The old man's gaze shifted from Namgung Wonyang to Ju Soa.
—And you?
Ju Soa flinched.
But she answered.
“I feel the same. No matter how extraordinary a martial art is, what good is it if the people who came with me die?”
The old man's gaze turned to Chief Seong.
—And you?
“I have already answered.”
Chief Seong replied calmly.
“We came here as three. Then the three of us should leave together.”
The old man looked around the plaza.
More precisely,
he looked toward the path the three of them had taken.
—On your way here, you passed many things.
“...”
—The Blood Demon Heart Scripture. The Blood God Return Art. The Blood Shadow Boundless Art. The Heaven-Shattering Blood Sword. And even supreme martial god–level demonic arts and divine weapons you never saw.
The old man listed them one by one.
—I sealed every one of them within this secret realm.
The three listened intently.
—Every one of them is an atrocious demonic art. Yet none can deny their power.
The old man looked at them.
—You abandoned them all.
“...”
—You saw the Blood Demon Heart Scripture and did not touch it. Nor the Blood Shadow Boundless Art. Nor the Heaven-Shattering Blood Sword.
His eyes grew deeper.
—Why?
Namgung Wonyang answered.
“Because we had no need for them.”
—No need?
“Yes. Martial arts were not what we came here seeking.”
She took the jade bottle from her robes.
“This was. A miraculous medicine that may help my lord... no, my lord recover. That alone was enough for us.”
The old man looked at the jade bottle.
—...That bottle.
He murmured softly.
—It contains the concentrated essence of the Life-and-Death Spring Restoration Pill.
“The Life-and-Death Spring Restoration Pill?”
—It was created a thousand years ago by the benefactor of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect.
A trace of longing crossed his eyes.
—It restores injuries to the body and mends damaged meridians. I do not know how gravely your lord is wounded, but it will surely help him.
Namgung Wonyang's eyes lit up.
“Truly?”
—It is concentrated essence that has matured for a thousand years. Its potency is beyond sufficient. More importantly, because it was refined using Stone Milk of the Empty Blue, its efficacy is more than twice that of ordinary Stone Milk of the Empty Blue. It will be more than enough.
Namgung Wonyang carefully tucked the jade bottle back into her robes.
The old man looked at the three once more.
—You abandoned supreme demonic arts.
You abandoned sword manuals.
You abandoned divine weapons.
“...”
—You took only the miraculous medicine needed to restore your lord.
The old man smiled.
—How interesting.
“...”
—Hundreds have entered this secret realm.
Every one of them was blinded by greed.
They clutched at demonic arts and killed one another.
They spilled blood over sword manuals.
They wagered their lives for divine weapons.
His voice became quieter.
—There was a reason this secret realm was created.
The three listened silently.
—When the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect was destroyed...
I was its final Sect Master.
The old man looked toward the stone gate.
—The demonic path attacked.
We fought.
Until the very end.
But we were hopelessly outnumbered.
“...”
—One disciple after another fell.
My senior brother died.
My junior brother died.
My disciples died.
His eyes trembled.
Though he was only a lingering will,
though nearly a thousand years had passed since the Thousand-Year Chaos,
the memory remained painfully vivid.
—In the end...
I alone remained.
“...”
—I thought to myself that the sword of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect must not end there.
He gazed at the stone gate.
—The monster, Won Geukcheon, and the other monster, Venerable Goseung, agreed to create secret realms and pass their martial arts on to future generations.
I agreed with them.
I left behind this lingering will within this secret realm.
I sealed away the sword art.
I sealed away the cultivation method.
And then I waited.
“...”
—For nine hundred and eighty-five years.
He looked at the three.
—For one worthy to inherit them.
Silence fell.
A heavy silence.
Ju Soa cautiously spoke.
“...Worthy?”
—Yes.
“What does being worthy... mean?”
The old man smiled.
—What you just said.
“...Pardon?”
—No matter how extraordinary a martial art may be, what use is it if the companions who came with you die?
Were those not your words?
Ju Soa fell silent.
The old man continued.
—What is a sword?
“...”
—Is it merely a tool for killing?
Is it simply a means of obtaining power?
“...”
—It is neither.
He slowly shook his head.
—A sword exists to protect people.
Chief Seong's eyes widened.
—The sword art of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect was created for that purpose.
A sword that exists to protect.
That is the Way of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect.
He looked at all three.
—You abandoned demonic arts.
You abandoned divine weapons.
Instead, you took only the miraculous medicine needed to restore your lord.
“...”
—And even before a gate that promised an even greater reward...
you turned away.
Because two among you might die.
“...”
—That is what makes you worthy.
His voice deepened.
—The desire to protect others.
That is the qualification required to inherit the sword of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect.
The three stared at him in astonishment.
—I °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° waited here for nearly a thousand years.
For someone not blinded by greed.
For someone who understood the true meaning of the sword.
The old man raised his hand.
Light gathered.
At his fingertips.
Silver-white radiance condensed.
Three lights.
Three spheres floated above his palm.
—Three enter, one leaves.
The old man smiled.
—It never meant that two must die.
“...What?”
—It meant that three enter...
and become one.
The three looked at one another.
—It means that your sword hearts become one.
Only when three people grasp the sword with the same heart...
does the sword of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect become complete.
The old man released the three lights.
They slowly drifted toward the three of them.
