Chapter 251
Chapter 251
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 251
Chapter Title: Mountain of Practitioners (25)
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Learning Chiwoo's swordsmanship had made it crystal clear.
The difference between a spar and a deathmatch.
There was an unbridgeable chasm between the two.
That's why he'd asked.
Whether they were going to half-ass it or go all out.
Whether it was kill or be killed, or just a quick taste.
'...This bastard.'
Kang Si-chan's eyebrow twitched.
The one who'd reached the 150th floor and destroyed the Mysterious Tower was ultimately just a 'bug user.'
The achiever of a floor that didn't even exist.
He'd never displayed any martial prowess like forcibly suppressing his energy like Chiwoo or radiating overwhelming inner force to dominate the room.
Unlike Chiwoo, who looked the part of a true master, this guy had always been busy hiding behind others.
"Of course it's a deathmatch."
...Daring to talk about a deathmatch.
In truth, it was exactly what Kang Si-chan had hoped for.
He was the one who'd inherited everything of the Kang Shi Sect. The thought of losing to some mere bug user didn't even cross his mind, not for a second.
Besides, in fights where lives were on the line, the Kang Shi Sect's martial arts shone even brighter.
Fighting with death on the line against those who wielded death itself.
'Foolish idiot.'
A sneer crept across his face.
Pathetic. To think he'd step up just because of this level of provocation.
If he'd had to face Chiwoo first, it would've been far trickier.
A man whose name evoked a realm beyond reach.
His aura and presence rivaled the sect's mid-tier experts.
Maybe even surpassed them.
And moreover...
'He's looking anxious.'
The way Chiwoo eyed Park Chan-woo.
Anxiety was plain in that gaze.
Proof that Park Chan-woo didn't possess the skill to have reached the 150th floor.
No true master of that caliber would warrant worry.
'I'll make him beg for his life, sobbing.'
Shring!
Kang Si-chan drew and gripped his blade.
A custom weapon honed to perfection on one edge alone.
A treasure the arhats of the mid-mountain couldn't even dream of.
The Black Dragon Blade, forged solely to maximize Kang Si-chan's martial arts.
Tap. Tap.
Park Chan-woo kicked off the ground twice to assume his stance.
Then he glanced again at the text floating before his eyes.
'The Box of Patience has been unlocked.'
True to its name, the Box of Patience could only be opened through patience.
After acquiring it and waiting ages, the chance had finally come.
'Remnant of one of the Five Emperors.'
The five sovereigns.
It seemed he could summon the remnant of one among them.
They were beings who'd endured trials akin to those of the Mysterious Tower.
Ones who cared little for level highs or lows.
For instance, a level 1 martial artist who'd purely mastered their art could face a level 10 foe—or higher.
Called emperors for their sheer, unadulterated prowess.
Park Chan-woo knew better than anyone just how absurdly impressive that was.
It flew in the face of Abyss common sense.
'Monsters who'd reached the pinnacle despite not being negative levels like me.'
Powerhouses acknowledged by the True Master of the Cradle.
He was to choose one of the five emperors.
No need to agonize.
What did 'summoning the remnant' even mean?
He'd half-expected a descent or possession.
'...?'
Nothing happened.
Confusing, but he couldn't show it.
Facing Kang Si-chan wasn't easy for Park Chan-woo either.
The guy's level was easily over 100.
A straight clash of raw power? No chance of winning.
...What to do.
But the moment he gripped Baal's sword, he finally understood the message.
'I can see it.'
Dozens of sword paths and combat routes unfolded before his eyes.
Likely the 'paths of battle' the Sword Emperor would have taken against Kang Si-chan.
"I'll yield the first move. Come on, attack with that fancy skill of yours."
Kang Si-chan acted all smug.
Convinced Park Chan-woo's 150th floor was pure luck.
Which, well, it kinda was.
But thanks to him yielding first strike, Park Chan-woo could calmly survey the 'paths of battle.'
'The Sword Emperor's form is embedded in every sword path.'
It felt like playing a video.
Gazing at a path replayed the Sword Emperor swinging his blade in his mind.
He chose one.
And then—
Swish—!
Clang!
"Hup...!"
Sword met sword.
The Sword Emperor's path had been blocked by Kang Si-chan's blade.
But that didn't mean the Sword Emperor was wrong.
