novelraw Chapter 142 : The Best Sword in Shaanxi (2)
Chapter 142 : The Best Sword in Shaanxi (2)
Kwaaaang!
A huge flame soars from below the cliff.
"Run away!! It's the Great Mage!"
"A monster! It's a monster!!"
The unorthodox faction bastards, who were fleeing in a panic from the fireballs that were falling like crazy from the sky.
I chased them and burned them one by one, grumbling.
"Why do they describe a person like a demon?"
Baek Hasin, who was looking up at this side from below, made a face as if he was holding back something, so I silently raised my altitude and dealt with the remaining remnants.
Since they were all martial artists at the peak level at best, it was easy to defeat them one by one.
Occasionally, a few of them would clump together and form a sword formation to resist, but in that case, it was easily resolved by dropping the decisive weapon, Baek Hasin.
And so, after the two of us swept away about 50 enemies, it was already dusk.
‘A day wasted.’
Since my mana was also running low, I decided to take a rest for now.
Since it was an uninhabited area with no villages nearby, we entered a cave on one side of the cliff.
Since it was a cave in an exquisite corner, I wondered if there might be a fortuitous encounter, but there was nothing.
We went inside and ate dried grain pills and beef jerky. Since it was a rare break, we took the time to ask each other about our recent situations.
When asked if he had ever eaten a spiritual medicine, he said he had a few times during the vacation, and that he had eaten one of the spiritual medicines he had recently obtained the day before fighting Baek Yu-hwan to increase his internal energy.
It seemed he was taking good care of his fortuitous encounters.
‘No wonder his internal energy was considerable.’
And on top of that, his absorption rate was so amazing that he was saying he could probably eat more.
In fact, when I examined his qi meridians, it seemed he had stably digested the spiritual medicine, which made me even more dumbfounded.
“Since we have the chance, let’s take turns standing guard for each other.”
There were largely two ways to eat a spiritual medicine. One was to ingest it in a perfect condition.
The sooner you eat it, the better. Now that we were in the middle of a war, it was better to increase our strength even a little.
Since the natural true qi inside the cave was also abundant, I used a formation to create an optimal setting so that the energy would not leak out and would gather in a small space for sitting cross-legged.
Now, all that was left was to ingest the spiritual medicine.
The one who tried first among us was Baek Hasin.
When he ate the Small Rejuvenation Pill, the inside of the cave rumbled around him, and a black airflow rose.
The dense energy of the demonic arts soared, dominating the area like an ascending dragon, and then subsided in an instant.
As if night had come, the demonic qi quietly covered his surroundings in pitch black and then faded away.
Baek Hasin slowly opens his eyes. Seeing his clear eyes, it seemed he had gained some understanding.
‘His momentum is much deeper and more stable than before.’
Until just a little while ago, he was at the proficient super-peak level, but now he looked as if he had entered the realm of mastery.
‘This bastard is crossing the line.’
To think he could climb the stairs that others struggled to climb their whole lives so easily.
I had just reached the beginning.
As befitting a protagonist, he was a kid who would go far away once you caught up with him.
‘I have no choice but to catch up with this.’
I sat cross-legged in the spot Baek Hasin had vacated and took out the Great Rejuvenation Pill. A clear fragrance spread in all directions.
It was the first spiritual pill I was eating after absorbing the Blood Danjeon.
In case the energy clashed or overflowed, I had to be firmly prepared.
Soon, with a clear mind, I put the Great Rejuvenation Pill in my mouth.
In an instant, a pure energy that melted on my tongue and went down my throat. I operated the high-concentration energy that was rushing in like a wave with all my might.
‘Huh?’
But the energy that was coursing through my blood points was not burdensome at all.
Until now, when I absorbed a spiritual medicine, my blood vessels would swell, and I would barely manage to contain it, but now the energy was melting into my whole body so easily.
‘Is it because of the Blood Danjeon?’
The overwhelming absorption power of the Blood Danjeon, which contained the understanding of the previous Blood Demon, made this possible.
The blood flowing in my body and the constitution that had changed accordingly accepted the energy of the spiritual medicine as it was and swallowed the energy of the Great Rejuvenation Pill without leaving a single drop.
It felt as if my entire body's blood vessels had become a sponge with infinite growth potential. It seemed to have created some synergy with the talent of [Transcendent Growth].
And so, after circulating the energy for a long time and managing it all, the feeling in my heart was unusual.
Thump-
The circle was pulsating. It was a sign I had experienced several times before, the signal of a circle formation.
‘Already?’
It hadn't even been a month since I had achieved the 4th circle, so I couldn't help but be surprised.
