Apotheosis

The usually placid face of the Sunset World lord was now marred with confusion. "Who is this person?" he asked.

However, Yolande merely blinked upon hearing his question and stayed silent.

At that moment, one of the palace leaders spoke up. "I remember him. This is the little fellow who held a grudge against the son of the Supreme Lord Winfred during the Heavenly Fruit Assembly!"

That specific incident wasn't long ago, and it had only been a little more than a decade. The mere mention of it made the other palace leaders remember it as well.

"This man's name should be Lincoln Ai, that peerless talent of the Major Cultivation World. Back then, the Gauze Pavilion wanted to break the rules to include him in their group, but the dispute between him and the Supreme Lord Winfred had him exiled to the Villain World," another palace leader chimed in. "Layla Ai...

Lincoln Ai... Are they really siblings?"

Meanwhile, the martial artists from the thirteen palaces outside the ancient hall seemed to have an even more intense reaction than the palace leaders themselves.

Lincoln Ai was just a talent from the younger generation in the eyes of the palace leaders. They didn't have a strong memory of him. Their dispute wasn't anything big back then, and it was normal for him to be unknown to the people like the Sunset World lord.

However, Lincoln Ai was popular among the younger generation. The moment his burly figure appeared, some martial artists had already recognized him.

"It's Lincoln Ai! He actually got released from the Villain World!"

"Lincoln Ai is Zen's opponent! If the Supreme Lord Winfred hadn't punished Lincoln Ai back then, he would've probably reached the Spirit Supreme Realm now!"

"Not just the Spirit Supreme Realm! His cultivation was only at the Life and Death Realm at that time, and he was supposed to be recruited by the Gauze Pavilion. His future could've been limitless... What a pity!"

For many of the common martial artists, it was easy for Lincoln Ai to have the support of the lower-level martial artists because he had been oppressed by Supreme Lord Winfred. There were various legends about him everywhere, and even a rumor that he had once entered hell and fought all sorts of evil spirits just to save a friend.

The core members of the alliance might be unfamiliar with all those legends, but the lower class of martial artists thought all of them were superb.

"I didn't expect Layla to be Lincoln Ai's sister!"

"Both these two siblings are indeed powerful. Lincoln Ai was fierce, having sparred with the overly proud son of Supreme Lord Winfred at the Heavenly Fruit As

"You're now my opponent for this round, which is not bad for a man with a cultivation at the fifth level of the Life and Death Realm. Don't listen to my sister. Use everything you've got! If I can't defeat an opponent whose cultivation level is far inferior to mine, then I would rather not have my freedom."

Zen felt annoyed, and once again muttered to himself about these siblings' proud personalities.

On the other hand, Layla felt conflicted. She knew her brother's character. There was little to no possibility of convincing her brother in such a situation, so she was extremely anxious for this battle.

"Make your move!" Lincoln Ai's booming voice reverberated throughout the area. He took this battle quite seriously even if Zen was only at the fifth level of the Life and Death Realm.

Since Lincoln Ai said so, Zen lightly held the Thunder Wind Divine Sword horizontally and made a polite gesture.

After that, a beam of light flashed from the sword's tip. The lightning and wind blades carried a figure as they charged towards Lincoln Ai.

Meanwhile, a handful of martial artists outside the ancient palace were talking about Lincoln Ai. Their discussion never seemed to die down. On the contrary, it only became more intense.

"Why didn't Zen admit defeat?"

"I saw that Zen had intended to admit defeat, but Lincoln Ai didn't let him."

"What? Lincoln Ai is powerful! Does he need Zen to admit defeat? What a joke!"

"I think so too. Although Zen has some ability and has gotten to enter the final exam, I'm afraid he'll stop at this round since he's faced with Lincoln Ai. After all, even the son of Supreme Lord Winfred lost to Lincoln Ai. He was ruthlessly humiliated. It was the very reason that Lincoln Ai had been exiled."