Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: I'll Make Sure Only I Can See You
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Third Elder Hawol.
She extended her senses just a little.
What she felt was barely a half a bean's worth of internal energy.
"Not even third-rate level."
A scoff escaped her lips.
It was the level of someone who had only just begun learning martial arts.
She could kill him with sheer presence alone.
"What a ridiculous fool."
Genuine disbelief colored her voice.
Only they could enter the Abandoned Continent.
Yet not only had some random intruder slipped in, but his skill was barely third-rate.
"How did trash like you even set foot in this place?"
She felt so deflated she nearly sighed.
That was when it happened.
Thud—
Shihanbu kicked off the ground.
To Hawol, it was like a sluggish worm's pace.
She could stop him just by reaching out her hand.
But she didn't block him.
She wanted to examine the roots of his martial arts and uncover his identity.
Killing him could wait.
Thanks to that, Shihanbu reached her safely and thrust his sword.
Pok—
Perfect angle.
No power behind it, but no flaws either. A solid thrust.
"Ho. Not bad for a sword from third-rate trash."
But that was it.
One flick of her wrist sent it bouncing harmlessly away.
An overwhelming gap in skill.
He must have felt it clearly, yet the man before her showed no discouragement.
Instead, he thrust again.
"Skilled in technique, at least."
Whoosh—
This time, the thrust carried qi and sliced the air.
The Third Elder's brow twitched as she deflected it.
Clearly better than the first.
Almost like a different person.
And once more.
Boom—
The air burst with the third thrust.
Shihanbu's body flew back.
He had failed to control his own martial art.
The recoil sent him tumbling away.
An unfinished technique from a warrior—laughable.
But the Third Elder didn't laugh.
Her eyes narrowed instead.
"Seven Extremes One Kill!"
A martial art that broke through seven extremes to perfect a single kill.
From the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
One permitted only to the Cult Leader's bloodline.
"You're the current Heavenly Demon..."
The Third Elder's brow furrowed mid-sentence.
Shihanbu had cut her off and charged again.
The thrusts resumed.
First extreme: Qi Extreme.
Qi gathered at the sword tip from his dantian.
Second extreme: Muscle Extreme.
His muscles aligned in the direction of the thrust.
Third extreme: Visual Extreme.
Aiming precisely at the Third Elder, seeking an opening.
And the fourth thrust.
Riiip!
The Third Elder's collar tore.
She blocked it.
But the tear was undeniable.
"...!"
Shock.
The fool she'd scoffed at had torn her collar.
But there was no time to be surprised.
His sequence wasn't over.
Fifth.
Sixth.
His thrusts didn't stop.
Each one built momentum and killing intent.
And the seventh.
The final extreme: Unity Extreme.
Qi, sword, killing intent, and spirit aligned in a straight line.
Viiiing—!
The sound of vibrating metal echoed through the poisonous fog.
The Third Elder's blade trembled as she blocked it.
Hawol looked down at her sword.
It was shaking.
Her hand, her sword.
"...Did you fool me?"
She asked, but she knew it wasn't true.
The man before her was too low to deceive her.
That meant what she saw was all there was.
Just twice.
He had mastered the sword art after executing it twice.
"The current Heavenly Demon is dangerous..."
She muttered, then fell silent.
Her senses detected chilling energy condensing at Shihanbu's sword tip.
And she knew this technique too.
"Ice Hole Heart Freezing!"
The Ice Palace's ultimate art that could freeze a heart through the tiniest hole.
"How does the Heavenly Demon know the Ice Palace's ultimate technique?!"
She was stunned.
Even as she dodged lightly.
Dodging wasn't hard.
This thrust was still immature too.
But.
Ching—
Her sword rang out once more.
The aftermath of blocking Ice Hole Heart Freezing again.
'Again. Perfected again.'
Just like before.
The first strike was so raw.
Pathetic, like a toddler's first steps.
But the next reached mastery.
The Third Elder's heart raced wildly.
'This guy... what the hell is he?'
He was beyond fooling her eyes.
Only one answer.
Heaven-sent talent.
"No, 'talent' doesn't cover it."
The man before her wasn't just a genius.
He was a freakish monster sculpted by the Fighting God himself.
In that moment, the Third Elder's pupils quivered.
Not fear.
Greed.
Desire boiled within her.
'I want him.'
Hawol realized her own craving.
She lowered her sword and spoke.
"I've changed my mind."
Her voice trembled.
From excitement.
"I'll let you live."
Shihanbu's eyes widened at her words.
"Then can I just go..."
"On one condition."
Possessive hunger gleamed openly in Hawol's eyes.
She didn't hide it.
