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Raon exhaled deeply as he lowered the hand holding his Heavenly Drive sword, observing the black mist that spread around him.
“I don’t sense any malicious aura.”
Even though the black mist prevented him from seeing, he couldn’t detect any malice. This also seemed to be part of the First Patriarch’s plan.
I guess that means I’ve passed the first test.
During their sparring, the First Patriarch had repeatedly demonstrated the swordsmanship of Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation with an emotionless face. The man who had moved like a machine had nodded with a smile as if to say “well done,” so it seemed certain that Raon had passed his first test.
‘Indeed. I think I’ve been too obsessed with Ten Thousand Swords technique lately.’
Ten Thousand Swords technique was undoubtedly the supreme cultivation method that could put all the swordsmen in the world under your feet. However, mastering it didn’t make you invincible.
‘I should have thought of Ten Thousand Swords as just one ingredient in the kitchen of swordsmanship, but instead, I made the whole dish with it.’
Each sword technique has a recipe established by its creator. Adding a small amount of a new ingredient can create a special flavor, but adding a large amount of different ingredients would completely change the dish.
‘Perhaps my grandfather could have handled it, but it was too much for me.’
In his arrogance of believing he had mastered the true Ten Thousand Swords, he had added a large amount of subtle techniques to an already perfected sword style, staining its original essence. It was a foolish act that erased both the power and the flow of the martial arts. The First Patriarch seemed to have prepared the first test to make him understand this mistake.
‘If it weren’t for the First Patriarch, I wouldn’t have learned this so quickly.’
In the entire world, he was the only one who had mastered the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation sword technique. As a martial artist who had mastered the same technique, the First Patriarch had done something that even Glenn couldn’t do. Without him, it would have taken at least a few months to correct this habit.
‘However…’
Raon narrowed his eyes to slits like threads as he watched the black mist slowly begin to settle.
‘What’s the next test?’
He felt that the First Patriarch’s test wouldn’t end with just one. Surely, something else was waiting for him.
“I hope this time is a more intuitive test.”
As he raised his gaze, thinking about what the next test might be, the acrid smell of coal and the damp aroma of blood seeped into his nostrils. Raon frowned at the thick smell of blood, and at that moment, the black mist dissipated as if a stage curtain was being drawn.
‘What is this…?’
The entire enormous city, which seemed like the capital of a kingdom, was engulfed in crimson flames. Countless people, lifeless, were consumed by the fire, and the blood flowing from their corpses formed rivers that soaked the main streets.
‘A battlefield? No. This situation is…’
It was a massacre. The citizens of the kingdom, unable to offer proper resistance, carried a dark terror in their blind eyes even after death. It was clear that they had been unilaterally slaughtered, without even a chance to escape.
Is it possible to unilaterally destroy such a large kingdom?
Among the dead were Grand Master level martial artists and magicians, and the overwhelming power difference gave him chills down his spine.
‘The era a thousand years ago…’
As far as he knew, such a kingdom didn’t exist, nor did he know of such a war. This seemed to be a war from a thousand years ago, preserved in the First Patriarch’s memories.
‘Are those the ones who attacked?’
He could see monsters destroying the buildings of the royal capital and tearing apart humans. There were familiar creatures like orcs, trolls, and ogres, but something about them was different from the ones he knew.
‘Fighting spirit? Are they using Fighting spirit?’
Fighting spirit was the aura that monsters used. It was a special power that only monsters born as kings, those with special talents, or those who had lived for a long time could possess. However, all the monsters before his eyes were using fighting spirit to massacre the people.
‘Does this make any sense?’
Since the history of a thousand years ago hasn’t been recorded, historians have hypothesized that humans were pushed back by monsters and demonic dragons due to their weak martial prowess. But seeing the actual situation, it wasn’t that humans were weak; the monsters were simply strong.
Even skilled soldiers struggled against low-level monsters like goblins and kobolds, and knights using aura had their armored bodies cut in half by the fighting spirit of orcs.
‘Is this the era of the demonic dragon…?’
It was such an ancient event, with barely any records left, that many today dismiss the existence of demonic dragons. He wished he could show this scene to those skeptics.
‘I think I understand why Eden wants to return to this era.’
He had wondered why Eden, who was already stronger than anyone, yearned for this era. Now he understood the reason. The level of these monsters was on a completely different scale.
‘Wait a minute…’
It wasn’t just monsters. Looking closer, he saw people in black martial attire mixed in with the blood-soaked monsters. They seemed to be controlling the monsters, strategically breaking down the kingdom’s defenses.
‘This is chaotic.’
