
suppressing School, and her registered strength was only at the primary stage of the Spiritual Infant.
With such an identity and strength, none of them had expected her to be able to enter the third round.
"Where is Basil? Did he get eliminated?"
Carla anxiously wondered as she glanced around the disciples who had just come out. However, she
didn't find Rocky. Her delicate shoulders sagged lower, showing her disappointment.
"That's strange. Why isn't Hayden there either?
Even though Basil drew Hayden and his two companions away, he wouldn't be able to defeat three of
them at the same time. And Hayden should be able to enter the third round with his strength!"
Eunice noticed that Hayden and his two companions, who Rocky distracted earlier, hadn't passed the
second round either.
At this point, people were also whispering to each other curiously, as they had also noticed that only a
few dozen disciples had exited the cave. They, too, felt that something was off because thirty-two
disciples should have passed the second round of competition according to the arrangement of the
newcomer contest. These students would then proceed to the last stage. However, only a few dozen
had passed.
Felton soon appeared in front of everyone. He explained to the crowd that he made a temporary
decision during the contest's second round because of an accident. This, of course, caused a
commotion.
"Elder Felton, someone is missing," someone reported to Felton.
It seemed that the masters had checked the list of disciples in the third round and realized that only
fifteen disciples had made it out of the cave.
Upon hearing this, all the spectators glanced at each other in confusion. It appeared that the masters
had expected to find sixteen students outside, but after counting, they only found fifteen students in
front of them. One person was indeed missing.
"There's one more?
Who is it?
Does anybody know?"
Felton fired off question after question, frowning in consternation.
"According to the elimination list, Basil should be the last disciple to enter the third round," a master
replied.
"Basil passed?"
Felton was slightly surprised to hear Rocky's name because it sounded familiar to him.
He had heard of him before, as he was the disciple who had defeated Hayden and the two other
disciples.
However, the surrounding people hadn't heard of the name of Basil, so he was virtually unknown to
them.
"Did they say Basil's name?
So, he has also reached the end and entered the third round!" Both Eunice and Carla were astonished
but pleased to hear that.
"I'm sorry; I'm late." The next moment, a figure abruptly flew out of the Black Abyss Cave and landed
gently in front of everyone. He exuded a certain grace that better belonged on a stage.
All the people present studied this figure intently, their eyes roving over him and cataloging what they
could see. It was none other than Rocky. He finally made it!
The onlookers erupted in an uproar because they observed that Rocky's strength was ridiculously low.
He had the weakest strength of the sixteen participants in the third round, not to mention, the whole
newcomer contest. But this perplexed the people because there must be some kind of explanation. He
couldn't have passed to the third round with such strength!
Of course, if they had seen with their own eyes how he had defeated two high-level spiritual beasts
with one move of a high-level sword skill in the first round, they would not have doubted him so.
Felton studied Rocky keenly with his eyes that seemed to see through Rocky's soul. And then he
blankly announced to everyone, "The second round of the competition is over, and these sixteen
disciples who have passed will continue to the third round. The competition will commence the day
after tomorrow. I hope you can continue to work hard and strive for the best results."
After saying that, he left right away.
Once Felton had gone, the eliminated disciples also left the cave one after another, including Hayden
and his two companions, whom Rocky had defeated.
But when the three of them laid eyes on Rocky, they drew back, shaking with fear. They didn't even
dare to breathe heavily and quickly left his vicinity.
A flash of resentment crossed Hayden's face, but he knew well that Rocky had hidden his strength.
Even if he fought against Rocky head-on, it wouldn't do him any good.
Both Eunice and Carla also noticed the dejected expression of the three men, which only served to
surprise and confuse them. They couldn't help but wonder what had happened after Rocky drew the
three men away, and why the three men were eliminated while Rocky had entered the third round.
Just as the two women's curiosity was about to get the better of them, Rocky stole away, leaving them
no chance to get some answers.
Rocky disappeared for the next two days. In fact, he didn't show up until half an hour before the
newcomer contest's third round started.
"Where have you been?!"
Eunice was greatly relieved once Rocky reappeared. She had been worried that Hayden and the
others might have retaliated against him, so she felt restless and anxious.
"I found a place to cultivate in seclusion, so I stayed there the whole time,"
Rocky replied, shrugging indifferently.
"Shut up! Why did you have to cultivate in seclusion?
That doesn't make any sense," grumbled Eunice in dissatisfaction.
"Have they released the competition's match-up list yet?"
Ignoring Eunice's protest, Rocky didn't elaborate on his explanation and instead opted to ask for
updates.
"Yes, it just came out. We are in two different groups, and Moore is in my group. It seems that I have to
go all out. If I can defeat him, I will surely be the champion of this competition!"
Her eyes twinkled with confidence and firm resolution. Although she knew that Moore was stronger
than her, she still wouldn't give up without a fight.
"What about Carla?" Rocky asked casually.
"She is in your group, and she will likely stand out among the others in your group,"
Eunice predicted boldly.
"You think so?"
A faint smile played on Rocky's lips as he added, "Then I'll have a casual competition."
"It's all up to you because your task in the newcomer contest has already been completed.
Anyway, I don't expect you to reach the top of the newcomer contest," replied Eunice indifferently.
Rocky nodded at this and then proceeded to the field where his group was allocated.
Contrary to what he told Eunice, he didn't intend to treat this round lightly because he had a bigger
goal, which was to win first place in the newcomer contest. That was because, in the two days that he
had been cultivating in seclusion, he had gained new progress within the Scarlet Heaven Jade. Also,
he activated his Spiritual Infant further and was only one step away from the advanced
stage.
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