CHAPTER 434: CHAPTER 404: TESTING THE WATERS

Relying on the mysterious knowledge of the Wizard, the extraordinary ascension from below consumed a significant amount of Aiven’s energy, and without any predecessors to follow, the difficulty was infinitely elevated.

After three days of sleepless and tireless effort, it finally yielded a perfect result, allowing Aiven’s taut mental state to finally relax.

Lying on this naturally formed "waterbed" with a diameter of two kilometers made him feel extremely comfortable.

One moment, Aiven was calculating his action plan after temporarily detaching from his White Knight identity; the next, he slowly fell asleep in the tranquil and undisturbed Volcano Lake.

"Hoo...zzZZ"

Located in the Dragon Cavalry’s main camp, with two thousand of his subordinates at the base of the mountain, he felt at ease even in the wild.

Subsequently, a shadow automatically floated up from beneath him, securely guarding him. In case of any disturbance, Kaka could whisk him away in an instant.

However.

Aiven was clearly born to lead a busy life.

He had been asleep for less than an hour, and as the time reached 10 PM, his precisely trained biological clock automatically switched him into Spirit Realm mode.

Originally, he hadn’t planned on exploring the Spirit Realm today.

Having accomplished his mid-term goal ahead of schedule, he just wanted to rest well for the night as a reward for himself.

After all, he had postponed his meeting with Miss Moonstone for three days; another day or half wouldn’t make a difference.

So when he woke up under the vast canopy of the Life Tree beacon and found himself in the Spirit Realm, he was a bit surprised.

Initially, he glanced somewhat guiltily at the just-dissipated glow atop the neighboring pyramid, uncertain how Miss Moonstone, whom he had stood up for three days, would react.

Then he scanned his surroundings and sighed helplessly:

"There’s no choice; a disciplined man is just so outstanding! I wonder who will benefit from it in the future."

Clearly, as strength increase substantially, survival pressure decreased significantly, allowing Aiven to exhibit a bit of youthful 17-year-old demeanor.

He presented a carefree attitude similar to that of Bertram Solomon, a Noble Young Master from a prestigious family.

However, Solomon’s carefree attitude stemmed from his family, while Aiven’s came from his own strength!

It’s said Tier 2 is the backbone of the Extraordinary World, rare but not precious. But once the Transcendent on any path reaches Tier 3, it becomes a completely different world.

Great strength allows them to navigate freely in a world that venerates the law of the jungle, and in the secular world, those in power would offer them the utmost leniency and preference.

Take Brigadier General Buer, who indirectly caused the "White Whale Port Massacre" due to serious dereliction of duty; he was not directly executed even at the end.

Instead, after being stripped of all ranks and honors by the military court, he was given a chance to redeem himself.

Partly to avoid exacerbating conflicts with emerging nobles, but primarily due to the intrinsic value of the Great Knight himself.

Even used as a human bomb, he was the biggest type, which is far more cost-effective than direct execution.

If Buer could achieve great feats, there might be an opportunity for a comeback.

If it were a Tier 2 individual, even a Peak Knight, there wouldn’t be any outcome besides a death sentence.

Crossing a threshold is equivalent to a grass carp leaping over the dragon gate.

Of course.

The strength among Tier 3 Transcendent varies greatly, and complacency would mean proximity to falling on the battlefield.

The status and responsibility are proportional; although Tier 3 has a higher survival rate, they face even stronger opponents.

In national conflicts, the adversary is almost certainly another Tier 3!

Thus, having reached the Spirit Realm, Aiven planned to capitalize on the momentum of his recent advancement to completely conquer his beacon anchor ground.

Then explore the even more magnificent Spiritual World outside.

Furthermore, within this city, there awaits the foundation of Three-eyed People civilization — the "Magnetic Ore."

A single Secret Technique: Desperate Thunder Swordsmanship had utterly transformed his path as a Knight.

How about the Magnetic Ore, renowned for harnessing sunlight energy, with boundless power?

Thinking of this, the fatigue in his heart vanished entirely.

Aiven waved his hand gently.

Swoosh—

"Activated Spiritual Light" gathers moisture in the air, forming a transparent water mirror.

After achieving Tier 3 Marked Swordsman status, despite the focus on the body, the greatly enhanced physical strength significantly backfed the soul, elevating Aiven’s spiritual power to 3.2.

Consequently, his height increased to 3.12 meters, rivaling the Three-eyed People.

His appearance in the Spirit Realm has also become much clearer, evolving from a simple drawing to an image akin to a realistic black-and-white comic.

It seems that as long as he can advance to Upper-Rank Wizard in the future, achieving complete synchronization with the Material World’s entity should be possible.

Simultaneously, without deliberately crafting new Soul Armor, a set of jade-green flower branch armor appeared on the surface of Aiven’s body.

Including: helmet, face armor, back armor, chest armor, shoulder armor, arm armor, armpit armor, left and right hand armor, battle skirt, leg armor, steel boots.

This armor is more fitted and refined than the somewhat bulky knight armor in the Material World, resembling the style of innate artists — Forest Elves.

