Chapter 2553 – 2553. Ascending To The Light

Wei Yu’s training isn’t limited to swordsmanship. Swordsmanship training is just a part of it.

I unleashed lightning towards Wei Yu.

KWA-RA-RA-RUNG!

The sky roared, and the surroundings flashed pure white.

Wei Yu moved a step, dodging the lightning. The lightning pierced through the ground and deep into the underground.

“Lightning imbued with will, is it? But without a foundation of mental imagery, your will is weak. Martial artists or sorcerers with defensive mental imagery would easily block it.”

“Not every battle is a battle of mental imagery, is it?”

“That’s true. But in battles beyond the level of absolute masters, the power of mental imagery will account for more than half. Of course, mental imagery is meaningless if your basic abilities aren’t built up. But that doesn’t apply to you.”

Thunder Heaven Style: Gale Lightning.

Thunder Heaven Style: Flying Thunder God.

Thunder Heaven Style: Thunder Tribulation.

I transformed into lightning, instantly closing the distance to Wei Yu and lifting her up. Crimson lightning surged from the Crimson Lotus Blade. There wasn’t enough time to unleash everything, but I drew out as much Thunder Tribulation as possible, letting it flow into Wei Yu.

Wei Yu swung her sword. Clearly, she was reacting late, yet her sword had already reached its target, blocking my attack. The crimson lightning streaks surging from the Crimson Lotus Blade were torn apart as if they had been cut by her sword.

The will I had imbued in the blade and the lightning vanished.

At the same time, a pain as if dozens of swords were slashing my body assaulted me.

This wasn’t just phantom pain. Right now, Wei Yu was tearing apart my mind, my mental imagery. I could feel the Mind Sword.

I endured it completely, gripping my sword tightly.

“Hmm. It doesn’t work on you after all. I thought I had completely cut your mind… Is that absolute spirit or whatever blocking it? The will that extends from the mind can be cut, but the mind itself, the source, even I cannot cut it.”

“Thank you for the kind explanation. Thanks to you, I’ve recovered somewhat.”

Thunder Heaven Style: Mind is Sword.

The moment I made up my mind, my arm swung the Crimson Lotus Blade. A speed that even I, who used the technique, couldn’t fathom. But it didn’t work. Wei Yu caught the blade with her left thumb and forefinger.

“Amateurish. Imbuing will doesn’t make it a Mind Sword. Only when you can fully recognize and draw your mental imagery will you be able to wield a sword with your mind.”

“…If I can wield a sword purely with my mind… will I be able to cut anything?”

“How could that be? Even I am not confident I can cut anything.”

Wei Yu swung her sword at me. I quickly retreated, dodging the sword. Wei Yu’s sword sliced through the air. And my body was split in half.

My split body fell backward, and I saw the sky split in two.

[Death Resistance has activated. You will not die for the next 15 seconds.]

[Using Full Recovery.]

“Disciple. Did you see it?”

“…Yes. I saw it vaguely. Is your mental imagery a line, Master?”

“So you really saw it. Your talent is something to acknowledge. But you’re wrong.”

“…What is your mental imagery, Master? Are you not going to tell me until the end?”

“It seems you’ve almost seen it all, so I’ll tell you. My mental imagery is a sword scar. Originally, I tried to hold a sword in my mind. But after thinking about it, I thought the sword would eventually dull, so I decided to carve a sword scar into my mind.”

“…Are you saying you’ve been slashing your own mind?”

“I simply drew my mental imagery in the form I wanted.”

Wei Yu looked at the sky. The sword scar etched in the sky had already disappeared.

“It’s about time. This is the end of the intensive training. For the time being, train on your own. If you don’t like training, go down the mountain. The secular world will be helpful to you.”

Wei Yu went back home. I lay on the ground and sighed. I still couldn’t tell how big the gap between me and Wei Yu was.

• • •

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sound of hammering steel echoed from the workshop around the mansion on Falling Moon Mountain. It was because I had entered the workshop’s barrier.

Yang Hongye.

A woman with messy red hair and tanned skin was hammering Stormbreaker with a hammer in front of the furnace.

Stormbreaker had lost its original form. It looked like metal, wood, and cloth. All the energy within the workshop was gathering into Stormbreaker. Yang Hongye didn’t care at all and focused solely on her work.

“When will Stormbreaker be finished?”

“If you’re going to interrupt, get out.”

Yang Hongye said irritably.

I could even feel her killing intent, so I immediately went outside. If I fought Yang Hongye, I would only be at a loss. If Yang Hongye stopped working, I would lose Stormbreaker forever.

I went back home. Mireyeong had been holed up in her room recently, researching sorcery, and Wei Yu was sitting on the sofa, wearing a gown, watching a drama, and cracking open a can of beer, as if she had just taken a shower.

It was an ordinary, unremarkable day.

• • •

I focused on self-reflection through meditation.

I could feel my own mental imagery, which I couldn’t see before.

My mental imagery was chaotic. There were many things. I wanted to organize them all and embrace a mental imagery that suited me, but… all I could do now was recognize my mental imagery.

‘My mental imagery is like an unorganized collection of memories.’

My training was still insufficient to cultivate my mental imagery. Moreover, I hadn’t even recognized all of my mental imagery. In conclusion, I needed to do more meditation training. This was different from simple physical training, so it was difficult to see results with auto-progress.

‘Damn it. I can’t do it, it’s too boring.’

I eventually gave up on meditation.

If I went back home now, Wei Yu would definitely nag me.

I lay on the ground and looked at the sky. Just watching the clouds drift by was more fun than meditation. After a while, I took out a red plastic whistle from my inventory.

