Before long, Xu Mang, a disciple of the eighth-ranked Jingyang Palace in the artifact refining world, extinguished the three-colored flame and stood out.

Following closely, Huang Chunzhu, a disciple of the ninth-ranked Fuming Valley, also extinguished the three-colored flame energy to seek adjudication at the center of the field.

These two sects did not, like other sects, relentlessly pursue Shi Chun in the Mystical Flame Region; they focused on their own affairs, reaping modest gains from the accumulation of their sect's inherited experience.

Of course, not pursuing that so-called secret technique was not because they didn't want to; it was because they had run far away following their inherited experience upon entering the Mystical Flame Region, distancing themselves from the masses, and by the time they learned of it, it was too late.

Knowing late isn't necessarily a bad thing; blessings and misfortunes are interrelated. Yan Chunlai, the lead disciple of the seventh-ranked Dong Xiao Island, only acquired two divine fires, while Du Da, the lead disciple of the tenth-ranked Fall Flame Mountain, acquired only one. These two had wasted their time pursuing Shi Chun.

Thus, in the current competition, these two found it extremely taxing. How could a major sect within the top ten allow themselves to be outdone in the first round by those ranked below them? Although they knew achieving anything in the second round was hopeless, precisely because of this knowledge, they couldn't afford to appear inferior in the first round.

So the two of them really gave it their all.

Yan Chunlai from Dong Xiao Island was almost done right after Huang Chunzhu from Fuming Valley, stepping forward with his chest heaving.

"Good job!"

"Well done, Senior Brother Yan!"

The disciples of Dong Xiao Island in the audience cheered enthusiastically, as Yan Chunlai's speed in refining two divine fires almost matched Huang Chunzhu's.

However, the expressions of Dong Xiao Island's higher-ups turned serious. They realized Yan Chunlai's excessive exertion in this effort, consuming his energy for the next round, making it extremely disadvantageous for the subsequent competition. Yet, they could understand Yan Chunlai's motives.

Yan Chunlai was desperate due to a strategic error made while leading in the Mystical Flame Region.

The same situation occurred for Du Da, the disciple of Fall Flame Mountain, who extinguished the flames and panted heavily as he reported to the judges, feeling relieved.

At this point, the leading figures of the disciples from the ten great sects entering the competition have essentially all advanced.

The only one who could advance with them was Tong Mingshan.

Subsequently, those who advanced in succession were also, to a significant extent, other disciples from the ten great sects, such as Yuan Yao and Pang Hou from Shudao Mountain.

Among the participants from other sects after the ten great sects, hardly anyone managed to absorb more than one divine fire.

The key reason for the gap lies in the accumulated experience of the sects, leaving little room for luck.

Of course, this time around, the bigger reason was due to greed and desire; many sects wished to achieve significant gains by joining the pursuit of Shi Chun's group, wasting considerable time.

A stick of incense already burned to its end, yet some people were unwilling to give up, striving arduous refinements.

Seeing the situation, Wu Jinliang strolled to the beside standing sect and inquired, "In this competition, it seems only the victor gets a prize, and the rest are just extras. The reality is clear, yet they still don't give up, why waste effort?"

The nearby person replied, "It's not like that, let me put it this way: no sect has unlimited resources to supply, not everyone can casually obtain a large amount of resources to practice. And the thirty-six types of divine fires have different properties; not all are suitable as the main refining flame when coupled with your cultivation method. Some work as supplemental, it's a case-by-case basis.

Getting through the first round implies one can manage both, and at the very least, the sect would be willing to invest resources for training. Those who can't make it are debatable. Moreover, this competition happens only once every three or four centuries. Almost the entire artifact refining world is watching; passing the first round already makes one famous, even more so when advancing in subsequent rounds. In this competitive artifact refining world, standing out is more important than any reward. To outsiders, they would rather spend more to have something refined by a famous artisan at the same level."

Wu Jinliang gave a nod of understanding; it all came down to fame and fortune.

Despite the competitors giving it their all, as the incense burned out, regrets emerged. Out of roughly 130 participants, only 52 advanced in the first round, leaving over 80 people disappointed in front of everyone.

Some felt they were just a bit short, needing a little more time. But reality is this cruel, and with the hosting elder from the Li Huo Sect shouting "First round ends," everything in front of them really ended, no stubbornness would help.

Some looked up to the sky and sighed, some shed tears on the spot.

Whether they accepted it or not, they were all asked to leave the competition field.

Even Shi Chun sighed unceasingly from his viewpoint as a monk; those able to refine steel with bare hands were already quite impressive.

Once the on-site competition paused, the surrounding audience felt their breathing ease considerably, the prior display of divine fire from over a hundred people made the air thin and hard to breathe. Had they not been monks, standing at the scene could well have meant fainting.

In the center of the field, those hosting the competition produced an iron board with one hundred grid squares placed flat on the ground.

