"The, the Blade of Requiem?"
Martha's eyes widened as she saw the Blade of Requiem wrapped in crimson energy.
'It's Raon...'
That was Raon's Soul Sword taking the form of the Blade of Requiem. It seemed Raon was determined to keep his childhood promise to kill the Leader of the White Blood Religion and save her mother. Despite the life-threatening situation, just knowing Raon was with her made her feel at ease.
"Let's do this."
Martha bit her lip as she rekindled her fighting spirit.
"Hmph..."
Denier let out a surprised breath, clearly not expecting Raon's Soul Sword to cross dimensions and reach their Sword Domain.
"This pathetic blade!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion arrogantly struck at the Blade of Requiem with her hand blazing with bloody energy. Whoosh! The Blade of Requiem gracefully evaded her attack as if it had eyes of its own.
"Hah!"
As the Leader of the White Blood Religion snorted and clenched her fist burning with bloody energy, the Blade of Requiem, which had been waiting for an opening, struck like lightning and slashed across the back of her hand. With a sizzling sound, her hand split open, causing her soul to scatter massively. Whoosh!
The Blade of Requiem, seemingly unsatisfied with a single wound, blazed with red energy as it aimed for the Leader of the White Blood Religion's throat.
"Ugh!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion retreated with an irritated groan. She seemed to have lost far more of her soul than when Martha had struck her.
"Hah!"
Martha didn't miss the opportunity created by the Leader of the White Blood Religion's retreat and quickly rose to her feet.
"Urgh..."
Denier seemed to have the same thought as he exhaled deeply and stood up from the sea of blood.
"A Soul Sword, is it."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion frowned as she examined the wound on the back of her hand that wouldn't easily heal.
"To think someone not even thirty could manifest a Soul Sword, how absurd."
She bared her white teeth as she watched the Blade of Requiem vibrating silently.
"Heaven must have made a foolish mistake."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion clicked her tongue, as if finding Raon's talent more impressive than her own ability to grow stronger by possessing different bodies. With a flash, the Blade of Requiem transformed into a beam of light and shot toward her heart, determined to maintain its advantage. Whoosh!
The Leader of the White Blood Religion thrust out her fist, concentrated with soul and Blood Magic, toward Raon's Soul Sword that was targeting her heart.
With a thunderous crash, her soul-infused fist collided with Raon's Soul Sword, causing white energy to scatter like mist over the sea of blood. Both Raon and the Leader of the White Blood Religion's souls were damaged simultaneously.
"Hmm..."
However, the Leader of the White Blood Religion seemed to have taken more damage as her complexion grew even paler. The Blade of Requiem, as if saying it wasn't done yet, changed direction and thrust its blade toward her waist. With a flash, she deflected the fiercely descending Blade of Requiem by channeling her soul into her palm.
The deflected Blade of Requiem fell not toward the Leader of the White Blood Religion, but into the sea of blood.
"No way..."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion narrowed her eyes as she watched how easily the Blade of Requiem had been deflected. The blade immediately rose up as if completely unharmed and flew toward her again. With a boom, she quickly retreated and hid behind Martha's mother's soul.
The Blade of Requiem, which had been pursuing the Leader of the White Blood Religion, suddenly slowed down dramatically when it reached Martha's mother.
"Just as I thought!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion split her lips in a wide grin as she struck the slowed Blade of Requiem. With a crash, the blade was hit by her fist and plunged back into the sea.
"Ahahahaha!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion burst into maniacal laughter as she watched red blood dripping from the Blade of Requiem.
"Why, why are you laughing?"
Martha frowned as she looked at the Leader of the White Blood Religion.
"Because I have one more thing to devour."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion smiled smugly as she casually deflected the Blade of Requiem that had struck from the left.
"One more thing to devour? Surely not that Soul Sword..."
Martha gaped in disbelief.
"A Soul Sword is certainly a threatening martial art. After all, it could completely kill me."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion nodded, acknowledging that even she couldn't face Raon's blade head-on.
"But this Soul Sword is different. It has already consumed much of its power breaking through dimensions to enter your Sword Domain."
She tilted her chin, explaining that because it had to pierce through dimensions rather than human flesh, the Soul Sword couldn't display its true power.
"Besides, as you said, this Sword Domain is a place meant only for you and me. Since it forced its way in, it naturally can't use its full power, like that thing."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion looked down at the heavily breathing Denier with a sneer. As she said, Denier had been forced to enter along with them, entangled between her and the Leader's souls, and couldn't use his soul's original power.
"Don't laugh!"
Martha shouted at the Leader of the White Blood Religion who was mocking Denier.
"Actually, there's one more reason why Raon Zieghart's Soul Sword can't move properly."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion deflected the slowed Blade of Requiem as she turned her gaze toward Martha's mother.
