In truth, after witnessing Vale fall to his knees and beg for discipleship, the old monk's resolve began to waver.

  However, remembering his duty as the abbot of Daijaku-ji, he could only shake his head and let out another heavy sigh.

  "This humble monk is still shackled by worldly obligations. I cannot be as carefree as that man."

  The surrounding martial artists, finally recovering from their awe, began to feel a restless itch in their own hearts.

  Although the Ninth Princess Seraphine was still young, she was the only pioneer to truly set foot upon the next realm of Martial Arts.

  For the sake of true progress, trivial things like age or social standing meant nothing.

  "Hmm, what you say has some merit," Seraphine noted, folding her arms as she weighed the offer. "Very well. I accept you."

  Vale immediately struck his head against the ground in joy, shouting:

  "Thank you, Master!"

  Then, Seraphine turned to the stunned Kael with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "And you? What are your qualifications?"

  "Ah?!"

  Kael jolted upright, flustered. He blurted out:

  "Well, Senior Brother is a mighty Evershield Body, so he can handle the big problems. As for me, I’ll take care of the small stuff. I'll fill the gaps and tie up any loose ends.

  Besides, this humble disciple is a natural talent! I never even had a teacher. With just a cheap 《Basic Fist Arts》 manual I bought from a street stall, I reached the Indestructible Furnace realm in just six months!

  And now, I am already Evershield Body!"

  WOAAHH!!!

  Gasps of shock rippled through the gathered warriors.

  Their eyes burned with intensity, as if they had just discovered a legendary treasure.

  No guidance? A street stall manual? Reaching the Indestructible Furnace in half a year?

  What kind of monster was this kid?!

  This was a martial prodigy straight out of ancient legends!

  It was incredible!

  First, there was the Ninth Princess Seraphine, not even twenty yet already peerless in the history of Martial Arts.

  Now, this Kael, barely fifteen or sixteen, was already Evershield Body?!

  How could so many freakish talents emerge at the exact same time?!

  From the distance, Vale and Veritas both stared at Kael, their eyes wide with disbelief.

  As elders who had walked long, hard paths, they instinctively felt a deep pull toward such gifted juniors.

  The next generation was the future, and when that future burned this bright, their own legacy would only shine further.

  Elsewhere, Alban stood frozen.

  He wasn't just shocked by Kael, but by a sudden, crushing realization.

  Earlier, Kael had jokingly said he might follow him one day.

  But now, his own master had just sworn allegiance to Seraphine.

  And now Kael was asking to follow her too?!

  If this happened, wouldn't his own seniority be lower than Kael’s?

  Was this the fulfillment of some twisted prophecy?!

  "Hmm."

  Seraphine smiled. "Very well, I shall accept you as well."

  Kael's eyes sparkled, and he beamed with pure joy.

  "This young man thanks Master! Thank you, Master!"

  "From this moment on," Seraphine said calmly, looking at the two, "you are now martial brothers. Vale is the elder brother, and Kael is the younger."

  Upon hearing her words, Kael immediately spun around and shouted at Vale: "Greetings, Senior Brother!"

  "Sigh."

  Vale stroked his goatee and grinned. "Hello, Junior Brother."

  He stood up and barked at the awkward-looking Alban nearby:

  "Lad, stop daydreaming! Get over here! Quickly, pay your respects to your Grandmaster, your Master, and your Uncle."

  Alban's face fell.

  How bitter.

  He was truly finished.

  He hurried to Seraphine's side, bowing with a strained, awkward smile:

  "Heh heh, hello Grandmaster. Hello Master and Uncle."

  Seraphine simply gave a nod and a smile.

  Kael, however, let out a mischievous cackle:

  "Heh heh, good boy, my dear great-granddisciple."

  Alban felt an indescribable level of embarrassment.

  After a moment of conversation, Seraphine lowered her voice to a whisper:

  "Although I have agreed to take you on, I have a test."

  Kael and Vale exchanged serious glances and said: "Master, please tell us."

  Seraphine nodded.

  "Over these past two days, while observing the gathered Martial Artists, I have developed a cultivation method called 《Celestial Flute》."

  Vale's eyes widened slightly. He asked cautiously: "Master, could it be that this technique is..."

  Seraphine smiled. "That's right. Cultivating this technique allows one to finally step onto the true path forward in Martial Arts."

  The moment those words left her lips, the entire area erupted into an absolute uproar.

