Chapter 36
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: Growth - 2
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Whether because I'd sliced it once already or due to the sword aura gathered on my blade, the evil spirit's wariness had spiked.
Keeping that in mind, I inched toward it step by step, luring the thing into my domain.
-Screeech!!
The domain I could currently manifest with the Taiji Sword spanned about a half zhang. Not exactly a wide area.
-Kyaak!!
That said, it also meant the evil spirit's attacks could now reach me.
Sensing that, it swung its long arms at me.
Sharp claws gleamed, aimed straight for my head.
Block it? Dodge?
Or counterattack?
Out of those three options, what I chose was...
-Chaeeng!!
...A counter. I deflected the strike aimed at my head while swinging my sword. Dagger-like claws hung from its fingers.
Aiming for them, I slashed—and saw the evil spirit bare its sawblade teeth.
-Screeech!!
The evil spirit's fingers were severed by my sword aura-coated blade.
Just that alone weakened one side of its attacks. But it was too early to relax—the thing was still moving.
"Hup!!"
Pulled back after losing its hand, the evil spirit shifted to a defensive stance. In that case, my only choice was relentless offense.
-Shraaak! Clang!! Screeech!!
The first strike gashed its other arm. It blocked the second, but the follow-up third severed another finger.
That effectively neutralized its left-side attacks. Now for the right...
"Ugh!"
Was I overthinking? In that split-second hesitation, its right arm lashed out. Those claws, said to slice through iron plates, nearly got me.
Suppressing the chills crawling up my spine, I advanced on the retreating evil spirit.
-Kyaak! Kak! Kyaaaaaaa!!
Threats, followed by strikes. I parried its desperate flailing resistance, swinging my sword once, twice, three times.
By the time the barrage—who knew how many strikes it took—ended, the evil spirit's body was covered in countless wounds.
-Stab!!!
All that remained was the killing blow.
I thrust my sword straight into the evil spirit's throat—and watched as the upper-tier demon beast slowly crumbled.
"It's over."
"Not bad."
Yu Ye-ryeon gazed approvingly at me, then stared at the pitifully collapsed corpse before turning away. Her face held the same intrigue as always.
"Didn't expect you to wield sword aura already. Hmm. My eyes didn't deceive me after all."
"Thank you."
I hadn't expected to master sword aura so soon either. Was it thanks to the changes from the summoning orb?
I sheathed my sword and walked over to her.
"By the way, your Taiji Sword feels pretty stable? How'd you train it?"
How, indeed.
The truth was, it had stabilized thanks to sparring with Namgung Hyeok.
Researching the Soaring Palace Free Sword Art to counter Namgung Hye—and training to break it—had naturally honed my Taiji Sword.
I explained, and she chuckled, ruffling my hair wildly again.
"The Taiji Sword is formless swordsmanship. To wield it properly, you need heaps of sparring and real combat experience."
"I see."
"Your progress is solid. No—actually on the fast side."
"So to expand the domain further, I need more sparring and combat."
"Exactly. From now on, prioritize Taiji Sword over Three Ultimates Sword Art in fights. Doesn't mean neglect the Three Ultimates, though."
"Got it. Oh, and..."
Some questions had cropped up during training—perfect timing. I asked Yu Ye-ryeon about the unknowns and oddities, and she answered effortlessly.
"And when I used Immortal's Path, there was a glow..."
"A glow?"
"Yes. Hye said it wasn't sword aura. And it felt different from the aura I just used."
"Hmm... Can't recreate it now?"
"No."
She crossed her arms, eyes closed in thought, then smirked. Resuming her usual relaxed tone, she continued.
"If you can't do it on command, don't dwell on it. Looks like a fluke of coincidences."
"Really?"
"From the description, it sounds like the cusp of sword force... Lucky it fizzled out. You're not tempered enough for sword force yet. Worst case, forcing it could shave years off your life or wreck your body. Be careful. You know how rushing ahead can backfire."
True enough. Knowing that experience hinted at such danger now made sense of Namgung Cheon's warning.
