The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 992

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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 992

I narrowed my eyes as I examined the blood-red bell.

‘It’s not making any sound.’

Even though I shook the bell forcefully, no sound emerged.

‘How strange. There’s clearly a bead inside it.’

Typically, bells are sorcerers’ instruments—hollow exteriors crafted from metal or wood with small beads placed inside to produce a crystalline chime.

Yet this blood-red bell I held, despite clearly containing a bead within, produced no sound whatsoever.

Swish…

The only sound from shaking the bell was the subtle, muted friction of silk ribbons brushing against each other like ornamental decorations.

‘Beyond the silence, this bell itself…’

It felt deeply ominous.

The blood-red bell itself emanated no aura whatsoever, yet it possessed an inexplicable, eerie pull that made me want to keep staring at it—accompanied by a sense of dread so overwhelming that I wanted to shatter it right here. The sensation was far too unsettling.

‘Merlin…’

I glanced at Merlin just in case, but as expected, she remained unconscious, breathing only in shallow, faint gasps.

‘I’d prefer to leave it here, but taking it would be wiser.’

The Machang Society and Eden had tracked Merlin all this way to recover this bell. To inflict damage upon them, despite my misgivings, taking the bell was the right choice.

-Hmm…

Wrath examined the bead from different angles, his eyes narrowing.

‘What’s wrong? Do you recognize this bead?’

I held out a blood-red orb to Wrath, who seemed to be in anguish.

-No, I have no idea whatsoever.

Wrath shook his head firmly, saying he’d never seen such an object before.

‘But why is he groaning like that?’
-Strangely enough….

He smacked his lips as he gazed at the orb.

-It carries a scent similar to that wretch the True Demon King despises so thoroughly.

Wrath furrowed his brow, detecting a foul stench mixed within the orb’s ominous aura.

‘A wretch he despises? Could it be Rust?’
-Well, that one is certainly disagreeable, but there’s someone else who instinctively irritates me far more.

He shook his head, saying this presence was fundamentally different from Rust.

‘Then who could it be?’
-The problem is I’m not certain….

Wrath was lowering his brow, uncertain whether it was merely similar or the genuine article.

Kwaaarrrrng!

A tremendous thunderbolt crashed down in the direction of the field where Mark Goeten stood.

‘I need to move quickly.’

That lightning strike had gravely worsened Mark Goeten’s condition. This was no time to be conversing with Wrath.

‘Mark Goeten’s state is dire, but….’

Guisalchang’s death would have reached Tacheon by now.

Someone of Tacheon’s caliber would certainly have sensed the death of the one I’d brainwashed. I had to flee as far as possible before he arrived here.

“Blood Horn.”

After placing the orb in my uniform pocket, I called out to Blood Horn, who was clinging to Guisalchang’s side.

“Your master asked me to take you with me, but I will respect your choice.”

I continued speaking, assuming Blood Horn could understand human language.

“If you wish to remain by your master’s side, I will leave as I am. What will you do?”

Since I was the one who had killed my master Guisalchang, I gazed at Blood Horn without holding much hope.

Purrrr.

Blood Horn seemed to understand my words. After staring at me for a moment, it slowly lowered its body and pressed its forehead against the dead Guisalchang’s.

Blood Horn closed its eyes slowly as if offering a final farewell to its former master, then opened them and approached me.

I was tall for a warrior, yet Blood Horn’s stature was so immense that I had to look up at it.

Purrrr!

Blood Horn stood before me, lowered its head, and extended its forehead forward.

‘Is it asking me to touch it?’

I narrowed my eyes and brushed the back of my hand across Blood Horn’s forehead.

Whoooosh!

In that instant, a crimson circle like the sun was inscribed on the back of my hand, and I felt a strange exhilaration as Blood Horn’s soul seemed to intertwine with mine.

Purrrr.

Blood Horn slowly bowed its head. Contrary to my expectations, it was grateful that I had slain Guisalchang as a warrior.

“So you’re willing to follow me?”

I nodded as I looked at Blood Horn.

Whoooosh.

Blood Horn closed his massive eyes and then opened them again, as if in agreement.

“Then I look forward to working with you from now on.”

I nodded and climbed onto Blood Horn’s saddle alongside Merlin.

“Let’s go. Full speed.”

As I gripped the reins, Blood Horn surged forward as if he’d never tired, his mane blazing like flames, shattering the earth beneath him as he cut through the forest.

Phew!

Unlike the mournful whinny of the war beast carrying his new master, a faint smile lingered at the lips of the general who had departed after a satisfying battle.

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Crash!

As Mark Goeten’s blade became a blue flash and fell, the wall of monsters blocking his path crumbled in an instant.

But the Eden Ghosts and monsters surged forth anew as if resurrecting, rushing toward him again. Watching the endless tide of creatures pouring in, it felt like trying to bail out the sea with a ladle.

Slash!

Mark Goeten cut down the wave-like onslaught of monsters and Red Ghost Soldiers, retreating step by step.

‘Damn it! There’s no end to this!’

The monsters and Eden Ghosts kept charging forward even after being slain, desperate to breach into the forest. Despite corpses piling up like mountains, they showed no fear—it was like fighting animated puppets.

