Chapter 181


    Simon could have killed Lesley, but he had held back.


    Moreover, Simon didn''t use his golden brass knuckles. He probably realized that it was futile to use


    poison, which was why he applied force into Lesley''s body through his punches. The powerful impact


    had wounded Lesley''s internal organs.


    Right then and there, Lesley''s injuries were more serious than Elijah''s.


    This meant that Jonathan had to take care of two injured members at that point, as well as a clueless


    Catherine.


    In other words, he was in a dreadful state.


    Meanwhile, the chase was still ongoing in the forest.


    It was Simon chasing after James.


    James was running at full speed, but Simon was getting closer.


    In the end, James had nowhere to escape and leaned against a tree. He looked at Simon in terror as


    thetter inched closer to him.


    James couldn''t help but shudder. His forehead was beaded with sweat. “Simon, you know that I''m on


    your side, right? Don''t kill me. I will find a way to help you finish Jonathan and the rest of-”


    Before James could finish his words, Simon suddenly closed in on him. Stretching out two fingers,


    Simon directly pierced James'' eyes.


    The energy from his fingerspletely destroyed James'' brain, and thetter died on the spot.


    Even after James breathed hisst breath, James could not put his finger on how Simon had figured


    out his scheme.


    Another thing that James didn''t know was that Simon had him marked with a mysterious herb earlier.


    Simon would be able to smell the scent of that herb within ten miles.


    After all, James was a boy who lived a sheltered life in a prominent family. He indeed had a lot of tricks


    up his sleeves, but all his ns were too idealistic.


    Hence, Simon had never taken James seriously.


    It was akin to an adult watching a child kick up a fuss.


    Night fell gradually.


    There was a drop in temperature at the beach.


    The temperature was higher during the day while it was colder at night.


    Thanks to Simon''s sudden attack, Jonathan didn''t put Lesley and Elijah in the water to beat the heat.


    Instead, Jonathan made a small shelter out of branches.


    If Elijah and Lesley were ced in water, it would surely be a disaster for them when the cold night fell.


    Jonathan found a ce and scraped off the sand on the surface. Only then did he realize that the sand


    inside was still warm. Jonathan then asked Elijah and Lesley to lie down. As soon as theyy on the


    sand, they felt much better.


    Elijah did not hold a grudge against Jonathan as he had realized the reason why Jonathan said those


    things. He knew that Jonathan was just trying to save him. Otherwise, judging from Simon''s personality,


    Simon wouldn''t have let Elijah go.


    At the moment, what concerned Jonathan the most was food.


    Whether it was Jonathan, Catherine, Elijah, or Lesley, they all needed food and water to survive.


    Otherwise, with the extreme temperature, the intense exposure to the sun as well as the deprivation of


    food and water, their energy would be drained in no time.


    It was also likely that Simon was monitoring them secretly.


    If Jonathan and Catherine didn''t eat or drink, they would be weaker as time passed. At that time,


    Simon would definitely take advantage of this chance and attack Jonathan and Catherine.


    Therefore, the most crucial thing to do at the moment was to find food. After all, the situation was dire.


    However, Jonathan was afraid that Simon would seize the opportunity andunch an attack when he


    was in search of food and water.


    This was the problem that troubling Jonathan at the moment.


    In the dead of night, a bright moon was hanging in the sky.


    Elijah and Lesleyy down side by side. Lesley was very calm. He smiled bitterly at Jonathan and


    uttered, “From the moment I swallowed the golden silkworms, I''ve already epted that I will die on


    this ind. However, I never expected such a senseless death.”


    Catherine, on the other hand, sat cross-legged, not worried about anything.


    Compared to Lesley, Elijah, however, seemed the least stable. He looked terrified, and at times, he


    would feel anxious. Upon hearing what Lesley said, Elijah then added, “If I were given another chance,


    I would not have participated in this sh*tty Divine Realm. I don''t even know what is so good about


    Divine Realm.”


    Jonathan could not help but ask, “Then why are you here?”


    Elijah replied, “It''s all because of my grandpa and my father. They wanted me to join Divine Realm and


    have trained me since I was a kid. I couldn''t resist at all. Nor could I disobey their order. If I quit without


    fighting this time, I will be eliminated. If that happens, I will probably not be allowed to return home


    again. Hence, I have no choice but to participate.”


    Realization dawned upon Jonathan. In fact, he was also aware that most of the candidates went


    through the same thing as Elijah.


    This was just like the exam-oriented education system nowadays, which had also resulted in a lot of


    simr tragedies. Most of the time, parents forced their children into doing things that the children did


    not want to. Thus, they had no choice but to suppress their nature and desires.


    “How about you, Lesley? Why did you take part in Divine Realm''s test?” Jonathan asked Lesley after


    staying silent for a while.


    Seeing that Lesley struggled to prop himself up, Jonathan immediately helped him up.


    In a sitting position, Lesley then stated, “My hometown is Utros in the northern region, but I don''t know


    who my biological parents are. I was adopted by the rk family, who is the king of Utros. They have


    adopted twenty orphans. We grew up together. The king of Dellmoor, who is the head of the rk


    family wanted us to join the Divine Realm. When we reach a certain level, we will be able to strengthen


    the foundation of the rk family using the resources in the Divine Realm. It''s a great honor to be an


    outer disciple in the Divine Realm as every outer disciple has extraordinary achievements. Hence, the


    king of Utros hoped that we could join the Divine Realm.”


