Chapter 37

Reincarnated as the Sword Emperor in the Sword Saint Family (37)

“———Gasp!”

The thirtieth shadow of Crusis, a knight who had even abandoned his name, opened his eyes wide and spat out blood.

As soon as his consciousness returned, he felt an intense pain throughout his body, both inside and out. His chest ached with every breath, a clear sign that several ribs were broken, and his nose was crushed, as he could not breathe through it.

His mana core was completely empty, making it impossible to generate aura or enhance his recovery abilities.

Severe injury.

While it did not pose a threat to his life, it rendered him unable to continue the battle.

“It seems you have a good grasp of the situation.”

At that moment, the image of the young demon of Cardenas, who had stood in his way, flashed through the shadow knight's mind, still clouded by the remnants of his consciousness.

A hatred greater than fear burst forth from his mouth.

“You! You scum of Cardenas! To mock my sword and pride with such despicable tricks! I will never forgive you!”

Surprisingly, in his mind, the ignoble struggle he had lost had transformed into a righteous battle against the seed of evil, where he had fallen to the enemy's treacherous tactics.

Leonard was at a loss for words, unable to understand this sudden change.

It was not a valid argument for someone who had resorted to physical violence when he could not win with swordsmanship.

‘Did I hit his head too hard? I shouldn’t have judged human durability by Cardenas standards.’

He wondered if the shadow knight had suffered brain damage from the consecutive horizontal and vertical strikes. Despite his confidence in his control, this was the only explanation for the current situation.

Not knowing how to interpret Leonard's silence, the shadow knight, with a body that could only move his head, lifted it stiffly.

“You paralyzed my body with evil magic! Are you so afraid to face me in a fair fight!”

Leonard, who had listened to this much, could no longer hold back and raised his hand.

Smack!

A single punch split the shadow knight's lips and knocked out a few teeth. If he had been using his inner energy, the result might have been different, but with pure physical strength, this was the outcome.

Unbeknownst to himself, Leonard's physical abilities, with his entire body undergoing dragonification, including a simulated dragon heart, were becoming unprecedented.

“Perhaps my punch was too painful? You're still babbling incoherently. I'll make you come to your senses.”

Seeing the shadow knight's bloodied state, Leonard began to use his palm to slap his cheeks instead of his fists.

The shadow knight, who had initially bellowed with wide eyes, soon fell silent. Without any purposeful torture or questions, his will was inevitably broken.

Finally, Leonard poured a potion from his own supply onto the shadow knight's swollen face, which had lost all recognizable shape.

“Do you have anything else to say?”

“……”

The shadow knight's eyes, filled with deep anger, trembled, but he did not shout again.

Leonard, satisfied with his reaction, nodded.

“It seems you are now ready to talk.”

The thirtieth shadow clenched his teeth and spat out his words.

“...I have nothing to say to a bastard like you. Kill me.”

“The power over life and death belongs to the victor. You have no right to demand your own death.”

Leonard responded with a sneer.

While the shadow knight was unconscious, Leonard had sealed most of his meridians, making it impossible for him to attempt suicide with special techniques.

With all his equipment, from armor to greaves, removed, he could not create sudden situations with magical items.

“Shall we begin? Where are you from?”

“……”

“Hmm, was the beating not enough?”

The thirtieth shadow flinched reflexively at these words but then shouted with eyes blazing with malice.

“No matter how many times you try, I will never speak! Bastard, born of an illegitimate bloodline!”

“Illegitimate bloodline...? You mean Cardenas?”

“Yes! Do you deny the sin that flows in your blood!”

In response to Leonard's genuine question, the shadow knight raised his voice as if pleading for his own grievances.

“If you grew up in that evil family, you must know! You are not human! No human could be so strong or be born with such consistent talent!”

“Hmm?”

“Unless there is a secret hidden in your blood, why would you try to prevent even the remnants of that bloodline from leaking out of the country? If there were a legitimate origin, you wouldn't need to hide it like this!”

Intoxicated by his own words, the man's screams revealed facts unknown to Leonard.

The suspicion surrounding Cardenas' bloodline.

The management to prevent collateral relatives from fleeing abroad.

And what this man truly desired, and the contradictions in his shouted words.

“From my perspective, there is little I can answer, but I can see one thing clearly.”

“What is it!”

“You are not here to destroy evil or sin. You simply want to steal the secrets of Cardenas to possess the power you lack.”

This was a piercing blow to the inferiority complex he had long ignored, a fatal strike to his sore spot.

The shadow knight's eyes, for the first time, were not filled with anger and hatred but with a different color. His face looked as if a shameful diary, hidden in a drawer, had been laid out before him.

It could not be otherwise.

‘If they had only come to kill the Cardenas apprentices, there would be no reason to carry so many restraints. They must have come to kidnap the relatively easier targets, the children.’

