“Ah…”
Dorian’s chin trembled violently as he watched Raon slay the fifth apostle and the chair carrier old man.
“Wh-what do you think you are doing right now?!”
He was hoping for Raon to survive in his stead, yet he ended up doing something unimaginable.
“You idiot! Stupid!”
He couldn’t even speak properly at that point, surprised at the way Raon kicked away his only chance to survive.
“You are still so bad at insulting people.”
Raon chuckled at Dorian.
“A-are you laughing right now? You won’t be able to survive anymore, young master! We are all going to die!”
Dorian called him young master, which he hadn’t done in a long time, with trembling eyes.
“It’s meaningless to survive by begging for life.”
“B-but the young master is different from—”
“I’m the same.”
Raon slowly shook his head.
“I only have one life, just like you and everyone else.”
“Th-that’s…”
“People always judge from the results. They rank people by their prowess, from how old they were when they became an Expert and to started using their aura blade.”
He’d been accumulating results in his previous life in order to survive, and he’d been creating results in order to advance in his current life.
‘However, there is something more important than results.’
Raon straightened his back. He bit his lip while meeting the eyes of the White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen, who were at the peak of the continent.
“I won’t achieve happiness even if I manage to create the same results as them through dirty means.”
Even if he became a Grandmaster or reached an even higher realm by having Dorian and the hostages killed, he wouldn’t be able to forget about what happened that day for the rest of his life.
If he had to survive with such regret in his heart, he preferred death instead.
‘I won’t leave any regrets anymore. I don’t need another life full of mistakes.’
He wasn’t alone in his life. Since there were people who believed in him, he was going to achieve results through means that he could be proud of.
“No matter what you try…”
He controlled the Ring of Fire and increased his soul level. His determination started to dwell in his voice.
“I won’t be defeated.”
As warm blood flew down from Heavenly Drive and the Blade of Requiem, Raon pointed them at the White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen.
‘Hmm?’
However, the two monsters’ reactions were completely different from his expectations.
‘They are smiling?’
They were smiling as if they were enjoying the situation. They didn’t even care about the fifth apostle and the old man who had collapsed on the ground—instead, they kept staring at him.
“I’m a bit disappointed because I think results are everything that counts.”
The White Blood Religion's leader shook her hand lightly.
“I like him even more. An excellent result can’t be created without a good process, after all.”
The Fallen nodded, saying that he had heard something nice.
“How about withdrawing now if you didn’t like what he said?”
“I can’t do that. He’s already killed two of our apostles. It’s a huge loss.”
“If that’s how you want to count, we’ve suffered an even bigger loss. We’ve already lost four Masters.”
They were still trying to judge him. Crazy wasn’t even enough to describe them anymore.
“By the way, it looks like you were aware of it all along.”
The White Blood Religion's leader drew a circle with her finger while looking at the Fallen.
“You must be underestimating me too much. There’s no way I wouldn’t notice when you also realized it.”
The Fallen smiled faintly and nodded.
“Why did you accept the bet despite knowing about it?”
“I wanted to see what kind of person he was since Merlin kept saying that she wanted to have him.”
“So, what was your impression?”
The fervent gaze of the White Blood Religion's leader pierced into the Fallen through the red curtain.
“He has an excellent talent in swordsmanship, with extraordinary guts, and I also liked the righteous spirit he showed at the end. I agree with Merlin that it’s worth bringing him to our side even if we have to make sacrifices.”
The eyes behind the Fallen’s mask glowed intensely. His eyes were brimming with desire, unlike before.
“It’s too late, as the bet is already over. That boy is part of our religion now.”
The White Blood Religion's leader leaned back in the sedan chair and raised her chin.
“That’s not true, as Merlin hasn’t given her consent yet.”
“Do you believe that Merlin would forgive him when he devoured her precious soul? I think she would try to kill him instead.”
“I wonder.”
The Fallen shook his head, saying that he wasn’t sure about that.
“Then how about making a second bet?”
“You really love to bet.”
“Betting is the best way to resolve such a complicated situation.”
The White Blood Religion's leader nodded casually, looking at the fifth apostle and the old man, who were working hard on their recovery.
“I have never seen Raon’s swordsmanship. Let’s send out one person from each side and see which one manages to neutralize him first. How about it? Don’t you think it’ll be interesting?”
“That’s not a bad idea, since we only saw his surprise attack.”
“Come here, both of you.”
The fifth apostle and the old man walked up to the sedan chair to heed her call.
