Chapter 618: Celestial Shift |
If I personally stepped forward to spar with the Sword Saint, whether I’d earn his acknowledgment was uncertain.
Being a mage is already a point against me.
Brutish swordsmen and underhanded mages had looked down on each other for ages.
You could tell just by looking at the relationship between the Swordsmanship Club and the White Magic Club.
Even if the old man seemed relatively gentle, there was no telling what kind of values he held.
Asking the Head of the Dang Clan to represent me wasn’t a particularly good option either.
He had only just reached S-rank, whereas the Sword Saint had apparently been there for quite some time.
The gap in experience was obvious, which meant the odds were low.
So the breakthrough I chose was the Invitation.
I had raised them until there was no room left for further growth, so no matter who stepped forward, suppressing someone like the Sword Saint would be effortless.
And it seemed my prediction had hit the mark perfectly.
The fact that he vomited blood meant the experience inside the inner world had been that shocking.
Even afterward, the Sword Saint coughed violently several more times.
“Cough, cough!”
Moyong Jun and Sama Gyeong hurried toward him, but he waved them off as if to say he was fine.
Then, after regaining his composure, he gave me an incomparably respectful bow.
Like a novice martial artist greeting the head of a sect.
“I failed to recognize a great elder and committed a grave discourtesy. I only hope you can forgive me.”
“What is there to forgive? I was the one who acted discourteously first.”
“I thank you for your generosity.”
It seemed the subordinates in my inner world had unexpectedly drilled proper etiquette into him as well.
Smiling faintly, I asked,
“So, what did you think? Was my representative satisfactory enough for you…?”
“More than satisfactory. For someone like this Moyong fellow, it was nothing less than a fortunate opportunity. I scarcely know how to express my gratitude.”
Gratitude, all of a sudden?
Looks like my subordinates worked harder than I expected.
A true great hero would politely refuse at a moment like this, but I was merely a pitiful man struggling for the sake of world peace.
Not just [Celestial Shift], I had to take everything I could get.
Still, this wasn’t the right time or place, so I offered a respectful bow and said,
“Let us discuss it another time. For now, I believe tending to your internal injuries should come first.”
“Thank you for your understanding. I shall visit you again tomorrow.”
After once again showing me the utmost respect, the Sword Saint led his group away.
“……?”
“What in the world……?”
The others, including the Head of the Dang Clan, could only exchange bewildered glances.
Only Dang Gyu-young, having gone through something similar before, looked toward the doorway with sympathetic eyes.
***
Moyong Hyeon-seong remained silent for quite a while.
Then, as they walked behind him, Sama Gyeong cautiously asked,
“Could you tell us what happened?”
“……”
Instead of answering, Moyong Hyeon-seong sank into recollection.
The place he arrived at after accepting the “Monarch’s Invitation”.
It was a den overflowing with countless experts.
He himself had built an entire legacy through the sword, yet in that place, there was not a single weakling to be found.
Then he saw the man who had come out to greet the guest, and Moyong Hyeon-seong could not help but be shocked.
Because the man’s disposition was remarkably similar to his own.
A warrior of our main family.
Having spent his entire life mastering the Moyong Clan’s divine arts and watching over the clan’s swordsmen, there was no way he could mistake it.
At that point, Moyong Hyeon-seong briefly entertained a question.
Am I trapped in an illusion?
But too many things failed to add up for that to be the case.
Things produced by illusions were usually mere copies or degraded imitations.
If so, then the man before him should likewise have been someone similar to him at best… or inferior.
However, while the man’s disposition carried the unmistakable essence of the Moyong Clan, he was clearly a being entirely different from himself.
Even his realm appeared vastly superior.
No matter how elaborate an illusion might be, it could never reproduce the secret arts and enlightenment of an S-rank master.
If that were the case, then this man….no, this esteemed figure’s true identity was…
…Without a doubt, a distant ancestor of our main family line!
The spar that followed only turned suspicion into certainty.
The man wielded the Moyong Clan’s martial arts with far greater mastery than he himself possessed.
Naturally, Moyong Hyeon-seong was unable to last long before being defeated, and he came to realize that there was always a higher sky above the heavens.
As well as the fact that his swordsmanship could still advance even further.
It was both guidance from an ancestor and a fortunate opportunity.
Then what exactly is that man?
The “that man” in question was Kim Ho.
To think he could put forth overwhelmingly powerful experts as representatives and arrange meetings with a single invitation.
He wasn’t even certain that this was Kim Ho’s true power.
If it had not been an invitation but a summons instead, things would not have ended with merely coughing up blood from internal injuries.
At present, only one thing was certain:
He was someone who absolutely must not be provoked carelessly.
Thus, Moyong Hyeon-seong abruptly said to Sama Gyeong,
“Give up on the Soul Summoning Bell.”
“……!”
“Originally, I intended to support your position. Dangerous objects like that ought to be stored somewhere secure.”
“Then why have you changed your mind?”
“After experiencing it personally, I became certain. Just as the Head of the Dang Clan said, that man is the one most suited to possess the Soul Summoning Bell.”
“……”
Moyong Hyeon-seong repeated his warning.
“I know you are not the sort, but do not invite disaster through foolish schemes. Deliver the same message to the Alliance Leader as well.”
“……Understood.”
With two S-rank figures openly declaring and warning as much, Sama Gyeong had no real choice.
The only option left was to back off.
Next, Moyong Hyeon-seong spoke to his grandson as well.
“Under no circumstances are you to offend that honored person.”
