Chapter 19
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Recovery and Resolve
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Though it was the qi circulation technique he had devoted his entire life to mastering, this time a single Small Heavenly Circuit took over three hours.
'As expected, not easy.'
The internal energy that had coursed through his body and returned to his dantian dispersed softly, merging back into nature.
Then, even more internal energy than before flooded into his now-empty dantian.
The essence of the Return Heart Method!
Ruyan repeated the process just as meticulously, circulating his internal energy once more and releasing it back into nature.
After ten repetitions, the severed meridians finally connected once again.
Even employing the peerless Return Heart Method, a full day had passed before his meridians fully recovered.
'Whew, at least I've avoided becoming a cripple.'
Still, using martial arts right away was out of the question. He had merely survived the crisis.
And stabilizing his meridians didn't solve everything.
'Has the mana circle been damaged too?'
While his dantian was on the mend alongside his meridians, the mana circle was different.
In the previous battle, forcing the circle to expand had cracked its walls as well.
The temporary 2nd Circle he'd opened had now all but evaporated, leaving only faint traces.
'The mana circle is no different from the dantian. I'll manage it the same way.'
With his path set, Ruyan began infusing small amounts of internal energy into it, just as he had when first forming the mana circle, containing it carefully.
Hummm.
The internal energy emerging from his dantian swirled around the walls of the 1st Circle.
Internal energy was the energy of nature itself.
And within nature lay the power to restore the broken and heal the wounded.
As the great force of nature enveloped the mana circle, the damaged walls began to mend bit by bit.
Like how the earth hardens after rain.
The newly reformed walls of the mana circle even seemed tougher than before.
'This is more than I expected. It'll actually help.'
An unexpected gain.
Of course, he had no desire to experience mana rampage again, but in the end, it had been worthwhile training.
'Maybe I can reach the 2nd Circle soon.'
With time and effort to expand the lingering traces of the 2nd Circle from the battle, it could take proper shape.
After finishing the emergency measures, Ruyan took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes.
His precious one was gone, but he had undoubtedly left Ruyan a path forward.
The mana circle now encircling his dantian was proof of that.
From here on, Ruyan would carry Blanc's legacy and forge a new life.
Having patched himself up, Ruyan headed first to Hatchling Village.
'They were innocent lives too.'
The village was like one giant house of mourning.
Over thirty people had died, after all.
In such a small village, they were all someone's family, and the grief of those left behind was beyond measure.
Ruyan entered the village with heavy, cautious steps.
The villagers who spotted him flinched and edged away stealthily.
Some even pretended not to see him at all.
They were afraid. They had witnessed him slaughter twenty knights in an instant.
'So it's come to this.'
Without Yagnik Lord and the Brighton Magic Academy, Ruyan could have lived among them as a friendly neighbor forever.
But things had changed.
Neither he nor the villagers could return to how things were.
'This is my own failing.'
Ruyan said nothing to those avoiding him and pressed deeper into the village.
As he walked, he spotted an old woman clutching a cat.
'Her name was Nabiya.'
Mari's beloved cat.
And her grandmother, who had cherished Mari in turn.
Had this frail body dug her granddaughter's grave by hand? The old woman's hands were caked in blood before the small mound.
As Ruyan approached, she glanced at him with eyes devoid of soul.
"I'm sorry."
Ruyan bit his lip and offered a strained apology.
The old woman gave a wistful smile and slowly shook her head.
"Child, you don't apologize before the dead."
Her demeanor showed she had already accepted life and death.
It was understandable. Just as Ruyan had lost Blanc, she had lost everything in her life.
Ruyan gazed at her silently before turning to the grave and setting down what he had brought.
'I put some effort into it, but it was too late.'
It was the kitten house he had promised Mari. Its fine craftsmanship only made it more bitter.
With that, Ruyan turned wordlessly. His business in the village was done.
But he wasn't the only one with business there.
Gers, who had followed him from the village entrance, finally approached slowly.
"Ruyan, Blanc is..."
"I've laid him to rest with his mother."
"I see. He'd... like that."
Gers gave a wry smile and let out a long sigh, his regret genuine.
"Would you like to see?"
"I barely looked after him in life. Do I deserve to now?"
Ruyan nodded silently and led the way out of the village.
Following with heavy steps, Gers finally exhaled raggedly after seeing Blanc's grave.
"Ugh... my friend. Why'd you have to go like this..."
Seeing the usually stoic Gers so vulnerable was oddly heartening for Ruyan.
Gers had been Blanc's sole friend in this remote mountain hollow. The only one to shed tears at his grave.
'He cared only for family, yet left such a friend behind.'
Ruyan stepped away to let Gers grieve freely.
When Gers finally returned, his eyes were swollen, face flushed red.
"Ruyan, you holding up?"
