“I’m back.”
“Welcome back.
How was today’s match? Did you find any impressive opponents?” Norma, who was sitting in the mansion’s hall drinking tea, looked cheerfully at Mo Li as he took off his shoes at the entrance.
After getting familiar with Norma, Mo Li felt like a child coming home from school every day, and Norma was like an old father who always sat in the hall drinking tea, waiting for his child to return.
“Well…” Mo Li nodded.
“You’re not in high spirits today.
Did you encounter a strong opponent in the competition?” Norma noticed Mo Li’s low mood and asked.
“Uncle Norma, do you think an ordinary person without any bloodline can compete with those who have one if they give it their all?” Mo Li didn’t directly answer Norma’s question but instead posed another one.
“That’s impossible, right? Their starting points are different.
Some people are born with things that others can’t reach in a lifetime.” Before Norma could answer, Mo Li answered his own question.
He looked somewhat blankly at the clouds floating outside the window in the dusk.
After watching today’s match, Mo Li’s previous sense of superiority over the incompetent nobles was completely shattered.
Those were genuine bloodline holders.
Maybe from his perspective, he could mock those lazy and ignorant Minster nobles, but what about himself? Bloodline holders could just as easily mock him for being mediocre.
In front of those special groups, he was nothing.
Moreover, this was just the qualifying round for the Lan Yin entrance exam.
There were several more matches to go before the final assessment for successful admission.
Getting stuck at the threshold in the first preliminary round, how could he talk about the matches after that? In the end, he was just an ordinary person with a slightly special identity, and his potential was limited.
Just the fact that he didn’t have a bloodline was enough to doom him.
Even those with bloodlines who don’t work hard can’t compete, so how could he compare to those with bloodlines, talent, and extreme diligence? It’s like comparing the sun to a firefly.
You say you’re diligent and studious, but so what? There are plenty of people smarter and more talented than you who are just as diligent and studious.
What do you have to compete with them?
After watching today’s match, the ambitious Mo Li was brought back to reality—he almost forgot that he was just an ordinary person with two lifetimes.
The despair he felt in his past life facing bloodline holders surged back.
No matter how many opportunities he was given in this life or the last, he just couldn’t compete, simply because he wasn’t a bloodline holder.
“Is that really what you think, Mo Li?” Norma’s expression suddenly became unusually calm.
“You’re right, as you said, those without bloodlines are naturally at a disadvantage from the start.
I’m not going to give you any motivational speeches about how hard work can surpass anything.
Let’s talk about something practical.”
“Mo Li, you’re not inferior to anyone, absolutely not.” Norma said firmly to Mo Li.
“Enduring hardship is the path to success, and this applies to you.” Norma patted Mo Li’s shoulder earnestly.
“There were bloodline holders in the competition, right? I know, for you at this stage, defeating a bloodline holder is too difficult, but please believe that you’re not inferior to any bloodline holder! Right now, they’re just temporarily ahead of you.”
“I’m not going to say things that are easy to say but hard to do, because that’s meaningless.
It’s not like my words will suddenly enable you to defeat a bloodline holder.
Listen, Mo Li, I’m not asking you to defeat anyone or compare yourself to anyone, so there’s no need to act like you’re letting me down, understand?”
“As for not getting into Lan Yin Academy… if you don’t get in, you don’t get in.
Maybe your ambitions lie elsewhere, or maybe it’s not the right time.
Perhaps you want to go into business or farming, and living as an ordinary person is your greatest dream.”
“Whether you want to live an ordinary life or take on challenges, I support you, Mo Li.” Norma smiled kindly and patted Mo Li’s shoulder.
“If you want to go into business or alchemy, you can withdraw from the competition now.
I can still offer you a lot of help in those areas.”
“Uncle Norma…” Mo Li sniffed, feeling a bit emotional for some reason.
It’s like the saying, “No matter how your college entrance exam results turn out, your parents are waiting at home to have dinner with you and support you as always,” which warms the heart…
Given their current relationship, who would have thought that in some unknown timeline, Mo Li would actually kill Norma?
Is this what it feels like to be cared for? Mo Li lowered his head, recalling his actions in his past life, the image of Norma with blood gushing from his chest fixed in his mind.
It felt like he had a surreal dream.
What kind of madness drove him to kill Norma in his past life? He couldn’t understand it, only feeling that the memories of his past life were gradually fading away, and he just wanted to cherish his present.
“Uncle Norma, I understand.
Thank you for the reminder.” Mo Li lifted his head, regaining his usual vitality.
“I won’t give up.
No one can make me give up.”
So what if they’re bloodline holders? He still had ways to deal with them.
He figured it out.
The past life was the past life.
Just because he died at the hands of a bloodline holder in his past life doesn’t mean he won’t learn from it in this life.
Since he wanted to win the championship, he would eventually face that strange girl named Limdis.
Mo Li was already planning how to deal with her.
If weapons aren’t restricted, then other tools aren’t either, so he could freely use his best hidden weapons.
Not all bloodline holders are like Emilia, who can use Phoenix Flame to cleanse toxins from their bodies.
Come on, let’s see if your bloodline is tougher than my poison.
Besides, he had more than just bloodlines as his trump card.
Reaching into his cloak, he pulled out a snow-white, cold-glowing long knife, and the moisture in the air instantly condensed.
This quasi-epic weapon, [Imitation: Cold Dawn], was his biggest trump card.
If he really had to face off against a bloodline holder, who knows who would come out on top.
After dinner, Mo Li bid farewell to Norma and left the mansion.
On his way back to the orphanage, he ran into a familiar figure.
“Is it her? What’s she doing there?” Mo Li was surprised.
The figure not far away was Limdis, the girl Mo Li had just been thinking about.
At this moment, she was pressed against the glass of a shop, her eyes sparkling and mouth watering as she looked at the array of desserts inside.