  Every warrior present was stunned.

  When it came to the future of Martial Arts, no one could remain indifferent.

  They had seen her power, but hearing the confirmation from her own mouth changed everything.

  This meant the path truly existed, and it had been completely opened by Seraphine, achieving a miracle that had eluded humanity for thousands of years.

  Ignoring the chaos in the distance, Seraphine continued:

  "I will transmit 《Celestial Flute》 to you both, but you may not seek me out again until you have cultivated your first strand of Aether."

  Without waiting for a response, she flicked her fingers, shooting two streams of pure energy directly into the space between their eyebrows.

  BOOM!!!

  In an instant, it felt as if molten iron had been poured into the minds of Vale and Kael.

  A massive flood of information instantly filled their consciousness.

  This flow of data felt like a living thing. It surged from their brains downward, ignoring all physical barriers, carrying a trace of their consciousness to scan their bodies from the inside out.

  It corrected every error, healed every twist, and mended every hidden injury they possessed.

  It even solidified the flow of energy in their organs and limbs.

  Though their actual realm hadn't shifted, both men could feel their physical Strength, Sensitivity, and Vitality increase by nearly fifty percent.

  The heat did not stop.

  Before their fear and admiration could fade, the information flow seized their minds again, forcing them to learn and operate the entirety of 《Celestial Flute》.

  It burned the understanding deep into their souls.

  Just like that, under the envious glares of countless warriors, the two had completely mastered a technique that led to the true peak of power.

  In reality, Seraphine no longer paid much attention to the 《Celestial Flute》.

  During this Ether great tide, after mastering that technique to its peak, she used it as a foundation to create a far more powerful Mystic Aperture martial art: 《Auric Illusion Art》.

  Just moments ago, Seraphine had silently annihilated the entire arena by relying solely on the boundless power of her Sun energy field.

  That was vastly superior to the slight burning and sharp force of 《Celestial Flute》.

  Of course, it wasn't that Seraphine was stingy or only willing to give her disciples discarded leftovers.

  The main reason was that cultivating 《Auric Illusion Art》 had a strict prerequisite.

  Specifically, a practitioner must possess a powerful body capable of withstanding the scorching Sun Force.

  According to Seraphine’s estimation.

  Ordinary martial artists must at least reach the Aether Domain, and their physical and soul attributes must exceed three thousand to even be qualified to learn it.

  Furthermore, they must be compatible with the attributes of the Sun Force, otherwise, their efforts would yield little result for a massive amount of work.

  However, even so.

  Strictly speaking, 《Celestial Flute》 was the first legitimate Mystic Aperture martial art on Earth in the several thousand years since martial arts originated.

  Once 《Celestial Flute》 is mastered.

  It automatically activates and uncovers the practitioner's true martial arts attribute, while simultaneously absorbing Ether from the world that is compatible with that specific attribute.

  It also had no requirements regarding talent.

  As long as one has reached the Evershield Body realm, they can cultivate it.

  It could accommodate almost all practitioners.

  Therefore, for martial artists other than Seraphine.

  This cultivation method was absolutely a top-grade peerless art.

  "Hoo ~~"

  Exhaling a long stream of air containing dark blood essence, Vale straightened his body. His frame rattled, and he actually grew an inch taller.

  Kael, on the side, hadn't gotten up yet, as he was still deep in comprehending the profound mysteries of the technique.

  Watching this, Seraphine nodded with satisfaction and instructed:

  "Thus, I shall depart first."

  Having said that, she squatted down, and a blazing golden Sun Aether surged violently from within her body.

  BOOM!

  With a loud explosion, the already sunken ground was shrouded in dust once more.

  In an instant, Seraphine transformed into a blurred phantom. She pushed the air outward in a gray-white sound barrier before soaring toward the boundless sky like a flying cloud.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!!!

  Carrying continuous booming sounds, Seraphine traversed ten thousand meters in just a few seconds. She flew beyond the limits of the crowd's vision and vanished.

  At this moment, a martial artist suddenly slapped his head and asked doubtfully:

  "Wait, I haven't asked the Ninth Highness yet: what should the realm above Evershield Body be called?"

  The crowd was stunned.

  That was true!

  The path forward in martial arts had been broken through, so the new realm needed a name.

  "Amitabha!"

  Abbot Veritas suddenly chanted a Buddhist name loudly, put his palms together, and smiled. "This humble monk believes we should call it... Supreme Awakening."

