UNPREDICTED ATTACK

Everyone was excited as the first two awakenings were more than a success. It had been years since anyone awakened both Silver and Magenta Grade in a single ceremony. The fear they felt when Jaxon plucked out the traitors was flushed with happiness and astonishment.

"Next, Sam Silver... Step forward," Jaxon announced.

[Sam Silver, the second son of Naomi and Samuel Silver, is known for his arrogant and ruthless nature. When he was only 7 years old, he severed his guard's hands for bringing his lunch a few minutes late. And later that day, he beat his kitchen staff to half-dead with his father's belt. At the age of 14, he mastered his father's spear arts to master level. His parents are in control of the eastern border of the Silver World country.]

"Finally, my turn. Freaking limp... Jumping around like a retard and wasting my precious time," Sam arrogantly muttered with a sly smile as he passed by Oliver, "Watch your back, limp... I will soon break you in the arena... Kekekeke..." He looked at Ace while walking toward the crystal ball.

"Ohh!!! This clueless bastard... It's you who is going to break down right here and now...," Ace said in a low voice and shook his head. He noticed that the angel wing over Sam's head was flickering, and a skull sign appeared beside the flickering wing.

"So, the Wisp of Underworld is still active... Just... How much bad luck did I gain that it's taking so much time to drain? Or is it a continuous Skill... I have to do more tests. Should I activate it once more? Humm... Let's wait for my turn..." Ace thought after seeing his Skill still draining his bad luck.

Sam's parents were standing among the other members. They were smiling with happy expressions. It looked as if their son had already awakened the Dark Red.

"Give them a scare... My son. Get Silver or Dark Red, and our branch family will gain more lands from the leader... You might even get a chance to battle in the heir selection battle," Samuel Silver thought and gripped his wife's hand tightly in anticipation.

"Don't worry... Our blood is running through his veins. He will make us proud today," Naomi Silver said as she patted her husband's hand lightly and then grabbed it with a little smile.

"Make you proud? Yeah, in your dreams... Wait!!! I can hear them from here... My ears got enhanced again. But, I don't feel like my other senses... Humm..."

"Well, shit!!!"

Ace thought. He was surprised as his sense of hearing was enhanced without losing other senses. But his thought got interrupted when he noticed a mosquito was biting his arm, and he wasn't feeling any pain. He smashed it, but there wasn't any itching sensation. He lost his sense of feeling in exchange for his enhanced hearing.

*****

[System]

[Don't worry, everything will be fine after today...]

[Well... I hope so...]

*****

Sam stood in front of the crystal ball and touched it.

[Sizzzle] No magnificent light pillar emerged this time. The white crystal was glowing with a blue hue. The angel wing above his head disappeared, and only the skull sign remained. The result of his awakening was displayed on the crystal ball.

**Rare Grade

**Flower Plucking

**Aura affinity: 1%

"Wha...? No... Impossible..."

"This thing must be broken... Yes, it has to be a broken crystal..."

Sam yelled in shock and punched the crystal ball in anger. He couldn't believe his eyes that he, whose destiny was to step on everyone, awakened Flower Plucking superpower. He can't even call it a superpower. His years of training and pride were reduced to even less than a grain of sand.

Everyone was giggling after seeing the result. For years, the eastern branch family had committed various crimes and went unpunished due to their power to keep the outsiders at bay. But, with the second son awakening, such a useless rare grade that can't be categorized as a superpower, the prestige they once had has gone down in an instant.

Sam ran toward Jaxon, screaming in shock, "That crystal is broken... Leader, please give me another chance... I am sure it is broken... I am begging you... Give me another chance..." He fell to his knees in front of Jaxon while crying and snorting.

"Say, Samuel and Naomi... What do you want? If I change the crystal, do you think it will be fair to others who had taken the test?"

"What shall I answer to the past batches who had awakened common or rare grade?"

Jaxon said as he looked at Sam's parent's faces and released a wave of bloodlust. As a leader, if he gives exclusive treatment to a branch, then the other branch families might complain, and he will lose respect. And he was angry to see the pathetic behavior of a member of the Silver family in front of their arch nemesis, the Lian family.

"In the past, no one awakened Silver and Magenta Grade in a row. I think that the crystal ball might be broken. I beg you... Please allow my son to take another test...," Naomi Silver said in a wavering tone as she dashed and kneeled before Jaxon. She then gave a glance to her husband.

"I too beg of you... If he still awakens the same grade... I will personally send him to the wilderness to pick flowers for the rest of his life. Please... Give him a chance. I believe that he will awaken at least Super Grade...," Samuel also rushed beside his wife and begged after kneeling in front of Jaxon to give their son a second chance.

"My pride... Respect... Fear... gone in an instant. Must endure it for now. That thing has to be broken. No son of mine can awaken such useless shit," Naomi thought as she bit her lips in anger. Her entire world shattered in front of everyone.

"Don't... You already used up all your luck..."

"What will you do if that crystal isn't broken? Will you really go out in the wilderness?"

"What will you do if that crystal is really broken, as you say... and your actual power is even worse than what you got?"

Ace said with an emotionless face. His cold eyes seemed to pierce through Sam's already shattered pride.

It was the first time in Sam's life, that someone spoke to him like that, without any fear or respect. There were no emotions in Ace's eyes or voice. Sam shivered as he felt a cold wisp down his spine.

"How about this...?"

"Why don't you help us test this crystal, Mr. Ivan? It will save both of us time, and we will all get to see how powerful the leader of the Lian family really is..."

"I know a man of your integrity won't miss this chance to put terror in the Silver family's heart... Show everyone your real strength. Well... Unless you are too old to walk up to the crystal..."

Ace looked toward Ivan's smiling face and spoke with a cold expression.

"When did he plan all this?" Jaxon thought as he was surprised to hear Ace's proposal. But, it's a chance that he won't ever get to see and the perfect opportunity to learn about the mysterious power of Ivan Lian.

Everyone knows that when an awakening crystal ball is used by an awakened person, it will show their present status without affecting them. Everyone looked toward Ivan. They couldn't let go of such a chance to see Ivan's mysterious power.

"Wahahahaha..."

"You sly brat giving me that cold glance without knowing your pathetic place... Your way of taunting to anger me won't work. Deal with your family matters on your own," Ivan yelled after letting out a burst of laughter.

"Well... I thought you to be a fearless man. But, I and everyone present here see the reality now..."

"The Lian family... Trash and weak... Too afraid to prove their strength... I think that they must have planned to take some drugs to increase their strength during the competition..."

"Am I wrong...? What do you say, Mr. Ivan?"

"Did you really plan to use drugs in official competition? If so, we will attack you right here and kill you... Do you think you can handle everyone here with that many people?"

Ace yelled, pointing his finger toward Ivan.

Another skull sign appeared above Ivan's head beside the previous one.