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"Hey, you white-haired boy up ahead, stop right there!" A clear shout came from behind me, causing me to halt in my tracks. Within the domain of Saint Spirit Mountain, everyone followed the rhythm of the God of Light, and such rude shouts were rarely heard. Thus, I was quite surprised and turned around to see who had the audacity to be so bold.

"May I ask if you're calling out to me?" I saw a group of seven or eight young men and women approaching, led by a well-dressed girl who glared at me menacingly. It seemed that she was the one who had shouted.

"Indeed it's you, shameless thief! Return our 'Divine Punishment Lightning'!" The girl walked up to me and, without a word, reached for the divine sword "Divine Punishment" at my waist. However, I naturally wouldn't let her succeed. With the "Netherworld Phantom" technique, my figure seemed to remain still, yet her hand fell short by an inch, unable to grasp the sword.

From this, I deduced their identities. "Divine Punishment Lightning" was originally a treasure of the Crimson Jade Kingdom within the 16 kingdoms alliance. Although no one from the Crimson Jade Kingdom had been recognized by the divine sword, in principle, it did belong to them. Therefore, the girl before me must be a member of the royal family of the Crimson Jade Kingdom. She and the group of young men and women behind her were likely representatives sent by various factions for negotiations. Judging from their aura, they generally possessed the strength of mid to junior Sword Masters or sixth to seventh-level mages—indeed, they were elites of their respective factions.

"Please be careful, Miss. Although you might have been the custodian of this divine sword before, remember that once a divine weapon acknowledges its master, it will not allow others to control it. If you don't want the Platinum Lightning to evaporate, please refrain from making any rash moves," I said with a slight sneer. "Moreover, according to the recognized rules of the Mainland, regardless of the previous owner, once a divine weapon acknowledges a new master, it belongs to that master. So your claim that I stole your divine sword is pure slander."

"Slander, my foot! Die!" With a fierce cry, a long, bright blade flashed in the girl's hand, slicing towards me with the force of a thousand snow-capped mountains, filling several yards of space in an instant.

"This is... Divine Weapon Embodiment? Could she be a Sword Saint seedling?" Seeing the eight-foot-long blade appear in her hand out of nowhere, I couldn't help but be slightly startled.

Chapter Sixty-Two: Cloud Peak Appointment with Four Heroes

Sword Saint is currently the highest known level of martial artists on the Xinghai Continent. While Sword Emperors can extract power from the "Star Abyss Sea" and wield overwhelming might, they are limited by their physical endurance. Not only must they control their power within acceptable limits, but they also cannot sustain it for long periods. Even with techniques that enhance stamina, they can only last for about half an hour, and if they use their full strength, even those who have mastered the "Emperor Martial Overlord Technique" can only endure a hundred moves. In contrast, Sword Saints operate on a different level. Unbound by physical limitations, they can absorb as much energy as they need from the "Star Abyss Sea" without time or stamina constraints. Without sufficient opposition, a Sword Saint could theoretically exterminate all humans on the continent given enough time. Unlike Sword Emperors who passively receive power from the "Star Abyss Sea," Sword Saints can influence it, using their bodies as conduits to pull part of the "Star Abyss Sea" into the material world, forming a "Holy Domain" that amplifies their power.

Breaking through to the Sword Saint realm requires more than diligent training. When I met the "Battle Saint" Leimen, the old white-haired lion introduced me to the most crucial foundation of the Sword Saint path—the dual Aura.

In this world, all living beings are born with a strand of innate primordial energy that can be converted into Aura or mental power, making one a warrior or a mage. If the primordial energy is abundant, it can first convert into one form and then another, allowing dual cultivation of both martial and magical arts. However, converting the same type of energy twice, into dual Aura or dual mental powers, is extremely difficult. It requires an exceptional body capable of enduring the process and dealing with subsequent complications. To date, every mage attempting to convert mental power twice has suffered from mental breakdowns, while those cultivating dual Aura invariably died from physical explosion before the emergence of "Sword Saint Ancestor" Leinster.

The "Sword Saint Ancestor" possessed extraordinary talent and, through fortunate circumstances, cracked this ancient conundrum, comprehending the Holy Domain. After his research, he clarified the steps needed to achieve the Sword Saint realm. First, one must have sufficient primordial energy to support the cultivation of dual Aura. Second, one must possess a body capable of enduring dual Aura, commonly referred to as a "twin body." With these foundations, one must first cultivate one type of Aura to the Sword Emperor level before turning to the other. Otherwise, during the transition from Sword Hero to Sword Master or from Sword Master to Sword Emperor, the stronger Aura would consume the weaker one, as happened when I previously cultivated "Azure Star Rain," "Purple Thorns Aura," and "Sacred Heart Kalpa," which merged into one upon reaching the Sword Master level.

When both types of Aura reach the Sword Emperor level, connecting to the "Star Abyss Sea" and channeling its vast power into the body, the real challenge begins. If the two Auras conflict, such as water and fire, they will fight each other, leading to physical explosion. If they resonate, like "Heavenly Peng Transcendence" and "Zhi Chi Tian Ya," the result is the same. Only if the two Auras complement each other can one advance towards the Sword Saint realm. A cultivator with two channels to the "Star Abyss Sea" can, upon understanding the essence of the void's power, create a cycle between themselves and the "Star Abyss Sea," manipulating this infinite power freely and even expanding it outside their body to form a Holy Domain.

Before Leinster comprehended the Holy Domain, he became the strongest human with dual Aura. During a battle with the Beastmen, Leinster, who had cultivated the "Emperor Martial Overlord Technique," was cornered by a Lion Clan expert. At the brink of death, he broke through to the Holy Domain, turning the tables and severely injuring his opponent. However, due to his first-time use of this power, he was also injured and had to flee. A year later, after mastering the Holy Domain, Leinster challenged the top Beastman expert, the Lion Sovereign, defeating him despite the Lion Sovereign wielding the Beastmen's top divine weapon—the Demon Axe "Black Hell Catastrophe." Knowing that Sword Saints cannot be healed by divine arts, Leinster spared the Lion Sovereign to avoid mutual destruction. Ten years later, the "Sword Saint Ancestor" fully mastered the Holy Domain and intervened in a battle between the Beastmen and the Elven army, breaking through the Beastmen's defenses, injuring the Lion Sovereign and many Sword Emperors, seizing the "Doomsday Horn" from the central camp, and then leaving. Later, the Beastmen boasted of repelling Leinster three times, but in reality, they were merely embellishing their own achievements. For over two centuries, Leinster dominated the Mainland, suppressing the Beastmen's top experts.