Treasure Hunting

"You must have misunderstood them. There is nothing between Elva and Zachary," Lewis replied.
"Is that so? Maybe I did get it wrong." Sara smiled, nodding her head.
Almost at the same time, Elva walked to the stage and bowed to them. "Good morning, Master Lewis, Master Sara, Master..."
"Elva! It's nice that you've come. Master Sara was just talking about you. She has high expectations of you and says that you're
gifted with talent," Lewis said. He smiled proudly at Elva.
"Thank you very much, Master Sara!" Elva was not a person who would flatter others. However, Sara was a warrior at the
Imperial Level and was the invigilator from the Celestial College. Hence she was cautious not to displease Sara. She bowed to
her to show her gratitude and respect, but her face was still cold.
The way Sara stared at Elva made her uncomfortable, but Elva decided to ignore it. She turned to Lewis and said, "Master
Lewis, I was wondering if Zachary would be in the selection test."
"I happened to see the list of participants just now. He didn't quit. But I don't know whether he will be here to join or not. Never
mind. It's his choice!" replied Lewis. Lewis was surprised to hear Zachary's name from Elva. After recalling what Sara had
mentioned just now, he threw a glance at Sara helplessly.
"He is a piece of trash now. He can't even use his martial energy. If he insists on joining, he will only end up humiliating himself. I
suppose he understands his situation," Sara remarked suddenly.
Lewis and the other stewards all felt a bit embarrassed. Even though there was nothing wrong with her words, they felt like she
ridiculed Zachary quite harshly.
"Who says he's a piece of trash?" Elva asked. She felt offended by Sara's disdainful comment.
"I said so. Isn't it true?" Sara scoffed.
"Even though you're at the Imperial Level, you should still respect others. Zachary is only injured right now. I believe he will be
able to bounce back!" Elva looked utterly annoyed, which was a complete contrast to how she was normally. She herself was
surprised at her own behavior. The moment she heard Sara humiliating Zachary, she felt something sharp sting her heart.
Perhaps it was because she felt guilty, or because of some other reasons. She suddenly felt that she wanted to challenge Sara's
statement regarding Zachary.

"Elva, where are your manners?" Lewis reminded Elva when he felt that she had become too rude.
"But..." Elva bit her lower lip.
"Elva was too disrespectful just now. I'm sorry, Master Sara. Please forgive her!" Lewis apologized for Elva's reaction. He
signaled to Elva, motioning for her to stop arguing.
"I don't mind." Sara smiled nonchalantly. However, her glassy eyes were fixed on Elva, as if she were an eagle who stared at its
prey.
"Elva, go back to the Bamboo Gully and reflect on your behavior for two hours. This is your punishment!" Lewis ordered Elva in a
solemn tone.
Elva stared at Sara coldly before she left.
After Elva left, Lewis stole a glance at Sara. He suspected that Sara did it on purpose, as if she deliberately provoked Elva to see
her reaction. She asked about the relationship between Elva and Zachary a moment ago. That made Lewis even more
suspicious of her. But as to what Sara was really up to, Lewis had no clue at all.
Meanwhile, a figure swaggered his way into one of the thirteen zones for the selection test, and his arrival caught the attention of
the other disciples.
"Wait, why is he here? I thought he was beaten badly by Bruce? Is he even able to use martial energy now?"
"You're right! He should be a piece of trash now. How can he even compete?"
"He boasted that he would come. I thought that he was lying. It turned out that he indeed has the audacity to come!"
"I think he's insane! He'll get nothing here but humiliation!"
The moment the figure showed up, the disciples who came to witness the selection test all began to chatter about him.
The figure was none other than Zachary!
"I planned to keep a low key. But I still drew so much attention from the crowd. Alas!" Zachary soon noticed that the disciples
gossiped about him.

In addition to the spectators, the other four disciples who were assigned to the same group as Zachary were equally bewildered
—none of them expected him to show up.
"Zachary, you can't even cultivate now. Why are you even here?" said a disciple at the Earth Level. He didn't even bother to hide
the contempt in his voice.
"Even if I can't cultivate, I still strive to improve myself. Just take it as my way of realizing my last dream," Zachary said in a pitiful
tone.
The other three disciples stared at him with a scornful look.
"You don't have to be extra gentle with me during the fight. I am doomed anyway." Zachary intentionally created an impression of
himself as totally harmless. Inwardly, he said, 'Let's see who wins. I'll surprise all of you! You guys get ready!'
The four other disciples felt secure and relieved.
Among the four disciples, only one was at the Earth Level. He was only at the primary stage of Earth Level. The other three
disciples were at the medium or premium stage of Mortal Level—not worth the time for Zachary.
Soon, the first round began. Each disciple had to hit a rock that was two meters in height and a hundred and fifty kilograms in
weight. They were graded based on the distance the rock moved.
The rock had gone through a prior test. It was able to withstand the force of a warrior at the Heaven Level. If nothing went wrong,
it wouldn't shatter from the attacks of the disciples.
"The test begins now! Who would like to start?" The disciple in charge of the test of Zachary's group motioned for one of them to
start.
"I'll try first!" One of the disciples at the medium stage of Mortal Level couldn't wait to give it a try. He breathed in deeply,
positioned himself in a horse stance, focused his power into his fist and punched the rock with all his might.
With the sound of collision, the rock shifted slightly.
"One inch!" the examiner called out.
"Not bad!" The disciple seemed to be rather satisfied with his result.

Another disciple walked towards the rock and punched the rock in the same way as the previous one did.
"One point three inches!" Then the third disciple took his turn at the rock.
"One point five inches!"
The three disciples at the Mortal Level had finished their turns. The fourth one was the only disciple at the Earth Level, who was
most likely to win the contest in the group.