Martial Ascent to Divinity

The last six Martial Saints of the Dragon Country conceded, and all the blood moons of the human lower ten emperors’ battlefield hovered above Zhou Leng’s head.

"You all..."

Zhu Shiji said, "You’re more suited than I am to be the new lower emperor."

All the Martial Saints nodded in agreement.

Zhou Leng cupped his fists and accepted the honor.

The blood moons exploded, and a crown descended from the heavens.

A new lower emperor was born.

The Divine Power Crown transformed into vast star power, enveloping Zhou Leng completely.

Zhu Shiji and the other Martial Saints looked at Zhou Leng, some relieved, some puzzled.

"Brother Shiji, Zhou Leng’s strength seems a bit too powerful, his punching power has already reached the level of a mid-level Martial Saint."

"His speed is off too, it’s too fast."

"To kill a Martial Saint as if slaughtering pigs and dogs."

"Even slaughtering pigs requires binding a rope..."

Zhu Shiji smiled and said, "I don’t know either, but I do know he’s the new emperor of humanity."

The rest of the lower Martial Saints nodded gently, this level of power had surpassed everyone’s understanding.

"How do you think he compares to Saint Zhao..."

Zhu Shiji sighed and said, "Saint Zhao, at the same age, hadn’t reached Martial Saint yet."

The other Martial Saints looked at Zhou Leng, the light of star power becoming brighter in their eyes.

"Since that’s the case, we should activate the special protection plan."

"We should also implement the hero plan to reshape Zhou Leng’s image..."

"Unfortunately, we’ve lagged behind the alien race." Zhu Shiji said softly, his tone filled with undisguisable regret.

After Zhou Leng finished absorbing the star power, the human ten emperors’ battle officially concluded.

As there were still other ten emperors’ battles unfinished, and it hadn’t reached the tenth day, the Ascension Divinity Ladder showed no changes.

Soon, a piece of news circulated on the internet.

"All lower Martial Saints of the Demon Worship Sect perished in the ten emperors’ battle."

Theoretically, such information would be banned and deleted, but it boldly appeared on hot searches on various websites.

Websites and relevant authorities surprisingly did nothing.

Soon, various news was flying everywhere.

Whether the internal or external internet, it spread like a virus.

Especially in some small countries, they only had one Martial Saint, and they refused to believe his death.

The next day, all phones in the Dragon Country received an official text message.

"The Ministry of Rites awards Martial Saint Zhou Leng the title of ’Martial Arts Model,’ praising his heroic deeds in the ten emperors’ battle, and calls upon the nation to learn from him."

This announcement sparked a heated discussion online.

Soon someone posted a balanced opinion on Martial Arts Forum, making everyone excited.

"Although relevant information has always been blocked, based on the patterns I’ve observed: if we lose, and the outside wins, there will be a massive propaganda by external media, exacerbating internal pressure."

"If it ends in a draw, the outside claims a great victory while we remain silent."

"If we have a narrow win, both sides handle it low-key."

"If we have a big victory, the outside stays silent, and the nation receives congratulatory messages."

"So..."

Someone replied below.

"Got it, just like historical records, losses are extensively documented, victories are mentioned briefly."

"Maybe it’s just a commendation for the newly promoted Martial Saint?"

"Let’s wait for another two days..."

Two days later, the Ascension Divinity Ladder shone brightly.

All beings of the Ten Realms looked up.

The Beastman World.

The Beastman demigod looked grim.

They knew something had happened; their new emperor was stolen, yet they still harbored a hint of hope, wishing the culprit were a beastman.

Because their beastman brains, after days of contemplating, couldn’t fathom who did it.

Ultimately, they concluded that the Blood of Tyranny was the most suspicious.

Demon Purgatory, the first layer of the Endless Battlefield.

Inside the Ten Thousand Demon Fortress, the Demon Demigods watched the sky.

Demon Prison Angels, among others, dark-faced, their new and lower demigods suffered heavy losses.

