Chapter 601
“.......”
The world returned to its original colors.
The golden aura was no longer visible.
Su-ho froze in place, too shocked to move.
But Pyo was shocked as well.
“Just now... what exactly did you do?”
“Ah... I struck the Holy Art itself.”
“Is... is that possible?”
“Yes, well... How did it feel?”
“Haha.”
Pyo laughed, sounding somewhat surprised.
“I think it was the most astonishing and dangerous moment of my life as a Monk.”
“But your Holy Art repelled my sword, Brother.”
“In terms of damage alone, this one was the most dangerous. You shook the foundation.”
“Then compared to Outer Hardening Art or Inner Hardening Art, how sturdy is the Holy Art itself?”
“Well. I have never thought of it in that way before....”
“Mm.”
Su-ho nodded.
A technique was only a technique, after all, not an effect derived from a technique.
Still, it was truly astonishing.
To think there was a technique in the world that Soul Severing could not cut?
Honestly, he had thought no such thing existed.
But it did.
Was that why?
He had never underestimated Pyo to begin with, but now Pyo felt even more remarkable.
‘Roland, Pyo... none of them earned the title of Master for nothing.’
A Master was called a Master for a reason.
Perhaps because of that, Su-ho suddenly had a great deal to think about.
Seeing Su-ho’s expression, Pyo waited silently before asking,
“Now, truly....”
“No, not yet.”
He absolutely could not give up like this.
This matter did not demand battle sense. It was a place to prove pure physical ability.
That made him feel even less able to give up.
Besides, thanks to Pyo’s feedback, he had truly gotten a feel for it now.
‘I wasn’t going to use this yet because my proficiency is still lacking....’
To think he would be made to bring even this out.
Even so, he was certain.
This attempt would be the last.
“I will try just one more time.”
Pyo nodded silently.
Su-ho swallowed a breath.
Then he focused his mind.
Once again, the world turned black and white, and a golden aura began to appear around Pyo.
Su-ho’s eyes were sharper than ever.
[ Enhancement has been activated. ]
The beginning was Enhancement.
And then.
[ Soul Severing has been activated. ]
Soul Severing activated.
But he had not swung yet.
Even so, it had activated.
And then.
[ Diamond Cut has been activated. ]
Another Vacuum Style.
Two sword techniques had activated.
Next.
[ Combined Sword Art has been activated. ]
Flaaaare!
Light burst from Su-ho’s sword.
The final move Su-ho had prepared.
It was the quasi-ultimate Combined Sword Art of Vacuum Style, which he had learned only moments ago.
[ True Severing Cut has been activated. ]
[ Enhancement has been applied. ]
[ The power of True Severing Cut grows even stronger. ]
The new name born from Combined Sword Art was True Severing Cut.
True Severing Cut was a name newly born through the quasi-ultimate Combined Sword Art, formed by combining True Severing, another name for Soul Severing, and True Cutting, another name for Diamond Cut.
Its effect was simple.
The power of Diamond Cut, which strongly cut the target, was fused into Soul Severing, which cut the root, allowing it to cut the root more powerfully.
‘The simpler something is, the better it usually is.’
The sword swung.
Then a deep golden mass of light burst forth and cut into Pyo’s protective Holy Art.
Pyo’s eyes widened.
It was coming.
Something that looked similar to before, yet was different.
But would it work this time as well?
He had confidence.
I am Pyo.
The representative of all Monks, and by far an overwhelming existence among all Monk Masters throughout history.
No one has ever pierced my protective Holy Art.
Even if that opponent is the black Pope, the likes of whom has never once appeared in the history of the Pantheon.
The moment Su-ho’s True Severing Cut and Pyo’s protective Holy Art clashed with that thought—
Kwa-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-gak!
A rough roar.
The sound was tremendous, like an iron beast howling.
Black sparks flew terribly, and both men concentrated.
Ka-ga-ga-ga-ga-gak!!
Cold sweat broke out.
Unlike his expectation that it would be cut in a single stroke, the blood sword wrapped in True Severing Cut seemed almost frozen in place.
But Su-ho knew.
It looked almost frozen, but very slightly, little by little, the blood sword was advancing.
‘I can do it!’
His eyes widened.
Zero and one were different.
Before using True Severing Cut, the blood sword had not been able to leave even a threadlike scratch on the protective Holy Art.
But Soul Severing backed by Diamond Cut was different.
It advanced, slowly, and through that process, a clear scratch began to form.
What began like a small ripple would soon grow into a tidal wave of the sea and cleave down through the protective Holy Art.
Believing that, he did not let up.
He did not relax his tension.
He gave it everything he had.
“Uaaaaaaaaaaah!!”
He let out a shout.
The tendons throughout his body rose, and every opening in him seemed to open as he screamed with his entire body, as though wringing out a desperate cry.
And at that moment.
Slice!
The pushing contest that had seemed as if it would last for eons suddenly caught a rapid current, then shot forward like a flash.
