The barrier slowly turned transparent, and the Mage Kings couldn't believe what they saw.The menace was still alive!And their own Mage was nowhere to be seen! Then, they realized that the storm of Neutral Mana had come from the Mage Lord's corpse, and the shock in their mind doubled.This wasn't something easy to do!One couldn't just convert someone's existence into Neutral Mana!At least not someone at that level!Inheritor Spheres obviously could do something like that, but Inheritor Spheres were expensive and very advanced devices that could only be created and used by Mage Kings and stronger.Doing something like that required over four different level five Concepts!Shang was at the Peak Sixth Realm!And he wasn't even a Mage!How had he done it?!How had he transformed an Initial Mage Lord into nothing but a wave of Neutral Mana?!Also, how was he still alive?!The Mage Kings didn't even communicate with each other since they were still trying to process the things they had just witnessed.And after a couple of seconds, they realized something else as well.The Twilight Dusk Empire had lost their One-star Mage Lord Defender Flag!Just when Mage Lords started to become important to the war!Meanwhile, Shang just turned around and flew back to the Lightning Manor.If Shang decided to place an Attack Flag, the Twilight Dusk Family would send a sacrificial lamb in to waste time until the flag killed both of them.Shang knew that this would be the one and only time he would be fighting a Mage Lord before reaching the Seventh Realm himself.The disadvantage of having such a comparatively tiny Spirit Sense was too great."Good job," the Custodian transmitted to Shang.Shang noticed just the slightest fluctuation and hesitation after the Custodian said good job.The Custodian probably wanted to call him Shang, but then remembered Shang's demands and wanted to call him Young Master Shang, but then realized that addressing him in such a humiliating way wouldn't be appropriate right now.So, the Custodian had just said nothing after good job.The Mage Kings felt very conflicted about Shang since he elicited extremes of admiration and disgust.He was incredibly powerful and was responsible for keeping the Judgment Palace out of the war.But he was also apathetic, stubborn, disrespectful, and had outrageous demands.It was like Shang was an omnipotent toddler.They hated him.But they were extremely impressed by him."Need anything else?" Shang asked."Are you confident in taking down more Initial Mage Lords?" the Custodian asked."No," Shang said.

"If one of them decides to hide and run, I will most likely die.""I understand," the Custodian said.

"If you're not confident, sending you is too risky.

I will tell Sarah to contact you.""Sure," Shang said.A couple of seconds later, Shang's Transmission Medal told him that the Starlight Queen wanted to reach him."Yes?" Shang asked in a neutral manner."Young Master Shang, I have heard from the Custodian that you are willing to support the southeastern battlefield?" the Starlight Queen asked with an overly polite voice."Get to the point," Shang said.Silence."There are two Peak Ancestral Mages attacking.

Go through the portal," she said neutrally.A portal appeared in front of Shang, and he charged through it.A couple seconds later, Shang had dealt with the two attackers, and a portal appeared in front of him without him asking for it.Shang saw his Isolation Barrier through the portal and walked through.The portal behind Shang closed, and he was alone in front of his Isolation Barrier again.Then, Shang touched the pin hanging on his robes and contacted the Lightning Emperor."Hey, Shang! What's up?" the Lightning Emperor asked with a cheerful voice.By now, Shang had gotten used to the Lightning Emperor's very casual manner of speech."My progress has, in a way, been very fast and very slow," Shang said.The Lightning Emperor blinked a couple of times in his office."I already comprehended my newest Impose about 70 years ago, far faster than I expected, but I don't need my opponents yet.

I found a way to make use of my current opponents until I comprehend Sword Heart, which should take me about 50 more years.

But then, I actually need my opponents.

Do you already have something in mind?" Shang asked."I dealt with everything," the Lightning Emperor said.

"I got you a ton of opponents that won't talk about your powers to others whatsoever, but there are two restrictions.""Which are?" Shang asked."First, you can't fight them near your Isolation Barrier.

You gotta go somewhere else.""Will I be safe from the other Empires?" Shang asked."No worries, that place already has a permanent portal installed and a Spirit Sense relay for my personal use.

I can get there very quickly and can see everything," the Lightning Emperor said casually.Shang nodded.

"The other restriction?""You can't kill your opponents.

You can decide if you want to give them permission to kill you or not, but you are not allowed to kill them under any circumstance.

If one of them dies, everything will become very ugly," the Lightning Emperor said."I expected something like that," Shang said without any surprise."Good! Then, contact me again when you're ready.

You can go whenever!" the Lightning Emperor said."Sure, thanks," Shang said absentmindedly as he cut the connection.Shang entered his Isolation Barrier again and continued trying out his sword against the Early Mage Lords and Early Beast Lords in his inner world.By now, the opponents were very easy for Shang to defeat, but as long as he didn't use any of his Elements or Mana, he could still fight them somewhat evenly.About 50 years later, Shang comprehended Sword Heart for his new sword, and he left his isolation.He quickly killed another Peak Ancestral Mage from the Judgment Palace before telling the Lightning Emperor that he was ready.A moment later, two things happened.First, a complicated and powerful Mana Circle appeared around his fake left arm.The Mana Circle had a powerful restrictive effect on Shang's left arm, making it impossible for him to move it.But that was exactly the point.If anyone watched, no one would be surprised about Shang not using his left arm.After all, it had been suppressed.The reason probably had something to do with training.Then, a portal opened in front of Shang, and he walked through.Very quickly, Shang realized who his opponents would be, and he realized that there truly shouldn't be any big problems regarding his secrets.