Suddenly arriving at a battlefield from a thousand years ago, he didn’t know what to do.
“There’s probably nothing I can do…”
He wasn’t in a position to intervene in this world, like Wrath in his spiritual form. Especially since this was already the past, even if he had a physical body, he couldn’t stop this war. He couldn’t understand why the First Patriarch had sent him to this battlefield.
‘Is he telling me to watch the fight?’
As Raon walked towards the interior of the kingdom, licking his lips, a man with burns all over his right side came running. His hands were covered in blisters, as if he had been constantly touching something hot.
“S-Swordsman! Please save us!”
He ran towards Raon, begging for help.
“Who are you talking to? Huh? Can you see me?”
He turned around just in case, but there was no one else. It seemed that the burned man could see him.
“Please!”
The moment the burned man fell to his knees, Raon’s spiritual form materialized into a physical body in this hellish battlefield. The feeling of floating in the air disappeared, replaced by the solid weight of his feet on the ground.
“My wife and children are there! Please save them!”
The burned man pointed to a small house engulfed in flames. The adjacent buildings had collapsed, blocking all the windows and doors, trapping the people inside.
“That’s how he got burned.”
The man raised his blistered hands, and tears streamed down his face. It was evident that he had suffered those burns trying to rescue his wife and children.
“…Wait here.”
Raon nodded and ran towards the ruined building. After breaking down the burning wall, he saw two children and a middle-aged woman who seemed to have suffocated from the heat and smoke.
‘It’s not too late yet.’
Fortunately, all three were still breathing. After using his aura to remove the toxic air inside, he carried them to the burned man.
“Thank you! Thank you so much…”
The burned man shouted his gratitude, bowed his head to the ground, and as if all his strength had left him, collapsed on his side.
“Run away.”
Raon gestured to them with a somber voice to escape.
‘It’s probably useless, but…’
This world was already the past. He had saved them here, but in the current timeline, they had probably all died when the building collapsed.
“This feels awful.”
As Raon bit his tongue bitterly, a woman in a purple robe descended from the air.
“So that’s where you were? You’re always the same, aren’t you?”
The woman smiled slightly as she looked at the people Raon had saved. Her eyes suggested that she knew him well.
‘This person is…’
It wasn’t the first time he had seen that woman. She was clearly the companion magician of the First Patriarch he had seen in the underwater cave and the Holy Sword Alliance. As he had suspected, those memories belonged to the First Patriarch.
“I found him. Let’s go.”
The woman in the purple robe flew towards the half-destroyed royal palace and told him to follow.
‘Mmm…’
Raon frowned slightly as he followed the woman in the purple robe.
‘Does she think I’m the First Patriarch?’
Judging by the purple-clad woman’s reaction, it seemed that he had manifested in this world through the First Patriarch’s body.
‘Then…’
He looked back, and a slight smile formed on his lips as he watched the man fleeing with his wife and children, who had regained consciousness.
‘I guess this means the First Patriarch saved those people too.’
It seemed that he and the First Patriarch had many similarities. With a sense of relief, Raon entered the shaky royal castle that looked like it was going to collapse at any moment.
The interior of the royal castle was also engulfed in flames, with knights and soldiers fighting against the invading monsters. Although the castle knights were skilled, they were being overwhelmed by the sheer number of monsters using Fighting Spirit.
“No, now is not the time to deal with small fry.”
The purple-robed woman shouted that there was no time to help others and waved her hand for him to hurry.
‘It seems there’s someone I have to fight in that audience chamber.’
Raon nodded calmly and followed the magician to the royal palace. The high ceiling of the audience chamber, built to glorify the king, was shattered as if it had been hit by a meteorite. The golden pillars symbolizing the loyalty of the knights had crumbled like dry leaves.
In the blood, darker than the red carpet, lay dead a Transcendent who seemed to be the captain of the royal guard. A middle-aged man, probably the king of this country, was crawling on the ground, pierced by a serrated sword.
“Why did you come so fast…?”
The king smiled slightly as he looked at him.
“I’m fine, save the others…”
He waved his blood-soaked hand, urging him not to worry about himself but to save the others.
‘That person…’
He’s not a martial artist. The middle-aged man who seemed to be the king didn’t possess even a drop of aura. It was surprising to see someone who probably couldn’t tolerate pain smiling despite those injuries. Although Raon didn’t know who this king was or have any attachment to this kingdom, he felt a growing disgust towards those who had created this hellish scene.
“Is this your doing?”
Raon turned his gaze to the right and saw the bloodstained throne. The man sitting arrogantly on the broken throne slowly raised his head.