The old man with a hole in his chest remained composed, but the fifth apostle was giving Raon a murderous glare because his throat had been ripped into by the Blade of Requiem.
“That’s a severe wound.”
The White Blood Religion's leader casually stroked the fifth apostle’s neck and the blood suddenly stopped gushing out. The injury started to heal up as if it were being scorched by fire.
Raon swallowed nervously upon witnessing that scene.
‘Did she really manage to immediately heal that wound?’
Considering the fact that she was capable of healing a wound filled with ghastly energy, which was the worst opponent for the bloody energy, the White Blood Religion's leader had more than prowess to her. She was a monster who could even use mysterious abilities.
“Since you’ve been attacked, it would be only natural to return the favor.”
The White Blood Religion's leader raised her finger to point at Raon.
“He will be your junior in the future. Don’t be too rough with him.”
“…Understood.”
Despite his answer, a powerful murderous intent was emerging from the fifth apostle.
“Considering his level…”
The Fallen looked to his left and signaled with his eyes. Unfaceable Snake stepped up.
“You can do it, right?”
“Of course.”
Unfaceable Snake bowed at the Fallen before standing next to the fifth apostle.
“The first one to inflict a critical wound on Raon will be the winner. You can do whatever you want, as long as you don’t kill hi—”
“Can I join that bet?”
Raon stepped up and cut her words off.
“What?”
“Hmm?”
The White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen turned their heads towards him instead of refusing.
‘This is an opportunity.’
They were still looking at the situation as entertainment. The basis for that was obviously their might. They could maintain their confidence because they believed their advantage couldn’t be lost no matter what he tried.
‘And I need to use that fact.’
The bet was nothing but a show to witness his might. It was necessary to make use of that carelessness of theirs.
‘Wrath, can you break through that barrier?’
It should be possible to create a hole in his current condition. Shall he do it now?
‘No, please keep your power for now.’
Hmm?
‘They underestimated me and gave me some time. I can’t waste it.’
They were right in front of Cameloon, and Owen and Balkar were also located nearby. Their chance of survival would become a lot higher as long as they could break out of the barrier.
‘It’s still extremely small though.’
Raon erased his hasty emotions and calmly pulled himself together.
“How are you planning to participate?”
The White Blood Religion's leader nodded, telling him to continue.
“You will withdraw if I manage to defeat both of them.”
Raon was currently at the intermediate level of Master, while the fifth apostle and Unfaceable Snake were at the advanced level. They likely believed that there was no way they could lose.
“Hmm…”
The White Blood Religion's leader slowly turned her head.
“What do you think?”
“I said this before, but I took a liking to his guts. I’m going to accept.”
“In that case, I'm also okay with it.”
They nodded at the same time.
‘I can’t trust their words.’
Even though they were the monsters at the peak of the White Blood Religion and Eden, they were also evil enough to break their promises if they wanted.
Raon was certain that they wouldn’t keep their promises even if he won the bet. The reason he volunteered to join the bet was in order to carve a path for his escape.
“Dorian.”
Raon gave the sword that he got from the treasury to Dorian.
“Wh-what about this…?”
“You should protect them.”
He pointed at the people who were starting to regain consciousness.
“Show your determination as a Zieghart swordsman.”
“U-understood.”
Dorian took the sword despite his surprise. He tried hiding his fear as much as possible and went in front of them, drawing his sword.
“I made you wait.”
Raon stood in front of the fifth apostle and Unfaceable Snake, fixing his grip on his sword.
“You deceived me perfectly. How cute of you.”
Unfaceable Snake narrowed his eyes.
“I told you that I would be back.”
“Hmph. No one would believe something like that.”
“Anyway, thank you for taking my side earlier.”
“Shut up!”
He ground his teeth, his eyes filled with irritation.
“Yes, you should talk while you can.”
The fifth apostle interfered between Unfaceable Snake and Raon while spreading bloody energy around him. The powerful bloody energy was engulfing his fist, which looked as stout as a boulder.
“I’ll destroy both of you once we start fighting.”
His powerful energy wave was also directed at Unfaceable Snake in addition to Raon.
“I’d rather have a duel against you at this point.”
Unfaceable Snake spat on the ground and frowned.
“Begin now.”
The White Blood Religion's leader gestured with her hand and Unfaceable Snake and the fifth apostle kicked the ground at the same time. The powerful energy bursting from their sword and fist showed that they had no intention of going easy on him.
Raon licked his lips while looking at the blade piercing toward him like an awl and the fist charging at him like a hammer.