‘I’m reaching my limit now….’

Because I had surpassed the threshold of Grand Master in one leap, my internal and external wounds remained unhealed. I was holding on through awakened mental fortitude, but I would soon reach my breaking point.

‘Before that….’

Mark Goeten turned his gaze away, biting his lip.

‘I need to find the commander.’

Before my flame extinguished, I had to kill the commander who formed the Cheonra Net Formation and open a path for Raon to escape.

‘Where on earth is he?’

Judging by how rapidly the formation shifted and lightning-attribute magic was scattered, it was certain the commander was inside the Cheonra Net Formation, but no matter how hard I searched, I couldn’t pinpoint his location.

‘Damn it….’

It was as Mark Goeten slashed down a monster charging at him like a buffalo while gnashing his teeth.

Kuwaaaaaaaang!

A tremor that shook the earth erupted from the forest along with a deafening explosion, and flames that seemed to pierce the heavens surged upward.

‘The battle is intensifying.’

Feeling Raon’s aura reach even this far, it seemed the combat in the forest was also rushing toward its climax.

‘Even for Raon, defeating a Transcendent won’t be easy.’

Since Raon could emerge with serious injuries, I had to break through this encirclement by any means necessary.

Chwaaaaaaaaa!

I slashed through the Eden Ghosts and spread my aura once more to sense, but there was no human with a distinctive energy anywhere.

‘Did he use invisibility magic? Or is he disguised as a monster?’

Mark Goeten mocked himself for such absurd thoughts, then suddenly stopped.

‘Disguise? Could it be….’

The moment I thought of disguise, I recalled how the commander’s voice had sounded strangely slurred when I fought the Red Orc Dual-Blade Spirit, the Black Troll Sorcerer Spirit, and the White Mantis Spirit, and a chill ran down my spine.

‘That must be it.’

That’s why I couldn’t find it!

Mark Goeten smacked his lips and quickly shifted his gaze. But this time, instead of scanning the masked or helmeted executives like before, he focused solely on the monsters.

Goooooo!

He brushed aside the assault of the Eden Ghosts charging forward with drool streaming from their mouths, rapidly spreading his aura sense. A Grand Master—and one who had surpassed the threshold in a single breath—his perception already blanketed the entire field.

‘I’ve found the thread, but I still can’t pinpoint it.’

I knew how the body was being concealed, but the creature was so cunning that even my aura sense couldn’t locate it.

‘Then…’

I had no choice but to expose an opening.

I exhaled slowly and drew the remaining aura up toward the Wall Dragon Blade.

“Annoying wretches! Disappear!”

Mark Goeten roared and brought the Wall Dragon Blade down upon the surging wave of monsters. The aura infused in the blade erupted like a divine dragon, spreading in all directions.

Kwaaaaaaa!

The ultimate technique of the Azure Thunder Blade. The explosive strike extended outward, obliterating not only the monsters charging before him but all the Eden Ghosts behind them as well.

“Huff…”

But having unleashed the technique at full power, my body had stiffened, unable to move.

Crackle crackle crackle!

As if waiting for this moment, a crimson bolt of lightning fell from the sky, and a cyan spear erupted from the ground.

Kuwaaang!

Mark Goeten couldn’t raise the Wall Dragon Blade, so he erected a barrier of aura to block the crimson lightning and the ice spear.

However, I couldn’t fully dissipate the impact, and dark crimson blood spilled from my lips. Blood burst from the hastily staunched wound, soaking my uniform.

‘The damage is severe.’

I had wielded the blade with all my strength, so the aura consumption was intense, and the wound had reopened—a throbbing pain that made my head pound crashed over me.

‘But….’

Mark Goeten bit his blood-soaked lips and straightened his bent knees.

‘I found it!’

As if this battle were my last, I drew in a sharp breath and charged toward the horde of monsters on the opposite side of the forest.

Whoooosh!

After cutting through countless monsters, I brought my Wall Dragon Blade crashing down toward the Kobold Sorcerer who stood vacant-eyed in the empty air.

Boom!

The Kobold Sorcerer, who should have been torn apart like paper before my blade strike, erected a thick wall of mana to block my assault.

[How… how is this possible….]

The Kobold Sorcerer’s eyes widened in disbelief that his identity had been exposed.

“There were plenty of hints.”

Mark Goeten twisted his mouth as he pressed down on the Kobold Sorcerer with his Wall Dragon Blade.

“The voice giving orders to the White Mantis Spirit sounded unnaturally awkward for a human.”

When the commander of the Cheonra Net Formation instructed the White Mantis Spirit to enter the forest, the tone was even more unnatural than a child’s. At the time, I hadn’t thought much of it, but now I realized—it wasn’t human, which is why that manner of speech emerged.

“Besides, none of the executives here seemed to be giving orders.”

I had examined all the Eden executives on this battlefield, but none of them possessed the skill to command or were actually issuing instructions. That’s why I concluded the true leader wasn’t human but hiding among the monsters.

[Then… does that mean….]

The Kobold Sorcerer trembled, his green lips quivering as he realized he’d been deceived.

