Andrew had considered this many times.
For him, the most difficult thing was gaining Beirut's appreciation. In the original book, Linley, as the protagonist, signed Equal Contract with another God-Eater Rat from a young age. Even for the sake of Bebe, Beirut had to take care of Linley.
However, Andrew was not so lucky, and besides, it would be nearly ten thousand years before Bebe was born. That's why Andrew considered this path.
While others may not know about the Soul Mutation, Beirut certainly does.
To counter the Radiant Sovereign, Beirut had always hoped to strengthen the power of the Yulan lineage, and selecting geniuses from the Yulan Plane to become Sovereign was one of his methods. However, ordinary geniuses, even if they achieved Paragon, would ultimately only become Lower Sovereign, weaker than Mid-level Sovereign, and the gap between them and Augusta, the Radiant Sovereign, remained immeasurable. Therefore, he paid even more attention to special geniuses, such as those with Soul Mutation.
In the original book, he saw Olivier's Soul Mutation and spoke highly of her, saying that her potential was even greater than Linley's. And because of Bebe, Beirut was naturally closer to Linley. Therefore, his words undoubtedly expressed his appreciation for Olivier's Soul Mutation.
This shows that Beirut greatly admires Soul Mutation User, especially since Andrew possesses Fire Element talent. And Beirut, in turn, has a Fire Element Sovereign Spark.
"Maybe he'll see my talent and consider me a candidate for the Fire Godhead..." Andrew couldn't help but think.
Setting aside these distracting thoughts, Andrew began his secluded cultivation. For him, having glimpsed the Laws of the World, the bottleneck to the Saint-level Realm no longer existed. In fact, once his strength reached a certain level, he could even touch the edge of the Deity-level. This was the result of his enlightenment.
Inside the Earl, his secluded cultivation had reached a bottleneck, but the outside world was in an uproar.
The Yulan Empire, as the strongest empire on the continent, wields influence throughout the entire continent. Under the emperor's orders, news of Andrew's challenge to Baird spread across the entire continent in just half a month!
In a small town's beer hall in the Chaotic Territory, several warriors were drinking and talking loudly.
"Have you heard? Earl Andrew Lance of the Magnolia Empire has actually challenged Lord Byrd, a Saint-level warrior who has been famous for thousands of years!"
" Rooney, who doesn't know this news now? Do you need to tell me?" a hairy-faced warrior said disdainfully.
Rooney took a swig of his drink. "Everyone knows the news, of course. But do you know who this Earl is?"
"Do you know?" The crowd was drawn to him.
Rooney's face was flushed, and he was very excited.
"Of course! Let me tell you, this Earl Lance is quite legendary. Even the Emperor of the Yulan Empire says that his talent can be considered the best on the continent for tens of thousands of years!"
"What? So what if he's talented? I heard this Earl is not even twenty years old yet. Even if he's talented, can he compare to Baird in terms of strength?" a short man said indignantly.
Rooney scoffed, "You little brat, you're just jealous of Earl Lance because you lack talent! Let me tell you, Earl Lance is not only talented, but also incredibly strong. At only seventeen, he's already Ninth-level Warrior and Level 9 Great Mage!"
"Wow..."
Inside the beer can, everyone gasped in amazement. A seventeen-year-old level nine expert—they had never even heard of such a thing, let alone seen one.
"That's not all!" Rooney's voice rose several octaves, "According to news from the Yulan Empire, Earl Lance already clashed with Baird a month ago, and the two were evenly matched!"
This caused an uproar in the beer hall! A seventeen-year-old level nine expert fighting a Saint-level expert to a draw was beyond everyone's imagination!
"So I think," Rooney concluded, "That the Earl Lance will definitely win a year from now!"
At this moment, not only in the Chaotic Territory, but also across the Far East Prairie and beyond the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts to the dozen or so duchies in the east, everyone was talking about this duel.
Since that earth-shattering battle more than a decade ago, the continent has been at peace for a long time. In those years, there has never been a duel with such a significant impact. In the world of cultivation, everyone aspires to become strong and idolizes the strong. For many lacking talent, witnessing the legendary battle of the Saint-level is a lifelong dream...
