Chapter 1076
Chapter 1076
“What I seek has never changed.”
Rather than facing Darkan, who had posed the inquiry, Raon reached out with his right arm toward Glenn.
“A blade that never yields, bowing before no master, steadfast and unbroken amidst the fiercest tempests. That is the path I walk.”
The pledge he had spoken aloud to Vulcan beside the charcoal kiln flared vividly in his thoughts, unbroken to this very second.
“A blade that bows before no one…”
A faint, satisfied curve formed upon Glenn’s lips, revealing his approval.
“Quite impressive, wouldn’t you say?”
Darkan chuckled, sweeping his hand through the empty air in an arc.
“Should you persist in striking with a blade that refuses to shatter, you might eventually sever even a soul as boundless as Derus’s.”
He gave a dry chuckle, hinting that such a Soul Sword might hold the key.
“Even so, a glaring flaw remains.”
Darkan held up a solitary finger.
“Regardless of how sturdy and dense that Soul Sword becomes, a blunt edge will never pierce his spirit.”
He turned his gaze toward Glenn, seeking his consensus.
“You speak the truth. A blade forged of spirit demands far greater sharpness than any ordinary steel.”
Glenn gave an affirming nod, remarking that shaping the soul’s edge required the same relentless discipline as an artisan tempering an iconic masterpiece.
“Though in my case, I made mine dull on purpose!”
Darkan gave an airy shrug, pointing out that he had deliberately kept his own Soul Sword dull so he could drag the enemy’s spirit straight into his Mental Image.
“At any rate, it seems our minds are aligned.”
Beaming broadly, Darkan offered his palm toward Glenn.
“It appears you and I have quite a full schedule ahead for the coming month, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Indeed.”
Yet even while voicing his agreement, Glenn refused to take Darkan’s outstretched palm, choosing instead to close his eyes briefly before opening them again.
“Given that focus peaks at dawn, you shall temper his Willpower in the early hours, and I will refine his martial forms once the sun reaches its peak.”
Darkan moved his finger thoughtfully, laying out an even split of their guidance over Raon.
“Then, as night descends, all three of us can sit together and delve into the mysteries of the Soul Sword.”
“Why are you approaching this with such earnestness?”
Glenn’s brows drew together as he scrutinized Darkan.
“Because the present breath is the blade itself.”
Darkan maintained a solemn demeanor, declaring that existence itself was synonymous with the sword.
“…Very well.”
Detecting the genuine conviction beneath Darkan’s eccentric front, Glenn conceded to the arrangement.
“In that case, I will simply observe for now.”
Yet even after claiming he would merely watch, Darkan stayed right where he was, refusing to retreat a single step. He truly was an unconventional figure.
“Raon.”
Glenn paid Darkan no further heed and addressed his grandson directly.
“Yes, my lord.”
Raon stepped forward and inclined his head with deep respect.
“A certain contradiction weighs on my mind.”
Glenn’s gaze turned sharp and probing.
“Your Willpower has always surpassed your technical prowess, and the elevation of your spiritual plane has only progressed further. Why, then, has the conviction imbued within your strikes grown faint?”
A troubled furrow appeared on Glenn’s brow, highlighting his perplexity.
“I cannot explain it myself.”
Raon’s lips parted slightly, his gaze drifting downward.
‘Grandfather is entirely correct.’
He had never once slacked in tempering his Mental Image, making it just as jarring for him to discover that his internal drive had waned.
-Well, that aged Nadine bread geezer might be blind to the truth, but…
Wrath settled firmly upon his shoulder.
-Shouldn’t the answer be obvious to you?
Wrath scowled, visibly exasperated by Raon’s ignorance.
‘What are you getting at?’
Raon’s eyes widened slightly as he turned his attention toward Wrath.
‘Explain yourself.’
-Your inner resolve is immense, yet its sharpness has decayed.
Wrath gave a firm shake of his head, urging him to grasp the core of the issue.
‘It has decayed?’
-What do you believe Willpower actually entails?
‘It is the sheer spiritual might that manifests when forcing envisioned reality into existence.’
It was the unyielding hunger to project pure mental concepts into the physical strike of a weapon.
-That captures the general idea. And yet…
Wrath narrowed his glowing eyes, boring into Raon’s psyche.
-You have diluted that pure conviction with alien energies.
‘Alien energies?’
-The Sovereign Authorities belonging to me and the other demon rulers.
