At this point, the Death Sovereign paused for a moment, allowing the other Sovereigns time to digest what she had said before continuing.
"I know that now that all of you understand the methods by which Sovereigns can grow stronger, it will be impossible for everyone to remain idle."
"However, now that I have classified the Sovereigns into ranks, unless a lower-ranked Sovereign has offended a higher-ranked one, higher-ranked Sovereigns are forbidden from attacking lower-ranked Sovereigns."
"This applies even to the four Rule Sovereigns."
"Should any Sovereign violate this rule, they will be pursued by the four Rule Sovereigns until death."
"As for battles between Sovereigns of the same rank, or lower-ranked Sovereigns challenging those above them, those do not fall under this restriction."
After hearing the Death Sovereign's words, the gathered Sovereigns all visibly relaxed.
Those with divine clones who had been contemplating hunting other Sovereigns were one matter.
But for those without divine clones, this was undoubtedly a great relief.
Among Sovereigns, a hundredfold difference in strength meant instant death.
A tenfold difference would decide victory very quickly, but if one side was determined to flee, escape was still possible.
According to the four ranks established by the Death Sovereign, the gap within the same tier would at most be around tenfold.
That greatly increased everyone's safety.
Thus, all the Sovereigns approved of the Death Sovereign's proposal.
Since none of the current Sovereigns had yet reached the Paragon level, this round of classification was very simple.
In essence, whichever grade of Sovereign spark one possessed determined the tier one was placed into.
However, one thing puzzled everyone.
When the Death Sovereign categorized the Chief Sovereign tier, she had actually placed the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns within it.
"Your Excellency."
The Wind Chief Sovereign, Diya, immediately could not sit still.
Back during the war with the Lightning Divine Plane, the Wind Divine Plane had once fallen behind due to the White Tiger Legion's poor performance.
At that time, Diya had attempted to summon the White Tiger Sovereign, Räs.
But in the end, the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns had trampled his dignity into the dirt, and he had not dared act, becoming the laughingstock of many Sovereigns.
Now that the Death Sovereign had placed them in the same tier, Diya naturally refused to accept it.
"Speak," the Death Sovereign said coldly.
"Your Excellency, by what right do the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns deserve to stand among the Chief Sovereigns?"
Even the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns themselves were curious.
They were certain that aside from Locke—the one who had informed them—no other Sovereign should know about their fused innate divine ability.
So how had the Death Sovereign determined that the four of them possessed Chief Sovereign-level strength?
"Diya, I already said that battles between Sovereigns of the same rank are none of our concern."
"The Four Divine Beast Sovereigns, individually, are classified among the Lesser Sovereigns."
As she spoke, the Death Sovereign tapped the list of names written in divine power across the void.
Sure enough, the names of Azure Dragon Sovereign Redding, White Tiger Sovereign Räs, Vermilion Bird Sovereign Nimo, and Black Tortoise Sovereign Bowin were all listed there.
"When separated, if they dare offend Sovereigns of Intermediate rank or above, you are naturally free to attack them."
"But when the four of them stand together, I judge them to possess Chief Sovereign-level strength, and so they are placed within that tier."
The various Chief Sovereigns raised their heads.
As expected, under the Chief Sovereign category, what was written was not the four individual names, but simply—
Four Divine Beasts
"Diya, both you and the Four Divine Beasts belong to the Chief Sovereign tier."
"If you are dissatisfied, you may directly challenge them."
"We will not interfere in battles between Sovereigns of the same rank."
The moment those words were spoken, the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns immediately shifted into formation.
Should Diya truly wish to fight, they would naturally show no mercy and unleash their fused innate divine ability at once.
Seeing their reaction, along with the Death Sovereign's tone, the other Sovereigns' gazes toward the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns instantly changed.
No wonder Redding had once dared respond so forcefully to Diya's summoning of Räs.
So, they truly possessed means capable of rivaling—even killing—a Chief Sovereign.
Of course, just like the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns themselves, everyone was equally curious as to how the Death Sovereign had known of their strength.
"Hmph."
Hearing this, Diya merely glanced at the Four Divine Beast Sovereigns and snorted coldly, but he no longer had any intention of challenging them.
The gap in strength was too great.
He did not dare question the Death Sovereign's judgment.
Besides, if four mere Lesser Sovereigns had dared challenge him so openly before, it would have been stranger if they had not possessed means to contend with a Chief Sovereign.
Once the rankings were finalized, the majority of Sovereigns visibly relaxed.
