Chapter 1724: Crushing Defeat
The humans had two million cultivators spread over 340 warships. None of them were below fifth-stage Saint Realm. Everyone wanted a chance to prove themselves. Thus, everyone offered to fight. However, only 10 spots were available. How were they supposed to please everyone? Thus, the numerous young Gods started arguing with each other over the spots.
"Zhao Wei from my group is the strongest among all fifth-stage Saints. He will be the best candidate."
"Hmph. My follower, Zhan Peng, has the bloodline of the celestial peng. His combat strength is unrivaled. He must have one of the spots."
"Not only is my disciple unrivaled among his peers, but his speed is the fastest as well. He has the absolute advantage on the battlefield. He must be one of the fighters."
"I, Wang Chong, have survived nine excursions into the Devil Domain and have contributed immensely to humanity. Let me take part in this battle."
...
The humans argued with each other, unable to reach a decision, turning them into a laughing stock.
"You humans are truly fearless. Well done!" said Mao Gangqiang with a smile.
A different alien said, "I have long heard about how much humans loved fighting among themselves. Looks like the rumors are true."
When the humans heard the aliens, they felt humiliated.
Ling Ziruo said, "Let's draw lots to decide on the combatants. That way, we will stop making a fool out of ourselves before the aliens."
Many agreed with her suggestion, so they started the lot drawing. The ones who managed to draw the appropriate lots would be able to fight. As for the rest, they had to wait for the next round.
Soon, 10 combatants were picked. Nobody from Xiang Shaoyun's side was included among the 10. All 10 of them were fifth-stage Saints. They all stepped forth confidently, prepared to fight the 10 alien combatants. They decided to have all the combatants fight each other one on one instead of fighting together.
"Let me harvest the first alien head and bring glory to us humans!" roared a man with a saber in his hand. A boundless saber intent erupted from his body as he charged his opponent.
He had mastered the dao of sabers, possessing the strength to fight above his class. He was quite an impressive cultivator. Alas, his strength was nothing for the aliens. The alien charged toward the saber user, easily avoiding the saber slashes with his flexible body before releasing an indescribable power that sealed the man's body.
Fighting in a manner where he took on his opponent's attacks to deliver his own attacks at his opponent, the alien managed to tear his human opponent into pieces. After tearing his human opponent apart, the alien opened his mouth and devoured the human remains.
"Tsk tsk, decent taste," said the alien with a satisfied smile.
The other humans felt disgusted at what they saw. Meanwhile, the other human combatants were also being killed by their respective opponents. Ultimately, all ten human combatants were killed, while all the alien combatants survived. Among them, only two had suffered serious injuries. That was not a result the humans could accept.
"Humans, you are too weak. Why don't you give up already? Hahaha!"
"Too weak. They can't even withstand a single blow. I reckon they won't even have the courage to fight us anymore after this."
The aliens started feeling smug from their victory. As for the humans, they couldn't even bring themselves to smile. They could only silently pick ten new combatants among the sixth-stage Saints, hoping to prevail this time and restore some morale.
Yet another round of battles progressed. Of the ten human combatants, only one of them was able to kill an alien through luck. All the other human combatants were killed. In short, the humans suffered yet another crushing defeat.
Gongsun Sanyang said, "We can't allow this to continue. For the next round, we will personally appraise the combatants before they are allowed to fight. We can't send our people to their deaths like this. Our morale is plummeting."
His suggestion received the support of the majority of the young Gods. Thus, a committee of judges was selected and formed from the strongest of the young Gods. They would be the ones to decide on the combatants.
After all, with the strength of these young Gods, it wouldn't be much of an issue for them to detect the stronger ones among the Saints. Xiang Shaoyun was excluded from the committee, but he did not care. In any case, he still needed some time. He would not easily make a move. When it was finally time for him to make a move, he would accomplish something so great that he would shock everyone with that one singular feat.
The third round would proceed among seventh-stage Saints. As usual, no combatant from Xiang Shaoyun's group was selected. However, a lady of the Guangling Palace had been selected as a combatant.
For the third round, they did much better. Of the ten combatants, three were victorious, while the other seven perished in battle. Holding the complete upper hand, the aliens became increasingly arrogant. As for the humans, their confidence had been completely crushed.
After the three rounds, the humans were forced to ask for a break and to resume the fights on a different day. The aliens did not mind. They were confident they could deal with any trick the humans might come up with.
The humans retreated to a nearby lifeless planet. There, Qin Jiu and Gongsun Sanyang gathered the numerous young Gods for a discussion. Most of them arrived, including even Xiang Shaoyun. This concerned the fate of humans, so he would gladly partake in it.
"Everyone, you saw what happened. For the three rounds today, we suffered a crushing defeat. If this continues, it is only a matter of time before we suffer complete defeat. There will be no hope for us when the actual war starts," said Qin Jiu.
"What do you have in mind, Young Master Jiu?" asked someone.
"I suggest that we pick the combatants for tomorrow right now and supply them with some trump cards that they can use to obtain victory tomorrow," suggested Qin Jiu.
"Would it be proper for us to achieve victory with the help of tools?" asked Gongsun Sanyang.
"Why does that matter? Anything goes for victory," said Qin Jiu.
"That would only make us look weak," argued Gongsun Sanyang.
"We have already lost three rounds. Do you want this to continue?" asked Qin Jiu.
At this time, Ji Feixian said, "Everyone, stop hiding your strength. I believe all of you have stronger experts under you. Let them fight and supply them with the best equipment. If we lost even with that, then there's nothing I can say."
"That's right. Some changes are needed if we want to win," said Mo Du.
"Sure, we can do that for the fight between the Saints. What about the fight between Gods?" asked Gongsun Sanyang.
Everyone sank into silence. They could use god-grade weapons to help their Saints win, but for the fight between Gods, who would be willing to hand their trump cards to others? Furthermore, there was the risk that they would lose the supplied equipment in the event of a defeat.
"Let's focus on the battle between Saints first. We will switch tactics during the battle between Gods," said Qin Jiu.
"I think we should ask for that overlord's opinion. He once led an army of one thousand to the outside domain. He has more courage than many among us. Perhaps he will have a good suggestion," Celestial War King suddenly said.
Di Lin, who had been keeping a low profile, also chimed in, "Yes. That overlord claims himself to be unrivaled among his peers. He's also the brilliant disciple of Lord Ge Yi. Perhaps he will have a good suggestion for us."
That caused everyone to focus on Xiang Shaoyun, curious as to what he would do.
Xiang Shaoyun raised his head and smiled. "Are you asking for my suggestion?"
"Since everyone is asking, say what you have in mind," said Qin Jiu.
"I think that there is no need for us to waste our time like this. We should just directly trash all the aliens," said Xiang Shaoyun domineeringly.