"There are four souls intertwined in this Sword Domain. Even Glenn Zieghart couldn't destroy only my soul among souls attached to different dimensions."
She giggled, saying that Raon's Soul Sword had slowed down because it was trying to protect their souls.
"How unfortunate. Your mental support will actually become a hindrance."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion bared her fangs, declaring she would devour Raon's Soul Sword as well.
"No, just having that sword here is already a huge help."
Martha shook her head as she raised her sword.
"Because in the end, we will win!"
She charged toward the Leader of the White Blood Religion, following the Blade of Requiem that was unleashing intense Sword Mantras.
"I'll take the lead!"
Denier stepped forward first, as if trying to protect Martha once again. Two people, one demon, and a single blade clashed in the world of souls, causing the sea of blood to surge up to the sky.
***
With a resounding clash, Raon bit his lip as he deflected the heavy greatsword of the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual.
'My head feels like it's going to split.'
Just sending his Soul Sword through the gates of hell while blocking the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual that was trying to kill Martha and Denier was enough to drive him mad.
But targeting only the Leader of the White Blood Religion's soul among the four closely intertwined souls within the Sword Domain put an even greater strain on his mind. His head throbbed as if it would truly explode.
-I, I don't think even I could do this...
Wrath let out a hoarse groan as he watched the shaking gates of hell.
-Just thinking about it makes me nauseous.
He shook his head, saying that while he could kill the Leader of the White Blood Religion, he couldn't do what Raon was doing.
'...'
Saving even the strength to respond to Wrath, he pushed back the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual and focused on his Soul Sword, but the Leader of the White Blood Religion kept escaping by using others' souls as shields. He wanted to open the gates of hell, grab her by the hair, and slam her to the ground.
'Damn it...'
If either his body or mind had been in good condition, he could have ended this somehow, but he regretted that his body was broken from overexertion. With a whoosh, Raon used the Dance of the Golden Flame to destroy five of the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's weapons and looked behind him.
'If there's anyone who could help...'
Larian, Lecross, and Chamber were in such critical condition that death seemed imminent, let alone being able to help. Evelyn had fainted and couldn't use magic, while Balder couldn't move from his spot as he tried to stop the bleeding from the hole in his abdomen.
'...There's no one.'
It seemed he would have to overcome this with his own strength after all.
'At least with Sword Control.'
He tried to use Sword Control with the fallen Wooden Ring Sword, but his mental strength had reached its limit and he couldn't even lift the sword. The Godly Blood Summoning Ritual, as if determined to follow the Leader of the White Blood Religion's orders until its body disappeared, brought down its widely spread palm along with dozens of weapons.
Raon blocked the consecutive attacks of the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual by holding the Heavenly Drive and the Blade of Requiem diagonally.
"Ugh..."
Blood poured from his mouth as intense pain surged through his bones and muscles. Both his body and mind had reached their limits.
'Still, I must endure...'
If he gave way, Denier and Martha's bodies would be completely obliterated without a trace. He had to hold on somehow until the gates of hell opened. With his teeth clenched so hard they bled, Raon endured the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's attack.
Swords rose up on both sides of him and began pushing back the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's weapons.
"Sorry we're late."
Burren bowed his head as he took position on Raon's right. Despite the dark blood flowing from his mouth, he pushed back the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's longsword.
"Not done yet..."
Runaan froze the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's axe until it turned white, then shattered it. Her eyes reddened as she looked at Martha, who was in the Leader of the White Blood Religion's grasp.
"To think the day would come when I'd help our Palace Master?"
Krein grinned as he deflected a massive spear.
"Pl-please, something weak, please something weak!"
Dorian wanted the lightest dagger, but what fell to him was the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's palm.
"Aaaaargh!"
Yet despite his screams, he didn't dodge and took the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual's palm head-on.
"Please focus on your Soul Sword."
Mark Goetun bowed to him as he helped Dorian deflect the palm that had fallen toward him.
"How did you all..."
The Light Wind Palace Swordsmen had collapsed after their aura was completely depleted from exposure to the bloody energy of the Leader of the White Blood Religion and Denier, so he couldn't understand how they had gotten up.
"I'm not sure. My aura just suddenly replenished?"
"Same here! My aura suddenly surged as if I'd taken an elixir and cultivated!"
The swordsmen nodded to him, saying that high-purity mana had suddenly flowed in from somewhere.
'Who.'
Raon frowned as he looked around, but he couldn't sense anyone else's presence.
"Palace Master! That's not what's important right now!"
"Leave this to us and focus on your battle!"
"We'll hold that monster back somehow!"
"This is nothing compared to your training!"
The other Light Wind Palace Swordsmen gave Internal Injury Medicine to the Five Kings' Transcendents and checked on other injured people. Despite being exhausted from the long war and severely wounded by the Leader of the White Blood Religion and Denier, every single one of his subordinates was doing their part without exception.
