Chapter 141
“…….”
“Ahhh…….”
Low exclamations burst forth in the space.
Delilah and the ten examiners.
All of them stared with mouths agape in admiration.
“D-did he really pass Stage 3?”
“How did he endure that? This batch really has incredible mental fortitude.”
“Even Vladimir and Zhang Wei wouldn’t have managed it.”
“Of course! Just their individual scores alone would put both of them in the top five of all time, right? This is truly an insane batch.”
During the roughly seventy-two-hour process, some had slept.
Others had engaged in idle conversation.
But at this exact moment, as Stage 3 ended, everyone’s eyes were fixed on the hologram screen.
“Delilah.”
Luka spoke.
“Yes?”
“The ‘Crazy’ team is the only one that has even briefly tasted Stage 4, correct?”
[1st place ‘Crazy’, 73:05:32 (Stage 4)]
[2nd place ‘Dragon Slayer’, 72:00:00 (Stage 3)]
[3rd place ‘Rider’, 70:45:05 (Stage 3)]
[4th place ‘Lions’, 68:50:40 (Stage 3)]
[5th place ‘Mudskippers’, 66:23:10 (Stage 3)]
…….
His gaze lingered on the Theme 3 ranking board.
The ‘Dragon Slayer’ team had somehow climbed to second place.
“Yes.”
Delilah nodded.
“To be precise, it was the Berserker from the ‘Crazy’ team—Jang Daewoong.”
“How on earth did he endure Stage 4… and for over an hour at that……”
Luka recalled the Stage 3 Joo Donghoon had just endured.
Though he himself had once gone through it, Stage 3 was the very edge of one’s limits.
A situation where, no matter how much you wanted to endure, your body simply wouldn’t follow.
A process that constantly demanded movement.
Concentration.
Relentless persistence.
“…….”
He wasn’t confident he could do it again, even if he went back.
‘Moreover.’
If he were to face Stage 4, which surpassed that level?
He was certain he’d be eliminated faster than anyone else.
No—more accurately, he’d be forcibly disqualified.
‘Honestly.’
Something beyond limits would begin to spill out.
If the body can’t keep up, how do you move?
That would mean breaking the laws of physics—something that doesn’t align with Probability.
In short, it made no sense.
“Hm, that Berserker back then……”
Delilah rested her chin on her hand, recalling the moment.
Even after all four of his teammates had dropped out, he endured on alone, madness blazing in his eyes.
“He was definitely a madman.”
“Pardon?”
“You have to go mad. If you lose yourself completely, that kind of thing becomes possible, Luka.”
“……By ceasing to be yourself, you transcend your own limits?”
“Yes. Surprisingly, there are people like that. Though it never lasts long.”
Delilah tilted her head slightly.
All the examiners were clenching their fists, eyes glued to the central hologram.
Drip, drip!
They were mesmerized by the sight of Joo Donghoon, drenched in sweat yet still burning with vitality in his eyes.
“But why is it?”
Her gaze flicked between the screen and Luka.
“I have this feeling he’ll break the existing record. It’s not just me, is it?”
At her words, Luka’s fist trembled.
His blood stirred.
A swordsman ranked twenty-fifth in the world was trembling just by watching the progress of a mere ranker candidate.
“Let’s just watch, Luka.”
Clank!
Soon, the sound announcing the start of Stage 4 echoed through the space.
“The birth of one who may become a legend.”
—
“Huff, huff, cough, huff!”
My throat was completely dry.
No matter how fast I inhaled and exhaled, there wasn’t enough air in my body.
My entire body felt like it was burning red-hot.
– “Hm, you brat.”
The Elder who appeared muttered.
– “Since you’re still here, you managed to endure after all.”
‘Fuck, Elder. I really feel like I’m dying.’
– “Yeah. It’s amazing you’re alive and not dead, you bastard. Amazing your body is even moving.”
My muscles were already torn to shreds, barely functioning.
The fuel inside my body had long since run out.
There was no energy left.
Swoooosh!
The start of Stage 4.
‘Crazy.’
An arrow left a pitch-black afterimage as it grazed past my eyes.
‘This is basically telling me not to dodge.’
The arrows had changed.
As if showing no mercy for my limits.
They were fired with killing intent, pouring in with all the power in the world.
“……!”
Instinct.
If I hadn’t moved purely on instinct, it would have pierced straight through me.
– “Stop now, you bastard. If you push any harder, you won’t break your body—you’ll break your mind. Didn’t I tell you before? Rest is also training. You’ve done enough.”
Concern seeped into the Elder’s voice.
But I shook my head.
‘No.’
I was beginning to see something.
The skills I possessed—‘Slash’, ‘Thrust’, ‘Shoot’, ‘Defend’.
The process of learning them.
