전생검신 88권 03화

So there’s one more sword lingering around?

I was a bit taken aback by that statement, but calmed myself and said, “What do you mean? I’ve already summoned my sword with the thunder of my heart. What does it mean that there’s supposedly one more?”

[There was discomfort.]

Ajidahaka stared at me for a moment before continuing, [The first time I used the Divine Skill and struck you, it felt strange. It was as if my sword was hitting a solid mass, yet it was not merely a mass; it seemed like a strong point of intersection where forces collided.]

“……”

[If the story about that sword is true, then it explains the strange sensation I felt. I must have collided with the state where your two swords were crossing within you using the Divine Skill. Hence, it’s no wonder you were unharmed.]

“……!!”

I couldn’t help but feel shocked by Ajidahaka’s words.

‘Do I really have another sword inside me?’

I began to ponder the sequence of events.

I gained my sword because I made an offering to the Heavenly Realm to receive the blessing of Yeodong-bin’s Heavenly Escape Sword Technique. Initially, Yeodong-bin granted me all five stages of the technique, but later, because I lacked talent, I asked him again and had to go through the stage of evasion to resonate with his spirit. After that, I made another request to enhance my inner sword, and I indirectly experienced the Moon-Style Defense Technique and learned swordplay from Yeodong-bin. Eventually, in my practices of swordplay, I learned the Dark Night Slash from the Asura, and thereafter I focused on sharpening my sword techniques…….

……

Thinking about it, isn’t the sword the beginning and the end of my rising martial arts?

‘I obtained Infinite Slash during my sword training…… and the Dark Night Slash as well…….’

It had an immense impact on my martial history beyond Thunder God Swordsmanship!

As I was realizing my connection with the sword anew, a memory flashed through my mind.

[Oh, I see. You didn’t realize you had two swords all along.]

[The discomfort that existed in your sword style has settled, and that sword, strengthened through offerings, is still quietly resting in your heart.]

[The black-and-white sword you now wield is something entirely different from the Heavenly Escape Sword I bestowed upon you.]

Words from Yeodong-bin echoed.

[This means you need to draw out the ‘real’ sword embedded in Baek Woong’s spirit.]

[Currently, the black-and-white sword you are using is a fake, pretending to be a real sword, which is why your achievements aren’t increasing.]

[So it’s right to draw out the genuine blessing and the Heavenly Escape Sword from Yeodong-bin that’s lying dormant within you and train with it.]

Words from the Asura echoed as well.

[Then please extract the sword from my spirit!]

[A significant amount of cause and effect will be needed. Can you pay me for the cause and effect?]

[Alright. I’ll pay you. But not right now; I’ll return soon to pay you, so please make sure to extract the sword.]

……!!

Ah, right…….

Though this was my current life, it felt like a memory from hundreds of years ago, and I had almost forgotten about it.

‘Yeodong-bin already told me that I had two swords embedded in my spirit! And I figured I had to ask for help from Gucheon Hyun-nyeo to extract the inner sword, but since I had to pay the cause and effect, I promised I’d pay it later…….’

But then I suddenly shot off into some otherworldly realm, experiencing absurd leaps to the past of the Great Cycle, and in all that chaos, I had forgotten about it. During my training in the training world, I was so busy honing the Nine Chambers of Thunder Technique and the Soul of the Evil God that extracting the sword had taken the backseat.

Now that I grasped my situation from that memory, a numbing realization hit me.

“……No way.”

[Did you figure something out?]

“I, I…….”

I exclaimed with a trembling voice.

“I was able to extract the real sword embedded in my spirit by my own power!! Without the help of Gucheon Hyun-nyeo……!!”

Could this even be possible?!

Yeodong-bin said it was a feat only achievable after reaching the realm of the Formless Sword, yet that didn’t seem to be the case after all.

‘Of course, I haven’t reached the realm of the Formless Sword yet, but I have trained for hundreds of years in the training world with the Nine Chambers of Thunder Technique and the Soul of the Evil God.’

And the Nine Chambers of Thunder Technique was ultimately a fusion of the world-class martial skill and the top secret technique I learned from the Thunder Spirit, firmly tied to the principle of a direct connection with the heart! With hundreds of years spent mastering the Nine Chambers of Thunder, my Thunder Spirit grew stronger, and that connected energy in my heart also became more potent—

‘Instead of extracting the sword through the treacherous insights of the Formless Sword…… I have independently created a pathway for the sword to emerge through directly interlinking the Thunder Spirit and the insight over hundreds of years!!’

