The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 283

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 283

Burren Zigheart swallowed hard as he watched the blood aura fall like a meteor shower.

‘He actually destroyed it….’

When the sun vanished and the sorcerous formation revealed itself, he couldn’t move a single finger. The sheer magnitude of the blood aura encompassing all of Granseville overwhelmed him, leaving only dry swallows in his throat.

The others felt the same. Even Lunan Slion, who seemed devoid of panic, was visibly breaking into a cold sweat.

As the entire Gwangpung Unit trembled with tension, an aura message reached me from Raon.

[Scared?]

The flippant words, so at odds with the gravity of the situation, made the veins in my forehead bulge.

[I didn’t train you all to be this pathetic.]

That chilling voice brought back memories of our training sessions. Deadly tag, sleepless sparring, character-breaking drills—vivid nightmares that made my spine tingle just thinking about them.

‘That’s right. I’ve come too far to die to some sorcery.’

I clenched my sword hilt tightly. Having tasted true hell, the fighting spirit that had been crushed by the formation blazed back to life.

“I won’t die until I land a punch on that bastard.”
“Right. I have to land at least one hit.”
“Let’s hold on.”
“Compared to his training, this is nothing.”

The other members of the Gwangpung Unit steeled themselves and fixed their gaze on the formation. The emotion reflected in their eyes was not fear, but confidence—the certainty that they could do this.

[Good eyes.]

Raon didn’t even look at us, yet nodded with satisfaction.

[Don’t worry about the sorcery. I’ll break it. You all focus on what you need to do.]

Raon kept his promise and shattered the sorcerous formation alone, driving his blade deep into the 7th Apostle.

Burren Zigheart and the Gale Wind Squad watched with fists clenched, their eyes fixed on Raon.

From fellow trainees to comrades. And now, gazing upon the back of the man who stood before them, they silently prayed for victory.

*

*

*

I narrowed my eyes as I examined the 7th Apostle’s wound.

‘Unfortunate.’

It wasn’t deep enough.

The moment the Soul Reaper Sword surged forward, the 7th Apostle had arched his body backward, evading a fatal blow. The way he staunched the bleeding from his chest while lowering his stance suggested he was already preparing for my follow-up attack.

‘He’s not losing control.’

He was clearly flustered, but he hadn’t abandoned reason. It seemed he’d learned from our previous exchanges that recklessness would only lead to defeat.

“I acknowledge it.”

The 7th Apostle forcibly sealed the wound on his chest and nodded. Despite the bleeding being stopped, the pain from the essence wound must have been excruciating, yet he showed barely any sign of it.

“I didn’t expect you to wield your blade in such a manner. Quite innovative.”
“An admirer of acknowledgment? Why do you keep offering your approval like that?”

I let out a cold laugh and spun the Heaven’s Sword in my grip.

“I don’t need your acknowledgment. The only thing I want from you is your head.”

I steadied my breathing and crossed my arms holding both blades diagonally.

‘I need to finish this quickly.’

I didn’t let it show, but breaking through the Blood Phantom Formation had consumed a considerable amount of aura. I decided there was no need to drag this out—I would end it swiftly.

“You wretched insect….”

The 7th Apostle’s face crumpled as if my mocking words stung far more than the clash of blades. He thrust his serrated sword forward, and blood energy erupted above it with such intensity that my hair stood on end.

Boom!

I stomped the ground violently. Channeling the Ethereal Footwork, I surged toward the 7th Apostle like lightning.

“You dare!”

The 7th Apostle, believing I had disrespected him, drove his serrated blade straight at me.

Whoooosh!

The eerie blade, wreathed in formidable blood energy, closed the distance in an instant. It was fast, heavy, and devastatingly sharp.

‘His swordsmanship has evolved too.’

It wasn’t just his realm that had changed. The 7th Apostle had acquired a new supreme-tier sword technique.

Crack!

I stepped forward with my left foot, which I’d twisted slightly at the ankle. Moving as smoothly as if walking on water, I traced the Heavenly Resonance Sword technique with the Soul Reaper Sword.

Clang!

A silver blade flowing along the constellations intercepted the 7th Apostle’s serrated sword, carrying with it a biting chill.

I leaned my upper body forward. Defense complete—now came the counterattack. Gripping the Soul Reaper Sword thinly, I unleashed the Flame Blossom.

