Chapter 252: Grand Finals Process and Rules
After resting for a night, the group finally arrived at their destination on the second day, Spirit City.
As the core city of Spirit Hall, it naturally had its own special regulations. For example, the 500 Heaven Dou Royal Knights responsible for escorting them along the way were not allowed to enter the city and could only remain stationed outside. Only Xue Qinghe, representing the Heaven Dou Empire, along with the 13 participating teams, were permitted to enter.
Spirit City was much smaller than the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire, but the city walls and internal construction were just as impressive, if not even better.
One had to know that this city had been entirely funded and built by Spirit Hall. Its enormous wealth completely surpassed that of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, let alone the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Aside from the strength of its Spirit Masters, even in terms of finances, Spirit Hall could be described as wealthy enough to rival an entire empire.
When Yu Tianlin and his group arrived, Spirit Hall sent a Cardinal to receive them and directly arranged for all of them to stay at a hotel in the western district of the city.
It was worth mentioning that, according to what Yu Tianlin knew, the 15 participating teams from the Star Luo Empire had been arranged in a hotel in the eastern district. It seemed Spirit Hall had deliberately separated the two sides.
Yu Tianlin could roughly guess Spirit Hall's purpose in doing this. It was nothing more than concern that if the teams from the two great empires mixed together, it might lead to some major conflict.
Yu Tianlin did not care much about that anyway. He did not know anyone among the participating teams from the Star Luo Empire, so being arranged separately was just fine.
Although all the participating teams from the two great empires had already arrived, the Grand Finals did not begin immediately. Spirit Hall gave the teams 3 days of rest to recover and adjust their condition.
During those 3 days, the members of Thunder Academy did not wander around the city. Instead, they remained in seclusion at the hotel, devoting most of their time to meditation and cultivation so they could maintain peak condition.
That situation only changed on the day before the Grand Finals officially began. Vice Dean, who was leading the team, gathered everyone together because he needed to explain the upcoming situation.
After his gaze swept over the group, it stopped on Shui Bing'er, and he spoke, "First, I have some good news for everyone. Shui Bing'er broke through her Spirit Power yesterday and has now reached level 47, which further strengthens our team."
Hearing Vice Dean's words, everyone immediately looked at Shui Bing'er in surprise, and she responded with a smile.
That was right. After 2 days of focused cultivation, Shui Bing'er had finally advanced another level. However, since everyone else had also been meditating at the time, she had not disturbed them and had only informed Vice Dean first, who was now using this opportunity to announce it to everyone.
As the second strongest fighter on the team, and also the holder of the powerful Martial Soul Fusion Skill as a trump card, Shui Bing'er's breakthrough in Spirit Power just before the Grand Finals was undoubtedly excellent news for everyone.
Only after Shui Bing'er finished receiving everyone's congratulations did Vice Dean officially begin explaining the situation of the Grand Finals.
"Everyone should already know the rules of the Grand Finals, but I still need to stress a few points."
"The Grand Finals are not like the previous Preliminary Rounds or Elimination Rounds, where losing 1 or 2 matches was acceptable as long as your overall ranking remained high enough. The Grand Finals follow a direct knockout system."
"In other words, if you lose even a single match, you are immediately eliminated. Only the winning side can advance to the next round. So during the Grand Finals, you must not lose even once!"
Everyone nodded in response.
Yu Tianlin even laughed and said, "Don't worry, Uncle Vice Dean. We never planned on losing in the first place."
Vice Dean glared at Yu Tianlin and said irritably, "You must not underestimate the enemy! In the previous Preliminary and Elimination Rounds, simply maintaining a good enough record to qualify was sufficient, so it is very likely that some teams have been hiding their strength. Now that we have entered the Grand Finals, where losing means immediate elimination, those teams that were hiding their strength will no longer hold back. If you are careless, you may suffer a disastrous defeat!"
Hiding strength?
In Yu Tianlin's eyes, in this entire tournament, only the seeded Spirit Hall Academy Team and Heaven Dou Royal Academy Team One posed even a slight threat to them. Even if the other teams had hidden some strength, they definitely would not be his match, so he was not too concerned.
Of course, seeing Vice Dean's serious expression, Yu Tianlin still suppressed his smile and put on a solemn face.
Seeing Yu Tianlin correct his attitude, Vice Dean continued, "Under normal circumstances, the Grand Finals should have 3 pre-qualified seeded teams, plus the 15 teams that advanced from each of the two great empires, making a total of 33 teams. However, as you all know, because of special circumstances, Skywater Academy and Blazing Academy withdrew, leaving only 31 teams. As a result, the Grand Finals process has undergone some slight adjustments."
"The Grand Finals will consist of 5 rounds in total. There will be 1 day of rest between each round for adjustment and recovery, while before the final 5th round, a full 3 days have been specially reserved."
"In the 1st round, the 3 seeded teams receive a bye. The remaining 28 teams will draw lots to compete, and 14 teams will advance to the next round."
"In the 2nd round, because the number is odd, in addition to the 2 teams that finished 1st in the Elimination Rounds of the two great empires, 1 more team will be randomly selected to receive a bye. The remaining 11 teams, together with the 3 seeded teams, will compete in pairs, and 7 teams will advance."
"In the 3rd round, the 2 teams that finished 2nd in the Elimination Rounds of the two great empires will receive a bye. The remaining 8 teams will compete, and 4 teams will advance."
"In the 4th round, there are no byes. The remaining 6 teams will compete to determine the top 3 of this tournament."
"In the final 5th round, first, just like in the Elimination Rounds, the 3 teams will each send out 7 members to take part in a stage battle. The team that successfully defends the stage will advance directly to the final match. The remaining 2 teams will then engage in a team battle, and the winner will also advance to the final match. Finally, the two teams in the last match will determine the Grand Champion of this tournament. Do you all understand?"
Vice Dean thoroughly explained the process and rules of the Grand Finals, and everyone indicated that they understood.
In truth, it was not very complicated. They did not need to worry too much about others, only about clarifying their own situation.
The Grand Finals consisted of 5 rounds. Yu Tianlin and his team would receive 1 bye in the 2nd round, but in all the other rounds, they would have to fight. No matter who the opponent was, they simply had to win. It was that simple.
After explaining the process and rules of the Grand Finals, Vice Dean added one final sentence.
"Although I hope you all can achieve excellent results, if the opponent's strength is too overwhelming, do not push yourselves too hard. Your safety comes first."
.....
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