Though the situation was as precarious as a candle in the wind, he couldn't help but smile as he remembered the time spent with his swordsmen.
"Thank you."
After expressing his gratitude to the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen, Raon closed his eyes. Using his Soul Sword to peer inside the gates of hell, he could see the situation was getting worse.
'Is the Leader of the White Blood Religion absorbing Martha and Denier's souls in there?'
Though he had inflicted significant damage to the Leader of the White Blood Religion multiple times, her soul seemed unchanged from the beginning. It looked like she was enduring by absorbing Martha and Denier's souls within the Sword Domain.
'I need to kill her as quickly as possible.'
Raon targeted the Leader of the White Blood Religion with his Soul Sword achieved through the Blade of Requiem, but she mockingly escaped by hiding behind Martha and Denier's souls.
'Damn it!'
Although the Light Wind Palace Swordsmen were holding back the Godly Blood Summoning Ritual, too much time had passed, and just maintaining the Soul Sword was overwhelming. The Blade of Requiem was helping however it could, but he could feel his mental strength running out.
The Blade of Requiem vibrated violently enough to make his hands shake, as if saying they had to keep going.
'If we keep fighting like this, you might disappear!'
Raon bit his lip as he saw the small crack appearing on the Blade of Requiem's edge. Despite knowing its own condition, the blade unleashed its most magnificent Sword Mantra yet, as if insisting they had to fight. Its determination suggested it had lived until now for this very day.
Green wind flowed from the cracked blade of the Blade of Requiem and wrapped around his hands.
As he accepted the cool yet gentle wind, his exhausted and dizzy mind seemed to clear a little.
"If that's your will, I'll follow along."
He gripped the increasingly cracking Blade of Requiem in reverse and approached the gates of hell.
"Even if this becomes our last fight together!"
Raon opened his realm of the soul to its limit as he thrust the glowing red Blade of Requiem into the gap of the hell gates.
***
"Kuhak!"
Martha knelt in the sea of blood, coughing up white energy.
"D-damn it..."
Denier was breathing faintly as if he had lost all strength to fight, and although Raon's Soul Sword had landed several successful attacks, it had now noticeably slowed down as if losing power.
"You talked big, but this is as far as you go."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion curled her red lips as if she had expected this.
"It's not over yet!"
Martha gritted her teeth as she looked at the Leader of the White Blood Religion. She wanted to tear that smug face apart right now, but she felt desperate at her lack of strength to do so.
"The world has always been survival of the fittest."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion smiled thinly as she lifted her chin.
"The weak are destined to be devoured by the strong."
She licked her lips as if ready to put those words into action.
"I'd rather die than let you devour me!"
Martha raised her sword, determined to fight until the end.
"You're as stubborn as your mother."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion sneered as she looked at Martha's mother lying behind her.
"But in the end, you'll end up wagging your tail before me too."
She reached out her hand, saying she would properly train Martha.
"Ngh..."
As Martha tried to force her weakened hands to swing her sword, Raon's Soul Sword slowly crawled forward like a grub.
"Ahahahaha!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion burst into laughter at the sight.
"This is a Soul Sword? It couldn't even cut down a sick foal!"
As she sneered and moved to flick away the Soul Sword approaching her with her finger, Raon's Soul Sword suddenly erupted with intense light and pierced her chest. It moved at a speed she couldn't have reacted to even if she hadn't let her guard down.
"Kugh..."
The Leader of the White Blood Religion's body swayed heavily. She seemed unable to maintain her balance after taking the hit while off guard.
"Th-this level of attack can't kill me!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion twisted her lips as she pulled out the Soul Sword from her chest with both hands and threw it away. As Raon's Soul Sword rose into the air, its red blade shattered into thousands of pieces, releasing burning red spirits from within.
The vengeful spirits who had grown stronger by devouring bloody energy became like an unstoppable natural disaster, like a tsunami and storm, as they enveloped the Leader of the White Blood Religion.
The vengeful spirits who had their lives taken, lost their beloved families, and saw their lifelong villages destroyed, tore at the Leader of the White Blood Religion with their red teeth as if to repay all their suffering.
"Argh! You damned things!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion screamed and spewed bloody energy, but the vengeful spirits, as if not caring about death, pushed in with their souls and tore her soul apart.
"Kyaaaaaah!"
The Leader of the White Blood Religion let out an eerie scream unlike anything heard before, as if in extreme agony.
"This is..."
As Martha watched the vengeful spirits devouring the Leader of the White Blood Religion's soul with trembling hands, a clear wind blew from behind her.
"Aren't you going?"
A voice both serious and playfully childlike. Though she hadn't heard it for a long time, it was a voice she could never forget.
"N-no way..."
When Martha turned with trembling eyes, an elf with messy long red hair was smiling and waving at her.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?"
Light Sword Rimmer. The great swordsman who had sacrificed everything for his disciples and died had returned.