Julius nodded seriously—he understood the gravity of the situation. If Felix had truly condensed the Way of Mind, it would be terrifying. His future would be unimaginable.It also explained why Felix had stopped at the ninth floor of the Tower of Babel—there was simply no point in going further.However, Julius still had one lingering question—why had Felix also stopped at the ninth floor of the Tower of Divinity? He couldn't quite figure it out."Not bad, Julius," said Fiona with a smile from nearby. "Even though you were eliminated, you still managed to break through to the Nebular Realm."They were all quite familiar with each other, so Julius returned a polite smile."Thank you for the compliment, Mrs. Warrington. It was just luck, really."Fiona, who had looked down on Felix initially, had the same thoughts as Scopulus. They both figured that it was merely a coincidence.Besides, Julius's strength was only barely enough to crack the top 50. Even before, it hadn't been certa
On the island, everyone who had been paying attention to Felix was now fully focused on him.This time, he was up against Yvian—a genuine favorite of great substance, to win the tournament. If Felix managed to come out on top here, it would be undeniable proof that he had been hiding his true strength all along."Father, something feels off. If Felix really has condensed the Way of Mind, he should be able to easily crush Yvian. Why does he still look so serious?"Julius couldn't help but be puzzled. A martial artist who had condensed their Way of Mind could attack faster if they put their minds to it.Of course, at higher levels of soul cultivation, the dynamics could change. However, there really shouldn't be any way for Yvian to survive this."It's simple," his father replied. "Felix wants to defeat Yvian purely with soul power. A true powerhouse shouldn't have any weaknesses. That's what makes this even more exciting."Julius suddenly understood—he knew he couldn't do that. If
Indigo was starting to get a little strained, but it was still holding up for now.This was where the differences between soul artifacts really started to show. As Felix's strength grew, Indigo was clearly beginning to fall behind."It looks like you've done all you can," Felix said, having pretty much gauged Yvian's strength. He raised his right hand and pointed forward."Six Word Mantra—Astral Ember!"Instantly, the soul blade defending Yvian slashed downward. As the one on the receiving end, Yvian could feel firsthand just how terrifying that strike was.Even though her soul hadn't been damaged, she understood one thing very clearly—Felix was still holding back. She didn't know how much strength he was actually using, but she was certain that she wasn't his match.After all, she had already thrown everything she had at him."I surrender!" she yelled.Making a clean break when the time was right was crucial. Yvian was smart enough to know that conceding now would at least sav
Scopulus was fuming. Now that his family's reputation had declined, they really weren't on par with the Zaborowski family anymore."Felix Zeller? Dream on!" he retorted.Lyle couldn't be bothered to argue any further. Instead, he shifted his attention back to Felix. A sharp, calculating light glinted in his eyes.Time kept ticking by, and more and more contestants were eliminated. Just those taken out by Felix alone already numbered over a dozen. It was clear how quickly the finals were progressing—at this rate, the top ten finalists would probably be determined well before sunset.Along the way, Felix had also run into a few ranked in the top 50, but none of them piqued his interest. Likewise, the spectators on the island remained calm and unbothered—after all, if Felix could defeat even Yvian, how could these other competitors stand a chance?After a few hours, the Orion family members suddenly began chuckling. The others quickly caught on and shared the same look."Mr. Orion,
Aside from a slight shift in her gaze, Chelsea remained as cold as ever.After both of them came to a stop, Felix was the first to speak."Well, looks like we ran into each other after all."Chelsea nodded slightly. "This isn't what I was hoping for."Felix was a little confused. "What do you mean?"To his surprise, Chelsea actually responded, "I wanted to fight you in the grand final, not here."Their brief exchange would be normal enough in most battles, but it was downright jaw-dropping for those watching from the island.This was the first time Chelsea had ever spoken during the competition. Until now, she'd been instantly eliminating every opponent without giving them a chance to surrender. Why was she acting differently with Felix? Did they know each other beforehand?But that didn't seem possible—the Renner family was utterly isolated and had no friends."Shall we begin?" Felix asked.Chelsea was just about to answer when suddenly, a voice rang out."Ten victors hav
Julius and Xenon exchanged a look and chuckled."Do you know why they gave you two days of free time?" Julius asked.Felix shook his head and signaled for him to get to the point."Among the ten finalists, those without a strong family background are prime targets for recruitment. Hence, you might be one of them," Julius said.Felix thought it made sense—it wasn't all that different from how things worked back on Earth."Recruitment by families? Do they expect you to change your last name or something?" Felix asked.Julius laughed. "Of course not. Every strong martial artist has their pride. No one would agree to something like that. The ones they're interested in are people with limitless potential, like you. Since you come from a developing planet, you have no resources—you're a perfect target."He added, "For instance, if my family wanted to recruit you, we'd propose an alliance. You wouldn't have to give up anything—you would only need to agree to a contract saying you'd hel
"No idea. Oh, right. My dad told me to check in with him, too," Julius said.Julius lifted his wrist, and a white wristband flashed briefly. Then, he closed his eyes.It was a communication device developed by Star Alliance. It was way more advanced than anything on Earth—it could handle video, voice, and even silent messaging—meaning it allowed direct brain-to-brain communication without anyone around knowing you were chatting.Right now, Julius was silently talking to Trent. "Father, Lyle just approached Felix to recruit him. What do you think about that?"To his surprise, Trent chuckled on the other end. "His instincts are still as sharp as ever. Don't worry about it. Lyle has always trusted his intuition, and so far, he's never been wrong. "His move doesn't affect us. You already have the upper hand. Like I said before, just stay friends with Felix. As long as you maintain that bond, it's as good as recruiting him for our family."When Julius thought back to how Felix had sa
Just then, Yvian interrupted, "Dad, since Felix is this sincere, I think we should tell him some things in advance—to prove our sincerity."After a pause, Lyle nodded, and Yvian looked at Felix, saying, "What I said about Star Alliance was a very big maybe. Because of your current situation, they may not even come to help you. If they do, I can't predict what they will do."But one thing is for sure—if you need Star Alliance's help, you must join them. My family can't compare to them. I believe you understand that." Felix looked a bit unsure but smiled. He replied, "Thank you for telling me the truth. Let's take a look at the contract."Lyle's eyes glinted mysteriously. He knew that Yvian's words convinced Felix. Sure enough, with someone like that, Lyle could only treat him with sincerity—lies and deceit were meaningless to Felix.After reading the contract, Felix confirmed that it was exactly as Lyle had said. There was not even a word out of line."Alright, I'll sign it," F