Guo was the weakest out of nine who were present here. However, he still had years of experience of being a Holy Priest who had mastered a lot of the Holy Spells himself. His strength could never be underestimated. Even Gabriel understood that.
Despite having some really decent spells of Light that he learned in the Tower of Challenges, he wasn't a hundred percent sure if he could win since his one of the most powerful spells of Light was something that relied on him using the Element of Darkness.
Gabriel understood perfectly well that in this battle, if he couldn't win, he might need to expose his other Elements. That's why he needed to do something for a safety net. He needed to make sure that no matter what he did, he could succeed.
"Are you ready to challenge him?" The first Holy Lord asked Gabriel.
Gabriel didn't reply immediately. It was as if he was still thinking of something.
"Are you getting cold feet?" The seventh Holy Lord asked, frowning. Initially, he was happy that Gabriel was a confident young man. However his hesitation in answering was concerning.
"Before I agree, I want to make something sure," Gabriel responded, taking a deep breath. "Are you all sure that I will become a Holy Lord if I can defeat him? What if you all found another excuse later on to reject me?"
The Holy Lords were taken aback. Was this guy really saying that he couldn't trust their words?
"Are you saying that we might go back on our words?" The Second Holy Lord frowned. "Young man, do you really think we would do something like that?"
"It's not that I think that. However, there is always a possibility. Who knows what might happen in the battle. If you change your mind later on, it'll be a waste of my time to go through this battle!"
Gabriel understood that he needed the approval of these people to get full control of the Holy Grimoire. As long as he could get that right here, he would've never needed to return here.
"How do you want us to prove our words then?" The Fourth Holy Lord asked. "Don't tell me you want us to take a Heavenly Oath?"
"That's exactly what I want." Gabriel didn't even waste a single second before responding. As long as these people could make a Heavenly Oath, he didn't have to worry about anything!
"I want you all to make a Heavenly Oath that as long as I can defeat him, you would all help me become the strongest Holy Lord of Light!"
When he suggested the Heavenly Oath, he carefully crafted the words. The Oath that he spoke of wasn't just about him getting their approval anymore. It was very subtle, but the oath was more about the others doing their best to make him a strong Holy Lord of Light!
That single oath covered a lot of things in it. Not only did it mean they had to give him their approval, but they also couldn't show any bias in helping him in the future if there was ever a need!
It wasn't as if the other Holy Lords didn't think of what his words implied. However, they didn't think too much of it. For them, Gabriel was just a youngster with hot blood who didn't know how vast the world truly was.
"What do you think?" The second Holy Lord asked the first.
"Well, it's never happened before that a newbie had defeated an old Holy Lord for approval. If the young man can achieve that, he'll certainly create history. I don't mind helping a talent like that if he really can achieve that." The first Holy Lord was not only not worried about this Heavenly Oath, but she was even more impressed.
They have Gabriel an inch, but Gabriel was trying to get even more! This kind of greed for future strength was worth admiration.
"I think the same." The Second Holy Lord nodded. "I don't see any problem with that."
One after another, all the Holy Lords agreed. Guo didn't believe that Gabriel could achieve it, so he also agreed. For him, Gabriel was thinking about eating more than he could swallow.
All the Holy Lords looked at the sky and said in unison, "With Heaven as our witness, we all take the oath! No matter what method you use, as long as you can defeat Guo, we will not create any obstruction for you! Instead, we'll instead help you unlock the strongest potential of Light!"
As soon as the Heavenly Oath was completed, thunder flashed in the sky, as if acknowledging the oath!
"Good." With that kind of Oath, Gabriel could finally lower his guard. Even though he wanted to use his element of Light to win, if he couldn't, he was safe to use other Elements! The wide gap between the ninth Holy Lord and him had shortened by a lot!
"You can begin now!" the First Holy Lord clapped her hands. Gabriel felt a strange force around his body, grabbing him. He couldn't even resist that strange force of space.
The spatial force made him and the ninth Holy Lord disappear.
Both of them appeared in a different place in the Holy Region. The Eight Holy Lords appeared in the sky, observing the battle like gods who were watching the mortals play.
Gabriel and the ninth Holy Lord stood on the ground on rocky mountain terrain.
"I will not go easy on you!" The Ninth Holy Lord exclaimed. "Nor will I allow you to surrender."
"Is that what you said to the Dark Mages when you slaughtered them all?" Gabriel asked in return. "However, I am not like them. It's still unclear who will try to surrender."
"Your arrogance is really high. But before true attention, arrogance can only lower its head!" The Ninth Holy Lord raised his head toward the sky. An incarnation of the Ancestral Staff of Light appeared in his hand.
It wasn't the real Ancestral Staff, but since this was the Holy Region, the Ninth Holy Lord could use it and it had the same strength as the real Ancestral Staff.
Even though Gabriel was sent to the Holy Region, he still hadn't received the Ancestral Staff of Light from the Church of Light. He just realised that he came here unprepared.
"Today, I will trample your arrogance under my feet!" The Ninth Holy Lord exclaimed. Just like Gabriel, the ninth Holy Lord had also mastered the Wordless Chant!
He didn't speak any chant, but Gabriel still felt a disturbance in the energy around him. The battle had already begun!
