Chapter 1710: Intense Gazes Xaden stood under the foot, unable to move out of the way. Given the momentum at which the foot was coming, it was almost certain that Xaden would receive serious injuries once this attack connected. The Elders stood up, and one of them had an agitated look on his face. He's one of the few Peak Sovereigns present there. And Xaden was his precious student, there's no way he'd allow anyone to seriously injure his student, especially given the war that was coming. He wanted to make a move, but then he sensed a dangerous gaze locking onto him. It was that of Lord Dante. Those from the Pyrmond Faction didn't react. It's not that they couldn't, but they already knew how Lord Dante was, being someone who hates it when others bully the weak, there's no way he would stand for this, especially given how Xaden was the one who challenged Grey. If Grey had been the one who challenged Xaden, then he'd have felt maybe Grey's attack was of ill intent, but Grey was the one challenged, and he naturally had to fight back. Back on the platform. Just as Grey's foot was about to land on Xaden's face, it stopped. Grey looked down at Xaden and asked nicely, "Still not admitting defeat?" Xaden didn't expect Grey to show mercy as he was prepared for whatever the outcome of the attack even though he knew there's no way he could deal with it without getting injured. "I..." He dropped his head, his eyes moving from place to place, his voice dropped down and he finally managed to get the words out of his mouth, although his voice was so low that it was almost inaudible, "I surrender." Grey's foot was still hanging above him like an executioner's sword waiting to cut down the next victim, and it only moved away when the Elder in charge of the platform announced the result of the battle. With Grey dominantly beating Xaden, he cemented his spot as the number one person amongst the Mid stages Sovereigns. This round of the competition came to an end, and it was time for those in the Late stages. Like always, the weaker cultivation stages will compete first, before those in the Later stages. The top individual from each cultivation stage will be given a free spot in the top ten. So of those present, three people will get a guaranteed spot, and these are the top Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth stage Sovereigns. There were only a few Ninth stage Sovereigns, so the competition there wasn't tough. Where things will get interesting is how the rest of the people will be selected. From what Grey has seen, there were around seven Ninth stage Sovereigns among the youths present. And given this is everyone in the Pyro Faction, it meant that there wasn't anyone hidden anywhere else. All seven Ninth stage Sovereigns would want a spot from the remaining fifteen spots, and the chances that they'll get it is high as well. It can't be helped, the strong will only get stronger, this was the law of the jungle as well as the cultivation world. Only those with great performances are given a chance to train there even when they don't make the list. The list has generally been the same way for some years now, with only a few names changing, and some spots getting taken. There are also some people whose names disappear from the list. Either they died while training, or they have become too old to be part of this list. The Seventh stage Sovereigns started their battle. And the intensity of the fight was above that of the Mid stages. Only Grey and Matilda's battle came close to these ones. Boom! Bang! Bam! The sounds of explosions were never ending, the cheers of the crowd was just as loud. The gasp of surprise, shock of victory or defeat could be heard just from the crowd. Grey looked at the rowdy scene before him, he didn't have any reactions to it. He has been in a place like this too many times to be moved or have a reaction to any of the things happening. He once again sensed a familiar gaze, and turning to the same far north of the arena, he saw the slender figure staring at him once again. This time, he could tell that there's a difference in the gaze. It was as if the burning gaze wanted to cut a hole in his body. The figure was too focused on trying to sense Grey's abilities that she failed to see that his eyes were locked on hers. She froze momentarily, and with an awkward smile, she nodded at him before turning her focus back to the platform. Grey could feel a lot of eyes on his body, but hers were one of the ones that drew his attention. After turning his attention away from her, his gaze trailed in the direction of where he felt the next strongest gaze, and to his surprise, it was his previous opponent, Matilda. Seeing Grey look in her direction, she winked with a sly grin before turning towards the platform as well. A worrying smile appeared on Grey's face, but he didn't think too much about it. He'll be leaving this place in a bit. He was curious about the essence vein, but he didn't think he needed it all that much. He'd rather go outside and investigate the Necromancer's camp that's close to the entrance of the Pyro World. That would be more interesting compared to sitting in one place and trying to improve his cultivation stage which he could improve when he's outside. He also sensed a lot of eyes from the area where the Elders were seated. 'I wonder how difficult these guys will be.' He thought to himself as he looked at the duo fighting. Time went by and the number of people in the Seventh stage of the Sovereign Plane was reducing.