Could such a thing even happen?

This wasn’t due to my extraordinary talent. It was the result of the hard-earned training over hundreds of years of the Nine Chambers of Thunder and the Soul of the Evil God, carving a path for me to extract the sword! And the reason I was able to unleash the Thunder God Sword Name during my duel with Ajidahaka was quite simple.

‘It must’ve been because Ajidahaka directly struck the Divine Skill upon me!’

Wasn’t the balance broken by hitting those two swords that were not just any ordinary sword, but had the Divine Skill overlapping with them?

And at the moment that balance was shattered, when I sent my intent into my core, wasn’t it possible that that pathway, which was almost completely opened, connected with the heavens and enabled the sword to prepare to erupt forth into the world?

As I processed this thought, I instinctively realized that the duel from a few days ago was not just a random epiphany.

This was the culmination of a torturous hundred years of training!!

But could I have imagined I would extract the sword in this manner!

I took the time to thoroughly explain the process I had just realized to Ajidahaka. After about half a moment, Ajidahaka, who had been listening to my martial discussions, finally burst into laughter.

[Ha ha ha ha!! You mean to tell me you forcibly opened a path like that! A martial artist like you hasn’t existed before, nor will there be another!]

“Damn it…… don’t laugh. I’m just as surprised realizing it myself.”

[However, there remains one question.]

As I muttered, Ajidahaka suddenly stopped laughing and became serious.

[Now that you have achieved the Thunder God Sword Name, you can directly summon your enhanced inner sword in the form of lightning whenever you wish. But what about that existing black-and-white sword?]

“Hmm!!”

[Try summoning that sword like you usually do.]

Ajidahaka pointed out something crucial. I nodded and used swordplay to summon the sword into my hand.

Swoosh!

And the moment the sword appeared in my hand, I was in awe.

“……?!”

Jet black?!

It wasn’t just half white and half black—it was completely pitch black now?!

“What’s going on!”

As I exclaimed, Ajidahaka watched my sword intently and spoke.

[Oh, I see…….]

“Do you know something?”

[I don’t know the details. Yet if what you say is true, it means you can wield the authentic sword now, and you’re no longer keeping those two swords mixed within your spirit. Because of that, the original essence of white has gone straight towards the Thunder God Sword Name, and the sword that initially reflected the essence of the authentic sword has lost its white, turning everything black instead.]

“……!!”

I thought for a moment and recalled a past memory.

“……Now that I think about it, the sword was once pitch black. Back then, I wondered what was happening, but after a while, it changed to half white and half black.”

[I don’t know the reason behind that. Is there perhaps another reason?]

“Damn…… why has the sword changed color like this?”

I genuinely didn’t know the real cause. Ajidahaka had a valid point, but now that I thought about it, my sword had once turned pitch black. Was there something else aside from the influence of the authentic sword?

[This raises much curiosity. Now, why don’t you take that pitch-black sword and take a swing at me?]

“Do you wish to see its power?”

[Yes. To grasp the essence of that sword, I must make contact with it directly.]

“Alright…… I’ll unleash Infinite Slash!”

With a flash!

In an instant, I executed Infinite Slash with the jet black sword, sending a tremendous slash surging forward. And as expected of a master of the Divine Realm, Ajidahaka effortlessly took it head-on.

Boom!

The impact was quite tremendous, as the sound reverberated, causing Ajidahaka’s body to be sent back three paces. Seemingly unscathed, Ajidahaka merely dusted himself off and returned to me.

[That was surprisingly weak.]

“What? Weak?”

[Don’t you realize it yourself? While it appears strong on the surface, something essential seems to be missing…… Or rather, it’s not that, specifically.]

“……So you’re saying the essence of this pitch-black sword is the authentic sword?”

[That’s not something you can determine just yet.]

Ajidahaka’s gaze was fixed intently on my pitch-black sword.

[My intuition suggests that it’s also hiding some separate power. At the very least, it isn’t meant for executing Infinite Slash.]

“…….”

So that means…… there’s still potential to research this pitch-black sword?

‘Perhaps.’

As I stared deeply at the pitch-black sword, I suddenly activated the Nine Chambers of Thunder Technique to channel the Thunderbolt within me to try to draw out my inner sword once more.

Boom!!

And in that instant, a surprising phenomenon occurred.

Swoosh – !!

“……!!”

Remarkably, as the pure white sword was summoned into my hand, the pitch-black sword instantly turned to dust and vanished?!

