Chapter 87 Hwashan War (4)

Whooooosh!

Was this the sword of the man called Sword Saint? The moment the tip of the sword was fired toward him, he could feel the daze he felt from the Heavenly Devil’s Sword. Yoon-seok admitted instantly. He was out of the old man’s league. But..

‘It’s still worth a try.’

Yoon-seok didn’t change his mind. Understanding about sword energy and swordsmanship? He admitted that it was important. However, the way to win wasn’t only a straight line. If one side was lacking, then just fill up the other side.

「Twelve swords are being used. Magic stats increases by +1.」

First, he reactivated King of All Swords. Then Yoon-seok used Force Shield. With Lady’s Commandment.

「By Lady’s Commandment, magic consumption of Force Shield is reduced by 1/20.」

Boom!

The purple sword struck his translucent shield. As a result, he began hemorrhaging Bloodseeker’s Energy. He felt goosebumps prickling his skin.

“..?”

Meanwhile, the old man raised an eyebrow while looking at the translucent shield as if he had never seen it before in his life. He looked as if he couldn’t understand why his sword was blocked by such a thing. However, he continued to swing his sword.

Boom! Bang!

Bloodseeker’s Energy decreased rapidly due to the repeated collisions. Not only that, even Lady’s Commandment couldn’t handle the consumption rate. However, Yoon-seok didn’t panic. He just focused all his attention on the movement of the purple sword energy.

He watched, again and again, to find out what was in the sword.

‘Just a little more..’

He still couldn’t see it properly yet. But the fourth strike, fifth, sixth..

As the technique unfolded, he gradually grew familiar with the sword. He could finally understand why he said this swordsmanship wasn’t of his clan.

Boom! Boom!

Illusion and gentleness. Yoon-seok felt that this clan pursued these two things. However, the sword of Lee Hyun-hak was different. He included all elements in his sword.

‘How is that possible?’

He couldn’t tell if it was fast or slow. He couldn’t tell if it was heavy or light. Sometimes it might seem like there were ten thousand changes, but for others, it looked simpler than anything else. It was a sword full of contradictions, like the Heavenly Devil Sword that sought perfect harmony between strongness and fluidity.

Booooom!

Soon after, his Force Shield was shattered as Bloodseeker Energy reached its limit. Yoon-seok immediately spread his wings and soared to the sky. But..

“Do you think I’ll lose you?”

Lee Hyun-hak chased after him while stepping in the air as if there were invisible stairs.

‘Didn’t see that coming...’

Originally, he would escape in the air to take time to replenish his energy and repeat the same actions until he found out everything about Sword Saint Lee Hyun-hak’s sword. Over and over again. He knew it might seem cowardly. But Yoon-seok didn’t care. So what if it was a little shameful?

If he could grow his swordsmanship and survive this duel, then he could be much stronger.

‘This is enough to buy some time.’

He was surprised by the unexpected change of events, yet Yoon-seok smiled quietly. There were only one means to follow him in the air, but it wasn’t as efficient as Yoon-seok’s two wings. Yoon-seok maintained a stable distance until more than half his Bloodseeker Energy was restored. But then.

“..?”

He could see a giant sword approaching from the old man’s direction below. No, there was a mistake to say it was visible. He could only faintly feel its presence. It was impossible to avoid nor block it. When he’d only sensed its existence, it had already reached Yoon-seok.

「Users are protected from unknown dangers by the souls of ancient hunters.」

Blue light burst out of the glove. He didn’t know what happened, except for the fact that he almost died.

‘Invisible Sword..?

The Invisible Sword that Namgoong Chul and Lee Hyun-hak mentioned. Yoon-seok didn’t know what it was, but he dared to take a guess. Wouldn’t that be what he just experienced if it was real?

‘Will I be able to stop..?’

Yoon-seok’s instincts warned him. It was arrogant of him to hope that he could steal the swordsmanship of such a strong opponent. He had to win, even just for a moment. It was harmless to think and take action simultaneously.

“Judgment of the Ruined Monarch.”

As soon as he chanted the command, the sky turned black.

‘Enhanced Speed.’

Yoon-seok immediately came down to the ground through teleportation. It was to activate the technique that could only be used when his feet were on the ground.

“Vajra Step.”

Yoon-seok’s feet left the ground. In doing so, his invincible state was triggered.

「All damage is disregarded temporarily.」

「 To Lady’s Commandment, Judgment of the Ruined Monarch increases by 4x within the realm.」

He activated Lady’s Commandment as well. Although he’d restored the rest of his energy, he’d need to increase it by four times to maintain it for more than a second. Finally, Yoon-seok lifted his head and looked up. Lee Hyun-hak was still in the air, so he was sure that he would never be able to move out of range and avoid it.

It was too late.

Boooom!

A red light flashed across the world. Was it due to the fixed S+ basic agility stats? Yoon-seok could see the moment the light rays were fired, which he couldn’t properly witness before. Of course, it was in the blink of an eye to everyone else. However, at that moment, Yoon-seok was astonished.

‘..’

