The Strongest in Our Neighborhood - Chapter 114

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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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The Strongest in Our Neighborhood (114)
‘What? What struck the barrier hard enough to crack it?’
Startled, he examined the damage carefully, but saw no tangible form.
All that entered through the fissure was a single wisp of wind.
Mayarban Ta dismissed it as mere wind generated by pressure differential alone and scanned his surroundings.
Whoooosh—
Yet that single wisp transformed in an instant into a razor-sharp blade that sliced across his abdomen.
“Ugh! What—what is this? What kind of wind… No. Surely not! The Duke Gain?”
He’d dismissed it as mere wind, only to realize it was a feint.
What manner of technique could deceive the eyes of an Ancient Dragon?
He swung his hand to disperse the wind, and it scattered. But that same wind reformed and slashed across his shoulder.
Mayarban Ta couldn’t grasp the substance with his hands, yet seeing himself bloodied, he stared at the wind with disbelieving eyes.
“What manner of bizarre sorcery is this?”
He dissolved the barrier wrapping his body and beat his wings to generate a tremendous wind, blowing away everything around him. The wind targeting his neck after cutting his shoulder finally lost its momentum and was forced back.
Only then could Mayarban Ta sense the presence of Jang Gain concealed within the wind.
“I don’t know how a human became wind, but now that your substance is revealed, it ends here! I’ll show you a true breath!”
Mayarban Ta drew mana from his heart and gathered it in his mouth.
“I… I surrender. I cannot last any longer.”
Jang Gain suddenly declared his defeat.
‘What?’
Mayarban Ta, who had been gathering mana to breathe on Jang Gain, felt his spirit deflate in an instant.
He dispersed the mana and returned it to his heart, asking with bewilderment.
“What did you just say?”
“That I lost. This is the extent of my limit.”
The wisp of wind that had been Jang Gain now returned to his human form, and the presence of the wind elemental Silron vanished.
Yet for some reason, the clothes he wore were shredded as though torn by dozens of blades.
“What was that bizarre technique just now? A wind spell you developed yourself?”
“It’s not magic—I’ve been training with the wind elemental and recently grasped the principle of Divine Spirit Unity. That’s how I can do it now.”
“Divine Spirit Unity? What do you mean by that?”
“The wind elemental and I become one. That’s what we call Divine Spirit Unity.”
“How can a human with flesh become one with a spirit?”
“Normally, one cannot. But when the realm of martial skill reaches a certain height, there comes a moment when one can merge with something.”
“Remarkable! I don’t entirely grasp it, but having witnessed it myself, I can only accept it. In all my centuries watching human martial arts, I have never seen a technique as bizarre as what you performed just now.”
“It was my trump card for facing you, but clearly it fell short.”
“Fell short? Can you not see the wounds on my body?”
“That’s the full extent of damage I can inflict with my abilities.”
“Haha, this is absurd! I am an Ancient Dragon. For a human like you to wound me to this degree is a remarkable feat and something to be proud of.”
“Is that so? In any case, I surrendered.”
“Yes, well… I won, yet something feels unsatisfying and murky about this victory. It doesn’t feel like a true win. Look at me—bleeding, wounded—and you’re merely dressed in rags. Where’s the balance?”
“My exterior may look intact, but my inside is in terrible shape. Merging with the wind elemental while still possessing a flesh body… Ugh, *cough*…”
Jang Gain stopped mid-sentence and suddenly coughed up blood.
Mayarban Ta watched this for a moment, then used Healing Magic to treat him.
“A curious technique indeed—it exacts a tremendous toll on the body!”
“Thank you for healing me, Mayarban Ta.”
“That martial art—merging with the wind elemental—you shouldn’t unleash it carelessly for now.”
“Yes. That’s why I need to study it further.”
Noxscasarsis listened to their exchange in a daze.
‘Jang was strong enough to wound Father’s body!’
To him, his father was an absolute being, a god. Though he had a stronger grandfather, he had only seen him once as a hatchling, so the old dragon was practically a stranger.
“Noxscasarsis.”
His father called him.
“Yes, Father.”
He hurried over and noticed his father’s wounds had already healed.
“Did you see my battle with Duke Gain?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And what did you think?”
“I never expected you to be wounded by him. To be honest, it was quite shocking.”
“I, too, was caught off guard. Duke Gain possesses potential for growth that even I failed to predict!”
“That does seem to be the case. By the way, how is the wound he inflicted on you?”
“I treated it with magic, but it still throbs.”
“Jang Gain, when you were fighting your father, it looked like you became one with a wind spirit and transformed into wind itself…… How did you manage that?”
“Among the martial arts I’ve mastered, there’s a realm called Divine Weapon Unity. I reached that level a long time ago, of course. But while preparing for the fight with Mayarban Ta, I discovered the possibility of Divine Spirit Unity and practiced it steadily.”
“Divine Weapon Unity? Divine Spirit Unity? How can a person become one body with a sword?”
“Such a realm exists. I’m not in peak condition right now, so I can’t demonstrate it, but I’ll show you later.”
“Your father treated your injuries, didn’t he? Is there any part that didn’t heal properly?”
“My body is completely healed, but Divine Spirit Unity drains mental energy tremendously. I think I need to rest a bit longer before my mind becomes clear again.”
“All right, then be sure to show me later.”
“I will.”
Mayarban Ta, who had been listening to their conversation, withdrew two scrolls from his Sub-space.
“You two take one each.”
“Oh! These are Spatial Movement Scrolls.”
Noxscasarsis recognized the magic contained within the moment he received the scroll.
“When a duke-level demon or higher separates space itself from this world, spatial movement becomes impossible. The magic circle inscribed on this scroll compensates for that weakness.”
