Chapter 160
The Swordmaster's blade stopped right before my nose.
A thin stream of blood trickled down from my forehead.
For a moment, I was left speechless.
The Swordmaster's blade moving alone within fragmented time.
It was something that could be seen...
Yet never blocked.
I had thought that, with Instructor Chun Ga-eun's help, I could somehow escape.
“Haa... Getting old really isn't what it used to be.”
He let out a rough breath as he withdrew his sword.
Using the sheathed blade as a walking stick once more, he patted his lower back.
So even the Swordmaster couldn't use that strike so casually.
Well...
If he could unleash attacks like that freely, he would have already brought peace to the entire world.
Then the Swordmaster asked,
“What did you think of my sword?”
I pondered his question for a moment.
First, I needed to calm my racing heart.
What had I thought of his sword?
How should I even describe it?
Simply calling it overwhelming felt insufficient.
The moment he moved, I felt genuine fear.
Watching that blade approach through fractured time...
I felt utterly powerless.
The sword descending toward me had seemed unimaginably vast.
His single strike naturally reminded me of the Heavenly Demon.
She had displayed divine might, dragging space itself toward her through overwhelming power.
The Swordmaster's strike was in no way inferior.
For those who reached the pinnacle of strength...
Time flowed differently.
They endlessly divided their own time, calculating countless possibilities within every instant as they fought.
But the Swordmaster's strike existed beyond even that.
A technique that stretched already elongated time once more...
Transforming it into his own domain.
Having gathered my thoughts, I answered his question.
“Your sword truly lived up to your title, sir. It made me think of a realm beyond heaven.”
“Hohoho!”
The Swordmaster burst into hearty laughter.
“You certainly know how to flatter an old man.”
“I wasn't saying it just to flatter you.”
“I know. After all... you saw the path my sword traveled.”
“Isn't that right?”
The Swordmaster's gaze shifted toward Chun Ga-eun.
I wasn't the only one who had witnessed his movement.
Although she couldn't move within fractured time...
She had still followed every one of the Swordmaster's movements perfectly.
“That was a bit excessive for a joke.”
“It wasn't a joke. As I said, I still haven't decided what to do with this young man.”
“Then why did you stop your sword in front of me?”
“Didn't I already tell you? I wanted to see the person you believe yourself to be. I merely showed you who I am first.”
I knew this routine.
He dressed it up with elegant words...
But in the end, he simply wanted to see what I was capable of.
The Swordmaster's eyes practically said,
You understand what I mean, don't you?
Why did everyone in that family love sparring so much?
“Although... this doesn't seem like an ideal place for a duel.”
“Then we simply go outside.”
“I'm technically a criminal at the moment. Leaving prison might be a bit difficult.”
“I can solve that problem.”
Could he really solve only that?
He could probably resolve every issue concerning me.
As things stood...
I was undeniably a criminal.
By now, news that I'd broken my restraints had likely spread.
The Academy would undoubtedly use that as an excuse to keep pursuing me relentlessly.
But if the Swordmaster intervened...
Everything would be resolved.
One statement declaring that I was innocent...
That I wasn't loyal to Pandemonium...
Along with a single order for the Academy to cooperate with me.
That alone would settle everything.
Of course...
I didn't reveal any of that.
There was no point wasting such an opportunity with unnecessary words.
The Swordmaster borrowed the training grounds used by the prison guards within the Academy.
Borrowing Hanul Hall would have been ideal.
But that wasn't possible.
Still...
Being Academy property, this place had nearly everything we needed, even if it wasn't quite on Hanul Hall's level.
The Swordmaster and I stood facing one another.
He still leaned casually upon his sword as though it were nothing more than a cane.
“What weapon do you use?”
“I can handle most weapons reasonably well. I prefer swords and spears, though while I was at the Academy, I mainly fought with my fists.”
“Hoho... Is that so?”
He looked me over with growing interest.