Yellow and crimson petals bloomed from the short blade, transforming into a razor-sharp tempest that engulfed the 7th Apostle.

“I’ve seen that before.”

The 7th Apostle released his tension and retreated. He spun his serrated sword like a windmill, raising a barrier of blood energy.

“It’ll be a bit different this time.”

The moment my voice rang out, the movement of the petals shifted dramatically. The fragments of flame advanced as if alive and breathing, detonating with scorching force before the 7th Apostle’s vital points.

Kwaaaaaaang!

The successive shockwaves caused the wall of blood energy the 7th Apostle had raised to undulate violently.

“Tch, such power….”
“You’re not the only one who’s grown stronger.”

I twisted my jaw to the side and pulled my lips into a smirk.

“If you think you’ve surpassed me, you’ll die without accomplishing anything.”
“What?”
“Before and now—you remain beneath me. Stop your whining and perish.”

At my declaration, spoken with absolute certainty, the 7th Apostle’s jaw trembled visibly with unease.

“You arrogant bastard!”

The 7th Apostle roared and charged forward. Fury erupted from him as he unleashed his power, yet my sword technique grew only sharper. It seemed I had amplified my strength while maintaining cold rationality.

Zzzzhing!

I blocked the 7th Apostle’s blade strike—charging like a wild boar—with the Soul Reaper Sword held in reverse grip. The impact was tremendous; my shoulders and arm bones ached, and the shock reverberated through my abdomen.

“Wretched insect! I’ll crush you so thoroughly you won’t even be able to swing a blade!”

The 7th Apostle, anticipating his blade would be blocked, rotated his wrist and immediately unleashed a second strike.

Whoooosh!

The blood energy embedded in the serrated blade suddenly swelled threefold, pressing down upon my entire body. It appeared to be a technique that sacrificed sharpness to maximize weight and destructive force.

‘The power is certainly formidable.’

The 7th Apostle’s strike carried the strength of an upper-master level. Yet the realm he had ascended to was not upper-master. At best, he had reached the pinnacle of intermediate.

‘At that level….’

I have the advantage.

I couldn’t immediately close the gap in realm, but my strength, speed, and aura were entirely within reach to pursue.

Whoooosh.

I exhaled the turbid energy that had filled my lungs and resonated the ring of fire with fervent intensity.

Screeeech!

The 7th Apostle’s descending saw blade slowed, and the flow of its power began to come into focus.

‘His proficiency isn’t that high.’

I honed my concentration and found the gaps in the 7th Apostle’s blade strike. Within the surging flames of blood energy, I sensed the weakness in the blade’s technique.

Ten Thousand Flower Technique, White Blossom.
Crimson Flash.

A line of flame blazing like a shaft of light across the Soul Reaper Sword’s blade struck the tip of the saw blade.

Claaaaaang!

The saw blade, laden with brutish force, was violently repelled.

“Wh-what!”

As the 7th Apostle tried to slip away like a loach, I stepped on Heavenly Harmony Step. Folding space, I pursued and brought the Soul Reaper Sword down toward his shoulder.

Craaack!

The 7th Apostle’s collarbone was torn away, and murky blood fountained forth.

“Gaaahhh!”

He staggered backward, clutching his shoulder, his scream piercing with agony.

“H-how did you break through Blood Demon’s Absolute….”
“….”

I didn’t answer, instead pressing down on the Taewhwa Step once more. I advanced as if riding the current of water, carving sharply to the left.

“Get out of my way!”

The 7th Apostle, befitting a Master-tier swordsman, swiftly erased his shock and swung his serrated blade. The sword force was equally devastating, comparable to his previous strike.

‘I anticipated this level of resistance.’

I didn’t retreat. I raised a circular formation of Manywa Energy above the Soul Reaper Sword held in reverse grip.

*Ching-ring-ring!*

Manywa Energy Rosary Wall. The flaming aura that rose like a shield deflected the 7th Apostle’s serrated blade. Immediately after, I brought down the Celestial Sword drenched in Glacia’s frigid essence.

*Crash-shhhh!*

The serrated blade locked between the two swords trembled as if it would shatter.

*Spurt!*

Blood erupted anew from the wounds on the 7th Apostle’s chest and shoulder that he had barely managed to staunch.

“Ugh!”

I drew upon every ounce of Manywa Energy and Glacia, channeling even my physical strength, and drove the 7th Apostle back relentlessly.

