Chapter 51

Chapter 51. Blessing (3)

Jesus's blessing descended upon the entirety of the United States.

"I, Jesus Christ, decree — let the territory of America be at peace—."

It went without saying, but America was enormously vast.

Spreading a 'blessing' across that expansive land — one that healed disabilities, diseases, and even mental afflictions — was quite taxing even for Jesus.

The blessing didn't maintain itself permanently, either, so he had to periodically renew it.

"Jesus…"

President Bill Johnson gazed at Jesus from the Grand Canyon church and made the sign of the cross.

America, as vast as it was, had just as many Gates.

Gates overflowed every moment, spawning monsters and calamities that threatened humanity's homes.

The US military and the Hunters fought on the frontlines of those Gates to protect the people.

"Cough—."

Jesus spat out a mouthful of dark-crimson blood.

He'd overexerted himself on the demon-worshipper matter, and his divine body had been somewhat damaged. Seeing this, President Bill Johnson bowed his head.

"If it would please you, withdraw the blessing spread across the nation… We can endure a few days without it."

The reason Jesus could not leave the American mainland for long.

It was for the safety of 300 million American citizens.

And also—

"Bill, I do not wish to see our soldiers and Hunters living drenched in drugs."

Jesus spoke as though making a declaration.

The greatest reason he blessed all of America lay there.

In the past, not only frontline soldiers but even Hunters had been dependent on drugs.

Gates were terrible calamities that sound human minds could barely endure, and since drugs had always been prevalent in America, most Hunters and soldiers had no choice but to rely on them.

It had gotten so bad that the government itself had been dispensing drugs.

Jesus had absolutely no intention of seeing that again.

"So long as I, Jesus Christ, am here, America will be fine. Bill, if I die, don't I simply resurrect?"

Jesus said so with a face devoid of any laughter.

︙

The frontline of the Republic of Korea.

The land of the elite warriors who shielded South Korea from polluted beasts.

"Present arms for Lord Patriot!"

The frontline soldiers greeted a single being.

The first Transcendent of the Republic of Korea — the Patriot — whose protocol rank exceeded even the President's.

The Patriot waved flutteringly and received the soldiers' salute.

"Don't waste your energy on formalities!"

Stepping onto the podium, the Patriot met the eyes of every soldier, one by one.

His gaze lingered notably long on one unit — the 'Death Squad.'

True patriots whose bodies were blackening, forcing them to wrap themselves head to toe in hazmat suits.

"A new Awakened has appeared."

Hazmat suits were normally worn to avoid being infected by contamination.

But they wore theirs to avoid spreading it.

"That Awakened can use an ability called [Coffins]. Any soldiers here with severe contamination levels can enter those Coffins."

The Patriot spoke to the Death Squad with tears streaming down his face.

"The graveyard can house well over 170,000 — so if things go south, you get in those Coffins."

The [Coffins] that maintained one's current state.

And after entering?

"Endure inside. Hold on and hold on. Never die. Our soldiers must never become beasts anymore. No — I will make sure they don't."

Even entering a Coffin didn't guarantee that contamination levels would drop.

From what was currently known, maintaining one's state was all it could do.

Of course, maintaining a state required proportional energy.

"Whether we pump in IV fluids or shove Mysteries into the Coffins — I will find a way to keep you alive."

The soldiers' hearts swelled.

The Lord Patriot himself was saying he would help them survive without turning into beasts.

Everyone shed tears — some broke into sobs — as they hung on the Patriot's every word.

"I will never let the soldiers of the Republic of Korea become products of the Chinese Red Army and the North Korean puppets!"

The Patriot declared.

During this Tower visit, he had gained the beginnings of a new power.

So endure inside the [Coffins].

"When the Tower next grants me the right to enter…"

The Patriot would not simply let the heavily contaminated soldiers die.

"I will reinforce Yulgok Yi I's army to 200,000."

Yulgok Yi I's 200,000-strong army.

The additional 100,000 would include the soldiers of the Patriot's Shield Division.

"So there's no longer any need to request euthanasia right before turning into a beast."

Now, endure in the [Coffins].

And become my special-forces soldiers.

"Let's live together in the Constellation Spaces. Let's save this country!"

The Patriot's shout, brimming with iron resolve.

The frontline soldiers answering with a roar of acclaim.

Waaaaa—!!!

