Chapter 756: Prestigious Reputation

At the edge of the Ash-Extinguished Ridge, within an underground cavern.

"Mm!" Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi covered her small mouth with one hand, her eyes widening slightly.

In the pitch-black surroundings, Lu Ran's eyes were so bright, shimmering with brilliant light.

"Buzz!!"

The Ba Huang Dao trembled violently, and in places invisible to people, in the gray and hazy sky above the Ash-Extinguished Ridge, endless mist surged forth wildly.

Whenever a divine weapon advances, the specifications for the heavenly anomalies are always very high.

The thick mist automatically formed into fog tornadoes, piercing through the ash-filled mid-air and reaching straight into the depths of the rift valley.

"Roar!"

"Roar!" For a moment, roars echoed incessantly within the Ash-Extinguished Ridge; one Ash-Extinguished Demon after another rushed toward this side, only to be immediately enveloped by the mist, thereby completely losing their sight.

Giant beasts lost in the thick fog inevitably encountered friction.

As members of the same race, they ought not to have started major conflicts, but alas, the mist blinded their eyes; the Ash-Extinguished Demons could not recognize each other, and coupled with their fierce nature and low intelligence, several small-scale frictions quickly escalated into a massive melee.

The chaos outside did not disturb Lu Ran.

He sat cross-legged on the ground, his forehead pressed against the cold blade, fully focused on guiding the divine weapon's advancement.

Ten minutes... a quarter hour... half an hour...

The Ba Huang Dao continued to hum, its momentum undiminished.

Generally speaking, the time required for a divine weapon to advance is not long, ranging from a few minutes at the shortest to half an hour at the longest.

The cavern was utterly silent; for everyone present, every minute and second was an ordeal.

If the time dragged on too long, it was certainly no good sign; it likely indicated that problems had arisen during the advancement.

This threshold, if one failed to step across it this time, might never offer another opportunity in the future!

Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi's worry grew deeper; far above, at the surface, muffled thuds and explosions echoed incessantly.

"Thud! Thud!"

"Boom-rumble!"

Jiangjiang Ruyi pondered briefly, then activated Shi Zhan Shen Fa · Jin Yu Eight Talismans, intending to use the Jin Yu stone tablets to stabilize the cave ceiling.

It was precisely at this moment that Jin Que'er suddenly turned its head, used its beak to lift the girl's rain cape, and burrowed into little Jiang Qiao Yuanxi's embrace.

"Mm!" Before Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi could ask, she felt a fierce wave of air pressure strike her.

She hastily raised a hand to shield her face, her delicate body shoved violently backward by the wind wave until her shoulder slammed against the stone wall.

"Whoosh!!"

Before the wild wind had dissipated, she heard a burst of hearty laughter:

"Haha!"

"Brother?" Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi naturally knew what this ring of wind waves signified.

She too was overjoyed, scrambling over on hands and knees.

"Little dummy," Lu Ran teased with a smile, "so close, and you still managed to crawl off course?"

As he spoke, he reached out and placed his hand on Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi's bamboo hat, adjusting its direction for her.

"Hmph!" Jiang Qiao Jiang Qiao Yuanxi wrinkled her small nose, crawled to Lu Ran's side, and excitedly shook his arm, "You succeeded?"

"Success!" Lu Ran nodded heavily, his heart filled with emotion.

With one hand still gripping the handle of the Ba Huang Dao, he felt the terrifying energy fluctuations emanating from the blade.

Third-tier Divine Weapon · Ba Huang All-Extinguishing Dao!

Its various attributes were likely to utterly crush those of the second-tier Divine Weapon · Xia Guang Dao.

Thinking this silently, Lu Ran decisively conducted a test.

"Ba Huang, try to break free from me," Lu Ran commanded in a deep voice, tightening his grip on the hilt.

The Ba Huang Dao immediately obeyed the order, attempting to wrench itself from Lu Ran's palm.

Lu Ran's eyes instantly widened; he gripped the hilt in a death grip, exerting even more force.

The strength of the Ba Huang Dao was so terrifying it exceeded all expectations; it actually dragged Lu Ran forward.

Lu Ran was shocked!

Is it really this strong?

Suddenly, the voice of the Ba Huang Dao's spirit echoed in his mind: 【Master, you must activate a technique that amplifies strength! Otherwise, you cannot hold me.】

Lu Ran:?

