Splash!
Seth jumped into a river to cleanse his body from the blood and dirt.
He left the river and used his mana to dry his clothes faster. He put his bracelet and restricted his power back to the Qi Gathering late-stage realm. The cuts on his body were still there, but much smaller. They recovered in a speed that wasn't normal for the human body, but not as fast as an instant heal though.
"I guess that will be it for today. There is still an event to attend, so no more hunting." Seth took out the ticket Lilian has given him from his dimensional ring and started heading back.
When he turned around to leave, he suddenly saw a woman standing a few meters away from him.
'What?! Was she observing me while I took a bath?' Seth remembered a similar situation he was in before, however, he was not courageous enough to remain at the place when Lilian was about to appear.
'This woman! She is bold! Or was it me that shied away at that time? No! That would've been disrespectful.'
His expression was really strange while all these thoughts were forming on his head, but he was ready to enter in a defensive position all this time. He couldn't see her face that as covered by a veil and it gave her a more mysterious feeling. Seth wasn't naïve enough to believe she was just a normal voyeur.
Out of nowhere an irresistible attraction moved his gaze to meet the woman's eyes, the only part of her face uncovered. He was not prepared for this.
Those ocean blue eyes were perfect. The iris of her eyes seemed like an always moving ocean water, really fluid and ethereal. The black pupil was as deep as the abyss and it seemed that Seth would forever fall into darkness if he kept staring at them.
Seth didn't have enough time to move out of this trance when she pointed a finger at him and a power a hundred times stronger than his, forcefully put him to sleep. The woman deeply looked at him and the scenario changed.
In front of her there was a beautiful blue lake, the water was so crystalline but even so she could not see the bottom. Observing it a bit more she found out that each droplet of water inside that lake was made of soul power, more precisely, they were his history, his memories. She invaded Seth's soul expecting it to be a normal projection of his body, like any other soul, but she found out the most mesmerizing soul she has ever seen.
Looking at the sides her special eyes captured an ethereal link, connecting his soul to another. This link was indestructible but she could feel the soul on other end on the line.
She approached the lake in order to spy on his memories, seeking an answer for her questions, that were many.
However...
"You're not welcomed here!" A white mass of energy slammed on her and it appeared that it was doing a flying kick.
The woman was forcefully expelled from his soul.
"Humph!" Lexi, the white mass of energy, put her hands on her hips after expelling the intruder.
The woman opened her eyes and Seth awoke too. The fluctuations of power made her veil lift, revealing one of the most beautiful features Seth has ever seen. Her face was flawless, beautiful beyond any reason. Her skin was pale and delicate. There was only one other woman Seth knew that could compare to her.
The woman gazed at him and said one word before disappearing: "Interesting."
She vanished with no omen in between.
"Interesting?" Seth was more lost than anything. He could not forget the perfect image he has just seen and at the same time didn't understand anything.
If there was one thing he knew, it would be that his strength was nothing if compared with hers.
.
.
.
Lilian and Caizhi sat down and started to watch the event. The stadium was completely full of people. All the seats were taken, but the huge platform in the middle was completely empty.
Sometime later, a man entered the stadium and walked to the platform. The crowd attention gathered on him, not only because he was the only person at the center, but because he was the current city lord of the Hilkhell city, Colton Hilkhell.
"I would like to announce that the recruitment of new disciples for the Glazed Lake sect is officially open. The Hilkhell city supports them on their every decision and is ready to take drastic measures against anyone that causes any trouble here."
The noisy crowd instantly got silent after hearing his words. There wasn't a single person crazy enough to go against a Higher Ground already, but now, one of the biggest human cities would unconditionally support them. Someone had to have huge balls in order to go against these two behemoths.
"Someone from the Glazed Lake will soon come to announce the rules. Let's patiently wait until..."
While Colton Hilkhell was still finishing his words, a strong aura descended at the center of the stadium. Everyone felt like a downpour had suddenly started but there was only a single drop of water falling at the center. When it touched the ground, it transformed into a beautiful woman dressed in a blue and white robe.
Colton Hilkhell bowed in respect and said: "I welcome the Eleventh Palace Master of the Glazed Lake."
The woman nodded and her Mana Control middle-stage cultivation supported her next words, imposing respect.
"There are ten spots for this year recruitment exam and they are going to be obtained by the most talented women among you. The exam will be a simple one."
She went directly to the point. Waving her right hand, the center of the stadium was encompassed by a dome made of water.
"Any of you can enter this dome easily for the first time, however, after leaving it, it is impossible for any contestant to enter again. For the next six hours I will allow you to enter, after that no one will be able to enter it, however, if the number of people inside goes over a hundred at once, the barrier will automatically prevent anyone from entering. The winning condition is simple, the first ten people to survive half an hour inside are the new sect disciples. You may begin."
"What?!" The crowd was not expecting such a fierce competition.
While there were girls still stunned with everything that was happening, some of the precocious ones rushed to the dome and took their battle positions.