Chapter 1131
"Derus Robert."
Glenn fixated his gaze on Derus Robert, his eyelids pulling tight like jagged canyons.
"So, you have shown your face once more."
Rage-fueled electricity crackled and bloomed around his silhouette, resembling cherry blossoms drenched in fresh gore.
"Once more? A significant amount of time has passed since our paths last crossed."
Derus appeared entirely unperturbed by Glenn’s arrival, his face set in a comfortable, lingering smirk.
"Even so, for the great Destructive King of the North..."
He shifted his focus with calculated nonchalance toward Raon, who was currently being shielded by Glenn’s massive presence.
"Your affection for your grandson is quite profound. I hadn't anticipated you would bolt here with such frantic haste the moment he faced a shadow of peril."
Derus scrutinized both Glenn and Raon with his lucid, piercing eyes. He wore a tranquil grin, as though the internal dialogues of both men were laid bare before him.
"My presence here isn't for the sake of the Light Wind Palace Master; it is to settle accounts with you."
Glenn unsheathed Heavenly Tremor, his posture radiating a lethal intent to end Derus then and there. A murderous aura, belonging to the most formidable blade-master on the continent, shivered across the frost-white edge of the sword.
"There is no need for such hostility."
Derus lifted his palms in a gesture of feigned peace.
"How could I ever hope to stand against the Destructive King of the North? Or should I say, the Sword God?"
He offered a subtle bow toward Glenn, wordlessly requesting that the weapon be stowed.
"..."
Raon narrowed his vision into thin slits while observing the confrontation between Derus and Glenn.
'What is that man truly plotting?'
The Derus of the past would have projected a mask of calm while his mind raced with desperate exit strategies. Yet now, Derus was gesturing and smiling as if Glenn’s intervention was a welcome development. He acted as though he had been anticipating this specific encounter.
'Was I not his primary target after all?'
Until just a moment ago, Raon was convinced Derus intended to consume his Soul Sword and plunder his memories, thoughts, and history. But looking at the man's expression now, it was evident his goal lay elsewhere.
'Indeed. He relinquished his hold on the Soul Sword far too easily.'
Derus possessed the opportunity to harvest at least a portion of the Soul Sword, yet he retreated without hesitation the second Glenn arrived. It was clear he was playing a different game.
"You have undergone a change."
Glenn also appeared to recognize the shift in the atmosphere surrounding Derus, a furrow deepening above his left eye.
"Have you achieved mastery over the Soul Sword?"
As a warrior who had summited the peaks of martial skill, Glenn perceived Derus’s current state instantly and gave a curt nod of acknowledgment.
"Precisely as I thought, you noticed."
Derus confirmed with a thin, knowing smile.
"It was through the generosity of the former sovereign of the Holy Sword Alliance that I managed to step into that shadowed territory."
He spoke of his debt to Darkan with a faint smirk. To an outsider, it might have sounded as though Darkan had been a mentor who willingly passed on the secrets of the Soul Sword.
"Your repulsive nature is the one thing that remains the same."
Glenn flashed his teeth in a snarl, glaring at the man.
“In fact, it only rots further with time.”
He adjusted his grip on the hilt, resolved to prevent Derus from walking away.
"If you are so insistent on a trial of blades, I suppose I must comply."
Derus reached out into the empty air, a slight smile playing on his lips. With a sharp, tearing sound, the fabric of reality parted, and a blade shimmering with a fusion of white and gold manifested. It was a radiant, sanctified weapon that seemed plucked from a holy legend or a grand cathedral's artwork.
“Behold the Holy Sword, Sarkanta.”
Derus wrapped his fingers around the hilt of the divine blade, a dark grin spreading across his face.
"With this in my hand, I won't be as simple to cast down as I was before."
He beckoned with a finger toward Glenn, an open provocation to begin the assault.
"Head of House!"
Raon's voice thundered toward Glenn’s back.
"The Soul Sword Derus wields can prey upon the Soul Sword of his enemies! Exercise caution!"
He shouted at the top of his lungs, exposing the unique threat of Derus’s power that he had just felt personally.
'Of all the possible paths, he mastered that one.'
Derus already possessed the dark art of stealing the martial foundations of others, but Raon had not foreseen that this theft would translate to the realm of the Soul Sword. The man was a constant source of dread.
"Ha..."
Derus let out a sharp chuckle at the warning.
"There is no cause for such alarm."
He rolled his wrist, treating the impending clash as if it were a mere cordial sparring match.
"It is alright."
Glenn gave a steady nod to Raon, signaling him to remain calm, before locking his freezing gaze back onto Derus.
'My grandfather can emerge victorious, can't he?'
Raon chewed his lip nervously and looked toward Wrath.
-There is not a soul on this land capable of slaying the Nadine bread elder in a fair duel.
