Outside the barrier, the audience was in an uproar, with many left dumbfounded.
Even the bald man serving as the referee cast a peculiar glance at the young man before loudly declaring:
"Han Li of the Luo Yun Sect, victory!"
Han Li, maintaining his composure, bowed to the referee before calmly exiting the barrier.
Subsequently, two disciples from the Ancient Sword Sect rushed into the arena to carry out the unconscious Yao Feng and try to revive him.
At this moment, the short elderly man outside the arena stared in disbelief, his face turning incredibly grim.
Although he had known there must be something unusual about a disciple with such low cultivation participating in the conference, he had never imagined that the other party would use talismans as their main attack. His highly anticipated disciple had lost in a single move, and this left him utterly humiliated after mocking the red-robed elder earlier.
For a moment, an awkward expression appeared on his face, and he found himself unable to utter a single word.
"Haha! Brother Duan, your disciple is quite interesting. To use talismans worth several dozen spirit stones in one go is quite something. Though it's somewhat crafty, being able to activate so many fireball talismans simultaneously is no easy feat and shows considerable skill. Ordinary disciples wouldn't be able to handle them so proficiently," said Elder Fu with a chuckle after observing Han Li's match.
"It's nothing special! Our disciple is a talisman maker, so using talismans to attack is normal for him. However, even I was surprised that he was willing to use so many talismans at once," the red-robed elder responded, feeling a sense of satisfaction upon seeing Jiang Yun's frustration, although he downplayed it verbally.
"Hmph! It's just because he had more talismans. Now that everyone knows his method, your disciple won't get far in the subsequent matches," Jiang Yun muttered spitefully.
"Oh, really?" the red-robed elder replied with a sly smile, saying nothing more.
"However, your disciple's agility seems to resemble a mortal's light body technique; otherwise, he couldn't have surprised Junior Nephew Yao so quickly," commented the scholarly man in a green robe, glancing at Han Li, who had returned to the Luo Yun Sect's ranks.
"Brother Bai noticed too! This disciple was a rogue cultivator before joining our sect, so his skills are somewhat mixed. It must have amused your sect," the red-robed elder replied, showing a bit of surprise.
"It's nothing. I once had an interest in mortal martial arts and studied a bit. While such techniques are useless for high-level cultivators, they can still enhance a Qi Refining disciple's strength when used cleverly. Moreover, your disciple seems highly experienced in real combat. It's no disgrace for our sect's disciple to lose," the scholarly man said with a smile.
While the high-ranking cultivators of the three sects were conversing leisurely, a gray-robed elder from the Luo Yun Sect, now acting as the referee, announced with a blank expression:
"The second match: Ruan Tianci of the Hundred Crafts Hall versus Zhou Xu of the Ancient Sword Sect."
Following this announcement, two young men from the Hundred Crafts Hall and the Ancient Sword Sect stepped forward, exchanged formal bows, and upon the elder's signal to "begin," each started casting spells, releasing their artifacts to engage in combat.
The Core Formation cultivators of the three sects immediately shifted their focus from the previous match to closely watch the new one.
Perhaps influenced by Han Li's earlier fight, these two disciples fought more conservatively, making the match somewhat dull for the spectators.