But considering what I had achieved since then, it roughly fit.
I had increased my mana pool by intercepting the Blood Cult's grand ritual prepared to awaken the Black Moon Sword, and I had repeatedly fought life-and-death battles and recovered.
Moreover, this time, with the Blood Danjeon, I had reached the super-peak level and improved my constitution, and my overall abilities had increased, and I had even eaten a Great Rejuvenation Pill after achieving the Hundred Poison Immunity, so it was enough to reach the threshold of the 5th circle.
Because the growth of the body also helped the development of the circle.
The 5th circle was also just around the corner. I opened my eyes with a satisfied smile.
‘With this, I can grow one more step.’
A laugh escaped on its own.
Meanwhile, Baek Hasin, who was standing next to me, was looking at this side, which was grinning, with a questioning look, but I didn't mind.
It was a satisfying night.
***
The next day came.
I had been out and about since early in the morning, and I could see guys looking down at the cliff from a distance.
It seemed the warning from the other day had worked, as they didn't even think of crossing.
When I aimed a fireball at them from this side and turned my gaze, I could hear a very faint monstrous roar in my super-senses.
“Aaaargh!”
“Run away, Great Mage!! The magic demon is coming!!”
The unorthodox faction bastards who were fleeing as if they had encountered a ghost. I was about to chase them, but this time, they had chosen only the fast ones, and they were fleeing in a scattered manner, so it would be a loss to chase them, so I clicked my tongue and withdrew the fireball.
Below me, Baek Hasin was still ringing his sword cry.
‘Like unorthodox faction bastards.’
Anyway, thanks to the unorthodox faction things that had gotten scared and fled, I was able to continue the search much more comfortably than the previous day.
And so, for half a day, a day, and until the morning of the second day, we flew around and looked for traces of the Demon-Seeking Sword.
It was already the last day. We had to return by noon.
But despite our efforts, we couldn't find anything in the cliff area, which was hundreds of meters deep and stretched for tens of kilometers.
‘The search range was too wide.’
If it weren't for Baek Hasin and the Black Moon Sword, I wouldn't have even tried. Just then, I heard Baek Hasin's question.
“Are you sure it’s here?”
“I told you it is.”
It was a conclusion I had inferred based on the strategy information. It was well worth a try.
I urged him with perseverance.
“Just ring the sword cry.”
“Really…”
Just as Baek Hasin was grumbling and flicking the sword cry as usual.
“Huh?”
Baek Hasin's eyes widened slightly. A tremor felt from deep within the cliff. There was something that was clearly caught by his super-senses.
“There’s something!”
Finally, a reaction came.
“Here?”
“Huh? It’s over there!”
I flew to the corner of the cliff that Baek Hasin had led me to.
Beyond a crevice that was not even visible from a decent angle, an old sword covered in moss was stuck as if covered in dirt.
As if to confirm, Baek Hasin imbued the Black Moon Sword with demonic qi and rang the sword cry.
Jiiing-
Then, a reaction was heard from beyond the pile of dirt.
A sword cry with a sharp air was ringing.
I had finally found the Demon-Seeking Sword.
I removed the surrounding dirt in its entirety with psychokinesis and gripped the hilt of the sword, which was stuck in a rock like the legend of Excalibur.
“Huh?”
Baek Hasin, who had felt an ominous energy, tried to stop me for a moment, but I did not hesitate.
Gulp-
The moment I grabbed the sword, I felt a dense lingering thought.
The Demon-Seeking Sword contained the lingering thoughts of countless victims, including the Heavenly Demon from 300 years ago.
It was an evil object that drove the person who held it mad.
But it didn't work on me, who was immune to mental attacks.
Soon, the lingering thought that was trying to take over my mind could not penetrate my body and faded away.
‘Though this doesn’t mean it’s completely purified.’
Since it had submitted to me once, its lingering thought would be a little less now. A master of Song Jin-geun's level would be able to handle it without any trouble.
I examined the most important part, the blade.
Although it was dirty in many ways from being neglected for hundreds of years, its peculiar sharpness was still alive.
“Is that it?”
Just then, Baek Hasin asked from the side. When I nodded in affirmation, he let out a sigh of relief and shared his thoughts.
“It’s a sword that really makes a person suffer.”
‘The Demon-Seeking Sword is rather comfortable.’
Unlike the Black Moon Sword, which would not recognize a master unless certain conditions were met, and would either erase its blade or forcibly prevent internal energy from flowing, this was a relatively moderate evil object that simply took away one's mind.
Since its evil lingering thought could not reach me, it was a sword that was a perfect match for me.
“Are you going to use that? It’s broken.”