[Whistle of Trials
 Blowing the whistle will summon a trial. It is one-time use.
 If you overcome the trial, you will receive a reward commensurate with it.
 There is no trial you cannot overcome.
 Price: 3,000 points
 ※Caution
 If you receive help from others during the trial, the quality of the reward will decrease.]

I fiddled with the whistle.

It was an item I had never used before, so it was an item I couldn’t use in reality. I didn’t know what kind of negative impact it would have on reality.

‘Wei Yu is in this world, so even if something happens, she’ll be able to handle it.’

I put the whistle in my mouth and blew it with all my might.

Peeeeeeeeeeep!

The whistle sound echoed. Soon, the whistle shattered into tiny pieces and disappeared without leaving any dust.

[You have used the Whistle of Trials.]

[The Whistle of Trials is summoning a trial that is suitable for you.]

[Trial – Martial Arts Journey.
 Engage in a martial arts match with 3 absolute masters of the Three Realms and survive.
 Reward: Enlightenment of Mental Imagery.]

‘Did a freebie event pop up!’

I jumped up from my spot.

‘I thought summoning a trial would cause a disaster or something… I’m glad it’s not that. This is like a quest.’

If I could get this kind of reward for 3,000 points, it was a bargain.

I was grinning. It wasn’t about winning against the absolute masters of the Three Realms, but about surviving. It meant it didn’t matter if I lost.

‘But finding an absolute master who has reached the Three Realms is not easy. Even if I find them, there’s no guarantee they’ll agree to a match. Well, if I ambush them, they’ll have no choice but to fight.’

I got up and went to find Wei Yu.

“Martial Arts Journey? I don’t have any intention of stopping you. Do as you please.”

Wei Yu easily allowed me to go on the Martial Arts Journey.

• • •

The day before I left for the Martial Arts Journey, someone began to climb Falling Moon Mountain.

I could feel his presence with my senses. He wasn’t an ordinary human. He was a master who had reached the realm of Aura. He was alone, and I didn’t feel any hostility.

‘Is he a fool who came looking for a lucky encounter?’

Or he was someone who had heard the rumors of the Falling Moon Goddess Wei Yu and came to ask for guidance. In this case, Wei Yu would mostly refuse and end it. If the opponent didn’t have any hostility, she wouldn’t kill them.

I was different. I didn’t like the fact that he had entered Falling Moon Mountain in the first place. So, I was going to kill him as soon as I saw him.

Thunder Heaven Style: Flying Thunder God.

I transformed my body into lightning and moved to the place where I felt the presence.

KWA-KWANG!

Blue lightning struck the ground. I returned to human form from the lightning. A surprised man was standing in front of me. He looked to be in his early to mid-40s. The fact that he was a man was displeasing in the first place.

He hastily clasped his hands in a respectful bow. His actions were not servile but dignified.

“A junior greets a senior!”

“I don’t have a junior like you. Who are you?”

The reason I didn’t kill him right away was because of the gold clothes he was wearing. He was wearing flamboyant gold clothes.

As far as I knew, there was only one group in this world that wore such clothes.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard.

The imperial guard directly under the emperor.

“My name is Gu Eoksin. I am from the Embroidered Uniform Guard. I have come to deliver a letter from His Majesty the Emperor to the Falling Moon Goddess.”

There was a reason for his confidence. He had come on the orders of the emperor, who could be called the strongest in the world, so he had no choice but to be confident.

“What kind of letter is it?”

“I do not know. It is a letter from His Majesty the Emperor. Only the Falling Moon Goddess can receive the letter.”

“You’re quite arrogant. Can I cut off one of your arms?”

“…Senior. I am carrying out an imperial order.”

“You can still carry out an imperial order even without one arm.”

“……”

Gu Eoksin did not back down.

I raised my right hand. Strong energy surged, taking the form of a blade, mixed with lightning. Just as I was about to swing my right hand, Wei Yu’s voice echoed from all directions. The Six Directions Transmission.

-Stop. He is a guest from afar, so bring him here.

I roughly swung the energy and lightning gathered in my right hand. The Lightning Energy Blade shattered dozens of trees and disappeared.

I said to Gu Eoksin, who was stiff as a board,

“You’re a lucky one. Follow me.”

I stepped into the air and leaped up Falling Moon Mountain. Gu Eoksin used his lightness skill to follow behind me.

‘He can’t even do the Void Step. His lightness skill is terrible. How did he get here from the imperial palace? Did he use a magical artifact or something?’

I moved to a shabby house for guests, not my home. I couldn’t show the modern house to other people because it could become troublesome. This was something Wei Yu and I had agreed on a long time ago.

As soon as we entered the shabby house, Wei Yu was sitting at the table, drinking tea. She wasn’t wearing her usual comfortable clothes, like a tank top or hot pants, but a white light robe.

“Is that green tea? It’s been a while since I’ve seen Master drink something other than beer or water.”

“Be quiet. Don’t say unnecessary things in front of a guest. Just keep your mouth shut.”

“I heard he’s from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, bringing a letter from the Emperor. Did you know the Emperor?”

“We had a connection in the past. …He’s coming up.”

Gu Eoksin came up. He wasn’t panting, so he had quite a bit of stamina, as expected of someone in the Aura Realm. He paused at Wei Yu’s beauty and then bowed respectfully.

“I am Gu Eoksin of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. I have been ordered to deliver His Majesty the Emperor’s letter to the Falling Moon Goddess.”

“I am Wei Yu. You have worked hard to come all the way to Falling Moon Mountain. Would you like some tea?”

“I will drink after I finish my mission. Please accept His Majesty the Emperor’s letter.”

“I will.”

Wei Yu received the letter. The letter was sealed with sorcery. Wei Yu shattered the seal with her finger and unfolded the letter.

“…It’s an invitation to a banquet celebrating the thousandth anniversary of the founding of the nation in two years. Nothing special. Yujin, go in my place.”