Chapter 838: The Entire Arena Shocked! What Exactly Is This Lightning?

On the Mi Gai Grassland, a radius of over ten kilometers was shrouded in black lightning.

The earth was utterly devastated; the cold, furious aura radiating from the black lightning chilled every soul present.

At the very center of this storm, Xu Jingming stood tall, gripping a long spear, his body encircled by lightning, like a god towering there.

Not far ahead of him, on the ground, lay Jonathan's charred corpse, headless.

The entire Mi Gai Grassland fell into deathly silence as all stared at Xu Jingming's towering figure.

Their faces were filled with shock and disbelief.

The Mandate Church's ninth-rank... just died like that?

Though they thought this, none dared move.

Because they knew ninth-rank Martial Saints had formidable lifespans—this charred corpse might only be an illusion!

Just as they thought this, Xu Jingming moved.

He directly took the space ring from the corpse, then black lightning surged, reducing Jonathan's body to ashes.

"He's really dead?!" Everyone stared, dumbfounded.

No one had expected Jonathan, who had just been so menacing, to be truly slain by Xu Jingming!

The world's elites were stunned; the remaining Mandate Church members were paralyzed with dread.

In terms of elite numbers, the eighth-rank Grand Masters of various countries certainly outnumbered them.

Their only advantage had been Jonathan, the ninth-rank fighter—now that he was dead, they had no advantage left.

"No! The Divine Messenger is a ninth-rank Martial Saint, with immense vitality!

Death is only an illusion—he will surely revive again!"

A red-robed archbishop of the Mandate Church screamed loudly, refusing to believe what he saw.

But the Grand Masters present were no fools.

Martial Saints do have formidable vitality—they can regrow severed limbs or even heads.

But Jonathan had been obliterated into ashes by Xu Jingming's lightning—there was no way he could recover!

"Lord Ryan, I was deceived! Please, Lord Ryan, save me!"

One of the American Grand Masters who had defected to the Mandate Church reacted first, shouting loudly.

This snapped the others out of their shock.

Right—they weren't Mandate Church members! They'd only been coerced!

Instantly, cries for mercy rang out toward their original national groups.

"Under Mandate, the Divine Endures! Xu Jingming! One day, the Divine will punish you!"

The Mandate Church's original red-robed archbishops, sensing their doom, all swallowed Blood-Explosion Pills, their auras surging as they prepared to self-detonate.

The self-destruction of an eighth-rank Grand Master could flatten hundreds of miles around.

Even other eighth-rank energy users would suffer grave injuries.

This was their final revenge.

"You ants dare try self-destruction?"

A cold snort echoed—a thick black lightning bolt erupted from Xu Jingming and struck the first red-robed archbishop.

After obliterating him, it leapt to the second archbishop.

Crack! Crack!...

In an instant, the lightning jumped and refracted five times, annihilating every Grand Master who sought to detonate.

"That's... A-rank combat technique Lightning Chain?"

One lightning-affinity Grand Master recognized the technique, then fell into deep silence.

One Lightning Chain killing five Grand Masters? Even a ninth-rank Law Saint would achieve no more.

In fact, not just lightning-affinity users—all present energy users noticed the anomaly in Xu Jingming's lightning.

The ferocity and coldness of that black lightning were utterly unlike his earlier holy golden lightning.

"Xu Jingming's lightning ability seems to have undergone a new transformation."

"Could it have evolved again? But how is that possible?"

Many Grand Masters whispered among themselves; some murmured in awe:

"To slay a ninth-rank Martial Saint—Xu Jingming is truly a prodigy..."

Xu Jingming's aura remained at seventh-rank upper tier; slaying ninth-rank Jonathan proved his strength beyond doubt.

No matter how he achieved it, after this realm ends, Xu Jingming's name will echo across the entire Blue Planet.

"He won."

Standing nearby, Ling Shuang smiled, her fair face tinged with quiet wonder.

She knew Xu Jingming's power, once evolved to SSS-rank, was formidable.

But seeing him kill a ninth-rank Martial Saint still felt unreal.

Xu Jingming's growth was simply too fast...

"Eva, what just happened? Why did he die outright?"

After picking up the space ring left by Tian Jian, Xu Jingming asked Eva inwardly.

"Because he wasn't a true ninth-rank Martial Saint—only a pseudo-ninth-rank, forcibly elevated by Divine Blood techniques.

He lacked indestructible matter—he had the attack power of a ninth-rank, but none of the corresponding regenerative ability."

Eva replied softly.

"Indestructible matter is a substance that emerges within an energy user upon reaching ninth rank.

The formidable vitality of ninth-rank energy users stems from it—once this matter is depleted,

even a ninth-rank will die."

Eva explained.

This knowledge was meant to be revealed only when Xu Jingming neared ninth rank.

But given the current situation, he needed to understand it now.

"Indestructible matter? So that's it." Xu Jingming suddenly understood.

At that moment, Roland walked over from afar, bowing respectfully:

"Congratulations, Elder Xu, on attaining ninth-rank combat power! May your martial fortune flourish!"

Roland was an S-rank eighth-rank upper-tier Grand Master—his master was a ninth-rank upper-tier Law Saint!

Yet before Xu Jingming, he lowered himself completely, even using the title "Elder."

"Elder?" Xu Jingming's expression turned odd.

Being called "Elder" by a man in his thirties felt strangely awkward.

"On the martial path, the accomplished come first. I call you Elder because it's fitting," Roland replied without hesitation, standing straight and serious.

Though he was already eighth-rank upper tier, achieving A-rank ninth-rank combat power would still take him at least two or three years.

Seeing this, Xu Jingming nodded and asked: "What do you want?"

"There's something I need to discuss, Elder Xu. What should be done with these three?"

Roland paused, then nodded.

He gestured, and three traitorous Da Xia nationals—including Wang Linyang—walked over from afar.

"Elder Xu! We never wanted to join the Mandate Church—we were forced! Please spare us!"

The moment they approached, they fell to their knees, weeping uncontrollably, utterly devoid of any Grand Master's dignity.

The three had barely approached when they fell to their knees with a thud, weeping uncontrollably, utterly devoid of the dignity befitting a Grand Master.