Lord of the Sky City

After waiting in line for several hours, Rocky only took a few minutes to successfully register for the Arena competition, meaning he could participate in just three days!

Although he had long been prepared, when he actually registered for the competition, Rocky still felt somewhat nervous.

As the City Lord, he had fought more than once, facing opponents ranging from Demons to Void Magic Warriors, and even warships, and each battle was a matter of life and death. Logically, his experience should have been sufficient.

However, the battles Rocky had experienced were different from the competitions in the Arena. Just as Orton had once warned him, one must never underestimate the battles in the Arena. After all, no one risks their life frivolously, so every opponent who steps into the arena is formidable and at least prepared to die.

In such a situation, after completing the registration, Rocky returned to the Star of the Sky. He seemed to revert to his old self, like the first time he went to hunt Demons, using this last bit of time to diligently adjust his mindset.

Meanwhile, Liliya, Aileen, Monte, and Orton were helping Rocky study the Arena's competition rules.

Although all of them had heard of the Arena and some had even watched its competitions, they had only been spectators at the time, and the matches were just entertainment for them. However, now that Rocky was competing, the roles of Liliya and the others had changed. They needed to ensure everything besides the competition itself was taken care of so that Rocky could compete with peace of mind.

It must be said, this was the advantage of being the City Lord. If it were an ordinary contestant, they would have to do everything themselves. Who else would help? But Rocky was different. As the City Lord, he had a group of highly capable confidants to handle everything, allowing him to concentrate solely on the competition.

As for matters outside the competition itself, there were only three points worth noting.

Firstly, the competition rules.

Although it was a competition, even one where life and death hung in the balance, there were still rules. However, the Arena's competitions, designed to entertain the audience, simplified the rules as much as possible.

The competition arena was a thirty-meter by thirty-meter square ring. The match officially began the moment both competitors stepped onto the ring. There were no referees, no restrictions on weapons, and no limits on tactics, meaning any means, fair or foul, could be freely used as long as one could win the match.

During the battle, if one side died, surrendered, or fell off the ring, then the match was declared over.

However, it was important to note that if an opponent surrendered or fell off the ring, the victor must not continue to attack; doing so would result in a loss due to foul play.

This meant that if one faced an opponent so formidable that defeat seemed inevitable or even life-threatening, surrendering or jumping off the ring would be the best way to preserve one's life.

The victor of the match would directly receive the competition rewards and also gain points.

Speaking of points in the Arena competitions, this brings us to the second point worth noting, the schedule.

The Arena's competitions were not a progression system but rather a rank system. After winning the initial qualifying match, not only could the victorious contestants advance to the official competition and receive rewards, but they would also be assigned a Combat Skill Rank by the Arena.

The Combat Skill Rank was crucial for Arena competitions and arguably the most important factor, as the level of the rank affected both the rewards and the strength of the opponents.

Once one had a Combat Skill Rank, each victory would earn corresponding points. Accumulating sufficient points would elevate one's rank, and with each rank increase, the rewards after winning a match would also increase. However, the opponents would also upgrade to competitors of the same rank.

Additionally, because of the ranking system, even if a contestant lost a match, it was not a big concern. Losing a match essentially just meant losing points, and the most severe penalty for losing multiple matches was a demotion in rank. Ultimately, one could still continue to participate in the matches.

Of course, this assumes one crucial premise: surviving the lost matches. As long as one survived, even losing a hundred matches in a row would be acceptable.

This system had given rise to a group of contestants who frequented the Arena year-round, relying on its competitions for their livelihood. Each of them was a top expert, some even famous throughout the skies and extremely difficult to handle.

These perennial Arena contestants were what Liliya and the others were most worried about because they were too familiar with the competition. To outsiders, the ring might appear dangerous and brutal, but to these veterans, it was like home. Thus, Liliya and the others were very reluctant for Rocky to encounter such competitors, as even with the White Demon Armor, he might not gain any advantage and could even face mortal danger.

Fortunately, the chances of encountering these 'veterans' of the Arena were actually not high, at least for Rocky. Since these perennial contestants all had higher ranks, Rocky, being a typical newcomer to the Arena, was unlikely to face them directly.

In fact, what Rocky should be most concerned about right now was not his future opponents, but the upcoming qualifying match.

When Liliya and the others learned what the qualifying match involved, their hearts sank because this match was not going to be easy...

The qualifying match Rocky was to participate in was not a one-on-one competition, but a free-for-all!

Ten Void Magic Warriors fighting on one ring, facing a brutal battle where nine were eliminated and only one could advance. That was the nature of the qualifying match!

In a ten-man free-for-all, where one advances, the difficulty was no joke. On a ring with ten competitors, everyone else was an opponent, truly making the qualifying match a one versus nine battle!

What's more, such matches were greatly unpredictable. Even the strongest contenders could inadvertently perish in the chaos. For Rocky, this was particularly true.

So, upon learning that the qualifying match was a ten-person free-for-all, Liliya immediately sought out Rocky not only to inform him but also to help him prepare.