The Ba Huang Dao was not exaggerating; it directly dragged Lu Ran forward another meter or more.

Keep in mind, Lu Ran was at the fourth stage of the Sea Realm!

This... this, this?

"Whoosh~" Blood boiled within Lu Ran's body; he activated the Xie Fa · Blood Skull · Burning Blood Body, causing all his attributes to skyrocket.

"Buzz!" The Ba Huang Dao caused Lu Ran's hand to tremble continuously.

The contest of strength between the two had reached their respective limits.

Was it a draw?

After all, Lu Ran was still holding the hilt, so he could barely be considered slightly superior.

"Gulp." Lu Ran swallowed.

Is this the explosive attribute of a third-tier divine weapon?

People of the River Realm possess the strength to hold first-tier divine weapons; those of the Sea Realm can hold second-tier divine weapons.

So, is it only people of the Sky Realm who can control third-tier divine weapons?

A real-life example stood right here: Lu Ran, noble as a high-stage Sea Realm expert, could only hold the Ba Huang Dao by exerting his utmost effort after activating the Xie Fa · Burning Blood Body.

"Stop," Lu Ran hurriedly called out.

The Ba Huang Dao, brimming with spiritual awareness, slowly eased its force, fearing Lu Ran might topple backward and smash his head into the depths of the earth.

"What a treasure~" Lu Ran laid the Ba Huang Dao flat across his knees, his fingertips constantly stroking the blade.

He could not bear to part with it.

This was merely a superficial test of a third-grade divine weapon's power; how fast would its speed be?

And what level would its sharpness reach?

Could an ordinary person of the Sea Realm truly withstand a single strike from the Ba Huang Dao?

The more he thought about it, the more delighted Lu Ran became.

Taking Jin Que'er, an early-stage Sea Realm cultivator, as an example: would he not even need to lift a finger? Could the Ba Huang Dao fight on its own and pin Jin Que'er to the spot, killing her instantly?

Truly worthy of being a third-grade divine weapon!

Truly worthy of a grade that rivals the Heaven Realm!

Amidst his thoughts, Lu Ran recalled the Xia Guang Dao, secretly lamenting in his heart: Clearly, Xia Guang had arrived first, yet the Ba Huang Dao had beaten it to the punch.

If only the Xia Guang Dao were also a third-grade divine weapon; how wonderful that would be.

"Hum~" The Xia Guang Dao trembled slightly, the amplitude very small.

Did it seem a little aggrieved?

"Uh?" Lu Ran snapped back to reality and hurriedly soothed it, "Such opportunities are rare and cannot be sought; Xia Guang, I know you have been working very hard too."

From the side came Jiangjiang Ruyi's voice: "There is no need for this, Xia Guang; Spirit Saint Mountain is clearly more suitable for the Ba Huang Dao's growth."

"Yes, yes, yes, this place is more suitable for Ba Huang," Lu Ran subconsciously echoed, only then realizing that Jiangjiang Xianzi was not merely offering polite comfort.

What was the existential philosophy of the Eight Desolates Annihilation Blade?

The answer lay within the question itself.

Lu Ran's journey thus far, fighting through blood and death in this filthy and cruel Spirit Saint Mountain every minute and every second, aligned perfectly with the Ba Huang Dao's existential philosophy.

If it did not grow, then something would be terribly wrong!

Lu Ran nodded silently in his heart and sighed, "If I were still in the Human World, still guarding Rain Alley City, the Xia Guang Dao would likely have advanced to the third grade as well."

The young Lu Ran had once made a vow:

To slaughter his way through night after night of the fifteenth, ushering in ten thousand rays of dawn light and auspicious clouds filling the sky.

Now, he was no longer in Rain Alley City; he would no longer fight until dawn on the fifteenth of every month.

But from a higher perspective, Lu Ran's actions and his ultimate goal were still to shatter the deepest darkness of the Human World.

The day the gods and demons are slaughtered to extinction shall be the moment dawn breaks over the Human World!

At that moment,

Only then would there be true ten thousand rays of dawn light and a thousand strands of auspicious color!

"Hum!" The Xia Guang Dao clearly agreed very much with Ran De Xiang Fa.