    “There are five of us who took part in this test, but I''m the only one left up until this moment. I owe the


    rk family a lot, so there is no way I will give up during the test. I will either die here or make it


    through. That is the only way out.”


    Jonathan was dumbfounded. It seemed that everyone who came to join the Divine Realm had their


    own story.


    N?velDrama.Org holds ? this.


    In fact, everyone out there had their own story.


    “Jonathan, what about you?” Lesley asked suddenly. Pausing for a moment, he continued, “I feel that


    there is a special vitality in your punching technique as if no one can suppress it. I''m sure you have a


    story of your own as well. Why did you join the Divine Realm?”


    His words startled Jonathan. For an instant, he was at a loss for words.


    It seemed like he was carrying the expectations of Yareth and Mabel.


    On top of that, he had offended quite a few influential people. Thus, the only way out was to join the


    Divine Realm. This way, Strikezone Martial Arts and Jeremy will continue in peace. Otherwise, there


    would be endless revenge.


    Not only that, but he was also the Chosen One.


    For the sake of survival, the Chosen One could not attempt to run away from their destiny. Instead,


    they needed to take the initiative to face the danger.


    As a result, Jonathan responded, “My wife, Catherine, is from a prominent family, but I''m not. To put it


    bluntly, we are left with no choice.”


    With a bitter smile, Lesley said, “A bunch of people who are left with no choice gathered in this deadly


    test. This is both ridiculous and pathetic.”


    Jonathan replied, “It doesn''t matter to have no choice. After all, it''s our path. We have to keep walking


    no matter what. Whether we can make it through or not, we will have no regrets because we have put


    in our effort.”


    Lesley was stunned for a moment before replying, “Jonathan, you are indeed perceptive.”


    Elijah, on the other hand, remained silent.


    Suddenly, Jonathan changed the topic and eximed, “If we continue staying like this without food for


    days, Simon will definitely defeat us all.”


    Elijah and Lesley felt a chill running down their spines. They all knew what Jonathan said was true.


    Lesley stayed silent for a while before saying, “Jonathan, you and your wife can go and look for food.


    Just pay attention to each other. You can leave Elijah and me here. I believe Simon will note after


    us because he still wants us to be your burden. If we die, it will put him at a disadvantage because the


    burden on the two of you is gone. Furthermore, James could have already been killed by Simon. In


    other words, only three of you are left in the match.”


    Jonathan nodded and replied, “I think so too.”


    Lesley then added, “Well! Jonathan, to be honest, you and your wife have done everything you can to


    help me and Elijah. You can just leave us behind and go all out to fight with Simon. Just fight for hope.


    Elijah and I will not me you. Instead, we are grateful for all that you''ve done.”


    Hearing that, Elijah also propped himself up. He looked at Jonathan sincerely and uttered, “Yeah,


    Jonathan. You don''t have to take care of us. After all, Lesley and I will not be able to escape that


    ending. Please don''t waste your time on us. It''s really pointless.”


    Taking a nce at Lesley and Elijah, Jonathan remained silent for a while before a smile appeared on


    his face. He then responded, “Well, I don''t have a habit of abandoning mypanions.” He paused for


    a moment and continued, “I also don''t know how things will y out. This is indeed the most hopeless


    battle that I''ve experienced. Anyway, I will just go with the flow. As I mentioned before, as long as you


    work hard, you will have no regrets. As for the result, we''ll just have to do our best and see how it


    goes.”


    Lesley and Elijah were amazed at how carefree and confident Jonathan was.


    They could also feel that Jonathan had a great personality.


    Closing his eyes, Jonathan started resting.


    One thing worth noting was that Jonathan''s blood could work as a panacea. Despite that, it was


    ineffective in healing the internal wounds of Elijah and Lesley. Their internal wounds were far too


    severe.


    Elijah''s condition didn''t seem to get better even after drinking Jonathan''s blood.


    In fact, such internal wound would not heal overnight.


    Back then, it took Jonathan''s wound an hour to heal after he took Supreme Nascent Pill. There were


    two reasons behind it. One of them was that Jonathan''s wound was not as severe as theirs.


    Compared with Simon''s current cultivation, Drake''s cultivation at that time was not worth mentioning at


    all.


    The other reason was that Supreme Nascent Pill was taken directly by Jonathan, which then changed


    his body constitution. Hence, Jonathan''s internal injuries were healed in an instant.


    The night passed by in the blink of an eye.


    It was already six in the morning. The sun rose over the horizon.


    A cool morning breeze was blowing.


    The sky was filled with beautiful white clouds.


    The surrounding area, including the forest, looked calm and peaceful, making one reluctant to leave


    and yearn for it.


    Sitting next to each other, Elijah and Lesley watched the beautiful sunset. A mix of emotions bubbled


    inside them. It felt like reluctance and gratitude at the same time.


    It was because they knew that they were on the brink of death.


    Truth be told, it felt terrible to wait for death. Even so, they would not take their own lives like cowards.