Davidâs debut battle ended in defeat, which left him very depressed. As he came out from the backstage area for the competitors, he kept his head down and remained silent.
After Angel analyzed the reasons for his failure, David felt a bit better.
He had always thought it was his own carelessness that cost him the victory in the match. But after listening to Angelâs words, he understood that even if he had not been careless, he probably wouldnât have been able to ward off The Piperâs attack.
Tricks involving the control of spiritual power are too rare among apprentices. David had some potions for repairing injuries to his spiritual power, but he didnât have any methods to ward off invasions of spiritual power. Even if he had been on guard against The Piper, he probably would have still lost in the end.
That meant, although Davidâs opponent was currently unknown, judging by his strength, he was definitely a dark horse in the newcomerâs competition.
It seems somewhat acceptable to be defeated by a dark horse. With this thought, David felt a lot more relieved.
âSigh, I can only accept it. It doesnât matter if I failed this time; I still have another chance,â David said, knowing that as long as he could win the next round, he wouldnât be eliminated.
âActually, even if you lose the match, itâs fine. After all, your goal is just to enter the Endless Corridor, and you already qualify for that,â Angel said. Serumâs mentality was very good at the moment. If he could win the match, he would do his best to win, but if he thought he might lose, heâd concede in advance; after all, his objective had been achieved. It was somewhat unrealistic to compete for ranking with those potential-laden seeds.
After hearing this, David sighed and then said bitterly, âThatâs what I originally thought too, but Mentor Lianna gave me a strict order that I must at least make it into the top fifty of the newcomerâs competition ranking. OtherwiseâŚâ
Angel: âOtherwise what?â
David looked down, feigning a defeated demeanor: âOtherwise I have to spend ten years in the company of Jiebo.â
Sympathy flashed in Angelâs eyes after hearing this, âThat is indeed a terrifying punishment. I didnât expect your mentor could be so tough.â
Jiebo is a demon servant cultivated by Lianna; however, whatâs special about it is that its original form is a rose from the rose garden. While roses are meant to be graceful and dazzling, Jiebo is a misfit; not only sleazy and full of tricks, but it is also a super poison-tongued being.
Every time David met with Angel, he would spend time complaining about Jiebo, because Jiebo always hit him hard with all manner of sarcastic and disparaging remarks, targeting his vulnerabilities with pinpoint accuracy. It was a mystery where Jiebo found so many depressing words, even when David would just quote a phrase or two, Angel could feel the lethality of Jieboâs venomous tongue.
It would be bad enough if Jiebo was just a poison-tongued demon; its heart is black, and it is both greedy and lustful. The last time Angel went to the rose garden, Jiebo almost swallowed the Magic Crystals meant for Angel, indicating its immense greed.
If David really had to spend ten years in the company of Jiebo, it would undoubtedly be a dreadful punishment.
âThen do your best, and hope that youâll encounter a simpler opponent in the next match,â Angel sincerely wished David well.
With Angelâs blessing, David went to check the arrangements for tomorrowâs match, and when he saw his opponent, his chest tightened, and he almost vomited blood.
Angel helped to support David, whose legs had already started to give way, and then looked towards the battle chart.
âDeep Secret Gazer VS God-Equip Maidenâ
When he saw âGod-Equip Maiden,â Angel looked at David with a pitying gaze. If it were any other competitor, as long as the gap wasnât too wide, there might be a chance for a surprise victory, but it just had to be this God-Equip Maiden.
What was Davidâs greatest advantage? His collection of alchemical equipment, scorned by the audience.
Against anyone else, even if he lost, the alchemy equipment gave David plenty of confidence. But facing Kavoline, the witch from the deityâs shepherd family, he didnât even have this confidence.
His collection of alchemical equipment, compared to Kavolineâs deityâs shepherd attire, was like grains of rice next to stars, lacking even the qualifications to compete on the same stage.
Without the advantage of his alchemical equipment, David was even less of a match for Kavoline.