‘This fight is just a process.’
The fight was a small part of the plan. He could afford to injure his body, but he needed to quickly finish the fight in order to maintain his aura’s integrity as much as possible.
Thud!
Raon stomped the ground. He controlled the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier at the same time to deflect Unfaceable Snake’s strike with Heavenly Drive and sever the fifth apostle’s punch with the Blade of Requiem.
Rumble!
The clash between the swords and fist created a huge shockwave, strong enough to make the land tremble.
“Hmph!”
The fifth apostle snorted and started a rotational force from his shoulder to incorporate in his fist. The astral fist, imbued with a tremendous coiling power, was thrust at his chest.
“Tsk.”
Unfaceable Snake briefly clicked his tongue and slammed down his sword, which he had swirled upwards. The strike was surrounded by blade-sharp combative energy as it fell onto Raon’s head.
‘Now!’
Raon used the Supreme Harmony Steps. The moment his left foot was pushed into the ground, his vision instantly changed. He leaped through the space and gained distance from them. It was the Supreme Harmony Steps utilization that was further improved from his mental world.
“Hmm?”
“Ugh!”
The fifth apostle and Unfaceable Snake clashed against each other instead of hitting Raon, as they were attacking him from both sides at the same time.
Clang!
They were equal in might. They both withdrew ten steps back. The deep footprints carved onto the ground showed just how fierce their clash was.
“You bastard!”
“Watch who you are…”
As soon as they stopped moving, Raon used the Supreme Harmony’s Second Step. Just like an arrow that left the bowstring, he pierced into Unfaceable Snake in an instant.
“Are you looking down on me?!”
“I’m just more used to you.”
Raon bit his lip and thrust the Blade of Requiem. The flame bursting from the short blade rotated violently towards Unfaceable Snake’s shoulder.
“I’ve already analyzed that technique!”
Unfaceable Snake slashed down diagonally. His combative energy spread out like a wave to erase the Revolving Sky’s flame.
However, that was just a feint. The real one came after.
* * *
* * *
Thud!
He gathered his energy from his energy center and shot it out from his right hand. Blue light flickered on Heavenly Drive’s blade as it lunged into Unfaceable Snake’s chest.
Raon Zieghart Style Technique.
First Form, Frost Pond.
“I’ve already seen that, too!”
Unfaceable Snake lowered his center of gravity. He raised his sword from the bottom to lower it back from mid-height. The two strikes surrounded by combative energy stopped Frost Pond’s first blade.
Clang!
The clash between the swords created a tremendous impact.
“Huh?”
Unfaceable Snake’s widened eyes looked like they would pop out. His sword was unable to withstand the first strike and was bounced back instead.
“How…?”
“It’s simple.”
Raon clenched his teeth and unleashed the second strike of Frost Pond.
“I’ve gotten stronger than before.”
“Argh!”
Unfaceable Snake gathered his combative energy to try defending against it, but the second blade was faster than him. Glacier’s coldness, which had become even stronger than before from absorbing Loctar’s soul, pierced through his red combative energy and stabbed his chest.
‘It was a direct hit.’
It was the result of unleashing the technique he knew at a speed and power surpassing his expectations. The fight wouldn’t have ended so easily if Unfaceable Snake weren’t so careless about it.
“Kuah!”
Unfaceable Snake stepped backwards with the blade of coldness stabbing him and collapsed on the ground.
Thud!
Without having time to rejoice over his victory against Unfaceable Snake, he immediately turned around.
“You arrogant bastard!”
The fifth apostle was punching him while catching up to him like a shadow. Gray stream was bursting from his fist, targeting his heart.
Cring!
Raon used the momentum from turning to strike the Blade of Requiem upwards. The Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation’s fire harmonized with the ghastly energy to increase the heat.
Clang!
It was a powerful impact. However, it wasn’t over yet. The fifth apostle was punching him once again with his left fist.
‘I need to see the flow…’
He made the Ring of Fire resonate as fast as possible. The approaching fifth apostle’s fist slowed down gradually. He could see the wrinkles and scars covering the fist, and the flow of bloody energy following it.
‘Power, variety, and speed.’
The fifth apostle’s fist incorporated power, speed, and variety. The fist multiplied into ten to hit the vitals all over his body.
‘I can’t dodge all of them.’
It was impossible to dodge all of those fists in his current condition. He gave up on evasion. Since his decision was fast, the movement of his aura was also extremely swift.
Whap!
Raon swirled Heavenly Drive to unleash the Firewall of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation.
