1081——————==

Soul of the Evil God (四神之魂)

The clash of our first strikes had a certain intention behind it. If he were a Peerless Master, it would be natural for him to avoid a blade clash even when exchanging techniques, but for some reason, he felt compelled to confront my blade directly, as if wanting to read the energy packed into it.

I quickly realized that his physical strength wasn’t very impressive. No, it was just the level of enhancement a regular human could achieve. Compared to my own internal power, which had reached its maximum, it felt like comparing a grand champion to a child.

‘If he were Eight Parts of the Divine, I would have expected a human-like body to possess outstanding strength.’

That physique was nothing more than a slightly trained martial artist. For a being like a Demon King that had acquired a physical body, it was shockingly weak. It seemed the Asura had not completely abandoned the power of the Demon King to live as a human.

Yet, despite the inadequacy in strength, his intent was strong enough to surpass my internal power several times over. With just the spirit retained on the edge of his blade, I couldn’t push him back and had to maintain a stalemate. I was channeling my own absolute realm intent, but I could feel his will was stronger than mine.

“……!!”

What is this?

I realized I had felt something similar before. He might not have the overwhelming strength of the past White Lotus Sect Master or the Demon King, but there was no visible gap to penetrate through the intricately formed spirit. I searched my memories for where I had felt this before, but I couldn’t pinpoint it.

Kigik

With our blades locked, the Asura stared at me expressionlessly. Then he spoke.

“Though you claim to be in the absolute realm, you handle intent heavenly pillar rather well. But why do I not feel your unique flavor?”

“What?”

I responded, baffled.

“I haven’t even exchanged a single move yet! We’re merely locking blades, how can you speak of the color of martial arts?”

“You can do so.”

The Asura observed me slowly with an understanding look and continued.

“I’ve heard you use Thunder Sword as your specialty. Then let me face you with my Thunder Sword.”

“What a grandstanding fool!”

I scoffed and immediately invoked my Thunder Sword technique. It annoyed me to comply with his request, but since he claimed he could counter my Thunder Sword with his, I wanted to see if it was possible. In an instant, my sword pulled back at an incredible speed, unleashing Thunder Energy as it lunged directly toward the Asura’s neck.

Kuwang!!

Chijijijik…

“…….”

“I see, so this is the feeling.”

In that fleeting moment, the Asura calmly positioned his sword against mine and emitted his own Thunder Sword technique to block mine. That movement could only have been executed with prior knowledge of my actions, but I didn’t consider it a form of foresight. It was simply a case of him having read my movement with the instincts of a master. However, for a Peak Expert to effortlessly match the speed of my Thunder Sword was no longer within the realm of a human.

The Asura held my sword steadily, not budging, and said.

“Is this an exploratory phase since it’s the beginning? Your attack carried no sincerity at all. I’d like to see your Infinite Slash.”

How blunt. I retorted curtly.

“Why? Try to block my Infinite Slash if you can!”

“I think I can.”

“Bullcrap!”

Pa-pat

Thunder Sword

Thousand Kills Slash

I spun around like a whirlwind, enveloping my body with a crescent-like Thunder Sword and unleashed Thousand Kills Slash. It had been a while since I used it properly, but there was no doubt it was a powerful ultimate technique. With the extreme attack power of Thunder Sword, the might of my Thousand Kills Slash was maximized.

Pipip!

In an instant, the speed of my sword surpassed that of bullets by dozens of times, and my sword strikes exceeded two hundred. As it reached beyond three hundred, the speed accelerated, and I could see beams of light surrounding me as if a waterfall were cascading down. The power was incomparable to what I had used in the Imperial Palace!

However, before I could even take a breath, as I surpassed four hundred strikes, I suddenly felt a sense of strangeness.

‘What is this?’

Even with a ferocious speed and a flurry of strikes, the Asura remained planted in place, not moving an inch. And when I realized what he was doing, I was at a loss.

His sword path, with flowing waves intertwined like a single body!

An independent flow of swordsmanship I had never seen before was guarding the Asura’s body. The speed of his sword seemed to be slower than mine, but his techniques gracefully blocked my attacks, as if he anticipated my every move.