A chilling azure radiance gleamed within Wrath’s eyes.
-Those granted powers proved indispensable during your closest brushes with death, yet your own raw Willpower deteriorated in direct proportion to your reliance upon them.
‘Ah… that explains everything.’
-Because the power of the demon kings shouldered the burden of making your wishes real, your intrinsic Willpower naturally grew lax.
Wrath released a mocking huff, scoffing at his inability to wield his inner reserves cleanly.
‘It all makes sense now.’
He finally grasped why Glenn had sensed an emptiness in his strikes, and why he had failed to identify the decay on his own.
‘Those external Authorities were never a pure blessing.’
He had foolishly regarded them as absolute assets, entirely blind to how they could subtly sabotage his own growth.
‘Then the path to fixing this is remarkably straightforward.’
Raon mapped out a solution to rekindle his inner flame and gave a resolute nod.
“Raon?”
Noticing the young man lost in thought, Glenn broke the silence.
“Is something wrong?”
“Forgive me. I was simply piecing my thoughts together.”
Raon dipped his head toward Glenn.
“Piecing your thoughts together?”
“Grandfather was right. My internal conviction faltered because I leaned on outside powers. Therefore…”
His fingers locked firmly around the hilt of the Heavenly Drive.
“I ask that you strike me using swordsmanship carried entirely by your own Willpower.”
“Are you certain you can withstand it?”
Glenn’s eyes narrowed slightly, questioning whether Raon possessed the resilience for such a trial.
“I will endure it. Even if my body screams otherwise, I have no choice.”
Steeling his resolve, Raon unsheathed the Heavenly Drive.
“So be it.”
Perceiving the absolute determination burning in the youth’s eyes, Glenn raised the Heavenly Tremor.
“Brace yourself, for parrying this will be no gentle task.”
His gaze sharpened with unyielding gravity as he brought the Heavenly Tremor down in a clean vertical path. Though devoid of any suffocating shroud of aura, the descending blow stirred a monstrous atmospheric pressure capable of tearing the firmament asunder.
“Magnificent!”
Darkan clapped his hands in sheer admiration the instant Glenn unleashed the strike, cheering like an enthusiastic spectator. With a deafening boom of colliding steel, Raon raised the Heavenly Drive at an upward angle, intercepting the falling weight of the Heavenly Tremor.
‘My conviction…’
He tightened his grip on his hilt until his knuckles whitened, determined not merely to survive the assault, but to force Glenn’s blade backward.
-Not half bad.
Wrath offered a begrudging nod, noticing the marked difference from their earlier clash.
“A commendable start.”
Glenn offered a subtle, fleeting smirk, evidently satisfied with the initial resistance.
“Even if my posture falters, please do not stay your hand.”
With that plea, Raon dragged forth the demonic Authorities slumbering within the depths of his soul. Accompanied by sharp, crackling tremors, six distinct Sovereign Authorities erupted over the blade of the Heavenly Drive, pushing against Glenn’s descending pressure with ferocious momentum.
-You reckless fool, what do you think you are pulling?!
Wrath’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he roared at Raon’s madness.
-Did I not just warn you that feeding on Authority rots away your Willpower?!
He pounded against Raon’s temple, screaming for him to regain his sanity.
“Hmph…”
Glenn’s brows pulled tight, clearly sensing an alien, conflicting essence interfering with Raon’s pure spirit.
“Do not relent! Keep pressing!”
Raon severed the demonic Authorities from blending into his Willpower, shouting through gritted teeth. Rather than harmonizing the two energies to drive his blade as he had done in the past, he intentionally pitted them against each other in open warfare. A rumbling tremor shook the air.
As his pure conviction and the demonic powers tore at one another, the outward force of his sword plummeted compared to when he wielded pure intent alone.
With a grinding screech of steel, the Heavenly Drive was overwhelmed by the Heavenly Tremor, forcing Raon down until his knees grazed the dirt.
“Can you truly endure this?”
A shadow of genuine worry passed over Glenn’s features.
“Do not stop!”
Raon gritted out his reply, his spine bowing under the monstrous burden.
-You absolute lunatic! What madness are you chasing now?!
Wrath could only blink in pure shock.
-Your own intent and the demonic Authority are devouring each other in that contest!
He struck Raon’s back repeatedly, begging the boy to come to his senses.
‘This is the only way.’
Raon bit down hard on his inner lip, refusing to yield.
‘Muscles tear themselves apart only to mend far denser; power evolves through ferocious friction.’
The inferno of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and the absolute chill of Glacier stood in total opposition, constantly warring and expanding his foundations through that perpetual struggle. In the exact same manner, setting his Willpower against the demonic Authorities would force both to rapidly temper themselves in their bid for supremacy.
‘What is more…’
Raon clamped his jaws shut, observing the terrifying, intent-laden blade Glenn brought down upon him.
‘Standing against the greatest paragon in the world, growth is the only possible outcome.’
His consciousness felt as though it were fraying at the seams, burdened simultaneously by the inner clash of two violently opposed forces and the crushing weight of Glenn’s weapon. Yet trials of this magnitude had always been the crucible of his advancement. Pushing his limits to hold his ground without completely collapsing…
He felt the very fabric of his spirit thickening.
[Willpower is expanding.]
[The Monarchs’ Authority has been tempered.]
[The boundary of the soul has ascended.]
Alongside the glowing notices manifesting across his vision, an unmistakable surge of potency rippled through his blade. With a crisp, ringing resonance, Glenn’s sword—which had been bearing down like an inescapable tidal wave—was shoved backward by a single handspan.
‘The torment was worth it.’
Within a mere half-day’s span, he had seized a breakthrough that ten days of solitary meditation could never have provided. Truly, crossing blades with Glenn was a boon beyond any mountain of treasure.
“Splendid.”
Even Glenn voiced a quiet word of praise, instantly perceiving the shift within him.
“He advanced already? What kind of monster is this?”
Darkan let out an incredulous bark of laughter, dumbfounded by such absurd speed.
-Ugh…
Wrath stared wide-eyed, completely stunned that the system notifications had surfaced so rapidly.
‘Did you catch that?’
Raon managed a strained smirk, nudging Wrath mentally.
‘Friction is how one matures. Still…’
He bit his lip to stave off dizziness as his sight blurred.
‘This toll is agonizing.’
Wrangling two warring forces within his spirit while resisting Glenn’s crushing sword was nothing short of torture. Though merely half a day had elapsed, the mental exhaustion rivaled ten continuous days of nonstop combat without a wink of rest.
‘Even so…’
Raon moistened his parched lips, steadying the Heavenly Drive once more.
‘I cannot halt here.’
He had to pursue this path until its absolute end.
“Once more.”
Planting his feet, Raon resumed his stance before Glenn.
“Please, strike again!”
When midday meal came to a close, Raon stood opposite Darkan within the training grounds.
“My turn to take the stage.”
Darkan offered a wide grin, showing he had waited eagerly for this moment.
“Where does my blade fall short?”
Raon brought his palms together politely, demonstrating his readiness to receive instruction.
“Harmony.”
Darkan gave a light flick of his wrist. A peculiar sense of balance drifted from the aura wafting above his palm.
“Harmony, you say?”
“It is undeniable that your swordsmanship reaches for absolute heights. I can see precisely why Glenn refrains from meddling with your foundation. But I view things through a different lens.”
He raised a single finger, tapping against his eye patch.
“Once I lost my sight in that eye and was forced to lean entirely upon my surviving faculties, my awareness of the subtlest shifts in others became absurdly acute.”
The playful grin vanished from Darkan’s face as he continued.
“Even without channeling an ounce of aura, I can register the tiny hairs on the back of my hand swaying against the breeze.”
He brushed the back of his hand, noting that such a slight whisper of air was plenty for him to gauge wind velocity, drift, and forthcoming weather shifts.
“Because every sense besides my vision transcended human limitations, my comprehension of martial movements transformed entirely.”
“I can understand that…”
Raon gave an understanding nod.
“Those very senses picked up a microscopic dissonance in your execution.”
Darkan nodded, explaining that his single eye allowed him to spot the minute fractures within Raon’s martial flow.
“Should you tune those dissonant notes like the strings of a masterwork instrument, your art will soar to unprecedented peaks.”
He reached out his hand, inviting Raon to attempt the adjustment.
“…”
Glenn remained silent nearby with his arms folded over his chest, his silence signaling complete agreement with Darkan’s assessment.
“Where do we begin?”
Raon clasped Darkan’s outstretched hand without a second thought.
“Unleash the forms you demonstrated at the break of dawn.”
Darkan nodded, instructing him to replicate the exact techniques he had displayed earlier.
“Understood.”