“……I will keep it firmly in mind.”
***
The next day.
The Sword Saint appeared at the training grounds with Moyong Jun.
I first greeted him respectfully and asked,
“Have you recovered much?”
“With just a few more days of rest, I should make a full recovery.”
“I was worried since you suffered internal injuries because of me, albeit unintentionally.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but you need not worry.”
“That is a relief.”
I didn’t do it on purpose… he’s not secretly holding a grudge, is he?
No need to worry? Alright then, let’s just be more careful from now on.
Perhaps afraid of what I might say next, the Sword Saint hurried straight to the main point.
Naturally, his tone was exceedingly cautious.
“If it is acceptable to you, I shall demonstrate Celestial Shift as promised.”
The fact that he prefaced it with “if it is acceptable to you” was probably due to his misunderstanding about me.
Since I had subdued him in a single blow, he seemed to assume my actual abilities were overwhelming as well.
So naturally, the idea of someone that powerful learning a skill from him must have felt strange.
I made no effort to correct the misunderstanding and instead answered politely.
“This junior shall humbly receive your instruction.”
“……”
At that, tension filled the Sword Saint’s face.
Perhaps he thought this was not a demonstration, but a test.
After clearing his throat, he called for his grandson.
“Ahem. Jun-ah, prepare yourself.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
Moyong Jun lowered his head as he answered.
Then he took his position opposite him and drew his sword.
After raising his internal energy, he slashed diagonally through the air, sending out a fierce sword aura.
Shwaaaaaak!
Keeping his gaze fixed forward, the Sword Saint slowly brought his blade up in front of him.
At first glance, it looked as though the sword aura would slice through both blade and man alike, yet the result was the complete opposite.
The sword aura was practically absorbed into the blade.
“……”
In that state, the Sword Saint gently swept his sword once more before raising it toward the sky.
Shwaaaaaak!
At once, Moyong Jun’s sword aura shot high into the heavens and vanished from sight.
He redirected its trajectory upward.
If used properly, it could even return attacks back to the sender, and it wasn’t limited to sword aura alone.
Feeling satisfied, I activated the skill.
[Activated ‘Copy – Skill’.]
[The target’s skill ‘Celestial Shift (S)’ has been registered to a slot.]
▷ Copy – Skill [4/4]
1. Feather Step (A+)
2. Spatial Fold (B)
3. Ice Wall (B)
4. Celestial Shift (S)
Until I obtained a fixed slot pin, I decided to overwrite [Destructive Gale] with it for the time being.
After finishing the demonstration, the Sword Saint looked at me again, still tense.
“I only hope my crude tricks did not merely dazzle your eyes.”
“How could that be? Thank you for your guidance.”
At my respectful reply, his expression visibly eased.
“That is a relief. Then I shall take my leave. I wish to settle the internal injuries and organize the enlightenment I gained.”
It seemed he had gained something from the sparring match within the inner world.
I could understand completely, but it was still too early to let him go.
Yesterday, he said he did not know how to express his gratitude, did he not?
So I decided to remind him of that point.
“If it is not too presumptuous, may I ask one favor of you?”
“Speak. Whatever it may be.”
“If you have any good materials, I would like to borrow them.”
“By materials, you mean…?”
“Metals, wood, medicinal ingredients, and the like.”
An S-rank martial artist should have at least something useful in his inventory, shouldn’t he?
If so, I could receive it and raise the experience of [Greedy Choice].
For reference, I deliberately used the word borrow instead of ask for.
Though exactly when I would return it was somewhat unclear.
At that, the Sword Saint seemed to ponder briefly before opening his inventory.
Then he pulled out a large, rugged lump.
As it had apparently not yet undergone refinement, metal and stone were chaotically fused together.
[Meteoric Iron (??)]
“I happened to acquire it recently. I simply never had the opportunity to forge it into a sword… Though perhaps it was meant to find a better owner.”
“Are you certain? It feels somewhat excessive for something merely borrowed.”
Meteoric iron came in many varieties, so before being refined into ingots, it could not be assigned an exact rank.
Still, on average, it ranged from A to S rank.
That was why, out of conscience, I asked once more, and the Sword Saint answered as though it were nothing.
“It is true that meteoric iron is rare, but a fortunate encounter is something that cannot be bought even with a thousand pieces of gold. The two cannot be compared.”
“Then I will gratefully make use of it.”
And so the conversation came to a warm conclusion.
While the Sword Saint headed toward the annex, Moyong Jun remained behind.
He opened and closed his mouth as he looked at me before making an awkward expression.
“I’m not sure how I should treat you now, considering what my grandfather said.”
“Just act like you normally do. Don’t make yourself too uncomfortable.”
“…Would that truly be alright?”
“You’ve been doing it for a whole year already, so why act differently now?”
“Then I understand.”
Moyong Jun’s expression relaxed considerably.
Glancing toward the annex, he continued speaking.
“I only arrived recently, but it seems we’ll be leaving within the next few days.”
“Is he feeling uncomfortable staying here?”
“That may be part of it. However, as Grandfather himself said, I believe the greater reason is that he wishes to sort through the enlightenment he gained.”
“So he’s planning to enter secluded cultivation.”
“That is how I see it.”
Moyong Jun nodded before speaking again.
“It also seems the Alliance has begun making preparations to wrap things up. There’s little reason for us to remain any longer either.”
“I see.”
I turned my gaze toward Sho-Qyu in one corner of the training grounds.
If the Murim Alliance delegation was leaving, that meant Jegal So-so’s departure was also drawing near.