Chapter 159: State of Divinity (3) ————-«
Minds Blade.
This chilling technique that can gift death unannounced, had an unexpected principle.
That it is produced by divinity which was previously thought as requiring myth or powers to manifest.
I was rather shocked at that, and after observing the Heavenly Demon, I could understand how it worked.
Learning it was absurdly too easy.
It was
Processing internal divinity through mana that has been refined by will.
It was to use mana as a medium to disperse will into divine powers.
Of course, if anything went wrong, my heart wouldve exploded.
Since divine powers oppose mana.
But I realized after seeing the will used by the Heavenly Demon.
Just like the affinity being imbued in Sword Flame, the mana that is to be used as a medium can also have affinity imbued.
And through that affinity, you can reduce the opposition between mana and divine powers, and use mana as the medium to transfer will.
But this is not enough.
Just because I learned Minds Blade didnt mean that I changed the tide of the battle.
The minds blade creates an undetectable blade of divinity through the use of mana medium.
The Heavenly Demon used Minds Blade as if it was second nature to her..
But since I just now learned this technique, I had no proficiency in it.
And after understanding its principles, I also understood that this would have no use between those who can both use minds blade.
After all.
Since the Minds Blade is a manifestation of divine powers, it cant conceal itself from the detections using divine powers.
The divinity within the heart can be expanded through the body to increase the range of divine power detection.
And since that alone is enough to fight against the Minds Blade, the Heavenly Demon wont be affected by my Minds Blade.
You are worthy of facing my blade.
The Heavenly Demon calmed her excitement and hovered her hand over her blades handle.
As if she was ready to unsheathe her sword right now.
This one hopes that you can be more entertaining.
Avoiding the strikes of Heavenly Demon while using Minds Blade?
That was impossible to do.
You shouldnt have too many expectations.
So.
Since I am done being toyed around with.
Activating the exclusive effect Absolute Seal of the item Holy Bead of a God without Name(S+)
Please select the opponent to use the absolute seal on.
It was time to use the hidden card up my sleeve.
Selection complete
The strongest ability of Heavenly Demon Cheon Yoosul is sealed.
Special power Dignity of Heavenly Demon is temporarily sealed.
Parts of divinity manipulation and skills are under restriction.
Restriction time left : < 00:29:59 >.
Phsssst!
The item Holy Bead of a God without Name(S+) is destroyed.
The moment the holy bead on my left hand returned back into particles of light with a clear sound.
Ugh! Wha, what on earth!?
The chilling obsidian energy emitted from the Heavenly Demon diminished a little.
My upper dantian and middle dantian have been sealed..? What on earth is this!
Prideful, aloof, and overwhelming.
The Heavenly Demon possessing untouchable might showed a change of emotion for the first time.
Which meant that this was the perfect opportunity to defeat her.
Fwoosh!
White Sword Pierce.
Activating skill Storm Sword.
The blade is imbued with wind affinity due to the skill Storm Sword(C+).
From the White Sword Piece, the technique of the second book was demonstrated through the Blood Demon Sword.
Once the Sword Flame was condensed within the blade, the will was sharply gathered on top of blade to imbue it with a new affinity.
An affinity named Defense Penetration, rather the most destructive affinity, was imbued.
But this wasnt enough.
I have to prepare for her after she blocks the Defense Penetration.
Due to the traits of the Sword Flame, it could only be imbued with a maximum of two affinities.
Since the Sword Aura was an absolute cutting affinity, I couldnt exclude that. And on top of Defense Penetration affinity, its ability to defend against Sword Aura was lacking.
But I gathered up my mind to its limit while gritting my teeth.
The Heavenly Demon is the strongest of the strong.
If I cant defend myself against Sword Aura, this single strike will also be blocked meaninglessly.
Activating < Imprint Skill : Will Reinforcement(B+) > of True Blood Demon Sword.
After surpassing the boundary of will, I succeeded in imbuing a third affinity.
The Blood Demon Sword cried out with a loud black wind and shot out
Activating the Exclusive Skill of Harmonic Soul Demon Sword, Double Attack.
Booom!!
The technique completed through every potential I had shot out towards the Heavenly Demon.
But the results werent promising.
Heavenly Demon Cheon Yoosul is using the skill Protection of Big Dipper.
This is all you do after sealing two of my dantians?
Energy of Big Dipper.
Dark crimson stars faintly sparkled to protect the body of Heavenly Demon.
