Chapter 102
Chapter 102
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 102
Chapter Title: A Farewell Spar
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The fierce winds, the torrential rain, the thunder and lightning—all vanished as if washed away.
Only my drenched state proved that what I had experienced was not a hallucination.
‘Is this the ground?’
It was hard to tell.
I had no idea whether I had succeeded or failed.
I had been so engrossed in watching the thunder and lightning that I'd lost all sense of time, so the hundred days might have already passed…
The only one I could ask was FAD, but for some reason, it was nowhere to be seen.
Clang, clang, clang…
Just then, I heard a peculiar sound, like metal striking metal.
I knew this unique sound was someone's applause.
Looking toward the source of the sound, I saw my fourth martial brother emerging from the mist.
“Brother.”
[You've done it.]
Done it.
Which meant…
[This is the ground.]
With a fresh perspective, I scanned my surroundings.
At first glance, the scenery wasn't much different from what I had seen from the peak.
There seemed to be more ground, but the mist was still thick, so it didn't feel all that different.
Just then, my brother extended his arm toward the sky.
Then, lumbering through the air, FAD flew in from somewhere and reconnected with my brother's arm.
My brother stood there for a moment before looking at me and speaking.
[Honestly, this was unexpected.]
I was still in a daze, so all I could offer was an awkward smile.
[It was surprising enough that you made progress in the Flame Arts of the Greatest, but you achieved even more than that. The footwork I saw at the end was flawless enough to be called unparalleled. Depending on its application, it could even evade the authority of the Demon King.]
“So… did I succeed?”
[Yes.]
My legs gave out, and I collapsed on the spot.
“Haaaah…”
A sigh filled with so much escaped me.
Due to the nature of Spirit Mountain, I wasn't tired, but I felt like I could sprawl out and sleep for a couple of days.
“Then I can go back now.”
[If you wish, right this instant.]
His words made me curious, and I asked.
“How much time has passed?”
[There is about an hour left before the hundredth day.]
That was a close call.
At this point, it feels like half of my success was just plain luck.
‘An hour, huh…’
I looked at my brother.
“In other words, I can stay for another hour, right?”
[That's true, but you don't need any more training.]
I thought so too.
Even if there was more training left, I would be the one to refuse this time.
…The training, that is.
“Do you remember what I said when I first arrived?”
[What did you say?]
I checked my condition and got to my feet.
My muscles ached slightly, probably from the effects of the Thunder Heaven Steps, but it wasn't enough to stop me from moving.
I had at least enough energy for one more fight.
I assumed the formal posture I learned from my master.
A fist cupped in the palm of the other hand.
A martial world courtesy I'd never have a reason to use in my own world.
[…Ha.]
My brother let out a short laugh.
For some reason, I felt a surge of excitement and spoke in a playful tone.
“Ruan Bednicker, the fifth disciple of Baek Rogwang, the World's Greatest, formally requests a spar.”
My brother looked at me and asked.
[Don't you need to rest?]
“I feel like I'm in peak condition right now.”
[Is that so…?]
My brother chuckled softly, then mirrored my posture and said.
[…Arang, the fourth disciple of the All-Master, Baek Rogwang. I accept Ruan Bednicker's challenge.]
***
The truth is, I had never directly sparred with my other martial brothers.
They were always so busy that they rarely visited Spirit Mountain, and even when they did, they never stayed long.
However, I had heard about their martial arts.
If what Master told me was correct, Fourth Brother Arang's martial art is the Myriad Transformations Diamond Arts.
- The Myriad Transformations Diamond Arts is a cultivation technique, yet it is not.
I couldn't understand Master's words back then, but now I vaguely get it.
My brother had said he was unable to accumulate internal energy.
That meant he didn't need to circulate energy, so his martial art must be different from other cultivation techniques.
My brother looked at me with his hands in his pockets.
Should I attack first, or wait?
Seeing my hesitation, my brother spoke.
[What comes to mind when you hear the word 'metal'?]
It was a random question.
After a moment's hesitation, I answered.