“Exactly. That’s why I deliberately showed an opening.”

Mark Goeten nodded, explaining that thanks to the lightning strike, he’d been able to pinpoint the sorcerer’s location.

[Damn it!]

The Kobold Sorcerer gnashed his sharp teeth, berating himself for the regrettable mistake.

[Even if you’ve discovered me, it’s already too late! You will die here!]

He positioned himself as a barrier and summoned the monsters and Eden executives behind him to strike from the rear.

“As expected of Eden. To grant monsters such formidable abilities… but…”

Mark Goeten looked down at the Kobold Sorcerer and shook his head.

“Your end comes here.”

He closed the distance in an instant and unleashed his blade strike, manifesting the Revealed Ghost Sword.

Kuwaaaaang!

The azure-infused wall dragon blade shattered the Kobold Sorcerer’s shield and tore his body in half.

[I… I was defeated by a mere human…?]

The Kobold Sorcerer’s eyes trembled in disbelief at his own death, blood spilling from his lips as he sank into the fractured earth below.

Kiaaaaaaaa!
Kroooooo!

With the Kobold Sorcerer who commanded the Cheonra Net Formation dead, the monsters scattered in all directions like lost children or began fighting amongst themselves.

The Eden Ghosts that had been charging at him could no longer advance through the rampaging monsters and were forced to retreat. It seemed they would no longer pose a threat as they turned their attention to fighting each other.

“Haa…”

Mark Goeten wiped away the black blood trickling from his lips, a faint smile crossing his face.

‘It’s over.’

Fortunately, I had managed to dismantle the Cheonra Net Formation before Raon emerged. A small sense of relief washed over me—I had kept my oath to Raon.

‘Now….’

I should go see the Lord.

Mark Goeten lifted his legs, now heavy as if soaked in water, and walked toward the Forest.

‘Even in my current state, I can still be of use.’

In truth, considering the condition of my body, retreating would have been the right choice. But if I could launch a surprise attack with what strength remained, I might create an opening for Raon. Going forward was the only option.

Whoooooosh!

As Mark Goeten tried to enter the Forest, a chill wind swept down from above his head.

Slowly raising my gaze, I saw the Snake-Helmeted Man hovering in the air as if standing on solid ground, wearing a helmet of green serpent scales.

‘The Green Blade Master!’

The Eden executive in the Snake-Helmeted Man’s armor—one who rose again and again, no matter how many times he fell.

“This is absolutely insane.”

The Green Blade Master let out a scoff, releasing an ominous aura of killing intent.

“Tch….”

Mark Goeten’s hand trembled as he gripped the Wall Dragon Blade. Even at full strength, that man would have been beyond my capacity to handle.

“I’ll need to kill you before he arrives.”

The Green Blade Master slowly extended his hand. His fingertips transformed into a blade, hurtling toward my throat.

‘Ah….’

I could see the Green Blade Master’s assault coming, yet I was powerless to stop it. As the word “death” branded itself into my mind, a sensation like needles piercing my back surged forth, and the memory of past training flooded back.

Whoooosh!

Raon had unleashed an inescapable sword strike while conducting concentration enhancement training. The moment from that training—when I had failed to evade and offered my neck—now overlapped with this present reality.

‘It’s certainly strong and fast. But…’

Not quite as formidable as Jeon-ju’s blade!

Mark Goeten twisted his body and threw himself to the right, twisting his sword. A split-second judgment that overcame death itself. Thanks to the realm of transcendence I had experienced under Raon’s guidance, I managed to evade the Transcendent’s blade.

“Huh? You dodged that?”

The Green Blade Master exhaled in disbelief, as if the very notion was absurd.

“So you’re that man’s subordinate. I’ll give you proper treatment then.”

He clicked his tongue in displeasure and drew his sword.

Claaaaaang!

A keen blade rushed toward me, and this time there was nowhere to flee that would grant escape. Certain death surged toward my chest.

‘This is the end then.’

Mark Goeten did not lower his gaze even as the Green Blade Master’s sword bore down, ready to pierce his chest.

‘Still, I have no regrets.’

I had blocked the path as I swore to Raon, and I had shattered the Cheonra Net Formation—there was nothing more to ask for.

I simply watched the blade approach like a sentence of death, hoping only that Raon would return safely.

Thud thud thud thud thud!

Just as the pale blade pierced my chest and was about to lodge in my heart, a fierce sound of hoofbeats erupted from behind.

Before that sound even reached my ears fully, a crimson light flashed before my eyes.

Clang!

The slash blazing with golden flames violently drove back the Green Blade Master’s sword that had been thrusting toward my chest.

“This is….”

Before I could even turn around, a massive horse and the Blonde Swordsman riding atop it came into view.

“You’ve endured much.”

Raon nodded to me as if acknowledging the hardships I had faced. Hearing the gratitude from the man I served as my lord, all the suffering and pain I had accumulated seemed to vanish in an instant.

“I’ll handle it from here.”

Raon glanced at the Green Blade Master gripping my wrist and the monsters beginning to pile up behind him, then smacked his lips briefly.

“As quickly as possible.”

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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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