Chapter 196: The Ceremony Begins

Thinking this, Leo continued to train with his sword.

Crack!

Suddenly, a faint sound entered his ears, and Leo’s expression froze as he noticed a tiny crack appearing on the Asawakh sword.

The crack was very small, but it was clearly visible on the smooth blade, out of place.

Was the Asawakh sword reaching its limit as well?

Leo felt a slight heaviness in his heart; after all, the Asawakh sword was only a sub-legendary weapon and had been used for a year. Now that his strength had reached SS class, the sub-legendary weapon could no longer withstand the ultimate essence of the Heartflow, perhaps only a legendary weapon could.

Although he had been searching for new materials, he had not found anything suitable.

Legendary weapons were rare in the world due to the scarcity of materials, and he did not know how much longer the Asawakh sword could accompany him.

At that moment, a sense of unease surged in Leo’s heart. He had experienced his sword shattering many times before and had grown accustomed to it, but the situation felt different now.

As a swordsman, having a long-time companion sword suddenly develop a crack felt like breaking a bowl while eating; it was a bad omen.

He looked up at the blue sky and white clouds, a hint of confusion in his eyes, and then asked the old man, “What should I do if the sword breaks?”

“Indeed, you have fallen into this misunderstanding.”

After saying this, the old man pondered for a moment and said seriously, “The sword in hand can break, but the sword in the heart cannot break. Once the sword in the heart shatters, a person is finished. The core of our Heartflow swordsmanship lies in the heart; if there is a sword in the heart, there is nothing to fear. The sword in hand is merely a manifestation of the sword in the heart. What I often say about believing in the sword in your hand is not about believing in the sword itself, but in that sharp sword in your heart.”

Leo fell into deep thought; while it was easy to say, truly achieving this was quite difficult.

“Watch closely.”

The old man stepped forward, pulled a weed from the ground, and wielded it like a sharp sword. A dazzling sword light burst forth from the tip of the weed, slicing through the air and cleaving a nearby mountain in two.

To Leo’s surprise, the weed in the old man’s hand showed no signs of damage, remaining as fresh and green as before.

The old man casually tossed the weed aside and continued, “With a sword in the heart, anything can become a sword. I will only say this much; the rest depends on your own understanding.”

It was not that the old man was hiding his skills; relying on one’s own understanding would lead to a deeper mastery and a more profound impression, allowing for unique insights.

With a hint of realization, Leo felt as if a switch had been flipped, and numerous thoughts surged in his mind, but he could not grasp the core point, making it impossible to realize.

“Don’t rush; take your time,” the old man said.

“Mm.”

Leo nodded in response; he had gained so much in just a few days, making the trip worthwhile.

“By the way, old man, do you know about the profession of the Mind Sword Saint?”

Leo suddenly asked. After awakening, his strength had indeed seen a significant increase, and perhaps he could put effort into this area.

“Mind Sword Saint?” The old man shook his head. “This is the first time I’ve heard of it.”

“Then what is your profession, old man?” Leo asked curiously.

The old man raised an eyebrow and waved his hand. “What profession is not important. What you need to remember is that as a Heartflow swordsman, you cannot overly rely on your profession; the Heartflow is the source of all power.”

“I understand.”

Leo silently added in his heart that the old man must have awakened as an ordinary swordsman.

…

On this day, the imperial capital was crowded with people.

The streets were bustling with crowds, and soldiers were patrolling everywhere to maintain order.

The people had a look of devotion in their eyes as they hurried towards the church headquarters.

The nearby citizens also rushed over, and many from other cities who could not afford the cost of the magic teleportation array traveled great distances to the imperial capital just to witness the true appearance of the Chosen Saintess.

“Why are there so many people? I just want to see if the number one enemy, Michelle, can really become the Chosen Saintess.”

Krista was stuck in her carriage, unable to move an inch, surrounded by many other carriages, causing the road to be extremely congested.

Such a large-scale gathering caused an unimaginable commotion; this was the weight of the Chosen Saintess in the hearts of the imperial people.

This was the Chosen Saintess, who had saved the world time and again during times of crisis, bringing hope to the world and gradually accumulating prestige in the hearts of the people.

In the era of the Demon King’s emergence, the Chosen Saintess would still appear to save the world, even surpassing the prestige of the heroes.

Such events had occurred in history, where heroes fell in battle against the Demon King, and it was ultimately the Chosen Saintess who emerged to save the world and defeat the Demon King.

This outcome shattered people’s previous perceptions; besides the power of heroes, the Chosen Saintess also had ways to defeat the Demon King, further elevating her status.

To this day, the people firmly believed that as long as the Chosen Saintess was present, there was hope for the world, and they had nothing to fear.

Within the church, prominent figures from various famous branch churches arrived one after another to jointly hold this grand event.

The awakening ceremony of the Chosen Saintess was an internal matter of the church; aside from church members, even the emperor was not allowed to attend unless it was after the Chosen Saintess was born.

Therefore, the outside crowd could only watch from a distance, surrounding the church headquarters tightly.

The Holy Knights faithfully guarded various places within the church, preventing any blind spots.

In the spacious square, the path laid with a red carpet was flanked by two rows of neatly arranged Radiant Knights.

The square was filled with divine sounds, and white petals danced in the air.

One beautiful candidate saintess after another walked in succession, surrounded by nuns.

“Lady Selena! You must become the Chosen Saintess; we will always support you!”

A group of Selena’s supporters within the church shouted for her.

Selena smiled warmly and waved to her supporters.

“Lady Anoya! You must also do your best!”

Next was the black-haired candidate saintess, the second in line, and currently Selena’s strongest competitor.

Her gaze was indifferent, even slightly cold, seemingly oblivious to her supporters.

Following her were the third, fourth, and fifth candidates…

“Lady Judy!”

The fifth candidate saintess, Judy, politely nodded. She wore a slightly stiff smile, but it was well concealed, making it difficult for ordinary people to notice.

She felt a bit of a headache; after all, it was impossible for her to awaken as the Chosen Saintess, and she wished time would pass quickly.

Then, the last candidate saintess walked over gracefully.

Michelle placed her hands in front of her, her silver eyes opened, cold as the bright moon, her long silver hair cascading behind her, and her pure white holy robe seemed tailor-made for her, looking like a blooming pure white sacred flower.

She was stunningly beautiful, pure enough to cleanse the mundane world.

Her pure figure was not to be desecrated, exuding a dignified elegance with a sense of divine light. As she walked towards them, everyone seemed to see a true Chosen Saintess approaching in the sunlight.

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