I'm not just human!

No one else knew that Nidhogg's desire to recruit Shafa stemmed purely from his admiration for Shafa, and... the mutual respect between the Emperors of the Mysterious Ones.

As a mysterious emperor, capable of becoming a god, Nidhogg has been the focus of everyone's attention since he signed the second overlord-level secret contract, [Celestial Spirit Mage], when he was young.

In the erroneous church, He was personally received by the true God, [the erroneous rules], and even taken in and taught by Him.

Within the Starry Sky Dragon Clan, He was designated as the next head of the clan early on and has always received the clan's top-tier resources for cultivation.

Even in the "Carnival of Destiny," He was one of the most valued subordinates of the Wise One, answering almost every question and fulfilling every need.

Nidhogg's life has been smooth sailing ever since he signed the second Overlord-level secret contract, until he became the Pope of the Church of Errors, the head of the Star Dragon family, and one of the twelve Supreme Councilors of "Destiny Carnival".

Until now.

Therefore, He was too lonely.

That was the loneliness of being one of the most outstanding geniuses in the entire universe when I was young.

That was the loneliness of being one of the strongest beings below the gods in the real world after becoming powerful.

As the Emperor of Secrets, he found it even more lonely to have almost no one to discuss with him what it felt like to sign two overlord-level secret contracts at the same time, and how to better integrate and develop the two overlord-level secret contracts he had signed.

Until, the appearance of Xiafa.

The appearance of Shafa made Nidhogg feel as if he had found a kindred spirit in the boundless universe, among all kinds of beings.

The joy and excitement of a successful Mystic Emperor finding a future Mystic Emperor is something those mediocre talents who failed to sign two overlord-level secret contracts cannot experience.

Therefore, He repeatedly set aside his pride and spared no effort in recruiting Xiafa.

Therefore, when he saw that Xiafa had won the championship and taken away the "Rhine Sword", he not only accepted it completely, but also secretly felt happy for Xiafa.

Nidhogg's thoughts were unknown to others, and Shafa was unaware of them as well.

At this moment, Xia Fa finally stood before the golden pillar, facing the ancient and solemn Rhine swords, their blades laid out horizontally.

"Xia Fa, you can take your championship reward now."

When the soul of [Rhine Calamity] spoke, its voice was unusually gentle, carrying a hint of deeply hidden...respect.

Xia Fachong nodded respectfully to him, then stretched out his hands and held the Rhine sword.

Boom-!

In that instant, a strange ripple spread out, accompanied by a sound like a huge heartbeat.

No one knew what had happened; everyone assumed it was the Rhine Blade, a fragmented ancient treasure, recognizing a new master.

Immediately afterwards, the soul of [Rhine Calamity] vanished with a "bang," without any warning, and without even saying goodbye.

Although, given His status as a former ruler of the old days, the people present might be no different from roadside insects in His eyes, it would be normal for Him not to say goodbye.

Almost immediately, Xia Fa heard the voice of the soul of the [Rhine Calamity] in his spiritual intuition.

"Master! I am finally whole!"

Xia Fa was taken aback at first, but then he immediately realized what was going on.

In that instant, all the doubts I had encountered during this trip to the old blacksmith's workshop were completely resolved, like silt being washed away by spring water.

"Wait, you are..."

The unique voice of the soul of [Rhine Calamity] immediately spoke:

"Hehe, Master, it seems you've found out. Yes, I am not the soul of the [Rhine Calamity], but the spirit of a secret treasure born from the [Rhine Calamity Blade]!"

really……

Hearing this answer, Xia Fa finally confirmed it and breathed a sigh of relief.

To be honest, he had some concerns beforehand, wondering if this unexpected championship was some kind of "deal" he was about to make with the Ancient Ruler [Rhine Calamity].

Under normal circumstances, being targeted by a wandering god in the Protoss realm is not a pleasant experience, let alone being targeted by an Old One who is on par with the true gods, even if that Old One is only a soul.

Once the "deal" is completed, the price I pay will be unbelievably high.

But now that the identity of the spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] has been confirmed, there's nothing to worry about.

The scenes from stepping into the old blacksmith shop to the present flashed through Xia Fa's mind.

No wonder, at first the soul of [Rhine Calamity] looked broken and even stuttered when speaking, but it soon recovered to its full strength.

In retrospect, it was because the "Rhine Blade" originally contained only half of the treasure's spirit. As he carried the "Calamity Blade" into the old forge, the power of the other half of the treasure's spirit was channeled out, naturally restoring the treasure's spirit to its full potential.

On the other hand, it's no wonder that the nine great gods seem completely unconcerned about the appearance of the souls in the [Rhine Calamity].

Because there is no soul of the [Rhine Calamity] at all!

From beginning to end, the spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] was the mastermind behind this treasure-making competition!

In comparison, although the spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] is also very powerful, after all, it is a spirit born from an "Old Treasure", the "Calamity Slashing Blade" in the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] has long recognized him as its master, and he is a member of the Silver Church, so what harm could it possibly cause?

As for why he was able to advance all the way to the finals and ultimately win the championship, well, that goes without saying—the referees were his people…

However, one question remained unresolved in Xia Fa's mind.

"Speaking of which, since you are the spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity], why didn't you just teleport them all out from the beginning and give me this Rhine Blade directly?"

