Chapter 1236
Raon brought both the Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword down with a violent force. His aura plummeted as if to cleave the very horizon, sending twin surges of red and blue energy upward like soaring celestial dragons.
Watching the two torrents of power racing toward him, Glenn remained stoic as he swung the Heavenly Tremor. His blade, wreathed in crimson bolts of lightning, cleaved through the fusion of fire and ice that Raon had unleashed, splitting the attack perfectly in two.
Anticipating that Glenn would neutralize his ranged strike with ease, Raon lunged forward instantly. He drove the Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword downward in a direct assault. This was no mere practice session; his swordsmanship radiated a lethal intent and a raw fury, as if he were engaged in a struggle against a sworn enemy.
Glenn shifted his grip with a flick of his wrist. He redirected the Heavenly Tremor from its lowered position, meeting Raon’s sudden onslaught with a flawless parry.
The sheer force of Glenn’s counter sent Raon staggering back five paces. The vibration was so intense that Raon’s fingers, clamped around his hilts, shuddered uncontrollably.
"Phew."
Exhaling sharply to steady his nerves, Raon shed the lingering shock and threw himself back into the fray.
As he spread the Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword like a pair of wings, a haunting sound—reminiscent of a starving predator's howl—echoed through the air. The Fangs of Insanity and the Blizzard Sword Art took hold. This was transcendent combat, a display of heightened intuition manifesting through Raon’s relentless strikes.
The combination of the Fangs of Insanity and the Blizzard Sword Art relied on the raw instincts of the moment, making the path of the blades unpredictable even to the wielder. Yet, Glenn obstructed every angle perfectly, moving as though he could perceive the future itself.
Once more, Glenn’s blade repelled Raon, forcing him six steps back. The impact was visibly heavier this time, his boots carving deep furrows into the earth.
Breaking from the patterns of their previous sessions, Glenn leveled the Heavenly Tremor without offering a single word of guidance. He stepped forward with his left foot, launching a thrust toward Raon’s vitals that moved with the speed of a sunbeam.
Raon carved a swift arc with the Wooden Ring Sword. A spinning barricade of roaring fire barely managed to shove Glenn’s blade off course.
"Haaa..."
With his breath coming in ragged bursts, Raon activated the Supreme Harmony Steps. Utilizing the incredible velocity of this footwork, he blurred forward until he was practically eye-to-eye with Glenn.
Without a moment's hesitation, Glenn brought the Heavenly Tremor down, as if he had been baiting Raon into close quarters. The crimson lightning that had been dancing across the ceiling of the training hall funneled into his blade, crashing toward Raon’s skull.
Raon suddenly opened his left hand, releasing the Wooden Ring Sword. The weapon, bound to his very essence, soared upward through the freezing blue air to act as a conductor, drawing the lightning away and dispersing the bolts in every direction.
With the Wooden Ring Sword handling the overhead threat, Raon seized the opening. He lunged another step closer, aiming the Heavenly Drive—now wreathed in brilliant gold flames—straight for Glenn’s throat. It was the Crimson Slash, a technique of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation that prioritized lethal speed.
"Hmm."
Glenn gave a soft, unsurprised grunt. He brought the Heavenly Tremor down to intercept the Crimson Slash, meeting it with the center of his blade.
However, the moment the Heavenly Tremor made contact, Raon vanished like a wisp of smoke, and a sudden wave of heat radiated against Glenn’s back.
It was the Phantom Flash variation of the Supreme Harmony Steps. Raon had refined this technique, blending illusions and shifting movements into his footwork with newfound mastery.
In the heartbeat before Glenn could pivot, Raon lunged with the Heavenly Drive, determined to exploit the momentary lapse. He executed Single Point Red from the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, a thrusting technique pushed to its absolute limit, aimed directly at Glenn’s spine.
Yet, instead of the sound of steel piercing cloth and flesh, the Heavenly Drive was knocked upward with a sharp metallic ring.
"Ha."
Raon exhaled a breath of disbelief as he saw what had stopped him.
"The pommel..."
