Chapter 79: Formless Flying Swordsmanship (3)
It was unclear how many exchanges had taken place in that brief instant.
Dozens of slashes flashed in white light, forcing both bodies backward.
The sound arrived only after the fact. Saeorin, Theo, and Flora were naturally pushed out of the battlefield by the sheer intensity of the duel.
‘What a strange sword technique…’
The technique known as Iaido—or draw-and-strike—was, at its core, a method of surprise attack. Once the blade was drawn, if it failed to kill the enemy, it was not sheathed again.
Drawing a sword from its scabbard was, in itself, an unnecessary movement. At least, that’s what Dojeol Ha-baek had always believed.
‘And yet, that unnecessary movement…’
His opponent was deliberately repeating what should have been pointless. After delivering slashes using Iaido, he would return the blade to its sheath—then repeat the motion dozens of times in mere seconds.
Despite such inefficiency, he wasn’t falling behind in speed. On the contrary—it was Ha-baek who was being pushed back.
He felt the warm trail of red run down his cheek. His inner energy barrier had been breached.
KANG—!
A fierce shockwave burst from where the two blades met midair. Hayato and Ha-baek naturally stepped back, widening the distance between them.
“Are you toying with me…?”
At Ha-baek’s question, Hayato’s face twisted with irritation. He slid his drawn katana back into its sheath and ran his fingers through his hair.
“There it is again. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard that.”
“Take this seriously.”
The moment Ha-baek spoke, Hayato’s stance changed. His legs spread shoulder-width apart.
Both upper and lower body lowered. He twisted his waist, aiming his katana behind him. As his hand settled over the hilt—
Hayato spoke.
“I’m always serious.”
Shu-WAK—!
It looked like light had been fired. And it wasn’t far from the truth. The slash Hayato unleashed flew forward as if ripping through the air. Fiery light exploded out, splitting the ground in its wake.
Spit—!
The sleeve of Ha-baek’s right arm was sliced clean off, blood spraying from the cut.
Though the attack looked overwhelming, the damage seemed minor. The one who had been hit simply stared down at his shoulder in confusion.
Then—
Hayato slid his katana back into its sheath. With a shrrrk, the bluish blade was sucked back inside.
Tak—
“Hayato-ryu – Sea of Blood Split by Death.”
That was the signal for the technique’s completion. The moment he spoke, thin fountains of blood erupted from all over Ha-baek’s body.
Puh-WHOOSH—!
The misty spray of blood turned into a crimson fog. A moment later, Ha-baek moved.
Though struck by a strange technique that bypassed perception, the cuts were shallow—only skin-deep. His muscles remained untouched, and his inner energy was still intact.
There was no time to be stunned. He had to strike before he was struck again.
A man who had once stood at the peak of an era began to fight in earnest. The inner energy surging from his entire body formed a thick barrier. A radiant energy wrapped around his blade like a second edge.
And once again—
The two greatswords collided. A clash of overwhelming power. The ground beneath their feet crumbled, sending tremors through their bodies. The first to be knocked back was Hayato.
He leapt smoothly into the air, and Ha-baek followed close behind. In the sky darkened with shadow, countless sparks of light flickered.
—
A short distance from the battlefield—
Saeorin, Flora, and Theo were running. This was a golden opportunity to escape—one they couldn’t afford to miss.
The only downside was that they had no horses. The beasts had bolted in fear after Hayato and Ha-baek’s first clash.
“Th-they won’t follow us, right?”
Neither Flora nor I answered. We were sprinting with everything we had. Only Theo, whose mana reserves were far greater and whose lower body had been especially trained, was capable of keeping this pace.
He was sprinting with the full strength of a mid-tier knight of Azure Wings. His burst speed could even rival that of a horse.
The three of us covered considerable distance in a short span. Soon, the battlefield was no longer in sight.
Our breathing grew heavy. As I slowed, the others instinctively matched my pace.
“Phew…”
“Haa…”
No one said anything aloud, but we all turned back with the same thought. Only a faint shimmer of dust stirred at the horizon, where the sky met the earth. We could no longer sense Hayato’s or Ha-baek’s presence.
A strange tension lingered in the stillness, like the usual silence of the Wasteland. But with the scale of such a clash between masters, the booms and tremors should have echoed across the land.
The fact that we sensed nothing—meant the fight was over.
“No way…”
A phrase loaded with meaning. At Theo’s voice, both I and Flora shared the same thought.
No way.
At that very moment, a man appeared—not too far away—walking slowly with the breeze. His coat fluttered wide like unfolding wings, blending into the night sky itself.
Hayato.
In his right hand, the Reincarnator from Japan held a severed head, swaying lightly.
It was Ha-baek’s.
The fate of the fallen Reincarnator, lost in battle. A chilling air pressed down on us, stirring our instincts to survive.