‘Cutting flow with flow!’

Normally, defensive techniques move in accordance to the opponent’s actions, but the Asura’s sword path carved its own way while seemingly guiding my movements along with it. What was truly shocking was how my optimally thought-out combat flow seemed to be pulled into his techniques.

Zzeng!!

Finally, as I fired off the last thousand strikes of my Infinite Slash like a nail, the Asura calmly placed his sword in the center of his body to block it. His perfect defense made me realize my attack had been utterly ineffective. I couldn’t help but admire his flawless execution as a master.

“……Hmm.”

As I looked back and let out a grunt, the Asura spoke.

“With this, it should prove that I can use Thunder Sword perfectly. Now, show me your Infinite Slash.”

I had no words to respond. After all, I had just launched my Infinite Slash, capable of severing even the mightiest of energies, yet he had countered each one with his own Thunder Sword. I couldn’t claim I could block my own Infinite Slash in that manner, so perhaps the Asura was performing it even more perfectly than me or Dokgo Seong.

“How can you use Thunder Sword?”

When I asked, the Asura replied nonchalantly.

“Thunder Sword isn’t that hard to learn. Mastering the Thunder God Lineage technique, Thunder God Sword Dance, and condensing the Thunder Energy to respond to your will is all it takes. Given its power, the training isn’t complicated at all.”

“Thunder Energy doesn’t accumulate overnight….”

“If there’s no need for a training that materializes the lightning in your heart, the training duration for Thunder Energy is greatly shortened. Seems you didn’t know that.”

I felt lost in thought at the Asura’s words.

“…Huh? No need for that?”

That had been the most challenging training for me; how could he say that?

But the Asura responded with casual confidence.

“Among the Six Great Techniques, those who are skilled at the manifestation of intent would be hard to find compared to my own achievement of the absolute realm’s Nirvana of the Absolute.”

“……”

“You’ve learned Thunder Sword from the ground up, while I’ve already looked down upon that level from the peak. The difference in training difficulty is vast.”

With those words, the Asura aimed his Thunder Sword at me.

“We had plenty of time, so I’ve mastered all the martial arts you’ve learned. Do it right.”

The thought that he had mastered all the martial arts I learned hit me hard. Of course, Jang Sam-bong’s Seven Great Techniques were inputted in the creator as well, so if he had teamed up with the creator, he would have received the data to learn them. The Eight Immortals Divine Art would probably be the same. Plus, all the martial arts my companions inputted should also have been acquired by the Asura, so he wasn’t entirely wrong.

But why?

I was confused and asked the Asura.

“Why did you do that? You’ve already achieved Nirvana of the Absolute, so increasing the number of martial arts wouldn’t make you any stronger. Why bother learning the martial arts recorded by the creator?”

I truly didn’t understand. The Asura had practically reached a level where he could attain the absolute realm. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say he had achieved six absolute realm skills all at once, and there were only a few techniques that could counter that. He must have already mastered hundreds or thousands of martial arts.

In that situation, why learn mine? It wouldn’t make him stronger; it would just be a waste of time. After all, the strength of intent had nothing to do with the number of martial arts.

To my heartfelt question, the Asura replied.

“I’ll answer why after seeing your Infinite Slash. I haven’t yet made a judgment about you.”

“…If you want to see it that badly, I have no choice!”

Wooong

I concentrated the intent of the absolute realm into my heart. Then, I began to materialize the technique I named Infinite Slash within my mind and imbued it into my blade.

Lightning that severs the infinite.

I felt confident that this technique could break even the White Lotus Sect Master’s Heart of Heaven’s Abundance, which had always seemed absolute since the dawn of my previous life. I had even once broken through it with the Heart Thunder, so my pride in my Infinite Slash was immense.

‘Haaa…!!’

My focus gradually reached its limit!

Finally, as the intent transformed into Thunder Energy and reached its peak, a moment of immense density was felt within my sword, surpassing even Thunder Sword in might. I carefully controlled that power’s flow, slightly opening my eyes, aiming for a gap in the Asura’s defense.

