Gol D. Ace In Coiling Dragon

One by one, the mortals went up to challenge the Deathgod Golem, and without fail, each of them was able to pass the assessment with ease.

Bebe, the Godeater Rat, used its impressive speed and the sharpness of its claws to show that he had more than enough power to devastate just about any saint at the early stages.

Linley, after dragon-forming, didn't even have to utilise the power of Concepts or the Profound Mysteries. A single punch from his azure-coloured dragon-scaled fist was more than enough to send the golem flying.

Leona, not wanting to be outdone by Bebe, casually used her father's technique [Divine Descent], summoning a giant paw-shaped flame print to once again send the puppet flying. The shocking thing was that they could sense Leona's insights into the Laws of Fire's Profound Mystery of the Essence of Fire was only half a step from the level of a Prime Saint.

Each mortal was more impressive than the last, causing the saints to sigh in amazement, understanding that this really was the golden generation.

Another person who caused quite the shock was Amira. Though everyone from the sect could be considered a genius among geniuses, when one thought of the Yin-Yang Pavilion, they would instinctively think of Ace, Arianna, and now, because of the discovery of Concepts, Aiden.

They cast quite the shadows, making it all too easy for others to overlook the rest of the members. It was why when Amira showed off the might of her Viz bloodline and her incredible comprehension, the onlookers could only watch with their jaws dropped.

It was but a single strike, but whether it was speed, power, comprehension, or skill. Each aspect had reached a monstrous level.

Many guessed that whilst she may not quite be a match for Ace, she wasn't far off at all.

Still, the person everyone was waiting to see in action was the legendary "Son of Heaven" himself.

As the last of the mortals, Ace felt everyone's eyes on him. Still, his expression remained light as he waited for his master's signal.

"You ready, brat?" Aiden smiled.

Ace didn't hurry to respond, instead choosing to summon his new glaive – Godslayer.

As though it had a mind of its own, Godslayer began to hum in excitement.

"Soon, I'll allow you to taste the blood of your first deity," Ace uttered lightly as he stroked the shaft of his navy-coloured glaive, watching as the colour darkened until it was jet-black. "Until then, I promise to let you stay by my side."

As Ace's voice waned, many of the spectators suddenly paled. Between O'Brien's surging killing intent and the sudden spike in temperature, it became extremely hard for most to even breathe.

"Calm down," Catherine said lightly seeing O'Brien's eyes redden and his body tremble from anger. "This is the home of Lord Beirut."

The crimson-haired Demi-God didn't respond with words. Still, he appeared to have heard, because after Catherine spoke, O'Brien took a deep breath to calm his wrath and directly closed his eyes not daring to look at Ace anymore for fear of what he would do.

Both Yunaia and her familiar, the white crow, watched this scene calmly whilst communicating mentally.

"This boy Ace is even more arrogant than me," Oscar said, his words laced with disdain. "To threaten a deity in public, as a mere mortal of the seventh rank. He really thinks too highly of himself!"

Yunaia heard Oscar's words, but she didn't respond. Even though she told herself she wouldn't underestimate others, she felt that Ace's words were beyond arrogant, to the point where she couldn't help but look down on him.

She was a genius who had reached the mid-stages of the ninth rank before turning 20. If not because she wanted to focus on her comprehension before making another breakthrough, it would've been easy for her to become a saint before 20 – a feat which had never been seen or heard of throughout the whole of the Yulan Plane's known history.

To this day, she had never met anyone of her generation who could match up to her. And although she was surprised by the talent shown by Linley, Amira, Wukong and the others, from what she saw, even Wukong – the strongest among them was a level below.

Even with her pride as an unrivalled genius, the likes of which was only seen once in a million years, she wouldn't dare to threaten a deity in such an arrogant manner, even if she couldn't stand them.

In her eyes, even if she was confident she would surpass them in due time, a deity was still a lofty figure who deserved respect. One should only disrespect them if they had surpassed them in at least one area, something that not even she, with all her talent and ability, had done.

