Chapter 172: Transcendence (3)
“Is everyone all right?”
“Yes, all of Squad 1 succeeded in escaping!”
Serine let out a sigh of relief when she heard the viola’s voice.
About an hour ago, Serine defeated the alter ego of Archbishop Alberich.
There were dangerous moments, such as Schmitz being injured, but he was able to win through a pincer attack with Berithrisse and others.
Still, there were many wounded, so we were retreating… An earthquake suddenly occurred.
Sensing that it was dangerous, Serine immediately ordered an escape, and everyone was able to get out safely.
“Is the volcano about to explode? why is this… … .”
“Serine, something is strange.”
At that time, Berithlyze raised her head and said.
“The mountain is crumbling.”
“yes?”
“It is not a natural landslide. I guess this… … .”
coo kung!
An explosion occurred with a roar.
Then something seemed to rise.
“That… … !”
Serine concentrated her mana and raised her eyesight.
Then I could see a gray-haired old man soaring above the blast.
and… … .
“Aernas?!”
Aernas was resting in the rear.
He was flying after the gray-haired old man.
“Why is Aernas over there… … !”
“Looks like it’s not too late.”
Then, suddenly, a calm voice was heard.
It was Chloe who stayed behind to protect Aernas.
“Chloe, why is Aernas over there? Weren’t you resting?”
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“Aernas-sama wasn’t resting.”
“yes?”
“You were preparing for the showdown.”
“If it’s a showdown… … .”
“He was preparing to defeat the Patriarch of the Dark Heaven Demonic Cult.”
“… … !”
Everyone held their breath at Chloe’s words.
“Chloe Yusburg, are you saying that you were conserving your stamina in preparation for the fight with the Patriarch?”
“No, Mr. Verislize.”
Chloe shook her head at Berithlyze’s question.
“Aernas-sama was taking on a new challenge.”
“A new realm? Wasn’t Aernas already at the peak?”
The level of graduation is the end of the peak.
It was common knowledge that any graduate would know.
“Aernas-nim was pursuing a state beyond the pinnacle level. Likewise, to oppose the Patriarch who is trying to surpass the pinnacle level.”
“… … !”
To think that Aernas was pursuing a state beyond the pinnacle level!
This was something that should have surprised everyone.
Even the swordsmen who left their names in history have not reached their peak level, but Aernas, who is still only about 20 years old?
“Chloe.”
Serene asked in a trembling voice.
“then… Has Aernas reached that level? Are you successful?”
“that… … .”
Chloe raised her head.
He looked at the collapsing volcano and spoke in a calm voice.
“From now on… We can see it with our own eyes.”
Everyone held their breath and turned their gaze toward the volcano.
Now, on top of the volcano, an unprecedented confrontation was unfolding.
* * *
“Um… … !”
Above the lava-flowing volcano, the Patriarch soared high.
It was because he needed to distance himself from Aernas.
‘What happened?’
Just now, Aernas attacked the patriarch’s body.
At a speed so fast that the Patriarch could not even detect it.
In the end, the Patriarch was wounded twice.
‘I have to figure out the situation.’
The Patriarch first widened his distance.
He needed time to analyze what Aernas had done.
When I broke the ceiling with magic and jumped out of the volcano, Aernas chased after me.
The movement speed was not very fast, so I was able to quickly open the distance.
‘As expected, the body belongs to an ordinary human.’
Analyzing the chasing Aernas, the Patriarch confirmed that his thoughts were not wrong.
Aernas is still human. It is a state of being captivated by human physical limitations.
He uses mana to maximize his physical abilities, but in the end, human physical limitations hold back Aernas.
‘however… How did they attack so quickly?’
At the point where the distance was wide enough, the Patriarch released his magic power again.
Since he hadn’t figured out what kind of existence Aernas was yet, it was necessary to start a search battle.
‘Intangible sword… … !’
Heukcheon Intangible Swordsmanship is the power to create a shapeless sword using magic.
It can be used as if holding a body sword in hand and swinging it, but it is also possible to eject it like a non-sword skill.
The Patriarch made a sword with magical power and flew it towards Aernas.
“… … !”
thud!
The intangible sword bounced off with a roar.
It was because Aernas stopped on the hillside and swung his sword.
However, I did not see Aernas swinging his sword.
Again, the Patriarch moved faster than he could recognize.
‘How is that possible?’
The Patriarch released his mana again.
This time, he made several intangible swords and fired them one after another.
A barrage of intangible swords pouring down at high speed hit Aernas.
‘Can this be prevented?’
Cuckoo coo!
The hillside collapsed with a roar.
However, Aernas was just covered in dust.
He swung his sword at an invisible speed and bounced off all the intangible swords.
“… … .”
It wouldn’t be a one-time swing.
Aernas swung his sword several times. All these movements were so fast that the Patriarch could not perceive them.
How should I accept this fact?
‘It’s clear that Aernas’s body is inferior to mine.’
If other conditions were similar, Aernas, who had a weak body, could only be slow.
Nevertheless, the fact that Aernas was faster than the Patriarch meant that there were differences in other conditions.
‘Am I handling magic in a different way than I am?’
The Patriarch was able to see how magic was flowing through Aernas’ body.
The mana heart does not exist in Aernas’ chest. It is in a state of control by deploying enormous magical energy to the blood vessels throughout the body.
This part is the same as the Patriarch. Where is the difference?
‘No, wait… … .’
The Patriarch realized belatedly.
There was something he felt not in Aernas, but in the space around Aernas.
“Ernas Landstein, you… … .”
When attacking the intangible sword, Aernas’s sword skill was also slightly damaged.
In the weak magic that was scattered by that, the patriarch felt a presence he had never felt before.
that… It was the ‘magic power of iron blood’ that only the descendants of the iron blood sword master could use.
“Have you learned the iron-blooded sword magic trick?”
It was hard to believe.
The iron-blooded sword magic method is passed down only to the heir to the throne.
It takes more than 10 years to get it right.
Where the hell did Aernas learn the iron-blooded sword magic trick?
no way… Could Aernas’s father, Perfectio Landstein, be involved?
“With the iron-blooded sword magic method that harmonizes mana with blood… Did you maximize the efficiency of your magical powers?”
The iron blood sword magic method is an exercise method that changes the nature of magical power in the body.
Magical power flows through the blood within the veins, and when magic power and blood are in perfect harmony, the efficiency of magic is maximized.
Let not ordinary blood flow in the veins, but iron blood like a blade… It is said that the Iron Blood Sword Emperor left such a statement.
“It is the same for both of us who dismantled the mana heart and deployed all the mana into the veins. However, since you have developed Sangvis magic… Can you move faster than me?”
“It is true that I obtained iron-blooded magic, Patriarch.”
Aernas nodded.
“I can’t tell you how I got it, but… As you expected, I have obtained Sangvis magic through the Iron Blood Sword Magic Method.”
“also… … !”
“But, Patriarch.”
Aernas’s cold eyes stared at the Patriarch.
“You can’t get this kind of speed by harmonizing the Iron Blood Sword Magic and the Dark Heaven Magic.”
“what?”
“Dissolving mana hearts, obtaining iron-blooded mana… It’s just the minimum conditions.”
“… … !”
The Patriarch immediately understood.
If the Patriarch had the iron-blooded mana in his hands right now, it would be faster.
But, like Aernas, you can’t get your hands on a completely different level of speed.
To obtain such speed, other conditions were required.
then… What could it be?
“Tell me, Ernas Landstein.”
“… … .”
“What are the alternative conditions?”
Just now, Ernas said.
Darkness is not the correct answer.
The idea that the level beyond the peak level is the level of darkness is just an illusion.
When he first heard that, the Patriarch dismissed it as nonsense.
But maybe it wasn’t bullsh*t.
If Aernas was telling the truth… The Black Heaven Demonic Cult has been in vain for a long time.
“Tell me, Ernas Landstein… … !”
Eventually, the Patriarch raised his voice.
As long as he realized that his opponent was on a higher level than himself, he could no longer maintain his composure.
“What the hell did you do! What kind of magic training did you learn? Did you take any special medicine? How did you reach that level… … !”
“Patriarch.”
Aernas’ calm voice was heard.
“Your limit is that you can only think that way.”
“what?”
“You Black Heaven Demonic Cults have been thinking about that kind of method all along. I was just thinking about how to change the human body in order to reach the transcendental level.”
“that is… … .”
what does that mean
You want to transcend human limits, but what do you mean without changing your body?
“That is the limit of the Black Sky level. I tried to reach a transcendental state by changing only the human body.”
“… … ?”
“Patriarch, the prosecutor is trying to reach a higher level… Would it be enough to just change the body?”
the moment I heard that.
The Patriarch understood what they were thinking wrong.
“To reach the true transcendental level… You have to go beyond your limits in your mind, not your body.”
It’s not about throwing away the human body.
Elevating the human spirit to a higher level.
That is… Are you saying it was correct?
“Originally, being a graduate was a stage reached in order to defeat a higher being. I became a graduate in order to defeat Mine, who are superior as creatures.”
“… … .”
“but… No matter how strong the body is, it cannot be defeated by those with superior bodies.”
Aernas’ calm voice was heard.
“The Black Sky class will exert overwhelming power when slaughtering low-level beings. However, they will be helpless when fighting against higher beings.”
“… … .”
“For humans to become truly transcendent beings and to defeat beings far higher than themselves… I had to overcome the limits of my mind, not the limits of my body.”
Not the limits of the body, but the limits of the mind.
what it means… The Patriarch could have guessed.
“Ernas Landstein… … .”
The Patriarch is the only person in the thousand-year history of the Black Heaven Demonic Church to reach the Black Heaven level.
He has such excellent qualities and has a deep understanding of the world.
Because he is such a patriarch… I could understand that Aernas’ words were not absurd.
“Something like that… I can not admit it.”
but.
Even so, the Patriarch could not acknowledge Aernas.
Acknowledging that Ernas was right here means accepting defeat.
As the Patriarch of the Black Heaven Demonic Cult, he could not accept defeat here.
“I will not listen to you any more, Ernas Landstein.”
“Patriarch.”
“I beat you here… We will destroy the empire and build the utopia of the Black Heaven Demonic Cult.”
To build a world of struggle.
In order to achieve the secret wish of the Black Heaven Demonic Cult.
The Patriarch released all his magical energy.
“Heukcheon intangible swordsmanship season (絶技)… The end of the dark sky.”
The sky was dyed black and became a black sky.
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It is a technique that turns the entire space into an intangible sword by injecting all the magic power of the black sky.
The blackened sky will annihilate the enemy with extreme speed and power, united with the patriarch’s bloodline.
“Resist with your all, Ernas Landstein… … !”
“I understand, Patriarch.”
Iron-blooded magic surged from Aernas’ body.
Toward such Aernas, the Patriarch poured out the Dark Heaven End, the season of Dark Heaven Intangible Swordsmanship.
The moment the huge black intangible sword was about to swallow Aernas.
“This is what the sword-level graduates will do… It is the sword of the mind.”
A blue blade of sword extending from Aernas pierced the black sky and pierced the patriarch’s chest.