"Come on! You can do it!" Many people began to cheer for Desmond. Nearly half of the crystal ball had turned golden. He needed to hold out a little longer, and the crystal would turn fully golden. "Aargh!" Desmond gritted his teeth and continued channeling his internal energy into the crystal ball. His strength was draining fast. His face beaded with sweat.Seconds later, the crystal ball hummed as it turned fully golden. Desmond collapsed onto the ground. He was relieved and exhausted. "Hooray! He did it!""Good job, Desmond!"Everyone cheered excitedly. "You sure are strong. Well, congratulations! You get to advance to the next level!" The alliance staff praised with a smile. Few people could turn the crystal ball gold in one shot. "What now, punk? Do you accept the outcome yet?" Devon sneered. "Did you see that? That's how powerful Desmond is. He easily surpassed the limit and advanced to the next level. Can someone like you do that?" Gianna gloated. "What's the
Everyone was stunned when the crystal ball shattered into pieces. Their smiles disappeared and were replaced by looks of dismay and astonishment. Everyone had assumed Desmond would win since he had turned the crystal ball golden. They never imagined that beyond turning golden; it could turn red. What shocked them more was that Dustin had channeled so much excess internal energy after turning the crystal ball red that it exploded. Just how much internal energy did he have to do that?Everyone was speechless. Desmond, who had been full of confidence, was also shaken. He didn't expect his internal energy, which he had been so proud of, to be so weak compared to Dustin. "Is this considered cheating?" Dustin smiled mockingly. "Uh …" The crowd was at a loss for words. They weren't blind. They had all seen how Dustin had easily passed all three tests. It was one thing to excel in one category, but Dustin had performed outstandingly in all three tests, which meant that he was
Desmond lowered his voice. "I admit that he's powerful, and his speed, strength, agility, and internal energy are on the next level. Still, no one in the world is perfect. "He must have a weakness. Just think about it. Why is he so quick and agile? It's simple—he's trying to make up for his weakness!"He continued, "If my guess is correct, defense must be his weak point! I'm sure he's quick and agile since his defense isn't as strong. "The fourth test will test his defense. Among us, Dominic's defense is the strongest. He's already reached the seventh level of Adamantine Body Arts, and nothing can penetrate his body. "I'm sure that with Dominic around, we'll be able to target that guy's weakness and take him down!"Everyone's spirits began to perk up after hearing Desmond's words. Just because Dustin was quick and strong didn't mean his defense was good. They'd win if they used the Adamantine Body Arts in this test."Desmond's right. No one is perfect. I'm sure that guy's we
After one minute, the metal doors of the pressure machine opened, and Dustin walked out calmly. He seemed so relaxed no one could have guessed that he had withstood such high pressure. "Sir, I get to advance to the next level, right?" Dustin asked."O—of course!" Getting over his shock, the staff nodded frantically. He couldn't believe that Dustin could withstand level-100 pressure for a minute. Was Dustin made of darksteel? This was unbelievable!"Damn, he's a monster." Georgia was in awe as well. Dustin excelled in all four tests—strength, speed, internal energy, and defense. It was like he was perfect. Usually, people would struggle to pass even a single test. Yet, Dustin managed to pass them with flying colors.Was he a monster?"I knew Dustin was strong." A rare smile appeared on Scarlet's face, who was proud of Dustin's achievements. "I guess Terry Doyle lost for a reason," Patrick mumbled. He had known that Dustin was strong, but he never expected Dustin to be so
"Um …" The invigilators shared a look and shook their heads. "You can advance to the next level without taking the test.""I can?" Dustin was surprised. "We saw your earlier performance. Honestly, we're no match for you. You can just continue to the next level." One of the invigilators grimaced. "You have potential. I'm sure you'll become a dark horse in the Knighthood Society Tournament." The other invigilator praised Dustin. Dustin had broken the records for the first four tests. They were ashamed to admit they were far weaker than him. "Thank you for going easy on me," Dustin thanked them with a smile and walked off the platform. It was good that the invigilators avoided confronting him, or they'd have been beaten into a pulp by now. "What the hell? It's unfair that he can advance to the next level without taking the test!" "What else can they do? He's so strong even the invigilators are afraid of him.""If it were me, I wouldn't fight him either. There's no way I
Dustin and the others left the martial arts alliance branch after the test. Scarlet suddenly received a call that darkened her face on their way back. "Got it. I'll return as soon as possible." Scarlet hung up after the brief conversation. "What's wrong, kid?" Dustin was curious. "The call was from Oakvale. Someone accused me of gathering troops and planning a rebellion. They are demanding an explanation," Scarlet replied calmly. "A rebellion? What a load of crap!" Georgia was pissed. "Madam, you suffered so much to protect our country at the borders while those trash at Oakvale did nothing. How dare they accuse you!""Those little shits! They deserve to die!" Even the usually quiet Bridget couldn't help cursing. Being accused of rebelling was a major crime. Even if they were innocent, others would still make assumptions. "Given your status, many eyes will be on you, and everything you do will be watched. Others will distort and exaggerate the truth if you make sudden mo