Finding no time to fully rotate his body, Glenn had used the base of his sword’s hilt rather than the edge to deflect the strike. It was a feat of defensive genius, born of flawless precision, god-like speed, and an eternity of combat experience.
"I actually thought I had you with that one."
Raon pressed his lips thin, his disappointment evident. His eyes flickered with a slight tremor, showing the weight of the mental and physical strain.
"That was a genuine threat," Glenn admitted with a steady nod. "It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say a entirely new branch of the Supreme Harmony Steps has been realized."
A faint smile touched his lips, showing his approval of the Phantom Flash Raon had developed.
"Don't start praising me just yet," Raon muttered, clicking his tongue as he regained his stance with both the Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword. "I’m only just getting start—"
He began to smile, preparing to spring forward again, but his legs gave way and he collapsed onto the stone floor.
"Huu..."
A shallow, rhythmic sound of breathing came from Raon as his eyelids drifted shut. He wasn't wounded or unconscious in the traditional sense; he had simply reached his limit and fallen into a sudden, deep sleep.
Even in this state, his grip on the Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword remained absolute.
"Hmm..."
Glenn squinted, watching closely to see if Raon was truly unconscious.
"Phew."
Once he confirmed that the boy was dead to the world, Glenn let out a long sigh.
"I can't even relax, worried he might bolt upright and lunge at me again."
Glenn shook his head slowly and returned the Heavenly Tremor to its scabbard.
"His physical limits should be unchanged, so how is he doing this..."
For an entire week within the confines of this training ground, Raon had attacked him without a single moment of rest.
In the outside world, where their internal energy and physical stamina were bolstered by their cultivation, such a feat might be possible. But this specialized training ground was different.
Here, their endurance, physical strength, aura, and even their spiritual presence were suppressed. Glenn couldn't fathom how Raon had maintained such a high-intensity assault for seven days straight.
'Even though I've been holding back to preserve my own energy, I feel drained. Yet he kept going.'
Glenn let out a dry, amused chuckle as he listened to the soft snoring coming from his grandson.
'Is this just the boundless energy of youth?'
Glenn could manage his stamina because of his vastly superior mastery. Raon, however, lacked that efficiency and had been forced to exert his maximum power in every single exchange. It was nothing short of miraculous that he had sustained that level of ferocity for a week.
'But what truly stuns me...'
A warm smile spread across Glenn’s face as he reached down to lift the sleeping Raon.
'Is that his growth is outstripping my wildest projections.'
Glenn had entered this training to sharpen his own dulled senses, but Raon’s evolution was the more dominant force. He felt a mix of bewilderment and pride; he hadn't expected his grandson to grow faster than he himself could recover his prime instincts.
'To think he’s reached this level...'
Glenn laughed softly to himself while looking at Raon’s peaceful expression.
'Does this boy simply have no ceiling?'
Raon had evolved significantly during the conflict with Derus Robert. Glenn had assumed that after reaching the stage of transcendence, Raon would hit a natural plateau. Instead, within this room, he was already clawing toward an even higher state of being. Even as his grandfather, Glenn found the boy’s latent talent to be almost terrifying.
'No, it was more than that. It was unsettling.'
More than once during their week of combat, Glenn had felt a genuine chill at Raon’s tenacity and rate of improvement. Had Raon been an adversary, Glenn realized he would have been looking over his shoulder every night.
'I finally see why Karoon and Burren were so consumed by envy.'
Glenn shook his head, remembering how his other son and grandson had tried to suppress Raon during his younger years.
"I am eager to see the person you become by the time we walk out of here."
He carried Raon to the bed within the training quarters, laying him down gently and brushing the hair from his forehead.
"Sleep well."
As Glenn turned to leave the room and closed the door behind him, he heard a mumble.
"I... I'll help. So you'll win..."
Even in a sleep so deep it bordered on a coma, Raon’s fingers twitched, as if he were still trying to grasp his sword to aid Glenn.
"Hmm..."
Glenn paused at the door and turned back. He bit his lip, staring at the exhaustion and strain etched onto the young man’s face.