Wrath shook his head, dismissing Raon’s immediate fears.
-However, that hollow monster you call a rival has undoubtedly evolved.
He scowled while indicating Derus.
'Does that mean my grandfather is in peril?'
Raon snapped his attention away from Glenn and looked urgently at the entity.
-No, not in that sense. He still holds the power to kill such a creature. But...
Wrath paused, his expression grim.
-Your elder might have to depart from this existence to do it.
He made a clicking sound with his tongue, implying that Glenn might have to transcend this mortal coil in the process of finishing Derus.
'Derus has climbed that high?'
Raon looked down, his eyes fixed on the smiling figure of Derus.
-Correct.
Wrath gave a sharp nod.
-To ensure that man stays down, the Nadine bread elder must be willing to leave this world behind.
He wrinkled his nose in distaste, noting that Derus Robert had gained significantly more power than anticipated.
"Then, as the junior in this exchange, I shall take the initiative."
Derus’s lips curled as he vanished from sight. He did not reappear from a flank or the rear, but directly in front of Glenn, swinging his blade downward. With a piercing ring, Glenn intercepted the strike using only a few fingers to guide Heavenly Tremor, his expression remaining stone-cold. The impact of the two swords produced a deafening roar!
The cataclysmic shockwave born from the meeting of Glenn’s Heavenly Tremor and Derus’s Sarkanta rippled across the sky and the earth.
The soil beneath them fractured and tore, while the very air was filled with spiderweb cracks. This was a conflict between true Transcendents—those at the absolute zenith—a spectacle that looked like a war between deities.
"As I imagined!"
Derus whispered in admiration, thrusting his blade with a speed that outpaced light itself. Glenn parried the strike again with a deft rotation of Heavenly Tremor, sending his opponent’s momentum flying. They engaged in a frantic close-quarters struggle, a symphony of endless blade-work where every strike found a perfect counter-rhythm.
'This is beyond comprehension.'
Raon bit his lip as he watched the duel, where the combatants were reduced to streaks of pure radiance.
'To think the distance between us is still this vast.'
He had convinced himself he was closing the gap, but he realized now it was a vanity. These two had moved beyond the status of the Five Kings, operating in a reality entirely separate from his own.
'And yet, I can follow it.'
Because his own prowess had reached new heights, he could discern the intent and the flow of the battle between Glenn and Derus. Observing this high-level slaughter was an incomparable lesson in the martial arts.
'Wait...'
A sense of unease flickered. Raon frowned as he tracked Derus’s defense against Glenn’s Heavenly Tremor.
'My grandfather’s strikes are clearly more powerful, so why isn't Derus being overwhelmed?'
Derus had certainly grown, but Glenn’s essence and aura still occupied a superior tier. Raon couldn't find the logic in why the scales weren't tipping further, as if they were operating on an equalized plane. With a low rumble, Derus absorbed a devastating high-tier strike from Glenn by merely retreating two paces, confirming Raon’s suspicions.
'This defies logic.'
Despite his already legendary status, Glenn had reached even further, becoming a literal god of the blade. To withstand his direct hits without being forced back was a feat that shouldn't be possible, even for Derus with his borrowed celestial power. A deep, resonant hum filled the air.
Raon pushed the Ring of Fire until a sharp pain bloomed in his chest and activated his Azure Clear Eye.
'There has to be a mechanism behind this.'
Determined to unmask Derus’s trick, he channeled every sense toward the Transcendent clash. With a thunderous sound, Glenn continued his relentless assault without visible hesitation, though he surely noticed the anomaly in Derus. It was the absolute resolve to annihilate his foe regardless of the circumstances. Their blades sang as they met again!
Derus was holding his ground, but the permanent smirk on his face was becoming strained, as if the pressure was becoming an agonizing weight. Though he utilized sophisticated techniques to stay in the fight, he was clearly nearing his breaking point.
'I have to see it.'
Raon refused to blink, etching every twitch of Derus’s body into his memory.
'His internal energy and his bladework are inferior, so how does he neutralize the power of a stronger opponent... Wait?'
Upon closer inspection, he detected a phenomenon where the mana of the natural world was being pulled into Derus’s sword of its own accord. It was a faint, nearly invisible motion, but nature's energy was gravitating toward Derus.
'The rocks, the trees, the soil, the very space itself... I see it!'
Raon tightened his fist as he realized how the environment was being manipulated by Derus’s blade.
'I understand it now!'
With a world-shaking crash, Derus Robert barely parried Glenn’s Azure Sky Sword and retreated.
"It appears I am still somewhat lacking."
He breathed out, looking at his vibrating holy sword, Sarkanta, which seemed on the verge of splintering.
"The prestige of the Sword God, Glenn Zieghart, remains as indomitable as the rumors suggest."
