These were eight destined-to-be-spectacular clashes, the very contests that would determine which eight sects would advance to the top eight. Once one achieved a spot among the top eight, they earned the opportunity to travel to the Sacred Land of Civilization—a place instrumental for anyone attempting to break through to the Civilization Realm. For the Supreme Great Sects, only ten such opportunities existed, forcing intense competition amongst them.

However, success brought immense rewards.

The Sacred Land of Civilization! Entering it certainly didn't guarantee reaching the Civilization Realm, but enhancing one's strength there was incredibly simple. And the true strength of a Supreme Great Sect was intrinsically linked to the power of its foremost master.

Currently underway was the match between the Blood Sect and the Sword Sect.

A battle the Blood Sect was destined to win, where the Sword Sect stood no chance.

Blood God King stood with his hands behind his back, having just casually flicked an attack—a mere thread of blood—that sent Lu Yuan flying far away, leaving him reeling with churning, painful vital energy. The Blood God King, with his deep crimson skin and robes, possessed an almost unbearably wicked allure. "Lu Yuan, your strength is still far from sufficient," he sneered. This time, the Blood Sect had refrained from using their ultimate weapon, the Blood God Drum. The Drum could unleash a unique, immense power through blood sacrifice—always the Blood Sect's final move. Yet, facing Lu Yuan, they dared not employ it; since Lu Yuan could devour ultimate weapons, the Drum, once consumed, would be unusable for a considerable time.

And against Lu Yuan, was it even necessary?

The Blood God King ascended into the air, unleashing a continuous barrage of attacks upon Lu Yuan, resulting in a chaotic storm of crimson light.

In Lu Yuan’s hand, his sword manifested a thousand postures, ten thousand variations, an endless array of exquisite techniques. Yet, even with this display, he was continually beaten back by the Blood God King’s assault. Moreover, under this relentless barrage, Lu Yuan discovered that the injuries sustained while practicing the Sword of Seven Emotions were threatening to surface. A mouthful of blood rose, nearly choking him.

No opportunity?

"Damn it, if I just had some time, I might be able to counterattack," Lu Yuan muttered, frustrated. "I need to break into the top ten and secure passage to the Sacred Land of Civilization."

"Stop dreaming," the Blood God King laughed coldly.

"Lu Yuan is not dreaming," Ancestor Jian Mie suddenly interjected.

The Blood God King turned toward Ancestor Jian Mie with an expression of utter disdain. "Oh? You mere ant, what trickery can you possibly conjure? Let me see it." He held Ancestor Jian Mie in utter contempt. Then, a brilliant gleam flashed in the Ancestor's hand, and a sword-shaped object slowly rose from the void. Simultaneously, a light emanated from all the Sword Cultivators gathered on the plateau.

A shield of light completely isolated the Blood Sect members from their opponents.

The Blood God King paused, intrigued. "Ah, a defensive artifact? Let me shatter it." Ten streaks of bloody light shot from his hand toward the shield. But the barrier remained utterly still. Ancestor Jian Mie shook his head. "Don't bother trying. This is the Sword Guardian Token, which I acquired unintentionally not long ago. It originated from the First Ancestor of the Sword Sect. The First Ancestor possessed the strength of a Half-Step Civilization Realm master. The Sword Guardian Token he created cannot be broken by anyone in the World Realm for the duration of one stick of incense. However, it will only last that long." Ancestor Jian Mie had intended to use this token, obtained by chance, during the Sect Wars. But Lu Yuan’s surprising surge forward had kept it unused until now, as they had already secured their place among the top 365.

The Blood God King relentlessly attacked the Sword Guardian Token, but it showed no reaction whatsoever.

An object forged by a Half-Step Civilization Realm entity was indeed extraordinary.

Ancestor Jian Mie shouted, "All this way, it has been thanks to Lu Yuan. He fulfilled the Sword Sect's dream and mission this time, securing our position among the top 365, and carrying us into the top sixteen. Now that he needs help, this is the least I can offer." "The Way of the Sword must be guarded by all of us. Though we are weak now, we will contribute what little strength we possess."

A feeling of warmth spread through Lu Yuan’s heart. Yes, the Way of the Sword must be guarded by everyone, just as they had protected Mount Hua in the past.

Regardless of the power wielded, they must guard it together.

One stick of incense time was nearly up.

Lu Yuan immediately sent his Nascent Soul into his personal Sword Space.

The Void Flame within the Sword Space was currently at thirteen million degrees.

Lu Yuan drew his sword and began to hack at the mass of fire. To forge a flame of higher temperature, one needed greater speed and more intense friction. Beside this Void Flame, Lu Yuan introduced Exploding Combustible Stone—a rare wonder of heaven and earth, nearly impossible to ignite on its own, yet capable of generating massive heat through friction. He threw this stone into the Void Flame.