“Hardness?”
[Correct. All metals are fundamentally hard, though to varying degrees. But there are all sorts of metals in the world.]
The moment my brother showed me his metallic arm.
Whirrr-.
The shape of his arm began to change.
“…”
The sight was so unbelievable that my mind went blank for a moment.
The metal was undulating like slime.
“What… is that?”
[A shape-memory alloy.]
“…”
So what is that?
[Here I come.]
In that instant, the undulating liquid metal took shape.
It was a sword that looked lethal and sharp at a single glance.
Thwip!
The moment I saw my brother surge toward me, I quickly snapped to my senses and prepared to respond.
Vwoom!
It didn't seem to be an ordinary sword.
The moment I dodged the blade, I felt a heat like molten lava.
That sword was superheated to a temperature threatening even to me, a practitioner of the Flame Arts of the Greatest.
For some reason, I felt the urge to respond with a sword of my own…
Clack!
“...?”
At that moment, I felt a weight at my hip.
Surprised, I looked down and saw the Seven Sins Sword.
Obviously, this sword hadn't been there until now.
[You use a sword, too?]
“Want to see for yourself?”
[This should be interesting.]
At my brother's words, I drew my sword.
Recalling my final battle with the High Priest, I unleashed the Galaxy Sword on the spot.
Ka-ka-kang!
A fierce exchange that sent sparks flying.
My brother's sword was thick with killing intent. It felt less like swordsmanship and more like a killing technique that pursued only efficiency.
[A fine sword. Most blades wouldn't be able to withstand mine.]
“Well, it is an artifact.”
[I'd like to disassemble it.]
“Hey now. You'll be punished for that!”
I emphasized the last word as I kicked my brother in the stomach.
Clang!
It felt like kicking a metal plate.
‘Okay. So I can't break through without internal energy.’
It didn't really matter.
This wasn't a fight to the death, after all, but a spar to test each other's martial prowess.
My brother's arms continued to transform.
They became a sword, then a long spear, a blunt weapon, an axe, and occasionally even a fist.
Sometimes they took on grotesque forms with countless saw blades, or his fingers would curve like the talons of a bird of prey.
The chilling part was that my brother wielded every one of these weapons with complete mastery.
The word 'myriad transformations' truly suited him.
‘But—’
Even if he had ten thousand techniques, only one person was executing them.
In other words, having so many options wasn't necessarily an advantage.
I recalled the sensation from my final battle against the horde of demons.
‘Galaxy Sword in my left hand, White Sun Eclipse in my right.’
I entertained the crazy idea of using Shadow Steps with my left foot and Thunder Heaven Steps with my right, then dismissed it.
Footwork, by nature, should be harmonious, not chaotic.
Fwooooosh!
At that moment, a fierce gust of hot air erupted from my brother's body.
Steam, like that from a boiling kettle, was being released from his body.
By the time I flinched back slightly, my brother was already standing in the sky.
I couldn't see exactly, but I could tell something was being blasted from the soles of his feet.
Was he using that output to fly?
Just then, my brother extended one arm and gripped his forearm with the other hand for support.
It was as if he were aiming a weapon called 'arm' at me.
Clank!
Just as I expected, the shape of my brother's arm changed again.
Chk-chk-chank!
Into a form far more menacing than anything before.
Half-stunned, I asked.
“…What is that now?”
[What does it look like to you?]
“Um… a cannon?”
[Close enough.]
My brother chuckled softly and said.
[It's a thousand times more powerful than that.]
Immediately after, light condensed in his cannon-arm.
BOOOOOOOM—!
An ear-splitting roar erupted as an energy blast shot toward me.
‘Crazy—’
Is he trying to kill me?
The thought crossed my mind for a second, but I realized the projectile wasn't faster than lightning.
I immediately used the Thunder Heaven Steps.
The Thunder Heaven Steps was a technique I'd devised while dodging lightning strikes, and in my personal opinion, it was a form of footwork that was extremely close to a movement art.
