Hearing his words, Feng Xiu’s expression of shock grew larger and larger. “Third Brother, this is too dangerous. You…”

Vassago silently shook his head. “Big Brother, you should know how terrifying Austin and Griffin are. Since this is our greatest opportunity, then we must not let it go. And my method is the best. Facing it head-on might allow it to exploit a weakness. If it avoids this once, then it may truly enter its ultimate state. At that time, whether it’s us or this world, I’m afraid we will all be…”

Feng Xiu said with frustration, “It’s all my fault for not paying attention sooner. That bastard Andromalius actually died at the hands of the immature Austin and Griffin, and even caused the Demon God Pillars to be destroyed. We can no longer form…”

Vassago said, “Therefore, we must treat this opportunity as the only one and make our arrangements accordingly. No matter what the cost, we cannot give Austin and Griffin the slightest chance.”

The Demon God Emperor slowly nodded and said, “Alright, let’s proceed according to your plan. This matter will only be known to the three of us brothers. Let’s keep it a secret from even Samigina and the others for now. Vassago, then you should go back and start making preparations. One year, we still have one year. On the war front, I will let the humans truly feel my wrath.”

……………………

Imperial Dragon Pass, Knight Temple Headquarters.

Yang Haohan and Long Tianyin stood silently in front of the giant crystal ball.

A year had passed, a full year, and Long Haochen was still in a state of deep meditation. If it weren’t for the increasingly dense spiritual energy fluctuations emanating from his body, and his breathing being perfectly normal, they might have even thought Long Haochen had passed away in meditation.

A year! A full year of non-stop meditation!

In the span of a year, even Han Yu had successfully broken through to the seventh rank and had begun his second entry into the Illusion Cave to learn seventh-rank skills.

But Long Haochen remained as he was when he entered the cave, without ever getting up.

“Brother Long, should we go check on him?” Yang Haohan asked with some concern.

Long Tianyin shook his head and said, “No. Since his aura hasn’t shown any signs of decline, let’s not disturb him. I believe this child has a sense of proportion. Besides, can’t you feel it? The spiritual energy fluctuations around him have reached a state of saturation. What he needs now is a breakthrough.”

Yang Haohan said, “Concern makes me confused! This kid is truly aiming for the sky. He’s trying to break through the bottleneck to the eighth rank. I never thought he would surprise us in this way. I used to think that Elder Qiu had overestimated him, but now it seems he was conservative. If he really succeeds, then he will be the first eighth-rank Holy Knight in the history of our Temple Alliance to be under the age of twenty.”

Long Tianyin said, “I didn’t expect his mental state to be so pure. I believe he will succeed. However, the bottleneck from the seventh to the eighth rank is not so easy to break through. It not only requires accumulating knowledge but also a moment of enlightenment. Let him continue to try. If he still can’t make a breakthrough within three months, then we must wake him up. Otherwise, if he becomes impatient, it will affect his future cultivation.”

“Mm,” Yang Haohan silently nodded.

Just then, suddenly, the body that had been sitting cross-legged inside the crystal ball for a year trembled slightly.

His tremor was significant, and both God-Sealed Knights stepped forward almost instantly, widening their eyes.

Long Haochen’s body began to tremble more and more noticeably. Layers of gentle golden light spread out from his body, turning into layers of shockwaves that radiated outward as his body trembled.

“Going berserk?” Long Tianyin said in shock.

“No, it’s not,” Yang Haohan grabbed Long Tianyin, who was about to rush out. “I’ve heard that Haochen created a skill called Ripple of Light, which can produce powerful offensive and defensive abilities through the oscillation of spiritual energy. He shouldn’t be going berserk.”

Just then, the trembling of Long Haochen’s body began to weaken. His arms slowly raised, slowly stretching, and his whole body stretched along with them, seeming to become even more slender.

The soft golden light supported him and slowly floated him up. His legs straightened, and his whole body made a stretching motion.

Instantly, dense golden light spread out from his body as if materialized. One could vaguely see three light clusters rapidly pulsating at his brow, chest, and lower abdomen.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes. At the moment his eyes opened, even Yang Haohan and Long Tianyin, who were God-Sealed Knights, felt two bolts of cold electricity flash through the air.

The golden light, even stronger than the light emanating from his body, burst out from Long Haochen’s eyes. The almost materialized light swept through the air, causing the dreamy pale golden light inside the Illusion Cave to surge violently.