Amid that thunderous resonance, the Patriot felt a twinge of bitterness.

He lamented a reality where this was all he could do.

[The patriotism of the Constellations uplifts the surrounding area.]

[Devotion to Country, the Soldier's Duty — the soldiers' spirits are bolstered.]

[Certain Death Brings Life, Certain Life Brings Death — the conviction of Constellation Yi Sun-sin is bestowed upon the soldiers.]

* * *

The Tower's safe zone.

A fracture had appeared atop the green circle.

The fracture's scale was minuscule, yet its presence was strikingly vivid.

It felt as though only that fracture and I existed in the world.

'Is it connecting?'

I had strengthened the Baby Sword's [Space] trait.

On a hunch, I had opened a path leading to the world of swords.

The result flickered before my eyes.

Sreureuk——.

A finger emerging through the fracture.

The finger of an absolute being — a truly Transcended existence.

The moment I saw it, a change occurred within me.

Memories began seeping in like a flood.

"Does a commoner truly have the right to dream such a dream with a mere fragment of talent?"

An old man who, over an unfathomable span of time, had become one with the sword — that was the Reinhardt Euclid I knew.

But the Reinhardt I saw now was a handsome young man in the prime of youth.

The era when he had entered the Juvenile Abstinence Cultivation and taken on its restrictions.

Yet also the moment he could shatter the wall called the limits of talent.

"Ahh. O sword, you are my savior. The revenge for my house — the grudge of my sister and my father…"

Reinhardt had trembled.

At the fact that his life, once walled in by the ceiling of talent, would be overturned completely.

Free of those restrictions, he devoted himself to endless self-refinement for the sake of true revenge.

He overcame every trial I — the sword — set for him, and poured himself single-mindedly into cultivation solely for revenge.

And through it all, he never lost himself.

"I will take my revenge, but I have no intention of becoming a vengeful wraith. Sword, the reason you hold such azure blue aura must surely be a sign — never lose sight of the greater cause."

Having these vivid memories flood in from his perspective, there were truths I came to realize naturally…

"This level alone is not enough? Sword, what must I do that you demand such deep cultivation of me? You say to do it, and so I shall merely follow, but…"

Reinhardt had been a madman.

When I had demanded 33 years of cultivation.

He had worn a most willing smile and rejoiced.

Cultivation and tempering were his everything.

That seemed to have been his mentality.

And it was Reinhardt's diligence that had saved the world.

When his seclusion ended.

───────!!!

Enormous, translucent tentacles flowing from the cosmos assaulted the world.

An Outer God — devouring the world — had Descended.

The thing that demon worshippers had revered as the Demon King.

"So this is where the meaning of my training lay."

It was a colossal monster that did not even permit humans to perceive it.

Everyone who looked upon it instantly went insane or lost consciousness.

The so-called imperial knights, the archmage tower-masters and their ilk — all of them sealed their own egos and fled from reality.

But one being alone stood against that irresistible monster.

My first sword.

Reinhardt Euclid.

"Come, monster—."

Reinhardt, sword in hand, had single-handedly overturned the sky.

He had burned the terrible monster consuming the continent with his azure blue light and annihilated it completely with 33 honed styles of swordsmanship.

I had already known this fact, but—

'It's far too vivid.'

The truth of the world, seen through Reinhardt's memories rather than [Raise a Sword], was truly harrowing.

Even Reinhardt's world — saved in its most complete form — had seen countless deaths.

Seeing this made the reality bearing down on me hit even harder.

'This is what happens to Earth.'

Ah, the world's going to end.

The sight made that thought rise involuntarily.

But if asked whether I'd despaired — I could say absolutely not.

Didn't I have over 10,000 playthroughs' worth of experience?

The tales of failure would serve as lessons, and the swords that had seen 6 endings would serve as splendid success stories, lighting the way.

Following that flow—

Kuguguguguung——!!!

A 'portion' of Reinhardt descended into the Tower's world.

What had crossed through the fracture was merely a single finger.

Yet I could feel overwhelming power.

* * *

⦗It seems the power to cleave space is still too weak for this servant's full form to emerge.⦘

Right now, this was the [Tower].

A space where the swords' restrictions loosened — where they could manifest in hours.

And yet, summoning the true body still had clear limitations.

Even in the Tower, just a single finger.

'Good lord.'