"We're short on talented individuals, so let them stay if they want to. Establish a subsidiary guild named Darklaws and let Mr. Adler be the leader." Dustin decided. "Got it." Nelson nodded."Oh, right. It isn't good that our guild is expanding so quickly. We need to slow things down and cut down on the recruitment. We need to move our headquarters to accommodate our growing numbers. I'll leave this to you," Dustin instructed."I've already considered the issue about our headquarters and picked out a location, but I'm not sure if it's to your liking," Nelson replied."Really? Where did you pick?" Dustin raised an eyebrow. "It's called Zephyr Lodge. It's located on the city's outskirts." Seeing Dustin's confusion, Nelson elaborated. "It used to be the estate of a count, so it's spacious and has good scenery. Transportation there is smooth as well. I searched high and low. This place seemed like the best option.""Not bad. You must have put in a lot of thought for this. Well, l
"Azalea Larson?" Abigail was puzzled. Abigail knew the woman's surname was Larson, but her name was Mandy Larson. "Are you going to deny it? Do I have to tear off your mask?" Dustin asked. "Your eyes are getting better. I spent so much time dressing up, but it wasn't enough to fool you." Azalea giggled flirtatiously. "Is your name really Azalea?" Abigail frowned. She felt like she was tricked. "I'm Azalea, but I'm also Mandy. I never lied to you," Azalea explained with a smile. "What are you doing here?" Dustin demanded. He was always on high alert whenever he was near this crazy woman. After all, it was difficult to believe someone who murdered their mentor and offered their mentor's head to the Harmon family. "Aww, aren't we friends by now? Can't you treat me more warmly?" Azalea circled Dustin like a snake eyeing a mouse. "What happened between us can only be considered a business partnership, definitely not friendship." Dustin was unfazed. "That makes me sad.
The battle between the Hall of Gods and Sacred Wrym Summit raged with unrelenting intensity. The Hall of Gods had made meticulous preparations for this invasion. Besides recruiting powerful martial artists from around the world, they also distributed valuable enhanced serums to everyone. To counter Sacred Wrym Summit's Stormcraft technique, they developed a special combat suit capable of resisting such attacks. Generally, a divine martial artist struck by Stormcraft would instantly lose their combat ability, but this special suit reduced the effectiveness of the attack by half. Even if struck, they could recover after a brief moment to continue fighting. The defensive capabilities of this gear were nearly flawless.In addition, their greatest strength was the sheer weight of their numbers. They had at least ten thousand people, including hired outlaws, under their command. During the siege, they were densely packed like a swarm of bees.In contrast, Sacred Wrym Summit had only
Willard's ultimate move cleared the battlefield in an instant. The martial artists who had rushed forward were either dead or critically wounded, with no ability to defend themselves."This… How is this possible?" Hank's eyes widened in terror as cold sweat beaded on his forehead.Under the restriction of the sealing formation, even ultimate grandmasters couldn't unleash their full strength. But Willard, with nothing more than a flask of liquor, had managed to tap into a supreme divine power far beyond his cultivation level.Though he was only at the grandmaster level, his move, Infinite Spirit Manifestation, carried the might of an ultimate grandmaster. If he were to use it again, the outcome would be grim for everyone, including himself."Retract!" Willard took a deep breath and the thousands of illusory images that had surged forth earlier instantly retracted into his body. His face turned red and pale as his breath grew heavy and ragged.The toll of using Infinite Spirit Manif
"Take a guess." Willard didn't answer. Instead, he took another sip from his flask.His cultivation had been sealed, but his strength came from the wine in his hand. The wine was refined with valuable herbs and contained dense spiritual energy, which he could absorb and convert into combat power.In short, every sip made him stronger. Even with his cultivation sealed, he could still execute powerful techniques."It's the wine, isn't it?" Garrett's gaze landed on the flask, and a quick realization set in. Willard drank before and after every attack, which hinted at something suspicious."Bingo. But no prize for you." Willard smirked and launched forward with a palm strike aimed at Garrett. Though his strength wasn't at its peak, the attack remained a deadly threat to the already injured Garrett."Mr. Styles, save me." Garrett knew he had no chance of blocking it and cried for help."Go to hell, traitor!" Hank saw the internal commotion unfold and threw a powerful punch at Willard
