novelraw Chapter 61 : The World Tree and the Demon Beast (4)
Chapter 61 : The World Tree and the Demon Beast (4)
Chapter 61: The World Tree and the Demon Beast (4)
A sense of omnipotence surged within my body. It felt as if indescribable pleasure was melting my brain.
It was as though explosions were constantly erupting inside my head.
I thought to myself.
‘Why am I even doing this?’
There was, in truth, no reason for me to risk my life here.
The power of the World Tree was being handed over to a demon beast? The seal of the Demon King might be undone because of that?
So what? I didn’t carry any sense of duty to deal with the Demon King.
Even if humanity were to be annihilated because of it, I wouldn’t care in the slightest.
Since when did I ever care so much about people?
At best, I might lend minimal help—but I wasn’t someone who would risk everything to save others.
‘Which is why it’s strange. Why was I trying to stop Ira in the first place?’
No, more importantly—why was I even thinking like this?
‘It doesn’t matter.’
Noises filled my surroundings, voices calling out to me again and again.
I didn’t want to hear them. Every time I did, irritation welled up inside me.
I quietly closed my eyes. I didn’t want to be involved in bothersome affairs. I just wanted to sleep.
At that moment—
— Leon.
A familiar voice pierced my ears. A tender voice. The voice of my mother, Historia.
She had only called my name. Just that. A voice I could have easily ignored, like moments ago.
And yet—
The instant I heard that gentle tone, my eyes snapped open wide.
“……!!”
‘What was I just thinking about?’
This wasn’t like me. For a fleeting moment, it felt as if I had become someone else entirely.
The fog that clouded my mind lifted, and my thoughts grew clear. I could suddenly see my surroundings much better.
‘What in the world… happened?’
What had happened in that short span of time?
Before my eyes lay Garan and Amon, sprawled on the ground, their bodies mangled. And not just them—
Ira, exuding a murderous aura, was gasping for breath, glaring straight at me.
“How… how can a mere human wield the power of the gods for so long!”
“The power of the gods?”
I looked down at myself instinctively. Vines, dense and flawless, encased my body like a knight’s armor.
And then, I remembered—
Why I had tried to stop Ira.
Wuuuuung—!!
My body trembled from the divine power coursing through it. It was overwhelming. Beyond description.
Visions kept flashing in my head—sights of mastery far beyond my own talent.
“Kh…!”
As I became conscious of the power, a splitting headache attacked me. It was a force my vessel could never contain. Divine power—something no human should ever possess.
It felt as though my brain were melting. But unlike before, it wasn’t pleasure this time—it was agony, as if molten lava had been poured into my skull.
My vision flickered. Stars burst in my head.
Perhaps that’s what made Ira’s expression shift—from fear to hope.
“As expected… a human can’t possibly withstand such power. Give it to me. Keeping it will only destroy you. If you want to live, spit it out!”
It was an undeniable truth. Even I could sense that much.
But so what?
“Ira, do you know why I’m risking my life to stop you?”
I spoke, my voice cracked and dry like sand.
“It’s because you’re the one trying to take away what’s precious to me. My family, my friends, my homeland. Any other warrior of Elphrel would have made the same choice I did. So I’ll say this once more.”
My lips twisted into a cold smile.
“Try and take it, if you can. Even if I die, I will never let it go.”
“……”
Ira’s eyes grew sharp and cold. Her twisted lips formed a murderous grin.
“You truly are Zeke’s son. You even talk like that bastard. But…”
Crack—!
Ira’s eyes drifted to my skin, where fine cracks had begun to form.
“You’ll destroy yourself soon enough. I don’t need to bother fighting you.”
Fwoosh—!!
In an instant, Ira’s figure vanished—like she had sunk into the ground.
Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have been able to follow her speed. But now—this wasn’t the ordinary me.
Slash—!
My sword sliced through empty air. A moment later, the sound of cutting flesh echoed in the distance.
“……”
Ira lay collapsed before me, her legs severed cleanly at the knees.
The sword strike I thought had missed had in fact cleaved through her legs.
Ira stared at me in disbelief, shock painted on her face.
“You lunatic…!!”
Her voice trembled with horror.
At that moment, a figure rose from her shadow—similar to the sorcery Elbin had once shown me.
But I didn’t panic. Elbin’s power had come from Jeozudin, and demons were nothing more than his replicas.
There was no reason to be surprised that they used the same power.
The shadow wrapped around Ira and began to circle me. Perhaps she realized escape was impossible—she no longer tried to run.
The shadow moved at terrifying speed. Had I not been empowered by divine strength, I would have never kept up.
And in that instant, I grasped Ira’s true level.
‘In the Martial Alliance, this would be equivalent to the Peak Realm (Hwagyeong).’
The energy flowing within her body—humans called it Force—was remarkably similar to the Gang-gi of the Martial Alliance.
‘Even though I’ve only witnessed Gang-gi once before, I can tell.’
Gang-gi was the culmination of condensed and refined inner energy.
Force, too, was the same—only it condensed mana instead of inner energy. The two were nearly identical in nature.
