Amid the excited shouts, Vymara was taken by the Elder to the inscription. The tournament went on, with another dull fight that lasted less than 3 minutes. Until…
*Lazaro, from the Golden Crow Sect, vs Purimary, from the Yinblood Sect*
At that moment, everyone in the stands became fully focused. The Yinblood Sect was the strongest sect in the universe, while the Golden Crow Sect was just a mid-tier organization.
A few days ago, this match wouldn't even have been imaginable at this stage of the tournament, and it would be ridiculous to even think about the result. But now, everyone from the Golden Crow Sect and the Bakunawa Abyssal Triarchy was under the spotlight of the entire universe.
Lazaro swallowed hard; his bad luck had reached absurd levels. It wasn't just the strongest organization, but among the 5 Dire Feys still in the tournament, he ended up facing the most outstanding and powerful one.
Purimary was a well-known name throughout the universe, and her achievements were immense. Years ago, when that inheritance was discovered—the one where Vymara obtained a Yin technique—Purimary was the one who achieved the highest score.
On top of that, people always said she was the only possible winner of this Celestial Tournament.
"No need to pressure yourself," Darian said calmly to Lazaro. "The result doesn't matter. You remember what I told all of you before, right?"
Lazaro nodded. The others around them also took a deep breath.
During the 19 months of preparation for the tournament, Darian had to push everyone to cultivate multiple levels very quickly. Pyreus, for example, had to break through almost an entire realm in a short time.
He did all of that by abusing pills and methods he himself had used. For cultivators, advancing too fast was a huge taboo. The mortal body had to slowly adapt to the new power and learn how to control it properly. Without that, there was a high risk of backlash that could kill the cultivator.
Obviously, Darian didn't have that problem. But the others didn't have enough time to properly adapt to their power and still improve their elemental domains and techniques. So Darian forcefully stabilized all of them and made them focus only on the other important aspects.
In short, all 86 who came with him to this tournament actually had less than two-thirds of their true strength. Even so, they all made it pretty far.
Darian's words reminded Lazaro that there was no reason to care about losing. They had done everything they could with the little time they had. After this tournament, their power would grow a lot, and their future was limitless.
Lazaro nodded and stepped lightly onto the martial stage.
In front of him stood a Dire Fey woman of similar height. Her body was quite exposed, covering only the essential parts, revealing skin marked with black and bright yellow patterns.
Her hair was long and black, falling over her shoulders. Her face was gentle, framed by a charming smile.
"Nice to meet you." Surprisingly, Purimary was the one who spoke first, giving a slight bow in a very polite tone.
Lazaro was stunned for a moment, then quickly reacted and returned the bow politely.
Darian snorted; this young woman didn't have even a trace of arrogance or malice. She was well-mannered, aware of her strength, but didn't look down on anyone because of it.
He felt relieved. Technically, Darian and all Dire Feys were related. The very first Dire Fey was his father's niece. Of course, many generations had passed, and that connection was now very distant.
The green light appeared above them.
"I'll go all out from the start," Lazaro said lightly, then drew a sword.
That Dire Fey simply smiled in response and didn't even bother drawing her own weapon. Both she and Lazaro knew that would be excessive.
The next second, a wave of golden flames spread across the entire martial stage.
*Slash!*
A golden cut that split through space-time surged forward. The golden flames moved along with it, condensing into hundreds of golden blades that attacked from all directions.
Everyone in the stands nodded; this young man's control was refined and precise. It was completely different from Pyreus's overwhelming presence, or the aggressive and expansive techniques Herion had shown earlier.
But…
What happened next was exactly as expected. Purimary gently flapped her small wings, and a distorted aura formed around her like a barrier.
As it collided with the golden slash and attacks, the entire offensive exploded.
In the next moment, Purimary made her move. Her legs traced a beautiful spinning arc in the air, delivering a kick that looked light—but just centimeters before reaching Lazaro, that leg changed, turning completely black.
Everyone watching could feel the earth element at an extremely high level there. That was Obsidian, something created by the best users of that element, carrying absurd weight and power.
