C1069
We've won! The White Blood Religion has fallen!
"It's finally over..."
"Now I can relax."
"Whew, I thought I was going to die."
The Zieghart swordsmen gathered in the training ground, cheering and shouting for the Five Kings martial artists who had brought them victory.
"...But what happened to Lord Denier?"
"I-I don't know. He stabbed King Lecross, and why he chose the Leader of the White Blood Religion..."
"When you think about it, it's betrayal after betrayal, right? But for what purpose?"
"We won, but there are still unanswered questions."
Many swordsmen had questions about Denier's betrayal, as they hadn't heard what happened. Meanwhile, Glenn had left the training ground filled with cheers and doubts, running towards the foot of North Grave Mountain. Moving his body where his mind guided him, as if he had transcended even the realm of Transcendence itself, he headed towards the summit where the Fighting Spirit emanated.
*Whoosh!* Glenn climbed to the highest peak of North Grave Mountain, where he found a man dressed in a red robe. The falling snowflakes melted into transparent droplets before they could touch him, never reaching the unknown depths of the ground.
The master of demonic energy who had reached the heavens looked down at the world from within the Demon Dragon's helmet that once tried to destroy everything.
"You're late."
The Heavenly Demon slowly blinked, as if he had been waiting for Glenn's arrival.
"Was your goal to keep me restricted?"
Glenn frowned as he met the Heavenly Demon's calm gaze.
"Coming all this way has become meaningless. Since the Leader of the White Blood Religion is dead."
"..."
The Heavenly Demon said nothing and stared at him. Looking into his peaceful eyes, it seemed like he already knew about the Leader of the White Blood Religion's death.
"You haven't changed."
The Heavenly Demon stroked his chin, noticing that Glenn hadn't changed at all since their last encounter.
"Are you still holding back?"
"..."
This time Glenn didn't answer, he just looked at the Heavenly Demon.
'He's gotten stronger.'
When they last saw each other, the Heavenly Demon had warned about the dangers of the Soul Weapon, saying one could withstand it by strengthening their soul. As if fulfilling those words, he now displayed a clearly stronger soul realm than before.
"You're afraid to ascend to the heavens."
The Heavenly Demon revealed a sharp gaze, as if all his thoughts had been read.
"With such pathetic resolve, you will die by my hand."
He clenched his fist with certainty. *Roar!* The red Fighting Spirit burning beneath the Heavenly Demon's feet brought pale green vitality to the peak that hadn't thawed for ten thousand years. His Fighting Spirit brought vitality instead of death. His Martial Mastery had already reached the heavens.
"What's your purpose?"
Glenn turned his chin to the side while maintaining eye contact with the Heavenly Demon.
"Why did you stop me?"
“Reduction. We are all walking that path. And….”
The Heavenly Demon closed his mouth before finishing what he was about to say.
"The next time we meet, one of us will die."
His low voice carried certainty. Though he hadn't read the flow of the heavens, it was as if he could see the future.
"Of course, at this rate, you'll be the one to die."
After saying those words, the Heavenly Demon disappeared like a ghost, dissolving into red smoke.
"..."
After the Heavenly Demon's departure, Glenn bit the inside of his lip as he watched new sprouts raise their heads on the peak.
"Head of House!"
As he let out a deep sigh, Roenn came running with an urgent expression.
"Darkan's condition is critical!"
Roenn's eyes narrowed with worry as he reported that the tide of the battle had changed drastically.
"Indeed. I must go."
Glenn nodded briefly and turned around.
"But the means to travel there..."
Roenn frowned, mentioning that Chamber, who needed to control long-distance teleportation magic, was unconscious.
"No."
Glenn shook his head calmly and kicked the peak where the vitality was blooming.
"There's certainly someone. Someone who can take Chamber's place."
***
'This is...'
Darkan bit his lip as if he was trying to tear it off.
'How is this possible?'
In the mental world created by the Soul Weapon, one could see the opponent's soul with their eyes. He had brought promising swordsmen like Raon to this space to fight several times, but they had never surpassed his predictions regarding their soul realm.
But now, Derus Robert, who stood before him, emanated an immensely vast soul that made even his current soul as a top-tier Transcendent seem like mere skin.
