Chapter 1638: Supreme Ninth-Grade!

As Jiang Qing'e nestled in Li Luo's embrace, her cheek glued to his chest, her lips curled up in a faint smile when she heard his joke. She looked up with her brilliant eyes to inspect his youthful features from up close.

The duo had grown up together and were true childhood sweethearts. They had fought and competed against each other time and time again, with Li Luo being defeated on every occasion. After all, she was a little older than him.

When they were much younger, Li Luo often spouted determined, even harsh words, declaring that he would one day surpass her. Every time that happened, Li Taixuan and Tantai Lan would merely chuckle at their child's bold dream. Unknowingly, that boy had grown up and even started to bully her. More importantly, he had finally achieved his goal.

Li Luo's handsome face was reflected in Jiang Qing'e's bright eyes, which now brimmed with warmth and appreciation. She let him hold her, her slender body curling up in his arms.

"You're pretty amazing, Li Luo," she said gently.

As she had long grown familiar with his personality, she knew precisely what he wanted to hear. This was something he deserved after working hard year after year, so she simply basked in the moment with him.

These simple words caused Li Luo's body to tremble slightly. He felt incomparably pleased from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, almost wanting to cheer out in satisfaction. This was the moment he had been dreaming about. The proud and outstanding white swan was now obediently snuggling up to him, praising him.

He held the beauty in his arms even tighter and said in a deep voice, "You need to say that to me every single day before you break into the Transcendent Duke Stage, alright?"

Jiang Qing'e was infuriated to the point that she was amused. She had given him an inch and he had asked for a mile. She narrowed her eyes slightly, giving off a dangerous aura.

Li Luo coughed dryly and righteously replied, "I'm just pushing you so you can advance into the Transcendent Duke Stage earlier."

She rolled her eyes and then revealed a charming expression. "Why don't you deal with the Saturnine Hydra Devil King before you start thinking about that."

Oh? She didn't actually reject it? His eyes blazed with motivation and he finally put Jiang Qing'e down. Then he took a step forward and stood before her. After which, his gaze turned cold and he glared at the Devil King.

The Saturnine Hydra Devil King's five Devil Heads were still burning away, their dusky eyes glaring back with evil light. It was clear that its emotions were fluctuating as corruption source origin filled the world, transforming into black abysses. After all, Li Luo had managed to make a breakthrough right beneath its nose, essentially slapping it on the face.

Do you think a puny seventh-grade Transcendent Duke will be able to turn things around?" the Devil King boomed gloomily.

With only five Devil Heads, it was at the level of a Dual Crowned King. A Transcendent Duke, strictly speaking, was equivalent to a Single Crowned King. Even with Li Luo's robust foundation and the Absolute Resonance Seed, he was at most at the peak of the Single Crowned King Stage, not that much stronger than Pang Qianyuan.

The other Kings stepped forward, planning to join hands with Li Luo to take down the enemy. But before they could make a move, the Saturnine Hydra Devil King's voice rumbled.

"Devil's Furnace of Inevitability, Great Devil Prison!"

The void around Pang Qianyuan and the other two shattered. Endless waves of ash tumbled out of the void and swallowed them up. The King trio had vanished into thin air.

Li Luo's eyes narrowed as he stared at the five Devil Heads. Each of the three Kings had appeared inside a head. The Devil King's Heads had turned into cages.

The dusky flames covering the heads started to rage, invading Pang Qianyuan and the other two's bodies. The trio's expressions changed and they roused their Crowns, summoning large amounts of source origin energy to form barriers in an attempt to resist.

"Do you think that the Devil's Inevitable Ashes can be dealt with that easily?"

It had trapped the three of them in one fell swoop. It then turned towards Li Luo.

"Did you think that you'd be able to join hands with them and defeat me once you became a true Transcendent Duke ? Were you under the assumption that I had no way to deal with you? Now that they're imprisoned, what can you, a puny Transcendent Duke, do to turn the tides?"

The sudden change had caused Li Luo's expression to turn solemn. As expected of an existence at the peak of the Triple Crowned King Stage. Even with just a portion of its power, it could easily deal with three Kings!