Not only did they gain nothing, but they also lost thousands of demigods.

On the other hand, the Demon Dragon demigods were smiling, their tails continuously wagging.

They were sure that Tiamat would inevitably ascend the ladder soon.

With a flash of divine light, new emperors from various realms appeared as lower demigods on the Ascension Divinity Ladder.

Dragon Race, Red Dragon Red Eyes.

Giants, Golden Giant Golden Root.

Demon Spirit Master, Scorching Wind.

Steel Dwarves, Shining Steel Armor.

Sea Siren, Deep Blue Understream.

Human, Zhou Leng.

"Hmm?"

All Demon Dragons’ heads swayed left and right, scanning the third tier of the Ascension Divinity Ladder.

Just six, not one extra.

All Demon Dragon demigods fell silent.

Demon Prison Angel Demigods started "whispering" among themselves.

"Strange, why are there only six?"

"The Fierce Beast World was removed, everyone knows the reason: their bloodlines are too strong, not considered a complete elementary civilization. Similar incidents have occurred before; they didn’t participate in our Ten Realms’ trials but were instead arranged to battle against intermediate civilizations from the Otherworld..."

"But how come the Demon Dragon Race didn’t become new emperors?"

"Got it, that member of the Demon Dragon Race, Tiamat, possesses the Dragon God’s bloodline, too high a level, wasn’t included."

"Exactly, exactly..."

Listening to the sarcastic remarks of the Demon Prison Angels, the Demon Dragons were fuming with anger.

They contacted the higher-ranking demigods from the Demon Dragon Race, but none knew Tiamat, not even the Demon Dragon Race’s lord, Molten Rock Emperor, knew of him.

Eventually, a Desecration Demon Scripture demigod slowly spoke, "You’ve heard about the Beastman’s incident, haven’t you?"

All demigods nodded.

"Successive two Beastman emperors disappeared, making them suspect that their emperor was stolen. Across the Ten Realms, only the Blood of Tyranny could do it, yet Zhou Leng is closely related to the Blood of Tyranny. They suspect might he have entered the ten emperors’ battlefield to kill, but his rank is too high to obtain emperorhood, so he handed it over to Zhou Leng?"

"Nonsense."

"Although I also want to kill the Blood of Tyranny, how could a beastman’s dog brain comprehend it, it’s pure slander."

"Alright, now the problem is, assuming our demon’s two new emperors were also stolen, who do you think above has the highest suspicion?"

The demigods gazed at the Ascension Divinity Ladder for a long time, then a Demon Dragon suddenly spoke, "It must be Red Eyes, she was famously one of the four notorious ones back then."

In his heart, he thought, we can’t admit Zhou Leng after all, he possesses the Dragon God’s battle technique, and wait, Tiamat seems to too...

"It could also be the Demon Spirit Masters; their Demon Spirit Techniques are too strong, even if we demons attack collectively, it might end in mutual destruction. During the Battle of Ten Thousand Cores, they exerted substantial power."

"Is there a possibility the Beastmen were correct, related to Zhou Leng?"

"Do you trust a beastman’s brain or a demon’s brain?"

"Either way, we can’t leave it unchecked. The upcoming middle-level battle must have all teleportation arrays sealed, identity must be verified for entry. Also, block all external passages, have multiple peak demigods oversee personally."

"I agree! The position of the middle-level new emperor must not be stolen again."

"Send a message to the Dragon Race, tell Red Eyes to behave."

The demon demigods’ hearts grew increasingly heavy.

Things were veering in a direction they couldn’t predict.

The massive losses of new and lower demigods occurring just before the Ten Realms’ battle was more than just a matter of morale.

It meant major forces in Demon Purgatory might adopt conservative strategies for their own benefits, no longer cooperating fully as before.

The timing of the Ten Realms’ battle was likely to be delayed for a long time, resulting in unforeseen changes.

Not to mention, they constantly worried humanity and Demon Spirit Masters might create something akin to a terrifying self-destructive force similar to the simultaneous nuclear explosion.