What it desired should naturally not be the narrow sense of dawn light on the morning of the sixteenth of each month.

It should be auspicious clouds filling the sky across the entire world!

Inside the pitch-black cave, a solemn atmosphere prevailed; anyone could perceive the boiling hearts of Lu Ran and his divine weapon.

Such a person, such a blade.

Such an extremely pure heart of a newborn babe, and such an arrogant ambition that knew neither the height of the heavens nor the depth of the earth...

Jiangjiang Ruyi suddenly realized a problem: It was not because Lu Ran possessed a Sculpture Garden that he had today.

Rather, it was because Lu Ran inherently possessed such qualities that My Lord Xiang Xiang Xianyang had brought a Sculpture Garden to seek out Lu Ran among the myriad living beings.

Jiangjiang Ruyi also admitted that she held a strong filter regarding Lu Ran, and her judgment might be biased.

But no matter how humble one might be, Jiangjiang Ruyi believed that at the very least, Lu Ran and the Sculpture Garden complemented each other, allowing him to travel further and further on this path.

Never deviating by even half a point,

Nor ever retreating by even half a step.

Jiangjiang Ruyi reined in her thoughts and softly reminded, "Lu Ran, it has been chaotic outside for some time now."

"Oh." Lu Ran nodded; the number of wandering souls within the ridge ought to be considerable. He casually picked up a conical hat that had fallen to the ground and put it on. "I will go and return shortly."

As soon as the words left his lips, a bloody afterimage remained in his original spot.

Lu Ran appeared on a cliff outside the Ash Extinguishing Ridge, gazing into the distance, only to see that the mist between heaven and earth had already scattered considerably.

He opened his horizontal pupils and immediately saw many wandering souls of Ash Extinguishing Demons disappearing into the gray-hazed sky.

Presumably, over the past half hour, many wandering souls of Ash Extinguishing Demons had already returned to heaven.

Yet many wandering souls of Ash Extinguishing Demons still lingered above the ground and in the mid-air.

Lu Ran naturally would not let such resources slip away; his figure turned invisible, and he specifically switched to the Shun Yi Ji Fa · Evil Shadow Flash to avoid leaving any afterimages while blinking.

Silently and soundlessly, he captured souls, feasting to his heart's content.

Wherever his gaze fell, there were many battle groups, but as the mist dispersed, most of the fighting had ceased.

Only one battle group was excessively fierce.

Even though the Ash Extinguishing Demons recognized their enemies as being from their own race, they could not suppress their violent hearts and had already gone completely red-eyed with killing.

【Master.】 A familiar voice printed itself into his mind.

It was Lu Ran's own voice, carrying a distinctive clanging resonance and a unique temperament.

【What, can you not hold back anymore?】 Lu Ran captured another wandering soul of an Ash Extinguishing Demon into his pupil and casually adjusted the lower-half mask on his face.

【Master, let us try... let us try!】 A dignified third-grade divine weapon lowered its posture very, very low, even carrying a hint of begging.

Its surging desire for destruction clearly could no longer be suppressed.

Lu Ran could not help but smile.

Ba Huang Dao, having grown so formidable yet remaining utterly loyal, sought permission from its Divine Weapon Master.

For the last time it comprehended the Divine Weapon Domain, in its desperation, its attitude toward Lu Ran had been particularly stubborn.

Ba Huang Dao had grown.

A reward is due!

"Good." Lu Ran's gaze sharpened, settling on the most chaotic and largest battle group. "You and I shall go and test your second Divine Weapon Domain!"

"Snap!"

Lu Ran gripped the hilt with both hands, his aura surging like a tidal wave.

The wide-brimmed hat flew away with the wind; Lu Ran's jet-black shoulder-length hair danced upward, revealing his pair of radiant, brilliant eyes.

It should have displayed pure divinity.

Yet, due to his surging, volatile divine power and that blood-red, eerie half-face mask, he appeared utterly sinister.

"Ba Huang, what name do you intend for this Divine Weapon Domain?"

"I humbly request my Master to bestow a name!"

"Hmm." Lu Ran pressed his lips together, flashed instantly, and stood at the very center of the chaotic battle group.

First, let us destroy heaven and earth with me!

Then, establish a glorious and fearsome reputation!

(End of this chapter)