Chapter 013: The Battle of Sacred Grades

Boom—
A deafening roar, as if capable of tearing apart heaven and earth, erupted at the point where the Blood Rose met the giant sword. A flash of golden light burst forth, followed by a gust of wind that seemed to sweep away all the dust in the area…
Francis felt a violent tremor through the Blood Rose in his hand. He couldn’t help but take a step back, but his foot crushed the ground behind him, demonstrating the immense power of that strike!
Yet before Francis could recover, the Holy Flame Warrior didn’t give him even a moment’s rest. After finishing its strike, it swung its giant sword horizontally toward Francis.
Francis grunted. There was no time to change his fighting style, so he used the Blood Rose to block it. With a clang, the Blood Rose was sent flying, and it seemed the Holy Flame Warrior’s sword would slice Francis in two!
But Francis’s expression suddenly changed. With a fierce cry, his gray combat energy surged into the air. The Blood Rose, now displaced, twisted at an incredible angle and charged back at the warrior’s sword.
Under the moonlight, the Blood Rose emitted a faint blood-red glow, rushing like a wave of blood toward the Holy Flame Warrior.
The warrior seemed to sense Francis’s fighting spirit as well. It roared, its sacred flames intensifying. Then came a series of clanging sounds—both sides had clashed countless times in that spot.
Prince Fischer had put on the Guardian of the Holy Angel again. He sat weakly on the ground, breathing heavily, watching everything unfold. Around him was a faint white light—emitting from the Guardian of the Holy Angel, protecting him. Thus, despite being so close to the battle between these two supreme warriors, Prince Fischer remained unharmed.
The Guardian of the Holy Angel was said to be a divine artifact combining offense and defense. Its offense came from the Holy Flame Warrior summoned from the ring, while its defense was the faint glow surrounding Prince Fischer!
In Prince Fischer’s eyes, countless bursts of combat energy and flames exploded in the air. The figures of both warriors disappeared and reappeared countless times!
This was the battle of the continent’s greatest warriors—a spectacle ordinary people didn’t even deserve to witness!
Boom—

Another loud explosion echoed, and the vanished figure reappeared in Prince Fischer’s sight. Francis had somehow switched to wielding a sword in both hands, his blood-red rose pressed against the giant sword of the Holy Flame Warrior, his expression dark and grim!

The Holy Flame Warrior, like a machine devoted solely to war, abruptly pulled back its descending sword and stepped back instantly. But soon, it rushed at Francis again like a meteor, its sword now almost a ball of fire, aimed straight at him!

Francis’s expression changed drastically. He could no longer hide it—his gray combat energy suddenly transformed, giving way to a burst of golden light! This was the hallmark of the Sacred Rank: Sacred Combat Energy!

Francis’s combat energy, pale yellow like gold, had completely transformed since its emergence. His aura had shifted dramatically; previously suppressed by the Holy Flame Warrior, it now seemed as if he were a different person. With this Sacred Combat Energy, his blood-red rose also took on a golden hue, and the dragon eye on the hilt seemed to come to life!

A flame ignited on the blood-red rose without any wind, like immortal blood, charging headlong toward the ball of fire in the Holy Flame Warrior’s hand!

A deafening roar of a dragon rang out, causing pain in everyone’s ears, as if their hearts might stop beating!

Boom—

Several massive cracks appeared on the ground. The trees around them didn’t even have time to fly into the air before turning to dust. In less than a moment, within dozens of meters, the only one left alive between the two sides was Prince Fischer.

Sitting on the ground, he watched from afar as both sides were forced to retreat under such force. A serious look flashed in his eyes as he sighed at Francis and said, “I was completely right! Your Highness Francis, it turns out you’ve already surpassed the Sacred Rank! You’ve reached the level of the legendary Sacred Warrior! But… it’s useless!”

