Chapter 108 : Chapter 108
Chapter 108. The Sword Dragon Has Returned (3)
Elder Council Head Jeok Do-gwang.
He hailed from the Extreme Thunder Jeok Clan, one of the Five Great Families, and had already reached the Entering Transformation Realm while still in active service.
Having served as the Battle Group Commander of the Imperial Dragon Battle Group for ten years, his influence within the main fortress was immense.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that, in the Martial Sovereign Castle, his authority was second only to that of the Castle Lord.
Recently, as Northern Heaven Sword Venerable Un Wol-hyang had begun to rise to prominence, his position had been pushed back little by little. Even so, she was still far too young to surpass the entrenched power Jeok Do-gwang had built over decades.
But the most crucial point was this.
The Eldest Young Master was the eldest son of the current Family Head of the Extreme Thunder Jeok Clan—and Jeok Do-gwang’s nephew.
The pillar of the Eldest Young Master’s faction, an absolute powerhouse who had survived countless real battles.
Even within the Elder Council, which consisted solely of retired veteran experts, his standing was absolute.
“Come now, Heaven-Dominating Saber.”
Jeok Do-gwang spoke in a gentle, benevolent tone, like a grandfather soothing a grandchild.
Yet the man standing opposite him was also a white-haired elder.
“I have nothing to discuss with you, Elder Council Head.”
Heaven-Dominating Saber Kwon Gi-il. At sixty-seven, he was considered relatively young within the Elder Council. Moreover, in a council where most supported the Eldest Young Master under Jeok Do-gwang’s influence, he was one of the few neutrals.
“I have no intention of speaking at length. Sit with me for a moment.”
Jeok Do-gwang said as he tightly grasped Kwon Gi-il’s shoulder.
The grip was terrifying, utterly unbelievable coming from such a withered hand.
“……”
An unmistakable look of displeasure crossed Kwon Gi-il’s face.
Calling it persuasion was generous. This was closer to intimidation.
Here, in the rear garden of the Elder Council, there was no one else but the two of them.
Moreover, a faint will clung to Jeok Do-gwang’s bony grip.
One could only be said to have reached the Entering Transformation Realm once one’s will acquired tangible substance and could distort reality. The will wielded by an Entering Transformation expert was of an entirely different order from that of an Ultra-Peak expert.
If Jeok Do-gwang so desired, he could likely crush Kwon Gi-il’s collarbone in an instant.
“I am not asking much of you. Have I ever told you to abandon that upright conviction of yours and support Yeon-jun?”
“……”
“I value you greatly, Extreme Heaven Saber. Before you die, should you not cross the wall of transformation at least once?”
Jeok Do-gwang continued, subtly pressing internal energy into his fingers.
Even the name of Jeok Yeon-jun, the Eldest Young Master of the Martial Sovereign Castle, had come up. Speaking this openly meant that if he failed to persuade Kwon Gi-il, he had come prepared to cripple him instead.
However—
“Elder Council Head, Senior.”
Kwon Gi-il reached out with his thick, calloused hand and firmly seized Jeok Do-gwang’s wrist.
Has this fool lost his mind?
That thought flashed through Jeok Do-gwang’s head.
Kwon Gi-il was strong. He had pushed himself to the absolute limit an Ultra-Peak expert could reach.
But the wall dividing Ultra-Peak and the Entering Transformation Realm was solid, and the gap between them immense.
No matter how strong Kwon Gi-il was, he should not have been a match for Jeok Do-gwang. That was how it was supposed to be.
CRUNCH!
Heaven-Dominating Saber Kwon Gi-il flung the Elder Council Head’s hand away with brutal force.
In that instant, both men realized it.
Their wills had taken form and collided in midair.
“You could it be…!”
Jeok Do-gwang cried out in shock.
“Have you realized it now?”
Kwon Gi-il asked calmly in return.
Such was the Entering Transformation Realm. Some spent decades in ascetic hardship before its wall and never reached it, while others shattered the wall and established themselves in mere days.
If one had to classify him, Kwon Gi-il belonged closer to the former.
He had become an Ultra-Peak expert around the age of thirty-seven.
When he turned fifty, he sensed that without breaking through the wall, he could go no further.
It was around then that he gained the grandiose, almost excessive sobriquet of Heaven-Dominating Saber.
Nearly twenty years had passed since then.
