Rising from the Ashes (Andrew and Lauren) novel Chapter 1831

Next to Rowan sat a young man, Evan Hartman, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, his expression cold and stern. He looked at Rowan with adoring eyes, though he hid it well, and smiled gently.

He whispered, "Rowan, Joseph should have no trouble advancing."

Rowan scoffed. "Of course I know that, but I still want to piss off Matthew… and those two pathetic suck-ups, Gabriel and Riker."

Evan chuckled helplessly. "We're here to witness the trial, not stir up trouble. You're a girl, after all. Maybe tone it down just a little?"

Rowan rolled her eyes. "Why should I? What, girls can't speak their minds now? Everyone keeps saying I'm born of winter's essence, cold inside and out. Well, screw that. I'll show the world they're full of crap. I am blazing hot through and through. Anyone who messes with me? I'll burn them alive!"

Evan shook his head with an adoring look in his eyes. Whenever they argued, he always gave in. After all, Rowan was the girl of his dreams.

The second round of trials, which was also the final one, was not done in bulk like the previous matches. Instead of all candidates fighting at once, the five matchups were held one at a time.

Currently, they were on the fourth bout.

Zachary and Joseph, the fifth pair, were next in line.

Rowan glanced around, her gaze sweeping to the back of the hall. "I hope this Zachary guy's got something decent up his sleeve. If he gets wrecked the moment he steps up, I'll be so embarrassed!"

She muttered while scanning the crowd and soon spotted Zachary in a far-back corner.

Right in front of him was someone holding golden needles, working on acupuncture points on Zachary's body. Even though she could only see his side profile, she squinted in surprise.

Still watching her closely, Evan asked, "What is it?"

Rowan narrowed her eyes, studying Andrew's profile, then looked away, unsure. "Nothing. Just thought I saw someone familiar. But it's probably my imagination. That annoying guy vanished ages ago, and he's probably dead in a ditch by now."

At that moment, the fourth bout ended. Alex announced the four winners of the previous rounds.

Each would now register their identities and officially be welcomed as Jerome's inner disciples.

From here on, the road to glory was wide open.

Meanwhile, Andrew had just helped Zachary unlock a series of key acupoints, giving his martial power a serious boost. With the last needle removed, he glanced toward the four winners and could not help but smirk.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify