A Third-Grade Dharma Treasure

"I'm going to take a disciple."

"W-wait! We're in the middle of the tournament!"

"That doesn't matter."

His action was so blunt and unhesitating it bordered on sheer stubbornness, and the Golden Core merchants gaped at him, forgetting all decorum.

"...No, no matter how impressive his lightning arts are, you should at least wait until the tournament is over before speaking to him!"

"Lightning arts? I don't care about that nonsense. What I saw was the sword."

The Golden Core sword cultivator, Gwang Myeong, was just about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to kick the door open and leave when Sky Island's lord, receiving a chorus of looks that said Stop him somehow, stepped forward with no other choice.

"Please calm yourself. Fellow Daoist, you know nothing but fighting demon beasts. If you take a disciple, what exactly do you intend to teach him?"

"..."

For the first time, Gwang Myeong's feet stopped. Sky Island's lord continued in his smooth, gentle voice.

"If that child—no, if that young sword cultivator has caught your eye, why not simply gift him a decent sword? You have quite a collection, do you not?"

One of the Golden Core merchants agreed at once, as though he had been waiting for the chance.

"Exactly. And who says he has no master? A person like that doesn't just spring up from bare earth. He may well be the disciple of some deceased expert. Don't make matters complicated for no reason. Ask him after the tournament is over."

"...Fine."

The semifinals.

The match between Jin Somyeong and Sansu, a late ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Foundation Establishment cultivator, began.

Though his cultivation realm was far higher, Sansu was wound tight with nerves and unleashed all manner of dazzling spells—only for every last one of them to be sliced apart by a single sword.

"Jang Sam... no, Jin Somyeong wins!"

It was, in a sense, the obvious result. Even Baek Yu-geon, one of the favorites to win the tournament, had failed to withstand Jin Somyeong's sword. There was no way an ordinary late Foundation Establishment cultivator could defeat him.

"He won! The Thunderclap Swordsman won again!"

"Kuh! Is that lightning movement? What absurd speed. Did you see it?"

"Huh? O-of course I saw it. He was rather fast."

Everyone had expected this outcome, yet when they truly thought about what they had just witnessed, it was so absurd that countless spectators erupted into fervent cheers.

Among them was one particular spectator: the younger of the Seo siblings, a girl named Seo Jinok. She was no different from the rest. In fact, she was swinging both fists through the air and shouting until her throat nearly burst.

"Wow! Wow! Brother, did you see that? The Thunderclap Swordsman won again! He just swung his sword a few times and it was over!"

"...Huh?"

The young man, who had been staring blankly like a man whose soul had left his body, gave an awkward smile.

"Sorry. What did you just say?"

"Where is your head right now? I asked if you saw the match."

"Yeah, yeah. Of course I saw it."

Just as the girl pushed out her lips in dissatisfaction, the young man, after hesitating for a long while, muttered under his breath.

"Jinok. How much does a first-grade flying sword cost these days?"

"Huh? Why are you suddenly asking about flying swords? Brother, are you thinking of becoming a sword cultivator or something?"

"Uh... I guess that won't work after all."

At his deflated tone, the girl parted her lips, then suddenly smacked him hard on the back.

"Why wouldn't it work? Of course it will! With the Spirit Stones we earned selling that demon beast last ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time, we should be able to buy a mid-tier first-grade flying sword."

"...Really?"

"Obviously! As soon as the tournament ends, let's run over and buy one. From what I can tell, flying sword prices are going to rise for a while. ...Actually, should we just buy as many as we can and resell them?"

Unlike the quarterfinals, where he had struggled after meeting one of the favorites, the semifinals were easy.

After seizing victory without difficulty, Jin Somyeong returned to the waiting room and headed straight for the Jade Essence Bath.

Splash.

The moment he lowered himself into the waist-deep bath, a tremor ran through his entire body. Absorbing spiritual energy so pure that it required no refining was a truly sublime sensation.

It was an ecstatic moment that would never grow dull no matter how many times he repeated it, but right now, the status window before his eyes pleased him even more.

Was it a reward for crossing the wall on his own? Only a few hours had passed since the sword art's proficiency had reached the Orthodox stage, yet it had already surpassed five hundred.

Even at that very moment, it was still rising without pause. It felt as though merely swinging his sword would make him stronger, and his hand itched for want of the blade.

Whew. First, let's absorb every last bit of spiritual energy from the Jade Essence Bath.

He closed his eyes and circulated Cheonroedochegyeol. Crackling lightning energy spilled through him, but he paid it no mind and focused.

Woooong...

He did not stop for even an instant, not until the Jade Essence Bath, once brimming with spiritual energy of astonishing purity, had turned into ordinary water.

With his dantian full to the brim, he understood naturally where he stood. He had reached the threshold of the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment.

A smile rose of its own accord at the explosive growth in his cultivation.

So I've saved ten years' worth of time.

Swish!

The sword he swung lightly drew a line through the air. Jin Somyeong observed the Sword Qi scattering along its trajectory, then nodded.

It's certain. My Sword Qi is much clearer than before.

The Sword Qi, which had once been hazy like heat shimmer rising off asphalt on a summer day, had become distinct. If it continued developing like this, it seemed likely that one day it would transform into something like a blade with tangible substance.

And when that time came... it would likely possess sharpness recognized even at the third grade.

As he held the sword and savored the cool sensation unique to metal, a voice came from outside.

"Senior! It will soon be time for you to enter the finals. Are you prepared?"

Prepared?

He had been finished long ago.

Jin Somyeong rose, brushed himself off, and snapped his fingers. Every drop of moisture clinging to his artifact robe evaporated as he headed toward the stage.

"Thunderclap Swordsman!"

"Ha Yulhui!"

"Waaaaaaaaah!"

The instant he climbed onto the stage amid thunderous cheers, all noise snapped off as though severed.

Then he met the eyes of the woman with the youthful face—Ha Yulhui, said to be the daughter of Sky Island's lord.

Perhaps because she was a cultivator, it was truly difficult to guess her age.

I heard she was over sixty, but she looks incredibly young.

Her appearance hovered somewhere on the border between girl and young lady, but the slight upward curve of her lips and the way she looked down at him made her seem supremely confident.

And she certainly had reason to be. To begin with, her cultivation was the highest in the tournament at the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment, and her artifacts were excellent.

The clothes she wore were naturally a peak second-grade artifact robe, and even the small ornaments on her sleeves were second-grade artifacts.

Don't tell me those buttons are artifacts too. Just how many defensive artifacts does she have?

As Jin Somyeong observed her, she let out a nasal little hum.

"Hm."

Then she smiled brightly. For some reason, she looked rather pleased.

"I thought that obnoxious Baek Yu-geon would make it up here, so this is unexpected. Those idiots. How do you even lose to an early Foundation Establishment cultivator?"

"You will soon find out."

"...What?"

He had only replied with a light remark, yet Ha Yulhui's face twisted at once.

She bit her lip and glared at him as if truly enraged. Her threshold for emotion was extremely low.

She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was raised gently.

Frankly, it was pathetic, but he did not let his guard down. Whatever else she was, she was still at the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment.

"Hmph! A dusty old sword cultivator! Who even swings a sword by hand these days instead of using a flying sword?"

Jin Somyeong glanced at her as she sprayed spittle in her excitement, then ignored her. With his hand resting on the cold grip of his sword, he stilled his mind. What mattered was only how sharp his own sword was.

"Begin!"

The referee's powerful voice, infused with spiritual energy, rang out.

Clang!

Jin Somyeong struck the instant he drew his sword, but the ambush was blocked—by no fewer than five shields that appeared at once.

Huh?

Every time her hand brushed her storage pouch, another artifact appeared. Past five, then all the way to ten.

Large and small shields rose into the air and formed a sturdy defensive formation. They blocked every direction in a full three hundred and sixty degrees, leaving not the slightest gap.

Claaang!

He swung his sword as a test, but the formation did not budge. The qi barrier generated by the shields resonating with one another stopped him cold.

And that was not all.

A bizarre suction force arose from the point of impact and began devouring his energy. The Sword Qi that had been gathered on his blade an instant before rebounded and attacked him.

...Impressive.

Every one of the shields was a peak second-grade artifact. It was a proper display of what wealth meant.

Of course, that was not the only impressive thing about it.

Most cultivators did not use only one or two artifacts for no reason. There was a reason behind it. Controlling so many artifacts at once consumed an enormous amount of spiritual energy and mental focus. Naturally, it was no easy task.

Did she learn some related secret art?

At that moment, surrounded by the shields, Ha Yulhui curled up the corners of her mouth. She openly mocked him, then closed her eyes. The way she muttered under her breath as though chanting an incantation was anything but ordinary.

One glance was enough to tell she was preparing a major technique.

Whoosh!

Jin Somyeong circled her, looking for an opening, then gave up. There were simply too many shields, and not a single gap to exploit.

Fine.

If she wanted to give him time, he had no reason to refuse it. There was, as it happened, a technique he had wanted to test.

He released the tension from his body and half-lowered his eyes. Like his opponent, he stood still and focused his mind.

He forgot everything filling his vision and held only the thing he meant to cut within his heart.

Wooooong!

The blade vibrated, sending out the clear sound known as a sword's cry.

The faint shimmer compressed without end, and the vibration humming through the air reached its peak.

Slash!

A half-moon that began at the tip of his sword split the sky.

Like a meteor streaking across the dark night, the arc embroidered the air and reached the shields in an instant.

Crack!

With a rupturing sound, the smallest of the ten shields split. The qi barrier wavered as if about to collapse, then barely stabilized and absorbed the Sword Qi before reflecting it.

But Jin Somyeong was no longer there.

Fwit!

He slipped past the returning Sword Qi by a hair's breadth and traced a circle around his opponent. Moving rapidly around the shields, he launched Sword Qi without pause.

Boom!

Until one of the shields, unable to endure any longer, shattered outright.

"...!"

Ten shields became nine.

Only one had fallen, and yet the qi barrier grew sharply unstable. The delicate resonance among the shields had broken down.

"Ugh."

At that moment, blood trickled from the corner of Ha Yulhui's mouth as she chanted.

Jin Somyeong seized the opening and wrapped himself in lightning.

Kwa-rumble!

He did not miss the flaw exposed for a mere instant. He drove between the shields and reached the space directly before her.

Before she could respond in her panic, he swung his sword toward her exposed throat.

Clang!

It was blocked by the qi barrier generated from her artifact robe, but he had expected as much.

He smoothly rotated the sword that had been deflected.

Drawing a gentle curve, he preserved every ounce of force, including the recoil. Not even a handful of power was wasted; all of it poured into his offensive.

Thud!

Every time he swung his sword, an ornament attached to her clothes shattered without pause.

In an instant too brief for a single breath, he swung fifteen times.

Twelve, ten, seven, three...

As the number of defensive artifacts dwindled in the blink of an eye, Ha Yulhui's complexion turned pale.

She staggered backward, looking like a frightened child.

Her trembling eyes were plainly visible, but Jin Somyeong did not show mercy. A match was a cold thing.

"Ah!"

When only one remained, a necklace, Ha Yulhui suddenly clenched her teeth in the midst of her fluster.

Perhaps ashamed of having been afraid, she glared at him as if she wanted to kill him and pulled out a fan made of blue feathers.

...Danger!

Jin Somyeong, who had thought little of it at first, flinched.

An icy sensation surged up his spine, and he immediately kicked off the ground and retreated.

It was not reason but instinct that had made the decision—and it was correct.

Whooo...

A faint wind stirred. The instant an unknown power imbued that breeze, so soft its sound was almost inaudible...

Crack-crack-crack!

The extremely solid stage floor turned to powder.

The specially made stone, designed to withstand combat between Foundation Establishment cultivators, could not endure it.

It was because of the blue wind that began at the fan and spread outward in the shape of a sphere.

Having retreated to the edge of the arena, Jin Somyeong narrowed his eyes.

The pressure bearing down on his shoulders was far too familiar.

Third grade! Is that a magic treasure?

But no matter how he looked at it, the power was strange. Even if she was using a magic treasure, it seemed impossible for a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator to generate this kind of pressure.

Countless questions rose in his mind, but he cast them all aside. This was not the time to ponder, not in a battle where a single judgment would decide victory or defeat.

Swish!

Jin Somyeong pointed the Five Elements Sword forward and glared at the approaching blue storm.

It advanced with overwhelming might, and he met it head-on.

In that instant, he circulated Ojangbaekryeongyeol with all his strength.

Blood energy, amplified as it cycled through his five organs, spread throughout his body. It prepared him for the wounds that would soon appear, and at the same time...

With his lightning-wreathed sword, he split the wind.

Silence.

Sound vanished. After a collision so brief it was difficult to perceive, the devastated arena was revealed.

The once-smooth floor was now engraved with thousands, tens of thousands of marks like the teeth of beasts.

If there was one place left untouched...

It was only the ground behind Jin Somyeong, who stood with blood dripping from his hand and his sword still leveled forward.