Thunder. Among all natural attributes, it was one of the most destructive forces. The power of thunder was as wild as it was destructive, making it extremely difficult to control.

Because of this, while others were astonished by Sungshik's immense magical energy and mesmerized by the grandeur of the three-hundred-meter-long hammer of thunder, Jenny was surprised by something else.

‘To control the attribute of thunder with such precision…’

Even the Lord of Thunder, Fletcher, could never wield thunder in such a way without the power of a skill. Others might not have noticed, but Jenny was certain.

The foundation of her power was also the four elemental attributes. That was why she understood the concept of 'Manifestation Power.'

Recently, she had come to realize this power—Manifestation Power. Although hers was not as specialized as Sungshik's, she enjoyed utilizing it beyond just her skills.

‘That just now wasn’t a skill.’

So she knew. The subtle difference between power manifested through a skill and power manifested through Manifestation Power. That was, without a doubt, controlled through Manifestation Power. And that made it all the more astonishing.

‘Even the Lord of Thunder Fletcher can't handle thunder-attributed mana like that without the help of a spirit.’

That meant Sungshik’s mastery over mana, his mana control, and his Manifestation Power far surpassed Fletcher’s.

‘Incredible.’

Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Sungshik. Her gaze held admiration, curiosity, and even a hint of affection.

As she was lost in thought, the enormous hammer of thunder that Sungshik had manifested struck the ground.

—KWAJIZIJIK!

The sound wasn’t particularly loud. However, for an instant, an intense light flashed, bright enough to blind.

Only those who had reached the rank of 7-Star could see clearly what happened within that storm of light without missing a single moment.

—Pazzzzz.

The monsters directly struck by the thunder hammer, reminiscent of Mjölnir, were instantly charred black. It didn’t matter whether they were 5-Star+ or 6-Star. Without exception, every single one of them was incinerated.

But it didn’t end there. As the hammer burst apart, hundreds, thousands of streaks of thunder surged outward from its center.

—Pajijijik!

The streaks of thunder spread, weaving through the hundreds and thousands of monsters in the vicinity. Each bolt of lightning carried power that no 5 or 6-Star monster could possibly endure.

It happened in an instant. The time it took for thousands of monsters to be annihilated. Within the never-ending flood of monsters, an entire area where Sungshik had acted was suddenly devoid of enemies.

Everyone who witnessed the scene was left speechless by Sungshik’s display. Among all the large-scale attacks they had ever seen, this was the most overwhelming.

“Hah…”

“Is… is this a dream?”

Not just the American and French superhumans who had seen it up close, but even the Korean superhumans stood there, dumbfounded.

—Beep. This is Unit 4. We just detected an enormous thunderstorm and immense magical energy from Unit 9’s direction. What happened?

Even units that were neither Korean, American, nor French were radioing in.

That was the level of impact. In just one move, Sungshik had captured the attention of everyone on the battlefield, with all eyes now locked onto Unit 9.

‘Impressive.’

Watching from a distance, the Sword Emperor, Hak Ilcheon, felt a rare surge of competitive spirit. The last time he felt this way was when he first encountered the Martial Emperor.

‘I knew he was strong, but I didn’t expect this.’

When he first saw Sungshik, he had sensed that the man was no ordinary warrior. Furthermore, with the newly established 7-Star ranking evaluation, he had instinctively known that the one being evaluated was none other than Sungshik.

However, he had never imagined that Sungshik possessed such overwhelming power.

‘Interesting. Very interesting.’

It had been a long time since he had felt such excitement. For the Sword Emperor, who possessed an insatiable fighting spirit, this was a welcome development. Such experiences always pushed him to a higher level.

Though Sungshik hadn't intended it, this moment would greatly contribute to the Sword Emperor’s growth. And in turn, this would be a positive outcome for humanity.

With an eager step forward, the Sword Emperor drew his sword.

—Srrrng.

The blade slid out of its scabbard, and as he fully unsheathed it, he directed it toward the horde of monsters.

“12 Heavens Sword, Fourth Form: Half-Moon Slash.”

Multiple arcs of crescent-shaped sword energy tore through the air.

—Sgak.

Dozens of monsters were cleaved apart in a single strike.

The Sword Emperor’s blade did not stop there. Moving too fast for the eye to follow, he swung his sword through the air, leaving behind countless afterimages.

As a result, a torrent of crescent-shaped sword energy blanketed the sky and surged toward the monsters.

—Sgak—Sgak—

Every monster caught in its path was sliced apart, their limbs severed.

—Sgak—Sgak—

In an instant, over a thousand monsters were cut down in the endless rain of sword slashes.

“Wow.”

“As expected of the Sword Emperor.”

“Truly unparalleled.”

Those who witnessed the scene couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration at the Sword Emperor’s power.

It was only natural. The sight of a single sword slaughtering countless monsters from a distance with mere sword energy was nothing short of an art form.

While it lacked the overwhelming spectacle or flashiness of Jenny or Sungshik’s attacks, the high-level superhumans present could clearly see it. The profound depth of the Sword Emperor’s swordsmanship was in no way inferior to their dazzling displays.

And it wasn’t just the Sword Emperor who had begun unleashing their true power.

“Hahaha! Eat this!”

—KWAANG!

The Flame King, Tsarden, engulfed the battlefield in flames and explosions.

“In the name of God.”

—Fwaaa!

Holy knight Quellin’s sacred sword unleashed radiant flashes of light across the sky.

“Hup.”

The twin swords of Kundera, known as the Battle Demon, carved through the battlefield, massacring monsters.

Other 7-Star superhumans, who had once kept pace with the 11 Thrones, also launched into fierce combat, exterminating monsters one after another.

Ten thousand versus three hundred.