“Come whenever you're ready.”
“Yes.”
As I loosened up my body, a question suddenly surfaced in my mind.
The Swordmaster had said he wanted to see the person I claimed to be.
But...
Which version of me did he mean?
Yoo Seongwoo, the Academy cadet everyone once knew?
Or Devil Knight...
The S-rank Villain the world believed deserved to be torn apart?
Was it my full strength he wanted to see?
To begin with...
Could either of those truly be called the real me?
As my thoughts deepened...
The Infernal Flame of the Asura Divine Art began circulating unconsciously, warming my body.
Was it because this was the Academy?
Rather than Demonic Energy...
I wanted to use Mana.
More precisely...
I didn't want to show him the Demon I had become.
Seeing the Infernal Flame burning away sin, confusion appeared on the Swordmaster's face.
“Aren't you supposed to be a Demon?”
“I am.”
“Then how can you wield flames that are not only utterly pure, but even possess the power to suppress evil?”
“I honestly don't know.”
At first...
I assumed it was simply because of the 【Lamb】.
My body wasn't originally that of a Demon.
Even my Demonic Energy originated from the 【Lamb】.
Yet...
Even after my body gradually transformed into something closer to a demon's...
I could still use Infernal Flame without issue.
Perhaps...
Since it had always been my power, my body had simply adapted to accommodate it.
That was my only guess.
The moment the Swordmaster spoke...
I exploited the opening and charged.
Compressed flames accelerated my body.
In an instant...
I arrived before him.
Although I had relied heavily on the 【Lamb】 for a long time...
I had never neglected my training in the Asura Divine Art.
I simply hadn't found the right opportunity to unleash it.
My heated fist glowed red like molten steel.
The punch exploded through the air, generating scorching shockwaves.
The single punch branched into countless afterimages, striking from every blind spot around the Swordmaster.
An assault pouring in from all directions.
There wasn't a single gap.
The divided flames converged upon the Swordmaster.
He finally drew the sword he had been using as a cane.
With speed impossible for ordinary eyes to perceive...
His blade flashed.
Every flame split cleanly in half.
Seeing such an absurd sight...
I couldn't help laughing.
It wasn't some elegant swordsmanship that sought openings before cutting.
The Swordmaster simply swung his sword.
Meeting every single punch head-on...
Suppressing them all through sheer power.
Increase the output.
The Infernal Flame circulated through my body at tremendous speed, burning me from within.
I became one with the violently surging flames.
《Asura Divine Art》
《Asura Descent》
A faint smile appeared on the Swordmaster's face.
Having become pure flame itself...
Physical attacks could no longer affect me.
The burden on my Mana was immense.
Yet paradoxically...
The power I released only continued growing stronger.
BOOM!!
A violent explosion triggered a sonic boom.
I became a blazing meteor...
And crashed directly toward the Swordmaster.
KWAAAAAA!!
A tremendous explosion shook the entire building.
Gasps erupted from the spectators.
I vaguely heard the Sword Empress mutter,
“A monster...”
The physical enhancement granted by Asura Descent rivaled even the Demonic Authority.
Before long...
The entire training hall was engulfed in blazing heat.
A bead of sweat rolled down the Swordmaster's face.
“A fire as passionate as the spirit of youth.”
“It'll get even hotter. You should look forward to it.”
Haa...
Maintaining Asura Descent...
I concentrated all the heat into one arm.
Layering another flame over the body that had already become fire itself.
The Swordmaster's expression remained calm.
I still didn't know what he wished to see from me.
But both of us...
Were still holding back.
My crimson arm gradually grew brighter.
Then...
It turned blue.
The temperature inside the training hall became so extreme that an ordinary person could no longer survive within it.
But I still wasn't satisfied.
Even the heat permeating the training grounds...
I absorbed it.
Soon...
One of my arms became dyed in a mysterious violet.
The training hall was no longer hot.
Every ounce of heat had gathered into my hand.
Fed by incredibly dense Mana...
The violet Infernal Flame contained tremendous destructive power.
I slowly pointed my outstretched hand toward the Swordmaster.
There were spectators nearby.
I couldn't swing.
So...
I thrust.
Concentrating all my power into a single point.
Like a spear.
The Swordmaster's stance finally changed.
He drew his sword as far back as possible...
As though he intended to shatter my attack head-on.
The tip of his sword and the tips of my fingers aimed directly at one another.
Mana condensed at the tip of his blade.
Sword Aura compressed...
Until it became a single sphere.
I recognized that technique.
Sword Sphere.
A technique created solely for destruction by compressing countless Sword Auras into a single point.
Then he asked me,
“Aren't you going to use your Demon power? I wish to see everything you possess.”
“I don't like the version of myself that's a Demon.”
Because...
That power ultimately originated from the End.
Besides...
Using Demon power while maintaining Infernal Flame?
I'd never even considered attempting it.
The holy nature of Infernal Flame should have rejected it outright.
But...
If not now...
When would I ever try?
An exceptional opponent.
A perfectly prepared stage.
If the Swordmaster wished to see it...
Then I had no reason to hide it.
Beneath the Infernal Flame coursing throughout my body...
I drew forth the Demonic Energy engraved deep within by the 【Lamb】.
As expected...
Infernal Flame immediately pushed against the Demonic Energy, rejecting it.
Even with my Mana manipulation pushed to its absolute limit...
The delicate balance inside my body collapsed.
Cough!
Black blood spilled from my mouth.
Yet ironically...
The body that had become increasingly demonic continued maintaining the violet flames at their absolute peak.
Upon them...
I layered the 【Flames of Gehenna】.
My insides churned violently.
The excruciating pain sharpened my consciousness.
It felt as though a giant blender had begun operating inside my body...
Tearing me apart from within.
Even so...
I endured.
Because my body had already ceased to be human.
I gazed upon the newly born flames before smirking at the Swordmaster.
“Do you really think a single Sword Sphere will be enough?”
The violet flames gradually darkened into black.
Ironically...
The anti-demonic power manifested to suppress Gehenna's Demonic Energy only drove both flames to even greater intensity.
Combined with the savage nature of the 【Flames of Gehenna】...
The resulting inferno truly deserved to be called Hellfire.
Our eyes met.
The Swordmaster had already summoned several Sword Spheres, combining them into something entirely new.
There was no longer any need for words.
A beam of black fire collided with the compressed sphere formed from countless Sword Spheres.
The black flames detonated...
Voraciously devouring everything around them.
Yet the Sword Auras erupting from the Sword Spheres cleaved through the inferno...
The clash of power continued relentlessly.
The result...
Mutual destruction.
The training grounds had been utterly devastated.
Meanwhile...
Chun Ga-eun was shielding everyone else.
A brief comment escaped her lips.
“Ah... damn it—no, I'm definitely going to end up writing another incident report.”
I looked toward the Swordmaster.
He stood there...
Completely unharmed.
In contrast...
My own body was in ruins.
My legs trembled uncontrollably.
Blood flowing from my mouth had completely soaked my shirt.
The Authority of Restoration activated...
But even it struggled to heal the damage.
I had forced two fundamentally incompatible powers to erupt and merge from within my own body.
It was, quite literally...
A self-destruct attack.
Like pouring a bucket of cold water into boiling oil.
“If I use that twice... there won't even be bones left to bury.”
Still...
The experiment had yielded results.
Even if it was a suicidal technique...
Its output rivaled the Demonic Authority enhanced by Abyssal Mana.
Unable to remain standing any longer...
I collapsed onto the ground.
The Swordmaster slowly approached me.
“So, sir...”
I looked up at him.
“What did you think after seeing everything I had to show?”
A satisfied smile spread across his face.
Then...
He finally opened his mouth.