Then, oversight personnel sent by the ten great sects entered jointly, publicly performing spells, dispatching various flames to push the metals refined earlier by the disciples back into the air for additional refinement and purification.

Once some impurities are further removed and the requirement met, the melting iron slowly poured down, flowing into the hundred grid squares, with some excesses.

Someone holding a ruler-like tool swept across the overs. Then another person brushed a pale blue flame across the grid, and the red molten iron instantly cooled and turned black.

The iron plate was lifted and knocked over a table, with over a hundred square iron lumps clattering down, each about the size of a fist.

Then, under everyone's gaze, the over a hundred iron lumps were mixed together, like stir-frying into a pile, shuffled up.

When the people in front of the table stepped aside, the hosting elder loudly announced: "Second Round Competitors, come to receive refining materials, one piece per person."

The remaining fifty-two rushed to the items at the table.

They faced a second body search before collecting items, not allowed to carry any artifact refining materials or storage devices.

Meanwhile, the disciples from the Li Huo Sect swiftly rearranged the positions of the fifty-two competitors evenly.

After obtaining an iron lump, each participant selected new positions, choosing in order, and the last ones took whatever spots remained.

With about eighty people less, the remaining competitors had significantly more spacing.

Once the fifty-two were all in place, the hosting elder surveyed the scene, waiting for a moment. Seeing no objections, he pulled out a considerably larger incense stick. It was incense capable of burning for a full hour.

While not precisely timed, it didn't matter; time was the same for all fifty-two refining participants, and some minor variance wasn't critical.

As the hosting elder ignited the incense and walked slowly towards the incense burner, even Shi Chun instinctively tensed up, knowing that the real competition had truly begun; prior activities were just to clear space for real contestants.

Whether he could win the three important treasures was crucial. Facing this competition beyond his control, he felt a degree of apprehension.

Thinking again, Tong Mingshan's talent and technique in artifact refining indeed lagged behind those major sect disciples'. However, having absorbed twenty-six divine fires, with the right 'tools,' there is no reason he shouldn't take first place.

He didn't consciously know what he was worrying about until his gaze locked onto Li Hongjiu at the scene, eyes narrowing slightly, realizing the source of his unease and recalling Li Hongjiu's intimidating boast.

When others said this, he might have dismissed it as nonsense, but Li Hongjiu, he has witnessed before, was genuinely uncanny. The terrifying scene of thunder all over the sky was fresh in his memory, where even a fifth-grade Magical Treasure couldn't withstand his High Martial Realm's assault, and an immobilization charm couldn't hold him.

Also, it's apparent in the Earth Heart Tower that this guy doesn't seem interested in Divine Fire, though it's unclear if he's bluffing.

Nevertheless, the guy may very well be spewing nonsense; he had encountered it before—an anomaly within the famed sects.

But to someone from the Land of Exile like himself, crisis detection was sharp, recognizing something triggered vigilance.

However, no matter how cautious he was now, it was of no avail.

After some contemplation, he suddenly shouted, "Brother Jiu, I believe you can undoubtedly win. No one else is fit to carry your shoes!"

Because he figured out, whether Tong Mingshan or Li Hongjiu wins, currying favor with Li Hongjiu in advance didn't hurt and let everyone see.

It was about forging an ironclad brotherhood since he currently couldn't find a second person who could unleash that spectacular Thunder Sword to aid his cultivation.

No matter how challenging the path forward might be, he had recognized Li Hongjiu as a brother, and no one could separate them.

He also hoped to remind Yanbao Sect's disciples constantly that he was Li Hongjiu's brother and should not be blocked seeking him out there.

In the heavy atmosphere, his sudden remark drew everyone's eyes to him.

Holding an iron lump, about to rush time for refining, Li Hongjiu blankly turned, hearing the shout, spotting Shi Chun.

Shi Chun vigorously waved, as if indicating his presence.

Despite Li Hongjiu's forced smile, it didn't matter to Shi Chun as long as Li Hongjiu didn't deny it, which equated to acknowledging, the rest was unimportant.

The onlookers from the Hundred Refinement Sect glanced at Shi Chun in surprise, wondering why he bent over backward for Li Hongjiu, not even matching their own Sect Master.

This was the reason, causing other sects to realize Shi Chun and Li Hongjiu's complex relationship.

Someone whispered quietly, "Wasn't it said that Li Hongjiu pursued Shi Chun in the Divine Fire Region?"

Young Master Nan seated on the mountainside straightened, pondering the situation, wondering if he heard correctly.

Even Mulan Jin at the mountain-top pavilion gazed into the valley with surprise.

Inside, holding an iron lump, Tong Mingshan couldn't help but smile wryly.

Nearby, Wu Jinliang chuckled, commenting to someone, "Just told me to shut up!"

Then he suddenly shouted, "Sect Master is here!"

This time, no one echoed this call, as Chu Jingtang and others shrank their heads, unwilling to clash with the Master.

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