# Chapter 2162: Refining Gold Mountain Assessment
At this moment, the Refining Gold Mountain strong one stood before the crowd and said calmly, "Everyone, follow me to the Refining Gold Mountain Heavenly Altar."
After speaking, he stepped forward, and the crowd immediately rose into the air, heading deep into Refining Gold Mountain. Before long, they descended onto a void platform from which they could seemingly see countless palaces and halls around them. Naturally, from the void above those halls, everything here could also be observed.
Many people gathered in groups of ten around the Heavenly Altar, each forming their own camp. At the edge of the Heavenly Altar stood square pillars, large enough to accommodate multiple people.
"Those who have formed alliances, step onto the pillars," a person at the center of the Heavenly Altar said calmly. Immediately, the crowd stepped onto the pillars, ten people together.
"Next, I will give you the time it takes one incense stick to burn. In each camp, only five people may remain," the Refining Gold Mountain strong one spoke again. Instantly, the atmosphere on every battle platform grew tense. Ten people, only five remaining—eliminating half in an instant—this undoubtedly put immense pressure on many. Although they had long known this situation would arise.
On the pillar where Lin Feng stood, Jin Zhen and Bing swept their gazes across the crowd, causing many to freeze. One of them said, "We only have half an incense stick's time. How about whoever steps off this pillar first is eliminated?"
But Jin Zhen only sneered inwardly. Bing's gaze swept over five of them one by one, and he said, "Thank you all for joining this camp. However, I regret to inform you that the five of you will likely be eliminated. Still, since you've made it to Refining Gold Mountain, you have the qualification to enter the inner city of Shen Xiao City and observe the Nine Heavens Gathering."
"Why the five of us?" The expressions of those few changed instantly, looking rather unpleasant. Another person spoke up, "When you invited us to join this alliance, that wasn't what you said."
"This is not my decision. Yu Qing cannot be eliminated first. Dugu is a Divine Seal King Body. As for Lin Feng, I'm sure you've all heard his name. Therefore, the five of you being eliminated is the best choice for this alliance," Jin Zhen said calmly. But the others were still unconvinced. At that moment, Yu Qing, who had been silent, suddenly opened his eyes. His pupils seemed to detach from his body, transforming into terrifying out-of-body eye pupils that directly swallowed a person whole. The next moment, a scream rang out as one person clutched his eyes, blood seeping through his fingers.
"Don't waste time," Yu Qing said coldly. The faces of those few turned ashen as they silently cursed the cruelty of the rules. When the old man had invited them earlier, he had been quite sincere, earnestly asking them to join the alliance. Yet now, they were instantly abandoned. This kind of rule was too harsh, making it hard for them to accept. They hadn't even fought before being discarded—this was far from what they had expected.
They were not alone. Many who had stepped onto the pillars were treated the same way, ruthlessly eliminated without even a chance to show their strength.
Lin Feng glanced at Yu Qing. None of the Nine Heavens First Lords were kind-hearted. This Yu Xiao First Lord was clearly a formidable figure—one glance could blind a person's eyes. He cultivated the Seven Orifices Slaughter Art, which was extremely terrifying. Soon, all five were forced off the pillar. Lin Feng couldn't help but think that if he hadn't had some reputation, he might have been one of those forced down as well.
On every pillar, before the incense stick had even burned out, only five people remained. This showed how efficient these people were. They were all geniuses from various regions, decisive in action and never dragging things out.
In just that short time, half were eliminated. From the three to four hundred people, fewer than two hundred remained.
"Now for the second round of assessment," the Refining Gold Mountain strong one in the void said, sweeping his gaze over the crowd. "Your five-person alliance will battle another alliance. It's a three-match system. The losing side will have all five eliminated. If anyone on the losing side disagrees, they may challenge three members of the opposing alliance alone. If they win all three matches, they will be promoted as an exception."
"This is to prevent true elites from being dragged down and eliminated by weaker allies," the crowd thought to themselves. Lin Feng's camp was quite strong. With Yu Xiao First Lord Yu Qing's strength, he could surely secure one victory. And Lin Feng himself had no major issues either.
"Whoever comes first may choose another alliance to battle," the Refining Gold Mountain strong one spoke again. Instantly, a figure stepped onto the battle platform. Everyone's pupils contracted—it was Wrathful Young Master. He was the first to step up. Whoever he chose would surely face tragedy.
"You lot," Wrathful Young Master casually pointed at the pillar directly opposite him. The people on that pillar wore grim expressions. If they lost, they would all be eliminated.
A figure stepped onto the battle platform, but how could he be a match for Wrathful Young Master? Three Thousand Heartless Silk bloomed, turning him into a heartless man. Three Thousand Slaughter Arts instantly blasted him away. In the next two matches, the opposing side won one and lost one, meaning they were eliminated. It was extremely cruel. Moreover, although one of the five was quite skilled, there was no need for a rematch. If he wanted to break through and advance, he would have to face even Wrathful Young Master—there was simply no hope. So it was very tragic. All five were eliminated together, and two of them hadn't even fought.
"Yu Qing, win us the first match. That way, we'll have the initiative in the next two matches," Jin Zhen said to Yu Qing. Yu Qing nodded slightly, his figure flickering as he descended onto the battle platform. He opened his eyes and looked across, causing the faces of those on the opposite pillar to turn ugly.
