Just then, Tang San sensed a familiar aura and instinctively turned his head. He saw Mei Gongzi approaching the rest area, accompanied by elders of the Peacock Demon clan and her mother. As always, she was dressed in her stunning silver gown. Tang San's expression made his interest clear as daylight. Ning Chen'en couldn't help but chuckle softly. "It seems you really did come here for a matchmaking tournament. I think you're more interested in City Lord Mei than in becoming an Emperor!" Tang San replied without the slightest attempt to hide his feelings, "Of course. With City Lord Mei's heavenly beauty, who wouldn't be? ...Well, I suppose you're already married to the love of your life. Anyway, if you can get her to marry me, I'll give you the statue for free." Ning Chen'en laughed heartily. "If only I could afford being so generous! She is a city lord too, you know? Whatever she does is up to her, and it's also up to you if you want to chase her. But you do have quite a few rivals, I have to say. I heard that Jin Anguo once personally proposed marriage and got turned down. You'll need to work harder. After all, City Lord Mei definitely wants to become an Emperor. There aren't many main cities without one." Feeling the veiled jab, Tang San simply waved his hand and said, "Right, right, isn't that a great coincidence? Alright, let me rest up and prepare for the match." As Tang San stepped into his pavilion, Ning Chen'en chuckled, having gotten his revenge in the verbal spar, and returned to his own. The moment Tang San sat down, Jin Miaosen muttered angrily, "What's wrong with that guy? So shameless, trying to buy our treasure. Where were they before, huh? Big Brother, if you face him, just chop him in half. Do you think we can buy more statues from the Sword Saint Demon Emperor? If we had a few more, maybe you could really make a miracle happen." Tang San sighed. "You think Emperors have nothing better to do than carve stone all day? I'm already lucky to have one. Don't waste time thinking about it. Just do your best. However far we get is however far we get." Meanwhile, Mei Gongzi had also entered her own pavilion, holding a list of the contestants who had passed the first round. Before the tournament began, Tang San had told her during their last private meeting not to try contacting him during the competition. Only when they reached the final round could they talk. With so many Emperors watching—and especially with the presence of the Celestial Fox Demon Emperor—even a small slip could cause massive trouble. Mei Gongzi understood and agreed. But after the first round, as she carefully observed all the advancing contestants and their abilities, she was shocked to find no trace of Tang San. She knew both his abilities and his habits rather well, but even she couldn't identify which contestant was him. That shocked her and made her anxious. Could he have been eliminated? No, impossible. He had to still be here. She had faith in her beloved. But... who was her beloved? Fewer than forty contestants remained. Which one was Tang San? With no matches of her own for now, she spent her time studying the list. She paid little attention to the female contestants; her focus was entirely on the male side. Yet no matter how she filtered or eliminated names, she found no one resembling Tang San. It was truly baffling. Su Qin noticed her anxiety and reminded her: If she could sense something, wouldn't the Emperors notice too? The fact she couldn't find Tang San only proved he was hiding well. But Mei Gongzi wasn't convinced. She resolved to study carefully today, determined to find out which one was him. She looked at the list again, eyes resolute as she glanced out at the arena. Today, she was confident she could identify her lover. Today's arena was once again packed to capacity, the atmosphere more fevered than ever. Compared to the women's bracket, the men's side clearly drew more attention, especially since today's matches could see seeded contestants clashing. The competition would only grow fiercer from here on, and luck was becoming a bigger factor. The Celestial Fox Demon Emperor's voice echoed as all the contestants stepped forward. "Prepare for the next round of draws." As in the first round, a glowing orb floated out with a wave of her hand. This time, thirty-eight smaller light spheres hovered inside. Each contestant reached out and grasped one light sphere. Ning Chen'en turned to Tang San with a grin. "Clan Leader Jin, if we draw each other this round, my offer still stands. You said yourself—even with the Sword Saint Demon Emperor's statue, you can't break my defense. If you draw me, sell me the statue and concede. Isn't that a great solution for both of us?" Tang San gave him a helpless look. "I... suppose? But how do you know my luck is that bad? What number are you?" Ning Chen'en opened his palm, revealing the number inside. "One. So? You got number two?" Tang San burst out laughing. "Ha, just barely missed! I'm number three." He opened his hand, revealing the number three. Matchups were just as simple as they'd been the previous round. One versus two, three versus four, and so on. Tang San had just avoided a match with Ning Chen'en, and in all fairness, he was genuinely relieved. He really didn't want to face his titanic new friend yet. This was a good outcome. Ning Chen'en, on the other hand, looked glum. "So close... so close!" Tang San grinned. "No worries. If I make it through this round, you'll still have a chance to draw me next round. By then, I'll be out of statues, so won't that be even better for you?" Ning Chen'en chuckled. "True. I'll look forward to drawing you next time." Even though he acted friendly and he genuinely had a friendly disposition, deep down, he looked down on the Blue Gold Tree clan leader. So while Tang San called him "Brother Ning," Ning Chen'en only ever called him a courteous yet plain "Clan Leader Jin." The farther the tournament went, the higher the odds of drawing each other. Thinking of it that way, the next round might actually be ideal. The Celestial Fox Demon Emperor's voice echoed again. "Let the matches begin. First pair, please proceed to the platform." Ning Chen'en didn't return to his pavilion; he was in the first match. He rose into the air and headed straight to the platform. At the same time, another figure emerged from a different pavilion and descended onto the platform. Although not all city lords were seeded contestants, many were. So Ning Chen'en's opponent drew attention. Upon seeing who it was, Tang San chuckled. Ning Chen'en was quite lucky today. But Ning Chen'en's face darkened. His opponent was not a seed, and neither was it particularly powerful. Among the remaining thirty-eight, it was clearly in the lower tier. It represented a main city, but a rather weak one. Not all main cities were equal. It was easy to figure out where a city stood—one only had to look at whether there was an Emperor backing it and where that Emperor ranked. For instance, Skytree City was famous for being weak even when there was an Emperor, and between his death and the Ancestral Tree's awakening, it had been in an absolutely terrible position. Now, its position had somewhat risen due to the fall of another city. And indeed, this opponent was from Adamant City. That made Ning Chen'en frown. Ning Chen'en bore the bloodline of the Adamant Nymph clan. Though he claimed otherwise to Tang San, he couldn't possibly be indifferent to the fall of the Adamant Nymph Emperor. He once had two Emperors backing him, but now, there was only one. That was no small change.