The competitor waiting room was a lavish hall draped in spun gold decorations and lined with velvet couches.

It was designed to cater to the pampered egos of the Celestial elite who had passed the preliminary cullings.

Arthur Sterling sat alone in a shadowed corner. His legs were crossed.

He entirely ignored the crystal goblets of nectar floating past him on silver platters.

He was busy reviewing the tournament brackets on his internal system interface.

"Well, well. Look what the tide washed in."

Arthur slowly raised his head.

Approaching him was a young man practically glowing with misplaced arrogance.

He wore a suit of immaculate and form fitting armor forged from condensed starlight.

It was accented with deep violet trim.

His blond hair was perfectly styled. His eyes held the smug and punchable superiority of a man who believed the universe existed solely to serve him.

Behind him stood a retinue of six heavily armed guards who acted like lapdogs.

"Prince Valerius." Arthur noted smoothly. He did not even bother to stand up.

He had read the intelligence reports Lyra had stolen earlier.

Valerius was the son of a Celestial Duke. He was the reigning champion of the lower brackets and the overwhelming crowd favorite.

"You know my name. Good. That means you are not completely brain damaged from

fighting like a feral dog." Valerius sneered and stopped a few feet away.

"I saw your little display against the Hydra. Pure and mindless physical force.

It was repulsive. A stain on the elegance of this tournament."

"If you are here to critique my form, send an email to HR." Arthur said. His voice was a low and bored drawl. "I am busy."

Valerius’s face flushed with immediate anger. The guards behind him placed their

hands on their weapon hilts.

"You dare speak to me with such insolence? I am a Prince of the Heavenly Court!"

Valerius glared.

"I came over here to offer you a mercy peasant. Our match is in the next block.

Forfeit now. Bow your head, walk away, and I will let you keep your miserable life."

Arthur did not get angry. He did not flare his aura.

His dark eyes simply drifted over the Prince’s glowing armor. He was analyzing the raw and untapped resources standing in front of him.

[Notification]

↳ Target Identified: Prince Valerius.

↳ Class: Celestial Noble / High Fate Target.

↳ Initiating Binder?

’Bind him.’ Arthur commanded in his mind.

An invisible and metaphysical thread shot from Arthur’s chest. It slammed directly into Valerius’s soul.

The arrogant prince did not even blink. He was completely oblivious to the fact that a parasitic leech had just attached itself to his very existence.

"Forfeit?" Arthur chuckled. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his

knees.

"I never forfeit. But I am a betting man. If you are so confident in your elegance, put your money where your mouth is."

Arthur stared directly at him.

"Let us make a public wager. Your entire family’s treasury against my life."

Valerius threw his head back and let out a sharp and mocking laugh.

"You want to bet your worthless life against the wealth of a Duke? You are insane. But I accept!"

Valerius grinned maliciously. "When I crush you in the arena, I will make sure the entire realm watches you beg!"

The Prince spun on his heel. His cape billowed as he stormed off toward the

arena entrance with his guards trailing behind him.

Arthur watched him go. A dark and corporate smile stretched across his face.

"Thanks for the capital kid."

Valerius was scheduled to fight three other competitors before facing Arthur in the semi finals.

Arthur leaned back into the velvet couch and closed his eyes.

’System. Siphon active.’

[Notification]

↳ Target Prince Valerius has engaged in combat.

↳ Target is passively absorbing high tier ambient Celestial Qi to replenish

reserves.

↳ 10,000x ROI Multiplier Activated!

Arthur’s body violently shuddered. It was an invisible and internal explosion.

Valerius was an elite noble. His body naturally drew in the purest and most

refined energy of the Celestial Court just to breathe.

Multiplied by ten thousand, that passive intake became a raging and torrential

flood pouring directly into Arthur’s core.

His muscles tightened. His bones hummed with a high pitched frequency.

The sheer density of the energy forced his newly formatted Celestial Knight core to expand, compress, and shatter its own limits in a matter of seconds.

[Status Update]

↳ Internal energy has breached the Knight tier.

↳ Host has reached: Celestial Lord.

Arthur exhaled a long and heavy breath. A faint wisp of white steam escaped his lips.

He rolled his shoulders. He could feel the immense and crushing power of his new

rank settling into his physical form.

He had not even thrown a punch and his employee had just given him a massive

promotion.

A faint ripple in the shadows next to the couch caught his attention.

Lyra materialized out of thin air. Her Stardusk rogue skills allowed her to bypass the arena’s heavy security entirely.

