Chapter 633: Julia
Lana frowned. "He thought that you were behind the entire incident?"
Axel shook his head. "No. He blamed me for not helping him that day when he was about to enter the third round."
He paused for a moment before continuing.
"At that time, his girlfriend had handed him a drink. He offered that drink to me, but I refused it. In the end, he drank it himself and became the one who fainted due to excessive sleeping powder."
Lana frowned in confusion. "Why would he even offer you a drink that had been given to him by his own girlfriend?"
Axel chuckled. "Well, because he had realised that his girlfriend has a crush on me..."
Lana suddenly froze, and her eyes widened slightly. "Wow. That is really spicy."
Axel burst out laughing.
"Well, it was even spicier than that. He told me that if he ever met me again on the duelling ground, he would make sure to crush me completely."
Axel leaned back against his seat and stared thoughtfully at the clouds. "I sometimes wonder how he is doing right now."
Lana chuckled softly. "Well, I suppose we will just have to wait and see."
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Meanwhile, Gabriel from Country H was travelling in a private jet, quietly observing the ghost essence crystal in his hand.
The crystal was nearly twenty thousand years old, and it was a precious treasure that he had inherited from his parents.
His cultivation had already skyrocketed to the fourth level of the Celestial Rank. With this level of power, he was confident that he would be able to crush almost everyone else participating in the competition.
Thinking about this, Gabriel slowly opened his eyes and stretched his arms and legs.
Just then, he saw his coach entering the cabin. Gabriel smiled and looked at him.
"Coach Kei, you look a little different today. Did something happen?"
Coach Kei was a man with neatly combed hair and an imposing presence. Even while standing casually, he gave off an aura that made people instinctively feel pressured. His cultivation had already reached the Spirit Monarch Rank.
He looked toward Gabriel with a serious expression. "One of my enemies, the person who once took away my first-ranked position, is participating in this competition with his disciple."
Gabriel was stunned. "How do you know that?"
Kei waved his hand. "Someone sent me an email and even issued a challenge. They declared that whoever’s disciple wins will settle the matter."
Hearing that, Gabriel chuckled. "What is so strange about that?"
A faint glint appeared in Kei’s eyes.
"That is precisely the strange part. According to the information I received about her, that disciple is only at the second level of the Celestial Rank."
He paused, his expression becoming more thoughtful.
"Although there are only two levels between her cultivation and yours, the difference between two levels at the Celestial Rank is still enormous. It is strange that person would claim Lana would win against you while knowing exactly how large that gap is."
Gabriel casually waved his hand. "It is not a big deal. I will take a look at her when the time comes."
Kei nodded and turned away.
Nearby, another one of his disciples, Julia from Country F, was sitting quietly while wearing an old pair of headphones.
The headphones had clearly been used for years, and the edges were slightly worn, but she did not seem to care.
Honestly, Country F and Country H had no particular connection, so it was rather unusual for Coach Kei to accept a disciple from another country.
However, Julia had truly possessed excellent aptitude, and she had even begged him repeatedly to take her in.
Her persistence had eventually moved him, and he had accepted her as his disciple. Kei looked toward Julia. "Would you be able to duel with her?"
Julia calmly opened her eyes. There was a trace of coldness in her gaze, but a faint smile appeared on her lips.
"According to what you have told me, I think you are overestimating her coach. My two lover boys would have no trouble handling her."
Gabriel’s brow furrowed slightly. "Could you stop playing dirty?"
Julia chuckled softly. "You do not know how beautiful it can be to play dirty."
Hearing that, Gabriel frowned.
Kei didn’t interfere. He somewhat agreed with those words.
After all, Kei himself had lost every time he participated in the Mystic Cultivation Competition. It was never because he lacked sufficient ability. Rather, he had repeatedly fallen victim to dirty schemes and underhanded tactics.
It was only after suffering those losses that he had finally realised something.
’Playing fair every single time does not necessarily mean that I am playing correctly.’
That was why he had begun teaching his own disciples to use every method available to them, even if those methods were not particularly honourable.
Meanwhile, once Lana arrived outside the hotel that had been booked for her, she looked up at the towering building and sighed.
The hotel was truly luxurious. Its entrance was decorated with elegant lights, polished marble, and expensive-looking ornaments that reflected the glow of the afternoon sun.
However, Lana soon noticed something else. It was far too crowded.
People from different countries were constantly entering and leaving the hotel, and the lobby beyond the glass doors was packed with cultivators, wealthy businessmen, competitors, coaches, and their entourages.
Axel looked at Lana. "Just follow me to the apartment you own. After all, staying here is only going to make you uncomfortable."
Lana looked at him in surprise.
Axel continued, "This is only the beginning. There will be more and more people arriving. Besides, this hotel does not distinguish between male and female guests. They even encourage people to share rooms here."
Lana frowned. "How is that possible? This is a five-star hotel."
Axel chuckled. "You do not seem to understand the scale of the International Mystic Cultivation Competition, do you?"
He glanced toward the crowded entrance.
"It is so famous that wealthy and powerful people from all over the world arrive here. You might not know this, but the room you are assigned could be shared with the CEO of a huge corporation."