His 'friends'–whether real or fake–and acquaintances were naturally not the only ones looking at him very closely now. Instead, almost everybody was! From the noble Named Family heirs above to the lucky commoners at the tail end of the food chain, his remarkable accomplishment had turned him into even more of a household name.
The regular competitors would now know to give him a wide berth whenever possible, as merely a few of them were delusional enough to think that they could actually hold up against the top few Heaven's Chosen in their present state. Some others considered joining him if they ever got the chance, as his potential was undeniably impressive.
Still, even they had to admit that doing this would put them in significant danger. The taller the tree, the stronger the wind–following that logic, their fragile little lives might not last long. However, if they were actually 'fortunate' enough to run into Theodore, then would they even have a proper choice? That is, aside from dying immediately, or potentially kicking the bucket later down the line.
But the 'normal people' were not the sole ones currently seriously weighing their options. Contrary to the cannon fodder, the Named Family descendants could simply run away... once. The real question was: Should they?
For many whose backgrounds didn't put them into an enemy–or at least opposing–camp, they weren't against following someone with outstanding prospects like this. Of course, the majority still intended to do their best, eventually reaching the very top themselves, but a sizable portion of the whole wasn't against becoming a Subordinate of the two ultimate winners–or those who could realistically reach for such heights.
Those who had already stood out from amongst the rest of the competitors, however, were looking at Theodore's name with far less harmless intentions. Out of the ones dominating the Overall Leaderboard, the majority of female Heaven's Chosen did not particularly intend to make a move against him, as he wasn't directly competing for the same spot as them. It made a lot more sense for them to focus on the other women first, as they could truly turn into significant problems for them.
Standing at the summit of the highest mountain of the world that she was in, there was a bronze haired young lady clad in flowing, blue chiton-style robes. No matter how one looked at her, she appeared as if she had directly stepped out of a painting that had reached utter perfection in terms of beauty. This wasn't an uncommon feature amongst those like her–rather, it was to be expected.
"... Darana, that bitch! How did she manage to get so close to me?!"
Mumbling words of hatred in annoyance, Urania furrowed her brows, a dangerous glint shining in her olive green eyes. The Nomos and Khan families had been at odds ever since they first came into being.
With the former representing the law of the Heavenly Court and having an exalted position even amongst the Supreme Pillars, and the latter striving for absolute rulership over their territories, it was no wonder that they were like fire and water.
Although the Heavenly Court gave its Named Families quite a bit of freedom when it came to how they ran the areas that they were in charge of–or had even conquered themselves–this didn't mean that they could disregard all laws. Especially those personally put in place by the Heavenly Emperor and Heavenly Empress! And yet, the Khan Family regularly got dangerously close to outright insubordination, or even secession.
Descending from the 'most loyal law enforcers' of the Heavenly Court, Urania's disgust for those who would go against the established order ran deep. On the single occasion when she had had the displeasure of running into Darana, the most promising heir of the Khans, the at the time young girl's unforgivable attitude had permanently destroyed any chance of a reconciliation between these two factions.
'This 'Winter Saint' is well known for eradicating evil, isn't he? If I get the chance, I should try to convince him to go against that filthy creature.'
In Urania's eyes, all that Theodore represented was just another potential pawn to use against that woman who had to be destroyed at all costs.
One who saw him as more than a mere tool was Skathi. Despite the Fjall Family being somewhat 'average' amongst Supreme Pillars, they got along pretty well with the Winters. It wasn't to the extent that they had any close dealings with each other, but they would occasionally lend their support if necessary. Through this, over time, a not insignificant sense of camaraderie had sprouted.
'Not bad. It seems like Theodore is a bit more gifted than father suspected. I should aim to establish an alliance with him, should he survive long enough.'
It was hard to tell whether or not there was any emotion in her wine red eyes. With skin as pale as paper and icy blue, long hair that had been fastened into a high ponytail, she gave off a somewhat scary impression. Her permanently frigid gaze didn't help with that either. If it wasn't for the cutesy, small white rabbit emblem sewn into the side of her gorgeous, black dress, then she would be the ultimate picture of an unapproachable ice queen.
As for the men amongst the top ten, surprisingly, none of them chose to make a move against Theodore–at least for now. Instead, they resolved themselves to end his life in the case that they somehow ran across him. This was primarily because they didn't particularly excel in methods that could harm their foes while they were too far away and in an unknown place. Else, there was not a single one who would have let him live. Well, except for one of them.
Having taken the initial lead by a not insignificant margin, Casimir silently sifted through all available information about his potential foes. He had both the means and the motive to harm Theodore, but he didn't even consider doing so.
After all, why should he waste his energy and time on this endeavour if there were many others jumping at the chance of doing his job for him? The list of those who wanted the Winter Saint dead was a lengthy one–he didn't have to interfere.