She was breathing heavily. A triumphant and wicked grin was on her face.

"Authur." Lyra whispered. She dropped a heavy and intricately carved spatial pouch onto his lap.

"The Prince’s private vault was heavily warded. Took me nearly twenty minutes to

slice the geometric locks."

Arthur picked up the pouch and tossed it lightly in his hand.

He could feel the sheer wealth humming inside it. Millions of divine crystals, rare artifacts, and hoarded knowledge.

"Excellent work Lyra." Arthur praised. He was genuinely impressed by her efficiency.

He reached out and gently pulled her forward. He pressed a brief and firm kiss to her forehead.

"You are earning your keep."

Lyra froze. Her violet eyes went wide.

A massive and furious blush exploded across her cheeks. It entirely ruined her cool rogue persona.

"I... yes Emperor. I live to serve." She stammered and stepped back into the shadows before he could see her legs trembling.

"Competitor Vaelen! Report to the Arena!" The announcer’s voice echoed.

Arthur stood up and slid the spatial pouch into his coat. It was time for the semi finals.

He walked out into the blinding light of the arena.

The crowd immediately began to boo and jeer. They expressed their absolute disgust for the brutish mortal.

Standing across from him was his opponent. It was not a beast this time.

It was a tall and slender Celestial clad in flowing blue robes. He was holding a

staff of carved sapphire. A master spellcaster. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"I am Kaelthas." The mage declared. His voice echoed with arrogant superiority.

"I will not let you defile this arena with your barbaric fists. I will end this before you take a single step!"

Kaelthas raised his staff. His eyes glowed with blinding light.

The magic of the Celestial Court was not cast with mere thoughts. It was commanded through the Words of Creation.

"Ignis! Devastare! Obliterare!" Kaelthas chanted. His voice was layered with reality warping power.

A massive and towering inferno of blue celestial fire erupted from his staff.

It formed a roaring and localized sun that shot directly toward Arthur. The heat was enough to melt the bedrock of the arena.

Arthur did not move. He did not enter a martial stance.

He just watched the incoming fire while his system interface flashed rapidly.

[Notification]

↳ Foreign Magic Detected: Words of Creation.

↳ Translating conceptual syntax.

↳ 10,000x ROI Multiplier Activated! Host has gained perfect mastery over Celestial Incantations.

Arthur’s brain was flooded with the fundamental language of the universe.

He understood the frequencies, the precise vocal tones, and the absolute authority required to bend reality with a syllable.

He looked at the massive wall of blue fire hurtling toward him and he simply sighed.

"You are mispronouncing Obliterare."

Arthur said casually. "Your inflection is flat.

Let me show you how to enunciate."

Arthur did not yell. He did not raise a staff.

He simply stood with his hands in his pockets. He looked directly at the incoming inferno and spoke a single and perfectly pitched word.

"Extinguish."

"FWOOSH!"

It was not a spell colliding with another spell. It was an absolute and conceptual override.

The towering inferno of blue fire instantly vanished.

It did not fizzle out. It was simply deleted from reality and left nothing but a faint wisp of smoke in the air.

The entire stadium went dead silent. The jeering died in their throats.

Kaelthas stood frozen. His jaw hung completely slack.

His ultimate spell was erased with a whisper.

"Impossible..." The mage choked out. His hands were shaking. "You... you speak

the Words of Creation without a divine mandate?!"

"I am the mandate." Arthur replied coldly.

He raised his right hand and pointed his index finger at the terrified mage.

Arthur tapped into his newly acquired and heavily refined understanding of Celestial magic.

"Crush." Arthur commanded.

"BOOM!"

An invisible and localized gravity well materialized directly above Kaelthas. It had the weight of a dying star.

The mage did not even have time to scream.

He was instantly slammed into the arena floor. His magical shields shattered like cheap glass.

He lay pinned to the bedrock completely immobilized and coughing up blood.

Arthur turned his back on the defeated opponent.

He looked up at the high balcony where Prince Valerius was standing. Valerius was watching the match in utter horror.

Arthur’s dark eyes locked onto the Prince. The system interface in his vision suddenly flashed red.

[Target Analysis Update]

↳ Name: Prince Valerius.

↳ Warning: Target’s core contains heavy traces of Void Magic. Demonic and Abyssal corruption detected beneath standard Celestial aura.

Arthur’s predatory smile widened into something truly terrifying.

The golden boy of the Heavens was cheating with demonic magic.

"See you in the finals Prince." Arthur mouthed.