Chapter 345: Against a Demi-god! Part-1.


    ?


    "Sigh, you have really put me in a great dilemma now..."


    Although he already knows what he will do, this decision has made him feelplicated in his heart.


    ''I can''t abandon my love for Lia, so I will obviously choose to redirect my path... but...''


    The main problem is that ''everything'' that Rio has done until now will be rendered useless if he does that.


    He stole opportunities, worked hard to be strong, went on my dungeon raids, and battled for a long time.


    If he decides to abandon his ''path'' now, then his powers will likely weaken ordingly, and worst-case scenario, he might lose the ''Imperfect Sword Heart'' or even ''Sword Intent''.


    Sword intent is Rio''s bread and butter; without it, he can still fight, but his abilities will be reduced to a level that is even lower than Lia''s.


    Rio will not be apetitor for Link, Liam, or even Lia anymore, as the three of them each have amazing abilities of their own.


    The rest of the group has also awakened their own legendary skills by now, but none of their skills are rted to a weapon in particr.


    Dao Rhythm, Mana Field, Divine Ascension, and Heart of Eternal Nirvana-each of them is rted to aw that isn''t focused on weapons.


    Those skills are more focused on versatility, support, and protection for the user.


    Only Rio''s ''Sword Intent'' is more focused on ''Attack'' rather than support.


    Sword intent itself is a very destructive power; its end point is to be so powerful and destructive that it can sever the strings of destiny and even the fabric of reality.


    The same is true for other weapon-type legendary skills. Spear Intent, Bow Flow, etc. There''s a legendary skill for even guns called ''Ranged Flow''.


    All weapon-type legendary skills are ''Destructive'' in nature, but as these skills are already extremely rare to begin with, none have really reached the level of mastery that Rio has now.


    You can say that if you need hundred percent mastery to reach perfection, then Rio has already crossed the fifty percent mark by now, while Link and the others haven''t even crossed the fifteen percent mark.


    Originally, Rio himself didn''t know the reason why his own mastery over ''Sword Intent'' was progressing so fast, but it turns out that the fact that he had been getting more emotionless has been boosting its improvement speed.


    The more emotionless a weapon is, the more perfectly it can wield such a ''destructive'' power in its grasp.


    However, ''Sword Intent'' is not the sole reason.


    Rio has already started to lose his emotions since the very first day he came to this world, which means something else is influencing it from the dark.


    First of all, Rio will have to abandon his imperfect sword heart, then he will need to abandon sword intent, then he will need to redirect his path.


    And finally, he would need to deal with that ''mysterious'' thing that started this strange phenomenon in the first ce.


    If Rio wants to live a happy life, he will basically need to abandon half of his power and throw all of his efforts in the garbage can.


    ''Ugh... No matter how I look at it, this seems so wrong...''


    After thinking for a long time, Rio finally came to a conclusion. He got up from his seat, and a rare, determined look appeared in his eyes as he nced at Fenix.


    "Okay, I have made up my mind; I have something very important to do... I have a goal that I must achieve! And before I achieve that goal, I can''t really go and live a happy life..."


    "So, I will first achieve that goal, and once I have no more need for this power, I will let it go..."


    Rio''s initial motivation to seize the protagonist''s opportunities and strive for strength was his desire to ''Survive'' the impending global cmity.


    Despite the fact that the novel he was reading was nearing its conclusion, it remained unfinished, and Rio never had the opportunity to read its final chapters because they were never written.


    Thus, Rio can''t be sure how the novel ended; I may have ended with a bad ending, and Rio doesn''t want to see that.


    It would be disastrous if that mysterious SSS-rank monster destroyed the entire.


    That monster has various skills that can only be countered by using legendary skills. Although sword intent and other skills are more like a burden to him, Rio has no other choice right now.


    He can''t leave the fate of this world in the hands of people like ''Fade''; if he wants to create a safe ce, he can do so by himself.


    ''I need to be strong... My own emotions won''t matter if I can''t protect her from the cmity... It''s better to be emotionless than to see her die in front of me...''