‘His eyes…’
His right eye was a normal black, but in his left eye, the white and black of the pupil were reversed.
‘Anima…’
The enemy the Sword Saint had warned about being careful of, who had appeared in the First Patriarch’s memories. It was Anima, the monster with eyes of reversed white and black. An extremely dangerous aura emanated from him.
“It’s Farel, his subordinate. We have to kill him here before he becomes even more corrupted.”
The woman in the purple robe bit her lip, insisting that they needed to kill the Anima now.
“Who is he… huh?”
As Raon tried to ask the purple-robed magician a question, she stood still like a statue. No, it wasn’t just her. The blood flowing from the king’s wounds had stopped flowing, and the screams and sounds of destruction from outside had ceased. It was as if time had frozen.
Only the one-eyed Anima named Farel seemed unaffected by the stoppage of time, naturally descending from the platform.
‘Now I understand.’
Raon licked his lips briefly as he looked at Farel.
‘Defeating him is the second test.’
Seeing how time had stopped, it seemed that until now he had only been shown the past, and defeating this Farel was the second test.
“So it’s you.”
Farel smiled slightly as he pulled the serrated sword out of the king’s body.
“I’ll make sure to kill you so you can’t interfere with us any further.”
He rose from the ground with a creepy smile. Before Raon could feel the strong wind, Farel’s serrated sword was already falling towards his neck.
‘Fast.’
An attack that arrived in a split second. It seemed even faster than the maximum speed of Supreme Harmony Steps. Raon wielded his Crimson Slash to deflect the Anima’s descending sword.
‘Am I being pushed back?’
Despite having regained his physical abilities, he was being overpowered. This Farel didn’t seem human.
“No, aren’t Anima not human?”
Just by looking at those chilling eyes, it seemed clear that Anima were beings different from humans.
“That bastard’s sword was too weak.”
The Anima mocked the dead captain of the royal guard as he wielded his serrated sword. His blade, imbued with fierce fighting spirit, cut Raon’s shoulder.
‘Crimson Slash?’
Did he just use Crimson Slash? Raon wasn’t mistaken. Farel had perfectly imitated his Crimson Slash. No, he hadn’t just imitated it, he had executed it with more force.
“Still, your sword is pretty good. Refreshing, even.”
“Shut your beak.”
Raon used the familiar technique of Revolving Sky, aiming for Farel’s neck. Farel curled his lips into a mocking smile and executed the same Revolving Sky technique, but stronger and faster. When the two Revolving Sky techniques clashed, red sparks flew towards the collapsed ceiling of the audience chamber.
‘Mmm…’
Raon frowned as he watched Farel’s Revolving Sky technique push against his with more force.
‘Is it possible to imitate my martial arts and make them even stronger?’
Just in case, Raon unleashed the Flame and Ice Unification technique from Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, not just a basic move. A wave of crimson flames surged and engulfed Farel’s entire body.
“This one’s pretty good, isn’t it?”
Farel smiled with satisfaction and pointed his serrated sword at the ground. Flames extended from his sword, and an even larger Flame and Ice Unification technique emerged. As the two flames competed, a massive explosion occurred that completely shattered the walls of the audience chamber.
‘Is he even copying Flame and Ice Unification?’
Raon bit his lip as he was pushed back.
‘Is this even possible?’
Unlike Crimson Slash and Revolving Sky, Flame and Ice Unification was one of the ultimate techniques of Ten Thousand Flames cultivation. It was amazing that he could instantly imitate and strengthen such a complex and abstruse sword technique.
“Show me more. Your sword!”
Farel moistened his lips, seemingly intrigued, and shook his chin.
“As you wish.”
Raon twisted his lips and pointed his Heavenly Drive sword towards Farel.
“I’ll cut you until you exceed your capacity.”
Determined to break through this opponent who seemed like a mirror, Raon kicked the ground.
***
Raon deflected Farel’s sword, biting his lip.
“To think he’s blocking everything…”
Is this even possible? Farel had copied everything, from Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation to the techniques personally created by Raon Zieghart. He had imitated all the sword techniques Raon had shown.
‘What kind of ability does he possess?’
Farel wasn’t just copying Raon’s sword techniques, he was returning them with greater power and speed. This wasn’t something possible with human strength. It had to be some kind of authority.
‘Did the First Patriarch defeat someone like this?’
Considering that the First Patriarch was fine in a future era, it seemed he had defeated this opponent without much difficulty. He really was an incredible person.
“I like each and every one of your sword techniques.”
