Chapter 718: Chapter 718: The Power of the Sword Heart
Annie unleashed her maximum power, her cultivation aura erupting with blinding force. The true reason she held the absolute position of Sect Leader, despite her youth, was simple: she possessed a fully developed Sword Heart.
In the entire modern history of the all sects, she was the only one born with this legendary trait. It was a conceptual talent so rare that it automatically elevated her importance above everyone else. When word had reached her that Heidy—who possessed a rare Sword Heart embryo—was trapped in the valley, Annie had not hesitated to join the vanguard. The sect could not afford to lose a future pillar of that caliber. Yet, looking at the collapsed cavern, Heidy’s current state remained unknown.
Though Annie’s cultivation rank was at the peak of the Spirit Sea realm—the exact same tier as the Vice Sect Leader and the elite undead commanders—the moment her Sword Heart activated, the disparity in their combat effectiveness became staggeringly clear. She demonstrated exactly why she ruled the sect.
The presence of the Sword Heart made everyone else on the battlefield look useless against her.
As she raised her slender blade, the majestic crane behind her shrieked, its sound waves shattering the charging skeletons into dust. Every movement of her sword carried a conceptual sharpness that bypassed physical armor and spiritual defenses alike. She didn’t just slash at the undead; she erased them from existence, cutting through the bone giants and the liches as if they were made of nothing but air.
She turned her back to the pit, her aura slowly receding as the colossal crane faded from the sky. The threat had retreated, but the valley remained a graveyard of fresh corpses and shattered bone.
"Secure the perimeter! Do not let a single entity cross this threshold!" the Vice Sect Leader ordered, his voice trembling as he limped toward her, his uniform stained with dark blood. He bowed his head. "Sect Leader... if you hadn’t arrived, our entire vanguard would have been wiped out."
Annie didn’t look at him. Her gaze shifted toward the primary flagship where the wounded were being transported. "Where is the medic boy?"
"He is inside the medical bay, treating General Boros," the Vice Leader replied quickly. "The boy was terrified when he escaped the tunnels, but he managed to survive the initial ambush without injury."
"Good," Annie said, her tone icy as she began walking toward the ship. "We need a complete report on what triggered this outbreak. If Heidy is truly trapped down there, we need to know what we are up against before we attempt a recovery."
Annie boarded the Impenetrable-class flagship and walked straight to the medical bay.
When she entered, she found Ethan working frantically to save General Boros. A heavy bronze cauldron bubbled fiercely in front of him as he refined a complex concoction. Despite her supreme status as the Sect Leader, she didn’t dare distract a medical master mid-refinement, so she and the Vice Sect Leader stood back in absolute silence, watching him work.
After mixing dozens of medicinal herbs, Ethan reached into his storage bag and pulled out a small glass vial filled with a black, foul-smelling liquid. The stench was nauseating, but the moment he poured the dark water into the cauldron, the mixture reacted violently. It exploded with a sweet, rich aroma that smelled exactly like a delicious dessert.
Suddenly, a thick cloud of black smoke erupted from the liquid, rising into the air above the cauldron. The smoke rapidly coalesced into a screaming skeletal visage. The spiritual manifestation of the curse launched itself directly toward Annie and the Vice Leader, catching them off guard.
Before it could reach them, Ethan extended his hand. The alchemical flame burning beneath the cauldron shot upward like a striking serpent, devouring the smoke skull entirely before snapping back cleanly into the palm of his hand.
Ethan immediately administered the glowing potion to Boros. Within seconds, the general’s dissolved shoulder began to smoke as new flesh, muscle, and bone rapidly regenerated restoring the limb.
The entire medical bay fell into an awed silence. Gathered inside were eight other generals, various elders, and grand elders—representing nearly three-quarters of the entire strike force of the Heavenly Sword Pavilion. Seeing the legendary healing process happen right before their eyes, several elders actually fell to their knees in sheer disbelief. They had all read the initial battle reports regarding the young medic and his divine potion, but they had dismissed it as wartime exaggeration. Now, facing the undeniable reality, a wave of profound jubilation swept through the room.
However, standing amidst the celebrating crowd, the Master of the Alchemy Pavilion was the only one whose face twisted with pure fury. Seeing a mere brat achieve what his entire pavilion could not left him burning with bitter resentment.
Ethan smiled inwardly. Crul had been carefully monitoring the vital signs the entire time; Ethan had intentionally let Boros suffer for hours, enduring the agonizing sensation of millions of flesh-eating ants tearing at his marrow, just to stage this grand display for the faction’s high command.
True to his persona, Ethan wiped the sweat from his brow and began bottling the remaining liquid from the cauldron. He managed to fill exactly nine vials, each radiating a beautiful, luminous pink glow.
The moment he lined the nine potions up on a small wooden side table, the atmosphere in the medical bay turned incredibly tense. Every single elder, general, and grand elder in the room locked their eyes onto the glass vials, their breathing turning heavy. They desperately wanted to lunge forward and seize the divine medicine by any means necessary, yet under the icy gaze of the Sect Leader, no one dared to make a single move.
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From this moment forward, to avoid confusion regarding cultivation ranks, I will include this footer with the current established levels.
Note: These are only the ranks mentioned so far to avoid spoilers.
Body Refinement Realm
Skin Refinement / Bone Refinement / Organ Refinement
Spiritual Gathering Realm
Spiritual Perception / Spiritual Mist / Spiritual Condensation
Spiritual Core Realm
Core Solidification / Core Awakening / Spiritual Collapse (Half-step Spiritual Core)
Spiritual Soul Realm
Spiritual Soul Awakening / Soul Nourishing / Soul-Core Fusion
Golden Core Realm
Prime Fusion / Core Perfection / Core Destruction
Spiritual Sea Realm
The Melting Tide / The Tidal Horizon / The Sea Mist Ascension
Dao Manifestation Realm
Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??
Spiritual Transcendence
Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??
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Sword mastery levels
Sword Intent.
Sword Aura.
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