Along with Long Haochen, Yating also stood up, and she also opened her eyes. Compared to Long Haochen, she didn’t seem to have changed much, but her eyes were clearer and calmer. Moreover, she had a stronger aura of life.

Although Yating already had a solid body, if one touched her, they would find that her body was cold, and only when she used light-based skills would she feel a little warm due to the fluctuations of light elements. Moreover, the surface of her body would give people a stiff feeling. After all, she was condensed from dense light elements and was not a real body.

But at this moment, not only was the aura of life on her body more intense, but her entire body gave a stronger sense of reality. Her soft movements suggested that her skin was full of elasticity, like a true, stunningly beautiful human woman. Even the elven aura had diminished a lot.

Yating opened her arms behind Long Haochen, making a hugging motion. The next moment, golden light flashed, and she disappeared from Long Haochen, re-integrating into his body.

Compared to a year ago, Long Haochen’s body hadn’t changed much. It was as if time had completely stopped for him during his year of deep meditation. He had no dirt on him, and even his beard and hair hadn’t grown longer. Only his eyes sparkled with divine light.

Yes, as Yang Haohan had judged, his cultivation had improved to the seventh-rank peak, and his inner spiritual power had reached 30,000.

A year of deep meditation was a period of accumulated energy for Long Haochen. He not only purified his heart but also purified his spiritual power.

After reaching the seventh-rank peak, he tried several times to break through but couldn’t find the direction. Therefore, he stopped forcing himself and naturally ended his year-long deep meditation.

At this moment, although he was still standing in this dreamy Illusion Cave, he felt a sense of clarity throughout his body. With a flash of light, a bottle of water appeared in his hand, and he drank a few mouthfuls, allowing the soft water elements to nourish his body.

Then, Long Haochen stretched his body again. His bones crackled as he moved, and he seemed to have grown taller.

Without rushing to take the next step, he simply stood there silently, as if lost in thought. Only after a long while did he slowly turn around and walk towards the depths of the Illusion Cave.

Watching Long Haochen disappear into the pale golden light, Long Tianyin and Yang Haohan couldn’t help but turn to look at each other. The two God-Sealed Knights had a strange feeling.

“Is he going to learn skills? Not breaking through?” Long Tianyin asked first.

Yang Haohan said, “It’s hard to say. I think he’s looking for an opportunity for himself. Do you think we should tell him the secret to breaking through to the eighth rank?”

Long Tianyin said, “We should have told him. But seeing how quickly he reached the seventh-rank peak, I don’t want to anymore. If he can complete the breakthrough from the seventh-rank peak to the eighth rank through his own understanding, then it will be of great benefit to him for breaking through to the ninth rank in the future. After all, these two bottlenecks have their commonalities. We must trust him. Let him settle down slowly.”

Yang Haohan silently nodded. “Mm, I think that’s best too.”

“How long have I been cultivating?” Long Haochen said to himself as he walked into the Illusion Cave. He only felt that this cultivation had taken a very long time. There were several times when he wanted to end it, but feeling the amazing increase in his inner spiritual power, he finally endured the loneliness.

The spiritual power in the three spiritual orifices within his body was completely full, and his whole body was full of power.

How can I break through from the seventh rank to the eighth rank? As he walked into the Illusion Cave, Long Haochen pondered this most important question.

Perhaps because he had been sitting for too long, he felt a little sore and itchy all over his body, and his blood and qi were flowing quickly under the stimulation of his spiritual power.

Suddenly, the scenery changed, and a large door appeared in front of him. On the door was an ancient “seven” character.

Long Haochen stopped and looked at the powerful “seven” character, thinking to himself that he probably didn’t have enough accumulation this time to break through directly to the seventh rank. My spiritual power is already sufficient, so I might as well look for inspiration in skills. Maybe I can gain something.

He reached out and pressed on the door. The door was very strong and didn’t budge.

Soft light elements surged, and Long Haochen’s body almost instantly turned into a transparent golden crystal. For him, using the Radiant Body didn’t require him to consider excessive consumption at all. The Divine Chosen physique gave him certain characteristics of the Radiant Body, and now he had completely cultivated the Radiant Body. He only needed to use spiritual power normally, and the enhancement properties of the Radiant Body would immediately appear, but it wouldn’t consume his spiritual power extra.

The stronger the cultivation, the greater the increase in strength from talent…

(To be continued)