‘As I thought… this world isn’t so different from the Martial Alliance. Only the terminology changes.’
All streams flow to the same sea, they say. When one reaches the pinnacle, all paths converge. It was true.
Boom—!!
A small explosion burst against my shoulder. Black flames blazed up from the wound. Ira’s magic, no doubt.
‘Right… I’d forgotten about her for a moment.’
Perhaps I’d become too intoxicated by a power beyond human reach.
‘There’s not much time before this body collapses. I have to finish this fast.’
I had gained a power far beyond my means—and now, I would pay the price.
I realized the ultimate truth of the martial art I had mastered.
Four Seasons symbolized the four cycles of the year.
Star Cloud referred to the substances that made up the world.
Thus, the essence of the Four Seasons Star Cloud Technique (사계성운공) was this—
Infinite circulation.
It sounded absurd. Everything in existence had an end; even a child knew that much. But the Four Seasons Star Cloud Technique defied that logic.
When spring passed, summer came; when autumn passed, winter arrived.
But did all of that ever truly end?
No.
When winter passed, spring came once again—repeating the process endlessly.
That was the nature of the Four Seasons Star Cloud Technique.
Endlessly, infinitely, it circulated inner energy. The capacity to absorb inner energy was infinite. The power to release it was infinite as well.
It was a martial art of pure, boundless flow.
Now, having reached its pinnacle, I could display power that nearly rivaled that of the divine.
Wuuuuung—!!
My sword let out a deep, resonant cry. The sound was chilling, like the wail of a beast—almost like a ghost’s lament.
Ira’s face was frozen in shock.
“What… what is that?”
Her gaze was fixed on my sword, her expression trembling between disbelief and terror.
I understood her feeling. Even I thought this skill bordered on the impossible.
My inner energy condensed within the blade—compressed again and again until it reached something beyond Force. It was no longer a power any human could wield.
A divine power worthy of being called a god’s authority was gathering in a single sword.
Wuuuuuuung—!!
Ira could not conceal her astonishment. It was the kind of sword one could buy for an immense fortune on the market. Not a sacred blade, but certainly a masterpiece.
That was my sword—and it was now being filled with overwhelming mana.
‘Impossible. A sword like that shouldn’t be able to withstand such power. It should’ve shattered already!’
Yet my sword didn’t so much as tremble. Instead, it greedily devoured the mana flowing into it.
“Incomprehensible. It’s a force far beyond my meager understanding.”
What in the world was this power? There seemed to be no end to it. Given time, it felt as though I could cleave the entire world with a single strike.
“That should be enough.”
I muttered, cutting off the flow of true energy into the blade.
Wuuuuuuung—!!
The sword trembled continuously, as though in anticipation of what was to come. They said that tools used for long enough would develop a soul.
My sword exhaled joy—as if it had gained self-awareness.
A weapon’s greatest happiness was to live as a weapon.
For that joy, I resolved to let its power loose upon the world.
I slowly raised my sword high—then swung it down.
A blinding flash swallowed the world.
Beeeeep—!
Rahan shook his head, trying to clear the ringing in his ears.
‘What just happened?’
He remembered a flash—but everything after that was a blur.
“What kind of battle was that…?”
Rahan’s gaze turned upward. In his frightened eyes, the moon shone clearly.
It had always been no more than a tiny speck—visible only with enhanced sight through mana. Yet now, it loomed large enough to see with the naked eye.
‘It’s as if the sky itself expanded… or the ground sank deeper.’
Rahan shook his head violently. Ridiculous thought. The Prison Forest Ground (옥림지) was said to be endlessly vast.
‘Still… vast as it may be, it must have an end. Could the boundary of this space have been damaged by that explosion just now?’
Slap—!
Rahan slapped his own cheek.
‘Get a grip, idiot!’
Even in confusion, doubting the Prison Forest Ground crafted by the ancestors was madness.
He rubbed his stinging cheek and began moving toward where Leon had been.
Leon had told him to stay far away for safety—but this time, he couldn’t just sit still.
The shockwave had been enough to make him momentarily black out. It had to be the aftermath of the battle.
‘I need to confirm it.’
Whether the demon beast was defeated. Whether Leon was alive. And what had become of the Blessing of the World Tree.
‘If Leon’s dead…’
Rahan’s face darkened instantly. He shook his head. No use thinking negatively before seeing the truth.
As he advanced, he saw them—
Garan and Amon, their faces frozen in horror.
And Leon, whose face was cracked like shattered stone.
Rahan shouted as the light faded from Leon’s eyes.
“Leon!”
“……Ah, Rahan.”
“What happened? What’s with those wounds? Where’s the demon beast?”
“First… take this.”
Leon reached out and placed his fingertip against Rahan’s forehead.
At that moment, Rahan felt a strange fullness spreading throughout his body.
“Huh? What did you just do?”
“You’re still young. It could cause imbalance if you take too much at once. Share it with Lenel later. As for me… I’ll rest for a bit.”
Thud—!
With that, Leon collapsed.
“??”
Left without a proper explanation, Rahan could only stare in confusion.