Chapter 89

Reincarnated as a Sword Emperor in the Sword Artisan Family (89)

Leonard felt the creature's life completely severed from the sword's extremity, the connection with the medium cut off. The power of the Five-Colored Aura severed the flow of energy from the outside world.

The Rift Guardian was dead.

He confirmed it.

Then,

"Hmm."

At the same moment, the Five-Colored Aura that had enveloped Leonard's sword shattered into pieces.

As soon as the death of the Rift Guardian was confirmed, it seemed as if the task was complete. The previously fiercely spinning Five Elements Dragon Ring had calmed down, and the flow of the Five Elements Qi circulating within his body had returned to its usual tranquil state.

Originally, this should have been a realm he could not reach at his current level, but the feeling of the power he had once grasped disappearing was rather disheartening.

'I haven't grown... It seems the ability that was dormant within me awakened when I faced the enemy I needed to defeat.'

Instead of being consumed by this disheartenment, Leonard pondered why it had happened and how it had come to be.

He attempted to form the Five-Colored Aura again.

One-Element Five-Elements Divine Art (一元五行神功)

Five Elements Unification Technique (五星合一訣) - Success (成)

Five colors of energy swirled momentarily, emitting a brilliant starlight, but it was much slower and clumsier than before.

The circulation speed of the Five Elements was insufficient.

The purity of the Five Elements Qi was insufficient.

The degree of aura combination was insufficient.

Despite this, it was more complete than the Sword Emperor Lian Wuxie from his previous life, but to reach the Five-Colored Aura, it needed to be several times faster and more precise. The realm of containing a world within a sword was not something a martial artist of the External Force Realm could achieve.

'It seems to be the bloodline of Cardenas again.'

Leonard smiled bitterly, having reached this conclusion through the process of elimination.

It couldn't be helped.

The mana core at the heart of the Five Elements Dragon Ring was a power derived from that bloodline. Although his One-Element Five-Elements Divine Art and the fortuitous encounter had elevated it to a higher level, the fundamental nature remained unchanged.

The ability to explore the medium of the Rift, the instinct to resist the energy flowing from the outside world and other dimensions, and the nature of becoming stronger when facing an 'enemy of the world'—all these were abilities that those who inherited the Cardenas bloodline could innately display, even if slightly inferior to Leonard himself.

'Didn't this power seem to be given for the purpose of dealing with the enemies invading from beyond the Rift from the beginning?'

If so, it makes sense why the Seven Orders of the Cardenas family could devastate the Rift and the Demon Realm as if it were a daily task.

From what he learned in the Atlantis Maritime Alliance, even adventure groups like the Wild Hunt often failed to find the medium and missed the opportunity to seal the Rift.

The Caribdis was so difficult to explore that finding the medium itself was an incredibly challenging task.

'Yet, the speed at which the Seven Orders attack is incredibly fast. Even if each order has a Transcendent Realm expert, there are times when the leaders don't participate.'

This information came from a casual conversation among a few Intermediate Knights of the Dragon Knight Order stationed on the Galápagos Islands.

Today, the Red Dragon Order had annihilated an army on a certain front, and yesterday, the Black Dragon Order had killed a demon that appeared in a certain region. Their exploits were reported in great detail and frequency.

Whether to boost the pride of the family members or not, the content couldn't be entirely exaggerated.

"...If a force with one Transcendent Realm expert and multiple Profound Realm experts possesses abilities like mine, sealing the Rift or eliminating a Rift Guardian is no different from hunting monsters."

Moreover, even excluding the Golden Dragon Order, the strength was six times greater. It was more than sufficient to protect the vast territory of the empire, which was ten times larger than Atlantis.

If the Cardenas bloodline, already several times stronger than other martial artists, became even stronger within the Rift?

"The Demon Realm wouldn't be an impossible problem either."

Even a region declared unassailable in the Sixth Sea Area of the Atlantis Maritime Alliance wouldn't be a significant issue.

Leonard sheathed his sword, confident in this speculation.

The medium, a purple crystal, floated before him, emitting a sinister glow, but he didn't flinch. Destroying it in this state would immediately seal the 'Cyclops Lair,' allowing Leonard and the adventurers to escape.

But,

"It seems to be coming to an end. Should I go check the scoring?"

Reacting to the vibrations and noise from a few hundred meters away, Leonard turned and headed toward where the three were fighting.

The medium, left behind, trembled in fear, but there were no Rift Guardians or other monsters left to protect it.

The Cardenas family.

From the perspective of the Rift, which had encountered its natural enemy in Manlitanxiang, it was a situation to blame its misfortune.

* * *

While Leonard was clashing with the Cyclops Champion in the deepest part of the cave, the other members were also fighting fiercely.

Cyclops Warrior.

Despite losing an arm and a lung, he was a monster of the Profound Realm. In a one-on-one fight, even Galano, whose skills had rapidly improved over the past few days, couldn't last a few minutes before being killed. His physical abilities, mana, and combat techniques far exceeded those of a 10th-level External Force Realm martial artist.

If he had been in perfect condition, Galano alone couldn't have restrained or defended against him.

Zing!

The fierce thrust of the 'Maelstrom' was deflected by a single slash. Despite dispersing the counterforce as much as possible with an outward spin, his grip was torn and soon soaked in blood.

