Douluo Continent: I, Long Aotian, will not be a supporting character.

Ji Juechen barely opened his eyes, clinging to life.

He looked at Long Aotian's sharply defined face, and a scene seemed to flash through his mind, but he couldn't quite grasp it.

"Do you want to live?" Long Aotian suddenly asked.

A glimmer of light suddenly appeared in Ji Juechen's eyes, a light born of a swordsman's unwavering devotion to the way of the sword: "I think... the sword is not broken..."

"Well done, your sword is still intact." Long Aotian laughed loudly. "Since you don't want to die, then hand your life over to me. I will bestow upon you a heaven-defying destiny. From this day forward, your sword will be wielded for me."

Before he finished speaking, Long Aotian waved his left hand and took out a jade box that emitted a strong fragrance of herbs from his storage soul tool.

The moment the box was opened, the area, which was originally dim in the evening, seemed to be illuminated.

It was a crystal-clear, celestial herb, as if carved from white jade. It had nine slender leaves, each radiating a sharp sword aura, as if it were not a plant, but a miniature sword.

Nine-Leaf Sword Grass!

This was obtained by Long Aotian from the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well in Sunset Forest. This item is most suitable for those who practice swordsmanship. Previously, no one in the Body Sect had practiced swordsmanship, so it has been preserved until now.

But looking at the "Sword Maniac" whose martial spirit was about to collapse, he suddenly had an idea.

"This is..." Although Ji Juechen was seriously injured, his instincts as a Soul Master allowed him to sense the terrifying energy contained within this immortal herb. It was pure, extremely sharp energy.

"The Nine-Leaf Sword Grass is a supreme treasure of the sword path, containing the sharpest energy of heaven and earth." Long Aotian looked at the immortal grass in his hand. "It can not only reshape your meridians, but also completely shatter your martial spirit and reforge it into the legendary 'Silent Extinction Sword Body'."

"The process will be excruciating, a thousand times worse than death." Long Aotian stared into Ji Juechen's eyes. "You'll feel like all the blood in your body is being drained, your bones are being crushed inch by inch, and your soul is being sliced ​​apart by sharp blades. If you can't endure it, you'll truly turn into a pile of minced meat. Are you scared?"

Ji Juechen gazed at the immortal herb, his eyes filled with longing that outweighed his fear. For a sword fanatic, the prospect of possessing greater power to wield his sword was worth venturing into, even if it meant facing hell.

He nodded with difficulty, his voice weak but firm: "Come on."

"He's a real man."

Long Aotian no longer hesitated, "Master, Dad, Mom, please protect us."

Poison will surely kill. Although Long Yuanba and Ao Yumou did not understand why Long Aotian had such a good impression of this boy he had never met, they believed that Long Aotian had his own plans, so they waited for Long Aotian to make his move.

Long Aotian directly stuffed the Nine-Leaf Sword Grass into Ji Juechen's mouth.

"Ugh—!!!"

The moment the immortal herb entered his stomach, Ji Juechen's body suddenly arched, and his whole body convulsed and twisted.

"Ughh ...

A heart-wrenching scream echoed in the sea breeze.

Beneath Ji Juechen's skin, countless veins bulged, as if countless small snakes were frantically wriggling beneath his skin. His bones cracked and popped, and the already shattered phantom of his martial spirit appeared behind him, only to completely disintegrate into specks of light under the violent impact of the Nine-Leaf Sword Grass.

"Hold on! Don't let the medicine wear off!"

Long Aotian let out a low shout, his hands rapidly forming hand seals, and streams of pure soul power flowed into Ji Juechen's body, guiding the violent sword energy.

"Destruction precedes construction, signifying a new beginning!"

With a roar from Long Aotian, the medicinal power within Ji Juechen's body was finally fully unleashed.

The previously scattered light of the martial spirit did not disappear; instead, it was re-condensed by that extreme sharpness. This time, it was no longer the ordinary iron longsword, but a phantom of a longsword that was entirely black and exuded an aura of annihilation.

At the same time, Ji Juechen's blood began to boil, gradually turning from dark red to jade white, each drop seemingly containing tiny sword energies. His muscle fibers rapidly remodeled after being torn, becoming tighter and more resilient, and layers of black impurities seeped from his skin—the expelled impurities from his body.

"The Sword Body of Annihilation, complete!"

Long Aotian let out a long sigh, fine beads of sweat appearing on his forehead. Only he knew the dangers involved in transforming his physique and defying fate.

Ji Juechen had stopped screaming. He was suspended half a foot off the ground, surrounded by nine streams of white jade-colored sword energy. His once handsome face was now angular, and a chilling aura of killing intent emanated from his brows.

He slowly opened his eyes.

His eyes, which were originally clear and bright, had now turned into a deep, dark black, and deep within his pupils, it seemed as if a sharp sword was slowly rotating.

"This...is this power?"

Ji Juechen looked down at himself. Not only had his injuries healed, but his body was also filled with new power.

The feeling of fullness brought by that new power was both strange and fascinating to him. He could feel that even a single finger could easily pierce through the nearly ten-thousand-year-old saber-toothed walrus leader from before.

More importantly, the connection between his heart and the sword had never been so strong. The sword was no longer just a tool in his hand, but a part of his body, his breath, his blood.

Long Aotian lowered his stance and looked at him, asking, "How do you feel?"

Ji Juechen landed slowly, the feeling of floating disappearing, but his aura became even more restrained and profound. He looked at Long Aotian, the confusion in his eyes completely vanishing, replaced by a fervent loyalty.

In this dog-eat-dog world, it was this young man who gave him a second life and a ladder to the pinnacle of swordsmanship.

"thump."

Ji Juechen knelt on one knee, clenched his right fist and pounded the ground, performing a standard salute of submission.

"Ji Juechen thanks you for saving my life." His voice was no longer hoarse, but full of metallic texture. "From this day forward, the sword in Ji Juechen's hand will be yours. I will face mountains of knives and seas of fire without fear of death."

Long Aotian nodded in satisfaction and reached out to help him up: "Get up. I don't need you to be willing to die for me; I only need the sword in your hand to always be pointed at my enemy."

"Yes." Ji Juechen stood up, his posture as upright as a pine tree.

Long Aotian casually tossed him a brand new set of clothes. "Put these clothes on first."

Ji Juechen took the robe and quickly put it on, his movements creating afterimages as he moved with astonishing speed.

"I am Long Aotian of the Body Sect. This is our Body Sect's Grand Master, Du Bisi. This is my father, Long Yuanba. This is my mother, Ao Yumou. We are all members of the Body Sect. Now that your martial soul has been reshaped into the Body Martial Soul, the Annihilation Sword Body, then come back to the sect with me. The Body Sect is the place where someone like you who pursues the ultimate path should stay."

"The Body Sect..." Ji Juechen muttered to himself, then his eyes flashed with a sharp light. "Good! I've heard that the Body Sect is full of powerful experts. It'll be perfect for me to test the power of this newly formed Annihilation Sword Body!"

Poison will surely kill. Long Yuanba and Ao Yu looked at Long Aotian for only a moment, and he created a supreme annihilation sword body martial soul. The look of satisfaction in their eyes was beyond words.

The group sped off again toward the inland.