During that time, Kwon Gi-il had not advanced a single step.
His accumulated qi increased, and his saber techniques grew far more refined, but his physical body aged accordingly.
He had reached the Entering Transformation Realm only very recently.
After hearing news of the Third Young Master.
The Sword Dragon has returned.
Several months ago, the Castle Lord had declared that to the entire Martial Sovereign Castle.
That announcement had been a tremendous shock to Kwon Gi-il, who had nearly given up on ever reaching the Entering Transformation Realm.
Cases of martial artists recovering after losing their Dantian were exceedingly rare.
Even then, most spent decades in seclusion only to barely reclaim a first-rate level at best.
They said fragments of the shattered Dantian embedded throughout the meridians prevented one from advancing beyond that.
Yet no one knew what kind of miracle the Third Young Master had performed. Rumors even circulated that he had nearly recovered his former martial might.
Most elders did not believe it. But Kwon Gi-il was different.
At the very least, it was a fact that the words “the Sword Dragon has returned” had come directly from the Castle Lord’s mouth.
That day, as if possessed, Kwon Gi-il entered closed-door cultivation.
And recently—
At last, he shattered the wall that had blocked him for nearly twenty years and reached a new realm.
“So that is why you have been acting so insolent.”
FLASH!
A chilling red lightning flickered in the Elder Council Head’s eyes. It was the effect of the Extreme Thunder Jeok Clan’s inherited art, the Silent Thunder One Qi Art.
Even if Kwon Gi-il had truly reached the Entering Transformation Realm, from Jeok Do-gwang’s perspective he was still a fledgling.
Jeok Do-gwang was someone who had remained in this realm for decades. The depth of experience between them was on an entirely different level.
“…Even so, this will not be easy for you.”
Heaven-Dominating Saber Kwon Gi-il said, slamming his gracefully curved blade into the ground.
He knew. The Elder Council Head was a monster of a completely different order.
Still, if he fought with a resolve to die, he could overturn the entire Elder Council compound.
If that happened, the entire Martial Sovereign Castle would be thrown into chaos. In other words, the Elder Council Head’s attempt at coercion through force had become meaningless.
“I know what you intended to say.”
He had likely meant to prevent him from meeting the Third Young Master.
But Kwon Gi-il had no intention of following the Elder Council Head. Even if it meant turning the greatest of the Five Great Families, the Extreme Thunder Jeok Clan, into his enemy.
If he were the sort of man who worried over such things, he would never have reached the Entering Transformation Realm in the first place.
“Then I shall take my leave. Take care of yourself as well, Senior.”
Kwon Gi-il gave a light bow, turned around, and strode away.
The moment Dam Jeok-san exited the Heavenly Martial Hall, he intended to meet him.
An Entering Transformation expert of the Elder Council meeting the Third Young Master, and the political repercussions that might follow? In truth, such things did not interest Kwon Gi-il.
He was simply curious about the man named Dam Jeok-san.
If he liked him, perhaps he could associate with him closely, even if he did not openly support him.
Yes.
That was all.
Thinking so, Kwon Gi-il departed unhurriedly.
“……”
Jeok Do-gwang continued to stare at his retreating back, eyes roiling with lightning.
He had long believed it a certainty that the Extreme Thunder Jeok Clan would produce the next Castle Lord.
Yet recently, variables kept emerging. He wanted to eliminate the Third Young Master immediately, but that was impossible.
Man Su-geuk, the Lord of the Martial Sovereign Castle.
That absolute existence was involved.
Even so, Jeok Do-gwang had no intention of sitting idly by. Quietly, yet ominously, lightning churned within his eyes.
***
Man Su-geuk’s slashes—
As Dam Jeok-san leapt into the area they swept, he felt pain as though his entire body were being torn apart.
The sword pressure is absurd.
If he made even the slightest mistake, it would not be pain—his body would truly be ripped to shreds.
This is dangerous.
Yet it was also an unavoidable choice.
Continuing to merely block and evade has no meaning.
The Castle Lord had said it a thousand times. This was not a life-and-death fight, but instruction.
In the end, if Dam Jeok-san did not find the answer himself, it would be meaningless.
This—
Was the answer his intuition had found.
He crossed his twin swords and advanced.
Now he had to block it. Twisting his body would no longer suffice.
And with his current level of skill, it was impossible to fully block that slash.