“So if I tear this, it will transport me to your father’s lair?”
“That’s right.”
“And Jang Gain, you receive this as well.”
As Mayarban Ta withdrew another scroll from his Sub-space and handed it over, Jang Gain asked in confusion.
“What is this?”
“A Spatial Movement Scroll.”
“Why are you giving me another one of the same thing?”
“This one can transport you to my father’s lair.”
In that instant, not only Jang Gain’s eyes widened, but so did those of Noxscasarsis standing beside him.
“Why are you giving me a scroll that can transport me to Mayarban Ta’s father’s lair?”
“This time, when I sought my father’s advice on how to counter a duke-level demon’s spatial displacement, the conversation turned to a dragon that came down from the Heavenly Realm, and my father showed great interest in it. So I’m giving you this so that when a dragon appears later, you can transport to my father’s lair.”
“Ah! So the dragon will chase me and end up at Mayarban Ta’s father’s lair.”
“Exactly. Then my father will ask the dragon questions about ascension and the Heavenly Realm.”
“If the dragon answers such questions willingly, that would be fortunate, but since it has a rather poor temperament, it might even attack Mayarban Ta’s father.”
“My father has cultivated his strength for over nine thousand years to achieve ascension. So the dragon won’t easily dare to attack him, and even if it does, it won’t be a difficult attack for my father to handle. So you don’t need to worry about that part.”
“Ah! You’re right. If he’s cultivated himself for over nine thousand years, he wouldn’t lose to a dragon.”
Jang Gain nodded and placed the scroll in his Sub-space.
‘It seems like they haven’t given any thought to my safety. If the dragon asks for me in exchange for teaching the secrets of ascension or the Heavenly Realm, what are they planning to do?’
This scroll was not given out of consideration for someone Noxscasarsis’s grandfather had no relation with.
He felt that unless he was prepared to gamble with his life on the line, he shouldn’t use it.
* * *
After Mayarban Ta left, the next day, as Jang Gain was in the midst of his training, Noxscasarsis approached him.
“Jang Gain, show me that Divine Weapon Unity and Divine Spirit Unity you mentioned yesterday.”
“Huh? What brings you up at this hour? You always used to sleep past noon.”
“Ever since I saw you turn into wind yesterday and strike your father, I haven’t been able to sleep. I’ve been awake all night.”
“You’ve been up all night? But your eyes look clear like you’ve slept deeply.”
“I can have eyes like this even if I don’t sleep for days.”
“Is that so? How intriguing. Is that because you’re a dragon?”
“Yeah. Now hurry and show me Divine Spirit Unity.”
As Jang Gain watched Noxscasarsis pestering him, he withdrew a sword from his Sub-space.
“I’ll show you Divine Weapon Unity first. That way it’ll be easier to understand Divine Spirit Unity.”
“All right.”
Whoooosh.
Jang Gain caught his breath lightly, then focused his mind on the sword.
In an instant, Jang Gain vanished, and a massive sword the size of a house took his place. Noxscasarsis’s eyes widened.
“Wow! What is this? Your presence disappears and only the sword’s presence is amplified several times over.”
“This is the realm of Divine Weapon Unity.”
“Then show me Divine Spirit Unity this time.”
“Divine Spirit Unity is similar to Divine Weapon Unity. The only difference is that instead of merging with a sword, I merge with a wind spirit. Silron.”
As Jang Gain summoned the wind spirit, Silron transformed into a wind wyvern.
Jang Gain operated the Wind Character Technique at its maximum, amplified Silron’s Spirit Power, and in that instant became one with Silron.
Watching this, Noxscasarsis’s eyes widened in astonishment.
“Again, your presence disappears and the spirit’s presence grows several times stronger!”
Whoooooosh……
As the wind wyvern flew toward him, Noxscasarsis deployed Wind Magic and surrounded his body in a massive whirlwind.
“After seeing you attack Father yesterday, I prepared my own countermeasures. What do you think?”
“There’s no way you could block it that easily, is there?”
“You’re wind too—so how do you plan to cut through such a violent tempest?”
“Why cut through wind? I’ve become wind itself.”
Even though an enormous whirlwind engulfed Noxscasarsis’s body, the wind didn’t stop battering him.
His clothes fluttered in the excess wind spun off by the vortex, and as Jang Gain swung his blade in Divine Spirit Unity with Silron, Noxscasarsis’s garments were shredded to tatters in an instant.
“What? How did you break through such a powerful whirlwind?”
Noxscasarsis drew the whirlwind directly into his own body, yet he still couldn’t catch a trace of Jang Gain.
“Is it difficult for wind to pass through wind?”
Jang Gain, who had retreated some ten meters back and released his Divine Spirit Unity, asked the question calmly. Noxscasarsis, unable to hide his astonishment, shook his head slowly.
“Father, you’re helpless before this. You haven’t become one with the spirit of wind—you’ve become one with wind itself.”
“If you define the spirit of wind as wind, it’s simpler still. But I’ll say this—the more I practice it, the easier it becomes. Far easier than yesterday.”
“There’s no way to stop your wind except by wrapping my body in several layers of shields.”
“Then I’ll just shatter those shields and push through.”
“You’ve developed a truly terrifying technique.”
“I stumbled upon it while pondering how to counter Mayarban Ta. My body still suffers greatly from using it, but I’m growing more accustomed to it bit by bit. One day, I might truly become a single strand of wind.”
“If the technique works on Father, it could well work against the dragons of the Heavenly Realm.”
“I think so too. That’s why I intend to focus on Divine Spirit Unity training for a while.”
Jang Gain’s eyes gleamed, and Noxscasarsis felt a chill run down his spine, instinctively rubbing his forearm.

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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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