The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 416
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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 Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 416
Revealing what cannot be seen.
Making visible what cannot be perceived.
Not only does it allow one to predict an opponent’s sword path, but the azure moonlight guides the way itself.
The Divine Elixir—something only the Sect Leader of Cheongwol Gate can consume.
The first time I consumed it was when I entered Yoo Cheon-gil’s secret chamber long ago.
Yoo Cheon-gil had told me.
‘It’s like eating it in advance.’
That’s what he said.
Since I was destined to become Sect Leader someday, he told me to consume it with the feeling of eating it beforehand.
‘…Originally—’
It was the Divine Elixir that Wol Seon-geom should have consumed, and he said he never did.
Because of that.
‘Did he send me on purpose?’
Such a thought flashed through my mind.
The bookshelves of the archive. Only by casting Wol-an could I understand this. This was a place that could only be properly seen using Wol-an.
“…Ha.”
A hollow breath escaped me. A modest bookshelf. Books scattered with gaps between them. Dozens of volumes embedded there appeared dusty and shabby to the naked eye, but.
‘They’re hidden.’
I could see that several books were emanating an azure glow. I reached out and carefully removed only the books glowing blue in sequence.
I set the books on the floor and opened them all. As I examined the books, it wasn’t long before I could see it.
‘There’s a pattern.’
A commonality appeared in the passages explaining sword paths. In fact.
‘This is the source of the azure light.’
The text itself was azure. I realized the energy wasn’t wrapped around the book, but around the characters themselves.
‘…What appears disconnected—’
I must do something with these azure characters. So I opened and checked them in order. They don’t connect. Right, it’s not this simple. Then.
‘The books don’t show titles or anything.’
Finding them by title was impossible. So I tried a more complex approach.
I tried several other methods, but still nothing particularly stood out. I spent more time on this.
‘The last approach.’
Just as I was exhausting nearly every conceivable method, at the final moment, what I chose was none other than.
‘The density of the energy.’
I grasped the density of the passages wrapped in azure light. From the faintest to the most intense.
When I connected the characters that way.
‘I found it.’
It was the answer.
‘Ha.’
Is even this based on energy? This is ridiculous. I let out a small laugh. There weren’t even that many characters, and the number of books wasn’t particularly small either.
This was truly something impossible to know without Wol-an.
Moreover.
‘There was nothing to write down or refrain from writing.’
I couldn’t even receive the text written inside and transcribe it. Unless I became Moonju and could just lift it up. In my current state, that was impossible.
Of course.
‘If I memorize it, that’s enough.’
It didn’t matter to me. I memorized the phrases stitched together one by one. The form of the technique entered my mind.
My fingers twitched of their own accord. As if urging me to wield it immediately. This sensation was entirely new to me.
‘Despite never having seen the sword manual.’
It formed naturally in my mind, and I felt the urge to wield it right away.
Heat crept slowly through my body. My entire mind felt dazed.
Clang.
“…!”
I flinched. I heard the sound of a blade being drawn. Startled, I checked my waist, but I hadn’t brought the Divine Blade with me.
I had merely mistaken the sensation as if I’d drawn a sword.
Realizing that, the rising heat gradually subsided.
“Phew—”
I steadied my breathing.
“How strange.”
After memorizing everything, I returned the book to its original place. It was clear.
‘This sword manual reveals its true nature only when viewed while possessing Wol-an.’
This technique is granted only to Moonju. Because of that, Wol Seon-geom came to mind even more.
‘This old man.’
Somehow.
‘Did he think I would be able to see it?’
Telling me to see as I wished.
Telling me to do as I wished.
I suspect he believed from the start that I would already have awakened Wol-an and could obtain the sword manual from this bookshelf.
‘…It gives me chills if that’s the case.’
How much would one need to know to make such a choice? From the beginning….
‘Did he think I would win the Cheongwol Tournament?’
Since the technique was granted only to the tournament champion, it meant Wol Seon-geom had been confident from the start that I would defeat Eunwol Sword.
“Ha….”
I laughed, but my eyes did not.
“What a demanding old man.”
I’d felt it before, but Wol Seon-geom was inscrutable, setting that aside. He was truly a difficult person.
Yes, difficult. That word suited him well.
Hard to read and demanding, somehow suffocating.
“….”
I finished organizing the books and turned around. There was nothing more to gain here.
My fingers still twitching.
Sensing this, I rose to my feet, opened the door, and stepped outside.
* * *
Beyond the archive, not a soul was visible. Only the dim dungeon awaited me, and I had to open my eyes wide gazing up at the sky.
“It’s already night?”
An entire day had slipped away. Hah, just how long was I in that archive anyway? I never thought I’d been there that long.
‘This is maddening.’
It seemed I had been concentrating far longer than I realized, over and over again.
To lose track of time like this was unbelievable.
Feeling somewhat sheepish, I scratched the back of my head and made my way toward the Sect Leader’s Chamber.
“You’ve returned.”
The moment I arrived, Wol Seon-geom looked at me. He was examining the mountain of documents stacked before him, just as when I first came.
“Yes. I’m back.”
“I see.”
“….”
The conversation went no further. What’s this? Sensing the strange silence, I asked Wol Seon-geom a question.
“Aren’t you going to ask me anything…?”
At my question, he paused, the document in his hand stopping mid-motion. Then he looked at me again.
“What should I ask?”
“What I saw inside. What I gained. Things like that.”
“What you saw and what you gained.”
“….”
This wasn’t like receiving praise while bowing.
“…I saw the books in the archive and was studying the martial techniques when I came out.”
“Did you gain something worthwhile?”
