Hwasan Sect Arena (3)
Sword King, Apprentice, Heavenly Sword Three Venerables, Golden Wheel King, Sword Dragon, Heavenly Wind Moon Blade, and so on... He'd heard all sorts of grandiose titles in the chat room, starting from Namgoong Cheol the Creation Heaven Divine Sword. They weren't complete fabrications, but quite a few felt exaggerated and bloated.
Well, psychological warfare was part of the game, so he could understand their culture to some extent. That said, even when he heard the old man's title, it hadn't really resonated.
Sword God? A literal translation meant "god of the sword," but honestly, he wondered if that was even plausible.
But the moment the old man raised his sword and violet energy began to swirl...
That old man transformed into something that was human yet no longer human.
"We will now begin the countdown."
One hand behind his back at his waist, he simply raised his sword with the other. And with that alone, every gap vanished.
The flawless perfection he'd so desperately sought while training the Cheonma Sword. He felt like he'd just glimpsed that realm.
...Was I too hasty?
He didn't regret choosing to challenge him. But he couldn't deny that he'd crudely judged the old man based on the level of his previous duel opponents.
Still...
I probably would've done it anyway, even if I'd known it'd turn out like this.
After reaching the 10th floor, his coins had vanished. From here on, death was real death. But that was precisely the trial the Tower had given him.
The moment he feared challenges, he'd fall behind. It might not show right away, but eventually, that past choice would drag him down.
If the Heavenly Demon—or the Steel King, or any other challenger—had beaten the Sword God in this trial and claimed the extra rewards...
Then he'd be that much further behind.
His life? If he kept taking the easy path, he'd be slowly weeded out anyway. And sooner or later, the weeded would face a point where they could no longer survive.
Beyond that, though...
He'd been waiting for this. An opponent he could pour everything into.
Even boosted my stats for me. If it were my original power, maybe not—but now, he's not an opponent I absolutely can't beat.
The countdown ended.
The restraints on his body lifted. But unlike previous duels, the arena above remained eerily quiet.
"Hohoho. What's this? Not charging in like before?"
The old man let out a hearty laugh as he asked. Hearing that serene voice made this sword-drawn standoff feel like a lie...
But Yun-seok could sense it. The rage burning steadily within him, refined to perfection.
Namgoong Cheol, what the hell did that guy do in his previous life?
The Namgoong Cheol he'd seen on the 7th floor had probably gone through all this already. In other words, he was from the future relative to this point.
Otherwise, an opponent like this wouldn't have appeared against someone who wielded the Phantom Sword so freely.
Well, Namgoong Cheol's story wasn't that interesting anyway, and it wasn't important right now.
What do I do?
What do I do?
Thanks to Yang's Art, he could think two lines of thought at once... but no answers emerged.
In the end, he'd have to figure it out step by step, firsthand. Botch it, and the match could end in an instant.
So even his probing had to be at full power.
"Avatar."
As Yun-seok's form shifted, the arena stirred.
"I've heard rumors you were hunting demonic arts, but it seems you really got your hands on something."
The old man's eyes grew colder. Not just personal grudge now, but a sense of official duty? A resolute intent to kill Yun-seok flashed across his face.
Now he wasn't sure if this was the right call...
Yun-seok first conjured Blood Demon Swords and set them orbiting around him. He'd activated King of Ten Thousand Swords first, planning to actively deploy the Blood Demon Swords as needed.
"Not formless swords, but an unusual style nonetheless."
Same thing Namgoong Cheol had said. What even was a formless sword?
No clue. As if yielding the first strike, the old man tilted his head slightly, and Yun-seok quietly regulated his breathing.
Too bad Judgment Sword or the gauntlets won't trigger. Judgment Sword needs a wicked mark on the opponent's head. Gauntlets activate on large magical beasts or non-human, non-beastkin races. Unfortunately, the old man qualifies for neither.
Save Shaman's Law for a later opening...
Time to start. Yun-seok used Thrust Enhancement to fire Blood Demon energy from range.
Truth be told, diving straight into close quarters against that terrifying old man felt a bit daunting...
Kaboom!
The moment Blood Demon energy shot out, violet sword energy fired back in kind.
Stats fixed at S+. Plus buffs from Blood Demon Divine Art, Dragon Soaring Qi, and King of Ten Thousand Swords.
Yet the clashing energies in midair canceled each other out without clear superiority.
Yun-seok furrowed his brow.
Did I misunderstand something?
The opponent couldn't have Thrust Enhancement. Yet he fired sword energy from range.
Come to think of it, that technique earlier did the same...
Sword energy extended from the tip, splintering into thousands of fragments. And now this question arose.
If he could manipulate energy externally to form Blood Demon Swords, why couldn't he fire sword energy without a skill?
As if answering, the old man charged.
"Watch closely."
A seemingly ordinary thrust. But as it neared Yun-seok's sword...
Violet sword energy branched into multiple streams.
"This is Plum Blossom Falling Like Rain."
The first opponent's technique. Feint and speed, hiding substance in illusion for gain.
But...
The old man's version was different.
No feint...?
All of it was real. Like infusing Phantom Shift principles into swordsmanship.
Ah...
