Chapter 287: Temar's First Grave (8)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 287: Temar's First Grave (8)
It was monstrous. Absurdly, impossibly massive.
No other words could describe it.
To what extent had aura transformed that greatsword? Even with his head tilted back, Jin found it difficult to see where the blade ended. The sword was dozens of times larger than the man wielding it, yet the Guardian held it with both hands as if it were nothing.
What on earth… Can something like this even be called a sword?
Jin prided himself on not batting an eye at most things, but this time, he couldn't hide his shock.
The Guardian’s greatsword wasn't just terrifyingly long; its sheer width was so oppressive it felt like a physical assault. This unfathomably vast expansion was composed entirely of aura.
The three spikes of Jin's technique had already pierced the Guardian's shield, but they were unable to reach his body, held at bay by the sheer repulsive force radiating from the greatsword.
A triumphant smile finally broke across the Guardian's face. The expression on his descendant’s face—confronted with the ultimate technique he had spent his entire life perfecting—was quite a sight to behold.
[The Secret Technique: King of Greatswords. No matter how great they were, everyone has that same dazed look on their face the first time they see this.]
Jin couldn't find the words to respond, his gaze darting back and forth between the Guardian and the colossal blade.
On the surface, the battle seemed to have reached a brief lull. In reality, however, their powers were clashing fiercely, each trying to repel the other. They had reached an equilibrium. With their strength so evenly matched, the first one to lose focus would suffer a disastrous end.
Huff, huff…
Jin carefully steadied his breathing. As he tried to calm his Heart of Light, which had grown unstable from unleashing Judgment, blood began to trickle from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
[…King of Greatswords?]
The name made perfect sense. Anyone would have to nod in agreement. Surely, no larger greatsword could possibly exist in this world.
As far as Jin knew, among the ten decisive techniques, seven secret techniques, and three profound techniques that currently existed in Runcandel, none took such a form.
Just as the Zipple had erased all history regarding Silderay Runcandel, the King of Greatswords—the very technique that had been the source of his fame—had also seen its lineage severed.
[Temar and I spent days agonizing over the name. Is it not magnificent?]
[I’m not so sure.]
[A pity.]
Vroooooom!
Aura surged around the Guardian once more. The erupting energy began to twist into dozens of rope-like strands, winding themselves around the greatsword. It was a preparation to support and swing this gargantuan mass—something that was more a lump of aura than a sword.
"Kaaaaaaah!"
The Guardian let out a monstrous roar. Just as Jin had been shrouded in lightning when he unleashed Pluto's Sovereign Sword, the Guardian’s entire body was being enveloped in pure white aura.
The only difference was that he looked as if he had become one with the greatsword.
Countless martial artists in the world claimed that becoming one with one's weapon was the ultimate pinnacle of their path. Usually, that was a metaphorical expression. It had nothing to do with the bizarre sword the Guardian was currently displaying.
Nevertheless, Jin swallowed hard as a chill ran down his spine. This sense of crisis didn't stem from his martial insight or the intuition he’d developed through countless trials.
It was purely visual.
It was the visual pressure born from a scale so nonsensical that it seemed impossible for a human to wield.
Shocking.
He was certain of it. Even if historians hadn't left a single line about it, the King of Greatswords was a blade that would have been remembered for over a thousand years through oral tradition alone.
At the same time, he felt a surge of goosebumps at the Zipple’s ability to so cleanly erase such a shocking sword from history.
[Try and withstand this!]
Rumble…!
The King of Greatswords began its descent.
It was slow, like the sun setting in the west. It was even slower than the single strike Cyron had shown Jin on the day he returned to the Garden of Swords after completing his cadet training.
Given its sheer size, it seemed as though even an ordinary person could escape its reach if they ran hard enough.
However, despite its slow speed, the King of Greatswords was an unavoidable strike. It wasn't because it defied the laws of nature as Cyron’s strike had.
It was the repulsive force that was currently pinning down the spikes of Judgment. As the sword began its descent, that force bore down on Jin with the same crushing weight as the pressure of Tess. It felt as if thousands of invisible hands were seizing his entire body.
To think the pressure is this overwhelming even with Pluto's Sovereign Sword active…!
It was only because he had Pluto's Sovereign Sword active that he could even breathe and move. Jin’s pure aura alone could never have withstood the pressure radiating from the King of Greatswords.
This was the same principle that demanded martial prowess worthy of the Pluto Tribe just to survive within the lightning of Pluto's Sovereign Sword.
As he tried to move, his footsteps felt infinitely heavy. Even if he turned and fled with everything he had, it would be impossible to escape its vast domain before the King of Greatswords hit the ground. No, it was impossible.
He had to strike back.
To have no choice but to face it head-on despite it falling so slowly… What a terrifying secret technique. How long until it hits the ground? Thirty seconds? Or twenty?
He steadied his breathing once more. As the King of Greatswords drew closer, he could feel the joints in his body rattling. The backlash for unleashing the incomplete Pluto's Sovereign Sword was accelerating.
My body is reaching its limit.