'The longer he survives, the more annoying pests–that would otherwise have swarmed me–he will attract. I can kill him whenever I wish, regardless of how strong he becomes.'
In his deep-set, white eyes, there was an unshakable confidence. Whilst he couldn't guarantee that there was nobody who could overcome him, there was one thing that he was absolutely certain of: If he wanted someone to die, they would. No matter what.
The Mertis Family had always been adept at dealing with their foremost forte: death. As the greatest descendant which they had ever been blessed with, Casimir was not baselessly arrogant. Rather, thanks to plenty of in-depth experimentation, he was certain that unless someone's cultivation stage surpassed him by far too much, no matter what grade of Talent his target had, they would have to roll over and accept their fate.
'I'll leave everyone else to fight amongst themselves, simply retaliating if somebody is mentally underdeveloped enough to attack me. Those who might possibly rival me... haven't even chosen to appear yet.'
He wasn't wrong about this, as too many found it beneath themselves to compete seriously yet. One of these was the secretly raised, most outstanding heir of the Nefrin Family, Firouz. Due to having met up with a number of his siblings this early on, he had a lot more options available to him than most of his peers.
His family had always been nigh unbeatable when it came to cursing others and bestowing horrendous fates upon them. Still, going up against Supreme Pillar heirs didn't always go well–some did not only manage to persevere, they could even counterattack!
"Daniyal, get rid of Theodore Winter for me."
With a tone of voice that made it apparent that he wouldn't accept anything less than immediate agreement, Firouz shot a cold glare at his least favourite brother. Amongst them all, he was the most unremarkable one, and definitely unsuited to make it to the latter rounds. Therefore, what better use was there for him than to transform into his disposable 'ammunition'?
"... understood, brother. I'll go all-in from the start."
Rising to his feet, a less than 20 years old, handsome youngster showed a pained smile. Just like his entire family, he had black hair, which in his case had been cut rather short, only reaching up to the top of his ears. In his earthen-brown eyes, there flickered a hint of unwillingness, yet he didn't resist.
"Farewell, everyone. I'll leave to make preparations now."
Exchanging looks with the rest of his siblings, he eventually went to a secluded location, where he would begin the lengthy ritual necessary to imprecate his target.
Whether or not Daniyal survived, everyone knew that this had set a long since expected precedent. If it came down to it, then all of them were fair game. Even to their parents, it would ultimately not matter what became of them–all that they were good for was to elevate their brother to the furthest possible heights!
"Nader, you'll be going after..."
To their dismay, moments later, they found out that their group would be aiming for quite a few other outstanding individuals. Only the Heavenly Dao and Heavenly Empress could guess how many of the siblings would make it out of this unscathed.
Obviously, not all familial relations amongst Supreme Pillars were this ruthless in nature. Most were on rather good terms with each other, and some even had the great fortune of getting along practically perfectly. The Winter Family's heirs belonged to that last category.
When Theodore's bothers and sisters saw his name on the Cultivation Leaderboard, they were filled with both pride and concern. With him being the youngest of them, they all felt fairly protective of him. Unfortunately, none of them had been blessed with Talents which could realistically help him out in his current situation.
Also having no way to contact each other, as the Lesser True Void separating them was far too vast for even their most advanced methods to bridge, all that they could do was hope for the best.
"I swear, if I ever find out who is aiming for my little Theo, I'll crush them into dust!"
Seething with rage, as she was perfectly aware of what her brother would have to endure, Theodora Winter–usually just called 'Dora' by her six younger siblings–crushed the continent beneath her with a stomp.
She had very similar icy blue eyes compared to Theodore, but a shade deeper, whilst her hair was the exact same kind of white as his. Letting her long locks flow freely and unrestrained, her militaristic yet gorgeous, silver-black attire gave her the air of a fantastical, medieval-esque decorated general about to ride into battle.
Her reaction was in line with that of Theodore's other five brothers and sisters. No matter where they presently were, strong killing intent and fury eventually emanated from them. A few showcased it in the same way as Dora, whilst some were more restrained about it. Still, all of their Subordinates felt a shiver run down their spines.
Amongst the indescribably large number of remaining competitors, Theodore was naturally far from the only one targeted by others. Whether that be due to their impressive achievements, or because of prior conflicts–many would find their days ahead filled with hardships.
Of course, not all who harboured the intentions to harm specific individuals in particular were actually capable of putting those thoughts into practice just yet.
In an insignificant part of the event venue, a thoroughly average young man was silently preparing himself, an unsettlingly serene smirk playing across his lips. To him, it was irrelevant how many rounds it would take, or how many attempts–that Young Mistress of the Celestial Foxes would die by his hands.