The Beginning of the Competition

"Who do you think will stand out today?"

"Sigh! I wonder if Hao can take first place?"

"Mu Zhan of the Mu Family has inherited the old marshal's legacy. The championship will surely be his."

"Isn't Nalan Jun strong too?"

"I heard the format of this year's competition has changed?"

The crowd buzzed with discussion. Before the event had even begun, the martial arena was already packed with people. The main platform remained empty, as it was still early.

One after another, many descendants of Mittel's upper ranks entered with their teams. Among them was Miter Lie.

Miter Lie spotted Xiao Le and looked at him arrogantly. Xiao Le could see the hidden meaning in his gaze. He had likely tampered with something, but Xiao Le was not worried. Before absolute strength, everything else was meaningless.

"Whoosh!" A pair of gorgeous green Dou Qi wings appeared in the arena. Their owner was an old man with graying temples, yet Sha Qi surged from his entire body.

"That's the Lionheart Marshal!"

Another figure shot into the sky, a pair of dazzling Dou Qi wings spread behind him, drawing immense envy from the crowd below.

"That's Mu Chen, the Mu Family Patriarch—a Dou Wang!"

Several more figures descended upon the Mittel Family.

Mittel Tengshan was among them. Compared to the overwhelming presence of the others, Mittel Tengshan appeared rather low-key. If not for the wings behind his back, who would have imagined that he was a Dou Wang?

The Alchemist Guild, the Mu Family, the Nalan Clan...

"Have the royal family and the Misty Cloud Sect not arrived yet?" Nalan Jie looked calm, his thoughts unreadable.

"Whoosh!" A streak of light flashed past.

A cold and mature young woman, with a trace of heroic spirit between her brows, appeared in the seat of honor.

"Her Highness the Eldest Princess!"

The clan heads and elders present hurriedly rose to pay their respects. Only the patriarchs of the three great families merely cupped their hands.

"Yao Ye greets all the elders!" The empire's eldest princess, Yao Ye, was poised and graceful, her heroic bearing striking. Everything she said and did carried the bearing of royalty.

The opening ceremony soon began.

Yet the atmosphere on the main platform grew increasingly subtle. An old man seated below Mu Chen of the Mu Family looked deeply displeased.

The old man said angrily, "The Misty Cloud Sect is becoming more and more arrogant!"

Sure enough, the section reserved for the Misty Cloud Sect on the main platform was still empty. As the host, Mittel Tengshan was somewhat dissatisfied as well, but with the Misty Cloud Sect absent, he could not simply begin.

"Hahaha!"

Just as the commotion among the crowd below intensified, an arrogant laugh rang out. A spirited old man in white robes descended into the Misty Cloud Sect's seats, a pair of dazzling green Dou Qi wings spread behind him.

"Sorry to have kept everyone waiting. You all know that the affairs of our Misty Cloud Sect are far too complicated, unlike your great families, who have it so easy."

As expected of the number one sect, the Misty Cloud Sect gave everyone a show of dominance the moment it arrived.

Mittel Tengshan remained calm, while Mu Chen beside him showed a little more anger. Yao Ye, representing the royal family, looked utterly unconcerned. Yet a closer look would reveal the icy chill in her eyes. The calmest of all was Nalan Jie of the Nalan Clan.

Seeing that the atmosphere was poor, Mittel Tengshan rose to take charge of the proceedings. The Misty Cloud Sect had already delayed things for quite some time.

By then, Ya Fei had walked over to Xiao Le. As the person backing Xiao Le, she naturally stood by his side.

Feeling many probing gazes upon him, Xiao Le paid them little mind and chatted with Ya Fei in a corner.

"A melee?"

The successive cries of surprise drew Xiao Le's attention. It turned out that this year's competition rules had changed. That was also why the royal family, the two great families, and the Misty Cloud Sect had been invited to observe.

After all, they could not have been invited here with nothing to do. A melee was the fastest way to settle the competition.

The Ice Emperor Hai Bodong had been gone for a long time, and the Mittel Family's decline had gradually become apparent. In order to display the Mittel Family's might and deter petty villains, this competition was being held.

Xiao Le showed no reaction after hearing this information.

After briefly recounting the Mittel Auction House's achievements over the past year, Mittel Tengshan arranged for the person in charge of the competition to explain the rules.

The first round would be a melee. Everyone participating in the competition was divided into four groups, each with nearly fifty people.

Xiao Le saw Ya Fei return with an angry expression. Soon afterward, he saw Miter Lie, with whom he had previously clashed, return with a smug look. His eyes were fixed on Xiao Le, filled with hidden meaning.

"Sister Ya Fei, weren't you drawing lots? What happened?"

At the mention of the draw, Ya Fei looked full of apology. She sighed. "Xiao Le, we should withdraw from the competition!"

Xiao Le found the sight extremely strange. Was this still the queenly figure who had been so high-spirited in the business world? As the manager of the Mittel Auction House in Wutan City, Ya Fei had been able to deftly deal with the patriarchs of the three great families.

"What happened?" Xiao Le was deeply curious. What could have dealt Ya Fei such a blow?

Ya Fei said dejectedly, "The rewards for this year's competition were originally far greater than in previous years, but I never expected..."

At this point, Ya Fei gritted her teeth and continued, "Miter Lie used his grandfather's authority to arrange for you to be placed in the third group. He himself is also in the third group. He must have made thorough preparations and intends to teach you a harsh lesson. Let's forget about the competition!"

So that was it!

Xiao Le understood the meaning behind Miter Lie's earlier look. He truly was like a lingering ghost! Unfortunately, he had picked the wrong person.

Killing intent flashed through Xiao Le's eyes as he sneered. "I thought it was something serious. He's just a clown."

Ya Fei still wanted to persuade him, but Xiao Le interrupted her.

Seeing how worried Ya Fei was for him, Xiao Le felt a little more favorable toward her. He teased, "Sister Ya Fei, how about we make a bet? I bet that Miter Lie won't come out of this well. If you lose, kiss me once. What do you say?"

Xiao Le's flirtation reminded Ya Fei of what Mittel Tengshan had said earlier that day. Her alluring face immediately flushed red.

"Sure. Then I'll wait for your good news, little brother!" Ya Fei regained her usual radiance.

With that, she left Xiao Le behind and walked straight toward the main platform. To Xiao Le's surprise, she began chatting animatedly with Yao Ye, the eldest princess of the Jia Ma Empire, as though they were intimate friends.

The Mittel Family's enormous martial arena could accommodate tens of thousands of people. Four battle platforms stood around it, corresponding to the four groups of contestants.

Following the referee's announcement, Xiao Le silently walked toward the third platform, observing his opponents as he went.

Xiao Le's powerful soul made his senses exceptionally sharp. Among the crowd, the three strongest auras were all absent from his group.

If there had been no manipulation behind the scenes, Xiao Le would never have believed it. After all, none of the three favorites to win had been assigned to the same group.

Nearly fifty people stood on the platform, yet it did not feel crowded at all. Across from Xiao Le, Miter Lie watched him with a cold smile on his lips. More than a dozen people around him vaguely treated him as their leader.

"Kid, let's see how you can keep acting arrogant now."