Chapter 639: Answer
Swoosh! Swoosh!
Kiernan jumped across the air. With each jump, he crossed hundreds of meters.
He was looking around for anything that stood out, but he didn’t see anything except woods that stretched for miles and a river winding through the trees.
’Maybe the exit really isn’t in West Kingdom? Do I really need to go through all four kingdoms? That would be ridiculous. It would take me years!’
Kiernan thought with gritted teeth.
In that moment, he landed back on the ground and slid through the forest floor, his boots leaving deep tracks in the damp earth.
"How can I leave this fucking place!"
Kiernan yanked one of the trees from the ground and threw it like a javelin towards the night sky.
The tree flew far and high. It went out of sight.
"...Huff."
He closed his eyes, relaxed his body, and then looked around the night woods with just the howling of wolves and the distant sound of a river echoing in the darkness.
"...You want to leave this place?"
In that moment, a voice came from behind him, and Kiernan turned around to see who it was. It was a blind-eyed man sitting on a tree stump, sheathed in a heavy black cloak with intricate gold embroidery.
A sheathed sword rested at his side.
"Who are you?"
Kiernan asked.
"I am the Answer. You’ve been plagued by a single Question since you’ve come to this place. How can you get out?
"Simple, by defeating me, you’ll be thrown out of this realm back to where you came from, stronger than ever."
Answer said.
"...This is a test, but I don’t quite understand what kind of test this has been. I’ve been stuck here for six months. No test in sight!"
Kiernan shouted.
"The test was that there is no test. You were always meant to be stuck here for exactly six months, and then I’ll appear before you.
"If you lazed around and didn’t bother improving, I will now defeat you in a fight, and if that happens, you’ll be stuck here for another six months.
"I will then again appear in six months, and if you again lose, then you’ll be stuck for another six months."
Answer said.
"...Tell me this. Has it also been six months in the outside world? Have I really been missing for the whole six months?"
Kiernan asked with an ugly expression.
He’d been trying the Martial Order ritual and everything to contact the outside world, but nothing worked.
"...Yes, it has also been six months in the outside world."
Answer said with a smile.
"Then get me out of this place!"
With a scream, Kiernan lunged at him and brought his fist towards him like a raging bull.
Smiling, Answer drew his long, curve-edged blade and smashed it into the incoming punch with earth shattering force.
Fist and steel collided.
Boom!
The forest around them exploded. The trees shook violently, dropping leaves and branches as the ground trembled beneath them.
"Hahahaha! You have to try harder than that!"
Answer slid his sword past Kiernan and cut across Kiernan’s chest, but in that moment, his Black Qi sprouted out.
The sword’s sharp blade couldn’t pierce that Black Qi!
"Interesting~"
With a smile, Answer advanced with the whisper of steel, his blade cutting lazy arcs in the air.
Kiernan stepped back and took a strong stance. So strong that it was like he was one of the mountains in the distance.
The perfect stance of Iron Style!
In that moment, the fight really started.
Answer’s first slash came quick—no warning, just a sudden gleam and rush of wind.
Kiernan slipped back, the sword’s edge grazing so close it stirred the hairs on his head. His heel barely touched the earth before he lunged forward.
"Iron Smash!"
The fist came quick. Perfect and flawless technique. It was the peak of his skill so far and the closest thing to perfection when it came to punches.
Answer raised his sword. Steel met the fist. The two forces colliding caused the singing of cicadas and chirping of the birds to stop.
The punch sent him sliding backwards. The blade of the sword trembled. It was obvious that his strength didn’t match up to that of the opponent.
Yet, he still smiled.
"Not bad~"
Answer lunged forward and struck in furious rhythm, each swing meant to carve an ending. Kiernan ducked, deflected, and absorbed with forearms that turned red beneath the steel.
With a sharp gaze, Kiernan pushed the sword aside and advanced forward furiously without any plans of stopping.
In that moment, an opening rose—Answer spent one heartbeat too long and didn’t retreat—Kiernan dove inside, caught the sword wrist, and twisted.
Answer dropped the sword, but in that moment, he caught the blade with his feet and kicked it towards Kiernan’s face.
"?!"
Kiernan snapped his body to the side, but the blade’s sharp edge grazed his neck, sending a small trickle of blood down his chest.
Answer rolled through the ground, caught the sword from the ground, and then grabbed it tight before swinging it towards Kiernan.
"Sword Saint Style, Renewing Blossom Strike!"
The sword swings came from everywhere. It was like he was battling a whirlwind of battles. It didn’t seem like there was only one opponent, but a whole army of them!
"Void Step!"
Kiernan weaved through the whirlwind of blades, and those he couldn’t dodge, he let his Black Qi absorb those strikes.
"Mastered Iron Style, Rock n’ Roll!"
Kiernan pushed his twisting hand forward, grazed Answer’s sword-wielding wrist, and heard a loud crack like bone cracking.
"Ah..."
Answer looked at his wrist. It was all bruised and twisted with a cracked bone. He had to let go of his sword but quickly grabbed it with his left hand.
In that moment, Kiernan’s fists rained down at him—Reigning Fallow—there were so many punches that there was nothing he could do.
Desperately, Answer met the onslaught of punches with his sword swings, trying to deflect and block the strikes.
The punches kept hitting his sword’s blade. Striking the steel. In that moment, a few punches slipped past and whacked him across his face.
"Cough!"
With a bloody cough, Answer stumbled backward.