Derus offered a refined bow, expressing his feigned admiration. Even though he had cast aside House Robert, his noble bearing was more pronounced than ever. With a sharp crackle, Glenn ignored the pleasantries and brought Heavenly Tremor down in a vertical arc. Crimson lightning, summoned by the blade’s path, plummeted toward Derus’s skull.
Derus tilted his holy sword upward, and a flicker of sapphire light met Glenn’s lightning. A titanic wave of energy erupted, sending fragments of electricity and aura screaming in every direction.
“A massive shadow has stretched out.”
Utilizing the chaos of the colliding energies as a veil, Derus manifested his Soul Sword and lunged for Glenn’s throat.
"Hmph!"
Glenn called forth his own Soul Sword, shaped from his indomitable spirit, as if he had read Derus’s mind perfectly. Instead of trying to sever Glenn’s blade, Derus’s Soul Sword clung to it like a parasite, attempting to siphon away its essence.
"Pitiful."
Glenn’s brow furrowed, and his Soul Sword, saturated with his fury, violently shattered Derus’s spiritual weapon.
"Kuhak!"
Derus sprayed blood from his mouth for the first time and stumbled backward.
"You truly are in a league of your own."
He wiped the red stain from his lips with his hand, his mouth twisting into a wide, dark grin.
"We shall conclude our business here for today."
Derus lowered his holy sword and gave a casual wave.
“On your side of the field, not a single life was lost, correct?”
He gestured toward the fallen form of Archangel Ramiel, implying that he was the only one who had suffered a setback.
"No. I have no intention of letting you leave this place alive today."
Glenn pointed his Soul Sword at Derus, his eyes burning with the cold determination to finish the job.
"Regrettably, that is not how this ends."
Derus snapped his fingers, and a pillar of blinding white radiance descended upon him, saturated with the holy energy of a divine monument. It was the celestial power of Archangel Raphael.
"If you choose to strike me down, you will find yourself unable to remain in this world as well."
Derus smiled softly, questioning if Glenn was truly prepared for such a sacrifice.
"If you vanish, who will be left to halt the Heavenly Demon? Who will remain to clip the wings of the Archangels?"
He lowered his hand, advising Glenn to prioritize the future over his current vendetta.
"If you are still determined, then swing your sword. I will accept whatever path you choose to take."
Derus opened his arms wide, daring Glenn to act.
"You really are..."
Glenn stared at him with eyes like ice, his irritation palpable.
"Of course, this isn't merely a retreat. The reason for my arrival today was..."
Derus smiled thinly and pointed a finger toward Glenn.
"To issue a formal declaration of war to the Five Kings."
He lifted his chin with an air of superiority as he announced his challenge.
"A declaration of war?"
Glenn’s expression darkened as he looked at Derus.
"In exactly one year and one month, in the merchant city of Cameloon, I intend to bring the long-standing conflict of the Five Kings and Three Demons to a final close. Or rather, the Five Kings and Two Demons."
Derus’s lips curved into a smile as he proposed a war in Cameloon—the heart of the continent—to decide who would ultimately rule the world.
"Are you in your right mind?"
Glenn’s eyes swirled with turbulence as he tried to find a lie in Derus’s words.
"I have never been more serious. Every debt will be settled on that day."
Derus rubbed his chin while looking up at the fractured sky, as if reading the very destiny of the heavens.
"Since this is a declaration of war, your consent is not required."
He balled his hand into a fist, stating that the conflict in Cameloon would begin regardless of their wishes in thirteen months.
"If you aren't going to kill me this instant, I shall see you again when that time comes."
Derus bared his chest, inviting Glenn to strike his soul.
"You won't do it. If you destroy my soul while it is under the protection of an Archangel, your own existence will be severed from this world."
He smiled, confident in his knowledge of the rules governing their power.
"I look forward to our reunion in Cameloon."
Derus looked down, whispering about his anticipation for the start of the great war.
"Ah, I will be taking the remains of my comrade. He deserves at least a proper burial."
With a flick of his wrist, the charred remains of Archangel Ramiel began to float into the air.
"Pitiable and dim-witted..."
As Derus reached out to pull Ramiel’s body toward him with a sneer, a crimson blade whistled through the air and pinned the corpse back to the earth. Normally, the only individual present with the strength of will to defy Derus was Glenn.
But Glenn was standing motionless, his Heavenly Tremor lowered as he sat deep in contemplation.
"How did you..."
Derus’s attention snapped away from Glenn and toward the ground. For the first time, a look of genuine agitation crossed his face, and a curse escaped his lips.
"This corpse is my prize."
Raon stood firmly on Ramiel’s body, lifting his chin with a look of pure defiance.
“Don’t you even think about touching it.”
