As she spoke, her eyes were drawn to the young man standing beside Chenzhu. It was the man who had been with her at the Fu Ya House four days ago, Boling Ming.
After Chenzhu was disfigured and driven out, she started fooling around with Boling Ming. She had already come to an agreement with him. If he obtains the position of clan heir, then sheâll marry him and be his wife. Originally, since Boling Ming was an eighth-grade wizard and even had Boling Feiwuâs assistance in the dark, it wasnât difficult to seize the position of clan heir.
But how could they have predicted that Chenzhu would come and disrupt their plan midway? They couldnât cope with this sudden change.
In fact, it wasnât that Boling Feiwu wouldnât marry anyone apart from Boling Ming. But if Chenzhu became the clan heir again, then Chenzhu probably wouldnât marry her. After all, when he was disfigured, she had been mean to him. It was likely that he hated her now.
âIt has long been decided that Iâll be the Boling clanâs mistress. No one can deprive me of this. No one!â Boling Feiwu inwardly vowed, gnashing her teeth.
Boling Feiwuâs words pierced Boling Canglanâs heart. The Boling clan absolutely couldnât be handed over to someone who bore grudges against it. He raised a hand, beckoning his guard over. He intended to say a few words to him.
For him, the clan head, revoking the competition qualifications of one of the younger generation was a simple matter.
However, at that moment, another loud but clear announcement resonated through the entire area via the voice amplifier: âCaroline has arrived!â
The people in the audience burst into clamor.
Almost at the same time, all the people stood up and turned to the direction of the entrance.
Caroline had an outstanding reputation in the Eastern Nation.
The vice principal of the Eastern Nationâs number one wizard academy. The Eastern Nationâs number one beauty. The strongest in the Eastern Nation. Someone that held any of these three titles was enough to generate admiration and respect from the people, let alone Caroline who held all three titles.
She was talented, beautiful, and powerful. Faced with this near-perfect, goddess-like woman, who wouldnât be scrambling like ducks to catch a glimpse of her?
Even Boling Canglan momentarily forgot about giving his guard the orders. He simply watched the elegant lady gracefully walk towards him.
One should know that Caroline was equal to a goddess in his mind. A perfect goddess that could be admired but never touched, much less obtained.
Despite the countless feverish gazes directed towards her, the calm slight smile on Carolineâs face never faltered. She wore a simple, slender wizardâs robe. With her every step, the cream-white lower half of her robes rippled as if the wind were blowing past it, giving her an ethereal and otherworldly aura.
Behind her were two women, one on Carolineâs left and right. And both were equally stunning.
Light muslin covered the face of the woman on the right, so the surrounding people couldnât clearly see her features. However, her full forehead appeared clean as jade. She had a slender waist, her posture graceful and her steps as feeble as the willow in the wind but also as gentle as the water. Her appearance dazzled everyone. It was a shot in the dark, but this woman must be pretty.
Most of the people seated in the audience were familiar with the woman on the left. It was Carolineâs disciple, Chu Ye, dressed in a blood-red robe with a thin white silk strap around her waist.
She had shapely eyes and brows and a bright gaze. Her silver hair, tied up high, fluttered in the wind. An aura of confidence and sureness surrounded her.
Despite being in the vicinity of Caroline, who enjoyed the reputation of being the most beautiful in the Eastern Nation, she was not at all inferior.
Moreover, her beauty possessed an unconventional unreserved wildness.
Thus, the eyes that were originally on Caroline drifted to Chu Yeâs figure.
A prideful and untethered kind of beauty, a heart-wrenching kind of beauty, and a soul-shattering kind of beauty.
Seeing this trio, Boling Feiwu and Murong Chang gritted their teeth in hatred. Even Princess Wanwan was pouting, exposing her jealousy.
Boling Canglan was finally unable to resist walking up to her, an amiable smile on his face. âI didnât expect that Caroline would come to my Boling clanâs junior ranking competition. This is truly an honor for these young ones. Please!â he said, sweeping his hand to the side.
At that moment, he only had Caroline in his eyes. He didnât notice the muslin-covered face unblinkingly staring at him in a daze. Then she breathed out a sigh. Not once had he looked at her. Soon after, she lowered her head and didnât look at him again.
This man had already forgotten her.
So why should she continue to think of him?
It wasnât worth getting heartache over him.
