“The rules are simple. The elimination of the slips will decide your entry order. Sabotaging each other is allowed. Collecting and tearing apart the slips are allowed. Killing or disabling someone is not allowed.”

  The bulky elder Kim said in his deep voice.

  “With the chime of the bell, the competition will start. Do your best.”

  DING!

  At the sound of the chime, the branch family youths erupted in chaos. They understood all too well that failing to swiftly eliminate the main family members would lead to dire consequences.

  A young man from the main family became the center of attention, transforming into the life of the party. Loud hoos and haahs reverberated in the hall as the branch family youngsters charged towards a certain young man with green hair.

  “Sigh…” Leo visibly sighed. There was no avoiding it. These fools weren't wrong to attack him. If he were in their position, he would have done the same. It was hard to believe that someone from the main family with an impure bloodline could possess power.

  Red hair symbolized authority. The brighter the color, the purer the bloodline. This was a distinctive trait of the Ignis Family, the second most powerful family in the world among the Ten Great Families under the Imperial Luan Family.

  Their strength rivaled the top three among the Six Major Clans and was feared by most people worldwide. Everyone knew that red symbolized authority and never to offend someone with that hair color.

  In such a prestigious family, especially within the main branch, Leo was born with green hair and eyes. From birth, he was destined to face ridicule and mockery for something entirely beyond his control.

  In his previous life, he had pondered every single day why he lacked even the slightest trace of the Ignis bloodline. How could such a thing be possible? After all, he was a direct descendant of the main family, for god’s sake!

  Leo entertained such thoughts for the first few decades of his life. It was only later that he realized how foolish they were.

  It was his green hair that spared him from destruction alongside the Ignis. His green hair allowed him to move about freely, granting him a level of freedom that couldn't be purchased with any amount of money. He had overlooked this privilege before, but now things were different.

  After meeting Lanlan and delving into numerous resources at the Heaven’s Library, Leo finally comprehended why he possessed the green hair he had previously despised. He realized that what his mother had unknowingly done was hands down the best thing that could have ever happened to him and his siblings.

  She had no knowledge of their bloodline or their powers, but she instinctively understood that it was superior to the Ignis bloodline. She believed it should be preserved and not tainted by the Ignis blood.

  This situation was causing serious trouble for Leo, as evidenced by the current instance where everyone was charging at him. However, he knew it would only be temporary. He had to endure until then.

  Just a while longer…

  “Fuuuu…” Leo exhaled and got into a defensive position. “Stand behind me, you two. Assist when possible, otherwise just focus on keeping your slips safe.”

  Ellyse, lacking combat experience, felt overwhelmed as numerous people charged towards her. In contrast, Everett remained composed and unruffled due to his training. The butler stood behind Leo, prepared to assist his new master.

  “Get him! Get his slip!” A dark red-haired youngster with a club in hand made no attempt to conceal his murderous intent as he charged directly at Leo.

  Similar to the past, the same boy assumed the role of leader among the branch families and instigated the attack. His name was unknown and frankly irrelevant, as someone from the main family would recruit him as a subordinate due to his leadership abilities.

  Underestimating Leo and charging like an angry bull with confidence, the boy left himself wide open. Just as he approached to snatch Leo’s white slip, something blurry flashed before his eyes.

  THUD!

  A roundhouse kick straight to the head sent the boy crashing down, his body twitching as he immediately lost consciousness.

  The charging crowd came to an abrupt halt, gasping in astonishment, while those from the main family raised their eyebrows in surprise.

  “What?!”

  “Just one kick!? One!?!”

  “How useless was York to be knocked out from one kick!?”

  Cursing the guy for his uselessness, the group sneered and redirected their attention back to Leo, not considering for a moment that this guy might be capable of making their faces kiss the ground.

  Leo's eighteen-year-old body was healthy and trained. It might not have been the best, but it was certainly sufficient to take down a group of amateurs with no combat experience.

  All the youngsters gathered here hailed from diverse places and backgrounds. Their lack of individual combat skills translated into poor coordination when attacking as a group. As they banded together to assault Leo, he effortlessly pulled one person to use as a shield, blocking all incoming attacks from his right side. Simultaneously, he delivered a swift kick to the face of the youngster approaching from the left.

  With the attacks successfully blocked, Leo pushed the youngster in his grasp towards those charging at him from the front, causing them to stumble. He swiftly closed the distance and snatched their slips, tearing them apart instantly before moving onto the rest of the fallen ones.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  The sound of ripping paper made the members of the main family furrow their brows. They fixed Leo with a vicious glare and finally realized... this guy was not to be trifled with.

  The elders of the Disciplinary Hall observing the scene remained unmoved. To them, the green-haired boy was merely employing basic martial arts techniques to incapacitate the inexperienced members of the branch families. In their eyes, such skills were the bare minimum expected from someone belonging to the main family.

  After defeating half of the guys from the branch families, the rest did not dare approach Leo. Once he finished tearing off the slips from those he had fought with, he turned his gaze to the remaining people in the hall.

  This won’t end until there’s a last one standing. I can go back to standing quietly in a corner, but there’s a chance that the ones from the main family could band together to attack me.

  Leo quickly made the decision to strike while the iron was hot. With the onlookers already feeling intimidated, he decided to capitalize on this advantage and launch an attack against them!

  Motioning for Everett to position Ellyse in the middle for protection from both the front and back, Leo advanced toward the nearest person who showed signs of alarm.

  “W, w, where do you think you’re coming!?” The red-haired youngster took a few steps back and exclaimed.