*BANG!*
A violent impact echoed through the arena. Lazaro was sent flying, coughing up blood, until he slammed into the barrier. Cracks in space lingered at the point of impact for several seconds, making it clear just how devastating that simple kick was.
When he hit the ground, he grabbed his chest, feeling his ribs broken and intense pain spreading through his body. But it wasn't anything too serious. She had controlled the strike perfectly to avoid injuring him too much.
After just a few seconds, he managed to stand up. "I lost, thanks for the pointers," Lazaro said seriously.
The audience nodded; it was a crushing defeat, but she was the greatest genius of the strongest organization in the universe. This young man, just like Herion, who lost earlier, had shown immense strength that would definitely place him among the top 50 of his generation.
Lazaro returned to the group with a calm expression.
"Good job," Herion said softly. Compared to Lazaro, he was certain the gap between them had widened a lot. He had now fallen to a level below him. That was because Lazaro already carried within him the mindset of a true cultivator and a scholar.
He didn't care about what others wanted from him, living focused only on what he desired. When Darian gave him guidance and created an efficient training method, he made far better use of it, and now the results were showing.
Herion sighed. Trying to live two lives—one cultivating, and the other trying to please everyone—had definitely led him down the path of mediocrity. It was better to just be himself; those who liked him, great, and the rest could go to hell.
Now, thanks to Darian destroying everything he had been chasing and then showing him the right direction, he had finally understood this before it was too late.
...
After Vymara returned, four more matches passed.
Then, finally, Gelidra's name appeared. Her opponent was from the Nine Star Tree Sect, the seventh-largest organization in the universe.
That sect was mostly made up of nature-based races, and it was also a very ancient sect, with a subtle connection to Darian's father. Some of his allies in the final war had come from that sect, which was why they had left behind several inheritances.
Gelidra was a young woman just as talented as Herion or Lazaro. As for her opponent, he was one of the strongest in his organization. He looked like a thin and simple man, but that was obviously a transformation.
When the green light appeared, she went all out immediately, and a breathtaking fight unfolded on the martial stage.
The two sides clashed dozens of times, and Gelidra's ice power proved to be absolutely terrifying.
But unfortunately, she lacked offensive power.
In the end, when Gelidra realized she couldn't win, she made her biggest move. She focused completely, and everyone in the arena was shocked when a bluish glow, as bright as a sun, emerged.
It was Aqua Doom, the supreme technique from the Bakunawa Bloodline.
The moment she used it, all the powerful figures from ancient sects were stunned. They had old records about the Bakunawa and this power, but throughout history, very few had ever managed to use it.
After unleashing that extreme offensive move, her opponent was truly shaken and used 100% of his power.
In the end, after a violent explosion, Gelidra left her opponent with his body nearly destroyed, covered in severe injuries. But…
He didn't fall, thanks to the power of nature within him, which gave him great resilience. On the other side, she was completely out of strength. In a real-life-or-death battle, her opponent could still launch another attack and kill her in that state.
"I lost," she admitted quietly.
Despite the loss, it was a great fight, and everyone in the stands was impressed.
In the next draw…
Neblis's name appeared, the last one from Darian's group to fight. Her opponent came from the Celestial Music Sanctuary, the eighth greatest power in the universe.
That organization didn't exist back when his father was cultivating, but it still had a connection to him. Its founder was a woman who had fought by his side and was his first missionary.
She developed a unique combat style in the universe, using music as a way of fighting.
Music had a peculiar effect on living beings. At lower levels, it barely affected the body directly, but it influenced the mind and soul, stirring emotions.
In other words, those who mastered Celestial Music were terrifying to deal with, as they could boost specific allies while simultaneously weakening nearby enemies.
Neblis and an Elf woman stood facing each other on the martial stage. The Elf held a small zither in her hands.
The two exchanged looks, with no hostility. Both wanted to win and would clearly give it everything they had.
When the green light appeared, the elf's slender fingers plucked the strings of her zither, producing a soft, melodic sound.