Currently, a full coverage armor complements Aiven, exuding extreme valor, especially enhanced by the currents flowing like water through the flower branch patterns, he seemed like a Divine Knight emerging from the Thunder God’s temple.

Holy! Dignified! Dominating!

Evidently, this armor is an external manifestation of the fusion between the engraving of the totem and Tier 3 bodily strength.

At this time, if he encountered those four black insect demons again, he wouldn’t even need to worry about whether he could defeat them; standing still and taking hits without retaliating would require them considerable effort.

Though his entity was lying in the Volcano Lake, without his Spiritual Seagull or any other equipment brought in.

But merely this armor rooted in the soul itself is unmatched by any external entity, a God-level "Soul Armor"!

Seeing himself like this, Aiven nodded in satisfaction.

Swoosh——

Raising his hand, he pulled down the visor and stepped forward.

Tap.. tap.. tap..

The steel combat boots made a crisp sound as they stepped on the stone pavement of the city.

The city, having been thoroughly cleared of the black insects, felt completely silent, with not even a seagull in sight.

Aiven descended from the sixth level, passed through the third level once occupied by the black insects, and moved to the second level, which had recently been explored, where he gained some mysterious knowledge of the Three-eyed People.

He directly headed towards the city’s outermost ring.

This area, intended to house the core structures, included the temple, arena, observatory, military camp, and the palace marked with symbols of the sun and thunder.

Even without the assistance of the seagulls, Aiven knew everything about them because he had conducted numerous reconnaissance missions in this key area.

Combining the secret texts discovered in the city, he made a hypothesis.

If this city ever truly existed, it inevitably went through a baptism dominated by lava and flood.

Whether due to foreign invaders or natural disasters, a catastrophe descended here, leading to the extinction of the powerful Three-eyed People.

The Lost City "Poseidya," where he resided, was a projection of that glorious Three-eyed People civilization in the Spirit Realm.

Among many core buildings.

The marble throne in the temple, 20 meters high, stood empty, though many wave patterns representing the ocean remained, it was unclear which deity had been worshipped there.

Only a series of massive footprints left on the floor suggested that the statue might have walked away by itself.

It was uncertain whether it fled or went to confront the enemy.

The arena painted with men and bull patterns, and the observatory with a golden dome and flying carriage insignia, were completely empty.

Apart from the Sun Palace, possibly hiding the ultimate treasure "Magnetic Ore."

Only the military camp, marked with a chariot symbol, still housed a defensive force that, until recently, caused Aiven to sense a strong crisis.

Those two buildings were his real targets!

When Aiven, in his true form, first stepped onto the square in front of the adjacent military camp and Sun Palace.

Boom——

The camp gates suddenly burst open.

"Yaha... yaha... yaha..."

Amidst the highly spirited shouts, intense heat emanated from the military camp.

Although not as exaggerated as the Sun Palace with its sun-like descent, it felt like standing next to the mouth of an erupting volcano, prompting one to run away.

But to Aiven, shielded by conceptual armor, this heat was akin to a gentle spring breeze.

Standing still, a faint blue lightning softly flickered around his feet and fists.

Crackle crackle...

Like an electromagnetic cannon in the process of charging.

The next moment, a large group of charred infantry wielding magma swords and clad in magma armor rushed out in orderly ranks from the camp.

They appeared hideous and terrifying, as if they had been engulfed by magma and crawled out from the depths of hell.

More unbearable than the heat was the overwhelming burnt smell emanating from them.

Thud thud thud... thud thud thud...

A cavalry troop, riding magma warhorses, emerged one by one behind them, leaving red-hot hoofprints with each step.

If regular human soldiers faced such enemies, they would be roasted and scorched instantly without even fighting.

However.

"It’s slaughter time!"

Underneath the visor, Aiven smirked slightly, clashing his gauntleted fists, sending sparks flying.

Boom——

An explosive sound erupted!

A whirling storm of thunder enveloped Aiven’s hands and feet as he launched himself forward.

[Secret Technique: Instant Flash] Offering extreme reaction, attack, and movement speed.

[Secret Technique: Thunder Mercury] Delivering a thunderous destructive force.

He charged into the infantry formations like a bolt of lightning, stepping, kicking...

Boom!

A strike as potent as a cannon blast blew a soldier’s head apart, magma splattering into the sky, and he collapsed heavily.

Without waiting for nearby soldiers to swing their magma longswords at him.

Swoosh!

He had already flashed to another infantryman’s front, tearing him in half with a single move.

"Roar——!"

Like a tiger attacking a flock of sheep, even without a weapon, every fierce punch and kick was as devastating as a massive spear or halberd, tearing through these magma demons effortlessly!

Neither ordinary infantry nor the seemingly stronger cavalry could stop Aiven’s steps in the slightest.

This was the transcendent transformation and hierarchy suppression, reducing foes who were once formidable to him into mere nuisances weaker than chicks.

In an unstoppable sweep, it was unclear who... was the true demon here?!