“Yes. I gained something worthwhile.”
“I see.”
Speaking honestly, Wol Seon-geom nodded slightly.
“Did you see it?”
“….”
A piercing question that cut right through. The clear intent behind it was unmistakable. And so.
“Yes. I saw it.”
I spoke without falsehood.
“….”
“….”
Wol Seon-geom’s eyes widened ever so slightly. It seemed he hadn’t expected such an honest answer.
Confirming his reaction, I glanced subtly around the chamber.
“Sect Leader.”
“…What is it?”
“I’d like to use that.”
“…?”
I picked up what appeared to be a blank book. Was there ink nearby? Conveniently, it sat right next to me.
I opened the blank book and began writing characters with the ink.
It didn’t take long. As I wrote without hesitation, the ink soon filled roughly a third of the book.
“I’ll leave this behind.”
“What have you done?”
“It’s the sword technique I obtained from that place.”
“…Hmm?”
“It felt wrong to simply take it without giving anything back.”
I handed it to Wol Seon-geom.
“Since I can’t claim it as my own—I’m not yet qualified to possess such a thing. You know that already, don’t you?”
“….”
“I’m curious why you sent me in despite knowing that, but I won’t ask. Since you haven’t asked either.”
“Ha.”
Wol Seon-geom laughed at my words. Oh. This man’s been laughing quite often lately. An awkward laugh, but unmistakably a smile.
“…I see.”
Wol Seon-geom accepted the book.
“The night grows late. You should rest now.”
“Yes. I understand.”
I bowed and turned to leave. I exited the Sect Leader’s Chamber.
* * *
“….”
Left alone, Cheon Seonghwa examined the book he’d received. Neat characters were visible in the still-drying ink.
The first page. He studied it carefully.
‘The Sword Path.’
The Sword Path that Bangseong-yeon had obtained from that place. It was a sword technique currently lost to time. The Sword Saint may have used it, but he himself did not know of it.
It was also the very sword technique the elders of the Cheonwol Sect desperately sought.
“….”
The true sword technique of the Cheonwol Sect, passed down only to the Sect Leader.
Recalling this, Wol Seon-geom remembered Bangseong-yeon’s words.
‘Since I can’t claim it as my own—I’m not yet qualified to possess such a thing.’
At those remembered words, Wol Seon-geom leaned back in his chair. Did he understand the true value of this?
He didn’t think those words were spoken with such knowledge.
‘No.’
Perhaps.
‘Even if he had known.’
The answer might not have changed. There was no trace of desire in his gaze—only emptiness and indifference.
Expecting nothing at all.
‘As if.’
That eye, resembling the Sword Saint’s gaze, lingered diagonally within Wol Seon-geom’s consciousness.
‘They resemble each other.’
I had sensed it from the first moment we met. Though their outward forms and natures differed entirely, that luminescence in their eyes was identical—which is why my attention was drawn.
‘Not his own, you say?’
Wol Seon-geom recalled those words and poured strength into the manuscript.
Whoooosh—!!!!
The friction ignites, consuming the manuscript in flames.
The sword technique from Bangseong-yeon’s manual burned away into nothingness.
“A laughable statement.”
His eyes gradually gleamed within the darkness.
“The same words directed at me.”
Lacking qualification. Not truly his own.
These were words Bangseong-yeon should never have spoken—words I myself should have uttered.
“I’ve been struck once.”
Though he hadn’t spoken knowingly, that detached remark was enough to strike Wol Seon-geom’s mind.
Screech.
I rise to my feet.
Despite burning away the technique I had barely obtained, my heart remained undisturbed.
I drew my blade. The night when the moon ascends. For the first time in ages, I wished to swing my sword.
“How amusing.”
What an entertaining child.
I thought of Bangseong-yeon. And moreover, I hoped—
“Come swiftly.”
May that child’s blade reach me as soon as possible.
With eyes devoid of emotion yet burning with madness.
I harbored such thoughts.
* * *
I lay upon the bed. A soft ceiling came into view.
Even as my hands continued to tremble, I made no effort to seek out the Training Hall.
Despite the urge to go at any moment.
‘…Damn, I’m exhausted.’
My eyes ached terribly from maintaining Wol-an for such an extended duration.
They felt as though they might be torn from their sockets at any second. The fatigue was so severe that I could not possibly make my way to the Training Hall in such a state.
It was somewhat disappointing, but there was nothing to be done about it.
‘Still, it’s fine.’
It didn’t matter. The Training Hall was not the only place to wield a blade.
“…Sigh.”
I exhaled deeply. My eyes remained strained, and the backlash from my technique still lingered throughout my body.
If I were to wield my blade in reality in this condition, it would only make matters worse.
‘…I need to use a different method.’
I possessed one method for such a moment.
I closed my eyes.
Strength drained from my body entirely. My consciousness began to crumble away.
“….”
When I opened my eyes once more.
“Damn it all.”
I was within the dream realm. Now even curses came naturally. I clicked my tongue repeatedly, staring ahead.
A space I had grown far too familiar with by now.
Corpses arranged in rows, the risen moon, and stone. And Yoo Cheon-gil sitting atop it all.
I confirmed the younger Yoo Cheon-gil, nodding as he regarded me.
Upon seeing that, I drew my blade.
‘…Yes.’
If I wished to wield my blade freely, was there not a place for it?
‘Today as well. Let’s see who falls first.’
A hundred battles, a hundred defeats.
A thousand battles, a thousand defeats.
My pathetic win rate mattered not. Not now.
‘I master the technique.’
Throughout this endless night, I refined the technique I had extracted from the Archive.
That alone was the purpose of this battle.
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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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