  "Nonsense!"

  Vale rolled his eyes and pouted. "Why not call it Terrestrial Immortal instead?"

  "Master, I don't think that name is very appropriate."

  Alban waved his hand and said warmly, "Terrestrial Immortal sounds more like an honorific title, not a realm name.

  Earlier, Grandmaster mentioned that the path forward requires condensing the body's one hundred and eight great apertures to absorb world Ether.

  Therefore, why not call this realm... Aperture Refining."

  "Aperture Refining..."

  The crowd murmured, nodding in agreement. "There's some sense to that."

  "And since Grandmaster is the first person in the human world to truly reach this realm, the pioneer, I propose an honorific title for her. Let's call her... Lumen Shepherd!"

  Lumen Shepherd!

  Everyone heard it.

  They intuitively felt it was pleasant to the ear and carried an imposing aura.

  At once, they all nodded.

  "This is good!"

  "Not a bad name."

  "Then from now on, the Ninth Princess is the Lumen Shepherd, the only one in the world!"

  After speaking, Alban secretly mused to himself.

  He planned to go back and write a manuscript, gathering his strength to lavishly praise his own Grandmaster.

  Flattery?

  So what if it's flattery!

  I'm proud to flatter my Grandmaster. If you have the ability, go find an awesome Grandmaster yourself!

  Besides, if her reputation spreads far and wide, wouldn't I also benefit?

  Alban narrowed his eyes, stroked his chin, and thought:

  'I'll write: 《The Number One Person Throughout History, From North to South — The Lumen Shepherd, Ninth Princess》.'

  At this moment, amidst the noisy crowd, Kael suddenly trembled and slowly woke up from his meditation.

  Suddenly, his robust body shot out sharp rays of light.

  An aura of war and killing swept across a hundred meters, forcing nearby martial artists to retreat continuously.

  This scene clearly showed that Kael’s ancient potential had activated again.

  At this moment, he had actually broken through the limit of Evershield Body and cultivated his first strand of Aether.

  Moreover, it was Aether related to the attribute of slaughter and killing.

  Vale turned his head and saw this, his green eyes widening in disbelief.

  "You! You little brat have actually cultivated Aether!"

  The crowd also noticed this and went into an uproar.

  And at this moment.

  In the boundless sky where white and blue clouds intertwined.

  Seraphine, who was rushing upward, inverted her body. Her posture was relaxed as she kicked back with both feet.

  BANG!!!

  The clouds scattered.

  The air within a radius of several hundred meters was literally stomped into a vacuum by her force.

  By stomping the atmosphere into an explosion, Seraphine abruptly stopped her fierce upward trajectory, becoming still in the vast sky.

  She turned her head to look toward the sea of clouds in the distance, the corner of her mouth slightly curved.

  Hoo ~~

  Endless Great Sun Aether instantly emerged, wrapping Seraphine and turning her into a second blazing sun in the sky.

  In an instant, it stirred up the wind and clouds, roaring as she soared toward the horizon.

  Heading straight toward Emberlight Ashara.

  Before long, she had traveled over a thousand miles.

  Flying at extreme speed, Seraphine casually glanced to the side.

  She discovered that a thousand meters away, a plane was also flying toward Ashara.

  She didn't dwell on it. Her entire body's Great Sun Aether surged, her speed increased significantly, and she vanished in an instant.

  At the same time, the events that occurred at the Martial Arts Convention began to sweep across the entire Emberlight martial arts world as the artists returned home.

  The presence of the Lumen Shepherd Seraphine was like a massive stone dropped into a still lake. It sent waves through the hearts of every Martial Artist in Emberlight, leaving them breathless for a long time.

  Even the old hermits who had long hidden from the world were startled awake. They turned their attention toward this extraordinary woman, Seraphine.

  "Wait, what was that just now?"

  Inside the cabin of a distant plane, a lovely girl with a dazzling face propped her chin on her hand and peered out the window.

  She whispered in doubt, having seen a flash of strange light vanish into the sea of clouds.

  "Serena, what are you looking at?"

  A bright, masculine voice called out from behind her.

  Serena Bellamy’s smile vanished instantly. "What does it have to do with you?" she replied coldly.

  The middle-aged man in the next seat frowned. "Serena, don't be so impolite."

  "It's alright, Uncle. Serena has spent the whole year studying, her temperament is just a bit blunt."

  A handsome young man in another seat smiled with practiced elegance.

