Correcting a Small Misunderstanding (7)

A few members of the staff quickly got to work, cleaning the stone platform.

The spectators, who had initially come just to catch a glimpse of Caelum, now showed far greater interest in the upcoming fights. They engaged in lively chatter and speculations with their friends and companions.

Inside the VIP room, Lyra was the most surprised.

"How??" she blurted out loud.

She stared at her big brother, who stood like an immovable mountain on the central platform. An air of calm surrounded his elegant appearance, as if he were an immortal untouched by the filth of the mortal world.

Lyra's gaze shifted to Saya as realization dawned on her. She remembered that Saya and Caelum had been venturing into the training grounds over the past few days.

"You knew about this all along, didn't you?" Lyra asked, narrowing her eyes at Saya.

Saya smiled wryly, adopting a guilty expression. Inwardly, however, she felt inexplicably proud and happy.

"I did know, Young Miss… But the Young Master ordered me not to say anything to anyone," Saya replied.

"Hnnngh…" Lyra pouted. Her worries eased slightly, though a part of her was still annoyed. Her big brother was keeping very interesting secrets from her! The audacity!

Even so, she wasn't entirely free of concern. Astarion and Chinov were already at the Qi Gathering realm. That fact alone kept her on edge.

Speaking of which, the people most affected by Yehuda's abrupt and helpless death were undoubtedly Astarion's group.

Their mental states shifted so suddenly that they struggled to process reality.

Just moments ago, some of them had been fantasizing about easily acquiring dozens of grade-1 spirit stones without lifting a finger.

They had already envisioned consuming those spirit stones over the coming months to hasten their cultivation speed and flaunting their success before their timid peers who had refused to participate in the bet.

They dreamed of a life filled with glory, a head start afforded by this easy win.

But now?

Other than Chinov and Astarion, who were at the Qi Gathering realm, the other three were trembling.

Even in the best-case scenario, if they managed to convince Caelum to spare their lives by forfeiting their matches, their families would still have to give up thousands of grade-1 spirit stones to secure their survival.

And beyond their families, they would only be remembered as stepping stones for a certain Caelum Goldheart.

With only sixteen years of life experience, this felt like an incredibly cruel punishment, leaving their bodies frozen with sheer stress.

It was like a top-scoring student suddenly failing tests left and right. Their fragile world shattered, leaving only the cold, harsh reality ahead.

While all of this unfolded, Caelum focused on the results of using [Devour] on Yehuda. Obviously, his killing of Yehuda had been entirely deliberate.

'Devouring him gave me practically nothing. The only thing it did was increase my Madness by a small amount,' Caelum thought. The difference in strength between them was simply too great for [Devour] to yield much.

'I guess it also marginally improved my [Beginner Swordsmanship],' Caelum concluded after further reflection.

When he devoured Yehuda, he felt Yehuda's meager comprehension of the Sword Dao seamlessly merge with his own, resulting in a small improvement.

However, it was nothing to write home about—not worth the increase in Madness. Upon realizing this, Caelum shook his head. To grow stronger, he would need to seek out increasingly powerful targets.

Funnily enough, this simple head shake reinforced the idea among the spectators that he was a kind man, as they assumed it was a gesture of regret over Yehuda's accidental death.

Soon, the broken pieces of Yehuda's sword and his body were removed from the combat platform.

Caelum's gaze landed on the remaining group of five. When his eyes met Astarion's, his lips curved slightly, and a glimmer of mischief appeared in his eyes. But it was only for a fleeting moment before his gaze moved on.

Finally, his eyes stopped on a boy from one of the more powerful families in Wintram. While no family in Wintram could actually rival the Goldhearts, there were other families that could be considered powerful - like the Olofs and the Mareclaws.

This boy was the strongest among the remaining three in the Body Tempering realm, having already reached the Marrow Cleansing stage.

"Why don't you be my next opponent?" Caelum asked.

The boy inwardly groaned, conflicted. Should he fight or should he surrender? Astarion's voice broke through his hesitation.

"Don't be such a coward! You're much stronger than Yehuda. Aren't you already at the Marrow Cleansing stage?" Astarion goaded, trying to push him into action and gauge Caelum's limits.

Although Astarion did not think he would lose to Caelum, Caelum's overly calm demeanor, even in the face of their impending match, unsettled him.

Unfortunately, Astarion wasn't exactly a great motivational speaker.

"I forfeit my match!" the boy declared, much to Astarion's displeasure.

The problem wasn't just that Caelum had defeated and killed Yehuda. It was the ease with which he had done it.

Although the boy didn't understand how Caelum had managed such a feat, he knew one thing for certain: he wouldn't have been able to stop Yehuda's sword mid-swing so effortlessly. In fact, he doubted he could have stopped it at all without using his own weapon to block it.

And he definitely didn't want to risk Caelum "accidentally" killing him. His family could afford to pay the spirit stones for the bet. While he was sure his cousins and siblings would make his life harder afterward, that was still preferable to being dead.

"Tch. Useless!" Astarion spat.

But the boy wasn't about to take that insult lying down. He knew Astarion wouldn't dare attack him openly.

"Watch your mouth. There's no need for me to be 'useful' to you," the boy retorted, his tone sharp.

Astarion's expression darkened, his frown twisting into something uglier. But he held back from doing anything rash. This boy was Rovena Mareclaw's brother, and the Mareclaw family, while slightly weaker than the Olof family, was still powerful enough to be cautious of.

"In that case, let's move on," Caelum said, breaking the tension.

He then turned to the remaining two Body Tempering cultivators and asked them to step onto the platform as well. Both of them, including Crony Number Two, refused to fight and immediately forfeited.

Now, only Astarion Olof and Chinov Baramdor remained.

Even if Caelum decided to forfeit the remaining two matches as a cheeky move, he would only lose approximately two hundred grade-1 spirit stones while gaining over two thousand in return.

But, of course, he had no intention of doing that. Not when he had the golden opportunity to propel his personal wealth into the tens of thousands…

The Body Tempering small fries were merely starters. It was finally time for the main course.