The lightning dyeing Jin’s eyes and hair faded noticeably. Just as Pluto's Sovereign Sword seemed on the verge of deactivating, the Guardian’s aura blazed with an even stronger light.
When Silderay was alive, martial artists had praised him with a specific title.
Monstrous Strength. Silderay of the Monstrous Strength. A knight who possessed power that was, quite literally, freakishly superior.
Since he wasn't a pure-blooded Runcandel, he didn't possess a blessed body, just as Jin had suspected. Yet, he had achieved this absurd level of power through pure effort alone.
Jin glared with wide eyes and took his stance again.
People who reached the ultimate realm in a single lifetime… Right. I can't look down on them just because I received a windfall like Laprarosa. I almost became arrogant.
Starting with his father, Cyron Runcandel.
His eldest sister Luna, Talaris, Vanessa, Temar… these transcendent martial artists had always been mysterious entities to Jin. They were great mountains. Or perhaps, landmarks that pointed the way for his life.
And now, Jin had another landmark: Silderay Runcandel. Regression, windfalls—eventually, he would have to surpass them all.
"Gladly."
Whoosh—!
The lightning of Pluto's Sovereign Sword flickered out. His Heart of Light, having lost its glow, felt hollow. The moment he lost his awakened power, he coughed up a thick glob of blood.
An aura backflow, multiple fractures, and shuddering internal organs. This was the natural result of facing the Guardian without his 'windfall.'
A 12th Flagbearer of Runcandel, not yet even twenty, could not hope to face one of the Ten Great Knights of the first patriarch, the strongest in history.
However, Jin had not grown strong through regression and windfalls alone. Those were merely supplementary. The most precious and brilliant thing Jin possessed was, and always had been, this.
Will.
The intangible power that ensured he never let go of his sword, no matter the situation.
If the Guardian’s secret technique, which illuminated the entire subspace, was the legacy of the Runcandel ancestors, then the will Jin displayed was the light that carried on the true lineage of Runcandel.
Finally, the moment the King of Greatswords struck the earth.
The Guardian could not help but admire the light of Jin’s will.
Sword met sword.
Across time and space, two wills representing the beginning and the end of Runcandel met.
And then, a miracle occurred.
[The succession… is complete.]
The Guardian spoke in a low voice as he completed his swing.
A tsunami-like wave of aura spread out in front of him. The King of Greatswords raged violently as if it would tear the entire subspace apart, and in the center of it all stood Jin.
He was frozen like a statue, locked in the posture of having swung his sword.
He had failed. His will was sufficient, but the power Jin currently possessed was still too weak to break through the King of Greatswords.
However, this was not a one-on-one duel to the death. Nor was it a cruel play to determine an obvious winner and loser. It was merely a ritual for the succession of will.
Fsssss…
The aura sweeping through the subspace began to turn into black particles. The power that could have torn Jin apart a thousand times over was scattering like dandelions in the wind.
When Jin reached out, he felt the black particles—spirit energy—passing gently through his fingers. The Guardian, who had been standing in the distance, also faded into a faint shadow and vanished.
"…Sir Silderay?"
Jin called out his name in a daze. He had so many things he wanted to ask him once the battle was over—what the Runcandel of the past was like, and why he had been erased from history.
To think he would disappear so suddenly.
The particles of spirit energy fluttering like pollen gave no answer. Instead, as if with intent, they gathered together and formed a whirlpool around Jin.
-…
From somewhere, a faint sound like a distant murmur could be heard. It was coming from the whirlpool of spirit energy, a sound unlike any Jin had ever heard while using spirit energy before.
-…, …is.
-…, can…, …, not….
As he focused his mind, Jin realized it was the sound of a human voice.
Is it Sir Silderay’s voice?
The infinitely faint voice was saying this:
Jin, I am sorry. I do not think I can leave many records behind.
Jin’s eyes widened.
Solderet…?
It was the voice of his god, Solderet, who hadn't spoken to him once from the moment before his regression until now.
As soon as he heard that voice, Jin cried out Solderet’s name like a madman. However, no matter how much he ran through the black particles and raised his voice, no answer came.
Jin, I am sorry. I do not think I can leave many records behind.
Only the same voice repeated itself.
Before long, Jin realized that the voice was a recording from the very distant past. He knew because he could hear another person’s voice within the spirit energy.
—Who are you talking to? Solderet. Jin? If it’s Jin… is that the contractor from a thousand years in the future you mentioned?
—Ah, Temar.
—Murakan and Misha were complaining that they’re exhausted because your manifestations have been so frequent lately. The war with the Zipple isn't far off. Think about my position; it’ll be troublesome if those two are under the weather.
—Do not tell those children Jin’s name.
—Good grief, I already said I understood last time. You really don't trust me, do you?
The conversation was clearly one between Solderet and Temar from a thousand years ago.
—But, if you’ve already decided on a contractor for a thousand years from now…
—From your perspective, I suppose that means we're definitely going to win the war against the Zipple? Seeing as you’re already worrying about a contractor a thousand years from now.
—If we lose, would there even be a Runcandel left in the world for you to contract with in a thousand years?