  A strange light flickered in his narrow eyes. He was emitting subtle strands of Mental Power that ordinary people couldn't feel, letting them circulate throughout the cabin.

  'This bitch. If I weren't afraid of your family, I would have already brainwashed you into a mindless, horny slut.'

  The young man’s thoughts were pure malice.

  The recent energy tide had amplified his already strong mental superpower by dozens of times. This power made his arrogant and lecherous personality swell even further.

  Serena pouted and stayed silent, staring back at the clouds.

  She was completely unaware that a stream of Mental Power was swirling around her, constantly trying to break into her mind.

  'So annoying. I thought I could shake him off by going to Ashara with Uncle. I never expected Alec to cling to me like this. He’s so thick-skinned.'

  Serena muttered to herself in frustration.

  Leo, sitting between them, shook his head. He thought the young master of the Chur family was incredibly persistent. Serena constantly showed him a face of stone, yet he refused to retreat.

  Wherever Serena went, he followed.

  Leo and Serena both belonged to the Bellamy family.

  They were a massive financial group, a top-tier titan with roots in medicine, food, industry, and finance.

  As a daughter of the Bellamy family, Serena could not decide her own marriage.

  It didn't matter that she was a doctor in three fields: life sciences, genetic engineering, and biological genetics. It didn't matter that she was a teenage genius famous in the scientific community of Emberlight.

  None of it mattered.

  The youth of the Bellamy family usually married nobles or the Royal Family to consolidate power. Personal feelings were meaningless compared to the family interests.

  The head of the Bellamy family knew this young master of the Chur family had a terrible reputation.

  However, the Chur family was also a financial giant and a noble house. They controlled weapons manufacturing and worked closely with the Emberlight military.

  Because of this, the head of the Bellamy family allowed the match to move forward. Besides, the private jet was filled with Bellamy bodyguards, so he assumed the boy wouldn't make any reckless moves.

  A few hours later, the plane touched down in Ashara.

  The group exited the airport and boarded a luxury car that drove them toward an opulent estate.

  Early morning arrived, silent as a grave.

  Seraphine slowly flew out of the Prince’s mansion and shot straight into the sky.

  She pierced through the boundless sea of clouds.

  She passed through the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and ionosphere.

  Before long, she reached the dark, endless exosphere outside Earth.

  By now, Seraphine’s physical strength had long surpassed human limits.

  The threats of the universe—cosmic rays, lack of oxygen, pressure loss, and freezing temperatures—could no longer harm her.

  Even in the deep space of the void, which was a graveyard for life, Seraphine strolled as if she were walking through a park.

  She looked down.

  From here, she could see the vast, deep blue oceans of Earth and the majestic white clouds.

  "Earth."

  Seraphine slowly reached out her hand. It looked as if she were grasping the giant planet right in front of her eyes, even though it was as far as the horizon.

  A thin smile touched her lips. "Soon, you will be mine."

  That was the truth.

  Seraphine had developed a grand ambition.

  She wanted to conquer this world and rule it. She wanted the entire world to revolve around her.

  At this moment, as Earth lay shrouded in night, the edge of the world began to emit a faint, golden glow.

  In an instant, the golden thread of dawn surged, tearing through the vast Darkness that blanketed Earth.

  Golden sunbeams cascaded down, enveloping Seraphine as she drifted in space, slowly spreading her arms to embrace the light.

  Morning had arrived.

  A new day had begun.

  At this very moment, Seraphine became a bottomless pit.

  She began to endlessly absorb True Sun Force.

  The intensity of her siphoning was so extreme that the space around her began to warp, showing a strange phenomenon of light intensity collapsing.

  If someone on the ground raised a telescope toward Seraphine's coordinates, they would find that the boundless void suddenly contained a patch of pitch-blackness, an abyss that seemed to devour all light.

  Only after a long duration did Seraphine halt her absorption of True Sun Force and fall into deep contemplation.

  "After continuously absorbing Ether through my cultivation method, my Attribute values show a clear increase, but the advancement of my Realm is as slow as a tortoise crawling."

  "According to the original plot, the Realm after Mystic Aperture is 【Divine Flesh】, yet I still cannot touch the threshold."

  "Without flour, you can't make a cake. Even if the Eye of True Revelation is miraculous, it still requires sufficient Information as a cornerstone. It seems I need more knowledge to deduce the path forward in Martial Arts."

  Lost in thought, she opened her Attribute interface.