Regulating his rhythm, Raon unleashed the forms of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation in precise order. Moving fluidly through Revolving Sky, Crimson Slash, and Fire Spirit, he was just about to transition into the Flame Dragon Strike when Darkan raised an arresting palm.
“Halt. Repeat that prior sequence.”
He made a dismissive gesture, commanding him to execute Fire Spirit once more.
“Understood.”
Raon inclined his head, causing a blazing bough of flames to ripple across his steel.
“Again.”
Darkan shook his head in dissatisfaction, demanding another attempt. With a soft hiss through the air, Raon delivered Fire Spirit once more, only for Darkan to endlessly demand further repetitions. As the routine dragged on, countless scattered embers dusted the earth of the training court like a carpet of fallen petals.
“Again.”
“Yes.”
Raon re-enacted Fire Spirit dozens upon dozens of times without voicing the slightest grievance.
“Why do you not question why I keep resetting you?”
Darkan stroked his chin, clearly intrigued by his pupil’s silence.
“You stated my sword lacked harmony. As long as that discord remains, repeating the motion is the only answer.”
“You do not even seek a hint?”
“A truth uncovered by my own effort yields far greater strength than an answer handed to me.”
External guidance offered only transient relief; true, transcendent mastery came solely from unraveling the puzzle with one’s own hands.
“Bwahahaha!”
Darkan tossed his head back, clutching his brow as boisterous laughter tore from his throat.
“My instincts were entirely right about you!”
He turned toward Glenn with an enormous grin plastered across his face.
“You have fostered an utterly terrifying monster of a grandson! To think I would gaze upon something you possess with such absolute envy!”
Darkan pressed his lips together, his sincerity shining through every word.
“Ahem!”
Faced with such unvarnished praise, Glenn’s stoic veneer shattered, his mouth twitching with suppressed pride.
“It is nothing extraordinary.”
Yet the faint flush spreading across his ears betrayed his profound delight.
“Do not let your focus wander; observe my strike.”
Raon accentuated the variable elements of Fire Spirit before setting the flames loose once more.
“Again.”
Darkan signaled another reset, clearly unimpressed.
“Understood.”
Raon slid his left foot forward. He deliberately softened the core variable and phantom components within Fire Spirit, shifting the weight toward blinding swiftness as he propelled the blade forward. Though he poured only a conservative measure of aura into the strike, the flames erupting from the Heavenly Drive unfurled with breathtaking elegance, sweeping across the entire expanse of the yard.
Preserving the fluid grace and deceptive shifts natural to Fire Spirit, the accelerated wave of embers engulfed Darkan before the man could even register a blink.
The spectacle bore an uncanny resemblance to the legendary swordplay of the First Patriarch of Zieghart etched within his inherited memories.
[Ten Thousand Swords mastery has advanced.]
As a reward for grasping the insight entirely on his own, a brilliant notification signaled an elevation in his Ten Thousand Swords comprehension.
“It appears the concept has finally begun to take root.”
For the very first time, Darkan uttered words that mirrored genuine praise instead of calling for another reset.
“At long last…”
Just as Raon let out a relieved breath and offered a faint smile, Darkan chimed in once more.
“Even so, once more!”
He gave a brisk flick of his wrist, making it clear they were far from finished.
“Haaah…”
Raon pressed his lips into a thin line and shook his head wryly.
‘This regimen is equally ruthless.’
The sheer mental tax of the exercise left his knees trembling and a throbbing pain pulsing behind his temples.
‘My limbs and consciousness feel as if they are dragging through deep mire.’
-Watching you suffer like a battered hound brings such unadulterated joy to my heart!
Wrath snickered, swishing his tail in pure amusement.
-Just write yourself off as dead and spend the next thirty days swinging that piece of metal until you collapse!
He waved his tiny paws, suggesting Raon wash away his torment through sheer agony.
‘There is no need for such extremes…’
Raon moistened his dry lips and gave a subtle shake of his head.
‘I already have an entirely different outlet to vent this frustration…’
‘My energy is thoroughly spent.’
Having concluded his martial drills with Darkan, Raon collapsed flat onto the earth of the training pavilion. Though he had indulged in a sumptuous feast at the central manor, his mind continued to reel from the unending strain endured since dawn.
-What an absolute featherweight.
Wrath smacked his chops and shook his head disdainfully. The relaxed look upon the little entity’s face proved that he, too, had thoroughly relished the banquet at the main manor.