With a longsword in hand, Dustin plunged into the crowd like a tiger among sheep and cut down his enemies with brutal efficiency.Though he couldn't tap into his mystical energy, his physical strength far outstripped that of an average martial artist. His speed, power, reflexes, and combat skills crushed anyone in his path.Every swing of his blade was precise and targeted the enemy's vital spots with deadly accuracy, which left no room for defense.Under his relentless assault, the assassins were helpless. The air rang with their screams as bodies fell one after another.Unlike the tournament match, Dustin now unleashed his full power in this life-or-death fight. His attacks were becoming more brutal and relentless than ever."This kid's tougher than I thought." Hank frowned as he watched his men struggle.He hadn't expected Dustin to have such formidable combat prowess, even with his sealed cultivation. If an unmatched genius like Dustin couldn't be made an ally, he had to be e
"Step forward, and you're dead!" Facing the onslaught of desperate assassins, Dustin showed no mercy. With a swing of his long sword, a dazzling sword aura swept through the darkness like a crescent moon and briefly illuminated the night sky. The assassins only saw a flash of white light and instinctively stopped in their tracks. When the brilliance faded, those at the front stood frozen as if struck by a paralysis spell.A moment later, heads tumbled to the ground, like ripe fruit falling from a tree. The headless bodies stood upright for two seconds before collapsing, blood splattering everywhere.The gruesome sight shocked everyone. They exchanged uneasy glances and were hesitant to move forward. No one had anticipated Dustin's sword to be so fast that the fallen couldn't even defend themselves.The assassins who had just been killed were among the elites. Yet, none of them could block even a single strike. The difference in strength was clear."What are you standing aroun
The people who emerged from the fog wore masks that hid their faces, but each had the Hall of Gods emblem on their bodies. Among them was a small group led by Dustin.After sensing a battle nearby, Dustin had deliberately left his team behind to investigate alone. He hadn't expected another group to lead them out of the fog formation."What's going on? Why are there so many bodies scattered around?" "Looks like they ran into a strong enemy. Stay sharp, everyone!" The sight of scattered corpses put everyone on edge. Their eyes darted between Dustin and Aven."Dustin, what are you doing here alone?" The leader of the group recognized him immediately.The Hall of Gods had recruited several teams, each marked by different colored masks, with team leaders wearing a distinctive emblem."Hank?" Dustin narrowed his eyes as he recognized the voice. "What happened here?" Hank asked tentatively."I don't know. I just stepped out of the fog formation." Dustin shook his head."Really?"
Though Marcell was momentarily stunned, he still explained patiently, "This man is the guardian of the Forbidden Ground. If we kill him, we'll be able to take the treasure." He was gravely wounded and had to rely on Dustin to deal with Aven, so he needed to be persuasive."We can talk about the treasure later. Right now, it's time to settle some old scores." Dustin stretched out his hand, and the long sword on the ground shot up into his grasp."Settle old scores? What are you talking about?" Marcell blinked in confusion, especially when he saw the sword in Dustin's hand. A feeling of unease spread through him."You and that big guy planned to use me as bait. Then, you sent me into the fog to clear the way for you," Dustin said flatly. "Did you really think I didn't hear that? Since you want to harm me, don't blame me for being ruthless.""What… What are you going to do?" Marcell panicked. "We're both working for the Hall of Gods. There's no need for this kind of betrayal. If thi
When the black death energy entered his body, Aven felt as if his entire being was being ripped apart. The pain was unbearable, as though a swarm of venomous insects was gnawing at him from the inside. It wasn't just his body that suffered, but his soul was being torn apart as well."Curse you! Get out of my body!" he roared in fury as he tried to force the black death energy out of his system.The death energy seemed to have burrowed deep into his bones. It was invasive and siphoned away his life force with every passing second. Even his internal energy was being drained to feed it. If this continued, he would be completely drained in less than three minutes."Won't leave, huh? Fine. We'll die together!" Aven's anger boiled over, and he went all out in his attack.He raised his hand, and dozens of Divine Talismans shot into the air to form a formation above his head. As it spun, a massive black thundercloud began to take shape. Lightning flashed, and thunder rumbled with terrifyin
The once frail Marcell began to undergo a rapid transformation. His muscles and bones grew at an astonishing pace. In the blink of an eye, his height jumped from five feet three inches to nearly six feet, and he kept growing.His once skeletal frame rapidly filled with dense muscle, and his skin stretched taut as if it might tear. His hunched back straightened, and his entire frame became incredibly imposing.Within just a few seconds, Marcell had transformed into a completely different person. Standing close to six feet five inches, his muscles bulged, his eyes burned with bloodlust, and he radiated a terrifying presence. If he had once been a frail wildcat, now he was a ruthless tiger.At that instant, Marcell was surrounded by swirling dark energy. His face twisted into a menacing and bloodthirsty expression. He looked like a demon straight out of hell."It is so delicious." Marcell licked his lips after absorbing the surrounding death energy and resentment.The Soul Abyss Tech