Death... and me

As impressed as everyone might be, the contest had to go forward.

"Next! Sansa Sil, Soul Guild, come forward!"

Hearing her name being called, Sansa took a deep breath and moved to the formation. Lukimira Sect had two members in the top three, and one of them was already guaranteed the third position at the very least. She was basically the only one other than the Lukimira Sect that could get the Divine Vein.

In the elders' room, both the Cosec City Soul Guild Branch Leader and Kayla felt nervous. Kayla needed the Divine Vein for her sect. Naturally, she didn't expect it to come from a side-occupation competition. Then again, that was because humans weren't known for having talent in Soul Power. As for the Guild Leader, that had a lot more to do with the Soul Guild's pride. His guild hadn't lost the Soul Power competition in the last ten assemblies.

Back in the contest...

"Start!"

*Shatter!*

Sansa started as strongly as Roan, not being late in reaction time at all. She had watched every single competitor until now, trying to obtain the best start possible for this one chance. The effort paid out in the end since Sansa did seem to be faster than everyone else...except Roan. She looked like she was at a similar level to him.

Until 30 seconds had passed, she truly seemed to be able to keep up with Roan's pace. However, it was from that point onwards that things started to get harder. As mentioned before, the rings got further away while moving at different speeds. Although the rings' movement was exactly the same for everyone, it didn't change the difficulty of reaching a longer distance with one's abilities.

That's where the main difference between the Divine Soul Power's fusion and the normal synergy between Divine Energy and Soul Power could be felt. For Roan, the distance could be said to be harder. But since he didn't have to think much about the synergy, he could focus on the distance alone. Sansa...couldn't do such a thing.

Roan then looked at Rean as he thought, 'Without the Soul Power and Divine Energy Fusion, probably only Rean would be able to match Sansa in this test.' He shook his head right after that. 'Oh well, I'm still lacking in cultivation compared to her, so I can't tell how it would be if the cultivation difference didn't exist. In any case, Rean is still better at this.'

Roan was right. Although Roan and Sansa's displays were impressive, Rean kept smiling during their entire tests. It was as if their performances didn't bother him at all.

Sure enough, Sansa's pace fell slightly the longer the test took and the further the rings got. In the end, she did surpass everyone... except for Roan. Her result was 73 rings, 6 fewer rings than him.

Sansa left the formation with a dark expression. In the end, she couldn't help but ask Roan, "How did you train your synergy of Soul Power and Divine Energy? I know I'm not the best in the Yukirrom Region, let alone the Realm of Gods, but I still thought myself to be the best in Cosec City and the surroundings. Obviously, that's not the case. Just what kind of methods did you and your brother use to be this good even though you have lower cultivations?"

Roan closed his eyes for a moment before saying, "There's no need for you to feel like that. Rean and I aren't from this place. Just like many of the powers participating in this assembly, we have an agreement with them. Once we're gone, you will still be the best Soul Power user in Cosec City."

"That doesn't answer my question," Sansa rebuked. "Of course, everyone has their secrets. I also wouldn't reveal the methods used by the Soul Guild to bring me to this level. So, if you don't wish to talk about it, I won't force you."

Roan nodded after hearing that. "I can tell that your Soul Power training is indeed as rigorous as mine, even if I haven't seen it with my eyes. However, Rean and I do have an advantage. That's all I can say." Usually, Roan wouldn't go that far. But as someone who appreciated effort above everything else, he felt that he owed the girl at least that much.

Sansa believed Roan, muttering to herself, "I see...it's my Soul Guild's job to figure out what we're missing. I will have to try harder in the future." Sansa then looked at Rean, who seemed oblivious to what was happening. "I'm looking forward to seeing how well you'll do."

Erfalis had allowed a rare moment of conversation between those three. Nevertheless, he called their attention after Sansa finished her words. "Alright, that's enough."

"Sansa Sil, Soul Guild. She gets an extra 7300 points!"

Sansa fell short 184 points behind Roan, falling to third place.

"Next! Rean Larks, Lukimira Sect, come forward."

Rean calmly entered the formation to start the test. By now, it didn't matter anymore. Roan was already ahead of Sansa on the scoreboard, so he was just fulfilling his duty. Not that he would hold back, of course. If there was one person he hated to lose to, that person was definitely Roan, especially when it came to a field where he was supposed to dominate.

"Start!"

*Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang...*

*Shatter, shatter, shatter, shatter, shatter...*

Sure enough, Rean showed why he was the only Light Affinity Cultivator in existence, especially how it greatly influenced his Soul Power's overall strength. It wasn't a competition anymore, but a solo exhibition of his capabilities.

"Time's up!"

The orb returned to the center of the formation while Rean stepped out with an expression that said he didn't do anything more than normal.

"Rean Larks, Lukimira Sect. He gets an extra 8600 points!"

However, after stepping out of the formation, Rean couldn't help but think to himself, 'As I thought, it's impossible for me to get 100 rings at my current level. I didn't hold back at all, but I could only get 7 more rings than Roan. The last 14 rings might not look that daunting. However, those 14 are truly hard to achieve in the time given. I doubt I would get all 100 even after I enter the Saint Realm. Perhaps even reaching the Elemental Transformation Realm would not be enough.'

Obviously, with such a result, Rean got first place!