Did he also think it was too late to avoid? He stood in place, even though he was aware of the incoming light rays. However, he raised his sword instead.

‘He’s going to block it?’

Yoon-seok, who’d experienced the impact of the skill on Earth, though he’d made such a judgment because he knew nothing. Just by solely relying on power, even the Heavenly Devil’s Sword was no match. Plus, it was a skill activated with up-ranked magic stats of b Bloodseeker’s Ultimatum} combined with King of All Swords that had reached SS+. Going even further, he increased the impact by four times with Lady’s Commandment.

But..

The oblivious one was Yoon-seok.

“..”

The Sky Beyond the Sky. Another sky existed outside the heavens.

Whooooooosh!

The moment the old man’s sword slashed through the air, purple energy swirled and shot toward the light. Then it rose into the sky, engulfing the light. Did he focus everything on one single point? The range of vortex wasn’t that wide, but it was enough to protect his body from the straight beam of light.

Was it the same for the people who were present on Earth? Did they have the same thoughts when they saw him defeat the demon and burn the invader?

Sword Saint Lee Hyun-hak. He didn’t seem like a human at all. Holding a sword, he was a being who exceeded humanity.

Bang-!

Indeed, the hideous pillar of light, which fit the word destruction well, disappeared without a trace. And the moment Yoon-seok’s feet touch the ground.

「Reflect all accumulated damage.」

Vajra Mirror, the characteristic of Vajra Step, was invoked. The scope of the Judgment of the Ruined Monarch was twenty meters in radius. At first, it could be used to teleport out of range. However, Yoon-seok directly entered the range for this trait. But he had one thing in mind.

He honestly didn’t think this trait would come in handy. He didn’t believe that the attack could be blocked.

‘Is it all or nothing..?’

A secret weapon. If the other person blocked this as if it were nothing..

He had no idea what skill he could use to win against such a monster. Soon, the light absorbed from Yoon-seok was reflected and emitted, directed at none other than Lee Hyun-hak. This time, he moved the sword hurriedly after seeing another beam of light shot from below. This time again, he was trying to block it without avoiding it.

‘Damn it, what kind of monster is he?’

Yoon-seok clenched his teeth. But the dice were rolled, and there was nothing more to be done. Yoon-seok maintained his utmost concentration and watched his sword move.

Whooooooosh!

Like how he blocked the light from before, again, purple energy swirled and swallowed the attack. But..

Matched with the exhausted look on his face, the swirl wasn’t as strong as before. The vortex grew smaller and soon was devoured by the light.

Booooom!

The flash of light disappeared. At the same time, the blackened sky returned to its original color. Yoon-seok quietly looked up at the sky. No, without letting his guard down, he saw the old man fall vertically from the sky.

‘Did I win..?’

A huge hole in his upper abdomen through which the light was shot. In that condition, his body fell from the sky. Nevertheless, Yoon-seok felt like he could attack again any second right now.

Crack!

But it was the same after his head exploded like a watermelon against the ground. He couldn’t believe it. Yoon-seok stood frozen until the phrase appeared to reassure him.

「Victory.」

「1,500,000 AP will be paid as a reward.」

「Unique Skill b Predation} has been activated.」

「Acquire one of your opponent’s skills at random.」

「Acquired Unique Skill {Violet Mist Divine Skill}.」

「Loot one of your opponent’s equipment at random.」

「Looted Plum Sword (Rank A+).」

「Absorb some of your opponent’s highest abilities.」

「Absorbed magic stat.」

「Go to the waiting room on the 11th floor.」

「Completed the achievement of Sword Saint Class.」

The moment the dark lights flickered in the waiting room, he lost all strength in his body. Yoon-seok calmed himself, leaning against the wall and panting. Checking the rewards earned by b Predation}, purchasing items using the AP, and sorting through what he felt while watching the divine skill technique shown by Sword Saint Lee Hyun-hak.historical

He couldn’t do any of it.

“I really..survived.”

The first duel since the coins disappeared. He knew it would be over if he died. But he realized that he didn’t know what that meant. However, Yoon-seok didn’t resolve to not do anything reckless from now on or to play it safe. He realized once again that he couldn’t achieve the goal of seeing the end of the Tower if this continued.

‘1.5 million AP..’

He earned 1.5 million APs in return for challenging the Sword Saint. Considering that the reward for the 10th floor was 1 million AP, the additional rewards this time were simply outrageous. Also, that wasn’t the only thing he gained. b Predation} was able to find a way forward just by exchanging swords with a man called Sword Saint.

‘Yeah, nothing has changed.’

It was just that he couldn’t turn a blind eye to fear; he had to face it head-on. Rather, he was very late at realizing it. Many challengers must have been carrying this weight for a long time already.

Nothing had changed. He just had to run for his one goal like what he had been doing so far.

‘I have to be stronger.’

He was lucky this time. If he never met the demon earlier on Earth and hadn’t looted that new skill from him..

Maybe this fight would have been the end of his long journey. Soon, Yoon-seok approached the statue with calm eyes and controlled the tablet. He fought for his life, and he won.

So..

It was time to grow stronger.