One flew to Chief Seong.
One to Ju Soa.
One to Namgung Wonyang.
—Receive them.
The old man spoke.
—I, Ha Yooncheon, the final Sect Master of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect...
entrust them to you after a thousand years of waiting.
The lights sank into their chests.
They were warm.
Not hot.
Not cold.
Simply warm,
like another person's body heat.
They closed their eyes.
Something flowed into their minds.
It was a sword art.
Not words.
Not pictures.
A feeling.
The feeling of holding a sword.
The feeling of swinging a sword.
The feeling of protecting someone with a sword.
That...
was the sword of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect.
How much time passed?
They opened their eyes.
The old man was still standing there.
But he had become faint.
His light was fading.
He was disappearing.
Chief Seong spoke.
“Sect Master... thank you.”
Ha Yooncheon smiled.
—There is no need to thank me.
“...”
—I ask only one thing.
“Please tell us.”
—The sword of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect...
exists to protect.
His body became more and more transparent.
—Never forget that.
“We will never forget.”
Chief Seong bowed deeply.
Ju Soa bowed as well.
Namgung Wonyang followed.
The old man smiled.
It was his final smile.
The light scattered.
His figure dissolved into countless silver-white rays.
They spread throughout the plaza.
The brilliance was blinding.
The light dispersed.
The old man's form vanished completely.
Silver-white radiance filled the plaza.
They closed their eyes.
When they opened them again—
the plaza had changed.
A passage had appeared along one wall.
An exit.
Light streamed through it.
The light from outside.
“...We can leave.”
Namgung Wonyang murmured.
The three rose to their feet.
Something remained within their hearts.
Something warm.
Something passed down after a thousand years of waiting.
The sword art.
It had no form,
yet they could feel it unmistakably.
It felt as though their very bodies had changed.
Chief Seong spoke.
“Let's go. The Young Master is waiting for us.”
The three walked toward the exit.
Just then—
footsteps echoed from behind them.
They turned.
A group was entering.
Ten people.
Their clothing was uniform.
A plum blossom emblem adorned their chests.
Mount Hua.
But they were covered in blood.
Wounds marked their bodies.
Their robes were torn.
It was obvious they had fought their way here.
At their head stood the same man.
First Man.
The young man's once-neat appearance had become distorted.
A long wound ran across his face.
His eyes were bloodshot.
First Man looked around the plaza.
He saw the stone gate.
It was closed.
Then he looked at the three.
His brow furrowed.
Not one of them bore a single wound.
His eyes narrowed.
“...First Woman.”
“Yes. First Man.”
Namgung Wonyang answered calmly.
“You've been badly injured.”
“The depths of this secret realm were dangerous.”
His voice was rough.
“But it was worth it.”
He raised one hand.
He was holding something.
The black jade box.
His subordinates were each carrying something as well.
Books.
Weapons.
Spiritual pills.
None of them had come away empty-handed.
Yet First Man's gaze remained fixed on the three.
More precisely,
on Namgung Wonyang's robes.
He asked,
“What did you obtain?”
“That is none of your concern.”
First Man smiled faintly.
“It is.”
He took one step forward.
“I yielded before.
But this is the final chamber, is it not?”
A chilling smile spread across his lips.
“The greatest reward must have been here.
And you must have taken it.
That changes everything.”
Just as Namgung Wonyang was about to answer,
Chief Seong interrupted.
“You say you yielded?”
First Man turned toward him.
“Who yielded to whom?”
“What?”
“I think you're mistaken.”
Chief Seong stepped forward.
“We were the ones who yielded.”
“You... what?”
“We spared your lives.”
First Man's eyes flashed.
“...What did you say?”
“Are you deaf?”
“...”
“We were the ones who showed mercy.
Do not delude yourself.”
First Man ground his teeth.
“You bastard... you want to die—”
“And.”
Chief Seong continued.
“The same applies now.
Be satisfied with what you've obtained...
and leave.”
First Man's subordinates began murmuring.
Hands went to their weapons.
But First Man raised a hand, stopping them.
Not yet.
He stared at the three.
Calculating.
This was the final chamber of the secret realm.
The place where the greatest reward awaited.
First...
“Let me see.”
“What exactly did you obtain?”
This time Ju Soa cut in.
“Oh, honestly, enough already.”
“What?”
“If we show you, you'll just start calculating again, won't you? Wondering whether it's worth killing a few people to take it? Seriously? Just looking at you, you've already looted well over a dozen treasures. Isn't that enough?”
First Man grinned.
“As if.”
“...”
“There is a reason people say the more, the better.”
Ju Soa let out a sigh.
First Man raised his voice.
“This is a secret realm.
The final chamber, no less.
And you're planning to keep everything for yourselves?”
“...”
“Whatever you obtained must be worth far more than everything we found.
Isn't that right?”
His voice grew louder.
“Does that make any sense?”
“The one who makes no sense is you.”
“No.
We are the reasonable ones.
You are the strange ones.
Enough talking.
Hand it over.”
At his command,
everyone behind him drew their weapons.
Swords.
Blades.
Even spears.
A varied arsenal.
“Ten against three.
I don't know which side will survive.
But one thing is certain—
it won't be yours.”
At last,
Chief Seong drew his daggers.
Ju Soa unsheathed her sword.
Namgung Wonyang drew hers as well.
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