"The competition rules are actually quite simple. To prevent internal cheating, clan members won't face each other in the early rounds. In other words, you won't run into Evan Yang at the start," Terry Yang's father explained.
"Huh? There's something like that? Damn, that means he'll get to stay around even longer," Terry Yang complained.
"Don't worry, son. This time, both the Lynn and Fenn families see Evan Yang as a thorn in their side. He might not even make it to your match before being eliminated," Terry's mother said.
"Mom, you mean our cousins?" Terry asked.
"That's right. I've already spoken to them. No matter what, Evan Yang will likely face someone from the Fenn, Lynn, or Water Clans as his opponent. So, there's at least a two-thirds chance he'll be targeted by their anger," Terry's mother replied.
"That's true. I wonder if our cousin is still as strong as before, able to challenge those above his level," Terry mused.
"Isn't that obvious? I've already checked—it's definitely not going to be that simple this time," Terry's mother said.
"Once the lot-drawing is over tomorrow, I'll keep cultivating. I won't let him surpass me," Terry declared.
"That's the spirit," Terry's mother said with a smile.
The next day, the four great families gathered together. This time there were eight contestants: two from the Fenn Family, three from the Lynn Family, one from the Water Clan, and two from the Yang Clan.
Evan Yang's absence drew curiosity from the other families. If Elder Lu hadn't said so himself, they would have thought they'd misheard.
Elder Lu said, "I'll draw lots on behalf of Evan Yang. That shouldn't be a problem, right?"
The Yang Clan already knew, so they weren't surprised. But the other families, hearing this, immediately recalled how Elder Lu had called Evan Yang away alone before. They couldn't help but wonder where exactly Evan Yang had gone.
Seeing no one object, Elder Lu smiled and said, "Since that's settled, let's begin."
The eight contestants stepped forward and each extended their hands toward a treasure Elder Lu held out. When they touched it, eight numbers appeared, one on each person's hand.
"See? Everyone has their number now," Elder Lu said with a smile.
"Yeah, we see them," Terry and the others replied after checking their hands.
Once everyone understood, Elder Lu explained, "Alright, when the matches start, one fights two, three fights four, and so on. Four winners move to the second round, then two are chosen for the final, and those two will battle for the championship. That means there's only one chance—if you lose, you're out. Only those who keep winning can become the final victor."
No one discussed it much, as if they already knew how it would work.
Seeing everyone understood, Elder Lu didn't beat around the bush and said, "Now you have some time—get to know your opponents. You can spar and learn about each other before the matches, but no serious injuries or crippling are allowed."
Everyone checked their numbers and started seeking out their opponents to observe them.
"Ugh, why did I run into him again?" Selena Water glanced at her opponent—it was Evan Yang. But since Evan was missing, there was no way to observe him.
"Little sis, what's wrong? Getting nervous?" Skyler Water teased.
"Nervous? Why would I be nervous? He's not even at the Emperor Realm yet. Why would I be afraid of him?" Selena said, pretending to be calm.
"But you lost to him last time," Skyler pointed out.
"Last time we didn't even use attributes, so that doesn't count," Selena replied.
"Well, I'm curious to see which of you will win this time," Skyler said with a smile.
"Brother, you aren't rooting for him, are you?" Selena glared at him.
"I'm supporting both of you," Skyler laughed.
"How can you be like that?" Selena said angrily.
"Don't forget, I made a pact with him. Of course I hope he takes first place, then resolves the old grudge between me and his father," Skyler said with a smile.
"That's your business. But I'm definitely going to beat him down, so your hopes will fall flat," Selena snorted.
"Oh? Then I'll have to see if you've improved these past years," Skyler laughed.
"Just watch," Selena said confidently.
Evan Yang had no idea what was happening outside. He was still studying the senior's insights about Light. So far, no one had ever reached Immortal Sovereign with the Light attribute.
What does it really take to reach Immortal Sovereign? After examining the senior's messages, Evan realized that to reach that realm, at least one attribute must be pushed to its absolute peak.
What exactly is the absolute peak? Evan didn't know. None of his attributes had reached it yet. But he wondered—if he could push all his attributes to the peak, would he be even stronger than a normal Immortal Sovereign? It was just a guess.
By now, Evan could control Light freely. With a point of his finger, a spot would brighten. He could adjust the intensity at will, wrap himself in radiance so others couldn't see his appearance, and even use Earth to hide so no one would know if he'd already left.