……

No gaps…

‘What?! Why?’

That fact startled me enough to momentarily lose my focus. Even before the White Lotus Sect Master, I had always managed to find a minuscule gap in the Heart of Heaven’s Abundance to attack, why couldn’t I see such a gap against the Asura?!

I decided to take another look with the broad perspective of the absolute realm and scanned for openings in the Asura’s stance, but whether wide or narrow, there were no gaps whatsoever. Even those that seemed to exist were completely wrapped within the Asura’s intent.

But that didn’t mean I could back down after preparing my Infinite Slash. I steeled my will and forcefully slashed toward him.

Broad Thunder erupted like an explosion towards the Asura. In that moment, it felt as though there was no way to block the strike of my Infinite Slash. However, the Asura suddenly turned his body sideways in a half-twist and slashed upwards to the left.

He’s drawing me in!

I sensed the Asura’s flow technique pulling my Heart Thunder stroke away just before it could pierce his heart. At that exact moment, when the trajectory slightly departed from its original path, the Asura immediately stepped forward, performing a second ground-impact technique.

Kuwung

N-no way, that technique is…

As I stood stupefied, the Asura seized the flow of the ground and completely avoided my stroke from the side. It was a staggering maneuver sprung from just a single step and two motions. And after successfully evading my Infinite Slash, the Asura executed the Seven Star Thunderbolt Technique to counterattack directly at my chest.

Tutudung

I narrowly dodged the counter but was still jolted back by his Body Slam and staggered three steps before spitting up blood. As I was thrown back, the Asura spoke.

“Just as I thought. Your signature technique, Infinite Slash, has a weakness.”

“What…? What do you mean?”

“It’s quite simple.”

The Asura continued coldly.

“The destructive power and penetration of a single point of Infinite Slash is certainly among the finest of all martial arts under heaven. Among the hundreds of peerless martial arts I’ve learned from the Thunder King, only one or two are comparable to Infinite Slash. But that does not make it the greatest technique.”

“Why not?”

“It’s too simplistic. It’s so simple that, by just reading the creator’s records, I’ve learned your Infinite Slash, and it’s no different from yours at all.”

With the following words from the Asura, I suddenly lost my ability to respond.

“To put it bluntly… it’s just a powerful Thunder Sword technique. Since the Thunder Sword itself was an intent-based technique, you merely strengthened the Thunder Sword to its maximum output, right? It’s just too simplistic.”

“……”

“It’s just a best effort one slash. Certainly stronger than the usual techniques. However, the intricacy is greatly lacking, and more importantly, it’s devoid of thought, so your Infinite Slash’s characteristics can change with each use. Due to its unstable power, the sword path has to be simple, leading to multiple methods to nullify Infinite Slash as long as one avoids a frontal clash.”

Swoosh

The Asura took a step forward and then hastily executed his own ground-impact technique with a stomp. Then, looking at me with a discerning gaze, he said.

“Do you understand what I mean?”

“…Yes.”

Of course, I understood that in the absolute realm, his single step signified something significant.

Three Treasure Technique!

After making an opening with his maximum deployment of Bowing Sky Slash against my Infinite Slash, the Asura first directed his flow toward the position of Heaven and then broke away. After perfectly avoiding, he gained the freedom of movement to launch his counterattack with the Seven Star Thunderbolt Technique!

Although it might seem simple when expressed verbally, the actual execution of this technique was far from easy for the average expert. Even if other experts knew how to counter, they couldn’t do it with the same ease and efficacy as the Asura could against my Infinite Slash. Even the White Lotus Sect Master would find it hard to evade or block my Infinite Slash head-on; lacking a fundamental skill, they couldn’t even attempt to use the Three Treasure Technique effectively.

Who was more capable, having power or cunning?

In the end, it solely depended on each individual’s capabilities.

I had no choice but to acknowledge that the Asura’s abilities were fundamentally several dimensions above my own. Yet, despite that, I had to address the flaws he pointed out regarding my Infinite Slash.

