Horo and all the other participants stood on the stage, sizing each other up.
Groups were formed for every power within the kingdom, except for the wandering adventurers.
The Azure Moon Kingdom always provided a chance for wanderers to participate in its kingdom's tournament. This was due to its unique situation of powers and a decree made when establishing the kingdom: all people of the kingdom should be treated equally regardless of status and background.
This didn't apply to the other nations and powers, which had their own way of selecting participants for the official mythical tournament.
The kingdom always allowed thirty wanderers to participate. Thousands, sometimes even tens of thousands, participated in the three trials to obtain one of the thirty slots.
These trials were essentially tests to filter out the unworthy and select the most worthy to battle against the kingdom's most elite combatants.
The background of the wanderers didn't matter as long as they weren't on the kingdom's wanted list.
That didn't mean some of the wanderers didn't deserve to be on the wanted list, or even the most wanted list.
The thirty open slots even attracted the interest of the powers within Gaia's Halo, which had branches in every nation. The kingdom didn't prevent official citizens from obtaining one of the slots. These powers would plant their own participants in the three trials to try to get extra participants in the official tournament since they only had a small quota of ten each.
This was the exact reason the other nations had a strict setup to select their participants.
Horo examined all the combatants from other powers and felt that his squad would perform well.
Only ten individuals from Azure Moon Kingdom could make it to the official tournament, and he was certain that at least one from the pure cloud palace would make it, and it would be him.
The participants from the pure cloud palace include him, the palace master's personal disciple Hana, and the second to ninth-rank core disciples.
The elders deemed them the available options in the palace.
Everyone except Elder May considered Hana to be more powerful than her entire squad. This is because she is on the brink of entering the ruler stage, and the only obstacle standing in her way is her trial. The rest of her squad is at the mid or late stage of the lord realm, while Horo is a unique genius who excels in every possible way.
Hana's power stems from her inherited path from her master, and Elevora followed a similar path due to her physique being built for it. This made their progress effortless, but it was also easy for them to encounter obstacles if they didn't follow their hearts, even with the smallest choices.
This is the same reason the palace master faced a blockade for decades.
Horo suspected that there had to be at least a couple of participants at Hana's level, and perhaps even some at the ruler stage.
The ruler stage is the fourth stage of Azure Moon's power system, and they are considered the top-tier powerhouses of the world. Yet, the prodigies of the Azure Moon Kingdom are already at that stage.
Horo could only imagine the strength and techniques the other nations and powers possessed in their quota.
All his current thoughts became irrelevant when the same voice they heard telling them to come to the stage was heard again, but this time, it came from above.
It was the crown prince, descending from high above on a small floating circular platform adorned with a majestic chair.
He descended to their level at the center of the stage before standing up and declaring, "Now, let's expedite this process so we can witness some epic battles."
Next, he unveiled an enigmatic box adorned with question marks and bearing the symbol of the illustrious Mageía Academy.
"This treasure of the Mageía Academy will be utilized to generate random matches based on your attributes, levels, and stage. It ensures that all matchups are fair, even the weaker contestant has an equal chance of victory. Your skills, abilities, personal and family techniques, bloodlines, blessings, and physiques will determine the victor."
"This format will continue until the top ten.
"Once the top ten are determined, it will transform into a challenge and point format.
"Each top ten contestant will have an opportunity to challenge another of their choice. If the challenged successfully defends by defeating the challenger, they earn two points. Conversely, if the challenger emerges victorious, they earn one point.
"Furthermore, if anyone defeats an opponent in fewer than five moves, they earn three points.
"The first contestant to accumulate twenty-five points emerges as the winner, while the others are ranked in descending order based on their point totals at that moment. No contestant can be challenged twice consecutively regardless if they successfully defend or not.
"There will be a week-long break after each round, providing those who advance to the next round with time to recuperate, analyze opponents, and even enhance their skills between rounds.
"Before the final round, there will be a month-long hiatus. Additionally, between every five challenges, there will be a day break unless a majority vote chooses to skip the day wait.
"Lastly, the top ten will undergo a lottery pick to determine the order of whose turn it is to challenge. This order will remain in rotation thereafter."
"Now, attach."
The moment he uttered that final word after a brief pause, the lid of the box snapped open, unleashing a mesmerizing display of multicolored strings of mana interwoven with intricate concepts. These strings of mana then attached to each participant.
After three breaths, each string of mana detached from the box, flowed into its connected individual, instantly transforming into a glass-like, transparent card in their hands.
And there, everyone witnessed their first matchups displayed on their screens.