Observing my astonishment, Ajidahaka remarked with interest.

[Oh, it seems you can’t summon both at once.]

“Damn…… I was hoping to use twin swordplay!!”

I was excited to see how powerful wielding both the black and white swords would be, but how frustrating!

As I expressed my disappointment, Ajidahaka said, [This confirms something. The black sword and white sword originally coexisted as half-white and half-black, but now that you’ve drawn out the sword that Yeodong-bin granted you from the depths of your heart, they have separated. Henceforth, they cannot mix like oil and water, nor can you use them both simultaneously.]

According to Ajidahaka, it likely meant the opposite situation would also apply. If I were to cast the Thunder God Sword Name, then I wouldn’t be able to use the pitch-black sword either.

“Is this really happening? Have you ever heard of something similar before?”

Given the countless years of experience those incredible clans have, perhaps they would know something. So I asked, and Ajidahaka pondered for a moment.

[Wait. It seems we have to expend cause and effect again…….]

Whoa!

Ajidahaka focused intently, entering a meditative state. After some time, he finally emerged from his meditation.

[I don’t know of any occurrences like that at all. Even after combing through past combat experiences…….]

“Cough…… what you mean is…….”

[The phenomenon of black and white occurring with your sword is an unprecedented event in the history of the entire universe…….]

“……!!”

[Originally, the swordplay merely relied on Gucheon Hyun-nyeo’s techniques, yet Yeodong-bin evolved it into his own style, and you further overlapped it using the privilege of being a reborn person…… there wouldn’t be any similar cases unless that person also had the same reincarnated trait.]

Muttering to himself, Ajidahaka concluded, [Then, Baek Woong. You’ll have no choice but to primarily use that pure white sword moving forward.]

“Hm…… I suppose so.”

Unlike the pitch-black sword, which had hidden powers and an enigmatic identity, the pure white sword was practically synchronized with me through the Nine Chambers of Thunder Technique. Ignoring that and wielding the pitch-black sword would make no sense at all.

Ajidahaka then stated, [Additionally, I’d like to hear about what kind of being you are. If you wouldn’t mind, how about spending a few days here sharing your story?]

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

I stayed at Ajidahaka’s place, calmly relaying the tale of my life so far. There wasn’t an urgent matter at hand, so I had more than enough leisure to share my story. After chatting for what felt like several moments, night fell, and I noticed three moons hanging in the celestial realm.

After hours of listening to my story, Ajidahaka pondered thoughtfully under the eerie glow of a strange light.

Then he spoke, [That was an interesting story. That I would become a mercenary king and stay on Earth in the future… your tale was captivating as well.]

“Thanks for listening so intently.”

[Then…… if you were to return to your original future world, the greatest gate would likely be that Ananda.]

“……Probably.”

Ananda.

An unprecedented powerhouse I’d never encountered before.

Having effortlessly subdued the divine being Vishnu as if twisting a child’s wrist, that powerhouse’s martial skills had reached a high realm—how could I even begin to compare him to any other opponent? This type of fighter was a first for me. However, one thing was for certain: I had issued a duel to him, thus one day it would inevitably reach a conclusion.

‘If I don’t defeat Ananda, then Mangnyang will continue to suffer under Ananda’s curse…….’

I felt my fists clench with a burning desire to shatter Ananda. As I did, Ajidahaka observed my expression and spoke up.

[Baek Woong. From what I see, if you can properly wield the Thunder God Sword Name, then you should certainly be able to defeat that Ananda as well. However, there is a problem.]

“What’s the problem?”

[Your Thunder God Sword Name is fundamentally reliant on the Nine Chambers of Thunder Technique, conjured from the Thunder Spirit within your heart…… but…… can you even use that technique in your future mechanical body? The prerequisites are not set.]

“…….”

My expression hardened.

‘What the hell!’

Now that I thought about it, the fact that the harmony of my spirit wasn’t achieved wouldn’t change! At this rate, even if I returned to the future, I wouldn’t be able to utilize the signature technique, the Thunder God Sword Name!!

With this unexpected realization presented by Ajidahaka, he added after a brief pause.

[Even if you were to contract out another human body instead of that mechanical one, the outcome wouldn’t alter. It’s not about borrowing a mechanical body; what’s vital is that it is not your own body.]

Understanding what Ajidahaka meant, I questioned back.

“Then what must I do?”

[Simplifying it, there’s only one conclusion…….]

Ajidahaka’s eyes lit up.

[You must…… pass on your own body to the future world from now on, thousands of years ahead.]