With this, Arena One had become a peculiar flower on the Rising Star Rankings.
The arena master had only accepted ten challenges before locking in a perfect record. With this, even if arena masters from other areas achieved the same results as Jiang Chen, they could only rank behind him.
This was because Jiang Chen had already secured his advantage in Arena One during the earlier formation selection.
Ten matches to lock in first place on the Rising Star Rankings — this was something that had never happened in the history of the Crystal King Pagoda Tournament.
The battles on the Rising Star Rankings were not as fierce as those on the subsequent Genius Rankings or Young Master Rankings, but history was no stranger to brutal contention.
Having ten matches decide the top spot was utterly unprecedented.
Still, no one questioned the legitimacy of that top ranking. Perhaps some people hadn't witnessed the battle firsthand.
But far too many people had.
Countless versions of the story circulated, leaving absolutely no room for doubt.
Because in that battle, Alchemist Zhen had faced an opponent at least at the ninth level of the Sacred Realm — quite possibly a half-step Emperor Realm powerhouse.
Most terrifying of all, the opponent had borrowed the power of runes to briefly possess Emperor-level attack power and might. And yet, under these circumstances, Alchemist Zhen had managed to turn defeat into victory. That was what shocked everyone the most.
Some people could only await death when sudden crisis struck.
But certain extraordinary geniuses, when crisis arrived without warning, could rely on astonishing ability to turn the tables and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Alchemist Zhen was undoubtedly one such powerhouse.
Therefore, his securing of first place on the Rising Star Rankings sparked no controversy whatsoever.
Even the few factions that were not particularly friendly toward Alchemist Zhen could find nothing to say about this matter.
Because Jiang Chen had won in advance, he no longer needed to participate in the upcoming matches. This meant that during the one or two months of Rising Star Rankings contention, Jiang Chen would have that time free.
Jiang Chen had no intention of wasting those one or two months. Instead, he returned to Taiyuan Pavilion to devote himself to cultivation and raise his strength.
He hadn't been cultivating the Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword for very long, and he still needed time to continually comprehend the sword intent of this technique.
Last time, he had slain Xiao Paohui only because Xiao Paohui had been caught off guard, falling for his Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell stratagem.
In that battle, many people had already learned of this move. The next time he faced an opponent of that caliber, things would likely not go so smoothly.
Therefore, he needed to continue studying this sword technique.
The Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword was not a technique meant for ambush kills. It was a technique that crushed enemies with majestic, awe-inspiring sword momentum.
Back in the day, the God King Emperor of the Firmament had wielded this Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword. Whether facing opponents of equal level or challenging those far above his own rank, once the technique was unleashed, its dominating presence crushed all opposition.
Yes — this was a technique that relied on imposing aura and overwhelming sword intent to dominate.
The Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword corresponded to the power of the Five Elements of heaven and earth. And the Five-Colored Divine Radiance Sword also corresponded to the Five Elements. So this technique was an absolutely perfect match for the Five-Colored Divine Radiance Sword.
Even the Peacock Emperor hadn't expected that a sword technique so compatible with the Five-Colored Divine Radiance Sword could exist.
Of course, this technique was not something ordinary martial artists could cultivate.
Only a martial artist like Jiang Chen, who cultivated all five meridian paths simultaneously, could train in it.
Jiang Chen had considered this issue thoroughly back when he first entered the Spirit Realm. In martial cultivation, most geniuses would focus on one or two of the Five Elements attributes based on their natural aptitudes, cultivating one or two paths exclusively.
Most martial artists simply did not possess the ability to cultivate all Five Elements simultaneously, nor did they have the foundation for it.
Jiang Chen, however, had noticed this problem during his Foundation Establishment stage. That was why he had refined the Five Dragons Open Heaven Pill, clearing his internal organs and fully connecting his innate Five Qi with all Five Elements spirit meridians.
This allowed him to cultivate all five paths at once.
In the short term, this advantage might not be apparent. But over time, the benefits would become clear.
A cultivator who practiced all five paths could learn any martial technique placed before them.
But a cultivator who chose only one or two paths would find themselves unable to practice many heaven-defying techniques, left to sigh and admire from afar.
This gap would only grow more pronounced as one progressed further.
Many powerhouses found themselves unable to break through to the next level precisely for this reason — because they hadn't laid a solid foundation during the initial stages of their martial cultivation.
Back in the day, Jiang Chen had refined the Five Dragons Open Heaven Pill to build that foundation, willing to delay his entry into the Spirit Realm rather than rush carelessly.
Now, those benefits were paying off.
"The Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword — right now I only have the outward form down. I've barely scratched the surface. As for the true sword intent of the Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword, I haven't comprehended even a fraction of it."
Jiang Chen was well aware of his own limitations. To truly grasp the sword intent of the Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword, one needed to channel the innate Five Thunders through acquired qi.
When sword energy surged and the innate Five Thunders came rolling in alongside it, the resulting momentum would be absolutely world-shattering.
When he imagined his own current execution of the Five Thunder Divine Sound Sword, he thought that if the Heavenly Emperor of the Firmament knew how he was using his signature technique, the Emperor would probably not know whether to laugh or cry.