Even so, I was thrilled.

The swords living in the [world of swords] were 'completed swords' and also 'the mightiest humans of their era.'

Beings who had witnessed the end of the world in one way or another.

Absolute beings who had entered my world that way.

Wasn't it the case that the possibility of those beings appearing in the real world had just been obtained?

'I can't believe it actually worked.'

Earth had an enormously large population.

The landmass was so absurdly vast it was nearly unmanageable.

In such a situation, an incredible possibility had opened up for me.

'I have to keep raising the Baby Sword.'

My reasoning was this.

If the Baby Sword Transcended [Space], it could manifest other swords in this world.

But the Baby Sword had two traits.

What if it Transcended [Time]?

'The swords would be able to remain on Earth permanently.'

Recognizing this build's endpoint was my duty as [Sword Master].

Now I had forged a clear objective.

And to reach that objective, there must be a journey.

⦗Just a finger, but… this servant, Reinhardt. It may prove some small help to the Sword Master.⦘

Reinhardt made an offer.

What could a single rough finger, thrust through the air, possibly accomplish?

But the scope of what that absolute being's finger could do far exceeded my expectations.

⦗To wield the completed 33 Forms, the meridians of the Juvenile Abstinence Cultivation must be perfected.⦘

Wait.

If those meridians were perfected…

"I've lost a trivial function, but in exchange, I've achieved a perfect body. Sword, thank you!!!"

Why had I received memories this vivid?

The scene of Reinhardt joyfully admiring the results of his cultivation flashed through my mind like a dying vision.

That's right.

What Reinhardt was saying amounted to telling me to become a eunuch.

I recoiled and tried to refuse, but—

⦗If the Sword Master, who has attained all enlightenment, perfects his body… he could truly become the savior of this chaotic era.⦘

Heartfelt praise poured in.

Becoming a eunuch was no issue at all.

No — Reinhardt hadn't even hesitated.

I had made him that way, so denying it wouldn't work.

And Reinhardt's Transcended finger moved before I could even react.

⦗It will be over shortly.⦘

Pik—! Pikpik!!!

An intangible energy fired from the finger swept through me.

My mana circuits were being recalibrated according to the formula of the Juvenile Abstinence Cultivation — the same one I had taught to the sword.

'N-no.'

I…

Could absolutely not become a eunuch!

While that thought was looping through my head, vitality began surging through my entire body in real time.

On top of the [Lord of Blood] trait gained from Iris, an azure blue aura began wrapping around my body.

Then a message appeared.

Paat!

[Cultivation efficiency increases by 10,000%.]

[The Lord of Blood trait and the Infinite Divinity trait achieve harmony.]

[The Sword Master's body is being reconstructed.]

[The Divine Body has been optimized.]

Along with a distant sense of exaltation, my vision was fully restored.

I had just felt a sensation approaching 'omnipotence' — through my intact body.

Where had that change originated?

'D-don't tell me…'

Gasp!

I traced back through my senses.

Mercifully — my function was intact.

But my body's condition had been transformed to its optimal state.

⦗Oh, as expected, the Sword Master's body has many peculiarities. Unlike myself, the meridians have settled in perfectly.⦘

That's right.

I had obtained a perfected body with no side effects.

I had nearly become a eunuch.

'A blessing indeed.'

I nodded happily.

All that remained was to soak up his teachings and internalize them.

⦗Now then, I shall teach you how to wield the Forms with that body.⦘

* * *

What were Forms?

The final product created by tempering the 33 basic movements that Reinhardt had cultivated to their absolute extreme.

Horizontal slash, vertical slash, diagonal downstroke, parry, deflection, and so on.

Just — fundamentals.

And yet—

'Perfect fundamentals become ultimate techniques.'

I moved my body as the finger instructed.

How much time had passed?

I didn't care in the slightest.

Just as Reinhardt had done, I simply moved my body until I got it right.

And so, enlightenment came to me.

『You have fully internalized the 33 Forms.』

This meant I had Transcended the system's limits.

<Sword Master Shin Si-woo — you who have gone beyond using given abilities to internalize them as your own.>

<Your sword now holds the possibility of surpassing the laws of this world.>

<The Tower sends you countless accolades and gifts you with possibility.>

That was not the Voice of the World.

The [Tower] — said to exist for each individual Awakened — had spoken to me.