Chapter 310: Chapter 47: The Divine Ancestor’s Blood Is a Perfect Fit

"Your Excellency Westheid, that is the Grand Knight, Lord Heaven-Piercing Sword, who recently made a pilgrimage to Gale Heart. He is also a staunch supporter of the serf system."

Uther frowned and said to Westheid,

"Please be careful. Heaven-Piercing Sword excels at high-speed combat. His movements are incredibly swift and lethal. While he may be lacking in other areas, when it comes to sheer destructive power, he’s even more..."

"Who is this clown? The Steel Will Guardians haven’t come out, and he’s acting as their watchdog?"

Westheid cut Uther off with a light chuckle.

"I’ve arrived, yet I have not received the welcome and courtesy I am due. This is... quite displeasing."

"It seems the power I have displayed has yet to be properly acknowledged. No matter. To allow doubt and hesitation to fester is a king’s failure. In that case, I will hold nothing back."

The Black Knight watched in astonishment as Westheid’s terrifying aura surged, climbing higher and higher. Along the way, the latter had been bitten by Mivana and burned by Reiya, had even let blood to nourish the Shadow-Born in his arms—all to repeatedly exploit his Talent and stack its effects.

Now that all the antics were done, he unleashed his suppressed Cursed Source Blood, entering his complete form from the very beginning.

He set foot upon the snowy ground, raised his head, and exhaled a scorching breath. The next moment...

BOOM—

His figure vanished in a blast of air. Westheid’s Body Technique was like light, like fire, streaking a crimson trail across the low sky. In the blink of an eye, he crossed several thousand meters and appeared before Heaven-Piercing Sword. And then...

He lashed out with a kick.

"Ngh?!"

The Grand Knight, dressed like a Sword Saint, opened his eyes, his gaze grave. He reacted in a flash, drawing his sword to block.

CLANG—

The crisp sound and the spreading shockwaves swept out instantly, sending dozens of the nearest Yonglan Knights flying. They were thrown high into the air like ragdolls before crashing back down.

The indestructible property of the Great Knight’s Silver Sword allowed it to withstand the mountain-shattering kick, but that didn’t mean its wielder could endure the force and shock transmitted through it.

After struggling to hold on for several seconds, fractures spiderwebbed across the Grand Knight’s arms, and the Silver Sword flew from his grasp.

THUD—

His neck and chest were viciously smashed by a steel boot. Westheid planted his foot on the Legendary Grand Knight known as Heaven-Piercing Sword, sliding him across the ground and utterly dominating him.

And as they slid further, the momentum didn’t decrease; instead, Westheid continuously applied more Magic Power and force.

A series of deafening roars, like an accelerating engine, boomed out one after another. The path they carved even began to burn, leaving a scorched trail.

Only when they reached the cliff’s edge at the outer city of Gale Heart did Westheid stop, grabbing the sword’s hilt in a reverse grip.

Just as he was about to bring it down, his motion froze.

Because Heaven-Piercing Sword, pinned under his boot, wasn’t reacting at all... He had fainted.

After confirming the Grand Knight beneath his foot had truly lost consciousness, Westheid fell silent for a moment before speaking with a sense of anticlimax:

"Just a grunt, huh."

The surrounding Yonglan Knights watched their Lord get instantly defeated. Unable to keep their composure, they stood frozen in shock.

The terrifying, Demon God-like figure was seen covering his face and bursting into laughter. Wherever Westheid’s gaze fell, the Yonglan Knights didn’t dare to step forward and meet his eyes.

The disparity in their power had never been so clear.

Westheid wasn’t about to bother with these grunts’ grunts. He raised his weapon, its crimson blade pointing directly at the Knight guards on the walls of Gale Heart.

"Get the Steel Will Guardians over here! I said, bring out the Steel Will Guardians!"

............

「Inside Gale Heart’s inner city, deep within the Divine Hall of the Rider.」

At the very center of this divine megastructure, several Knights stood on a flight of stairs. They seemed to have just completed some kind of ritual and were taking deep breaths to calm themselves.

"The King Claimant is already at our gates. As expected, the opposition factions could hardly stop them."

"Many other Grand Knights are still watching from the sidelines, waiting for the situation in Gale Heart to stabilize."