Rumble!
The impact from the fifth apostle’s fist hitting the Firewall was transferred throughout his body. Raon held back his nausea and advanced to bend the Blade of Requiem.
Whaap!
The flame blooming from the red blade was even redder than the blade itself. The flame petals leaving the flower bud turned into a violent firestorm to attack the fifth apostle’s neck.
“You won’t get me a second time!”
The fifth apostle didn’t waver even though the firestorm was charging at him in a straight line. He thrust a powerful punch to the front to erase the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation’s Flame Spirit in an instant.
Thud!
The moment the fifth apostle’s fist neutralized the Flame Spirit, Raon took another step forward.
Cring!
He drew the Blade of Requiem that he’d sheathed after using the Flame Spirit. The principles of illusion seeped into the red blade to burst out the melody of resentment and despair.
Raon Zieghart Style Technique.
Third Form, Sword’s Silvery Dream.
The fifth apostle’s senses were extremely reduced, and the Blade of Requiem incorporated the principles of Sword’s Silvery Dream to advance towards his neck.
“Kuh!”
The fifth apostle snapped out of it in an instant and defended his neck with his left hand while punching with his right. It was an astonishing reaction. He wasn’t at the advanced level of Master for no reason, since he was capable of defending and attacking at the same time in that short instant.
‘However, that reaction is going to get you killed. Because I’m not currently targeting your neck.’
Since he’d been continuously targeting his neck, during his surprise attack and during the fight itself, the fifth apostle could only think about defending his neck. His current attack was an illusory sword that was baiting him into defending his neck.
Cring!
The Sword’s Silvery Dream’s strike hiding behind the fake blade was charging towards the fifth apostle’s heart.
“Argh!”
The fifth apostle hurriedly canceled his punch, but it was already too late. The Blade of Requiem was already about to crunch its prey with its jaws.
Crack!
The Blade of Requiem cut through the bloody energy and pierced into the left side of the fifth apostle. Just as Raon was about to destroy his heart with ghastly energy, his hand suddenly lost its strength.
“What’s going on…?”
“That’s enough.”
The White Blood Religion's leader was extending her hand towards him. Raon couldn’t understand how she was stopping his body since she wasn’t even using her bloody energy.
“I’d like to avoid having any more apostles die on me.”
She casually waved her hand, and the fifth apostle with a hole in his chest was dragged towards the sedan chair.
“He’s really more powerful than his realm, just like the Evil Goat Demon told me.”
The Fallen applauded him without even looking at Unfaceable Snake, who was collapsed on the ground. The desire dwelling in his eyes was burning even more powerfully than before.
“Sir Raon has won the bet. Are you planning to let him go?”
His question was directed at the White Blood Religion's leader.
“No.”
The White Blood Religion's leader immediately shook her head without even considering it in the slightest.
“There’s no way I would do that.”
Her gaze could be felt from behind the red curtain. The desire surrounding her eyes was even more powerful than the Fallen’s as her gaze pierced into Raon’s heart.
“I can’t possibly miss out on such a gem, don’t you think?”
“I expected no less. I agree with you.”
The Fallen nodded in agreement.
“What kind of bullshit is that?!”
Raon ground his teeth violently while looking at the White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen.
“You said you’d let me go if I won!”
“A promise doesn’t need to be kept.”
“Promises actually exist to be broken.”
“Are you still calling yourselves the heads of Five Demons?”
“This is why we could be the heads of Five Demons.”
The Fallen curved his lips into a smile as he made fun of Raon.
“It would be awkward to say this in return, but I’ll be giving you a choice.”
He bobbed his finger.
“You should choose yourself which one to join, Eden or the White Blood Religion.”
That was also bullshit. It was obvious that the other side was going to attack with everything they had if he chose one of them.
“Damn it!”
Raon bit his lip and knelt on the ground. Despite the despair that he was pretending to feel on the outside, his mind was calmer than ever.
‘Wrath, give me your power and let me use that one.’
That one?
‘You know, the first technique you used after returning to your original form.’
It was the large-scale ice skill that managed to freeze everything he could see in an instant. Raon figured he would be able to stop those two temporarily if he used that technique.
Are you talking about the Frozen World?
‘If that’s the technique you used to freeze the mental world in an instant, then that’s the correct one.’
Hmm, there’s something called causality in the world. There has to be a cause for an effect to be created. You can’t achieve anything just because you want it to happen.
‘Are you saying that it’s impossible?’
It would be difficult.
Wrath briefly sighed.