All three of us instinctively drew our weapons.
Srrring—
"I told you, didn’t I? If you draw that, you’ll die."
Hayato muttered as if disappointed. But everyone present knew—it wasn’t a bluff. The killing intent overflowing from the eyes of the Reincarnator with the katana couldn’t be concealed.
Cold sweat poured down my back like a river. This was someone we couldn’t even be sure we’d survive against. I exchanged glances with my two friends—then all three of us bolted.
Fwoosh—!
We had trained together since our induction, syncing our movements with perfect coordination. We could read each other’s thoughts through our breathing and footwork alone. Like interlocking gears, our precise actions balanced offense and defense.
But it all collapsed in a single clash.
BOOM—!
A surging slash struck like lightning, breaking our defense in an instant. We had no choice but to scatter, each of us desperately searching for a path to survival.
“This crazy bastard—!”
The one who took the brunt of the assault was Theo. With every blink, more wounds appeared on his body.
A long breath escaped his lips as a deep slash tore across his chest. His sword, swung in a desperate counterattack, was struck down by dozens of rapid slashes.
The impact overwhelmed him, and the weapon flew from his grasp, embedding itself into the ground.
All of this happened within just two breaths. Neither I nor Flora had a chance to respond. We were too busy fending off the relentless storm of attacks to get close to Theo.
‘The distance… it’s off…’
KRACK-KRACK-KRACK—!
His attacks ignored both range and timing. It was absurd. This wasn’t swordsmanship—it felt more like a barrage of high-level spells.
Even when I stretched out my arm with all my strength, I couldn’t reach him. Neither could Flora.
If this kept up, we’d die meaningless deaths. We had to try something—anything. The moment I deflected one of his flying slashes, I let out a long breath and lunged forward.
Spit—!
Even in that fleeting instant, an attack grazed my skin. It wasn’t a fatal wound. The enemy was toying with us—holding back just enough to let the fight drag on. He was enjoying it.
Crackle—!
There was no one watching, so I had no reason to hold back. Drawing in a deep breath, I changed the nature of the mana flowing through my entire body.
Heavenly Thunder Flash (천뢰 섬).
A sword technique I had learned through a friend’s blade. Lightning in shades of blue surged across my small body.
RUMBLE—
I used everything I had to calculate the odds of victory. And yet, I saw no path forward. Would I even be able to touch him with my blade?
This was swordsmanship where speed and distance meant nothing. Unless I could maintain Heavenly Thunder Flash’s one-strike kill continuously...
The Formless Flying Sword Technique was meaningless here. Even if I swung my sword through remote control, his slashes would shoot it down before it reached. If it had been the legendary Weapon Dominating Sword, maybe. But this wasn’t that kind of martial art.
KRA-BOOM—!
As I launched myself off the ground, my body became a bolt of lightning. In the realm of my inner world, a flash of thunder shot skyward. The moment I reached him, I released a strike charged with that lightning.
Swaaahk—!
Suddenly, I noticed the world had slowed down. Not the kind of mental clarity that came in critical moments—but real, actual deceleration. My body, mid-swing, was frozen in that stance.
In this warped time, only Hayato moved freely. That loathsome face of his was twisted into a grin. I moved my jaw to bite my lip—but even that was painfully slow.
Then it happened.
KRACK-BOOM—!
From beyond the slow-time field, another lightning strike tore through. A slash from Theo, who had reclaimed his sword. His body was drenched in blood, and the lightning he unleashed burned red.
But even that didn’t land. Or rather—it couldn’t land. The moment Theo drew near, his time was slowed too. Both of us realized the end had come. A blade, sharpened and polished to its limit, flew toward us in slow motion.
There was no escaping. Our skin would split, and blood would follow. Just as that thought settled in—
A thick mana barrier rose before us.
The mana’s energy felt familiar. The beautifully glimmering black aura belonged to Flora’s artifact—Veil of Night.
The mana barrier summoned by Veil of Night wasn’t particularly strong. But for that one moment—it was enough. It deflected Hayato’s blow. The impact sent Theo and me flying backward.
We couldn’t reach him. We wouldn’t reach him. He was the embodiment of everything unfair in this world. Gasping for breath, I took my place beside Theo and Flora.
Then—something shifted. The direction of the wind changed. And as the starlight flickered in the black night sky, a single sword came flying toward me and plunged into the ground.
BOOM—!
That was the signal.
The stars above began to fall.
One by one, they transformed into swords of light, striking down in a circle around me—as if to shield me.
KA-KA-KA-KANG—!
Without warning, I looked up at the sky.
Between the thousands of swords falling like meteors, a single man appeared.
Standing atop a massive blade, clad in a billowing black coat, he gazed down at the earth.
The Ten Thousand Swords Master had arrived.