“Don’t kill me! I’ll… I’ll be your subordinate!”The words ripped through the chaos, raw and desperate. The Flame Protector’s scream cut through the battlefield, trembling with a fear she’d never shown before. Usually composed, unshakable, now her mask had shattered—finally exposing the terror she’d buried deep inside.Kaelen Viremont’s eyes narrowed. A faint, almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of his lips. A top expert at the Ninth Heaven of the Martial Grandmaster Realm, reduced to begging in a single heartbeat. Rare. Precise. Deliciously so.“Become my subordinate?” he repeated, slow, deliberate. Each syllable weighed like steel. His voice had that calm, dangerous edge, the kind that could snap life in two. “A top-tier expert… offering herself willingly… more valuable than simply ending your life.”Hope flickered in the Flame Protector’s eyes. She lifted her chin, trying to hide the tremor in her fingers. But her thoughts spun like a storm: I’ll find a way… I’ll strike

Kaelen Viremont’s eyes were strangely calm—almost too calm.That massive, mountain-sized foot came crashing down toward him, and he just… reached over his shoulder and pulled out the longsword on his back. Slow. Steady. As if nothing was happening.The sword itself looked terrible, honestly. Rust everywhere. The thing seemed like it would fall apart if you sneezed on it.“Hahaha! My Giant Spirit God bloodline makes my body harder than divine iron! You really think that broken scrap can stop my Heaven-Crushing Foot?!”The Giant Spirit Protector burst into wild laughter, dripping with arrogance.“Kaelen, don’t be stupid!” Alaric Lei yelled from a distance. “He already activated the Giant Spirit God bloodline—you can’t take him head-on like this!”And honestly, anyone could see why he was shouting.Kaelen’s aura was running thin, flickering like a candle that had burned too long. That punch he threw earlier had drained him badly—his face had gone pale.Everyone watching was on edge.Even

Kaelen Viremont stared at the Giant Spirit Protector and the Great Seal Protector for a long moment. Then he turned to the Flame Woman and said, almost casually, “Come with me for a bit. Just the two of us. I want you to kill these two yourself—as proof that you really intend to follow me.”And with that, he grabbed one Crimson Veil Sect protector in each hand, like they were nothing more than sacks of grain, and headed toward an old, half-collapsed palace nearby.Arion Voidreaver and the Shadowfang Sect’s core disciples didn’t say a word. This was Kaelen’s business, not theirs. The crisis had passed, so they simply sat down, cross-legged, and slipped right into cultivation to recover their drained energy.The Flame Woman hesitated for a heartbeat, biting her lip as she watched Kaelen walk away. Then she hurried after him.They reached the rundown palace in a few minutes. Broken pillars, fallen roofs, old stone everywhere—it was the kind of place that felt both ancient and forgotten.

“Alright,” Alaric Lei said, his eyes slowly sweeping over everyone. Calm. Unhurried. “What you all just went through was a hair’s breadth away from death. And honestly? That kind of experience isn’t a bad thing. For martial cultivation—and for toughening your will—it’s priceless.”He let the silence sit for a moment, then continued, voice steady as ever.“So, what now? Do we keep moving forward, or do we pull out of this place?”“Forward, obviously!”“There’s nothing left to be afraid of anymore.”“Three of the Four Great Protectors of the Crimson Veil Sect are already dead. The last one?”“He belongs to Junior Brother Kaelen now.”“Exactly. The only ones left are those idiots from the Royal Martial Academy. With Junior Brother Kaelen here, they’re a joke.”One voice blended into another. The Shadowfang Sect’s core disciples spoke without hesitation, their words sharp with confidence, excitement, and just a hint of bloodlust.Alaric Lei smiled faintly and gave a nod. These were real m

A divine object had appeared.The moment Alaric Lei announced it, eyes lit up everywhere. After days of scavenging through the ancient ruins, no one had found anything that could even be called legendary, let alone supreme. That lingering sense of disappointment now exploded into pure, uncontrollable excitement. Kaelen felt it too—a tug of regret if they left without claiming something truly priceless.Then came the sight: a pillar of ice-blue light shooting up like a bridge to the heavens. With Alaric Lei’s voice still echoing, every disciple’s heart surged. This wasn’t just rare—it was a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon. Whoever claimed it could change their fortunes forever.“Go!” Alaric Lei commanded.The disciples didn’t hesitate. They mounted their swords, riding the wind as their true essence flared like bursts of flame. Figures blurred into streaks of silver, cutting through the sky toward the radiant light.Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!The wind roared, carrying the sound of racing he