Galano was both enraged and chilled to the bone by the result.

If this was the level with just one arm, what kind of combat ability did he have when wielding dual swords?

"...I should be grateful to the leader."

As if agreeing with Galano's words, a rain of arrows poured from behind, filling the gap and targeting the Cyclops Warrior.

Each step was precise and swift.

The power of the concentrated shots was incomparable to the random firing of the past. The aura flickering at the tips of the arrows indicated that Nini's mastery of the Bow Qi Art had reached the three-star level. The rapid growth, enhanced by the elf's keen senses and affinity with the wind, was remarkable.

Kraaaah!

The Cyclops Warrior frantically swung his bone knife several times, deflecting all the arrows aimed at his vital points.

This was not an attack that could be handled by wind pressure alone.

Even the simplest elemental magic, relying on wind spirits and sword winds, could easily penetrate such defenses. Several arrows sliced through his body, causing blood to spurt.

The moment Galano and Nini restrained him, it was time for Esther to unleash her firepower.

"[Flame Strike]!"

The strongest single-target fire magic of the 5th Tier was manifested.

As the magic circle above the Cyclops Warrior's head unleashed a large and intense fireball, he was engulfed in the fierce flames without a chance to evade or defend.

Keeeeeek!!

The gills that functioned even outside water usually allowed for deeper and larger breaths, but in this situation, they only served to scorch his lungs.

His body, more akin to a marine creature than a traditional orc, couldn't withstand the heat. The scales and skin, which only developed cracks from aura, began to crumble. A 5th Tier magic of a counter-elemental nature, even a direct hit on a Profound Realm monster, would have this effect.

Galano, who was near the monster, was also caught in the heat wave of the [Flame Strike], but his situation was different.

"If it's not a direct hit... I can endure it!"

The defensive technique of the 'Maelstrom,' which he had learned to apply through Leonard's advice, proved effective.

Nini, furrowing her brows, whispered softly.

"...The wind is too unstable. This combination is hard for me to cover."

"Is that so? Next time, I'll try [Lightning Spear]."

Esther accepted the suggestion and prepared the next spell.

Even in the flames, the Cyclops Warrior was still alive and moving.

Despite being covered in wounds from several coordinated attacks and almost completely drained of blood, he didn't stop his sword. Even when Galano's flame-enshrouded thrust pierced his abdomen, creating a large hole, he continued.

The adventurers, who were facing a Profound Realm monster for the first time, were sweating profusely at his resilience.

"Unbelievable vitality...! Leonard could overwhelm this thing with one strike, but we're struggling with three of us!"

In response to Esther's exclamation, Nini said, waving her hand.

"He's a human who could teach me archery and Galano swordsmanship. Don't compare yourself to an extraordinary being."

"Is, is that so?"

"Yeah. It's more comforting that way."

The human mage and the half-elf archer, transcending racial barriers, quickly understood each other, and the monster's desperate struggle began.

The Cyclops Warrior believed.

He believed that the warrior who disappeared inside with that terrifying human, the Cyclops Champion, would return victorious. If he could hold on until then, even if he lost his breath, he would win.

Kraaaaaah!!

One lung was frozen, the other burned.

Yet, he roared loudly enough to echo throughout the cave, raising his bone knife. Dying without slaying a single intruder would be a disgrace to the representative warrior of the Cyclops race.

At the moment he was about to make his final strike,

———Kruack?

Beyond his distorted vision, Leonard was seen looking down at them.

Two had disappeared, and one had returned.

He could infer the result.

The desperate fire in the Cyclops Warrior's eyes turned to utter despair.

And then,

Kuwoooong!!

Seeing the opening, Galano thrust his 'Maelstrom' with the accumulated power, piercing the monster's heart.

Almost simultaneously, two of Nini's arrows hit his eyes, and two lightning bolts followed, traveling through the metal shafts into his body.

The lightning raced through his body, burning his brain and boiling his cerebrospinal fluid, causing black smoke to seep from the Cyclops Warrior's facial orifices.

Kuwoong.

The body of the Warrior, whose breath had been cut off by the perfect coordinated attack, fell to the temple floor.

Heart and brain.

Even a Profound Realm monster, with these two vital points destroyed, had no chance of regeneration. From the moment he saw Leonard, he was already mentally dead.

'Oh, I made it too easy for them because of me.'

Leonard realized why the monster had fallen so easily and thought that revealing himself was a mistake.

But it was too late to change what had already happened.

The three, perhaps guessing the reason from the monster's reaction, turned to look in his direction.

"Leonard!"

"Hey, did you also win, leader?"

"I believed in you."

Esther, who was delighted, Galano, who whistled, and Nini, who seemed to have expected it, all reacted differently.

Leonard chuckled and then pointed to the inner part of the cave.

"I found the medium. Since it's rare, let's take a look and destroy it."

The three nodded in unison.

It was rare for even an A-rank adventure team to see the medium of a Rift.

In resource exploration missions, they deliberately avoided it, and in sealing missions, it was too difficult to find. The existence of obstacles like the Rift Guardian made it even more challenging.

The irresistible curiosity of an adventurer, even in a state of near-exhaustion from the intense battle, moved their bodies.