Only then did Yun-seok realize: Phantom Shift was the essence of feint and speed, and the original Plum Blossom Falling Like Rain had been created embodying that.
The first opponent was just too weak for it to show.
Whoosh!
Yun-seok didn't panic. Rooted in Phantom Shift? Then counter with the same.
His sword split to match the branching violet energies.
But then.
"And this is Plum Blossom Heaven and Earth."
Thousands of petals swirled. The second opponent's technique—now he knew the name.
And it wasn't that they'd sacrificed everything else for flashiness.
"......"
The real one was different. Not weak enough to be swept away by a forceful push like before.
Forcefully overpowering it—something like "with utmost strength"—would be a poor choice.
Then no choice but another way.
Yun-seok studied the scattered petals. Plum Blossom Heaven and Earth manipulated external energy into petal form, akin to Blood Demon Swords.
But mimicking it on the spot was impossible. Their internal energy natures differed.
Blood Demon energy was wave and river. Dragon Soaring Qi was river and flow.
This violet energy pursued illusion and flow.
Yun-seok infused Dragon Soaring Qi into his sword. But he didn't shape it into sword energy.
He let it scatter freely into the air.
Shwaaaaa!
Soon, a dense blue net spread from his sword tip, enveloping the thousands of petals.
Yet the old man calmly spoke.
"This is the Hwasan Sword."
No technique name. Just "Hwasan Sword."
Yun-seok took it as a pledge of full commitment and heightened his focus.
Whoosh!
The sword surged through the blooming, falling petals. Mysteriously, it moved where they didn't touch.
Seemed like the energy pushed petals aside, but...
A closer look revealed otherwise.
Did he abandon illusion?
Prior techniques were the pinnacle of flashiness. But this?
No variation—just soft yet stubbornly advancing toward its goal.
No, far from abandoning change, it's...
At the extreme, it looks ordinary. Not a technique without change.
Too many changes condensed into one move, making it seem crude.
What now?
Not out of options—he had Shaman's Law, Diamond Unbreakable, spatial movement. Three answers.
But they'd only exchanged three moves. Better to hold back a bit longer, wait for an opening.
Shwaaaaa!
Cheonma Sword. A tidal wave surged from Yun-seok's sword tip.
But...
It broke through?
One sword pierced the wave. Just like when the Heavenly Demon had deliberately shown a gap, and Yun-seok cleaved the wave.
The old man precisely targeted the disharmonious mix and thrust in.
Not without effect, though. The old man's sword tip, emerging from the wave, wavered into subtle changes.
A move that had seemed ordinary at illusion's peak devolved into one basic variation.
The old man's sword split into twelve paths, aiming for vitals.
How many was it originally?
No telling. But conveniently, the number matched.
Yun-seok blocked throat and heart paths with his dual swords. Then used orbiting Blood Demon Swords to parry the rest squeezing through other trajectories.
Kaboom!
Twenty-four swords clashed at once.
Tap.
Seizing the gap, Yun-seok leaped back. Only because the old man allowed it.
As if he'd been waiting to ask, the old man spoke.
"I've heard a young upstart in the martial world calls himself Divine Sword. Now I see why."
Namgoong Cheol's tale. No idea his backstory. But back then, he was a real novice, probably never challenged this old man.
Somehow survived and fled, then got summoned to the Tower later.
But claiming he wasn't Namgoong Cheol here would just be laughable.
"Beats me. And you don't quite live up to Sword God, if you ask me."
The old man was undoubtedly an incredible swordsman. Without stats fixed at S+, he wouldn't have held even in those exchanges.
But worthy of "god of the sword"?
He could say it firmly: No.
Proof? He'd clashed swords three times and stood here unscathed.
"Hohoho. Quite the bold one."
Even to Yun-seok's provocation, the old man kept his composure. He just raised his lowered sword again.
And then...
"Early Plum, Winter Plum, Snowmidst Plum. Plum blossoms have different names by blooming season. And 'White Plum' or 'Red Plum' by petal color."
Sudden plum blossom lecture. What was he getting at? Even the follow-up didn't clarify.
"Our sect's founding patriarch gained enlightenment watching plum blossoms' myriad changes and settled here."
Now Hwasan history. Why the sudden tangent?
Confusion flickered in Yun-seok's eyes, but the old man pressed on.
"Sect disciples swing their swords thousands, tens of thousands of times under plum trees from childhood. To infuse the sword with the plum's changes, splendor, and infinite freedom as petals dance on the wind."
"......"
"I wanted to show you the true Hwasan Sword. But my decision to uphold face has besmirched the sect's honor."
Step.
The old man took one step forward. Yun-seok inexplicably felt crushing pressure.
"Hear this: What I show from now is not the Hwasan Sword."
He claimed to be Hwasan Sect Leader, yet denied it was Hwasan Sword. Learned another sect's art?
The thought flashed, but he soon realized otherwise.
Violet sword energy gathered on the old man's sword. Not soft and flashy like before.
This energy was domineering—light yet paradoxically heavy.
If not Hwasan Sword, whose was it? The old man didn't say outright, but Yun-seok didn't need to ask.
He knew.
"Gama."
It was the sword of Lee Hyun-hak, the Sword God—not Hwasan Sect Leader.