“Did today prove entertaining for you?”
Darkan strolled over and tilted his head downward, inquiring about how the regimen felt.
“Entertaining would be a lie, yet it was undeniably invaluable.”
Raon nodded solemnly, acknowledging that a definitive trajectory for his advancement had revealed itself.
“Crossing blades with grandfather showed me the means to forge my Willpower, while your guidance exposed the imperceptible imbalances in my technique.”
He was utterly convinced that if he could endure thirty days under their joint tutelage, his martial boundaries would break into an entirely different realm.
“If you see this arduous journey through to completion, the harvest will match your suffering.”
Glenn offered an affirming nod, sharing identical expectations.
“Shall we conclude the evening with a discourse on the Soul Sword, then?”
Darkan dropped into a seated position beside him, tilting his chin upward.
“Tell me, how do you define the Soul Sword?”
“A discipline wherein one hones the essence of their spirit to sever the soul of an adversary.”
Raon laid out his existing grasp of the concept.
“In that case, would you claim my sword is no Soul Sword? After all, my blade takes no lives.”
Darkan tilted his head, openly questioning the narrowness of that answer.
“Mmh…”
A low rumble of hesitation slipped from Raon’s throat.
“One should never diminish the Soul Sword to the confines of a mere martial discipline.”
Glenn offered a serene shake of his head.
“Reflect first upon what reality you wish to manifest through your Soul Sword.”
Leaving that cryptic counsel behind, the patriarch turned his back and walked away.
“The dawn phase has ended, so we shall draw today’s lesson to a close.”
Glenn waved an indifferent hand, leaving him to chew over the mystery.
“We share remarkable chemistry, you and I. Shall we drop the formalities and become companions? Which year were you born in, anyway?”
Darkan quickly scurried after Glenn, chatting amiably as if they were long-time confidants.
“Phew…”
Alone in the now quiet grounds, Raon blew out the gritty residue settling on his lips.
“The exhaustion weighing on my mind is no joke.”
Enduring spiritual friction throughout the morning, mindlessly drilling a solitary sword path through the afternoon, and then receiving such an elusive riddle at twilight made his skull throb relentlessly.
-Watching you writhe in misery is the greatest spectacle in the world!
Wrath fluttered his small tail, utterly thrilled by Raon’s plight.
-Still, grit your teeth and endure it, and you might eventually grow numb to—
‘No, I have no intention of enduring it alone.’
A chilling, predatory grin touched Raon’s lips as he slipped away from the lord’s personal pavilion and bounded directly toward the fifth training ground.
“Eh?”
“Palace Master? What brings you here at this hour?”
“Were you not engaged in private instruction alongside the Head of House?”
The warriors of the Light Wind Palace, who had been unwinding with relaxed practice routines, blinked in utter surprise upon seeing him arrive.
“I had the privilege of experiencing some truly fascinating instruction today.”
A sinister crimson frenzy flickered beneath Raon’s eyes.
“And I thought it only right to pass this wonderful knowledge down to all of you.”
Despite the ominous thought, he wore a dazzling, flawless smile.
“Truly?”
“Well, an exercise curated by both our Head of House and the former supreme leader of the Holy Sword Alliance is bound to be extraordinary!”
“Indeed! It will certainly surpass our usual routine of blindly slashing through the air all day!”
The swordsmen of the Light Wind Palace practically salivated in excitement, anticipating the elite training to come.
“Urp…”
Yet Dorian, picking up on the terrifying malevolence lingering beneath the surface through his Mind’s Eye, slowly took a step backward.
“I… I must flee this instant…”
“And just where do you think you are sneaking off to?”
Raon had already materialized behind him, throwing a deceptively friendly arm across Dorian’s shoulders.
“Gack!”
Dorian’s eyes rolled back as white foam bubbled from his mouth, bordering on unconsciousness.
“This exceptionally rewarding regimen I just acquired…”
Raon raised his chin, flashing a radiant, blinding smile. In that singular moment, he appeared simultaneously like an archangel bestowing blessings and an archfiend rising from the netherworld.
“We shall all share in it together.”
-Good grief…
Wrath’s mouth fell slack in sheer disbelief as he watched Raon redirect his pent-up stress straight onto the members of the Light Wind Palace.
-They claim a majestic tiger never sires a worthless hound, yet under the tutelage of the supreme sword under the heavens, the supreme lunatic of the universe has been unleashed…
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