Caroline nodded, a smile across her lips. âClan Head Boling is modest!â
Then she walked past Boling Canglan, not a trace of politeness in her actions, before gracefully sitting down with a flick of her sleeve and closing her eyes. Meanwhile, Chu Ye and Lu Shi sat in the row behind her seat.
The nearby people sucked in a breath.
Because Caroline was sitting on Boling Canglanâs seat.
The guest was trying to upstage the host. And in such an obvious, garish manner too. This was not giving Boling Canglan any face.
Outside of expectations, Caroline opened her eyes and innocently blinked at Boling Canglan. In a âconcernedâ voice, she said, âClan Head Boling, why donât you sit?â
Boling Canglan grew even more embarrassed, but he couldnât muster any anger upon seeing her innocent gaze. He simply waved at Boling Feiwu, hinting for her to give her seat to him.
Boling Feiwu broke into a begrudging pout but didnât dare protest. She could only get up and move to the second row.
Boling Canglan forced a smile before sinking on Boling Feiwuâs seat.
Everyone couldnât help but scoff.
They thought he would fly into a rage, but he merely acquiesced to it.
By the time this incident was resolved, the round that would determine the top 10 had already started.
Worry began eating at Boling Feiwu even further. She was about to give Boling Canglan another reminder when Caroline spoke up first. âClan Head Boling, what rewards will the winner of this timeâs competition receive?â Her gaze was on the 10 matches, all already in full swing. She still had that faint smile, yet her flat tone made it hard for the others to decipher her intentions in asking this.
âThe Boling clan had made a big gamble this time,â butted in Murong Chang before Boling Canglan could reply. âThe winner will become the clan headâs new successor.â
Caroline hummed. âIndeed a huge gamble. Since itâs like this, why donât I add something to the reward? That way, my trip here wouldnât be in vain.â
She brushed her fingers against the spatial ring on the middle finger of her left hand. And a brilliant diamond ring appeared on her palm.
âA sacred-grade spatial ring!â exclaimed Murong Wan, green with envy.
âClan Head Murong has good eyes, but you were slightly off. This is a high-grade life-type sacred tool. It contains 30,000 square meters of space, and 3000 of it can be used to store living creatures, including humans,â she said, shocking the people around her.
All of a sudden, there was a burst of discussion.
âHeavens, a high-grade life-type sacred toolâŚâ
âA spatial ring that can store living creaturesâŚâ
âThatâs more expensive than an ordinary spatial ringâŚâ
âIf that shows up in an auction, its price might shoot up indefinitely. Itâs high in demand but practically none in supply.â
The people stared at Boling Canglan, eyes full of jealousy. Why wasnât it them who had come across such a good thing?
Boling Canglan was overwhelmed from the favor he received. Quickly, he ordered someone to take the life-type spatial ring, then made Carolineâs prize known to all the participants.
As such, their motivation was boosted, causing the 10 ongoing matches to grow fiercer. Not only would they become the next clan heir, but they would get a high-grade life-type spatial ring too. Normally, it wouldâve been impossible to obtain such an amazing item.
If they didnât properly grasp this chance, then they would be fools.
And so, a proper competition suddenly turned into a life-or-death competition. Each and every one of them showed ferocity when beating down their opponents. Even when they were already spitting blood, they still continued to stand up again and fight.
These matches had the spectatorsâ blood boiling. They were more exciting to watch than the fights in the Human-Beast Fighting Grounds. Some people got so worked up that they stood and cheered for the competitors.
In those moments, the noise was deafening as fervor overtook the entire audience.
The competitors were also influenced by the atmosphere, their movements becoming even more ferocious. A flurry of punches and kicks were being dished out, resulting in broken teeth, fractured legs, and spitting of blood.
Their vision had gone red. Not long ago, they had been good brothers and bosom buddies. But now, they seemed to have turned into personal enemies. The type that wouldnât stop until they killed the otherâs entire family.
Thus, the audience entered a crazed state.
The people using their fists lost control. The ones watching them were even more out of control.
âThisâŚâ Boling Canglan finally couldnât sit still. This yearâs competition was much wilder and more brutal compared to the previous yearsâ, something totally beyond his expectations. But he had no way of stopping this development.
He could only helplessly look to the side, worried out of his mind. In that moment, he loathed the shouting and cheering faces of those in the audience area. What were his Boling clanâs children? Monkeys performing tricks? Were they there for these peopleâs entertainment?
By contrast, his gaze was drawn toward Chenzhu.
