Chapter 219: The Heart of a King

In his room in Port Leyton, Donald closed his eyes in deep thought.
Since returning from the outskirts, he had not rested at all, constantly pondering his earlier discoveries.
With his current strength, Donald would not feel tired even if he stayed awake for three days and nights. An ordinary mage might suffer from exhaustion, but with his divine bloodline from divine artifacts and that of high elves, he was far beyond ordinary humans—his physical strength was incomparable to that of ordinary people. Perhaps only a Golden Sword Saint could possess such a physique.
What kind of sword spirit should he cultivate?
A storm like that of Marquis Ansel? Or ice, fire? These were all sword spirits related to elemental laws, which Donald felt were not very suitable for him.
A branch of time domains like those in Nozdormu? Or powerful sword spirits related to higher laws such as space and soul?
Yet he had no profound understanding of these areas, so he needed to think of other possibilities.
In his consciousness space, Donald’s soul projection’s thoughts wandered, gradually bringing back memories of his past life.
In ancient times, the sword was a symbol of a gentleman. Ordinary warriors mostly used knives and axes, and only those who could carry a sword were above ordinary people—usually officials or nobles of at least the warrior class. The idea that everyone in the martial world carried swords, as depicted in some novels, was nonsense. Throughout history, weapons were strictly controlled, especially since swordsmiths were usually employed by the government, with few master craftsmen remaining among the common people. Only the swordsmen who defied government control, passed down from ancient knights, would travel the world with swords.
In his past life, there were many famous swords, such as the Sword of Goujian of Yue, the sword worn by the First Emperor, and the Iron Sword from the Qin Tombs—all of which remained uncorroded for thousands of years and could still cut through gold and jade. Although he had never seen these swords in person in his past life, he had seen news photos of them on television and the internet.
There were also legendary swords like the Eight Swords of Yue and the Ten Famous Swords.
For example, the Fish Intestine Sword, used by Zhuan Zhu to assassinate King Liao, was a sword of ultimate bravery, representing the courage to forge ahead without hesitation, even at the cost of one’s life. It symbolized determination and audacity to act despite knowing certain death.
Then there were the legendary Ganjiang and Moye twin swords, swords of deep love, embodying the profound and unwavering affection between a swordsmith couple. Donald questioned whether he could ever achieve such selfless love that would drive one to sacrifice one’s life.
All these were legendary masterpieces, but the most famous and memorable sword in Donald’s mind was, of course, the legendary Xuanyuan Sword.

Legend has it that the red copper from Mount Cai was forged by the gods to create the sword for the human emperor Xuanyuan. One side of the sword blade was engraved with the sun, moon, and stars, while the other side depicted mountains, rivers, plants, and trees. One side of the hilt contained teachings on farming and animal husbandry, while the other held strategies for unifying the lands. It was a sword of kings, of nature, and of humanity.

At the thought of this sacred sword, Donald felt excitement surge within him, and easily formed the mindset of a supreme ruler who could govern and enlighten the people. This mindset also included anger and frustration toward humanity’s past actions, such as deforestation and industrial development, which had caused severe environmental pollution.

Donald controlled his mental energy to shape this mindset into the form of a magnificent one-handed sword, with the sun, moon, and stars on one side and mountains, rivers, plants, and trees on the other. Once the sword’s essence was formed, Donald whimsically ordered the Book of Truth to infuse some of the faith energy from his subjects into it. Unexpectedly, that faith energy actively merged with the imaginary sword formed by this mindset. Moreover, after sensing the meaning of the Xuanyuan Sacred Sword as envisioned by Donald, the patterns of the sun, moon, stars, and mountains, rivers, plants, and trees on the sword began to emit a strange glow.

“Is this acceptable?” Donald, being a lord who could easily cultivate a mindset akin to that of a king, found it straightforward. With his high elven bloodline, he also had an affinity for the will of nature that humans could not match. However, influenced by the principles of the Hunter he served, what should have been a vibrant and harmonious natural will now turned into a vengeful will to punish those who destroyed nature.

Donald quickly conducted some calculations in the Book of Truth and came to a surprising conclusion.

“I’ll call it the Heart of a King! Haha!”

It turned out that the sword’s essence, formed from Donald’s kingly will combined with the admiration of his subjects and the will of nature, matched the attributes of a king as defined by the world’s human laws, spontaneously creating something akin to a domain. However, with so few people in his domain, this mindset was still in its infancy and lacked significant power. Yet, it had the potential to evolve into a divine role such as that of a king or ruler. In other words, if Donald had enough strength now, he might be able to ignite divine flames, forge a divine status, and become a true deity.

This was truly unexpected. But thinking about the troubles of ruling a country, and considering their aging king in Celt, Donald felt reluctant to go through the hassle. Given his naturally lazy disposition, he also had no intention of establishing a kingdom.