*Rumble!* A shiver ran down his spine as he saw countless eyes mockingly smiling from within the endless black shadows that rose like sewage water being sprayed.
'Definitely not a soul any human could possess.'
The true soul that Derus kept under his heart created a massive resonance, as if hundreds or thousands of souls had gathered, not just one. Each one had the same sinister color. *Rumble!* As Derus' soul expanded, the mental world began to tremble and twist, as if it was about to collapse.
This space he had created was about to break under the pressure of such a huge and powerful soul.
'To think such a soul existed...'
Even when facing Glenn's Soul Weapon, he had only thought of death without feeling fear. This was the first time his soul felt so overwhelmed. It wasn't a difference in Martial Mastery, but rather an instinctive human fear.
"Human, you ask?"
Derus twisted his lips into a smile as he looked towards the black shadows that covered the mental world.
"You're so obsessed with swords that you created this space, yet you worry about such trivial matters."
He shook his head as if such things were completely irrelevant in this situation.
"Why are you just standing there looking?"
As Derus smiled, the thousands of eyes behind him blinked simultaneously. It was beyond unsettling; it was grotesque.
"I've revealed my soul as you wanted. Come at me like before."
Derus gestured with his finger as if inviting an attack. His soul continued to surge, staining Darkan's Mental Image with darkness. *Roar!* He could feel black cracks appearing in his Mental Image that had taken the form of a giant sword.
'This isn't good.'
He had a dark premonition that if he got too close to that black entity, his soul would be absorbed by Derus and become one of those eyes before he could even swing his sword. No, even at this moment, it seemed like Derus was getting stronger by consuming his Mental Image.
"Having these eyes is useful here."
Derus smiled as he looked at Darkan.
"If you had recklessly barged in like before, I would have devoured you whole."
He clicked his tongue with disappointment. At the same time, the eyes emitted an unsettling smile.
'Yes, I had gotten close...?'
Darkan narrowed his eyes upon hearing Derus' words.
'So does that mean he can't fully control that soul either?'
Thinking about it, someone with such a massive soul had no reason to remain hidden until now. If he could fully utilize the power of that soul, he could probably defeat even Glenn or the Heavenly Demon. But Derus had been openly avoiding combat with Glenn. This meant that he hadn't made that enormous mass of souls completely his own.
'I'll aim for that opening.'
If Derus couldn't fully control that immense soul, then he still had a chance. If he could find a place where his soul wouldn't be absorbed, an opportunity would arise.
"Jah."
Darkan grabbed his sword and lowered his upper body.
"Seems like you've figured it out."
Derus lifted his chin as if he was enjoying himself.
"While I may be obsessed with swords, I'm not a fool who can't think."
He nodded as if confirming that his judgment was correct.
"However..."
Derus' right eye began to stain with a black death aura. *Rumble!* The thousands of eyes that had emerged behind Derus also burned black as if following his lead.
At that moment, the gray sword that formed his Mental Image finally couldn't withstand Derus' soul and broke, splitting like a spiderweb.
Since his Soul Weapon was the same mental world, when the sword collapsed, the Soul Weapon also had to break. Darkan struggled to open his eyes as he heard a deafening roar.
Derus was still before him, but the black souls and eyes that had been visible behind him were no longer there. It seemed they had returned to reality.
*Roar!* Derus emanated a soul realm and tyrannical aura even greater than before, as if he had awakened in the process.
"You... cough!"
As Darkan tried to approach Derus, he coughed up black blood. The aftermath of the broken mental world had caused severe internal injuries. However, the biggest problem wasn't the internal injuries but the damage to his upper dantian. It was the worst possible situation, as the upper dantian, which was used more often in Transcendent battles, had collapsed along with the Soul Weapon.
"A Soul Weapon that only creates a place to fight - what an incredibly stupid thing."
Derus smiled as he wiggled his finger.
"Of course, even if you had wielded an orthodox Soul Weapon like Glenn Zieghart, you still wouldn't have been able to cut my 'soul'."
He fixed his blue eyes on Darkan, who was still coughing up blood.
"That's how you'd see it. Since you're someone without any romance for the sword."
Darkan brushed his hair aside and curved his blood-soaked lips.
"I'm the type who gets stronger as the situation gets more desperate. I'm eager to see how I'll overcome this mess."