*Crack-crack-crack-crack!*

The ground beneath us, trembling under that overwhelming force, crumbled, and the 7th Apostle plummeted through.

-Aren’t you going to do what you usually do?

Wrath narrowed his eyes as he observed the pulverized ground.

‘What I usually do?’
-That sordid habit of toying with your opponent while extracting their techniques.
‘I don’t need that bastard’s skills.’

Raon shook his head and descended through the hole where the 7th Apostle had fallen.
Below lay a vast cavern, its perimeter littered with countless corpses, the floor stained with the dried residue of blood.

‘There’s nothing worth learning here.’

This cavern was undoubtedly where the 7th Apostle and that creature Tus had slaughtered people to harvest their vital essence. I had no need for the martial techniques of such vermin. I would overwhelm them with terror and dread before delivering the final blow.

“You filthy bastard….”

The 7th Apostle ground his teeth so violently they seemed ready to shatter, gripping the serrated blade with both hands. A keen vital essence, fused with the blade itself, surged forth without end.

Raon, though smaller, ignited a denser flame and drove his sword down against the blood-dried earth with devastating force.

A thunderous boom echoed through the cavern.

*

*

*

The 7th Apostle barely parried Raon’s blade, his lips drawing blood as he bit down.

‘What is this? Why?’

How could I, standing on the threshold of Master rank, not overcome this wretch?

How could I fail to block the strike of someone at mere Intermediate rank?

Though I occupied a higher realm and my vital essence vastly outweighed Raon’s aura, each time I parried his blade, a searing shock reverberated through my body. The bleeding I had barely stemmed erupted anew, my vital essence draining at an alarming rate.

‘This makes no sense.’

In martial combat, realm and aura quantity are paramount. Even with superior techniques, a warrior of lower rank rarely defeats one of higher standing.

Yet Raon Zigheart, both before and now, had pressed his blade against me—one who stood higher. And his blade was sharper, more formidable.

I could not fathom how such a thing was possible.

“Gaaaaaahhhhh!”

The 7th Apostle screamed, detonating every last ounce of blood essence within him. He channeled that tremendous force entirely into the Blood Heaven Absolute’s supreme technique—Crimson Blood Soul—which the Cult Leader had taught him, and brought it crashing down.

Boom!

Between the blade descending with all its might, two brilliant lights flashed. Azure and crimson radiance—Raon’s sword strike, imbued with cold and heat.

Screeeech!

The Crimson Blood Soul shattered under the true strike of the two blades, and the 7th Apostle was hurled backward, slamming into the cavern wall.

“Ugh…”

The 7th Apostle’s jaw trembled as he stared at the pile of stone above him, dripping with blood.

‘Even Crimson Blood Soul was overwhelmed…’

Crimson Blood Soul was the most devastating strike in the Blood Heaven Absolute. If it had been shattered, overpowering this creature through strength alone was impossible.

Squelch.

At the sound of footsteps pressing against the sticky ground, I lifted my head. Raon Zigheart approached with eyes that gleamed with chilling intent.

“Ugh…”

That creature. The insect I had thought I could kill by casually twisting its neck now loomed impossibly large. It had grown so colossal that it seemed to fill the entire cavern, towering above me.

‘Am I… afraid? Me?’

That could not be. I was an apostle of the Blood God, a disciple of the Cult Leader—I absolutely could not fear such vermin.

‘A way! I need a way!’

As my eyes darted about, I noticed blood pooling in the cracks etched across the floor and walls.

‘Ah!’

The 7th Apostle nodded slowly to myself.

‘There it is. A way to kill that bastard!’

This place—where I had conjured the Blood Phantom Formation and charged the blood essence—was drawing the stray essence back toward me. If I absorbed it, I could kill Raon as easily as swatting an insect.

“Whoosh!”

The 7th Apostle moved sideways with urgent footwork, simultaneously summoning a white blood aura to draw in the blood essence converging within the cavern.

‘Good. This will work.’

Despite barely channeling any energy, the converging blood essence was substantial. If I could buy just a little more time, I could erase my wounds and gather enough essence to kill Raon.

‘I must focus entirely on my footwork.’

I turned my gaze away from Raon to flee, but instead of pursuing, he drove Wrath’s dagger into the ground.

“What are you—huh?”

The 7th Apostle’s mouth fell open. The converging blood essence split into two streams, with half of it flowing toward Raon’s dagger.