As far as she was concerned, the only reason Ace dared to do this was because he likely had a little bit of talent which made him conceited and most importantly, he knew O'Brien wouldn't dare to offend Beirut.

Still, the youth who caused this reaction appeared utterly calm, his focus still on the hardened glaive in his hands.

Speaking of "Godslayer", after hearing Ace's words, not only had its hum gotten louder, but its usually gentle red hue had suddenly intensified as its blade seemingly gotten sharper.

"I'm ready," Ace nodded slowly toward his master as he willed his flames to coat his weapon.

"Those flames…" Oscar's eyes suddenly constricted as he stared intently at the flames coating Ace's weapon. "Has he?"

It wasn't just the Divine Beast; even Yunaia could only stare in disbelief at Ace's fiery mage force.

Although she was a Qingya descendant, Yunaia was raised in a certain place. A location which was far more brutal with experts far stronger than those here on the Yulan Continent.

There, if one wanted to travel on their own, they needed to at least have the power of a saint, and even then, they were at the bottom of the barrel. It was a place where, unlike here, Demi-Gods could be seen regularly. There were even a few High Gods scattered around – albeit not very many.

That was to say, she was clear on the levels of comprehension as well as the various profound mysteries of each of the elements. The moment she saw the compressed flames, she instantly understood, that Ace, a youth she had just looked down on, had comprehended a complete profound mystery.

Even if that was the full extent of his insights into the laws of fire, in terms of comprehension, he was still able to stand on equal ground with the average Demi-God.

But before she could get over her initial shock, Ace made his move.

She focused intently on the dark-haired teen as he took what seemed to be the most ordinary of steps, a movement so subtle it could easily be overlooked.

Yet, the moment Ace's foot touched the ground, the world around him transformed. The flames beneath him erupted with an intensity that defied reason, blazing forth three times in an instant. The sheer power of this sudden inferno left a small crater in Ace's previous position, a testament to the explosive force he had harnessed.

But what truly captivated Yunaia and everyone present was Ace himself. As if the laws of space and time didn't apply to him, Ace appeared almost instantaneously in front of the humanoid puppet. His glaive, an extension of his very being, moved forward with a purpose that perfectly embodied the explosive and untamed might of fire.

The tip of his Haki-hardened glaive met the puppet's chest with a resounding impact, sending shockwaves through the air.

In that singular, awe-inspiring moment, Ace's strike connected flawlessly, and the puppet was sent hurtling through the air, its form disrupted by the unstoppable force of the attack.

It was a testament to Ace's incredible prowess, and it left all witnesses stunned in silence.

A faint smile appeared on Aiden's face upon seeing that. Others may not be able to see, but how could he, as the person who founded the path of Concepts, not see that his usage of concepts had become even smoother and more refined?

That by itself wasn't enough to give him a significant leap in strength, but it was proof that Ace hadn't relaxed with his training since his leaving.

Whilst everyone was staring at Ace's back, lost in thought, Aiden walked over to a small, unassuming doorway beside the metallic lifeform. 

"The entrance to the Necropolis of the Gods is right here," Aiden explained as he slowly opened the door, which was strangely similar in nature to the Gol Clan's Pocket Dimension. "All of you may now go in, but before you do, let me warn all of you who have entered in the past. The insides have changed slightly.

There are currently more treasures than ever before, but the dangers inside have reached a level that has far exceeded that of previous years.

If there are any among you that are even slightly hesitant, I suggest you pull out now."

Ace, along with those in his group, were the first to react, unhesitantly moving towards the door. One by one, Kimika, Wukong, Linley and the others entered one after the next.

Finally, just as it was Ace's turn, under the eyes of the crowd, he fearlessly looked up towards the two Demi-Gods of the Yulan Empire and pointed the tip of his glaive straight at O'Brien. "If in ten years you dare to enter, I assure you, the Necropolis of the Gods will be your burial grounds."

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