Though he was cornered, he lifted his chin as if he truly intended to defeat Derus.
"I'll defeat you and ask you about that soul."
"Fine. If you defeat me, I'll tell you everything."
The moment Derus nodded calmly, his body disappeared like smoke. *Whoosh!* When Derus reappeared, he was right in front of Darkan. Without any preparation, he thrust his sword directly towards Darkan's heart. Though it looked like a simple thrust, it contained fearsome swordsmanship principles.
*Clang!* Darkan raised his sword diagonally to deflect Derus' sword that was aiming for his heart to the left. However, even this seemed to strain him, as black blood dripped from his lips.
"You've become weak."
Derus smiled and shook his head.
"I could defeat someone of your level even from a sickbed."
Darkan deflected Derus' sword that was rushing from the left as he told him not to worry.
"I'll give you credit for your fighting spirit, at least."
Derus laughed and stepped inside Darkan's guard, unleashing a series of heavy sword techniques. *Clang!* Darkan's hand holding his dark sword trembled as he stepped back ten paces.
'...This isn't good.'
While it was true that Derus had become stronger than before, Darkan could have handled him if his body was in normal condition. The reason he was now being pushed back was because of the aftermath of his broken Soul Weapon.
'It's hard to use the upper dantian.'
If he hadn't used the Soul Weapon, he could have killed Derus or made him flee, but he regretted using it so carelessly against this mysterious opponent.
'Still...'
He couldn't fall here. His words about turning crisis into opportunity weren't lies. Since he had always become stronger through hardship, he gathered his diminished focus to analyze Derus' swordsmanship.
'I can see it somehow.'
Darkan blocked Derus' sword attacks with minimal losses and healed his organ injuries and upper dantian. Not looking with his eyes, but feeling with his senses proved to be more useful.
"You truly deserve the title of Dark Night Sword God."
Derus twisted his lips as if Darkan had read his movements.
"Let's do things a little differently from now on."
As soon as those words ended, Derus' swordsmanship changed drastically. Fast and then slow, light and then heavy. Without Darkan noticing, his sword had begun to chase the Flow of Ten Thousand Swords like Glenn or Raon. *Clang!* Darkan stumbled back like a drunkard as he spat blood from his mouth.
'Damn...'
Trying to read Derus' changed swordsmanship had worsened the damage to his upper dantian. Now his vision was blurring, making it difficult to do anything.
"Already tired right after praising yourself for living up to your name? Dark Night Sword God Darkan?"
Derus raised his voice mockingly, as if he was already sure of his victory.
"I am not the Dark Night Sword God, but simply a Swordsman. As long as this sword doesn't break, I won't fall."
Darkan shouted at Derus to come at him as he deflected his fierce sword attacks and even counterattacked. He swung his sword with a smile despite the blood flowing from his eyes, nose, and mouth. His willpower was overcoming his failing body.
"Merely a Swordsman..."
Derus frowned slightly as he lowered his sword upon Darkan. *Boom!* Darkan raised his dark sword to block Derus' simple downward strike. But Derus, instead of using sword techniques, continued to accumulate his aura as if he intended to overwhelm with pure strength.
Darkan began to collapse, unable to withstand the weight and power being imbued into Derus' sword.
"Ngh..."
Darkan bit his lip as he watched his own sword being pushed towards his forehead by Derus' sword.
"Since you're obsessed with swords, I'll let you die by your own blade."
Derus muttered that it would be an appropriate ending as he added more strength to his sword. *Whoosh!* Just as Darkan's forehead was about to be cut by the dark sword and blood flowed down, a powerful aura shot towards Derus' face.
"Hmph!"
Derus smiled as he created a wall of death aura to block the approaching aura. *Boom!* However, the white aura pierced Derus' death aura and struck his chin.
"Ugh..."
Derus was pushed back along with his sword that had been pressing on Darkan, as if he was surprised.
"Haah..."
Darkan bent over, exhaling heavily as if he had truly returned from the brink of death.
"Are you alright?"
Ogram stood beside Darkan as he shook the death aura from his fist.
"Why...?"
Darkan frowned as he let out a blood-stained sigh.
"Why did you interfere? I was about to cut him."
Instead of thanking him, he looked at Ogram and demanded to know why he had intervened in the fight.
"Really..."