There’s a clear limit to the amount of energy the King of Essence can give to you, but that’s going to be enough to destroy your body. You might end up fainting from the extreme pain.
‘It’s okay. I can endure it.’
He was used to pain thanks to the experience he had in his previous life. He was confident he could endure it as long as he stayed alive.
Tsk. Seriously.
Wrath clicked his tongue and stuck to his wrist.
Leave your body to the King of Essence. He’s not telling you to give up your body. Follow the flow that the King of Essence is about to create.
As soon as he finished speaking, a tremendous amount of energy entered him like a rising tide through the wrath in his soul.
Do it now!
Wrath opened a new path through the coldness circulating in his mana circuits. Raon followed the flow to control Wrath’s energy that was filling his body. He was also controlling his aura at the same time.
‘Ack!’
He could only grit his teeth. His entire body ached from the tremendous amount of energy passing through his mana circuits, and the splashing energy center felt like it was about to explode.
You must continue!
‘I know!’
His vision went red, implying that his blood vessels had ruptured, and extreme pain coursed through his body—but Raon endured everything to keep controlling the energy until the end.
Imagine it now. All of them will freeze!
Raon closed his eyes while listening to Wrath’s voice resounding in his ears. He imagined the Frozen World that he’d performed in his main body and exploded all of the energy he’d gathered in his hands.
Whoosh!
Everything fell completely silent. The coldness burst out while ignoring even time and space to freeze every single powerhouse from the White Blood Religion and Eden—including the religious leader and the Fallen.
You imagined it right.
“Dorian!”
Raon stood up while coughing up blood. He was severely injured inside because of using a huge amount of power in an instant, but he didn’t have time to tend to his wound.
“Bring them!”
“Ah, yes!”
He walked up to the barrier with heavy steps. He still had some aura left. He needed to use the coldness that Wrath would send him afterwards to destroy the barrier.
‘Wrath, next up is that wave.’
Alright.
He followed Wrath and stretched his hand. An extremely cold tidal wave was created from his hand to strike the barrier.
Creak!
A blue fissure was created along with the sound of the land being destroyed. However, he didn’t manage to completely destroy it.
‘Even Wrath’s power wasn’t enough.’
Raon swallowed nervously while watching the recovering barrier. Because Wrath’s judgment had never been wrong, it was completely unexpected that he didn’t even manage to create a hole in the barrier.
“You must be disappointed.”
Raon hurriedly turned his head upon hearing a gentle voice coming from behind him. The huge glaciers covering the White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen had melted down in an instant.
“The barrier fortifies even further whenever I’m inside. I can confidently say that no one should be able to destroy it in its current state.”
The Fallen smiled kindly.
“I didn’t expect you to be hiding so much power. Even I could’ve turned completely immobile if I had been careless. I’m really curious about how an intermediate Master managed to unleash power that even surpasses a Grandmaster.”
The red lips of his mask curved up in a strange manner.
“I thought you were a diamond in the rough, but I was wrong.”
The White Blood Religion's leader raised her chin. She lifted the curtain slightly and looked at him directly. Raon’s heart skipped a beat once he faced her eyes that looked like black pearls.
“Kuh…”
Raon gritted his teeth. He looked around, and he could see Dorian and the hostages kneeling on the ground with their eyes filled with sadness.
‘Is it over…?’
All of his plans had been shattered. It was apparently impossible to stop them with his current body and aura despite Wrath’s help.
‘Gambling is the only solution left now.’
There was only one solution left. It was to risk his life and give his body to Wrath.
‘Wrath.’
…The King of Essence shall try since his subordinate is here.
An unusual nervousness could be heard in his voice.
“You are mine.”
“That can’t be allowed to happen. I’m never letting him go after seeing what he did just now.”
The White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen’s eyes were glowing in an evil light. It was as if their desires had materialized. The two monsters were extending their huge hands towards Raon while saying that he had to become theirs.
“Huff…”
Raon clenched his fist as tightly as he could while looking at the two monsters’ hands as they tried to grasp his head.
‘Wrath, I’ll give you…’
Just as he was about to give his body to Wrath, the White Blood Religion's leader and the Fallen suddenly stopped.
“Don’t tell me…”
“Oh no.”
Their eyes widened and they looked up at the sky. Raon had never seen their surprised expressions before.
‘What’s happening?’
Raon raised his trembling head to follow their gazes. A golden star was shining from the dark night sky.
‘A golden star?’
The moment he met the red eyes of the star, the entire world turned crimson.
