The Rise of the Black Plain

After finishing talking about what would and would not be allowed in the fights, that old soldier who presented the situation to the competitors gave his turn to someone else.

The rules were not complicated at all and were only there to keep the matches as balanced as possible, limiting the side of the soldiers so that the competitors had a chance of winning. After all, even if the power was equal, the soldiers had more valuable items and also fought more often than these people.

Each soldier had to complete many monthly fighting hours as a form of regular examination. That was done to prepare them for the fights they might face at any time in the future.

Fighting was not a tricky thing. It would not require great intelligence. However, considering someone's characteristics and equipment, having the best fighting proficiency demanded constant training, like real fights.

This involved commitment and a routine!

It would be no use for a cultivator to go into a cave and train for decades, cultivating and improving his understanding of his techniques. If he didn't go through constant fights against different types of opponents, his weaknesses could go unnoticed!

With this, if the training were not well done, with challenges and fights against different people, the day would come when that fighter would be left behind his opponents!

That could be compared to the athlete who doesn't rest properly and doesn't train because he's talented or something. By doing this, a talented person could maintain a decent performance for a while. However, over the years, his body would no longer follow his thoughts, and problems would start to appear...

Therefore, constantly challenging yourself, following a regular training routine was the best way for people to improve or maintain their high level!

And for this, the soldiers of the Black Plain Army had to fight several hours monthly against opponents of the same strength range.

In fact, the fights that would take place in this last part of the selection were something with that purpose as well. That was a way for soldiers in Minos' organization to learn what it would be like to fight higher-level opponents but with lower-ranked techniques.

Finally, there were also several simple rules in this last part of the selection. For example, it was not allowed to kill or cripple nor maliciously attack an opponent's intimate areas. It was also not allowed to use any tricks that blocked the opponent's vision unless a spiritual skill or technique generated it.

The fight would be ended when one of the sides was unable to fight or in cases of withdrawal. As for the fight limit, even though it takes place on the headquarters arena stage, there would be no punishment if someone were thrown out of it.

That was not a competition to ascertain the ability to fight in a small space but to examine the proficiency of these competitors. Winning within the stage area would have no relevance, as in real situations, such a thing would never matter.

Finally, there was no time limit for fights. As long as the two sides could keep fighting, no match would be stopped.

Eventually, other people sitting around that table on the arena stage then got up from their chairs and started talking. "Well, now that the fight rules have been explained, let's go to the last topic."

After saying this, this woman dressed in a uniform with the mark of the Sergeant rank then waved to the soldiers in that place and then continued to speak. "Now, let's talk about when and who each of you will fight in this last part of the selection. The matches will follow the descending order of the cultivation stages."

"In other words, those candidates from the 5th stage will fight first, while those from the 3rd stage will be last."

Upon hearing this, the approximately 3,500 competitors in the arena's stands began to make some comments in low voices while that woman had a moment of silence.

"Ah, that was to be expected. I've heard that in the army, even those with the highest level receive their salary before others..."

"That means I'll still have more time to prepare..."

"Damn, I'm more anxious now. I'll probably have my fight this morning..."

At the same time, Alina also had her thoughts about it. 'There are few competitors from the 5th stage of cultivation, and their fights will also be more intense. It will probably be the fastest group!'

'No wonder we're going to fight last... In fact, there isn't even an audience to watch these fights, so there's no point in having to follow the increasing order of strength.'

And then that soldier spoke again. "The choice of your opponents has already been made in the days that have passed since the last examination of the selection. The same goes for the date and time of your fights."

"However, know that each fight can take place either before or after the stipulated time. It will depend on the duration of the fights before yours. But rest assured, the fights that can start before the time will only happen if the competitor is already here, ready to fight."

"Otherwise, the schedule will follow the order already established."

After saying this, a group of soldiers on the sides of the stands gathered at the entrances of each one of them, with several boxes full of papers.

That soldier from before then explained. "These soldiers will call you, by your cultivation stage and alphabetical order. Each of you will receive a small timetable, where you will find the time of your fights."

When they finished hearing this, soon, those competitors turned to the sides where those soldiers were and began to pay attention.

And it wasn't long before one of those soldiers screamed aloud. "Competitors from the 5th stage of cultivation..."

Simultaneously, the 70 competitors, who were at least level 40, got up at different points in the crowd, heading towards the place where the soldier from before was.

And it didn't take long for each of them to receive a sheet of paper, with the names of each one of them, along with the opponents' names and the fight times.

...

"Competitors from the 4th stage of cultivation, with names starting with the letter 'A' to 'I,' come here..."

...

"Competitors from the 4th stage of cultivation, with names starting with the letter 'J' to 'R,' come here..."

...

"Competitors from the 3rd stage of cultivation, with names starting with the letter 'S' through to 'Z,' come here..."

...

After almost an hour of this coming and going of competitors, who were receiving their schedules and returning to their seats, finally, everyone received papers with the time of their fights.

At that moment, another person who was on that stage then started to speak. "Well, now that each of you knows when and who you'll face, I'll give you the last warning."

"For each of the fights, we recommend that you arrive at least 15 minutes in advance. That is because you will only be allowed to enter the fighting stage after having your identities verified and also passing through the inspect." He said as he looked towards the competitors.

Of course, Minos' army would not fail to identify the competitors' identity by the vacancies offered. After all, fraud was not uncommon to happen, as many people were willing to cheat established rules.

Thus, to prevent any infiltration from interfering with the progress of the selection, only those duly classified participants could fight. Moreover, they would prove their identities with their civilian IDs, which would allow the army to know their status in the selection.

As for the inspection, this was to comply with the rules mentioned above.

Spiritual artifacts could only be used if competitors proved they needed them. So, before the fight happened, they would have to justify using the equipment and be inspected so that no one would enter the fighting stage with more than necessary.

The purpose of the exam was to assess the competitors' capabilities and not the potential of their artifacts!

A spiritual array, or something like that, was not necessary for any spiritual technique. However, such items could significantly improve the conditions of a battle for one of the fighters!

For this reason, such things were prohibited here.

After giving this last warning, the presentation of this last part of the competition was over, and it was time for the fights to start!