At these words, madness flashed in Prince Fischer’s eyes. “Do you know what the Sacred Angel Guardian is? It’s a divine artifact crafted from the blood and divine will of the warrior angels who fight in the heavens. The Holy Flame Warriors summoned by the Sacred Angel Guardian not only possess the combat instincts of warrior angels but, most importantly… they are also of the Sacred Rank!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the Holy Flame Warrior roared, and a stream of golden combat energy surged into the sky. The dragon-like roars coming from the blood-red rose in Francis’s hands seemed to weaken under this surge of combat energy!
The flames that once enveloped the Holy Flame Warrior’s entire body had completely extinguished, replaced by waves of burning golden combat energy—Saintly Combat Energy!!!
Francis was shocked and couldn’t help but exclaim, “Impossible! How could a magical creature be of the Saint rank?”
Prince Fischer laughed heartily and said, “Lord Francis, there is nothing impossible in this world! Look! You are of the Saint rank! It is also of the Saint rank! So now, what chance do you have of taking my life?”
Francis’s expression changed rapidly, but eventually he calmed down quickly. His hands clenched tightly around the blood-red rose. After a moment, this supreme warrior of the continent smiled faintly and said, “Even if it’s of the Saint rank, a magical creature is still just a magical creature!”
With that, Francis raised the blood-red rose in his hand. He glanced briefly in the direction of Prince Fischer and said softly, “Your Highness, I must thank you… Ever since I reached the Saint rank all these years, I’ve been searching for a worthy opponent without success! But who would have thought that while completing this task that meant nothing to me, I would encounter a being of the Saint rank! Although… it’s just a magical creature! But after all, a Saint rank is still a Saint rank! So, Prince Fischer! Watch well! This is what a true battle between Saint-rank warriors looks like!”
As he spoke, an astonishing killing intent spread throughout Francis’s body. He no longer glanced at Prince Fischer but focused on the Holy Flame Warrior before him. Although Francis’s Saintly Combat Energy seemed weaker than before, Prince Fischer frowned slightly, as if… it was only from this moment that this supreme warrior of the continent was ready to show his true strength!
The cool spring breeze brought a chilling aura to the scene! A sense of desolation and menace rose into the sky and spread across the battlefield!
Insects and rodents kept emerging from the ground. Those creatures that had narrowly escaped the battle between the two powerful warriors seemed to sense the approaching doom, becoming restless and agitated. There were no bird songs, no insect chirps, no animal noises in the surrounding forest…
Everything was gone! All that remained was an empty space filled with killing intent!

The Holy Flame Warrior seemed to sense Francis’s fighting spirit as well; he roared toward the sky, raising his massive sword high! Francis bent his legs slightly and quickly assumed the perfect stance for drawing his sword. Then, in a flash, he rushed at the Holy Flame Warrior like a meteor, his sword following closely behind—Blood Rose slashing toward the Holy Flame Warrior! The Holy Flame Warrior also gripped his massive sword with both hands, his sword radiating the same Sacred Fighting Energy as Francis’s, and he charged fiercely at Francis! Soon, two golden beams of light collided! Once, twice, three times… The intense collisions were countless times more violent than before, with waves of energy being pushed out before being overturned by the force of the clashes. The ground around them became pitted and uneven, as if struck by lightning! Then a gust of powerful energy swept across the ground, turning everything that could be lifted into powder in an instant! Prince Fisher, who was watching from the ground, grew pale. He realized that aside from the area where he sat, untouched by the protection of the Holy Angels, almost everything else around him had been devastated by the battle! Under the glow of their golden Sacred Fighting Energies, the stars and moon in the sky lost all their brightness! Finally, the two clashed again with tremendous force! A dragon’s roar echoed from Blood Rose, while a flame erupted from the massive sword! Their swords separated upon contact—this time without even a sound—but a deep crack appeared in the ground where the swords met. Even the clouds in the sky seemed to split in two! Francis grunted in pain and stepped back several times. With each step he took, the ground shattered beneath his feet! Yet even so, his cold eyes still burned with fierce fighting spirit. He took a deep breath suddenly, causing Blood Rose to glow with burning red light. Then, Francis swung it seven or eight times in a row, sending giant blades of flame rushing toward the Holy Flame Warrior!