"Not sure if that's okay..."
"Don't sweat it. Build your strength steadily."
She spoke leisurely, paused, then pinched my cheek.
As I rubbed my stinging cheek, she flashed her trademark mischievous smile, stroked the other one gently, and said softly,
"Still, avoid Immortal's Path just in case. Got it?"
Her serious expression left no room for argument.
It'd only been a month away, but Sword Heaven Hall felt like ages. Standing before it, I called out to Yu Ye-ryeon as she led her horse over.
"What about dinner tonight?"
"What else? You make it."
As expected.
Should've hit the market on the way?
"What do you feel like?"
"The usual."
Soufflé pancakes, then. Add sides for a full dinner. Head in, tidy up, then shop.
That was when we opened the gates. A unfamiliar middle-aged man stood before the main hall, visible right from the entrance.
He looked about Namgung Hyeok's age.
Broad shoulders, muscles bulging through fine martial robes—he was no weakling.
His face bore scars large and small. Spotting us, he fixed us with a piercing glare.
"What're you doing here?"
Noticing my caution, perhaps? Yu Ye-ryeon patted my back lightly and asked casually. The scarred man extended a letter from his robe toward her.
"What's this? Ah. Tsk. What a hassle."
"Don't call an imperial decree a hassle."
The word in his flat tone...
Imperial decree.
Only then did I recognize him.
The current emperor's uncle. Cheon Yeon-ha, the Iron-Blooded Empress, called him that—and one of the Eight Great Heavens of the Nine Provinces.
The man dubbed Guardian of the Imperial House.
In the novel, like Sword Heaven, he was name-dropped only, dying later defending the imperial family against the Blood Cult.
Fist Emperor Cheon Si-jeok.
"And you are...?"
"Jin Hyun, food taster at Sword Heaven Hall."
His status, skill, position—all far above mine. A bow was in order.
I greeted politely. He stared blankly, then shifted to Yu Ye-ryeon.
"Disciple?"
"Not a disciple."
"Not his disciple."
"Leaves quite the traces for 'not'."
"Even so, not a disciple. More importantly, Fist Emperor—what's this decree?"
"Request from the southern dwarves. Seems an imoogi awakened down south."
"Eugh."
"They ask to borrow your strength to slay it."
A southern imoogi? One from the novel, too.
I tugged Yu Ye-ryeon aside. Meeting my eyes, she whispered,
"This 'that' thing, right?"
"Seems like it."
Mid-story, when the Blood Cult ramped up, they unleashed "Steel."
To build the tower for the Blood God's descent, they needed mass deaths.
An imoogi evolving into the drought-bringing Steel enabled slaughter perfect for the tower—and many died before it fell.
We couldn't ignore this imoogi.
Imoogi were rare; this one might be the one the Blood Cult evolved into Steel.
"Hmm... No choice, huh? But why send me instead of going yourself?"
"I have my own decree. Investigating odd events in Sichuan."
"Odd events? Like what?"
"The man-eating deathless god."
Probe into a Blood Cult protector. No wonder the palace cared about an "immortal."
"Mm. I'd normally refuse, but..."
Refuse an imperial decree?
I glanced; she shrugged.
"At Eight Great Heavens level, it's not impossible."
In the novel, she probably did refuse—seemed annoyed now.
That's why Steel fully formed.
But things were different. Both she and I were working to save the world. To that end, eliminate potential Blood Cult weapons like this imoogi.
And if lucky, snag its inner core, too...
"Better take this one. Fulfilling the decree brings big rewards. We need some from the palace, right?"
True. Wi Cheonryong got one such opportunity late-game via decree.
"Still, I wanted the Sichuan probe... Hmm. No helping it."
Regretful, she snapped her fingers.
"Ah! How about this? You hunt the imoogi. I do Sichuan. Yeah? What do you think?"
Beaming her proposal at Cheon Si-jeok, he shot it down coldly.
"You're better at slaying beasts than me. This assignment's right."
Yu Ye-ryeon scowled deeply, her pretty face scrunching up.