A battle that should have been unwinnable was now turning into an overwhelming victory, thanks to their leadership. Their fighting spirit spread like wildfire, igniting the hearts of other superhumans.

“Hahaha, let’s go! Let’s sweep those bastards away too!”

The superhumans, engulfed in the heat of battle, charged forward with all their might. The overwhelming momentum of the superhumans made the monstrous horde, which had now grown to tens of thousands, seem to falter.

“Hoo.”

Watching the scene unfold, Heo Sungshik let out a breath. The attack he had just unleashed had been a considerable strain, even for him. He had pushed the power of Thunder nearly to its maximum output. This had put his entire body under severe overload.

Perhaps with a different attribute, the burden would have been less. However, Thunder was still incredibly difficult to control.

‘Thunder really... There’s a reason why people say it’s the hardest to handle.’

It wasn’t just the consumption of mana—controlling it also drained a significant amount of mental strength and executional power.

―If you raise the level of your Thunder attribute or advance in cultivation, handling this level of power will become trivial.

Heaven-Splitter spoke to Sungshik in a casual tone.

‘Yeah, I know. I just didn’t expect it to be this exhausting.’

Still, he was quite satisfied with his first attempt at using Thunder’s power at near full capacity.

‘At least in terms of destructive power, it was overwhelming.’

It seemed like he had wiped out roughly 4,000 monsters in a single strike. No one else here could display such a performance in one blow. Perhaps if Jenny went all out, she could achieve a similar result.

‘It’s a shame that Amplification is on cooldown.’

If he had just one more week, he would have been able to use Amplification. If he had used it in conjunction with the power he had just unleashed…

The mere thought sent chills down his spine. Not just 4,000, but perhaps more than twice that number would have been wiped out.

‘No, maybe even ten thousand.’

The power of Amplification, which he had tested before, had shown an astonishing level of enhancement—close to that of a finishing move. With that power, he could have undoubtedly annihilated all the monsters that had surged into the zones assigned to Korea, the U.S., and France in a single sweep.

―Amplification is indeed powerful, but it also has limits. As your cultivation advances, its enhancement rate will decrease significantly. Besides, the power you just imagined will naturally become accessible when you master Thunder and further refine your control over its attribute.

Nodding at Heaven-Splitter’s words, Sungshik thought,

‘He’s right. Rather than relying on Amplification, I should focus on improving my control over Thunder. I nearly collapsed from exhaustion just from this much power.’

Even as he acknowledged this, a relaxed expression remained on Sungshik’s face. To any observer, he showed no signs of fatigue.

In reality, the overload that had weighed on his body after using Thunder’s power was already being rapidly healed. The self-recovery speed of his body, having once undergone complete rebirth, was beyond the imagination of an ordinary person.

Within moments, almost all the overload had been resolved. He could rejoin the battlefield immediately without any issues.

‘Alright, I won’t be outdone. Time to go again.’

When he saw Jenny, who had been watching him, charge forward with a determined expression and unleash a barrage of fierce attacks on the monsters, his competitive spirit ignited.

He recalled what he had told Lee Manshik before coming here—that he would claim more spoils than anyone else. Now was the time to uphold that promise.

‘A man’s word is as good as gold.’

With a smirk, Sungshik pushed off the ground and shot forward like a comet. The spectacle he displayed next left all who witnessed it in awe.

It began with Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts.

“Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts, Third Form—Wind Scar.”

With a light motion, he unsheathed the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword and unleashed Wind Scar. In an instant, the surrounding monsters were all cleaved in half. Without hesitation, he swung his sword toward the monsters ahead.

“Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts, Fifth Form—Shatter.”

—Swoosh!

A fan-shaped wave of powerful energy spread outward. Every monster caught within it was sliced cleanly apart. The numbers easily reached the hundreds.

Then came the follow-up technique.

“Heaven-Splitting— Wind Scar.”

—Shwaaa!

The Heaven-Splitting Wind Scar, infused with the power of Heaven-Splitter, tore through the monsters ahead. Instantly, over a thousand monsters were cut down. With the power of Heaven-Splitter imbued, the monsters were sliced through as smoothly as tofu.

Though it seemed long in words, it all happened in mere moments. From the time Sungshik reached the monster horde, everything unfolded in the blink of an eye. The ground was drenched in the blood of monsters, their corpses forming a sea of carnage.

And it didn’t end there. The atmosphere began to tremble violently. At the same time, countless flaming swords appeared in midair.

Yes. One of Sungshik’s primary techniques—Seges Gladii. A grand display of countless swords formed from fire.

At his command, the fiery swords simultaneously rained down upon the monsters before him. The countless flaming swords left trails of fire in the air as they descended like shooting stars.

—Boom! Fwoooosh!

In an instant, a fiery hellscape spread before him.

“Grrrk.”

“Screeeech!”

The beasts that managed to avoid a direct hit were soon engulfed in the raging flames that followed, burning alive as they perished.

At this point, dividing the battlefield into different zones no longer mattered. Having single-handedly plunged deep into the heart of the monster horde, Sungshik was displaying an utterly overwhelming dominance, slaughtering them in droves.

Without pause, he continued unleashing his various elemental powers. An icy field spread out, freezing the monsters to death, while countless shadowy swords erupted from beneath them, piercing through their bodies.

Sungshik was like a wolf that had charged into a flock of sheep. He alone was overwhelming tens of thousands of monsters.

Those watching from afar felt a chill run down their spines.

“Heavenly Sovereign…”

Without realizing it, someone had muttered those words.

Indeed, upon witnessing Sungshik’s absolute dominance, someone had whispered the title—Heavenly Sovereign.

‘Heavenly Sovereign, Heo Sungshik.’

Thus, a new epithet was born for Heo Sungshik.