Just before the Holy War was about to end, Lu Xi, the leader of her demon hunter squad, was killed in a surprise attack by the enemy. The demon hunter squad was disbanded, and after the Holy War ended, the other members dispersed and returned to their respective temples. Only Li Xin stayed behind, waiting for Lin Xin’s return.

For the past four years, she had remained in the Mage Temple to cultivate, accompany Lin Chen, and fulfill her filial piety to Lin Xin. Lin Chen had tried to persuade Li Xin many times, but she continued to do what she felt she should, refusing to leave.

Lin Chen cherished this girl who should have been his granddaughter-in-law, but he couldn’t be so selfish! Lin Xin had been missing for over four years, last seen in the Soul Temple’s Myriad Beasts Pass. After so long, fighting deep within the demon territory, their chances of survival were extremely low. Lin Chen didn’t want to admit it, but he didn’t want to delay Li Xin’s future!

“Grandpa Lin, please don’t say anymore. I won’t leave. I’ll wait for him, and Hao Chen. They will definitely come back,” Li Xin said, tears welling up in her eyes. No matter how strong she was, she had a vulnerable side. She knew, of course, that the chances of Lin Xin and the others surviving were slim, but even if there was only a sliver of hope, as long as she didn’t see their bodies, Li Xin wouldn’t accept that they were dead.

“Ah, you silly girl! Alright, then you can stay for now. In a few days, we’ll be setting off to Holy City to participate in the once-in-a-decade Temple Grand Competition. After the Temple Grand Competition ends, you must go home and see your family. Your father has written many letters, I know.”

Li Xin nodded silently. Yes, even if she stubbornly wanted to wait for Lin Xin and Long Hao Chen to return, she should go home and see her family.

Lin Chen smiled, “Xin’er, you’ve already broken through to the eighth rank and have extensive combat experience. The pair of swords that Grandpa commissioned for you is almost ready. After the Temple Grand Competition, are you confident in challenging your Knight Temple’s Adamantine Foundation?”

Li Xin was no longer the Li Xin of the past. Four years of dedicated cultivation had allowed her to break through the seventh and eighth rank bottlenecks. She was now a level one eighth-rank expert. Demon hunters who survived the Holy War had almost all made significant progress in their cultivation. She was now a Mithril Foundation Knight. Although challenging the Adamantine Foundation was still difficult, Lin Chen had commissioned a pair of epic-level greatswords for her! This was originally wealth Lin Chen had prepared for his only grandson, but with Lin Xin still missing, he gave this generous gift to Li Xin.

The Holy War brought great disaster to the Temple Alliance. In that two-year-long battle, countless Temple Alliance soldiers perished on the six great passes. But similarly, the demons also suffered heavy losses in that Holy War.

Four years had passed since the end of the Holy War, and in these four years, the advantages accumulated by the Temple Alliance over thousands of years became apparent. Although the population decline could not be restored in a short period of time, other aspects recovered quickly. In particular, after the Holy War, almost all the surviving powerhouses of the six great temples experienced a qualitative leap in strength. Li Xin’s situation was very common. Two years of Holy War and four years of sedimentation meant that the number of powerhouses in the Temple Alliance was now even greater than before the Holy War, only the number of ordinary soldiers was much smaller.

The Temple Grand Competition was about to begin, a major event that took place every ten years in the Alliance. The strongest of the six great temples would exchange knowledge in this grand event and also conduct a new ranking.

Almost all the high-level officials of the six great temples knew that this Temple Grand Competition was extraordinary. As the first Temple Grand Competition after the Holy War, it would not only re-rank the temples, but also make many decisions.

The two-year Holy War was a huge drain on the Alliance, but the demons also suffered a significant loss of strength, even two Demon God Pillars were destroyed. The Temple Alliance was like a sharp sword sharpened by the demons, becoming increasingly sharp. After the Holy War, humanity did not fall into the weakness that the Demon God Emperor had expected, but instead showed signs of flourishing. Although the Temple Alliance still seemed to be behind the demons in overall strength, the gap was not that large. Once these young generations who had experienced the Holy War had fully grown, it was hard to say how long the demons could continue to suppress the Temple Alliance.

To ensure the demons’ advantage, the Demon God Emperor had spent the last few years developing the eastern and southern oceans. Although there were also magical beasts in the ocean, there was even more food. Highly nutritious food was extremely important for increasing the strength of the demons. The demons had never lacked strong people. Rather than plundering humans and obtaining a pitiful amount of food, it was better to turn to the sea and obtain more from the depths of the sea. This matter was now being overseen by the Moon Demon God Agares, which showed how much the Demon God Emperor valued it.