The concept of natural will among them is indeed much stronger than that of the will of kings, but in terms of human laws, this aspect is merely supplementary and cannot fully bear such a powerful will of natural retribution; otherwise, the Heart of Kings would have to be renamed the Heart of Nature.
“If one wants to cultivate a divine ministry, there are many paths to choose from—why pick the most arduous one with relatively modest rewards?” Through the Book of Truth and the knowledge he inherited from divinity, Donald had already begun to realize that divine ministries based on natural laws were far more powerful than those based on human principles, and they were also subject to fewer restrictions from believers.
Although he had not yet reached such a profound level, Donald believed that once he had the strength, relying on the Book of Truth, he could achieve accomplishments that others could not.
If those demi-god warriors who struggled to comprehend divine ministries learned that this guy had given up such a great opportunity right in front of him, they would surely try to seize it all for themselves and strangle this wretched man who lived in wealth while ignoring others’ hardships.
In his mental world, the Heart of Kings—a sword still quite illusory—hung before the soul pillar, emitting a faint sacred light that seemed to breathe in harmony with his soul. With each breath, a small portion of his soul was touched by that sacred radiance born of the will of kings, carrying the aura of ruling over all and the desires of the people. That small portion of his soul then underwent a qualitative transformation, evolving into a more powerful soul particle.
Though this change was very subtle, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, and far too minor compared to the towering soul pillar, its advantage lay in persistence. If he could endure long enough to bring about a transformation in his entire soul essence, Donald estimated his soul would become at least ten times stronger.
Therefore, he was genuinely delighted by this transformation. With his current abundant divine energy reserves, Donald ordered the Book of Truth to channel all the remaining faith energy gathered outside his body into this illusory sword of will. Instantly, the brilliance of the Heart of Kings grew even stronger, and its ability to transform the soul pillar accelerated slightly.
Apart from meditation, a practice that required long-term accumulation, Donald had always lacked methods to strengthen his soul. His current level was the result of multiple upgrades.

“The benefits brought by the Sword Intent of the Heart of a King are immeasurable today. Once fully transformed, with my soul power possessing both the strong cohesion of a Sword Saint’s Sword Intent and the profound strength of a Archmage’s power, achieving perfect mastery of both magic and swordsmanship, I would be almost invincible among those of my rank, and challenging those above me would no longer be difficult.”

Before long, dawn broke. Donald, who had spent most of the night immersed in the world of consciousness, stepped out of his room full of energy. Before he even had time for breakfast, he saw a tall figure standing in the courtyard.

“Good morning, Lady Abel!”

The female Sword Saint nodded and suddenly drew her sword, which resembled a thin sheet of iron. Having studied the theories Donald had explained all night, she had clearly gained a lot, so she came to him right away to test them out. It wasn’t that she didn’t have others to test against—whenever she called out, those who wanted to spar with her could line up from the city lord’s mansion all the way to the port. Even Silver Sword Masters would set aside their pride at the chance to see the skills of the Golden Sword Saint.

However, since these theories were all put forward by Donald, it wasn’t appropriate to reveal them to others. That’s why she continued to spar with Donald. Moreover, from yesterday’s fight, she had realized that Donald’s understanding of swordsmanship was on par with that of an ordinary Silver Sword Master, making him the most suitable sparring partner in Port Leyton.

“You’re back?”

Donald felt a bit helpless, but he didn’t delay. It was good to stretch his limbs early in the morning anyway. So, unusually, he didn’t choose the Moonblade of a Hunter but instead took out an ordinary one-handed steel sword. Without any fancy moves, he charged straight at the female Sword Saint.

As the sword wind approached, the female Sword Saint reacted swiftly, blocking his attack with a precise strike.

“Huh?”

After just one exchange, she noticed a faint aura around her opponent, along with a noble Sword Intent that was truly regal. This was a style of swordsmanship and intent she had never seen even after challenging many masters across the northern lands and the southern continent.

“Good! Let’s do it again!”

Saying this, the female Sword Saint pressed forward again. If it had been yesterday, Donald might have used his Hunter’s agile steps and flexible movements to dodge her attacks. But now, having embraced the Heart of a King and understood the Sword Intent, he was eager to face her head-on and fight fairly.

As Donald and the female Sword Saint clashed fiercely, Count Leyton and others who had rushed over upon hearing the news were stunned by the scene of swords flashing in the courtyard.

“Is this still a mage?”

Lord of the Garrison, Laint, muttered to himself with a blank gaze. To be able to fight head-on against a Golden Sword Saint skilled in swordsmanship—seemingly at a disadvantage yet showing no signs of defeat—was a level of skill even he, a seasoned silver-ranked swordsman who had reached that rank nearly a decade ago, could not achieve. Seeing more and more people gathering outside the courtyard, the female Sword Saint lost interest in continuing the spar. After forcing Donald back with a single move, she sheathed her sword and stopped. Donald’s one-handed sword also disappeared, and though he was breathing heavily, his eyes were filled with excitement. “Thank you, Lady Abel, for your guidance!” After fighting the female Sword Saint twice, Donald had gained more knowledge than in years of his own practice. His scattered combat experience had now formed a systematic swordsmanship style—both the dignity and grandeur of his sword use and the elegance and danger of his Moonblade had reached the level of an experienced silver-ranked swordsman. Moreover, combining the straightforward swordsmanship with the unconventional Moonblade complemented each other perfectly; all that was lacking was mastery. Once he could understand and apply the underlying principles of power in swordsmanship, he would immediately become a Golden Sword Saint. “It’s your own talent. I merely helped you discover it a bit earlier.” With that, the female Sword Saint nodded at the people outside and left on her own to process what she had learned. The crowd outside the courtyard now came over to greet Donald. Everyone, including silver-ranked swordsman Laint, looked at Donald with admiration in their eyes. Count Leighton, who was already allied with Dalaran, gazed at this genius with growing enthusiasm. Being stared at in such a way by a middle-aged man, even if Donald had thick skin, he couldn’t bear it and tried to use breakfast as an excuse to get away. However, the news brought by Count Leighton left him with no excuse—it seemed he wouldn’t be able to have breakfast today.