Xia Fa asked a question based on his spiritual intuition. At that moment, the Rhine cleaver in his hand began to glow rapidly and shrink, about to transform into another Shark Tooth folding knife.

The spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] chuckled and immediately replied:

"I have no choice, Master. These are the rules set by the previous master, the great [Rhine Disaster]."

"Back then, Lord [Rhine Calamity] had already foreseen His impending annihilation as a Great Old One. After all, no matter how hard the Great Old Ones joined forces, they simply couldn't defeat [Absolute Defense]."

"Therefore, He placed two ancient divine oracles on me, corresponding to the Rhine Blade and the Calamity Blade respectively."

"These two divine pronouncements have the same content: using the power of the Great Old Ones, two Great Old Forges were created directly, and treasure maps were scattered to various places in the real world."

"Then, once all the first-class treasure maps are found, the old forge will open, and the person with the highest skill in forging using the secret treasures will receive the corresponding horse-slaying sword."

"But unfortunately, when Lord [Rhine Calamity] was being chased by [Absolute Defense], [Absolute Defense] shattered the old divine oracle on the Calamity Horse-Slaying Blade with a single palm strike, so only the one on the Rhine Horse-Slaying Blade remained."

Xia Fa understood and said:

"You mean that the champion, who is also the recipient of the Rhine Horse-Slaying Blade, must go through three rounds of selection by these ten people? This is something that was determined by the ancient oracle, and you can't change it. But you can act as a referee and determine who advances?"

The spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] smiled smugly, as if seeking credit:

"Yes! That's it! To keep the other contenders from suspecting anything, I've been playing the role of the great [Rhine Calamity] from beginning to end. Aren't I amazing, Master!"

Xia Fa chuckled to himself:

"You're really amazing. I almost fell for your trick."

The inspiration of the treasure of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity] sighed:

"Actually, I feel that by following you, Master, I haven't failed the expectations of the great [Rhine Calamity]. After all, you are the signatory of the Silver Throne! If the great [Rhine Calamity] were to come back to life and let Him choose, He would definitely choose you to succeed Him!"

It paused, then added:

"At that time, it was probably because no other signatories to the Silver Throne appeared that the great [Rhine Calamity] had no choice but to choose this method of succession."

Upon hearing these words, Xia Fa suddenly understood why the Calamity Slashing Blade had been so eager to recognize him as its master back in the nested strange domain of the underground cave, specifically in the city of the Giant Jaw Beast, and had even broken through the sealing array to fly towards him.

Could it be because he sensed that he was about to sign the Silver Throne?

As for how the Calamity Slash ended up in the City of Giant Jaws... Xia Fa suspected that it was most likely that the decapitated Outer God had the Giant Jaws collect it.

Just then, the Rhine sword transformed into a shark-tooth folding knife. Xia Fa casually pinched it, gave it a subtle shake, and it went straight into his sleeve.

Rumble—!

The old blacksmith shop trembled, and in front of the circular plaza, a large arched metal gate slowly opened.

Needless to say, everyone knows that now that the battle for the Rhine Blade is over, it's time to leave.

Xia Fa still had many questions he wanted to ask the spirit of the [Rhine Blade of Calamity], such as what was in the treasure chest and what that jet-black round gem was.

But now is clearly not the time to ask. He only managed to exchange a few words with the spirit of the treasure because the Rhine Blade was transforming and he appeared to be trying to master this incomplete ancient treasure.

"Xia Fa, congratulations!"

Nidhogg stepped forward first, a slight smile of approval playing on his dignified face:

"From this perspective, you are already the Emperor of Mysteries, right? Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to create a secret treasure with divine nature. It's a pity that you've signed more than nine secret contracts, so you can't become a Heavenly Saint."

Upon hearing this, Thor Loki immediately replied:

"What do you mean? Aren't you also a Mysterious Emperor yourself? And you look down on Xia Fa, who is also a Mysterious Emperor?"

Nidhogg ignored him completely, and instead changed the subject, saying:

"Xia Fa, although you can't become a Celestial Saint, as long as you're willing to join our Starry Dragon Clan, I can find a way to give you the extraordinary talent of [Supernatural Body], and I'll also help you find a Core Gold or Living Silver Starry Dragon. Then, your strength can be further enhanced!"

Everyone fell silent, especially the members of the Gilgamesh family.

After all that, Nidhogg went through all that trouble, and it turns out they were still trying to recruit Shafa...

He's so persistent!

As if remembering something, Nidhogg immediately added:

"Don't worry, even if you join our Starry Dragon family, your Rhine Slash will still belong to you alone. You don't need to hand it over to the family. I can even swear this to Lord [Wrong Rule]."

At this moment, Xia Fa finally felt Nidhogg's sincerity and enthusiasm, although he didn't know why.

So he smiled and replied:

"Although I am a member of the Gilgamesh family, I would still be willing to visit the Star Dragon Planet if I have the opportunity."

Nidhogg was overjoyed upon hearing this:

"Okay! It's settled then. I'll treat you to drinks later."

As they talked, they headed towards the door.

call out!

A bronze lance, swift as lightning, suddenly pierced through the door of the old forge.

It was ferocious, violent, insidious, and vicious, and without a word, it stabbed directly at Xia Fa's heart.

Chapter 312 An Existence Surpassing the Heavenly Mandate Holy Spirit! Xia Fa's Rank Revealed? (Part 1)

"Get out of the way!"