In the competition area where the competitors were fighting like mentally deranged dogs, Chenzhu stood out. He remained calm and collected against his opponent, even though his opponent was viciously trying to kill him, having also been infected by the atmosphere.
He wasnât arrogant and didnât underestimate the opponent. He moved patiently, waiting for a gap in the opponentâs defense before suddenly striking, sending them flying out of the competition ring. With that, his opponent had lost.
Meanwhile, Chenzhu wasnât the least bit disheveled from the fight. Not even a drop of sweat. He simply stood in place and placed his hands behind his back, his white robes lightly swaying. Amidst this group of mad dogs, he seemed unrivalled, exuding magnificence unmatched in his generation.
Boling Canglan narrowed his eyes, gaze growing deeper and more complex.
Never had he imagined that the pure and innocent Chenzhu from several months ago would grow up overnight. Whether in terms of bearing and strength, he was no longer like the previous Boling Chenzhu.
However, the more outstanding Chenzhu was, the more restless Boling Canglan became. He had to act carefully. He couldnât let Chenzhu become the Boling clanâs clan heir again, no matter what.
Unfortunately, he didnât realize that it was already too late for him to change anything.
This matter had already gone beyond his control.
Then Caroline pointed at Chenzhu. âOh, the young man in whiteâs pretty good. Heâs handsome, and his strength isnât weak either. Why does he look so familiar?â
âHeâs Boling Chenzhu. Teacher, you should have an impression of him. He was previously a fifth-grade student in Carles Academy but had to drop out becuause of his injury,â explained Chu Ye out of âgood intentions.â
âOh,â Caroline said in realization. âSo heâs Chenzhu. Not bad, not bad. Clan Head Boling, donât you think so too?â
Boling Canglan was startled. Caroline actually took note of Chenzhu. After a pause, he merely replied, âYou falsely praise.â
âItâs not praise but approval. This little guyâs quite young, yet heâs calm and steady. Simply a role model that everyone should follow. I approve.â
Boling Canglan didnât expect for Caroline to admire Chenzhu this much. With how things were, it would be troublesome to kick Chenzhu out of the competition without good reason.
Otherwise, Caroline might investigate in detail. Then the unreasonable one would be him.
All of a sudden, Boling Canglan felt something sharp prickling his nape. He turned his head and happened to see Chu Ye staring at him. A fake smile was spread across her face, which also contained a hint of a sneer.
Boling Canglan furrowed his brows. He now understood why Caroline paid close attention to Chenzhu. How could he forget? Chenzhu and Chu Ye were old acquaintances. Their relationship wasnât shallow.
He averted his gaze. If he had known that this woman would become this successful, he definitely wouldnât have dismissed her when Chenzhu had brought her to their residence.
Now, she seemed to hold a bit of hostility toward him.
Boling Canglan recognized that Chenzhu was the reason for Chu Yeâs hostility. However, he didnât know that Chenzhu was only a part of the reason. There was also Lu Shi and Boling Yili, who he had indirectly killed. With these three victims he had harmed, how could the enmity be small?
As of the moment, Boling Canglan still didnât take Chu Ye seriously.
So what if she was Carolineâs disciple? Ultimately, she wasnât Caroline herself. She didnât have the ability to create big waves.
Did she believe that Carolineâs presence would deter him from doing anything to Chenzhu?
Fine. Since he couldnât take action out in the open, heâd just do it in secret.
With a wave of Boling Canglanâs hand, his guard immediately came to his side.
He whispered a few words into the guardâs ear. The guard accepted his order and rushed down to the competition field.
When Chu Ye caught sight of this, anger blossomed on her face. He still dared to play his schemes, even with Caroline here. She was about to stand, intending to intercept the guard, when Caroline stopped her with her gaze. âCalm down and donât be rash!â
Chu Ye hesitated. In the end, she decided to listen to Caroline and watch how the situation unfolded.
Boling Canglanâs whispers most probably hadnât escaped Carolineâs ears. And since Caroline motioned for her to stay in her seat, Chenzhu shouldnât be in big trouble.
Finally, the current round had concluded. The top 20 became the top 10.
However, only eight of them could participate in the next round. Although the other two were also qualified, they were beaten to within an inch of their lives. They didnât have the strength to proceed further.
Just as these eight people were about to start drawing lots for the next round, a resounding voice was once again transmitted through the voice amplifier.