With the four Rule Sovereigns backing this agreement, their safety was now far more secure.
At the very least, until higher-ranked Sovereigns obtained an additional Sovereign clone strong enough to challenge the Rule Sovereigns, they would restrain themselves.
No one would dare take reckless risks.
With a wave of her hand, the Death Sovereign dispersed the ranking list in the spatial turbulence.
Then her gaze fell upon Hurley.
"Lightning Chief Sovereign, Hurley."
"I now sentence you to death for violating the Sovereign Pact by slaughtering a Sovereign of lower rank."
"Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
"No! Death Sovereign, this isn't fair!"
"When I made my move, this agreement didn't even exist yet!"
"Heh."
"And now you want to talk to me about fairness?"
The Death Sovereign sneered.
"Then when you ambushed and killed that Earth Lesser Sovereign, did you think about fairness?"
"In truth, I had originally intended to convene this Sovereign Assembly only after the wars between the Divine Planes had ended."
"But unfortunately…"
At this point, her gaze swept toward the Fate Sovereign, Orloff.
"I never expected the Fate Sovereign to spread that information at such a time."
"At first, I believed it was one of the Fate Sovereigns with an additional divine clone, attempting to stir chaos for personal gain."
"But while I was holding back all seven Fate Sovereigns…"
"…I never expected a petty rat like you to exploit the opening."
Almost all the Sovereigns believed her words.
There was no helping it.
When one was powerful, one's words naturally carried weight.
Moreover, the ranking system and the Sovereign Pact truly did preserve relative stability.
Even if some Sovereign secretly broke through in the future, at most they could kill one Sovereign before their rank would be adjusted by the four Rule Sovereigns.
From the way the Death Sovereign had handled matters today, it was clear she was indeed fulfilling the Sovereigns' duty—
to maintain the stability of the universe.
"RAAAAH!"
Hurley's expression shifted wildly.
In the end, he erupted with his full power and charged toward—
the Fate Sovereign, Orloff.
Of the other three Rule Sovereigns, Hurley had already confirmed that whoever he attacked, he would be instantly crushed.
Only this Fate Sovereign was someone he had yet to personally clash with.
At the same time, he also harbored deep resentment toward Orloff.
Had it not been for this man spreading that information, how could he possibly have been blinded by greed and fallen into his current situation?
"Die!"
Seeing Hurley charge at Orloff, the other three Rule Sovereigns did not move.
The Death Sovereign already knew that Orloff was a Paragon Rule Sovereign.
Moreover, based on Locke's deductions, the Sovereign who had spread that information likely also possessed an additional Sovereign clone.
In other words, Orloff's current strength was very likely no weaker than that of the Life Sovereign or the Destruction Sovereign.
The only thing she still had not figured out was which Sovereign among those present was Orloff's other Sovereign clone.
Because she herself possessed a twin-born Sovereign clone, the concept of separate bodies with different soul auras was easy for her to accept.
"Ah…"
Facing Hurley's assault, Orloff let out a soft sigh.
The smile faded from his face, replaced by a compassionate gaze.
Then he simply raised a hand toward Hurley.
Boom!
There was no suspense whatsoever.
With a single palm strike, Hurley's attack was completely shattered.
And the power of that palm did not stop there.
After breaking through Hurley's attack, it drove straight forward and slammed into his chest.
BOOM!
The immense force instantly exploded Hurley's body apart.
A Sovereign spark radiating brilliant seven-colored light floated out from the shattered remains.
This was—
Hurley's Lightning Chief Sovereign spark.
A yellow light then emerged from the fragments of his destroyed body and reformed into Hurley's figure once more.
However, the Hurley who reappeared this time was weaker by ten thousandfold.
This was his Earth Lesser Sovereign clone—the one he had created after killing Antonis and refining that Sovereign spark.
At this moment, despair completely filled Hurley's heart.
Even as the Lightning Chief Sovereign, he had not survived a single exchange against the four Rule Sovereigns.
Now, as merely an Earth Lesser Sovereign, he was only slightly stronger than other Lesser Sovereigns thanks to that extra portion of willpower.
But this level of strength—
let alone the four Rule Sovereigns—
even an ordinary Law Chief Sovereign could kill him with ease.
As for the surrounding Sovereigns, after witnessing Orloff kill Hurley with a single move, strangely enough, none of them found it surprising.
After all, from the Death Sovereign's classification—especially her judgment of the Four Divine Beasts—it was obvious that she possessed an exceptionally clear understanding of every Sovereign's strength.
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