Chapter 467 — The Martial Emperor Appears

The current high-level records of the Heavenly Sword Ruins all lay in their hands—and these people hadn't even gone in yet. So what in the world was happening at the Heavenly Sword Ruins now...

"Oh?" At that moment, seeing a beastmaster of the Heavenly Sword Nation climb to the seventh floor in mere minutes, even Meteor Madness's gaze flickered ever so slightly.

Yet before they could marvel for long, the light of the eighth level began to flicker as well. In under ten minutes, this person had cut their way straight to the eighth level!

For several thousand years, the highest record in the Heavenly Sword Nation had been merely passing the eighth level and reaching the ninth.

Even now, the Heavenly Sword Nation's most gifted beastmaster, the white-haired Legend whom the Sword Ghost God had cultivated into its avatar, had only reached the eighth level.

And now this mysterious beastmaster had not only caught up to the white-haired elder's level in one burst, but stood a single step from the highest record of all. In that moment, the people of the Heavenly Sword Nation were dumbstruck.

"This... how is it possible."

"Did some Legend go in?"

The white-haired elder, sword of doom in hand, stared in astonishment toward the Heavenly Sword Ruins.

The eighth level—without a Legend-rank, reaching it was absolutely impossible.

After all, even a beast with the strongest of talents would struggle to defeat an enemy wielding a transcendent sword intent honed to the peak of mastery—a Monarch-rank beast included.

"Ten minutes, eight levels?" The sect masters of the Demonic Sect and the Sword Sect, along with their respective Legend young sect masters, all looked at the changes in the Heavenly Sword Ruins in disbelief.

If their memories served, the one who had gone in, Duan Heng, was nothing but a minor figure from the various factions.

Every Legend who had come to Sword God Mountain was present and accounted for—the Heavenly Sword Nation's total Legends could be counted on two hands!

"Interesting..."

At that moment, though no one understood what was happening, the giant black ape laughed aloud.

"Your Majesty."

"Congratulations."

"Mm." Meteor Frenzy nodded, gazing at the Heavenly Sword Ruins.

It spoke for the first time, and its voice set the very souls of the Heavenly Sword Nation's living things trembling.

"If he can pass the eighth level, he may be given a chance to become one of the Meteor Clan."

"If he can pass the ninth level and take out the divine iron—"

While the outside world stood frozen at the changes in the Heavenly Sword Ruins, within, Shi Jin was locked in fierce battle with the eighth level's sword puppet.

If the sixth level's sword puppet wielded a transcendent sword intent at the level of mastery,

then the seventh level's sword, by Shi Jin's judgment, was perhaps ten or twenty times stronger still.

As for the eighth level's sword puppet, its transcendent skill proficiency had likely reached mastery plus fifty or beyond.

Even so, Crimson Eye, relying on its abundance of skills and towering energy, was still steadily holding the upper hand.

BOOM!!!

The Flame Spirit Sword Body beneath Ten Thousand Swords as One. Grasping the sword of death, forming a crossing blade of blazing sun and cursed flame, wreathed in phoenix sword intent—this grand ultimate art born of seven peak-grade transcendent skills was in no way inferior in power to a transcendent sword intent at mastery-level proficiency.

Within the ruins, under the interplay of radiance, the eighth level's sword puppet, master of the sword intent of silence and annihilation, was slain once more, and Crimson Eye calmly digested the swordsmanship experience gained from the fight.

At the same time, Shi Jin, scarcely pausing for breath, headed straight for the ninth level—the final level.

It went far more smoothly than he had imagined. Shi Jin felt that so long as the ninth level's sword puppet did not wield a quasi-divine skill, then perhaps he would not even need the mind domain—only by sacrificing the two decoy substitutes,

having them possess him and unleash his strongest strike, he should be able to clear it.

That way, he would also spare himself from expending too much strength, leaving him not enough power to deal with Meteor Frenzy afterward.

At this moment, as Shi Jin ascended to the ninth level, the outside world was utterly stunned.

Because of Shi Jin's absurd speed in clearing the levels, after the beastmasters inside the black ape's tower were eliminated, it had not even let new challengers enter.

Now, everyone had turned their eyes to Shi Jin's solo run through the levels.

"Who on earth is it..." One renowned beastmaster of the Heavenly Sword Nation after another stared at the Heavenly Sword Ruins in confusion.

Only a young man named Chen Luo searched blankly for any sign of Brother Lin, his face full of bewilderment.

By this point, even Meteor Frenzy was stirred with a faint excitement.

Not bad.

Very good.

It had held little hope of the divine iron being taken out by normal means, and had only meant to try as best it could—but who would have thought a beastmaster truly had a chance to take the divine iron out properly.

If it could devour that piece of divine iron, its power would not only be restored—it might even advance further.

Whoever this person was, it would reward this fellow well.

Everyone held their breath, watching the changes in the Heavenly Sword Ruins...

One minute... two minutes... five minutes... ten minutes... and finally...

Bzzzz!!!

A miracle never once achieved since the founding of the Heavenly Sword Ruins—on this utterly absurd day in the Heavenly Sword Nation, in an utterly absurd form—appeared before the eyes of every beastmaster in the nation.

Staring at the ninth tier of the sword tower in the Heavenly Sword Ruins, now lit up, one beastmaster after another was left completely dumbstruck.

They felt it was beyond bizarre.

Utterly incomprehensible.

They actually passed it? The ninth stage???

Just who in the world was it?

"Is a Heavenly Sword demigod walking among us??" The white-haired elder was utterly at a loss.

Fallen Frenzy and Black Ape both felt a strange, subtle knot in their hearts.

It's done? It's done!!?

Much easier than they had imagined!

"Divine iron, my divine iron—" At this moment, Fallen Frenzy could no longer suppress its excitement. Once it saw who emerged, it would adore that person to death.

It would grant that person the rank of a Fallen Clan general!

Meanwhile.

Shi Jin, with his red hair and blazing eyes, sword spirit in hand, calmly regarded the Buddhist zombie before him, now reduced to ashes.

"Mii! (Were the Crimson-Eyed Sword Dao not born into this world, the eternal ages would be as an endless night!)" After withdrawing from its possession state, Crimson Eye spoke up smugly, hehe.

The ninth tier had not been as difficult as he'd imagined, but for the sake of more sword-dao experience, he and Crimson Eye had not gone all out from the start; instead they tangled with the opponent as much as possible, fighting a full ten minutes.

Now, with the ninth tier's guardian sword puppet defeated, the entire Heavenly Sword Ruins gave a faint tremor, and Shi Jin and Crimson Eye's hearts trembled along with it.

No accidents occurred.

As they cleared the stage, a ripple in space appeared, and right after, a piece of silver metal the size of a soccer ball emerged, wreathed in piercing light.

The sharp, blinding silver radiance nearly blinded Shi Jin, and the powerful energy fluctuations emanating from it truly thrilled him.

God-grade celestial meteorite iron.

This was the one.

With this, he could forge Crimson Eye's Immortal-Slaying Sword clone.

When the time came, all four clones would be in position! The four swords could unite as one, with the main body as sovereign, and complete the evolution. For this moment, Shi Jin had waited a long time in this godforsaken Totem Ancient Kingdom.