It was on an entirely different level than hat Nam Gunghyuk demonstrated before.
.
In a way, that defense was basically a cheat.
The surrounding energy itself responded to the Heavenly Demon to scatter the will I shot out.
I felt a shiver run down my back and quickly increased the distance between us.
Closed ranged combat had no meaning now.
After all, all of my will would disappear at contact with Protection of Big Dipper.
youre telling me that that wasnt her strongest ability?
It was absurd.
After sealing her ability called Dignity of Heavenly Demon, I thought that most of her abilities also disappeared.
But the Heavenly Demon had plenty of techniques to kill me without it.
Damn it.
I had no time to linger in the devastating sensation.
It is a bit disappointing this time.
After all.
So make sure to entertain this one even more from now.
The obsidian colored longsword of the Heavenly Demon was pointed towards me.
It meant one thing.
If you dont, this one might accidentally kill you.
That from here on, it was a duel for survival.
- -
Clang!
The two swords at hand trembled from the recoil of blocking the strike with a force of an entire mountain.
Boom!
My knees bent from the force and the ground sunk in.
Guh, Haa.
After letting out a groan, I loosened my grip on my sword to slide off her sword and stepped backwards.
Despite my stats increasing by tens, my entire body was creaking.
What a good sword. A sword that hasnt shattered from this ones strikes.. Have been truly far in between.
The Heavenly Demon looked down at me with pride and let out a laugh.
But that is not enough. This one desires to see you, not your sword.
This was not a battle.
Now. Show me. The sword that can bring entertainment to this one.
Just an ill-natured prank.
.
I grit my teeth and swiftly avoided the hits to retreat a few steps.
There was no time to be doing this.
I didnt know how many minutes had passed, but the seal of her ability wouldnt last forever.
So I had to corner her as soon as possible.
I cant see. Any weak spots on her.
There was no way that such ironclad energy could be penetrated.
No, even without Protection of Big Dipper, the Heavenly Demon was an opponent reigning supreme in the arts of fighting.
Unlike myself, who learned martial arts over the shoulder, she had an in-depth knowledge and understanding of martial arts.
And going through this joke of a battle, I could feel it in my bones.
Exactly.
The Heavenly Demon Cheon Yoosul is using the skill Demonic Sword of Heavenly Illusion.
Like now.
Rumble!
The sword engulfed in obsidian energy was swung, and the sword silhouette covered the eyes a moment later.
Then the sword silhouette increased to the point of covering everything and gathered up like a tsunami.
It was an overwhelming sight of shadow swords covering the entirety of the cave.
Damn.
Hiding the truth while showing the empty.
It was a trick that clearly fulfilled the philosophy of illusions.
Although I was able to see the truth behind the Change Manifestation of the plum blossom sword user back at the Path of Poisoned Parasite.
But the Sword Silhouette that the Heavenly Demon jokingly shot out was so intricate that its truth couldnt be perceived.
After all,
The Sword Silhouette had such fierce energy to the point that it could be called the real thing.
I cant tell which one is the real one.
The plum blossom swordsman back then was not at this level.
Devastation swept me up.
The knowledge of being unable to see the real thing gifted me with the fear of death.
However, that devastation did not last long.
The Piercing Sword fools the eyes. But thats it. Shadows are shadows after all, even if it feels real, it cant have the same force as the real one.
Dam Cheonwoo who stayed silent till now spoke up.
It was a serious voice unbefitting him, but thanks to that, my mind cleared up.
if you cant see it, close your eyes and focus on your senses.
Closing my eyes.
you are a hatchling when it comes to martial arts, but you are a ripe fruit as a challenger.
And focusing.
Focus. You have the Minds Eye. Youll be able to see where the real attack comes from soon.
Dam Cheonwoo said all the right things.
Strongly activating the skill Fire Dragons Eyes.
After concentrating on the skill, I observed the shadows of the sword flying about.
After that.
Activating skill Sixth Sense.
I realized that those swords had no actual form.
It was only a hunch, but with my skill activated, it only meant one thing.
This hunch is sufficient to be used as a fact.
At that, I stood still to analyze the moving sword silhouettes..
Swoosh!
An unnatural movement was detected within it.
And according to my sixth sense, it felt real.
Activating Blade of Light, the exclusive effect of Flashing Blade Master(S+).
Creating multiple flashing blades using divine powers.
Flashing Blade Master.
Using the relic from the Light Swordmaster, I shot out blades of light towards the sword that my senses told me was real.
