Chapter 271: King Realm Naming Is Ego
Damian remained silent for a moment, digesting everything Mirabel had explained.
A few seconds later, he suddenly raised one hand. "I have another question."
Mirabel calmly looked at him over the rim of her teacup. "Go ahead."
Damian rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "If the difference between King Grade, True King Grade, and Supreme King Grade is basically just a massive difference in power..."
He tilted his head. "Then why don’t cultivators simply keep using Low-Rank, Mid-Rank, High-Rank, and Top-Rank like they do with all the grades below it?"
Mirabel froze.
For one rare second, her usually composed expression visibly cracked.
Her eyebrow twitched. "Hey, hey..."
Damian blinked innocently. "What?"
Mirabel slowly lowered her cup and stared at him as though he had just casually insulted generations of proud cultivators.
"Do you have any idea how fucking difficult it is to reach King Grade?"
Damian nodded. "Yeah. You literally just spent all this time explaining it to me."
Mirabel placed her teacup down and pointed directly at him. "Exactly!"
Damian leaned back slightly.
Mirabel continued, clearly more passionate about this than he had expected. "So imagine this."
She raised one finger. "A cultivator spends years cultivating."
Another finger rose. "They fight for resources, survive countless life-and-death situations, temper their body, Qi, and soul, obtain an absurdly rare King Grade cultivation scripture, and nearly destroy themselves during the breakthrough."
Damian nodded slowly.
Mirabel leaned toward him. "And when they finally succeed..."
She spread her hands dramatically. "Someone walks over and says, ’Congratulations! You are now a Low-Rank King Realm cultivator.’"
Silence filled the room.
Damian’s expression slowly became strange. "Ah..."
He finally understood. "So basically... ego?"
Mirabel’s irritated expression instantly transformed into a beautiful smile. "Pride, dignity, legacy, historical naming convention, and yes, ego."
Damian clicked his tongue. "Cultivators are really fucking troublesome."
Mirabel’s eyes curved faintly. "Says the man who reminds everyone that he’s handsome every few sentences."
Damian immediately ignored that direct attack on his character.
He cleared his throat and shifted the conversation toward something far more important. "Anyway, Elder Mirabel..."
His gaze sharpened. "Do you personally have a King Grade art?"
Mirabel pointed toward herself. "Me?"
Damian nodded. "Yes, you."
She stared at him for several breaths before suddenly laughing. "Hehehe..."
Mirabel shook her head. "You really fucking overestimate me, kid."
Damian did not back down. "Do you have one or not?"
The amusement in Mirabel’s expression gradually faded. For a few moments, the room became unusually quiet.
Eventually, she answered, "Yes... and no."
Damian frowned immediately. "What the hell does that mean?"
Mirabel leaned comfortably against the back of her chair. "This is the Scripture Hall of the Heavenly Sword Sect."
She gestured lazily toward the countless shelves surrounding them. "Of course a genuine King Grade art exists here."
Damian’s eyes narrowed with interest.
Mirabel lightly tapped one finger against the table. "However, it isn’t mine."
Damian leaned forward. "It belongs to the sect?"
Mirabel nodded. "It’s one of the Heavenly Sword Sect’s greatest inheritances, a genuine King Grade sword scripture preserved here for generations."
She gave a small shrug. "I’ve read it plenty of times."
Damian raised an eyebrow.
Mirabel’s expression became almost bored. "Honestly, after spending years reading and studying the damn thing, I got tired of it."
Damian’s mouth twitched.
"This woman casually got bored reading a fucking King Grade scripture?"
He was becoming increasingly convinced that Mirabel’s position in the sect was far stranger than some ordinary elder.
Still, he temporarily ignored that issue. "I see..."
Damian rubbed his chin.
A moment later, another thought occurred to him. "Is that King Grade sword art stronger than Nolan’s?"
Mirabel looked at him quietly. "If you’re asking because you want to obtain it..."
She shook her head. "No."
Damian raised an eyebrow. "And if you’re only asking whether it’s stronger than Nolan’s..."
Mirabel took another calm sip of tea. "Also no."
Damian frowned. "Why?"
Mirabel lowered her teacup. "Nolan’s King-grade sword scripture came directly from his King-grade sword, correct?"
Damian nodded. "Yeah."
"Then that already gives Nolan an enormous advantage," Mirabel replied without hesitation.
She gestured lightly with one hand. "The sword and its scripture were created to complement one another."
Damian’s expression became more serious.
Mirabel continued, "A companion martial scripture created alongside a King Grade weapon will almost always perform far better with that specific weapon than some unrelated inheritance pulled from a sect library."
Damian slowly nodded. "So even if our sect’s King Grade sword scripture is incredibly powerful..."
Mirabel finished his thought for him. "It may still lose to Nolan’s."
Her eyes sharpened slightly. "At least in terms of compatibility and how much power he can actually draw out."
Damian fell silent and remained that way for several breaths.
Mirabel expected disappointment. Instead, what surprised her was the way the corners of Damian’s mouth slowly lifted.
Damian turned back to her and grinned. "I see."
Mirabel stared at him. "Why do you suddenly look like you’ve thought of something terrible?"
Damian immediately gave her his most innocent expression. "No reason."
Mirabel’s eyebrow twitched. "That face somehow makes me believe you even less."
Damian chuckled under his breath.
"Hehehe... I wonder what kind of face this Elder Mirabel would make if she knew I already have a King Grade art..."
His amusement grew.
"And not just one. Two fucking King Grade arts."
Just imagining Mirabel’s usually composed expression cracking made him increasingly tempted to show off.
Damian finally placed his teacup down. "Elder Mirabel."
Mirabel glanced toward him. "Hmm?"
Damian leaned forward slightly. "Do you have an open area nearby?"
She raised an eyebrow. "A place that can be destroyed without disturbing anyone."
Mirabel immediately became suspicious. "Why?"
Damian’s lips curled upward. "I want to show you something good."
Mirabel stared at him for several breaths, clearly trying to figure out what kind of bullshit he was planning.
Eventually, curiosity won.
She stood from her chair and casually adjusted her robes. "There is a secluded training field behind the Scripture Hall."
Damian immediately rose as well. "Perfect."
Mirabel walked toward the door before glancing back at him. "You’d better not destroy my Scripture Hall."
Damian laughed. "No promises."
Mirabel’s eyebrow twitched. "Damian."
Damian chuckled. "Hehehe... kidding."