Chapter 52: The Competition

Lu Mo took the initiative to sign up for the competition.

At that moment, both families erupted in an uproar.

“Hah, good! She took the bait!”

“She actually dared to sign up?”

“Does she still think it’s three years ago?”

That same day, many of the boys and girls who had participated in the Divine Blessing Ceremony alongside Lu Mo also signed up.

The registration office was so crowded that it became impassable, leaving the registration staff somewhat dazed.

Almost everyone wanted to face Lu Mo in the competition to crush her.

Three years had passed, and they were no longer the weak children they used to be.

Their control over Holy Power had reached a higher level.

Nurtured by Holy Power, both their cultivation realms and physical strength had long since surpassed their past selves. They had undoubtedly left Lu Mo — who had failed to awaken any Holy Power — far behind.

Not to mention, only they were qualified to perform battle techniques imbued with the properties of Holy Power.

Compared to them, what did Lu Mo have to win with this time?

“This time, I’ll be the one to beat that woman to her knees,” one boy sneered.

“Lu Mo… Lu Mo… For the grudge of that sword strike back then, I will make sure you pay it back tenfold this time!” a girl muttered through gritted teeth as she touched her nose.

Back then, Lu Mo had thrown a sword directly at her, breaking the bridge of her nose and leaving a scar on her face.

Everyone believed that Lu Mo might not even survive her first match this time.

Whether one could encounter Lu Mo and settle their old score during the competition depended entirely on luck.

“Are they… all here to sign up?”

Not far away, some teenagers watched the dense crowd. Boys and girls were shouting to register, and some even came to blows just to get their names down earlier.

“Shouldn’t the focus of this competition be on our group?”

Someone else spoke up. Whether it was the rewards of the competition or the spectacle of the fights, their generation should have been the highlight.

However, why did these younger boys and girls seem even more competitive than them?

By the time they learned Lu Mo’s name and her past deeds, the competition was already beginning.

***

The day of the competition arrived quickly.

The arena was packed with a sea of people.

Almost all the high-ranking members of the Kalis and Helovit families had arrived at the scene.

There were also many distinguished guests from The Holy Sanctuary.

The heads of both families sat on a high platform, chatting and laughing before looking down at the arena below.

All the contestants were at their sharpest at this moment.

They knew that this was not a simple competition; it was an opportunity to showcase their talent and abilities.

If they could achieve victory, they would undoubtedly receive a greater share of resources from their family.

With high-ranking officials from The Holy Sanctuary present, if they were remembered for their outstanding abilities, their chances of being favored and entrusted with important tasks by The Holy Sanctuary in the future would be much higher.

“It has been many years since the two families jointly held a competition of this scale, hasn’t it?”

“Both the Kalis and Helovit families have produced many powerful heroes. I wonder who will take the victory this time.”

“I suspect the youth group will be won by Glenn from the Kalis family. He ranked very high during the Divine Blessing Ceremony.”

“As for the younger group, it’s definitely Kemode Helovit. His talent for Holy Power is arguably the strongest the Helovit family has seen in ten years.”

“In the future, he will 100% enter the Hero ranks of The Holy Sanctuary.”

Members of The Holy Sanctuary were conversing with members of the two families.

The competition began with the younger age group.

The boys and girls stood on the field, fighting with a hint of youthful inexperience. Sometimes the family elders and guests would comment with a smile, and sometimes, they would ignore the battles below to continue their conversations.

In their eyes, these were merely petty squabbles.

But at a certain moment, the voices of the spectators below suddenly grew louder.

“Hmm?” A person from The Holy Sanctuary looked toward the arena in confusion and saw a girl dressed in the Kalis family attire slowly walking out.

The girl was very beautiful. She would surely grow up to be a breathtaking beauty.

However, looks alone shouldn’t have attracted so much attention, right?

“Lu Mo Kalis. My daughter is headstrong; please don’t mind her,” the head of the Kalis family spoke up at that moment.

“Lu Mo? I seem to recall…”

“Wasn’t she the only one back then who failed to show even a shred of talent for Holy Power —”

A guest started to speak but quickly shut his mouth after realizing how impolite it was.

“No matter,” the Kalis Patriarch shook his head at this moment. “It is an indisputable fact that she has no talent for Holy Power.”

The guest felt a bit awkward and tried to say something to lighten the atmosphere, quickly adding, “It’s fine. The fact that the Patriarch’s daughter can participate in the competition at this time shows her commendable courage, hahaha…”

Despite his intent, the words felt even more awkward once they were spoken.

A hint of mockery also flashed in the eyes of some family elders.

Back then, Lu Mo had beaten their children to the ground, and they still remembered it.

When they had taken their children to her door for an explanation, they had been lectured by the Patriarch instead.

But what about now?

Their children’s achievements had long since surpassed Lu Mo’s.

Right now, Lu Mo might not even be able to win her first match.

In the stands, countless gazes fell upon Lu Mo simultaneously.

“Who is she?”

“The ‘bad child’ of the Kalis family. She was wild back then, beating children of her own age until they wailed.”

“But they say she didn’t awaken any Holy Power…”

The crowd discussed fervently.

“Without Holy Power, she’s finished.”

“Three years is enough time for someone with Holy Power talent to crush a girl without it.”

“She probably mistook her fighting ability for talent.”

“Tell me — how long do you think she can last in the first match?”

As the discussions continued, more and more people learned that Lu Mo had not awakened any talent for Holy Power.

Almost no one favored her.

— Of course, there were those who argued in her defense.

“You are not allowed to say bad things about Miss Lu Mo!”

“Miss Lu Mo will definitely win this time, and she will keep winning!”

Cecilia was sitting in the guest area of the Helovit family, repeatedly rebutting her elder brother, her cheeks puffed out in anger.

She was simple and somewhat cute.

“…”

Lu Mo did not speak.

She did not even look up at the noisy crowd.

Because none of it mattered.

At that moment, her opponent appeared in the arena, walking out slowly from the other end.

It was a boy from the Helovit family.

Lu Mo had a slight recollection of him. The boy seemed to have participated in bullying Cecilia back then, and then she had broken his leg, leaving him to crawl away while crying.

The boy pretended not to know Lu Mo and stood in the center of the arena, trying to look cool.

“Lu Mo, is it?” he said. “I won’t go easy on you this time. I hope you don’t crawl back crying.”

As he finished speaking, a faint mist of Holy Power began to emanate from around him.

It was purer than it had been three years ago.

And this power’s suppression of other elemental attributes had become increasingly formidable.

“First match: Lu Mo Kalis versus Chelsy Helovit.”

The referee spoke, and soon, a light screen lit up above the arena, showing a countdown.

4

3

The boy’s expression became increasingly smug and ecstatic.

He could already see the scene of Lu Mo being defeated by him and his great revenge being settled.

2

1…

In the final second of the countdown, Lu Mo finally spoke. “Do you remember how you crawled away back then?”

Her voice was calm and icy.

It made Chelsy suddenly shudder.

“Huh?”

The timer hit zero.

The match began.

Before the boy could even activate a Holy Power battle technique, a terrifying streak of Battle Qi sword light came whistling toward him.

In an instant, it tore through his Holy Power and slashed toward his body.

In the next second, the boy let out a scream, and his body was sent flying like a rag doll.

Finally, he slammed heavily onto the ground, twitching a few times before falling still.

The first battle was an instant kill.

At that moment, the entire audience was dead silent.

Even the distinguished guests from The Holy Sanctuary on the high platform lost their composure. One of them spoke in horror, “Was that… an instant cast? She achieved… an instant cast of a mid-tier battle technique?!”