‘Yes… This feeling is just like that.’

Yeodong-bin.

It felt as though I was standing before him, prepared for a life-or-death battle. I was considerably stronger now than I was back then, but the absolute precision emanating from the Asura reminded me so much of Yeodong-bin. It indicated that the Asura had abandoned all brute strength and technique, achieving a state of emptiness.

“The reason I learned your martial arts through the creator was precisely for this. I wanted to discover the weaknesses in your techniques and improve them.”

“…Why?”

“Whether you like it or not, nearly all your companions are dead, and there’s no one left to raise your martial arts level. I felt it was my duty to fill that role.”

“……”

I gazed at the Asura for a long while before speaking.

“Asura. Do you genuinely want to become my companion?”

“Hehe.”

Suddenly bursting into laughter, the Asura replied.

“While yes, I wouldn’t want to beg for it. And as it stands, I have no desire to be under you.”

“Because of my Infinite Slash?”

“No, it’s all your martial arts.”

The Asura raised his sword and declared.

“You walk the same path as I do. I won’t simply stand by and watch.”

“Cut it out.”

I hardened my gaze and gripped my sword tightly.

“It’s not over yet.”

“Oh!”

Indeed, the Asura was stronger than me. Even in a human form, his pure level of martial arts far surpassed mine. But that didn’t mean the battle was over; I had to fight until the end. What kind of warrior would I be if I gave up before even trying?

However, just as I was rallying my fighting spirit, the creator, watching from the audience, clapped his hands.

“It’s over.”

Clap!!

Swish!!

Suddenly, the scene between me and the Asura on the training ground transformed into a sophisticated lounge where I was seated on a sofa, facing two people.

“Huh….”

Dumbfounded by the sudden change, I looked at the creator, who elegantly sipped his coffee and said.

“This creator space doesn’t allow time to flow differently than outside. So I can’t waste time watching you two martial artists bicker on. Even now, Cheon Woo-jin’s tool is tearing through the interior.”

“…….”

“Asura. Let’s cut to the chase.”

“Indeed.”

The Asura shrugged and turned to me.

“Baek Woong. Accept me as a companion, and I’ll teach you everything I know. I originally planned to wait for you to come to me, but since there was no sign of that, I collaborated with the creator to come find you.”

“Oh, is that so….”

Without overthinking, I nodded.

“Sounds good! But you must teach me Nirvana of the Absolute first, and you need to show me how to convince you in the next life.”

There would be no reason to decline having such a powerful Asura as a companion!

The Asura smirked at my words and replied.

“Hehe…. I look forward to it. The meeting place will be conveyed to you through the creator.”

Then the creator, hugging a raccoon doll, added.

“Baek Woong. Soon, I’ll let everyone out, but I want a promise from you.”

“What do you want me to promise?”

“Don’t trust Sagong Lin. Never tell her what you’ve learned here.”

“…….”

“Unless you promise that, I won’t let you out of here.”

I tilted my head, not understanding.

“Sagong Lin would never betray us. Why are you so insistent on warning me about her?”

“It has nothing to do with her will. In a way, it might be a similar situation to the White Lotus Sect Master. The Master worried about this, so she left a legacy for the Asura. The White Lotus Sect Master chose the Asura to control Sagong Lin if she goes wild after her passing.”

“…….”

The creator pleaded with a sincere tone.

“Please, promise me. It’s really important…”

I pondered deeply over the creator’s request.

‘It would be easy to refuse….’

The creator is nearly the only one who isn’t afraid of my reincarnated self. Since I wouldn’t be meeting the creator again after the next life, he could easily seal me away indefinitely or kill me if he wanted. But if I hastily swore a false promise, I had a strong feeling it would lead to dire consequences.

…However, I also had the instinct that the creator wouldn’t take unfair actions against me. There was a lingering hesitation whenever he dealt with me.

What should I do?

In the end, I made up my mind and replied.

“Alright. I won’t spill what happened here.”

That doesn’t mean I distrust Sagong Lin.

But I felt the secretive relationship with Asura and the creator might bring a significant change to the outcome of this life.