"Become my disciple."
She extended her hand as she spoke.
Her fingertips trembled.
Shihanbu.
She imagined the prestige her future sect would hold because of him.
Facing her greed, Shihanbu scratched the back of his head.
"Uh. Disciple, huh..."
He pondered for a long while before speaking.
"If you block one of my sword strikes without drawing your sword, I'll become your disciple."
"Hah. Testing if I'm worthy to be your master?"
An absurd proposal.
If anyone else had said it, she'd have severed their head.
But.
"Fine. Show me."
Shihanbu was the exception.
He had the right.
She sheathed her sword in acceptance.
Seeing this, Shihanbu assumed his stance.
The Third Elder's brow furrowed at the sight.
He crouched low, like a beast ready to pounce.
It was different from both Ice Hole Heart Freezing and Seven Extremes One Kill.
"But similar...!!"
Mid-sentence, her eyes widened.
And then.
Clang—
The clash of blades rang through the forest.
"Wha... what?"
Hawol snapped to her senses at the sound.
She looked at her hand.
Her sword was trembling.
The sword that had deflected Shihanbu's thrust was shaking.
Yes.
She had forgotten the promise and drawn her sword.
"...What the."
She didn't understand.
She had no idea what happened.
The man before her had slowly thrust his sword.
Then suddenly, fangs were at her throat.
She instinctively drew and blocked.
Pure reflex.
"...What is that thrust called?"
The question slipped out unbidden.
Even her voice shook.
And the answer she got—
"Uh... it's just a mashup of three martial arts, so no name?"
Yes.
Shihanbu had taken the best parts of Ice Hole Heart Freezing from the Snow Girl,
Seven Extremes One Kill from the Heavenly Demon,
and the spear art from the Murim Twin Blades Elf that he'd never used.
And combined them.
Hearing this, the Third Elder's heart sank.
Like her head had been smashed with a hammer.
"That's... possible...? In this short time...?"
"Uh... it was simpler than I thought? Can't you do it, Third Elder? Why not?"
His eyes implied why couldn't she do something this easy.
Seeing that look, Hawol let out a hollow laugh.
He'd done something no mortal could in a lifetime, then asked why not.
Even more ridiculous: he wasn't mocking her.
He genuinely thought that.
"Hahaha! You're a madman yourself!"
Hawol roared with laughter for a while.
When it stopped, even greater greed burned in her eyes.
"...You're mine. No matter what."
Her possessiveness exploded as she stepped forward.
She planned to drag Shihanbu away by force.
Bind him with iron chains so he couldn't escape, keep him forever.
Facing her obsession, Shihanbu scratched his head.
"Hmm. Pretty shameless. You even drew your sword."
"Heh. Do you resent me for it?"
"Nah. I was never naive enough to trust an enemy's words."
"......?"
Unable to grasp his meaning, she tilted her head.
That was when it happened.
Sizzle—
A burning smell assaulted her nose.
Looking down instinctively, she froze.
Her fingertips were blackened.
"This is..."
She checked the ground hurriedly.
Her magic tool that blocked poison.
It lay shattered.
That thrust just now.
It hadn't aimed at her.
'Made me draw my sword... and targeted the magic tool...?'
Not just one move.
Three, four layered schemes.
Woven into a single thrust.
"Hah..."
A hollow breath escaped her.
She looked up.
The young man before her wasn't mocking her.
He just gazed indifferently.
That only fueled her desire more.
A madness-close obsession.
"...I'll make you my disciple no matter what."
With her declaration, she rummaged in her bosom and pulled out a magic tool.
A coldly glowing orb.
The moment she threw it to the ground.
Crack—!
The crystal shattered, splitting space.
Beyond lay another world.
City streets. Crowds. Food.
The world beyond the barrier.
"......You could leave?"
As Shihanbu muttered in surprise,
she leaped toward the rift.
Throwing herself through, she shouted.
"Wait! I'll lock you tight in the basement so only I can see you!"
"Wait... is that what disciple meant?!"
No answer came to his cry.
The rift sealed shut the moment she entered.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
In the now-silent poisonous fog,
Shihanbu muttered quietly.
"...Phew. Somehow I survived."
He sighed in relief and looked ahead.
In that instant, Shihanbu's face twisted.
The mandrakes planted in the ground.
They had all burst from the spatial rift's aftermath.
"In the end... this is all I got?"
He muttered, fumbling in his pocket.
Then.
[Hauuuuugh—]
A creepy groan sounded.
As my face twisted and I yanked my hand away in panic.
"Huh?"
Something caught my eye.
Where the Third Elder had sat, a wooden door stood.