A golden trajectory was drawn, and it precisely split Pyo’s protective Holy Art in half.
“......!”
“......!”
Both men’s eyes widened.
For a single instant, they felt similar emotions.
But they only looked similar. Looking closely, they were clearly different.
Shock.
Exhilaration.
There was no need to say which belonged to whom.
Paaang!!
Behind the drawn trajectory, there came a sound as though something had burst.
It was the sound of the protective Holy Art, which had been tangled as intricately as a bundle of nerves, bursting apart.
The protective Holy Art looked complexly intertwined, but in the end, it was one whole.
Once the gigantic armor split, the other connections burst in a chain reaction, until finally everything erupted.
The events unfolded in the instant after the trajectory was drawn.
Along with the sound of the Holy Art being broken, the inverted black-and-white world regained its color and made time flow normally once more.
“.......”
Pyo was silent.
Su-ho, too, did not add words. Instead, he recovered from the motion he had unleashed as though withdrawing the blade, and stood upright.
“Fuuuuuu....”
Then he exhaled a hot breath.
Something indescribable was boiling wildly inside him.
What was this emotion?
But it was not unfamiliar.
A smile formed on Su-ho’s lips.
This was an emotion he had not felt even when he earned the title of Sword Saint faster than anyone after his regression, or when he cleared all the Big Gates.
It was the exhilaration one could feel only when accomplishing something purely through swordsmanship.
There was one more person smiling at that.
It was Sword Demon.
Hehehe, you lunatic.
Sword Demon muttered that.
So Su-ho would not hear.
Sword Demon laughed because he was delighted by his disciple’s path as well.
He had sent back a man who had reached the essence through the sword, only for him to become so obsessed with revenge that he had learned all kinds of other sorceries. He understood it, yet it had been a pity.
But after going round and round, Su-ho had eventually returned once more to his original root and foundation.
So he could not help laughing.
At last, after waiting a while, Pyo opened his mouth.
“I have lost.”
At the same time, he slightly bowed his head and pressed his hands together in prayer.
Su-ho did the same.
“I am relieved. Since I managed to succeed at the very end.”
“Haha. This is the first time. My protective Holy Art itself has been destroyed by an external attack, I mean.”
“If I had not achieved an increase in realm on the Path of Discipline, I would absolutely not have been able to pass your test this time, Brother.”
“Hoho. The Path of Discipline was not prepared with that intention, but if you say it served as training in its own way, then the meaning held by the place itself was certainly carried through. I sincerely congratulate you.”
“Are you sure you do not need to test me further? It is true that Monks are the armor of the Pantheon, but that does not mean you are beings who truly do nothing but stand still like wooden statues.”
“You are correct, Pope. But as Roland did, each of us is trying to test and acknowledge you according to our own standards. Fundamentally, we do not have any intention of harming you. In any case, you are someone who was elected fairly and honorably through the Conclave.”
Master Pyo.
He was an adult.
A true adult, just as much as Roland.
That was why Su-ho also showed him proper courtesy.
“Thank you for saying that.”
“Not at all. I am the one who should thank you. It seems a new wave may have risen in the Pantheon through you, Pope. Therefore....”
Then Pyo clenched one fist and placed it over his heart as he spoke.
“I offer all the teachings of the Monks to you, Pope. And.”
He slowly raised his head, looked at Su-ho, and smiled.
“I promise that all Monks of the Pantheon will become your most reliable and powerful shield whenever and wherever you desire, Pope.”
The oath of Master Pyo, who was called the first Monk and the strongest Monk.
With this, it was the moment he gained two of the pillars supporting the Pantheon.
“Thank you. I look forward to meeting you again soon.”
“Once you have undergone all the trials, we are certain to meet again. You need the protective Holy Art, do you not?”
“That’s right. In my life, I have never seen armor as strong as your protective Holy Art, Master.”
“It will surely be a great help in fulfilling the great cause.”
“I will look forward to it.”
At last, Pyo opened the door leading to the next trial site.
“I believe you will overcome the next trial well too.”
“Yes. I will work hard enough to repay the faith you have shown me.”
Before the wavering portal.
After giving Pyo one final farewell, Su-ho moved to the next place.
***
The moment he stepped down, the surrounding scenery changed once.
The scenery shifted like rippling waves, creating a clear, refreshing forest where birds chirped.
At the center of the forest, on a chair made of gold and wood, a silver-haired woman wearing thin white cloth, so scantily dressed she was practically half-naked, was sprawled lazily over the armrest instead of the backrest.
Su-ho approached the woman.
The woman had her eyes closed, but at the sign of Su-ho’s presence, she opened them narrowly.
Blue.
Eyes closer to sky blue than that slipped into view, and seeing Su-ho, she said,
“What are you looking at?”
Her image seemed noble.
But the words that came out the moment she opened her mouth were beyond slovenly.
After thinking for a moment, Su-ho narrowed his brow and asked,
“Are you perhaps the Saintess?”
“Yep, that’s right.”
Her identity was none other than the Saintess.