âHow could it be herâŚâ David said with a crestfallen face: âShe is striving to win the newcomerâs competition crown; Iâm just trying my best to break into the top fifty, how can I possibly fight?â
Davidâs wailing was heartfelt and full of despair.
Just thinking about spending ten years in the company of Jiebo made him feel like being reforged in fire would be more merciful.
Faced with Davidâs dire situation, Angel had no solution but could only suggest, âWhy not, try to negotiate with Kavoline in private?â
David looked at Angel in astonishment: âAs a judge, youâre actually encouraging me to cheat?! This is just so⌠thrilling!â
Davidâs emotions plummeted swiftly, making the decision to collude in secret without hesitation.
But David had never considered whether the other party would agree to his clandestine cheating.
Kavoline not only refused David but also trounced him soundly in the second dayâs competition, nearly disemboweling him in the arena if not for the intervention of the permanent judges to call a halt.
Davidâs second contest also ended in defeat. With the closing of this match, his journey in the New Star Competition also came to an end.
Amidst Liannaâs scornful laughter, what awaited David was not only a decade of suffering but possibly a lifelong shadow.
The only advice Angel could give was: âAdvance in ranks as soon as possible, and then find a way to kill Jack Sue.â
Whether David could do it or not remained unknown.
Davidâs competition had ended, and the other Fangling Hall contestantsâ matches had also begun in succession. In the past few days, aside from his regular teaching, Angel went to watch his friendsâ contests.
Nausicaaâs record was currently one win, three losses. Her luck wasnât very good, having encountered several top contenders on the potential list. With her current record, she essentially had no chance of advancing to the finals. Although not yet eliminated, at best she could only vie for ranking.
Serumâs luck was a bit better, facing mostly ordinary opponents in three matches and winning two. The one he lost was because he unluckily came up against Saladin.
A madman from the Extreme Sect.
If Serum exerted his full strength, he might be able to hold his ground against Saladin, and with some luck, he might even push him into a corner. But calling Saladin âmadâ was no exaggeration; he displayed his full power when pushed to the brink, sweeping away all his enemies in a frenzied stateâa state not even Jiebo could likely withstand head-on.
Serum didnât need to vie for rank; after assessing both sidesâ strength and testing the waters personally in the next match, he decisively conceded.
As for Xiliuâs achievements, they were the best among the three: four battles fought, one lost.
In the three victories she claimed, she faced strong opponents, so she cautiously consumed potions for each and then won. However, her sole defeat came against a very ordinary opponent, whom Xiliu felt she could withstand without wasting a potion, so she went straight into the match. Unfortunately, she overestimated her self-control and underestimated the overwhelming sleepiness.
Halfway through, Xiliu started dozing off, leaving both the audience and her opponent flabbergasted.
Regarding this, everyone was helpless; Xiliuâs drawback was obvious and could not be hidden. Besides, the potions she had were indeed running low, so it was not a big deal if she lost some of the less important matches.
However, Shan looked at Xiliuâs sleeping face, still somewhat worried: âIf only she was of the dream class, at least she could gain something even while sleeping. Now she simply sleeps, squandering her life away.â
Angel also noticed this and thought that once the Wilderness of Dreams log-in devices became widespread, he should give Xiliu one as a priority, as she seemed to be the person who needed it the most.
That was the record of the three; all fairly decent, but except for Xiliu, it would presumably not be easy for Nausicaa and Serum to advance further. And Xiliu had her fair share of problems, which was a headache.
Besides these three, there was another contestant that Angel was very concerned about.
That person was the âInferno Witchâ Qi Li.
Qi Liâs record was quite impressive: five fights, five victories. She almost certainly ranked among the top in the leaderboards this time and might even reach the top ten.
As for other peopleâs matches, Angel didnât pay much attention.
But today, Angel had come to a competition venue, and not as a judge but simply as a spectator sitting in the audience.
Sitting beside him were Serum, as well as his brother Lyon, whose face was full of excitement.
Angel hadnât heard of either participant in this match; he was there to help Serum analyze the contestants.
Because one of the competitors in this match was Serumâs opponent for tomorrow morning.
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