"You lot," Yu Qing said calmly. Reluctantly, one person from the opposing side stepped onto the platform—the weakest of the five. Since there was no hope of winning this match anyway, they could only rely on the next two to see if they could achieve victory.
The two stood on the battle platform. Yu Qing stepped forward, and his pupils seemed to detach from his body. His two eyes transformed into terrifying orifices, instantly swallowing the opponent. Slaughter force erupted wildly. At the same time, his lips moved slightly, and another orifice's slaughter force rolled toward the opponent. A miserable scream rang out as blood flowed from the opponent's seven orifices. Yu Qing waved his hand, sending the opponent flying back to his original pillar. The defeat was exceptionally miserable.
"For the second match, Dugu Bubai, you go," Jin Zhen said, looking at Dugu Bubai.
"Alright," Dugu Bubai nodded slightly, stepping through the void onto the battle platform. Someone from the opposing side also stepped forward, their aura terrifying.
"Whoosh!" Three thousand six hundred divine seal halos instantly swirled across the sky. Countless radiant seal imprints made people's hearts tremble—it was the aura of a king body.
"Dugu Bubai's strength has grown this much too. Langxie and Jun Moxi definitely won't fall behind either. It seems my progress over these past two years has been too slow. I've only tempered my physical body to an extremely terrifying level," Lin Feng thought to himself. The last time at the Holy City Central Continent's Emperor's List Questioning was already several years ago. Back then, Langxie was at the same cultivation level as him—mid-rank Emperor realm. But now, so much time had passed, and his own cultivation was nearing peak high-rank Emperor. Those people must have progressed too. Although their combat power had been inferior to his back then, their cultivation levels were not. They simply hadn't comprehended the Dao yet.
For king body cultivators, the higher their cultivation level, the more terrifying their combat power became.
Dugu Bubai's three thousand six hundred divine seal halos transformed into overwhelming offensive power, merging into his Dao techniques. He clashed fiercely with his opponent. In the end, the king body's might prevailed, crushing and defeating the opponent. With two victories secured, the faces of the three remaining people on the opposing pillar turned pale. They were all eliminated. Moreover, with Yu Qing and a Divine Seal King Body on this side, none of them could possibly win three consecutive matches—that was clearly impossible.
The subsequent battles were also exceptionally exciting. People were continuously eliminated in groups. However, one person finally succeeded in winning three consecutive matches after his side's defeat, breaking through to advance. This person was recognized as a very formidable figure from Tai Xiao Continent. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to win three matches in a row.
After several hours, only eighty to ninety people remained standing on the pillars. Everyone else had been eliminated, shut out from the Nine Heavens Gathering.
"Third round of assessment. This round will have the highest elimination ratio. The five remaining members of each alliance must all fight. Five matches, three wins to advance. The losing alliance will have all five eliminated. Additionally, on the winning side, anyone who lost a personal match will also be eliminated. On the losing side, anyone who won a match may challenge three consecutive opponents, freely choosing any three victors from any alliance. If they win all three matches, they directly obtain advancement qualification."
The Refining Gold Mountain strong one in the void spoke slowly. Round after round, the weak would be completely weeded out. The very few who remained would all be elites among elites.
"This time, I will freely choose the opposing alliance," the man said calmly. Then he pointed at two five-person alliances. One person fought one match. The battles grew increasingly fierce and exciting. This was not only an alliance battle but also a personal battle. Losing meant direct elimination. Who wouldn't give their all? Moreover, after the previous round of elimination, the remaining half of the alliances were all composed of very formidable people.
Watching the ongoing battles, Lin Feng felt deeply moved. With this kind of elimination, two alliances totaling ten people would have at least five eliminated in one round. And since the other side couldn't possibly win all matches, the actual number eliminated per round was about six out of ten.
"Ru Yun has also been eliminated," Lin Feng looked across. Jiu Ling Huang and their group were in the same camp. Now, Yao Yao, Zi Ling, and Ru Feng had all been eliminated. Only Jiu Ling Huang, Ru Feng, and a Refining Gold Mountain martial cultivator had successfully advanced.
"You two alliances, face each other," at that moment, the Refining Gold Mountain strong one, whether intentionally or not, pointed at two alliances. One was Lin Feng's alliance, and the other was Wrathful Young Master's alliance. Both sides had Nine Heavens First Lords.
This scene made the crowd look especially interested. One of the two alliances would inevitably be eliminated. However, Wrathful Young Master and Yu Qing probably wouldn't face each other. Even if one side was eliminated, they would choose three victors from another alliance to challenge. Otherwise, if one of the two Nine Heavens First Lords was eliminated before even entering the Nine Heavens Gathering, that would be...
Wrathful Young Master had already stepped onto the battle platform. Jin Zhen's gaze fell on Lin Feng, and he said, "Lin Feng, you fight this match."
Dugu Bubai had already displayed formidable strength. As for Jin Zhen himself and Yu Qing, they could each secure a victory against opponents other than Wrathful Young Master. Moreover, Bing's strength was also considerable. Even if Dugu Bubai encountered a powerful opponent and lost, Bing could still secure a win. Lin Feng became the sacrifice.