Ogram clicked his tongue as if he had expected Darkan to say that.
"You saved me before, so it's only natural that I save you too."
He shook his head as if the question itself was nonsense.
"I didn't try to save you. I just wanted to fight."
Darkan raised his dark sword as if to show that that thought hadn't changed.
"Same here. Now that my strength has been restored, I must test it."
Ogram clenched both fists and raised his aura, saying he also just wanted to fight Derus like Darkan did.
"So you've come seeking your own death. I would have given you a clean death if you had stayed still."
Derus smiled as he wiped the blood from his lips with the back of his hand.
"Since it's come to this, I'll send you both together."
He remained confident in his victory even with Ogram's intervention. Derus burst between Ogram and Darkan with an intense breaking sound.
Darkan swung his sword downwards and Ogram threw his fist, but Derus' sword pushed both forces back head-on and advanced inwards.
"Just hold on!"
Ogram left the defense to Darkan and employed the Ferocious Wave Arts. The spiraling airflow imbued in his fist pierced the death aura and shot towards Derus' heart. *Bang!* However, the force of the fist wrapped in the Ferocious Wave Arts dissipated into the black mist before reaching Derus.
"That won't work twice."
Derus twisted his lips as if he knew all about the Ferocious Wave Arts and swung his sword. Though it looked like just fast swordsmanship, strangely their bodies wouldn't move. Just as his right arm was about to be cut, Darkan kicked him, allowing him to luckily escape Derus' attack range.
However, they couldn't avoid it completely, and a burning black sword wound appeared on Ogram's shoulder. Darkan also had a dark red wound on his chest where Derus' sword had struck.
"Not bad for people fighting together for the first time. However..."
Derus concentrated death aura on the tip of his sword and launched a fierce thrust. His first blow sent Darkan tumbling as blood spurted from his mouth, while Ogram reacted too late and was struck without being able to defend properly.
Though they were at similar levels, Derus overwhelmed the injured Darkan with sheer quantity and power of aura, while using high-level martial arts against Ogram, who was on a different level.
It was a perfect strategy to suppress their teamwork.
"The same scene is getting boring, so let's end this."
Derus raised his sword as he stood in front of Darkan.
"If I'm this strong just by consuming your Mental Image, I wonder how much power I'll gain by killing you."
He licked his lips as if he truly expected that.
"Your sword isn't beautiful..."
Darkan snorted as he looked at Derus' sword.
"What?"
"Glenn Zieghart's sword is noble and grand. Raon Zieghart's sword is aggressive and free. But your sword..."
He shook his head with a grimace.
"I don't feel anything from it. It's certainly strong but completely empty."
Darkan snorted, saying it was a boring sword.
"I had felt that before, but you definitely know how to provoke people. Of course, that won't work on me."
Derus shook his head, saying he wouldn't listen to the words of a loser.
"Besides, don't worry: this empty space will soon be filled with your soul and power."
He said the sword would soon have meaning as he swung his blade burning with death aura towards Darkan's head. *Whoosh!* Just as Darkan watched Derus' fierce descending sword as if accepting his own death - *Screech!*
A silver sword emerged from an open blue dimension to block Derus' thrust.
*Rumble!* Derus' sword, which had been overwhelming Darkan and Ogram, began to tremble and recoil.
"This is..."
Derus looked with wide eyes at the sword crackling with red lightning, genuinely surprised.
"That's it!"
Darkan clapped as he watched the sword pushing Derus back.
"That's a real sword!"
He cheered as if he knew who the sword's owner was. *Crackle!* The blue dimension opened completely, and Glenn Zieghart emerged with a black robe over his shoulders. The Heavenly Tremor sword in his grip emitted a fierce Sword Mantra.
"Chamber and Larian are out, how did you get here!"
Derus' jaw trembled in disbelief at Glenn's sudden appearance, as he had been monitoring all situations.
"You're underestimating the children's growth too."
Glenn's proud gaze turned back.
"Haah..."
Princess Jayna of Balkar, more famous for her arrogance and haughtiness than her magical power, had managed to execute long-distance teleportation magic even while bleeding from her nose and mouth, following her master's legacy.
"Your plans today..."
Glenn stood in front of Derus with eyes crackling like lightning.
"Were shattered by the children you underestimated."
-
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