The reason I still classified it as footwork and not a movement art was due to one of its characteristics…
After moving to the target location, my body comes to a brief stop.
If this drawback were eliminated, this footwork could probably be used as a full-fledged movement art.
‘…This is no time to be thinking about that.’
Feeling the ground where I'd just been standing get torn apart, I leaped high into the air toward my brother.
As my brother's distant form filled my vision, I swung the Seven Sins Sword.
Klaang!
My brother blocked it easily with his left arm.
His left arm had already transformed into something like a wide, metal shield.
‘His right arm…’
Still in the shape of a cannon.
‘I see.’
Is it because of its size that he can't transform it as quickly as before?
I finally felt like I was starting to understand my brother's fighting style.
I realized most of my brother's attention was focused on the Seven Sins Sword.
Thwack!
I immediately grabbed his shoulder with my left hand and delivered a knee strike.
‘I felt that one connect.’
My knee struck his abdomen, and there was more give to it than when I'd punched him.
Of course, my brother immediately smacked me with the shield on his left arm.
Wham!
I was sent flying like a cannonball and crashed into the ground.
“Pfft…”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
‘I guess this is as far as I go for now.’
When I was descending the mountain, I thought I could do well even without internal energy, but its necessity becomes much more apparent when fighting someone stronger than me.
Sensing that my will to fight had faded, my brother slowly descended without any further sign of aggression.
“You're as strong as I expected.”
[It would have been different if you had your internal energy.]
My brother hadn't used all his abilities either, but…
We weren't on such awkward terms that we needed to save face for each other, so I just smiled.
[Are you satisfied?]
“Yes.”
[Good. Then… it's time for you to go back.]
I looked at my fourth brother.
It was a strange feeling.
My brother's face was smooth, with nothing that could be called facial features, but…
Whenever we faced each other like this, I always felt as if our eyes were meeting.
I wonder if he realized it too.
He suddenly tossed something to me.
[A parting gift.]
I reflexively snatched the object that came spinning through the air.
“What's this?”
[A coin.]
It certainly looked like a coin.
[You can use it once to call me.]
“Uh… in my world?”
[In your world. The object possesses that much power.]
I looked at the coin with fascination.
It looked ordinary, and I couldn't feel any special power from it.
“How do I use it?”
[Just flip it into the air.]
“Ah, I see.”
I nodded.
There was nothing more to say, but I found myself wanting to talk a little longer.
A hundred days wasn't a short time, but maybe it was because I had spoken with my brother for less than a few hours in total.
“Will I see you again?”
My brother chuckled softly, then suddenly called out to me.
[Youngest.]
“Yes?”
[What was your name again?]
“…”
I blinked a few times, then burst out laughing.
I answered, feeling as though my fourth brother was probably smiling too.
“…It's Ruan. Ruan Bednicker.”
[Right. Don't forget it.]
At that moment, the surrounding mist enveloped me.
I felt a sense of comfort rather than unease.
It was like immersing my whole body in perfectly warm water.
The mist swallowed even the sight of my brother.
From beyond it, I heard a faint voice.
[You can do it.]
***
“…Are you listening?”
“…”
“What's with the look on his face?”
“Does he want to go home?”
“This is his home.”
“Oh, right.”
The sound of idle chatter.
I blinked a few times, adjusting to the situation.
The somewhat noisy atmosphere of the hall, the smell of food, and two pairs of eyes fixed on me.
These guys were…
“Karis.”
“Huh?”
“Evan.”
“What?”
I saw Karis, not bleeding from his chest, and Evan, before he became the young leader of the cult.
Seeing them both okay made me smile.
Is this the dining hall?
A quick glance around revealed Hector with his indifferent face, Caron with a sullen expression, and Seren just leaving the dining hall.
“You look pale. Are you sick?”
Evan asked with a worried look, but I shook my head.
“No. On the contrary…”
Stab.
I stabbed the sausage in front of me with the utensil in my hand.
I tore into the slightly cooled sausage rather violently and smiled.
“…I'm in peak condition.”