As their attention was drawn to the open rivalry between the Jiang and Ye families, Xu Mu, who was considered to have no further fighting power, had quietly won five consecutive matches.
"Record: six wins, zero losses. Rank on the leaderboard is... four thousand four hundred and fifty-second place."
Within the secret realm, Xu Mu calmly observed this ranking, then nodded slightly.
This rank should be enough for him to advance to the next round; he didn't need to fight anymore.
With less than half an incense stick's time remaining until the end of this round, there wasn't much he could do, so he could only check the leaderboard.
"Jiang Sheng, four wins, one loss. Rank: two hundred and one thousand nine hundred and ten. It's very close, but this record should also get him into the second round." Xu Mu scrolled up from the bottom, and upon seeing Jiang Sheng's ranking, he truly broke out in a cold sweat for him.
"Qian Qian, nine wins, zero losses, ranked eighth hundred and ninety-second. Xu Mu's eyebrows slightly raised, somewhat surprised. It seemed Qian Qian was not only strong but also very lucky.
The luck mentioned here was not derogatory, as Xu Mu had no doubt about Qian Qian's strength. He was certain that the latter's combat skills were honed in the face of life and death. However, to achieve nine wins in such a short period, relying solely on those skills was not enough.
This place was a melting pot, with opponents of varying quality. Even geniuses as powerful as Qi Ye had lost a match to him.
No matter how strong Qian Qian was, he couldn't be stronger than Qi Ye, which was why Xu Mu felt he was lucky.
As Xu Mu pondered these thoughts, he continued to scroll up the leaderboard. By the hundreds of places, surnames from the major clans like Jiang, Ye, Qi, and Wang began to appear more frequently, almost one in every ten rankings.
"Jiang Taixu, seventeen wins, zero losses, ranked first." Upon seeing this, the calmness in Xu Mu's eyes vanished, replaced by a look of profound surprise.
To achieve seventeen consecutive wins in such a short time and hold the top spot was not something ordinary people could accomplish.
Even without using that blade, achieving this feat with just his third-stage physique would have been a little difficult.
And if he hadn't had those strange fortuitous encounters, such as the sacred relics, the Heavenly Tree inheritance, as well as the Fuxi Bagua and that heart, he likely wouldn't have been able to achieve seventeen consecutive wins solely on his own strength.
But luckily, he did.
Xu Mu clicked his tongue. He finally understood why Qi Ye had conceded. This Jiang Taixu seemed truly formidable, and if he wanted to hunt Xu Mu, he absolutely couldn't afford to lose even a tiny bit of stamina.
"Second place, Ye Gong, fourteen wins, zero losses. Could it be someone from the Ye family?" Xu Mu silently committed Jiang Taixu's name to memory, then noticed the person ranked second. His surname was Ye.
"This Ye Gong seems stronger than Ye Que. So why is he here?"
Xu Mu was full of questions. Since Ye Que could obtain a qualification for the Myriad Races Assembly in advance, why hadn't Ye Gong?
Moreover, Jiang Taixu could clearly obtain the qualification. Why did he come to participate in the preliminaries?
At this moment, Xu Mu was unaware that discussions had been ongoing outside for a long time, and they had all known the answer. But Xu Mu didn't.
"Forget it, I won't think about it."
Seeing the stone tablet indicate that the current round of matches would end in three seconds, Xu Mu simply stood up straight, preparing to welcome the second round of assessment.
Buzz!
As the three-second countdown ended, the space where Xu Mu was located instantly became a sea of people. Countless young geniuses appeared out of thin air, exuding powerful and dangerous auras. The crowd was dense, filling the grassy area. Even on the steep mountainside of the ten-thousand-meter peak, two young ability users appeared.
"What's going on? The first round is over? Did we pass or not!"
"I don't know. Speaking of which, are the preliminary assessments in previous years also like this? Why put us in such a crowded place as Qing Shan? My feet are almost stomped flat!"
"Be content, my friend. Look at the few people hanging on the mountainside to your right. They can't go up or down, and they're almost scared to pee!"
"It's true! Hahahaha..."
The scene was chaotic, with hundreds of thousands of people speaking almost simultaneously. The discussions turned into an annoying buzzing in Xu Mu's mind, making him cover his ears with his hands.
"Everyone, congratulations to the three hundred and twenty thousand contestants for passing the first round of the assessment."
At this moment, a face obscured by clouds and mist suddenly appeared in the void. It seemed to be an ancestor of a certain family. His voice was ancient yet filled with authority.
As he spoke, the previously noisy Void Cleansing Secret Realm immediately fell silent.
"Finally, some peace." Xu Mu reluctantly lowered his hands and then focused his gaze on the old man in the void.
"Next, you will undergo the second round of assessment. This time, twenty-four thousand people will be eliminated, and only eighty thousand geniuses will advance to the third round!"
"Just like the first round, the second round of the Myriad Races Assembly preliminaries will still take place in this Void Cleansing Secret Realm. The scope of activity for the contestants will no longer be restricted. The entire Void Cleansing Secret Realm, or rather, the entire Great Qing Mountain, will be your freely accessible range."
"Here, you can acquire points through various means, such as killing demons, clearing pollution sources, or engaging in combat. The duration is fifteen days. If you wish to withdraw midway, crushing the jade slip will transport you out of the Void Cleansing Secret Realm."
"And I must specifically point out that no one is allowed to use forbidden talismans, magic artifacts, or similar items during combat. Violators will be directly eliminated and forever barred from participating in the Myriad Races Assembly!"
The old man's voice was stern and clearly reached everyone's ears. Most of their faces showed a hint of solemnity.
They had not expected the second round to be in this format, where survival of the fittest applied. For the weak, let alone advancing to the third round, even their lives would be in question.
"Your win-loss records from the first round will be carried over to this second round as your initial points. Each victory is worth one hundred points."
"Regarding the rules of this second round, does anyone have any questions?"
The old man spoke and slowly closed his mouth, waiting for the geniuses below to ask questions.
But after a few seconds, the scene remained silent.
"Since there are none, please be prepared. I now announce that the second round of the Myriad Races Assembly preliminaries officially begins!"
As the old man's voice fell, Xu Mu found the scene before his eyes rapidly changing again.
Green mountains, clear water, caves, flashed past his eyes in succession. Finally, after a dizzying spin, Xu Mu found himself appearing beside a babbling stream.
Chirp, chirp!
Xu Mu gazed at his reflection in the stream, lost in thought for a moment, then was immediately startled by birdsong.
He followed the sound and looked up, seeing a flock of birds flying out in a panic from the nearby woods.
Clearly, someone was over there.
Xu Mu didn't pay much attention and instead focused on the jade slip in his hand.
That object was no larger than a thumbnail, smooth and emerald green, emitting a crystalline grand dao light, seemingly condensed from the grand dao laws of this Void Cleansing Secret Realm. The moment he used his divine soul to establish a connection, Xu Mu perceived a line of text gently flowing into his sea of consciousness, as smooth as rice wine flowing down the throat.
"Zone: Sixteen."
"Name: Mu Xu."
"Points: Six hundred."
"Rank: Four thousand four hundred and fifty-second."
"Points from ordinary beasts: one. Tier one demon beast: ten. Tier two demon beast: fifty. Tier three demon beast: five hundred. Tier four demon beast: one hundred thousand. Tier five: data not yet available."