THE MARTIAL KING, VOLUME 6 - Season 14 Episode 98

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 Assembly—where he ruthlessly shamed his rival in defeat. His little sister’s talent is no joke, either.”

The heated discussion among the younger cultivators only increased. Everyone had something to say about the fierce, exiled warrior.

If Layla could name a happiest memory, it would have to be right now.

Never in a million years would she have thought to see her brother in the Illusion Space.

She knew that her brother had offended someone powerful, and thus was exiled into the Villain World. On top of that, he had only 800 years to live.

However, eight hundred years was more than enough for her. She would grow stronger within that time frame and save her brother from the Villain World.

She had committed this secret vow to heart, and never shared it with anyone else ever since she had chosen to take the path of martial arts.

Her brother’s figure, clad in tattered clothes, came into view. She briefly thought of his tall and powerful persona when she was younger, and felt like shedding tears.

“Layla, it’s really you.” The smile on Lincoln Ai’s face only grew wider. His sister was a young woman now, but he could still vaguely make out her childhood appearance. He was more than ecstatic to see his sister in the same place.

He had gone through a lot after being exiled. The Villain World had no rules, and had extremely limited resources. It definitely wasn’t easy to survive there—but because of Adrian this time, he had a chance to get his freedom. And now that he had seen his sister, he saw that she had indeed become powerful already.

Tears welled up in Layla’s eyes as she nodded. She was so excited that she didn’t know what to say.

A chuckle burst out of Lincoln Ai’s lips.

“This is truly great. I didn’t expect that we would reunite on the day I would get my freedom. Once I defeat this kid, I’ll be free.”

Upon hearing Lincoln Ai’s words, Layla’s expression suddenly changed. “They’ll set you free if you defeat Zen?” She’d never heard of such a reward.

“Yes, indeed.” Lincoln Ai said with a nod.
Light sparkled in Layla’s eyes as she turned to face Zen. “Zen, will you please admit defeat?” she pleaded.

Zen was speechless at the sudden turn of events. Why did his opponent have to be Layla’s brother? And Layla, who had wanted to challenge him in the Mist Palace, now wanted him to surrender. This was unbelievable.

“Don’t worry, I will admit defeat too,” Layla said seriously. “I can give up the final test. Then we’d have the same results,” she added.

Once again, Zen was speechless at Leila’s words. All this time, he’d never considered her as an opponent. His participation in the Passing the Torch was only for his own assessment.

Zen also had a younger sister. While Layla and her brother had reunited in this place, there had been no news so far of Zen’s sister.

Of course, it wasn’t that Zen didn’t want to help the siblings.

“I beg of you,” Layla implored. She’d been such a proud girl before, but now she urgently hoped that Zen would respond in kind. She continued, “I will do my best to fulfill any request you have. Anything is fine! Please!”

Just as Zen was about to agree, Lincoln Ai suddenly laughed. “Layla, how can you beg?”

“But…” However, her brother interrupted her before she could finish.

“I’ve always relied on myself. How can I let my sister beg for me? Don’t you have confidence in me? Do you think I am no match for this fellow in front of you?” he said arrogantly.

The two siblings didn’t come from a privileged family. The Ai family was just a fourth-grade noble family from the borderlands. They were simply too ordinary compared to the seventh-grade, eighth-grade, and even ninth-grade and tenth-grade noble families.

But even so, Lincoln Ai had quickly become famous and had even been appreciated by the Gauze Pavilion. He had always relied only on himself to gain other people’s favor, too proud to ask for help. Thus, he absolutely couldn’t stand his sister begging someone else for his freedom.

Meanwhile, Zen had really intended to just admit defeat.

But when Lincoln Ai said those words, he couldn’t say anything. These siblings seemed to have the same temper and were too proud. Zen could only shake his head, and felt somewhat helpless in the face of such a dramatic scene.

Lincoln Ai then turned to Zen and smiled faintly, “You’re Zen Luo, right?”

Zen nodded in response.

“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.”