Evan felt excited. After nearly a month of effort, he'd absorbed all the Light left behind by the senior. His body now felt saturated.
"Feels great," Evan said with a smile as he opened his eyes.
Seeing he'd absorbed all the Light in the area, Evan Yang approached the senior's remains and knelt. "Senior, I promise I'll cultivate Light to its absolute peak and fulfill your wish."
Afterward, Evan looked around, made sure nothing was left, and prepared to leave.
Outside, he saw that other caves still glowed with different attribute lights. Tempted to enter another, he found himself blocked.
He couldn't get in, and suddenly a voice sounded: "Young man, don't be too greedy—come out."
Evan looked around but saw no one, which surprised him. Since nearly a month had passed, he had no choice but to leave the cave zone. Outside, he found Elder Lu and a golden-armored man.
The golden-armored man said to Elder Lu, "You two talk."
That voice from earlier belonged to the golden-armored man. Evan saw he was fully clad in gold armor, all top-grade gear—enough to make anyone jealous.
Elder Lu nodded and sent the golden-armored man away, then turned to Evan. "You're right on time—almost exactly a month," he said.
"Thank you, Senior," Evan said with a smile.
"No need to thank me. How do you feel?" Elder Lu asked.
"It's great, truly a wonderful place. Too bad I can't enter the other caves," Evan said with a smile.
"Kid, you're really greedy, haha. Do you know what this place is?" Elder Lu asked.
"No idea," Evan shook his head.
"This is the burial ground for all peak ninth-tier Emperor Realm experts of the Immortal Realm Alliance. Each cave contains their lifetime cultivation, which disappears once fully comprehended. Every cave has only one inheritor, so by Alliance rules, even elite disciples can only enter once in their lives," Elder Lu explained.
"Once in a lifetime? So that's why I couldn't enter. But, Senior, why did you let me come here? Aren't you worried about other Alliance members?" Evan was curious why Elder Lu let someone like him in.
Elder Lu smiled. "Because I know that sooner or later, you'll stand up for the Immortal Realm's survival. That's why I let you in early."
"The Immortal Realm's survival?" Evan asked, puzzled.
"That's right. The Immortal Realm may look stable, but there are countless hidden dangers: Shard Bugs from other worlds, the Devil Realm eyeing us hungrily, the Demon-Beast Realm seeming peaceful but sending many to seek inheritances here—it's impossible they have no ambitions. Add in all the other realms, and you get the picture," Elder Lu said.
Evan thought about it—other realms aren't weak. He's been to the Devil Realm, Demon-Beast Realm, Death Realm, and even an unknown foreign world.
"That senior really thinks highly of me," Evan said with an awkward smile.
"You'll understand in the future. For now, just focus on the competition," Elder Lu said with a smile.
"Has the tournament started yet?" Evan asked.
"Three days left. Go back and prepare. This time, there are eight contestants—four will advance after the first round. Your first opponent is Selena Water from the Water Clan. Go study her well. The Water Clan wields Water, while your Yang Clan uses Fire, so you'll be at a disadvantage. At the Emperor Realm, attribute countering creates about a ten percent difference," Elder Lu explained.
"Ten percent?" Evan asked, puzzled.
"That's right. When a Water attribute Emperor faces a Fire attribute Emperor, both offense and defense are about ten percent stronger. At sixth-tier Emperor, that's a twenty percent difference; at ninth-tier, it's thirty percent," Elder Lu said.
Evan had never really studied attribute countering. Hearing this, he was shocked. If Selena Water had a ten percent edge over him, that was huge. The most extreme was thirty percent. But he was curious: "What about Immortal Sovereigns?"
"Immortal Sovereigns? That's terrifying. It's said to be fifty percent, though no one's sure. Sovereigns rarely fight—after all, it's so hard to reach that level. When they do, the destruction is apocalyptic," Elder Lu said.
Evan nodded. "Got it. Thank you, Senior."
"So this time, facing the Water Clan, you're at an attribute disadvantage. Be careful," Elder Lu reminded him.
"Understood," Evan said with a smile.
"Go on, then. I won't see you out," Elder Lu said.
Evan nodded. "Alright, I'll head back now."
With that, Evan left.
Back at the Yang Clan's residence, Terry Yang couldn't calm down to cultivate. He kept thinking about Evan being called away alone, wondering where he was training. Not just Terry—even his parents were frowning.