'I just couldn't keep up.'
He hadn't replicated it perfectly.
He wasn't the Sword Emperor, after all.
"A sharp strike, I'll give you that..."
Kang Si-chan's smile deepened.
This one clash confirmed it.
'Definitely a bug user.'
Park Chan-woo's sword was light.
Weightless.
The power and speed behind the swing? Easy to match.
No, easy didn't cover it.
'Slow.'
Excruciatingly slow.
Stamina and defense seemed decent, but that was it.
'I've already won.'
Declaring victory inwardly, Kang Si-chan moved.
Clang!
Scraaape!
Park Chan-woo somehow kept up with that sluggish speed, but he was purely on the defensive.
And Kang Si-chan hadn't even unleashed his true power yet.
"You climbed the mountain with this pathetic skill?!"
Kang Si-chan mocked him.
Even if he reached the upper peaks like this, he'd just be prey.
Like a cat toying with a mouse before killing it.
By now, throngs of arhats had gathered to watch the duel.
Ari among them.
'I'll show you all the absolute gap.'
That there was a world beyond what mid-mountain arhats couldn't even glance at.
Skies above the skies those filthy secret realm arhats could never ascend.
Time to etch it in deep.
...That was when it happened.
Thud!
"Guh...!"
A heavy fist slammed into his gut, sending Kang Si-chan's body briefly airborne.
In a weapon duel, he'd suddenly thrown a punch.
That was the trigger.
Park Chan-woo's aura shifted abruptly.
'It's not choosing one— all these sword paths and combat routes connect.'
...He'd realized it.
They weren't dozens of separate paths; they formed one continuous line.
The Sword Emperor's style was brutally straightforward.
Not limited to the sword—he threw wild body strikes too.
'No wasted motion, pure efficient power.'
It aligned perfectly with Chiwoo's teachings.
No waste in the Sword Emperor's attacks.
Precisely the needed force, precisely placed.
Those who'd reached the pinnacle of pure skill had mastered this 'control of power' to the extreme.
But there was a problem.
'Agility's too low. My body can't keep up with the remnant.'
Agility was pitifully inadequate.
The lowest of all his stats.
He couldn't properly follow the Sword Emperor's path because of it.
But it wasn't unsolvable.
He dumped every spare point from achieving Divine Art Mastery Rank 1 into Agility.
Agility governed reflexes, senses, speed—the works.
Even at its low base, he'd parried Kang Si-chan's blade.
Now over double...
Clang! Clang! Clang-clang-clang!
He could aggressively press Kang Si-chan in turn.
'Faster...!'
Kang Si-chan panicked hard.
Park Chan-woo's sword, once yawn-inducingly slow, accelerated past a certain point.
And not just that.
The blade was growing heavier.
With every passing second, it got harder to handle.
'What the? Was that first strike just a feint?'
Even after yielding first move, he hadn't gone all out.
As if Kang Si-chan was an easy win.
Toying with him like a plaything in return.
But that was pure delusion on Kang Si-chan's part.
Keep moving.
Never stop.
Still too slow.
To fully match the Sword Emperor's remnant.
But with time, he was catching up bit by bit.
Now it was a battle of endurance.
"Black Dragon Blade! Devour him!"
The Black Dragon Blade absorbed the life of anything it touched.
Even shortened a blade's lifespan.
Clashing with it, Park Chan-woo's sword breaking or shattering wouldn't be odd.
But...
Bzzzzt!
Hummm!
'...What the hell.'
The Black Dragon Blade trembled violently.
As if screaming every clash with Park Chan-woo's sword.
'The Black Dragon Blade... is afraid?'
Impossible.
It had no ego.
Just sucked life from what it touched, as commanded.
Yet here it was, wailing like it was terrified.
Meaning... Park Chan-woo's sword wasn't ordinary.
Something transcending death.
A treasure of absolute grade?
But Kang Si-chan had no time for deeper thoughts.
Slash!
Chiwoo and Cheon Ji-ho watched the deathmatch in stunned silence.
Especially focused on Park Chan-woo.
Clumsy at first, but growing more refined with time.
Sword handling, movement paths, combat flow—all of it.
And when he finally severed Kang Si-chan's throat...
Chiwoo and Cheon Ji-ho could only gape in shock.
'Th-that swordsmanship...!'
'...No way?'