"Regardless, if a Lord from a Foreign Country wishes to become the king who commands Yonglan, we must test him."

"But that Duke Qinghui... he’s absurdly strong. I fear our strength alone will not be enough to handle him."

The old Knight Yaxius, white-bearded and robed, shook his head, his back ramrod straight.

"What a disgrace. We are unable to conduct the trial with our own power and must instead rely on the Divine Ancestor’s blessing."

The other Steel Will Guardians were similarly dejected, remaining silent.

In contrast, Mephit, who had shoulder-length, sky-blue hair, wore a smile and seemed quite pleased.

She gently caressed her full, high bosom with fair, slender fingers. Her pretty face was flushed as she said,

"Everyone, there’s no need to feel so guilty. The Divine Ancestor left this contingency precisely to screen for a truly powerful king. We are merely carrying out the mission bestowed upon us by the Divine Ancestor."

"Accepting the Divine Ancestor’s blessing to fulfill our duty is an honor. How could it be a disgrace?"

CREAK—CREAK—

As soon as Mephit’s voice fell, an ancient mechanism finally activated, and a secret passage appeared beneath the Holy Hall.

"Ha, let’s go. We mustn’t keep Duke Qinghui waiting too long."

The young Knightess was the first to enter.

The group walked inside, arriving at a hidden hall located beneath the Holy Hall.

In the center of the hall, a statue of the Riding God stood in the middle of a pool. At the tip of the longsword held aloft by the statue rested a heart wreathed in a storm, an object no mortal could gaze upon directly. The moment it entered their vision, even the Steel Will Guardians, all of the Grand Knight Tier, felt themselves filled with an overwhelming sense of presence.

Waves of suffocation washed over them like a tide.

And beneath that unnamable thing that could not be looked upon directly, the pool flowed with a liquid that resembled molten gold.

’The heart of the Divine Ancestor...’

This was a truth known only to the Steel Will Guardians: Gale Heart, this divine megastructure, was powered and maintained by the blood and heart of the Yonglan Riding God.

And, when necessary, the Steel Will Guardians could use these blessings to strengthen themselves, granting a temporary enhancement.

This blessing was only to be used in the event of an invasion by a foreign enemy, or when testing a Knight King.

This was the first time this generation of Steel Will Guardians had ever used it, but they knew exactly what they needed to do.

"My God, my Ancestor, I beseech you for your blessing."

"Grant me the Storm Power, grant me a heart of valor."

The group knelt piously and properly by the pool. With faces tilted up and expressions of utmost solemnity, they cupped the Golden Blood from the pool and poured it over their foreheads.

SIZZLE—

It sounded like a scalding solution searing through skin. The Golden Blood seeped into the Knights’ bodies, bringing a pain that even a Grand Knight would find unbearable.

Bones turning to dust, marrow being scoured, a fire burning in their very hearts and bones.

But even stronger than the pain was a surging, tempestuous power that coursed through every inch of their bodies, threatening to make them burst.

Most of the Steel Will Guardians could only endure one or two waves of absorption before they could take no more, rising to their feet with pale faces.

"This decaying body of mine cannot contain any more of the blessing. This is my limit."

Yaxius raised a hand, feeling the incredible vitality surging within him.

"What incredible power... Is this the blessing of the Divine Ancestor? It’s unimaginable."

"I feel several times stronger than before. I truly don’t know what in the Mortal World could possibly stand against this power!"

Lai Wu, the Knight with the golden ponytail, gritted his teeth in excitement. But as he turned, his pupils suddenly contracted.

"Mephit?"

While the other Steel Will Guardians had all finished receiving the blessing, the Knightess with sky-blue hair alone continued to cup the Golden Blood again and again, pouring it over her head.

Once, twice, three times, four times... she repeated the motion almost endlessly.

Only when the very air around Mephit seemed to solidify did she finally end the mechanical ritual and slowly rise to her feet.

When she turned and took a step, her colleagues actually took an instinctive step back.

The blue-haired girl’s lips curled slightly into a bloodthirsty, exhilarated smile. She dug an index finger into her temple and said with relish,

"The Divine Ancestor’s blood is just perfect. I can hardly contain myself right now!"

"Everyone, let us go and slaughter the King Claimant!"