Even then, he tried to comfort Ruyan with a worried look.
His selflessness, worrying for others first, reminded Ruyan of Blanc.
"I'll have to be."
Ruyan answered calmly, forcing composure, and Gers sighed deeply.
"You're on your own now. Why not come live in the village?"
"No. I'll stay in the mountains for a while. I have things to do."
Ruyan shook his head firmly without hesitation.
Gers' mouth worked as if full of words, but he turned away in silence.
"Got it. I'll check in on you now and then."
Gers lingered, turning back several times as he descended the mountain.
An unchanging, grateful soul.
Ruyan watched him go, then began preparing his own departure.
'No more looking back from here.'
This ordeal had driven home how much he still lacked.
'It wasn't peace. It was complacency.'
In this quiet mountain village, strength was rarely needed. He could handle the villagers' minor requests without a dantian.
But no longer.
Coming that close to death against a mere entry-level superhuman knight was shameful.
A weakness unfit for the Divine Bow.
'I must grow stronger, faster.'
Ruyan resolved to establish Blanc's magic academy in his stead. A mere nameplate wouldn't satisfy him.
He would prove the brilliance of Blanc's theories.
And raise that magic academy to the pinnacle.
For that, he needed power.
Restoring all his past life's prowess immediately was impossible, but he had to get close.
Above all...
'Brighton Magic Academy! I won't leave a single one alive.'
Ruyan's vengeance was far from over. This was just the beginning.
He wouldn't stop until their name sank into oblivion.
Packing simple belongings, Ruyan left the house and headed deeper into the mountains.
His destination was already set.
A place thick with natural energy—the very tree where he had gathered elixirs for Blanc.
'Perfect for training. No one will find me there.'
Through dense forest where no path existed and visibility was nil, he entered a world unto itself. The massive tree greeted him.
Too deep in the woods for sunlight to penetrate, yet a radiant glow bathed the tree.
A blessing, perhaps.
Or a welcoming gesture.
Ruyan approached with an impassive face and lightly stroked the trunk.
"I'll be borrowing your help for a while. Looking forward to it."
In the deepest mountains of Sobles Continent's northernmost reaches, unmarked on any map...
The absolute one had awakened.
The Sobles Continent had long been divided into five kingdoms.
They stood in precarious balance, none dominant, war raging without end.
That equilibrium shattered sixty years ago.
A hero from the northern kingdom unified the continent.
The founding emperor named the empire 'Sobles,' proclaiming the entire land beneath his feet.
A hero's grandeur indeed!
The colossal imperial palace he raised at the continent's heart became the world's symbol, all bowing before it.
But flowers bloom and fade in but ten days. Nothing lasts forever.
Upon the first emperor's death, cracks appeared. Now in the third generation, fissures were widening.
The young emperor, a mere thirteen, fanned the flames of division with his incompetence.
"Let the prime minister handle that. I don't want to deal with it."
Sobles III spoke with feigned sternness, but his pre-pubescent voice only whined.
'Sigh, if you don't know, just say so. He never even tries to learn. What a mess.'
Prime Minister Leonard Duke swallowed a deep sigh inwardly, bowing outwardly without a hint of frustration.
Having served since aiding the founder—elevated to duke for his merits—he now attended the third emperor.
At over eighty, even walking pained him, yet he couldn't step back from affairs with the emperor still a child.
"Moving on. Three days ago, Mason Territory was attacked."
"Mason? Where's that?"
The inept emperor didn't even know his empire's lands.
Leonard Duke, anticipating this, replied calmly.
"A small city in the empire's far north. Too remote for direct imperial oversight, so granted autonomy."
"Oh? Then let them handle it themselves."
"Your Majesty, it's not that simple, regrettably. Mason Lord was killed in the incident."
Leonard Duke conveyed the gravity steadily, but Sobles III's face said, 'So what?'
"An imperial noble was murdered. If the throne ignores it, other lords may waver."
"Ugh, another headache? Send the knights to hang the culprit. Problem solved."
Solved? Hardly.
But Leonard Duke bowed and accepted the order.
"Understood."
Pressing further would only send the emperor fleeing the hall in a tantrum.
The report was given, the command received. Details fell to him.
'In the end, it all falls on me.'
Exiting the hall, Leonard Duke shuffled across the palace toward the knight orders.
The empire's pride: its finest knights assembled!
Before the barracks hung two banners side by side.
First, a majestic blue lion roaring fiercely.
The banner of the Imperial 1st Knight Order.
Elite knights handling imperial guard and ceremonial duties—tasks of honor.
Behind it, a red lion with flashing eyes.
The 2nd Knight Order. The empire's blade, bloodied by direct combat.
But Leonard Duke passed them by, venturing deeper.
He strode into a dim, bannerless tent.