All the disciples, both the outer and inner ones were shocked by the news.
Those who had wanted to join the Misty South Faction decided not to proceed with their plans to
become a member of it for the time being. Those who had already joined the faction began to feel
hesitant about whether they should stay there or quit the faction. But they did not make a move, instead
waiting to see what would happen in the next. Although Caleb and Elvis were defeated, they were
curious whether Autelan and Bertha would stand up and fight.
...
Ricky, Autelan and other core members of the faction were already gathered in a room. They were
discussing about what action they should take to prevent further deterioration and restore the
reputation of the Misty South Faction.
"I'm sure Caleb and Elvis lost their fights on purpose! I watched them very closely when they fought.
And my conclusion is that they did not try their best at all!" Edgar said angrily as he hit the table with his
fist and stood up.
"What's more, we gave them the Beast Fire. They had three days to refine the Beast Fire and they
should have succeeded it! But they didn't use it at all!"
"I know! I know! How could they have really wanted to help and fight for the Misty South Faction!?"
Autelan exclaimed angrily. "They probably offered to join and help us earlier because they wanted to
improve the faction's strength. That way, they could lose the fight deliberately when they went up
against others as the disciples of our faction. How cunning they are!"
"They are quite smart, aren't they? At least, their trick worked. I have planned to take advantage of
them. But unexpectedly, they played tricks on us!" Ricky also echoed with a dark look coming over his
face. Deep inside his heart, Caleb and Elvis were now among the list of his enemies. He would hunt
them down until the last days of their lives.
They played nasty tricks on him, and he would make them pay for their behavior. Sooner or later, he
would show them just what the consequences were for what they had done to him and the Misty South
Faction.
"Ricky, I feel so sorry for your loss. I mean, the Beast Fires you gave them!" Edgar said in anger again.
They had played a bit of a gamble and wasted the precious Beast Fires. It was a big shame to all of
them, who dearly loved the Misty South Faction.
"Yes, you should feel sorry. Giving Caleb and Elvis the Beast Fires was a wrong decision. You should
have given those fires to me and Agnes!" The moment Edgar finished his words, another familiar voice
spoke out complainingly.
Everyone turned around and saw Bertha and Agnes walk in.
"Bertha, Agnes! I'm so glad to see both of you! You finished your cultivation and here you are!" Heather
stood up and greeted them with a radiant smile. Apparently, the three women had already gotten to
know each other and seemed to get along well while Ricky was away.
"Yes, here we are! But it seems that somebody has already forgotten us. He shared his precious fire
with other people but not us!" Bertha pouted with a fierce expression as she glared at Ricky with her
beautiful eyes.
Immediately, Ricky realized what Bertha was referring to.
"Hi, Bertha. It's been a long time! There's no way I would forget you. I promise!" Ricky responded with a
grin. Then, he took out a flame of Beast Fire and gave it to Bertha. Bertha changed her expression,
seeing that Ricky was earnest about this.
"Not bad! That's a good boy!" She took the Beast Fire from his hand, grinning.
"Don't worry, Agnes. I've also saved a flame for you. But your strength is not strong enough to take it
and it will be overwhelming for you to refine the Beast Fire. So I'll keep it for you for the time being. I'll
talk to Elder Samuel to see if he can help you to refine the fire!" Ricky turned to Agnes and said
sincerely.
"Thank you so much, Ricky!" Agnes said excitedly.
"Give me the share you prepared for Agnes! I'll bring it to our master and talk about it with him!" Bertha
said.
"Okay, no problem. Thank you for your help!" Ricky was glad to hear Bertha volunteer to do this. This
way, he would not have to go and talk to Elder Samuel and could focus more intently on the matter at
hand. He took out another flame of Beast Fire and passed it the Bertha.
Bertha was a casting master, as well as a warrior at the peak of the ninth grade of Blood Purification.
So she was able to handle two flames of Beast Fire quite easily. That was also why Ricky was so
confident that the fires would not harm her.
"Agnes, let's leave now. We should go to Master Samuel's place. He will help us refine the Beast Fire!"
Bertha suggested to Agnes, beaming.
"Leave? Now? At this crucial time?" Ricky blurted out in surprise upon hearing Bertha's words. How
could she be so unsympathetic to leave now? The Misty South Faction was in a dangerous situation at
the time!
"Yes, we are leaving now. What? Are you planning to make the girls fight in the arena for you?" Bertha
rolled her eyes at Ricky before she dragged Agnes and Heather away.
Watching the three ladies disappear into the distance, Ricky could do nothing but shake his head
helplessly.
"Ha-ha! Ricky, it seems that among all the inner disciples, there is always someone who can win over
you, like Bertha!" Autelan burst into laughter, so did Edgar.
