Seeing the tiger-headed man eliminated without being able to withstand a single blow left the spectators around Ring One speechless, staring at John in disbelief.
As time passed, the preliminary round competitors were rapidly being eliminated. In Ring One, Yamcha and John, in Ring Two Cheng Long and Namu, in Ring Three Goku and Krillin, and in Ring Four the Barbarian and Giran were all strong contenders advancing to the finals.
Soon, Yamcha became the first to defeat his opponent in Ring One, securing a spot in the top eight.
Next up was John facing Lan Fang, a beautiful contestant who was originally expected to advance. The two victors would move on to the top eight.
At this point, Goku and Krillin had already eliminated their opponents and advanced to the top eight as well. They rushed over to Ring One to cheer for John, including Master Roshi who was disguised as Cheng Long among them.
Seeing that John's opponent was such a stunning beauty made Master Roshi envious; he wished he were up there instead of his disciple John.
Facing Lan Fang, John's heart momentarily stirred; he sighed inwardly, realizing that his mental training still needed work.
However, he quickly regained his composure.
John said to Lan Fang: "Miss Lan, you should just give up; you're not my opponent. If we really fight, it might lead to some embarrassing situations for you."
Lan Fang had been closely watching her opponent and knew well that she was not a match for John. However, she was confident that she could win.
With her experience dealing with young men lacking experience with women, she smiled seductively at John and said: "You might want to strike against me like this, but I think you wouldn't dare against someone like me, would you?"
With that, Lan Fang slowly began unbuttoning her top and removed it in a slow and enticing manner. Underneath she wore only a lace bra.
The surrounding spectators erupted into chaos as they cheered for Lan Fang; even Master Roshi pushed through those in front of him to get closer to the edge of the ring. If not for the referee holding him back, he might have tried to climb onto the ring himself.
Lan Fang did not stop there; she continued to slowly remove her pants until she was left wearing only two pieces of lace undergarments.
With her fair skin illuminated by the bright lights above, she shone like ivory.
Watching this scene unfold on stage made the surrounding competitors go wild with cheers of "Go Lan Fang! Go Lan Fang! Go Lan Fang!"
Satisfied with her effect on the crowd, Lan Fang walked slowly towards John, caressing his face while exuding a fragrant scent. She whispered in his ear: "Little guy, would you really dare to strike against such an older sister?"
As she spoke, her ivory-like arm wrapped around John's neck as she added: "If you let me advance, I promise you'll experience what heaven feels like after this match ends."
John acknowledged that his mental cultivation wasn't fully developed yet; facing such a beautiful woman's temptation stirred considerable emotion within him.
However, he calmly addressed the referee: "Can we start now?"
The referee had been mesmerized by Lan Fang's display but snapped back to duty at John's reminder. He quickly announced: "Lan Fang contestant, please do not interfere with the normal progress of the match and keep your distance from contestant John. Our match is about to begin."
Lan Fang shot an annoyed glance at John for being so unromantic but released her hold and stepped back a bit before telling the referee: "We can start now."
Seeing both parties ready, the referee loudly called out: "Begin!"
Upon hearing the start signal, Lan Fang smiled seductively at John and said: "As a gentleman, you wouldn't dare touch me now, would you?"
John nodded and replied: "Of course not; I won't lay a finger on you."
Hearing this made Lan Fang happy as she said: "You said it yourself; I'm not forcing you. All the spectators heard it loud and clear."
"I keep my word," John stated firmly.
After this declaration, John placed his palms together and gathered energy into his hands. A faint white light appeared above them.
Lan Fang warily asked: "What are you planning to do?"
John looked up at her calmly and replied: "I'm sending you off the stage."
With that, he waved his hand and a gust of wind swept through; everyone around felt their eyes squinting against the force of it. The wind blew directly at Lan Fang who was sent tumbling off the stage.
As she got back up from the ground, Lan Fang glared at John and said: "What an unromantic blockhead."
After saying this, she quickly put her clothes back on. As her beautiful figure was concealed again, the surrounding competitors let out cries of disappointment.
Thus began the emergence of eight finalists for the tournament.
Before proceeding with drawing lots for the finals, there would be about ten minutes of rest time. So John and Goku went outside to report their success to Master Roshi.
Bulma approached them first with congratulations: "John, Goku, Yamcha! Congratulations on making it into the finals; you've achieved your goal!"
Master Roshi expressed satisfaction with his disciples' performances as well: "The reason I let you participate in this World Martial Arts Tournament was actually to test your strength. What results you achieve isn't what matters most; so don't feel pressured about what happens next in the finals—don't worry too much about winning or losing."
"Yes, Master!" John and his friends replied in unison.
At that moment a voice came over the loudspeaker announcing: "All eight finalists please gather at the venue for drawing lots for your matchups."
Upon hearing this announcement, John and his friends bid farewell before returning inside for their matchups.
At this time a host wearing sunglasses walked up to a podium where he began calling contestants up one by one to draw lots.
Soon it was John's turn; he stepped forward and reached into the box of numbers randomly pulling out a tag which he handed over to the host.
The host looked at it and announced: "Number five! In Round Three against contestant Namu."
Next up was Krillin who drew number two; he would face off against Barbarian Number One in Round One.
Krillin shouted excitedly: "Who's contestant Number One?!"
Just then an awful stench wafted toward them. John's previously calm demeanor shattered instantly; both he and Goku—being Saiyans—had senses ten times sharper than ordinary humans making this odor unbearable for them.
The Barbarian approached Krillin and said: "I'm Number One Barbarian! Little shrimp! I'll treat you well!"
The surrounding crowd instinctively covered their noses as they fled from the area due to the foul smell emanating from him.
The host hurriedly called up one last contestant to draw lots before proceeding further.