NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 1009
<1009 – Eastern Experience Record (8)>
Amhyeol couldn’t believe it.
The Sonbaek Sword Examination, which had been ruled for ten years.
Bestowed with wicked power by the Clan Head who craved strength, it subjugated his soul and fought for control of his body.
In the end, it consumed the Spirit Orb, completely dominating the Clan Head’s physique with amplified power.
With the strength of a single family, they would sweep away the official troops and even defeat the lurking Dark Sorcerer of the Western World.
That was the plan.
But reality was harsh.
“Son Yo-Woon. How dare you point your sword at your uncle? Is this something a lesser clan head can do in the Eastern Realm of Etiquette? You should know the shame!”
Amhyeol touched the pride that the Eastern Empire held dearly.
However, to Son Yo-Woon, who believed he was threatened by Sadi and even the Heavenly Sovereign, this was merely useless posturing.
“Shut up. I will cut you down and reclaim the position of Clan Head, restoring the integrity of the Son family!”
Son Yo-Woon’s sword swiftly sliced through the opponent’s robe as he lunged toward the Clan Head’s vital points.
“A Ghost Warlord level, huh.”
Sing recognized the level instantly.
A stage for those who seek to forge their own path and achieve completion with a single sword.
One who could rightfully call themselves a Sword Master, owning their sword.
Son Yo-Woon’s sword had a hundred varied changes accompanying every moment.
The changes were not limited to the sword but also intertwined with the internal energy of Son Baek-sim Gong.
“It unleashes a hundred changes per second upon impact, shredding the opponent. As the strikes accumulate, the penetration of energy intensifies, increasing the likelihood of severe injuries as the blood flow deteriorates.”
Amhyeol’s swordsmanship, controlling the body of Clan Head Son Baek-ho, exuded dark sword energy and countered with precision.
Even if the mind was taken, the sword techniques engraved within the body continued.
It was impressive.
But still, it lacked in comparison to Sword Saint Reinhardt.
Sing’s eyes spotted the weakness, which Amhyeol also keenly observed, targeting the Clan Head’s body.
Kaaang!
“Ugh!”
“What’s wrong? Didn’t you say you would eradicate me and take the position? Do you really think you can face me with the same swordsmanship?”
The same sword technique.
To have learned the same sword style meant knowing all the strong timings, transitional points for attacks, weaknesses, and counters inside and out.
This was a duel between the Clan Head and the Lesser Clan Head.
It was practically like sharing advanced insights and techniques, finishing moves, and all.
The result was an extreme mirror battle!
“You think swordsmanship will help you win? You feel inadequate.”
Sadi seized the moment as Son Yo-Woon’s inner turmoil grew, using the implanted terminal to read the Lesser Clan Head Son Yo-Woon’s voice within his heart.
“The Clan Head accepts the powers of darkness. The death energy surrounding him burns the penetration of Son Baek-sim Gong, allowing dark mana to seep back in.”
In terms of swordsmanship, Son Yo-Woon had the upper hand.
The sword swung with sheer instinct would only amount to unconsciousness at best.
Not every instinct can lead to the best moment with the best flow.
Sometimes instinctive fear can lead to detrimental decisions.
In fact, several sword scars appeared on Clan Head Son Baek-ho’s body, dominated by Amhyeol.
Yet, only a few drops of blackish blood oozed out from the split skin before healing itself.
The energy that penetrated through the wounds couldn’t overcome the powerful energy of dark mana and disappeared on the surface.
‘Only a deeper strike will suffice!’
Son Yo-Woon needed to land a finishing move.
Meanwhile, the slightest exertion of power or brush of death energy from Amhyeol caused a chill to run down Son Yo-Woon’s spine, stiffening his body.
There was a significant difference in internal energy here, and even a minor injury could lead to serious internal damage.
Pain dulls the body.
The flow of internal energy not only affects the body but also plunges the mind into terror.
Years of training in martial arts.
The power accrued could threaten his own blood vessels and even his life.
“I’ve come up with a method to cover the weakness in swordsmanship.”
“Your generosity is commendable?”
“The wickedness of Son Baek Sword Examination lies not within the Lesser Clan Head but the Clan Head himself.”
Recognizing the true enemy, Sing spared no effort in sharing his sword techniques.
Sadi, having read Sing’s heart, relayed Sing’s swordsmanship into Son Yo-Woon’s mind.
The robe was cut into pieces as the skilled swordsmanship of the enemies turned to blood and fell.
‘It’s coming to me. An incredible intuition!’
But someone of Son Yo-Woon’s caliber could swiftly discern which techniques he could utilize and which he could not, blending them into his own sword.
A display of sword formations releasing a hundred variations from his sword energy.
It worked.
Son Yo-Woon, who had been purely on defense, busily began his counteroffensive.
Yet, still, he couldn’t land the decisive blow.
<An Unbreakable Shackles>
<The Repeating Nightmare>
Evil magic was spread throughout the region.
There was no way to counter the endurance of Amhyeol, which activated the death energy consumed within his body, continuously regenerating.
Without a guaranteed strike, this fight would lead to a battle of attrition, ending with Son Yo-Woon’s defeat as his strength waned.
Only 120 exchanges were left until death.
In a fight exchanging one per second, realizing that absolute death awaited just two minutes later was a despair better unrecognized.
“Is there no other way?”
“It’s futile. Given the properties of the Son Baek Sword Examination’s <Fission>, it’s weak in close quarters—it’s a fundamental limitation of the swordsmanship.”
Sing felt the limits.
With his resignation, Sadi had no more clever tricks up his sleeve either.
Must they storm in?
Should they procure better toys?
Both began to hatch different thoughts.
They had temporarily forgotten about one other presence watching this battle.
“Ugh, this is so frustrating!”