At that, the Heavenly Demon also noticed that I realized the real sword and revealed the attack.
Crash!
Although it was the blade of light with the absurd effect of ignoring tenacity stats.
But in front of the Sword Aura, it vanished like an illusion.
In turn, I manipulated the mana with exclusive affinity to stimulate my divine powers.
Minds Blade.
If the Sword Flame nor items worked on her, then all I had left was divine powers.
And that mustve been the correct decision as a loud echo of crashing rang out.
Crack!
It was the sound of something breaking, but I couldnt declare it a positive thing.
Reason being.
My Minds blade. Was destroyed.
What won was not my minds blade, but the Heavenly Demons Sword Aura
The reason of destruction was also self-explanatory.
Even if I knew the theory behind Minds Blade, it was impossible for me to demonstrate it at the same level as an expert.
And even if it was superior to Sword Aura, my Minds Blade could not overcome it.
So I quickly reacted to ready myself for the continuous attacks.
Crack!
Activating Advanced Defense, the exclusive effect of Protection Bracelet of a God without a Name(S+).
The Bracelet takes the force of unavoidable single strike.
Remaining uses -1/4
But it failed.
Need to get ready for the next.
Crack!
Activating Advanced Defense, the exclusive effect of Protection Bracelet of a God without a Name(S+).
The Bracelet takes the force of unavoidable single strike.
Remaining uses -0/4
It failed again.
The Protection Bracelet of a God without a Name(S+) is destroyed.
Psssssssh.
The green bracelet on my wrist scattered like dust.
You said that youre done being toyed with, but how long will you be tricked by this one?
From the Sword Silhouette that still remained, the voice of Heavenly Demon echoed out.
If theres nothing else to show this one, then you must ready yourself for death.
As soon as the last words were spoken, a chilling energy emerged mid-air.
The Heavenly Demon Cheon Yoosul is using the skill Sky Breaking Reconstructing Sword
What is that now.
It was overwhelming.
The blade that suddenly appeared in the air was a Minds Blade but not a Minds Blade.
Seeing the Minds Blade embracing the principles of Sword Aura was chilling to my core.
Ive blocked her ability to manipulate divine powers so it was inconceivable to see her use Minds Blade, but
Did she replace divine powers with mana!?
With my half baked comprehension of divine powers, I understood how she was able to use Minds Blade.
Producing divine powers through mana.
Something that Ive attempted before, but failed even to this day.
Despite seeing the technique right in front of my eyes, I still couldnt comprehend the theory behind it.
Im going to go insane.
I felt an immediate sense of danger at that.
If I cant block that, I wont even have a place to retreat to.
I couldnt allow for a fatal hit at this time.
Activating skill Sky Break.
The limit on breakable things are dispelled.
Ive invested every mana that I gained from the Dragon Transformation.
Since the Sky Break could break the essence itself, perhaps it could block the Minds Blade of the Heavenly Demon.
It was only a sliver of hope, but I had to grab it nevertheless. After all, what else could I do?
its coming.
The moment Dam Cheonwoos mutterings ended, the black blade created mid-air struck down like lightning.
At that exact timing, I swung as if to exchange my two swords and both blades smashed into each other.
Krrrrk!!
The clash was only momentary.
Shatter!
In the end, the Sky Break was an ability with sword ki affinity, and it couldnt overpower the Minds Blade.
After all, the Minds Blade could intercept the laws of other sword ki.
And.
Ah.
Stab!
The obsidian blade finally pierced through my heart.
- -
Activating skill Last Stand.
The fatal attack is nullified.
Every sense is amplified temporarily and all skills are calibrated.
The skill is on cooldown for a week..
As if the time was reversed, the hole in my heart disappeared.
Even though I should be happy in these situations, I could not.
After all.
That must be your last.
The Heavenly Demon dispelled the Sword Silhouette to stare at me.
Lets end this now, shall we?
I sensed it.
You were an excellent plaything. Well, you did rely too much on items rather than your own abilities, but it still was satisfying.
That it was truly the time that I will face death.
But you did entertain this one greatly, so three attacks will be bestowed upon thee.
There was no hope.
All the hidden cards were revealed, and Sword Aura could not be learned.
At least I could grasp the surface concept of Sword Aura.
.
Without replying to her, I imbued my will into the swords on my hand.
Sword Aura.. Was most likely a similar ability that uses a medium to transfer will.
The only difference was that it needed enough power to be able to affect the surrounding mana just from sword aura..