Farel unleashed a series of ice snaps that pierced Raon’s defenses. They were faster and sharper than Raon’s own ice snaps, making them difficult to block.
“Show me more! Something flashy and dazzling!”
Farel seemed excited as he unleashed numerous sword techniques, pressing Raon. With superior physical abilities, a greater quantity and quality of aura, and stronger sword techniques, he wasn’t an easy opponent to face.
‘What do I have to do?’
The opponent was a monster who could imitate his sword techniques and make them even stronger. In a way, it seemed like an extension of the first test.
“The conclusion I got from the first test was that there are times when one must empty themselves.”
Through his sparring with the First Patriarch, he had learned that filling a sword technique beyond its capacity with subtle techniques actually weakened it. This test was probably similar.
“More! Bring on more!”
Farel unleashed a series of Azure Sky Sword techniques, creating pressure that oppressed Raon’s body. The weight generated by the sword made it difficult for him to even move his fingertips.
“It’s clear he’s stronger than me. But…”
The First Patriarch wouldn’t propose a test that was impossible to win.
‘Think.’
Raon resonated the Ring of Fire to the maximum. He focused on defense as he observed Farel’s sword techniques. Despite suffering injuries all over his body, as he continued to observe Farel’s swordsmanship, he began to feel something natural about it.
“It feels natural even though he’s executing my techniques with more force?”
Is this even possible? Raon focused all his attention on observing Farel’s Crimson Slash. The fast, strong, and precise sword technique was imbued with Farel’s unique subtleties.
“He’s filled it up.”
Farel had inserted his own subtleties into the sword technique in Crimson Slash, which was a combination of strong, fast, and precise swordsmanship. And he had done it in the perfect degree for Crimson Slash’s capacity. It seemed to be both an authority and a matter of sensitivity.
“That’s right. After emptying, one must fill.”
Through the first test, Raon had realized that excessive subtleties could ruin the inherent power of a sword technique. However, continuing to use only the basic principles of swordsmanship would be a disadvantage for someone who had mastered Ten Thousand Swords.
Instead of clumsily stuffing it with quantity, he needed to incorporate only the right subtleties for that sword technique, taking it a step further than completion.
‘Crimson Slash.’
Crimson Slash was a fast, strong, and precise sword technique. Within these three subtleties, Raon incorporated the subtlety of the Precision Sword that best fit this moment. He harmonized it naturally so as not to interfere with the other subtleties.
“That’s not enough! Bring a new sword technique!”
Farel mocked as if he wasn’t impressed and launched his Crimson Slash. When the two Crimson Slashes clashed, a powerful shockwave erupted in all directions. The royal pillars shattered completely, and dark cracks appeared in the floor.
“See? Your sword technique has already been…”
Farel, who was confident of his victory, opened his eyes wide upon seeing Raon’s Crimson Slash cut through his own aura. Raon’s Crimson Slash shattered Farel’s sword strike and opened a long gash across his chest.
“That’s how it is.”
Raon twisted his lips as he looked at his Heavenly Drive sword, which burned with a vivid flame.
‘This was the true way to use Ten Thousand Swords.’
Mastering Ten Thousand Swords didn’t mean always incorporating all its subtleties. The key was to add a tiny and precise detail to a perfected sword technique, like painting a dragon's eye to bring it to life.
“How dare you?!”
Farel, with his pride seemingly wounded, unleashed the Flame and Ice Unification from Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation. Two waves of flames fell as if they wanted to engulf Raon.
“Impressive.”
Even to enhance the power of sword techniques, it was a skill beyond the Ring of Fire if one merely looked at the mimicry. It seemed to be an authority that Farel possessed.
“But now it doesn’t make sense.”
Through this fight, Raon realized the true way to use Ten Thousand Swords. Now, no matter how strong the technique Farel returned to him was, he could counter it. Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, Heavenly Drive, Flame and Ice Unification. Raon unleashed the same technique that Farel had shot at him.
The Flame and Ice Unification that Raon created was significantly smaller compared to the red waves that Farel had unleashed.
However, hidden within those flames was the subtlety of the Severing Sword, which completely interrupted the flow of the opponent’s sword technique. Farel’s enormous Flame and Ice Unification was sliced into pieces, revealing his eyes wide open in surprise.
Just as the First Patriarch had relentlessly pushed him, Raon immediately jumped and drove his Heavenly Drive sword into Farel’s chest.
“Ugh!”
Farel, still stunned by the pain and shock, trembled as blood dripped from his lips.
“Disappear.”
Raon twisted the sword piercing Farel’s heart as he withdrew it, shaking his chin.
“I’m too busy to waste time with people like you.”
-
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