'So that was the reason.'
Raon was always a dedicated martial artist, but his behavior this week had been extreme. He had fought with a reckless disregard for his own well-being, but it wasn't for his own sake.
'It was for me.'
Raon had pushed himself to the brink of collapse because he wanted Glenn to be victorious against the Heavenly Demon. He wanted to be a factor in that win, no matter the cost.
Raon had offered up his very life to assist, fully aware that regardless of the duel's outcome, Glenn would eventually ascend and depart from this world.
"......"
Glenn stood in silence for a long time, his eyes cast downward as he processed the depth of Raon's devotion.
"Yes."
Finally, he looked up, a look of absolute resolve and confidence on his face as he looked at his grandson.
"I will be the victor."
"Hmm..."
Martha surveyed the area outside the fifth training ground, her eyes narrowing in thought.
"Your old man has been making a lot of moves lately. He used to just sit in the Lord's Manor and keep to himself. What changed?"
She clicked her tongue as she watched Karoon and the members of the Central Martial Palace depart on another errand.
"When I caught up with him the other day, he said it was the duty of the house leader to oversee every detail, both internal and external," Burren replied, walking beside her as he kept an eye on Karoon’s departing figure. "He told me that a leader should see the people with his own eyes, not just through reports on a desk."
Burren rubbed his chin, reflecting on his father's words.
"Seriously? He’s like a different person. That’s wild," Martha said, tilting her head in genuine surprise at such a drastic personality shift.
"I have a feeling I know what caused the change, but it’s still shocking to see," Burren said with a knowing smile.
"Then again, you’re one to talk. You used to be nothing but a common thug," he joked, recalling Martha's early days at the training ground.
"I... I was just a kid back then!" Martha snapped, stomping her foot defensively. "Everyone goes through a rough patch at that age!"
She scowled, trying to dismiss the memory.
"If we’re talking about people changing, Sir Burren is the gold standard," Krein cut in, leaning toward Burren and nudging him with his elbow. "Your jealousy of Sir Raon was legendary. You were always trying to bait us into causing trouble..."
He laughed, picturing Burren’s behavior as a trainee.
"That’s not how it was! You guys just did whatever you wanted!" Burren shouted, his face turning a bright shade of red as the embarrassment of his past actions caught up with him.
"I saw Raon’s boots and—!"
"Boots?" Martha asked, looking confused.
"Raon’s boots. Uh, never mind. Forget I said anything."
Burren turned away quickly, still feeling sheepish about the time he had been humbled by the sight of Raon’s tattered, hard-worn footwear.
"How boring," Martha huffed, looking away. "But some things never change."
She sighed deeply as she spotted Runaan, who was sound asleep while propped up against a tree.
"She’s consistent, I'll give her that. I'm almost jealous," Krein remarked, noting that there was never a moment she wasn't napping.
"Actually, she’s been harder to deal with lately..." Dorian added, his brow furrowed. "I honestly can't tell if she's actually sleeping or just checked out anymore."
"I’ve noticed it too. She rarely responds when you talk to her, and she’s more distant than ever," Burren agreed.
"So it’s not just me?" Martha muttered. "I thought we were finally getting along, but now she’s back to being cold and arrogant."
Ever since she had inherited the power of the demon king, Runaan had become obsessed with sleep. Before, it was a hobby she enjoyed; now, it seemed like a compulsion.
The strangest part was that despite sleeping constantly, she had dark circles under her eyes and appeared perpetually drained, as if she were actually suffering from chronic insomnia.
"There has to be a reason for it."
Runaan was never someone who hungered for power for its own sake. She was someone who valued peace and quiet as much as Rimmer did, so this shift was jarring.
Martha walked over to Runaan and delivered a sharp kick to the trunk of the tree she was leaning against.
"......"
Runaan’s eyes fluttered open, her brow knitting together in an expression of deep annoyance.
"Hey," Martha said, resting her foot against the tree and leaning in close to Runaan’s face. "It’s been a while. Let’s spar."