Its worth a try.
After taking a deep breath.
Tap!
I activated my will to its max while attacking the Heavenly Demon.
Followed by using the Sword Flame as a medium of transfer to resonate to the surrounding mana
You got the achievement Start of Transcendence.
The power Flaming Sword is evolving into power Big Dipper Sword Aura.
the most brilliant clusters of light Ive ever seen seeped into the swords.
The Sword Aura emitting a dark crimson light shot out curving like a snake.
But that did not reach her.
you did well to learn Sword Aura, but tis not worthy of praise.
Rip!
Before my sword aura could reach the heavenly demon, her minds blade stopped it from nearing her.
And as soon as my sword aura made contact with her obsidian minds blade, it ripped apart like tissue papers.
Activating skill Starlight.
Ignoring the weight of failure on my shoulders, I attempted to shoot out black star lights towards her
Fsssssh!
This is not worthy of getting a passing mark either.
Even that could not bypass her Protection of Big Dipper and vanished right on contact.
Ive allowed you for a total of three attempts at me. Only one remains now.
The Heavenly Demon looked towards me with an uninterested tone of voice.
Seeing you continue to rely more on wares instead of yourself.
At glance, her eyes held nothing but void.
This one has nothing to look forward to from you anymore.
But really, that was.
Contempt.
A gaze that I knew the best.
I felt the sensation of failure waver at that.
That precise gaze, the gaze of contempt, was what led me to start my obsessions before it turned into my desire to climb the tower.
All of a sudden, the words of Hero of a Fallen World came to my mind.
But that feeling is only a motivation. It does not determine your end point. Right now, all that you are is just a lump of desires.
My journey as a challenger started as a rebellion against that contempt.
I knew the beginnings, but my motivation became hazy somewhere along the way.
Just what made me continue this path?
I think I finally realized it.
I.
Didnt want to be despised by anyone.
I didnt want to lose to anyone.
I did not want to be oppressed by anyone.
The reason why I chose to climb the tower, and continue to climb it, was because those absences couldnt be filled by anything.
Perhaps if I lived on earth, this mightve not happened.
Earth was nothing but a small well, after all.
I couldve been acknowledged by everyone from being a top hunter.
But the tower was different.
Every floor I climbed, the enemies that appeared were stronger than before.
And those otherworldly dimensional challengers used techniques never seen before on earth.
These wouldve never been made known to me if I stayed as a frog in the well called Earth.
But now I realized that theres more to the world than the well.
From that point on, the course of my actions were determined.
Ive met so many entities on an entirely different level than me.
Theyve all been beings akin to natural disasters for me.
Having death as my companion while feeling mixed emotions towards the hostility and friendliness of divine entities.
That, to this day, still hasnt changed.
It was just a small wish of resisting oppression.
But fulfilling that small wish proved to be too arduous.
Requirements met.
That devastating reality greatly motivated me.
Your potential of grim reaper is nearing completion.
Fsh!
Strongly activating the power Divinity.
My eyes became enveloped by black divine powers.
The moment the black flow was seen.
The world bloomed like watercolor unlike before while my heart started beating loudly.
Everything slowed down, and everything became hazy.
The black flow of energy shook within the world that looked like smeared paint.
The lines that had no meaning gathered up, and those lines coalesced into a single path leading to an end point.
And.
At the end of that path, a clear, single black dot existed.
Instinctively, I followed that path to attack and thought.
I dont want to lose.
I knew.
That leaving the well doesnt mean that I will fulfill every desire of mine.
At most, I could enjoy the fruits of the tower to become a divine entity.
But still, I still wanted to prove it.
Prove what?
That I will not lose given the opportunity
Lose to whom?
To me.
why?
Because I dont want to regret it.
It could end up being an eternal process.
After all, the more I grew, the stronger the enemies became on an eternal cycle.
But the destination was clear.
To not be oppressed by anyone.
The sword cut through the flow.
And never be hindered by anyone.
It was just a single strike, not too light nor not too heavy.
To be able to stand firm by myself.
But my instincts whispered with a peculiar certainty.
That this single strike can easily destroy something like Protection of Big Dipper.
And continue walking firmly on my desired path.
An eternal moment of a second passed and my sword cut through the flow to reach the black spot at the end.
The next moment.
That was what I wanted.
Craaaack!!
After destroying the Heavenly Demons Protection of Big Dipper, the Blood Demon Sword pierced through her heart.
[To be continued.]
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