*BUZZ*
In that instant, space-time across the entire battlefield twisted violently. At the same time, multicolored lights appeared from all directions, especially from above, raining down onto the center of the battlefield.
This was definitely the greatest strength of Celestial Music: the ability to use the energy of the environment to your advantage. The more skilled the user, and the better the environment, the more power they could draw and use in battle.
That elf had an absurd advantage, since they were at the top of Rainbow Heaven Mountain. This mountain was a divine treasure, capable of attracting and gathering the seven powers of life.
The soft sound of the zither continued to echo, like a calm lullaby.
Just hearing it from the stands made everyone feel their breathing become uneven and their minds slightly hazy.
In a one-on-one fight, the power of Celestial Music depended heavily on the situation. It required a favorable environment and an opponent weak against mental and spiritual influence. But when everything aligned, these figures became a nightmare.
At the center of the martial stage, Neblis found herself in chaos. The space around her pressed down on her, while the seven elements attacked from all sides.
But everyone was amazed to see her using her power and managing to survive. Neblis's entire body was covered in a dense mist that spread about three meters around her. The attacks coming from all directions targeted her, but couldn't be hit.
Unfortunately, this kind of defensive move cost her a lot, and she wouldn't last long. So, without hesitation…
"Aqua Doom!"
A devastating beam of light pierced through all the incoming attacks, shooting straight toward the elf like a lightning bolt.
*BOOOM!*
It was a fast duel; in less than a minute, it was over.
But the level of power on both sides was terrifying. That was a true clash between the best cultivators of the generation.
When the chaos settled on the martial stage, the elf was struggling to stay on her feet. Her face was pale, and she kept coughing blood; a hole the size of a fist could be seen in her shoulder.
But in her hands, her zither was still intact.
On the other side, Neblis was breathing heavily. She still had a bit of power left, but continuing was pointless. Her only chance to win would've been destroying her opponent's zither.
Everyone in the stands sighed; she had almost made it. That young woman from the mid-tier Bakunawa Abyssal Triarchy truly had the ability to win. If that duel were reset with both of them fully recovered, the outcome could be completely different.
"I lost," Neblis admitted defeat and turned around, walking calmly off the martial stage.
When she returned to her group, Vymara and Gelidra welcomed her with excitement and smiles. Even though only Vymara had won, the two of them had shown everyone they could fight head-on against those in the top 10 of the universe.
On top of that, they were only using two-thirds of their strength. If they had been at 100%, they might have won their battles and made it very close to the finals.
"Big Brother… I hope we didn't disappoint you." Neblis murmured beside Gelidra.
Both of them looked at Darian's back, a bit anxious. Their fates had changed because of him, and all this time, he had treated them well without asking for anything in return. At that moment, he turned slightly.
"Disappoint me? If you had six more months of training, all six of you would easily be among the top 16. This tournament is just a meaningless game. If you had to fight life-or-death battles against those same opponents, the ones who beat you would be the ones fearing for their lives, because they're just flowers grown in greenhouses. You used to be the same, but now you're starting to develop the right mindset and follow the right path. That's why you'd defeat them quickly. On top of that, you'd perform far better in any critical situation compared to them. Here, with no real hostility and in a controlled environment, everything is different. So don't take it too seriously. Your futures will be far greater than anyone else's."
All six of them listened and nodded, their eyes shining.
Feeling Darian's aura, second by second, they experienced something increasingly intense. There was something unsettling about his presence; he definitely wasn't a young cultivator like them. He radiated the essence of an Inscrutable Ancestral. It felt as if he had witnessed the rise and fall of empires and worlds, while they were still crawling in the darkness of ignorance.
...
Two hours later, all the fights of that round had ended.
The Demonic Elder appeared on the martial stage and announced in a serious voice:
"The top 32 of this generation have been revealed! From now on, every battle will be intense, and only the best of the best will advance! Let the draw begin!"
In the sky, only 32 names remained, spinning.
Until…
Two of them were chosen.
*Darian, from the Golden Crow Sect, vs Maeur, from the Underworld Shadow Sect*