“I have to repair it.”
I said, lifting the Demon-Seeking Sword. As Baek Hasin said, the blade of the Demon-Seeking Sword was broken in half vertically.
It was broken when the Heavenly Demon died 300 years ago.
So this could also be seen as a half-evil divine object.
‘I can just fill the rest with ten thousand year old cold iron.’
I thought of the ten nyang of ten thousand year old cold iron I had received from the abbot of the Shaolin Temple and put the Demon-Seeking Sword in my bosom.
With just ten nyang, I couldn't make a whole sword, but I could at least restore a broken evil divine object.
Since the center of the sword itself still remained.
If it was properly completed, it would become the best sword in Shaanxi. As I was having such happy thoughts, Baek Hasin suddenly intervened.
“By the way, aren’t we late?”
At Baek Hasin's mention, I began to fly, exerting my psychokinesis to the maximum.
The sun was already rising above our heads.
***
“You’re late!”
Without even having time to flinch at Gu Ja-beom's roar, I immediately opened the door of Song Jin-geun's workshop with psychokinesis and threw in the Demon-Seeking Sword and the ten thousand year old cold iron.
“Ooooooh-!”
I could hear Song Jin-geun's joyful cry from inside. Since I had told him in advance, he would take care of the restoration.
All that was left was to face Gu Ja-beom, who had a fierce face.
“The rumor about you two is rampant in the area. That there is a Great Mage and a Sword Demon who are guarding the cliff leading to Huashan. I told you to be quiet!”
“……”
I understand. According to the original schedule, we should have gone to the assembly point where the instructors were by now.
“The mission comes first. Don’t forget the priority!”
“Yes!”
“You two are the talents who will lead the future of the central plains. Don’t forget the importance of principles!”
“Yes!”
“Alright, be careful from now on. Do you have anything to say?”
“……”
Since I had nothing more to say, I was silent, but I suddenly remembered something and pointed it out.
“Aren’t we late?”
“……!”
A flick of the forehead from a Transformation master was fierce.
***
The place we arrived at with the lightness techniques of a super-master was a deserted open space.
In front of a dilapidated house, 20 instructors from the Martial Academy were lined up.
Gu Ja-beom, who was standing alone on the dilapidated roof, looked down at them and said.
“This time, the remnants of the Blood Cult have formed a joint front with the Heretic Alliance. It must be the result of the Blood Fiend side noticing our pursuit.”
At the unexpected content, I, who was listening to the story standing below Gu Ja-beom, narrowed my brow.
To think that the fanatics would join forces with the Heretic Alliance.
Originally, it was an impossible thing. But in the face of survival, affiliation was just a trivial matter.
The Heretic Alliance, which had accepted the Blood Cult, must also have its own ulterior motives. Since the three sects of Shaolin, Huashan, and Zhongnan were pressuring them, it must be to increase their size.
Above all, what we had to be wary of was the Blood Cult's side. Because the special-grade formation master, Zhuge Ryu-hun, was no ordinary person.
Although his performance was not prominent in the original story itself, he was famous in the strategy community. And with a very peculiar nickname.
‘Bug Maker.’
He was an existence who had contributed to
Users had inferred that this was due to the peculiarity of his ability, but in the end, it usually concluded with curses at the developer.
A person who was best not to clash with as much as possible for a normal clear.
But now we had to face him. Especially for me, I really wanted to meet him, the ‘error’ of this world.
As I was steeling my resolve inwardly, my thoughts scattered, and Gu Ja-beom's declaration continued.
“So we have also decided to form an orthodox faction alliance with the three sects of Shaolin, Huashan, and Zhongnan.”
Things were getting bigger.
For the past few days, the war between the orthodox faction alliance and the Heretic Alliance had already broken out. Then, our strategic behavior, caught between these two whales, was an important situation.
No matter how different their affiliations were, since they had formed a joint front, each would have an assigned opponent.
Just then, an owl landed on Gu Ja-beom's arm.
It was a carrier pigeon sent from the Shaolin side. The letter of cooperation delivered to us must be written in there.
‘I wonder what role we will be assigned.’
Ultimately, we would have to chase Zhuge Ryu-hun and the Blood Fiend, but it was still the early stages of the war. We had to cooperate where we had to.
Our current strength was one Transformation Realm, two super-peak level, and twenty peak-level. It was more than the elite unit of a decent Nine Great Sects.
It was an important crossroads where the direction of the war could be decided by our participation this time.
Soon, in the silence, Gu Ja-beom's words continued.
“From now on, we are going to protect the main mountain of the Huashan Sect.”
(End of Chapter)