Leonard's gaze swept over the shadow knight's belongings, which were a short distance away.

These were things he had personally confirmed before the knight woke up.

More than ten restraints that made it difficult to circulate inner energy when worn around the neck, wrists, or ankles. Those above the 6th level of External Power could break free, but those below the 5th level would find it difficult to resist.

‘Of course, they had no effect on me.’

His inner energy flow was abnormally strong and fast, and his core's control ability, which had become even more powerful after breaking through the External Power stage, could ignore such restraints.

>Five Elements True Dragon Ring>.

He had yet to fully understand the capabilities of this item.

“You, you scum...! What do you know about us...!”

“I know. There are no other losers as filled with inferiority as you.”

Leonard spoke with a knowing expression.

“—What.”

It was a lie.

To further shake the unstable mind of the shadow knight, who had been hit at his core.

Unlike the dark operatives of the imperial court, such as the Dongchang, Shou Shen Wei, or the Four Yellow Lotus' Pursuit Squad, who would never speak and would rather cut out their tongues or insert poison into their molars.

‘But this fool believed in the righteousness of his actions, even without attempting suicide. His behavior resembles that of a fanatic, even a blood cultist.’

A memory from long ago resurfaced.

The days when I stood on the front lines as a member of the Wu Lin Alliance, when the blood demon Dugu Huang and his fanatics invaded the Central Plains.

The blood cultists I had captured were not just madmen; interrogating them was a tedious process.

The Wu Lin Alliance's chief military strategist, Zhuge Ming, appeared.

—You must not try to understand the fanatics. You cannot approach them logically. To them, their beliefs are absolute, and any attempt to deny them is a wicked temptation. Torture is even worse, as they see it as a trial that makes their beliefs more sacred.

‘Even if their beliefs are false?’

—They will not accept it. Even if you present evidence right before their eyes, they will think it is all fabricated. They are like opium addicts, delusional and beyond persuasion.

So, Zhuge Ming said.

—Insult them. Their beliefs, their doctrines, their revered leaders. Do not logically criticize them; spit on their faces like a rogue. Then, their tightly closed mouths will open, and they will spew out their anger and stories.

Indeed, this advice proved effective, and the Wu Lin Alliance, learning the base and routes of the blood cult, was able to return with Dugu Huang's head in a short time.

The words of the blood cultist who had fallen for the诱导 interrogation were decisive.

So, Leonard decided to try the same approach.

“Was the power and glory of Cardenas so enviable? To the point of abandoning the honor of a knight and kidnapping children? There is nothing uglier than the cries of losers, and you are no exception.”

“Shut up...! Can't you shut your mouth!”

“No, there is one thing I can commend. You resorted to a fistfight when you knew you couldn't win with swordsmanship, showing some flexibility in your thinking. Of course, your combat skills were as poor as your swordsmanship.”

Leonard, looking down at the man whose eyes were bloodshot, delivered the final blow.

“Do you think stealing Cardenas' secrets will change your situation? You are nothing but third-rate nobodies from a remote region, with no strength or pride. Aren't you ashamed to show your ugly faces to your ancestors?”

“Gaaaah! You! You! A brat with blood not yet dry, daring to insult the name of Crusis!”

Finally, in front of the man foaming at the mouth, Leonard confirmed the effectiveness of this method and marveled.

Zhuge Ming was not unjustly treated as one of the Ten Greats of the Inner Circle.

“Ah, so you are from Crusis.”

“...What? You, you, surely.”

The shadow knight's face turned as pale as marble, realizing he had fallen for a word game.

The Shadow Knight Order had trained to resist torture, even to the point of burning their bodies with iron rods, flaying their flesh, and crushing their bones.

But to be tricked by a child's words!

‘His resolve is shaken. From here on, it will be easy.’

Before the shadow knight could regain his senses, Leonard extended his finger and struck the acupoints around the Baihui point.

At the same time, the shadow knight's eyes lost their focus, staring blankly into space like those of a person in a daze.

Once the mind was opened, it was easy to keep it open.

Forcing the Baihui point to open, he would not last a single moment, but that was more than enough. Leonard, thinking about what to ask next, recalled an old memory.

—Isn't it ridiculous? Men who can endure insults to their parents, but become furious at insults to illusions.

As Zhuge Ming had said.

“Somehow, it feels familiar. You remind me of those who, when they see stronger martial arts, call them sorcery.”

Lian Wu Xue had experienced this many times when he first entered the martial arts world.

Calling it sorcery was one thing, but demanding to see it was another, and it was absurd.

His path had been drenched in blood because he had killed every single one of those who provoked him. His indiscriminate slaughter, cutting through both righteous and evil factions, began from that point.

His eyes turned cold as he recalled the starting point of that slaughter.