The message also reached Andrew's hometown of Maple Forest Town and the Keli Tribe.
Many people in Maple Forest Town still vividly remember the Lance family; back then, Howard was the town's strongest Sixth-level Warrior. Upon hearing this news, they initially didn't know that Earl Lance was the same person as Andrew, whom they knew. Later, as more information about Andrew was unearthed, the people of Maple Forest Town finally realized.
"So, a very important person has come from our area!"
The townspeople expressed their pride in other towns.
Aside from these strangers, the people of the Keli Tribe were probably the most interested in this duel.
The First Elder's first reaction upon hearing this news was surprise. Unlike others, he hadn't assumed that Earl Lance was the Andrew he knew without any prior information. At first, Baru didn't believe it, but the subsequent news left him speechless.
"Elder, do you think Andrew can really win?" Baru asked worriedly. He hadn't spent much time with Andrew, but the two had a tacit understanding. Later, Andrew's strength increased rapidly, leaving him far behind, which made Baru somewhat upset. However, he was a magnanimous person and didn't feel jealous because of it.
The elder's eyes were cloudy, yet they were filled with wisdom.
"Although I don't know the outcome of the competition, Andrew is a steady and mature person. He wouldn't do something he's not confident about. This time, it was the Yulan Empire that spread the message, which shows that Andrew has the upper hand in this matter. He should be confident."
Baru's furrowed brows relaxed. "Yes, Andrew isn't an impulsive person..."
The elder looked at Baru with great satisfaction. Baru had grown so much over the years; he was no longer the impulsive barbarian boy he once was, and appeared much more mature. Most importantly, his demeanor—cautious, steady, thoughtful, and ambitious—was enough to make him an excellent tribal leader.
" Baru, Andrew is a friend of our Keli Tribe. If the tribe encounters a major disaster, we can seek his help. However, the development of our Keli Tribe still depends on you. Your strength has already surpassed mine, and it's time for you to gain some experience. You should also go and watch Andrew's duel this time."
Baru nodded, his expression unchanged, but his eyes were very sharp.
" Andrew, you're already capable of fighting against Saint-level warrior? I'm still no match for you. However, I won't stop. In the future, I will surely become the first Saint Warrior in the history of the Keli Tribe and bring glory to the tribe!"
Regardless of what happened outside, Andrew continued to systematically comprehend the Laws every day, and his strength was rapidly increasing. In particular, his lightning and fire Battle-qi had now reached the level of 'momentum,' and the next step would be the Saint-level.
Howard and Janice were shocked when they first heard the news. They hadn't expected their son to dare challenge a Saint-level expert and spread the news so widely. It took Andrew several days of explanation to calm them down.
However, the two remained worried. To avoid disturbing Andrew's cultivation, no one in the family would go to the backyard during this period.
In this atmosphere, a year quickly passed.
The weather was clear and cloudless that day.
In the northeastern part of the Yulan Empire, near the Dark Forest, the Kaobis City was a gathering place for countless people, including many powerful individuals who possessed high-level magical beasts.
At noon, the flowing crowd suddenly parted to form a wide road, and on the other side of the road, a column of soldiers dressed in golden armor, moving in perfect unison, slowly approached. At the center of the column was a magnificent carriage.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Emperor!"
Along the roadside, wherever the carriages arrived, pedestrians bowed in respect, some even kneeling in worship. The Yulan Empire now held immense power over the entire continent; even Saint-level experts dared not easily offend it. Its emperor naturally received the utmost respect from everyone.
Inside the carriage was the emperor of the Yulan Empire.
" Adonis, why do you think Andrew chose Kaobis City as the location for the final battle? What advantage can he gain here?" the emperor asked the swordsman beside him.
Adonis shook his head. "As far as I know, Earl Lance has never been here. Perhaps he just wants to make the duel fairer."
The Emperor scoffed, "You underestimate Andrew. If he wanted a fair duel, he could have done it over the Yulan River. It's very close to the Dark Forest, where the dark element is much denser than elsewhere. Besides, he chose nighttime, which gives Baird an advantage."
Adonis exclaimed in shock, "Your Majesty, are you saying that Earl Lance doesn't take Baird seriously at all?"