Oknodie stomped his feet and fidgeted, distressed.
“What’s wrong, Oknodie?”
“The Newbie fights so poorly; it’s just infuriating!”
“…”
Sadi, who had practically been giving battle advice and Sing, felt a little downcast by Oknodie’s outburst that made all three of them seem like Newbies!
“What’s your plan, then?”
“As the Dark Princess, I should guide with dark mana, right?”
Oknodie pointed at Clan Head Son Baek-ho, not Son Yo-Woon.
“The death energy. It’s called a scam in the East but shares similar properties to dark mana in the West. Both derive their source from the Demon Realm or the Netherworld!”
“So?”
“Do you know the characteristics of dark mana?”
Sing and Sadi replied instantly.
“Rampage.”
“Self-destruction.”
“Exactly. The instability of dark mana surpasses the fissioning internal energy of Son Baek-sim Gong. If you make the dark mana even more unstable, it’ll explode!”
As they glimpsed Oknodie’s solution, Sadi’s face turned pale.
In the next moment, a dozen official troops watching nearby exploded one after another.
Sadi, nearly bursting himself while observing the method to explode dark mana, hurriedly assigned the danger to the troops.
“That wicked creature! It’s using our dark magic to unnerve the Lesser Clan Head!”
“Students of the sword examination, protect the official troops!”
‘What the heck did I do?!’
The two organizations quickly transitioned from fighting to protecting one another against the Clan Head’s dark magic!
Amhyeol, controlling Clan Head Son Baek-ho’s body, was the most wronged.
He hadn’t done anything, yet those fools kept exploding among themselves!
Soon, a terrible suspicion took hold.
Suddenly, the sensation of death energy felt from the opponent’s body.
It was a presence, dense and eerie as if swallowing the Spirit Orb, briefly observed by Sadi’s dark mana.
Without knowing this, Amhyeol could only assume the dark sorcerer offered a sacrifice.
‘Before I could even sacrifice, my sacrifice is being used without my permission. I can’t stand for this anymore!’
Amhyeol infused the Spirit Orb’s energy into the sword with all his might.
The death energy surged over five meters high and enveloped the body in a dark aura.
As Amhyeol, overwhelmed by powerful energy, unleashed a high-density mana, Son Yo-Woon felt a profound despair.
‘Is my fate ending here?’
At that moment, Oknodie’s unbearable advice stirred Son Yo-Woon’s body, which had hardened in despair.
The pale body, without any resistance, dissipated the mixed attributes contained within the sword energy with the fissioning energy, extracting pure colorless internal energy.
With mana capable of changing into any color or attribute, it clashed with the incoming high-density mana, forcefully asserting its presence.
I believe you just hit right?
Hand over the settlement fee!
The pure mana absorbed the strongest energy among those that touched him—dark mana.
“?!”
Son Yo-Woon, absorbing dark mana equal to the amount of pure mana, naturally passed through the wall of sword energy.
If he rotates even once within his body, he would be contaminated by dark mana, suffering severe internal injury.
But Oknodie, who had reached the height of mana techniques, used even the human body.
Creating a virtual mana circuit and mana aggregation device with a hundred diffused energies in the air.
It became both an artificial body and a mana vessel.
The extreme precision work was complex and utterly demanding, even causing signs of pain to cross Sadi’s face!
A giant man, 2.3m tall.
Swelling according to his main spec that could only be dreamt of, the energy surged forth.
The dark mana in the air responded as it penetrated Clan Head Son Baek-ho’s dark mana.
‘Foolish being. Did you not realize that I could replicate the absorption you initiated at the same moment?’
Absorption and emission of power.
If the same method is infinitely repeated, the winner would be Amhyeol, possessing the Spirit Orb and holding more energy than Son Yo-Woon.
It wouldn’t change even if Sadi executed terminal transmission to make the soldiers explode!
With the mere internal energy of a few hundred people, it was utterly insufficient to fill the void created by the Spirit Orb, gathering energy over years and keep pace!
However, there was no need for the filled mana vessel of <Trained Strength - Marine Corps> freely floating in the air to wait for the Spirit Orb to retaliate with greater power.
<Implanting Mana Circuit>
<Dark Affliction>
Energy floating in the air stabilized on Son Yo-Woon’s sword, releasing a jet-black stream of darkness high into the sky.
Oknodie, carving out a space in the core of the mana circuit, completed his magical technique.
At that moment, a miniature dimensional gate formed at the center of the sword.
<Gate of Hell>
A direct passage to the Netherworld.
Creating the Sword of Magic allowing the Magic Swordsman to continuously draw from and disperse an infinite dark mana!
“Phew, now it doesn’t feel so frustrating!”
In contrast to Oknodie’s satisfied hand clap, Son Yo-Woon was terrified by the overwhelming darkness seeping from his sword.
“No, no! If the energy accumulates more than this, I can’t handle it!!!”
As the endlessly rising dark mana terrified Son Yo-Woon, he swung the sword, and Amhyeol’s Spirit Orb couldn’t handle it all, splitting with a splat.
In a flash, the overflowing dark mana swallowed Clan Head Son Baek-ho’s body and Amhyeol’s soul, dragging them into the darkness of the Netherworld.
While Oknodie felt a sense of accomplishment, Son Yo-Woon remained in a state of shock.
“Everyone, step back! If the sword’s energy isn’t released, we’ll be swallowed by the rampaging energy following the Clan Head!”
Time and again it erupted, pouring forth repeatedly, only for more energy to rise higher!
The released dark mana lost its destination, drifting throughout the Middle Realm, and in an instant, the city was engulfed in a dark magical territory.
“Oknodie, did you think of how to deal with that?”
“Ah.”
Cold sweat poured down Oknodie’s face.