  His servants stood before him, nervously gulping mouthfuls of saliva. Their duty was to protect their master, and the rule against killing or disabling didn't truly apply to them. This meant Leo could do as he pleased with them without facing any consequences.

  All the youngsters in the hall fell silent, watching Leo's every move. They had abandoned the idea of fighting amongst themselves, fearing it might attract a third party to swoop in and reap the benefits. In this case, the third party referred to Leo.

  With swift footwork, he closed the gap between himself and the servants, swiftly striking their necks to render them unconscious. Their master followed suit shortly after as Leo moved past him. This time, Leo didn't tear apart the slips. Instead, he kept them with himself and retreated to a corner after incapacitating a few more individuals.

  Leo's sudden show of strength left many of the youngsters feeling intimidated. They had never anticipated that someone with an impure bloodline could overpower someone with a pure one. With this realization, the clogged gears in their brains had finally started running smoothly, and they finally understood the magnitude of their opponent.

  Despite being the illegitimate son of the potential Patriarch and the grandson of the current Patriarch, Leo still held a higher status than most of the youngsters in the hall due to his position in the direct line of succession. While there were a few who could match him, none surpassed him in rank.

  As a bastard son, the youngsters assumed Leo would be an easy target for bullying, but their assumptions clearly backfired. Leo didn't rely on any special martial arts skills; instead, he efficiently incapacitated a sizable crowd using basic kicks and punches. His slender frame proved deceptive, proving that he was not to be underestimated.

  Leo was no longer bothered, and the youngsters began to fight amongst themselves. The main branch kids only moved once the branch families had settled down. Although they had initially planned to gang up on Leo and take him down, they wisely decided against it, knowing it would not end well.

  Leo could simply target one person, tearing their slip and causing them to be pushed to the back of the line. Most of the main family’s youngsters were prideful and wouldn’t risk being pushed behind for the sake of others. The potential consequences outweighed the benefits—it was best not to rattle the snake.

  Roughly ten minutes later, the event concluded with Elder Kim's entry into the hall.

  Leo claimed the first spot with the most number of slips. Following him was Yu, who glared daggers at him. The next two spots were occupied by random individuals from the main family, and then it was Viren, barely managing to be in the top five.

  If the master and servants held their slips till the end and had the most number of them, they were allowed to move together. Despite the servants being literal slaves of the family, their strength was needed. If they were weak, they would become a liability, and if they were as strong as their masters, they could jump in to save their master during life threatening situations.

  The Ignis and most noble families around the world believed that the best defensive artifact was the one that could think for itself, sentient, and capable of making decisions. Literal humans fit the criteria the best and were hence given some care.

  “Line up!” Elder Kim shouted.

  Leo, Ellyse, and Everett stood in a row at the first spot. Behind them were Yu and her servants. Thus, three lines were formed, with the Ignis members occupying the middle one.

  Elder Kim gestured to the lanky elder with hand signs. In response, the lanky elder clapped his hands, and two people brought in a giant cart carrying a ten-foot-tall, five-foot-wide oval mirror. They positioned it a few feet away from Leo.

  The two people dragging the cart got to work, arranging several gray stones at the base and back of the mirror. They then channeled their spiritual essence into the formation at the base, causing the entire mirror to light up with a bright sheen.

  The brightness was blinding, forcing everyone to cover their eyes. It lasted only a few seconds before being replaced by an ethereal view of a cave filled with herbs, illuminated by a serene blue glow.

  “Step in,” instructed Elder Kim.

  Leo grasped Ellyse and Everett's wrists and climbed the stairs, stepping into the portal. In an instant, their surroundings transformed. The portal behind them disappeared, and they were no longer surrounded by hot-blooded youngsters.

  Leo took a step ahead and turned around to look at Ellyse and Everett. “You two, listen carefully…” There were no eyes or ears in this place. It was safe to divulge secrets that only Leo knew of.

  Ellyse and Everett were on high alert, with the former more attentive than ever before. Having experienced teleportation firsthand, she knew she was in a fantasy world where any mistake could cost her life. Given how easily the original host of her body had been killed, she dared not take any chances.

  Leo provided the two with important instructions and briefed them on the upcoming events, detailing what they should and shouldn't do. About ten minutes later, a voice interrupted their discussion.

  “Attention, younglings.”

  The voice originated from the slips they were all holding.

  “You are in the Awakening Abode. There are multiple Awakening Shrubs near you, eat any and start cultivating. You have a week’s time, good luck.”

  Leo returned the slips to his pocket, and the others followed suit. These slips were communication talismans that also aided in locating the family's youngsters in their respective abodes.

  He went to pick a bunch of glowing blue-green shrubs growing at the damp edges of the cave and returned to his servants’ side. Handing one bunch to Ellyse, another to Everett, and keeping one for himself, Leo said, “Watch what I’m doing, then repeat it. Afterwards, do what I’ve told you to do.”

  Ellyse and Everett nodded their heads in understanding.

  Leo settled into a lotus position at a random spot in the cave. He crushed the shrubs into a ball and placed them in his mouth, chewing on them. The flavor was a combination of parsley and basil, with the former being the more prominent taste as he continued to chew.

  Within a few minutes, the shrubs turned into a paste. Leo gulped them down, and suddenly, he felt a warm flow of energy spreading from his stomach throughout his entire body. Closing his eyes, he entered a meditative state, focusing on evenly channeling the energy throughout his body.

  Ellyse and Everett took deep breaths and followed suit. The transmigrator needed some mental preparation, taking a few extra minutes, but she eventually managed to calm down and ate the shrubs as well.

  Just like that, the two positioned themselves to form a triangle with Leo, facing each other, and focused on their awakening.