Ricky shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well, as you can see, she always knows how to leave me
speechless." The light atmosphere permeated for a little while. But then they settled down and began
to discuss about the matters at hand.
"Ricky, to tell the truth, I'm afraid it's time for you to do something. If we send Bertha to fight, I think it
would be a shame on all of us. We have so many men here, yet we send a woman to fight! What could
other people think of our faction? They would laugh at us and spread out the rumor that the men of the
Misty South Faction are cowards!" Autelan said with a serious look, clearing his throat.
Then he continued, "You can't send me to fight because I'm not an inner disciple, though many don't
know about this fact!"
At this time, both Autelan and Edgar were quite confident about Ricky. They were certain that Ricky
would have the ability to defeat anyone from the other two factions. After all, even Gennadi, the top
ranking inner disciple, was unable to defeat Caleb and Elvis with only two punches!
"Yes, you are right, Autelan! Even if you didn't say that, I know I have to do something. I will make other
people know that the Misty South Faction is not powerful because of Caleb and Elvis!" Ricky said, his
voice turning cold and determined.
He rested his chin on his hand, his willful eyes growing darker. He felt an urge to kill those from the
Casting Faction and the Refinement Faction who had always found fault with them, as well as Caleb
and Elvis.
"Ha-ha, Ricky! I'm glad to hear that. I have a feeling that you are going to be the number one among
the inner disciples this time!" Autelan laughed and said happily. He knew how Ricky thought, and could
tell that he wanted to kill their enemies. He also knew that Ricky would again surprise the Snow Sect
and prove himself.
He added, "Remember, feel free to do whatever you want! And when it comes to the core disciples of
the Casting Faction and the Refinement Faction, I will deal with them! I have friends who are core
disciples! They are going to help me!"
"Thank you, Autelan, for handling the core disciples! I will also talk to Master Grace. She will help me!"
Ricky said.
...
That day, another piece of shocking news spread throughout the Snow Sect. Ricky, the leader of the
Misty South Faction, declared that he was challenging Hector from the Refinement Faction, the sixth
ranking inner disciple!
Hector, on the other hand, responded quickly. He accepted Ricky's challenge!
It was foreseeable that there was going to be an exciting fight between the two!
In the afternoon of the same day, a large number of disciples had already amassed in the square of the
Snow Sect. Two figures were standing face to face in the center of the arena, ready to square off. They
were, of course, Ricky and Hector!
"Ri... Ricky wants to fight against Hector himself! How dare he do that! There is no way he can defeat
Hector! He is by no mean a match for him!" a disciple gossiped with his friends.
"Maybe he is the only one left who can fight in the South Misty Faction. After Caleb and Elvis were
defeated, there are only Autelan and Bertha who can fight in the Misty South Faction. It's likely that
Autelan will fight against Gennadi and Wyn. So that's probably why he can't deal with Hector. And they
can't just send Bertha, a woman, to fight against Hector to protect those men in Misty South Faction,
can they? Everyone would laugh at them if they sent her!" another man explained according to his own
reasoning.
"Oh, I understand now. That's why Ricky has to do it himself!"
"But, their powers are nowhere near the same level! Hector is much powerful than Ricky! Goodness, I
can already tell that Ricky is doomed to lose the fight!"
"Well, he doesn't have another choice. Being defeated is better than being a coward, at least!"
Whispers continued to circulate among the throng.
"How dare Ricky challenge Hector! He is biting off more than he can chew! But I have to admit that it's
a brave move. He will for sure be defeated by Hector, yet he chose to fight against him!" a disciple from
either the Casting Faction or the Refinement Faction laughed sarcastically.
"He has always been an arrogant man. Everyone knows it! I know there are many people who hate to
see that arrogance and pride on his face! This is an excellent chance to teach him a lesson. Hector will
punch his stupid idea of establishing his ridiculous Misty South Faction right out of his head!"
"Let's just wait and see! I can't wait to see his miserable failure. How do you think he will get off the
arena?"
"Ha-ha! He will either crawl off it or have to be carried off!"
The two nameless disciples exchanged looks with each other before they burst into loud guffaws.
Obviously, they were eager to see Ricky become a pathetic loser.
"Ricky, I have to admit that you are very brave to challenge me!" Hector was the first to speak.
'It seems that Caleb and Elvis didn't tell them my real strength. Who do they really work for?' Ricky
thought. He could hear the whispers in the crowd and could tell that his real strength was still unknown
to the others judging from their assumptions and Hector's arrogant tone.
...
"Thank you for your praise! But you can save it for now, because you will soon know how brave I really
am later when we fight!" Ricky replied with a confident smile.
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