Chapter 589: First Round-2
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. Inside her heart... she blamed the entire Peterson family.
’They always claimed they loved me. But the moment they found out I wasn’t biologically related to them, they all changed. If only Lana had died, everything would’ve remained mine.’
As though hearing her thoughts through the phone, Conrad let out a cold laugh. "You’re delusional."
His voice carried neither pity nor warmth. "If you continue thinking like this, one day you’ll find yourself completely alone."
Without waiting for another response, he ended the call.
Back inside the arena, Lana quietly stood in her designated position. Moments later, Jessica rose from her seat.
"The first round is very simple."
She looked at all ten contestants. "Your task is to exorcise a ghost."
A large timer suddenly appeared above the arena. "You’ll all have a limited amount of time."
Jessica folded her hands behind her back. "The faster you successfully exorcise a ghost, the higher your ranking for this round."
Every contestant immediately became serious. Jessica glanced at the giant countdown clock. "Your time starts now."
The instant she finished speaking, nine out of the ten mystical cultivators shot forward almost simultaneously.
Some rushed toward the outside, knowing fully well where they had hidden their own ghosts, while others immediately began taking a cab to reach the checkpoints of their university.
Only one person remained standing exactly where she was. Lana.
She calmly glanced around before casually dragging over a nearby chair. Ignoring the shocked gazes around her, she comfortably sat down.
She faintly turned toward Mr. Crow and ordered, "Go."
Mr. Crow gave nod before immediately spreading his wings and soaring high into the air.
Within seconds, he disappeared into the distance. The entire audience stared blankly. Complete confusion filled the arena.
"What...? Did she seriously send out a crow?"
"What exactly is she thinking?"
Someone frowned deeply. "Why is a crow even allowed inside the competition?"
A nearby spectator leaned over before answering, "That’s most likely a mystical beast. Otherwise, the judges would’ve never permitted it to enter."
The surrounding people nodded. However, another spectator still looked puzzled.
"Even if it’s a mystical beast, is she seriously expecting it to locate ghosts for her?"
He shook his head.
"Most mystical beasts don’t possess a Third Eye. They normally can’t even perceive ghosts. So, how exactly is that crow supposed to find one?"
The surrounding spectators nodded in agreement. From their perspective, what that man had said made perfect sense.
However, none of them knew one crucial detail.
The contract between Lana and Mr. Crow was unlike an ordinary master-beast contract.
Because of their unique bond, Lana could temporarily share the vision of her Third Eye with him.
Although Mr. Crow naturally couldn’t perceive ghosts on his own, through Lana’s Third Eye, he could see every wandering spirit as clearly as she could.
Mr. Crow spread his wings and soared through the sky with astonishing speed.
His sharp eyes continuously scanned the surroundings below.
Since the rules specifically required the ghost to be at least two hundred years old, he ignored every weaker spirit he encountered along the way.
A few moments later, he activated a Teleportation Talisman.
In the blink of an eye, he appeared in the suburbs several kilometers away.
Near the boundary of an old, deserted shrine, Mr. Crow finally found what he was searching for.
A ghost, whose Yin energy was far denser than the others, silently floated around the crumbling entrance.
After confirming its age through Lana’s shared perception, he immediately activated another Teleportation Talisman.
The next instant, he returned to Lana. He nodded his head excitedly before informing her that he had located a ghost well over two hundred years old.
Lana smiled faintly. "Good work."
Without wasting another second, she calmly took out a Teleportation Talisman. She casually flicked it into the air.
Her figure disappeared from the arena without warning.
The audience froze. A stunned silence swept across the stadium before someone suddenly shouted,
"What the hell?! Was that a Teleportation Talisman?"
Another spectator nearly jumped out of his seat.
"Did she seriously use such an expensive talisman during the very first round?"
Even Mason couldn’t help snorting. "Truly a wealthy young lady."
He crossed his arms. "Does she really think having a Teleportation Talisman automatically puts her ahead of everyone else?"
His tone was filled with disapproval.
The other judges remained silent.
Meanwhile, the enormous LCD screen above the arena had already split into multiple sections.
Each contestant had their own live feed.
Shelly had already reached an abandoned district.
A few moments later, she successfully located a two-hundred-year-old ghost hidden inside the city.
The audience immediately erupted into discussion. The remaining contestants were no different.
Some clearly had assistance from their universities. Others had already prepared in advance.
A few contestants had even imprisoned suitable ghosts within their university grounds days before the competition began.
The moment the competition started, they simply contacted their teachers before rushing directly toward those sealed locations.
Several audience members frowned. "Doesn’t that feel like cheating?"
The man sitting beside them shook his head. "You must be watching the National Mystical Competition for the first time."
Everyone nearby looked toward him. He smiled knowingly.
"The first round has always been like this. It’s merely a demonstration of preparation. Every university makes arrangements for their students beforehand."
He pointed toward the large screen.
"Think about it. If they had to search for suitable ghosts completely on their own... It would take at least two or three days just to travel through the suburbs and locate one that’s over two hundred years old."
He let out a small laugh.
"The only time contestants genuinely searched from scratch was during the very first National Mystical Competition. After that, every university became smarter. Otherwise, the first round alone would drag on for nearly four days."
The surrounding audience immediately understood. "So that’s how it is."
As everyone continued discussing... someone suddenly pointed toward Lana’s livestream.
"Look! She’s already reached the suburbs!"