"Trying to force a head-on clash? I’ll pass."

The moment Yangming drew out the Emperor Sword, Kanzaki Rei truly felt the danger.

If Yangming were to wield the Emperor Sword and engage him in a full-force frontal battle, then a pure head-on exchange... he might actually lose. The Emperor Sword Yangming had genuinely made him feel that threat.

But Kanzaki Rei couldn’t simulate outcomes here.

So he could only adopt the most conservative approach.

After all, even if he couldn’t beat Yangming, his advancement would still succeed...

Yes—success, not failure.

Because even if he lost to Yangming, the promotion would still complete. If failing to beat Yangming meant he couldn’t advance, then there would be no geniuses in this world capable of promotion at all.

However, if he did lose, Kanzaki Rei felt the path of the warrior would become flawed.

A flaw formed by defeat at the same tier.

It wasn’t that he had never lost before, but every loss he had suffered was never at the same level—always due to absurd suppression through overwhelming level gaps.

If he truly lost a same-tier battle...

Then this "invincible heart" would no longer be perfect.

And he intended to preserve that invincible heart for his future breakthrough into a level 9 warrior.

As for the warrior’s creed itself—

Everyone interpreted combat differently. Pure warriors might become obsessed with battle itself, intoxicated by the thrill, even losing sight of more important matters.

But Kanzaki Rei was different.

He held multiple professions. He certainly enjoyed the thrill of combat, and when fighting seriously, he could even immerse himself in that enjoyment.

But at the same time, he could effortlessly detach from that state.

He would never let the pleasure of battle push him to betray his original intent.

"Is it over?"

Huang Minzhi cautiously flew over to Kanzaki Rei’s side.

The aftermath of the battle had brushed against him slightly.

Fortunately, he was using an eighth-tier monster’s body—tough and durable. A bit of shockwave damage that wasn’t even aimed at him wouldn’t kill him.

As for injuries like that—minor scratches on an eighth-tier monster.

As long as the soul wasn’t targeted and no weak points were struck, it would recover quickly on its own.

"It’s over."

Kanzaki Rei’s body was already radiating the aura of a level 7 warrior—yet this aura was different from ordinary level 7 warriors. It carried an overwhelming, mountain-like pressure that inspired awe from afar.

At the same time, he silently tallied his gains.

Advancing to a level 7 warrior was only one part of them.

First—after killing Aertimi.

Kanzaki Rei obtained her remaining corpse. Through the Hidden Origin talent, he learned that Aertimi’s body had already been refined by Yalomochi into a special material.

That material could be directly used for forging divine artifacts.

Under normal circumstances, forging a divine artifact could only be done by a god with the divine authority of forging—or by a level 9 blacksmith.

But Kanzaki Rei now possessed a god-tier talent—"Divine Artifact Construction."

He could fully utilize Aertimi’s divine corpse, along with the materials gifted to him by Eirousa. Now, all materials were complete.

It was enough to fully construct the divine artifact blueprint he held.

What he could construct was—

"The Divine Artifact: Supreme Luck Scepter."

However, constructing a divine artifact still required time and a forging process—approximately ten days.

That time frame was already extremely short.

But in any case, it wasn’t something he could do right now.

As for the second divine artifact—

It was the sword in Kanzaki Rei’s hand.

The Emperor Sword.

"True Emperor Sword."

"Grade: Divine Artifact."

There were no quality tiers among divine artifacts—they were simply divine artifacts.

"Divine Effect: Imperial Pressure — While held, it intimidates all beings lacking an emperor-like aura, forcing them to kneel and submit."

"Divine Effect: Imperial Might — All attacks carry emperor suppression, forcing submission."

"Divine Effect: Imperial Army — All forces under your command receive the Emperor Sword’s enhancement. All your subjects may summon projections of the Emperor Sword to fight."

"Divine Effect: Imperial Wrath — All offensive and slaughter-based techniques are amplified based on your influence in the world, increasing by 5000% to an unlimited multiplier."

"Origin: A ceremonial sword belonging to an ancient emperor—one who once ruled the entire world."

"Upon observing this sword, one can glimpse the projection of the former king."

An emperor who once ruled the entire world?

A thought flashed through Kanzaki Rei’s mind, and he couldn’t help but think of an "old acquaintance" who had already vanished.

Ansu...

That man had also once ruled the world. The entire world had belonged to the Ansu Dynasty.

However, this emperor didn’t seem like Ansu.

Ansu didn’t use a sword.

So it must be another emperor.

But records from five thousand years ago were extremely limited. Even though Kanzaki Rei had read extensively, his understanding of the ancient era was still fragmentary.

In most books, there wasn’t even mention of Ansu.

Even though he had ruled the entire world, records of him were still scarce.

Let alone other details.

"This sword... isn’t a main combat weapon."

Its function leaned more toward support—something that amplified and assisted the rule of a sovereign.

As for its destructive power—

Kanzaki Rei thought for a moment, then casually swung it.

A simple, unremarkable slash.

Yet the moment it was released, his eyes lit up.

BOOM!

A vast, overwhelming blade of energy erupted like a boundless ocean, surging and crashing forward. Golden imperial pressure wrapped within the tide, forming a colossal wall that pushed everything in its path forward into the distance.

A single casual strike—

And it covered an unimaginably vast area.

Kanzaki Rei felt a sensation similar to when he first used the "Netherfire Severance Sword." At that time, the Netherfire Severance Sword wasn’t even in its complete divine state.

And yet it already possessed the ability to sever all things through sheer sharpness alone.

Even then, that "severing all things" was not even its true effect.

But this Emperor Sword in his hand—

Was a fully completed divine artifact.

"...Incredible."

Kanzaki Rei gently stroked the blade, his eyes filled with genuine excitement.

He hadn’t expected such a harvest from this journey.

The only regret—

It was a sword.

If it had been a spear, it would have been even better.

He was proficient with all weapons and wasn’t picky... but he was simply more accustomed to spears. If given a choice, he preferred them slightly more.

Still, from now on, he finally had a weapon that would never break.

A truly abundant gain.

And upon reaching level 7 warrior, he also obtained another god-tier talent.

Before his advancement, Kanzaki Rei had even made a wish.

At this point, he no longer had anything to fear in pure frontal combat. What he truly needed to worry about were gods using divine authority to strike at him through the laws of reality itself.

Even though the "Ascension to Heaven’s Pinnacle" state could reduce law-based damage, it still required activation time.

So what he needed... was a talent capable of resisting divine authority.

And born from that very wish—

The god-tier talent appeared.

"God-Tier — All Laws Impervious."

...

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