  【Host: Seraphine】

  【Physical Strength: 3,031,598】

  【Soul: 3,029,872】

  In a single day, Seraphine's Physical and Soul attributes had doubled again, hitting a staggering value of 3 million.

  To put it plainly, if dozens of aircraft carriers appeared before her, Seraphine could casually crush them with one palm.

  According to the timeline of the original plot.

  At this moment on Earth, there was virtually no life form capable of fighting Seraphine.

  Of course, that applied only to the main story.

  Other messy side stories, theater plays, and games were a different matter.

  Who knows when those potential enemies might appear?

  Thinking of this, Seraphine squinted her eyes and clasped her hands, surveying the vast stars.

  She silently sensed the Ether lingering in the universe.

  The concentration was no different from Earth.

  Looking into the deep, boundless cosmic void, Seraphine spoke slowly:

  "Other planets and satellites in the Solar System, according to the plot development, should also have life budding under the stimulation of Ether."

  "According to the original setting, the recovery of Ether has never been centered on a single planet, but on vast star systems measured in light-years."

  "The star system where Earth is located is just beginning its Ether recovery."

  "Not to mention the entire universe, even the Milky Way can only be considered a low-ether region at present. In those high-ether regions, there must exist a large number of powerful life forms!"

  "When the Ether concentration in this sector rises to a certain level, those life forms in the universe will definitely covet and eventually invade this place."

  Seraphine reminisced.

  In the original work, there were quite a few Bosses in the universe.

  Civilizations from other planets, cosmic beasts, deep-space Evil Gods... they would constantly pour toward this location.

  In the theater plays, spin-offs, and fanfiction, the enemies were numerous and terrifyingly powerful.

  Suddenly, Seraphine thought of that damned Shadow of the Unreal again, and a chill rose in her heart.

  "It seems I have to redouble my efforts today!"

  Floating calmly, she recalled Velos from before.

  That name had essentially never appeared in the main story; he was merely a minor Boss in the movie version of 《Dragonblood · Prequel》.

  A character who should have died early, only going mad as an Evershield Body until his death.

  But in this world, Velos’s combat power had soared to a level where he could contend with an undefeated peak Martial Artist.

  Based on their battle, that old demon's peak form was almost equivalent to the third stage of Mystic Aperture.

  This bizarre situation clearly indicated that the 《Dragonblood》 plot was no longer one hundred percent accurate. Who knows when she would encounter another Boss?

  "The pace of controlling Earth must be accelerated."

  "Beyond mountains, there are mountains; beyond heavens, there are heavens!"

  "I must not relax! Combat Power is never enough!"

  As she spoke, her fear of insufficient power manifested again.

  She closed her eyes and sat cross-legged, beginning to endlessly absorb True Sun Force.

  While increasing her Attribute strength, she did her best to explore a higher Martial Arts Realm.

  After a while.

  Seraphine, standing at the peak of Mystic Aperture, relied on her Eye of True Revelation and unparalleled memory to finally catch a glimpse of the Truth of Martial Arts.

  What is the Truth of Martial Arts?

  According to Seraphine’s own contemplation, Truth represents the practitioner's understanding of reality, the world, and the myriad phenomena of the mundane world.

  It is an approach to the Dao, involving profound philosophical consideration.

  She believed that Truth should be an even more ethereal 'thing' than Mental Power.

  However, she had not yet completely understood its nature.

  But based on her deductions, the Truth of Martial Arts was indeed a necessary condition for her to advance beyond Mystic Aperture.

  This point was beyond doubt.

  ...

  In Ashara, within the Ninth Princess Mansion, the Bellamy family group was slowly walking along the garden hallway.

  "This place is... acceptable."

  Alec, walking at the very back with his hands clasped, surveyed the surroundings and chuckled:

  "It's just a bit dilapidated."

  Serena, walking in front, furrowed her brows. She turned around and glanced at him, coldly saying: "Don't you know proper etiquette? To speak like that in someone's home."

  "Ah."

  Alec’s tone was laced with mockery, "From the state of this place, you can see that our Ninth Highness is somewhat insignificant in His Majesty’s eyes."

  He clucked his tongue and pouted.

  Leo, walking at the front, frowned. He suddenly felt that Alec's words carried some weight.

  Although the Ninth Princess was of the Royal Family, if her status was low, what was the meaning of her identity?

  Did the family head's plan for Seraphine to support Serena still make sense?