Hwasan Sect Arena (4)
Whoosh!
Was this truly the sword of the one called the Sword God?
The moment the blade tip aimed at him shot forward, Yun-seok felt the same fathomless depth he'd sensed in the Heavenly Demon's sword.
He immediately acknowledged it. That old man had reached a realm far beyond anything he could touch right now.
But...
It's still worth a shot.
Yun-seok's fighting spirit didn't waver.
Understanding of qi and swordsmanship? Sure, he admitted it was crucial. But the path to victory didn't always mean a head-on clash. If one side was lacking, he could just compensate with the other.
First, he refreshed the King of Ten Thousand Swords buff. Then Yun-seok activated Force Shield, layering it with Shaman's Law.
Shaman's Law reduces Force Shield's mana consumption in the domain to 1/20th.
Boom!
Purple sword qi slammed into the translucent barrier. A massive chunk of his Blood Demon Qi drained away. Even reduced to a twentieth, it was this much—enough to send chills down his spine unbidden.
"...?"
Meanwhile, the old man raised an eyebrow at the translucent barrier, something he'd apparently never seen in his lifetime. His eyes screamed confusion: why had his sword been stopped by that?
But regardless of his bewilderment, he pressed on relentlessly with the second strike, then the third.
Boom! Boom!
The repeated impacts rapidly depleted his Blood Demon Qi. And the consumption from Shaman's Law itself was no longer negligible. But Yun-seok didn't panic. He simply focused every nerve, watching the purple sword qi's movements.
Not just the sword's trajectory... but what the old man poured into it. He watched and watched to discern it.
A little more...
He still couldn't see it clearly. But with the fourth strike, fifth, sixth... as the swordsmanship unfolded, the old man's blade began to feel familiar.
Now he understood why the man had said this wasn't Hwasan's swordsmanship.
Boom! Boom!
Illusion and flow. That was what Yun-seok had sensed in Hwasan's sword. But Sword God Lee Hyun-hak's was different.
Domination, strength, softness, illusion, dullness, heaviness, speed, lightness. He embodied every profound principle in his blade.
How is this even possible?
Fast or slow? He couldn't tell. Heavy or light? Unclear. Sometimes it branched into ten thousand variations; other times, it seemed simpler than anything. A sword full of contradictions.
Like the Heavenly Demon Sword, pursuing perfect harmony of strength and softness.
Boom boom!
Finally, his Blood Demon Qi hit bottom, and Force Shield shattered. Yun-seok immediately unfurled his wings and shot upward.
But...
"Think I'll let you escape?!"
Shockingly, Sword God Lee Hyun-hak stepped through the air as if on invisible stairs, pursuing him.
Didn't see that coming...
His original plan: exhaust his Blood Demon Qi, flee airborne to recover, then repeat until he'd fully grasped the Sword God's blade. As many times as needed.
He knew it might look cowardly. But Yun-seok didn't care. So what if it was ugly? If he claimed that swordsmanship and survived this duel, he'd grow far stronger than now.
This should buy enough time.
His brief fluster at the unexpected variable faded into a sly smile. The old man could follow airborne, but not as efficiently as Yun-seok's two wings. In fact, he maintained a steady distance until over half his Blood Demon Qi naturally regenerated.
But then.
"...?"
A massive sword appeared from the direction below where the old man hovered. Or rather, "appeared" wasn't accurate—he'd barely sensed its faint presence.
Dodging or blocking was impossible. The moment he vaguely perceived its existence, the sword had already reached him.
The Ancient Hunter's Soul protects the user from unperceived danger.
Blue light burst from his gauntlet. Aside from nearly dying, he couldn't even grasp what had happened.
Formless Sword...?
The formless sword that Namgoong Cheol and Lee Hyun-hak had mentioned. Yun-seok didn't know what it was. But if he had to guess, wasn't that what he'd just felt?
Could I block it if it comes again...?
His instincts rang alarm bells. Prolonging against such an opponent to steal his swordsmanship was arrogance. He had to end it now.
Thought and action were near-simultaneous.
"Judgment of the Destruction Lord."
The sky blackened the instant he uttered the command.
High-speed short-range spatial warp.
He instantly teleported back to the ground—to use a technique requiring contact with the earth.
"Diamond Naham Step."
His feet left the ground, activating invincibility.
Ignores all damage temporarily.
Shaman's Law increases Judgment of the Destruction Lord's power 4-fold in the domain.
Just in case, he activated Shaman's Law too. Even gathering all remaining Blood Demon Qi, 4x was the limit for over a second.