    Thatst boss was the one who Killed Lia in the original novel, and that being is an SSS ranker, a being that can even ''see'' the strings of destiny and if he figured out some problems.


    He might even target those who were ''saved'' or ''redeemed'' by Rio from their original fate.


    For Rio, the choice is simple: he would rather lose himself and protect Lia than lose her to earn his emotions back.


    If he''s weak, he can''t protect her, so the answer is simple.


    "I will try to keep my ''Sword Intent'' mastery to ''Ny-nine'' percent; that way, it won''t


    reach perfection... This is my solution..."


    Fenix smiled at Rio''s words and got up from his seat, too.


    He nodded his head and said,


    "I have to acknowledge it, Rio; you really have great determination... to think you would not hesitate to even sacrifice your own emotions for your goal, you have earned my respect..."


    "As I thought, there is no one in the world who can reach ''perfect'' sword intent except you... Only someone as determined as you is worthy of reaching it; that is, if you want to, of


    course..."


    Fenix put his hands behind his back and smiled at Rio before saying,


    "It was great talking to you... This is the first time I have had such a long conversation with someone in the past hundred years.


    "But we are pressed on time; this whole graveyard has a massive spell ced on it... To preserve the corpses of the dead dragons for as long as possible, this spell was ced to slow down the time in this ce..."


    "For us, less than an hour has passed, but outside, two days might have passed by now... So let''s not dilly-dally anymore... I only have one participant here to evaluate, so I would like to


    take my time with it..."


    Fenix stretched out his hand and said,


    "Are you ready for the test then?"


    Rio brought out his sword and nodded his head, his expression returned to the usual expressionlessness, and his aura condensed in an instant.


    "I am always ready for a good fight..."


    Fenix flew in the air and waved his hand as he heard Rio''s words.


    [World Authority: Heavens Dome!]


    Fenix raised his right hand and pointed his finger towards the sky.


    As if heaven and earth had changed masters, everything in a hundred kilometers of area


    became Fenix''s ''Territory''.


    The sky turned silver, and everything in the area seemed to be under Fenix control at that


    moment.


    Fenix''s expression turned serious as he nced at Rio and said,


    "My world authority is to create a ''territory'' with various properties andws in it... This one


    in particr lets me control any and every element there is in the world..."


    "I have purposely reduced the size of my ''Territory'' or ''Domain'' to the lowest and weakest; it won''t affect you with any other effects..."


    Fenix waved to his right, and the ground began to rumble. The sand, the stones, and the moisture in the air-Fenix used them all to create a massive golem the size of a ten-story


    building.


    In front of that golem, Rio looked like an ant.


    "All you need to do is defeat this golem, and you can pass the test. The more easily you beat


    it, the higher the evaluation... I have great hopes for you, ''Champion''; do your best."


    Rio remained silent all along, but his eyes were shining in excitement.


    This is the first time he has personally felt the power of an SS-rankers ''Authority''.


    Just by pointing his finger towards the sky, Fenix changed the color of the sky as if he were


    dering to the world that,


    "From now on, this is my territory, and the sky here shall be silver."


    Fenix didn''t say a single word, yet Rio could feel the insane arrogance of a demi-god just by


    his actions.


    Fenix''s actions alone were domineering enough; he raised his finger against the heavens and dered that this small area of a hundred kilometers was ''His'' and the world had to acknowledge it due to his ''World Authority''.


    He basically seized ownership of a small part of the ''world'' itself; if this isn''t arrogant and domineering enough, then what else is?


    ...


    Author''s Notes.


    Yo! It''s your beloved author here!


    Finally, we got to see an SS-ranker use a tiny bit of their true power, and even this much is


    already overwhelming. As stated earlier, SS-rankers are literal ''Demi-gods''...


    Question of the day:.


    What type of ''World Authority'' would you like to have?


    (Tell me in thements)


    By the way, don''t forget to use those power stones!!