So precise.
The Castle Lord had adjusted his power with terrifying perfection.
THUD!
The footwork that kicked off the ground, and the trajectory of the sword stroke slicing through the air.
The two movements had to create an ascending interaction. There could be no clumsiness.
Dam Jeok-san relaxed his entire body and focused solely on the sensation in his toes.
Even as he did so, the slashes continued to surge toward him.
A do-or-die situation amplified his senses dozens of times over.
The feeling of kicking off the ground and surging forward. With that sensation alone, Dam Jeok-san let his sword fall naturally.
KRAAAG!!
Dam Jeok-san’s sword raked against the Castle Lord’s slash.
It looked like a meaningless act, like a beast clawing at a massive rock wall. No matter how much it scratched, the wall would not collapse.
But—
Using the rebound from his strike and his footwork, Dam Jeok-san widened the distance between himself and the Castle Lord—
KRAAAG!!
And raked the slash once more.
“Hah, you are showing off.”
The corner of the Castle Lord’s mouth twisted upward.
Not displeased, but pleased.
CRAAASH!!
On Dam Jeok-san’s fourth strike, the Castle Lord’s slash shattered into pieces.
“You have surpassed the level I hoped for.”
The Castle Lord spoke with a trace of surprise as he watched his own dispersing sword force.
He had thought it would take at least a thousand slashes to grasp the thread.
Yet his disciple was already moving toward completion in his own way.
“Haa… haa…”
Dam Jeok-san panted as he looked at the Castle Lord.
“Is that not the answer?”
“No.”
The Castle Lord shook his head.
“It was a question with a predetermined answer, but…”
He had hoped that after enduring a thousand slashes, Dam Jeok-san would realize the feeling of footwork and blade becoming one.
“But was it not you, Jeok-san, who rejected my answer?”
“That is true.”
Dam Jeok-san admitted it readily. The reckless audacity had been his own choice.
“Excellent. Of course, finding the predetermined answer is not wrong.”
Martial arts had always advanced in that manner—following the successes of predecessors and avoiding their failures.
“But if you wish to step into a realm no one has walked before, the story changes.”
And the Castle Lord believed that to inherit his seat, one had to reach such an uncharted realm.
The Eldest Young Master Jeok Yeon-jun was strong. Perhaps his talent rivaled Dam Jeok-san’s, and his faction was powerful enough to astonish even the Castle Lord.
But Jeok Yeon-jun lacked the talent to head toward an uncharted domain.
That was why the Castle Lord hesitated, caught between the two.
“Even after you complete your world, do not forget that spark.”
And one more thing.
The Castle Lord recalled the advice he had originally intended to give Dam Jeok-san.
“The later stage of the Extreme Heaven Strange Sovereign Technique is still stuck at six stars.”
Perhaps it was because he possessed so much—the Prajna Heart Technique and even unprecedented abilities.
Yet upon reaching Ultra-Peak, it was common for the later stage of the Extreme Heaven Strange Sovereign Technique to reach seven stars.
“Do not forget your foundation. Only a tree with deep roots does not sway in the wind.”
The Castle Lord spoke while looking directly into Dam Jeok-san’s eyes.
He knew his disciple had deliberately chosen a difficult path. He knew Dam Jeok-san had decided to shoulder everything he possessed and walk forward with heavy steps.
All the more reason.
The roots had to be firm.
The true reason the Castle Lord had summoned Dam Jeok-san all the way to the main fortress was, in fact, to say this.
No matter how cold he was, he did not wish to see his disciple lose his Dantian once again.
“Thank you.”
Dam Jeok-san nodded, his gaze complicated.
Perhaps he had been too intoxicated by the sensation of advancing. And so he had neglected the Extreme Heaven Strange Sovereign Technique, his very foundation.
The Castle Lord had discerned all of that merely by exchanging a few words.
As Dam Jeok-san swallowed his surprise—
“Now that you know, you must correct it. Raise your sword.”
The Castle Lord extended his sword fingers once more.
“Pardon?”
They had already exchanged hundreds of moves. Again?
“I am coming. This time, use only the Extreme Heaven Strange Sovereign Technique.”
Without waiting for an answer, the Castle Lord swept his sword fingers.
Damn it!
Dam Jeok-san swallowed the curse rising within him, raised his sword, and set his stance.