Finally, Yun-seok looked up. Sword God Lee Hyun-hak still hovered in the air—ensuring he couldn't escape the range.
Too late now.
Boom boom!
Red lightning flashed across the world. Thanks to his base Agility fixed at S+, Yun-seok could now witness the beam's launch—a moment he'd never even perceived before. Though just a blink.
In that instant, he was stunned repeatedly.
'...'
Did he think evasion was impossible too? Despite clearly perceiving the beam, he didn't move—standing firm. Instead, he swung his sword.
Block it?
Yun-seok, who'd felt its power firsthand on Earth, figured the man simply didn't know better. No sword, not even the Heavenly Demon Sword, could match its single-target devastation. Boosted by upward-adjusted Mana reaching SS+ via Blood Demon Divine Art and King of Ten Thousand Swords, plus 4x from Shaman's Law.
But...
Yun-seok was the truly clueless one.
"...".
Heaven Beyond Heaven. There was a sky beyond the sky.
Whoosh!
The moment the old man's sword cleaved the air, purple sword qi swirled toward the light—and devoured it, surging skyward.
A single point poured everything? The vortex wasn't wide. But enough to shield his body from the straight-down beam.
Did the onlookers that day think the same, watching him slay the demon and burn invaders?
Sword God Lee Hyun-hak. He no longer seemed human. With one sword in hand, he was an absolute transcendent.
Whoosh!
The beam—truly deserving the name "destruction"—vanished without trace.
The instant Yun-seok's feet touched ground...
Reflects all accumulated damage.
Diamond Naham Step's trait "Diamond Sutra" triggered. The Judgment's range was 20m radius. He could've warped outside it. But for this trait, he entered deliberately.
Though he'd only considered the slim "what if." Honestly, he hadn't thought it'd be needed. He didn't believe blocking was possible.
All or nothing...
His trump card. If even this was casually blocked...
He couldn't fathom how to beat such a monster.
Soon, the absorbed beam reflected from Yun-seok's body toward Lee Hyun-hak.
Seeing the upward beam, the man swung again—not dodging, but blocking.
Damn, what kind of monster is he?
Yun-seok gritted his teeth unwittingly. The dice were cast; nothing more to do. He maintained focus to the end, watching the sword's movement.
Whoosh!
Like before, purple sword qi swirled and devoured the light.
But...
His weary expression mirrored the vortex—far weaker than before. It shrank, then got devoured in turn.
Boom boom!
The flash vanished. The blackened sky cleared.
Yun-seok gazed quietly upward. Or rather, watched the old man descend vertically, tension unbroken.
Did I... really win?
A massive hole pierced his upper abdomen where the beam struck. He plummeted headfirst, limp.
Yet Yun-seok felt he'd move any second.
Splatter!
Even as his head burst like a watermelon on impact, disbelief lingered. Yun-seok stood frozen long after.
Until the reassuring message appeared.
Victory.
1,500,000 AP awarded as reward.
Unique Skill <Predation> activated.
Randomly acquires one of opponent's skills.
Unique Skill <Purple Haze Divine Art> acquired.
Absorbs portion of opponent's highest stat.
Mana stat absorbed.
Returning to 11th-floor waiting room.
* * *
The dim waiting room lights hit him, and strength drained from his body. Yun-seok leaned against the wall, breathing deeply for a long while to calm his mind.
Checking Predation rewards, buying items with AP, sorting the revelations from Sword God Lee Hyun-hak's divine swordsmanship—none of it was possible yet.
"I... really survived."
His first duel without coins. He knew death meant the end. But now he realized he hadn't truly grasped that weight.
Still, Yun-seok made no vows to avoid recklessness or play safer. This fight reaffirmed he couldn't reach the tower's top that way.
1.5 million AP...
Challenging the Sword God netted 1.5 million AP. Considering 1 million for the 10th floor, this extra was absurd.
And it wasn't just that. Predation went without saying, but clashing swords with the Sword God alone pointed his path forward.
Yeah, nothing's changed.
He could no longer ignore fear, finally facing it squarely. If anything, he was late—many challengers had borne this burden long ago.
Nothing changed. Charge toward one goal, as always.
I need to get stronger.
He'd been lucky this time. Without meeting the demon on Earth and gaining new skills...
This fight might've ended his journey.
Soon, with calm eyes, Yun-seok approached the statue and tapped the tablet.
He'd fought with his life on the line and won.
Now... it was time to grow stronger.