Goooooo!

The dagger devoured the essence, its size expanding with each pulse.

“Damn! That’s mine! Why are you taking the blood essence!”
“It’s not blood essence. It’s the resentment of those you’ve slain.”

Raon’s eyes gleamed with cold clarity as he pulled the dagger from the ground.

“They have spoken.”

Clusters of blood essence erupted skyward as if a vein had burst. He raised both blades through the swirling mist of power.

“They demand I show you the depths of hell before I end you.”

*

*

*

I felt the formidable aura flowing from the Soul Reaper Sword and poured all my strength into my grip.

Uuuuuuung!

The Soul Reaper Sword sang out with a piercing resonance. The spirits of those slain by the 7th Apostle—masters of blood energy—cried out for vengeance.

As if to answer their plea, the blood energies flowing into this cavern gathered far more densely around the Soul Reaper Sword than toward the 7th Apostle, channeling immense power into my blade.

‘Then I’ll grant their wish.’

I lowered my stance and charged toward the 7th Apostle.

Kwaaaang!

The Soul Reaper Sword, wrapped in the incantation of the Radiant Blade, clashed with the 7th Apostle’s serrated saber. The resentment and anguish embedded in that slender blade pushed the serrated weapon back alone. Terrifying malevolent energy crushed down upon the blood aura.

“Tch, such filthy power!”
“You’re the filthy one.”

I held my breath and drew the Heavenly Sword back. A divine flame dragon descended upon the silver blade, its maw gaping wide. Its golden eyes blazed as it unleashed a roar of scorching fury.

Kwaaaaaaah!

Veins bulged across the 7th Apostle’s face under the terrifying firepower unleashed by the Flame Dragon Incantation.

Kugugugugu!

He was desperately raising his blood energy to simultaneously block both the Soul Reaper Sword and the Heavenly Sword, but as his limit approached, the hand gripping the saw blade trembled slightly.

Zing!

Raon leaned his upper body forward and poured more power into his two swords. Blue and red energy became a great mountain, pushing the 7th Apostle back.

Boom!

The 7th Apostle’s legs were embedded in the blood-stained floor, and his entire body swayed like a paper doll.

“Grrr….”
“Those you killed couldn’t even resist.”

I gazed down at the 7th Apostle with eyes blazing like wildfire.

“I’ll crush you like the writhing insect you are.”

I stepped forward with precision, amplifying the Ring of Flames, Myriad Harmony, and Glaceia through the Soul Reaper Sword with the demonic energy flowing through it.

“Aaaaaaahhhhh!”

The 7th Apostle shrieked and made a final desperate struggle, but I ignored the thrashing and drew upon all my strength to strike downward.

Crackle!

Under the intensified pressure, pristine white cracks spread across the saw blade.

Crash!

The single fissure multiplied exponentially, shattering into fragments. Between the scattering pieces of the saw blade, I glimpsed the 7th Apostle’s eyes wide with terror.

“It’s over.”
“Noooooo!”

Just as I moved to sever the 7th Apostle’s throat with the Soul Reaper Sword and the Heavenly Sword—

Crash!

A sinister aura descended like lightning from behind. A hand extended at a speed transcending Master rank. I twisted my waist and extended the Heavenly Sword backward.

Raon Zigheart Style Swordsmanship.
Second Form, Heavenly Repulsion Reversed.

The Heavenly Repulsion, maximizing repulsive force instead of pulling attraction, hurled back the assailant rushing from behind.

“Ugh!”

The 7th Apostle seized this fleeting opening and attempted to flee.

‘I can’t let this slip away.’

Raon clenched his teeth, enduring the searing pain as his mana circuits burned. He brought the Soul Reaper Sword down with his left hand.

“Just disappear already!”

The 7th Apostle swung his shattered saw blade forward. The Soul Reaper Sword clashed against it—a desperate maneuver to buy time for the one approaching from behind.

Screeeech!

As the saw blade cut upward from below, brilliant azure light flashed across Raon’s eyes.

Raon Zigheart’s sword technique.
Third Form: Silver Dream.

A dreamlike blue aurora swept past, and the Soul Reaper Sword’s blade embedded itself in the 7th Apostle’s neck.

Splurt!

Raon turned to face the New Assailant, twisting his lips into a grimace.

“I won’t fall for the same trick twice.”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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