Sword Slash! The sword moved with extreme velocity, striking the Exploding Combustible Stone.

The stone, inherently resistant to absorbing external heat or flame, instantly transferred temperature to the adjacent Void Flame: thirteen million, one hundred thousand degrees.

Not enough. Still far too little. Lu Yuan unleashed another strike, faster than the last. This time, it reached thirteen million, two hundred thousand degrees. After several consecutive slashes, Lu Yuan realized that at his absolute limit of sword speed, using friction generation against the stone, he could push the temperature to thirteen million, four hundred thousand degrees.

Speed was still insufficient! What now?

He needed to accelerate further, but this was already his maximum speed. Accelerating beyond that was no simple task.

Lu Yuan suddenly recalled a phrase.

It was something Yan Cangtian had said while teaching him the Heart Sword technique—hadn't Yan Cangtian been practicing the Heart Sword?

Where the heart is, the sword is.

Heart is, therefore sword is.

If the heart wills the sword to be fast, the sword can be faster.

This was the Heart Sword!

Lu Yuan suddenly understood that the Heart Sword Yan Cangtian practiced was a terrifying technique. Whatever the heart demanded of the sword, the sword would become—it bordered on omnipotence. Unless his own Gate of the Sword Path forcibly suppressed this technique using its sword path attributes, this style was virtually peerless in the current age. Without the Gate of the Sword Path, he certainly wouldn't stand a chance against it. The power of this technique was definitely on par with his Sword Nine and the Sword of Seven Emotions. Of course, this style was immensely difficult to master; Yan Cangtian had likely been practicing it in the Lost Lands.

If the heart wills the sword to be fast, the sword will be even faster!

Lu Yuan silently recited the incantation of the Heart Sword. In that instant, the dormant potential within his body erupted anew. Heart merged with sword; sword merged with self. He struck again. A flash of sword light erupted, forcefully elevating the temperature to fourteen million, one hundred thousand degrees. This approach worked; it was a total expulsion of the body's last vestiges of potential, and it was utterly exhausting.

But if there was a way to increase sword speed, why fear exhaustion or potential drainage? If potential isn't used, should it just sit there?

Lu Yuan continued to strike, again following the Heart Sword's mantra. This next swing adhered even more perfectly to the incantation, becoming faster still. Because I will the sword to be fast, the sword naturally became faster. This was the Heart Sword. In this intense practice, Lu Yuan was near collapse.

Yet, the temperature kept climbing: fourteen million, four hundred fifty thousand degrees!

Fourteen million, seven hundred thousand degrees!

Fourteen million, eight hundred thousand degrees!

Fourteen million, nine hundred thousand degrees!

Fifteen million degrees!

The scorching flame seemed ready to incinerate the void. At this precise moment, a profound change occurred—an immensely significant transformation manifesting within the searing heat before him. Lu Yuan sensed an overwhelming shift. Simultaneously, mass began to dissipate at an infinitesimal rate, and the entire space grew intensely hot. The Void Flame started generating its own immense heat, like a miniature sun, requiring no further energy input from him. In essence, within his Sword Space, he had created a self-sustaining, heat-generating sun.

In that instant, Lu Yuan felt his entire being undergoing an extraordinary evolution. He seemed to have grasped another fundamental principle of the universe: nuclear fusion. His mana and his physical body experienced tremendous enhancement, particularly his mana. The incessant nuclear fusion ceaselessly pumped energy into his body. Lu Yuan realized he could now effortlessly forge high-grade spirit stones—yes, thousands upon thousands of them. If he returned to the Jin Kingdom now, he could blanket Mount Hua in high-grade spirit stones.

This was it: the sixth layer of the World Realm—the Yuan Qi Realm. He had finally ascended to this level.

Reaching this realm meant his offensive power was now fiercer. In the midst of combat, suddenly deploying a burst of nuclear fusion energy would be exhilarating.

Success! Lu Yuan was filled with overwhelming emotion. Reaching this single layer had been truly arduous. In fact, every subsequent layer would be just as difficult, as he was now approaching the pinnacle of existence, where progress became increasingly rare. It was common for cultivators to become stuck at one layer for tens or even hundreds of thousands of years.

Now that he had reached the sixth layer of the World Realm, his true battle for the top ten could finally commence. As for accumulating resources for the seventh layer, the Accumulation Realm, that was a task for later.

Lu Yuan allowed himself a moment of pure elation.

Heavenly Venerate? So what if he was a Heavenly Venerate? My sword will still cut you down.

Lu Yuan felt a surge of heroic spirit!

He had been suppressed by Heavenly Venerates for too long recently, leading him to believe he was fundamentally unable to defeat them.

Heh heh, the good show was about to begin.