The Temple Grand Competition was about to begin. The competition was not just a simple battle. As the most important event of the Temple Alliance, the Temple Grand Competition was a comprehensive and all-round competition. The final ranking was based on the total scores of the various temples.

Although this kind of competition could not be completely fair, the Temple Alliance had developed over the years to make the Temple Grand Competition as fair as possible. As a Mithril Foundation Knight, Li Xin would naturally represent the Knight Temple in the competition.

Hearing Lin Chen ask if she wanted to advance to the Adamantine Foundation Knight, Li Xin couldn’t help but smile and shake her head, saying, “Grandpa Lin, I’m far from that. The Alliance is full of talented people, and a group of young powerhouses has emerged in our Knight Temple as well. There are only so many sets of Adamantine Foundation armor available, I don’t want to compete with them. I’ll wait until I’m strong enough.”

Lin Chen said proudly, “Why don’t you have enough strength? When the Fire God Dual Swords I’m forging for you are completed, it might not be impossible to challenge even a ninth-rank beginner. I think you should take a set of Adamantine Foundation armor directly during this Temple Grand Competition.”

Li Xin fell silent.

Seeing the look on her face, Lin Chen naturally knew what she was thinking, “Silly girl, are you still unwilling to accept it? Although you’re not my biological granddaughter, in my eyes, you’re much stronger than that kid Lin Xin. Even if he’s completely missing and has no news, even if he can come back alive, I won’t leave my property to that unfilial little bastard. If you still recognize me as your grandpa, don’t refuse anymore, otherwise, Grandpa Lin will really get angry. Do you want me to take my things to the coffin? Besides, I’ve already forged the knight greatsword, what use do I have for it?”

Li Xin’s eyes were slightly red, “Grandpa Lin, you’re so good to me.”

Lin Chen smiled slightly, “Aren’t you good to Grandpa? Don’t think too much, you still have to work hard during this time and strive to perform well in the Temple Grand Competition. This Grand Competition is different from the previous ones, because of the Holy War four years ago, I’m afraid there will be many variables in this Grand Competition. At the same time, it’s also a major opportunity for the Alliance.”

Li Xin’s heart stirred, and she nodded gently. Lin Chen was a high-level official in the Mage Temple, but she belonged to the Knight Temple, so there were many things that Lin Chen couldn’t say directly, he could only subtly remind her. But with her intelligence, that was enough.

… Holy City.

This was a simple wooden house, the whole structure was made of wood, and all the tables, chairs and benches in the wooden house were the simplest wooden structures. Only these woods were very distinctive, with beautiful wood grain on them, exuding a faint fragrance of osmanthus.

This wood was called descending incense wood, which was a very precious wood. The breath it exuded was very beneficial to the human body, prolonging life, and also had the effect of refreshing the mind.

Behind a simple wooden table, a girl sat quietly. The girl was wearing a white dress, her pure face was flawless. Only her eyes were filled with a faint sadness.

On the wooden table in front of her, there was a pile of crimson fragments. From the arc on the fragments, it could be seen that they should have been spherical when they were complete.

“Four years, dead bald head, you bastard, why is there still no news. The Scarlet Dragon Orb is broken, your Scarlet Dragon Armor has been shattered. But, do you know, I’m still waiting for you. I believe, you are still alive. You must still be alive, right?”

As she spoke, she took a rice bowl, and a pale purple bead appeared in her palm out of thin air. The breath exuded from this bead was very strange, with faint serpentine electricity surrounding it. Although the spiritual power fluctuation was not strong, it fully showed its own strangeness.

“Four years, you must still be alive, but where exactly are you? Why haven’t you come back after so long. Do you know how much I…”

Speaking here, two clear tears fell down. Falling on the tabletop, splashing a slight splash.

Recently, Holy City has been particularly lively. Because the once-in-a-decade Temple Grand Competition is about to begin.

If the Demon Hunter Squad Selection Competition was just a grand event for the younger generation, then the Temple Grand Competition was the most grand and important event of the entire Temple Alliance.

The alliance was making intensive arrangements for this competition. In addition to some of the strong who stayed on the front lines, most of the strong from the six major temples gathered in the Holy Alliance at this time to prepare for this Temple Grand Competition. Many of the alliance elders who usually lived in seclusion also came to Holy City one after another. Although there were still a few days before the Temple Grand Competition, the Temple Alliance headquarters was holding meetings every day, and the high-level officials of the six major temples were constantly consulting on various affairs. As for what they were specifically discussing, that was the secret of the Temple Alliance. Only the highest level of attendees knew.

People with a keen sense of smell would find that this year’s Temple Grand Competition was different from the previous ones, and the atmosphere was significantly more tense. Obviously, something big was about to happen.

(To be continued)