It seemed that the ashes that had been raining down had not only eroded the power of the Kings, they had also allowed some sort of mark from the Devil King to infiltrate their bodies. The marks must have activated when the conditions were met, resulting in them being trapped.

Triple Crowned Kings did possess miraculous methods to deal with their opponents.

Li Luo now had to face the Saturnine Hydra Devil King alone.

The people in Xia City watched with concern. Li Luo's breakthrough had brought them hope and joy momentarily, but all of that had evaporated.

Ultimately, he was only at the Single Crowned King Stage and his allies were unable to help him. How was Li Luo going to handle a Dual Crowned King alone?

Despite the overwhelming odds, Li Luo remained steadfast and stoic. Yes, the opponent was terrifying, but he wasn't an ordinary Transcendent Duke either. A fierce battle was to be expected.

Fortunately, he had already made plans.

He exhaled heavily, held up his hand, and brought out the Dragon Bone Holy Grail. A moment later, a heaven-shaking roar was heard as vast amounts of energy poured out and entered his body.

The Heavenly Dragon Formation of the Five Guardian Armies was being activated.

In the past, he felt a heavy sense of pressure due to how mighty the energy was. However, now that he had been elevated into a new stage, things had changed.

The energy moved lithely with just a thought, easily being manipulated and wielded as he pleased.

The formation could now be controlled at will.

Weng!

Adding on the Heavenly Dragon Formation's power caused the Transcendent Heavenly Throne above him to roar. Vast amounts of source origin energy poured out of it like a tidal wave, causing an immense pressure to bear down upon the heavens and the earth.

The amount of power in Li Luo's hands had surpassed the limit of the Single Crowned King Stage and was approaching the Dual Crowned King Stage.

That wasn't everything that he had up sleeve. Li Luo closed his eyes, and the Absolute Resonance Halo appeared behind him. The wheel now radiated an aura of perfection and the ten esoteric Divine Seals were like shining stars, overflowing with magical light.

"All resonances, combine as one!"

Li Luo declared in his heart.

The eight resonances then let out a clear ring as source origin gushed out, fusing into the Absolute Resonance Halo.

Upper ninth-grade Heavenly Thunder Dragon resonance!

Upper ninth-grade ice crystal resonance!

Middle ninth-grade, waterlight resonance!

Middle ninth-grade woodearth resonance!

The ten Divine Seals also began to emit wisps of Celestial Smoke that contained countless seals, each condensed from source origin.

The Celestial Smoke enveloped the eight types of resonance source origins, merging them into a flawless whole.

The Absolute Resonance Halo then emitted a mystical rumble. At the same time, the sounds of tidal waves rumbled as a deluge of worldly natural energy surged, transforming into a grand, raging river that stretched for tens of thousands of miles. The river was swallowed up by the Absolute Resonance Halo completely.

Everyone could sense an indescribable oppression gradually weighing them down. The pressure seemed capable of overriding everything and anything. Even the heavens and the earth were trembling in its presence. The will of all worldly creatures had to obey it.

The Devil King was the first to sense this change. Its ten eyes jumped wildly within their sockets, revealing how shaken it was. It was not unfamiliar with this sensation.

It concentrated its gaze on Li Luo's forehead.

Li Luo's Apex Resonance Crystal Core was melting away. After a few short moments, the crystal that represented his upper ninth-grade resonance had completely melted away.

An obscure and mysterious lotus rune appeared in its place, and in its center was yet another rune. The second rune depicted a primordial tree slowly taking root, spreading its branches and leaves and radiating the aura of time. Every leaf on the mystical tree flowed with boundless source origin energy, as though it represented the very limit of what resonances were capable of.

𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The source of the indescribable and frightening pressure that everyone was feeling was the mysterious rune.

Others might not have recognized what the rune represented, but the Devil King instantly did. Even though the sacred tree looked a little blurry, its aura was genuine.

The Saturnine Hydra Devil King couldn't contain its shock. Its voice caused the entire world to tremble.

"Is that... the Supreme ninth-grade's Empyrean Resonance Tree of Authority?"