They were finally merging into the ‘Unrivaled Supreme Footwork’ I had learned this time.
I was starting to understand.
‘I absolutely cannot give up.’
Why was that?
Because someone else deciding my limits—
I hated that.
“Hup!”
With a short shout, the Supreme Azure Mind Method activated from my heart.
Pure vital energy surged forth, reinvigorating my body.
My body had been exhausted long ago.
But I forced it to move by drawing on vital energy.
‘In the past, Elder, you told me.’
Swoosh!
My body moved automatically, matching the trajectory of the incoming arrow.
‘To swing in the coolest, most comfortable posture I could imagine—that it contained all the experiences and sensations of my life.’
Back then.
Those were the words you spoke while teaching me Slash.
‘That my life was contained there.’
At the time, I thought it was nonsense.
But now, I understood a little.
Cutting and advancing.
Dodging and advancing.
They weren’t different.
The Legacy of the Ten Thousand Arts.
Martial arts may differ, but at their peak, they arrive at a single form.
Countless waves gather into rivers, and those rivers eventually reach the sea and become one.
That is the essence of Ten Thousand Arts.
‘Elder, there is no giving up in my life.’
– “……Is that so? But your current movement has already exceeded your limits. Everyone has Innate Vital Energy—the life force they possess from the moment they exist. You’re using that now.”
‘…….’
– “If you keep moving like this, the vessel itself may shatter. You might cripple yourself in the pursuit of strength.”
‘But.’
That was only true if I endured foolishly.
I didn’t want to become a cripple.
This endurance was meant to make me stronger.
What good would it be otherwise?
‘Since ancient times, humans have transcended limits.’
But I didn’t stop.
– “…….”
‘By using tools. By creating techniques.’
Technique.
That was the answer.
The solution to transcend the limits imposed by this trial.
My feet moved.
My body followed.
Just as I had felt throughout Stage 3.
– “Hm……!”
The Elder exclaimed, astonished.
– “Already? Have you entered the introduction to Ten Thousand Arts?”
The Elder no longer tried to stop me.
He folded his arms and watched from afar.
– “The great method is effective. For a brat who hasn’t even trained for a full year to briefly taste the absolute realm—truly interesting.”
‘Slash’?
‘Thrust’?
‘Shoot’?
‘Defend’?
The techniques I learned from the Elder.
The teachings and realizations accumulated over time began to fuse.
And so, they changed.
My body began moving beyond its limits.
Each arrow fired at tremendous speed.
Yet I dodged them with simple movements.
‘Briefly.’
I felt like I could imitate the realm the Elder had once shown me.
And then—
[Skill ‘Slash’ (A-rank) disappears.]
[Skill ‘Thrust’ (A-rank) disappears.]
[Skill ‘Shoot’ (A-rank) disappears.]
[Skill ‘Defend’ (A-rank) disappears.]
[Skill ‘Unrivaled Supreme Footwork’ (A-rank) disappears.]
Five skills vanished simultaneously from my [Possessed Skills] window.
And—
[Skill ‘Ten Thousand Arts’ (A-rank) is created.]
Ah.
They had fused.
Cutting, thrusting, shooting, blocking, moving.
At their peak, they were one.
– “Crazy bastard.”
The Elder muttered.
– “That’s right. Ten Thousand Arts means learning countless techniques to arrive at a single truth. Realizing that no matter what you learn, it all converges in the end—that is Ten Thousand Arts. It seems you’ve finally awakened in your body what you only understood in your head.”
‘Elder.’
– “Yes.”
‘Is this the world you saw?’
My mind felt completely clear.
Though my body was exhausted and my breathing ragged.
A refreshing sensation bloomed at the crown of my head.
Like dense fog that had blocked my vision had finally lifted.
– “Hmph. Don’t get arrogant. You’ve barely stepped into the beginning and you’re already acting like you’ve grasped some universal truth?”
‘Ten Thousand Arts is amazing.’
I smiled.
I smiled while dodging arrows.
Though I had no strength left, I was calm.
As if a three-dimensional being were observing a two-dimensional world—everything was clear.
I could feel every arrow’s trajectory.
The level had changed.
‘Not just amazing—insane. That’s why I love it so much. Thank you, Elder. For letting me taste this realm.’
– “Heh heh. Getting stronger is more addictive than drugs.”
The Elder laughed.
– “Anyway, you’re a strange fellow. And now I know for sure—you have the qualifications to inherit Ten Thousand Arts. Not just persistence or luck, but talent as well.”
‘Didn’t you say before, Elder.’
Back then, in the dungeon I entered thanks to Ki Soyul.
What you said while looking at me in ‘Stage: A Deep White-Haired Elder’.
I’ll believe your words. I’ll trust the venom in your eyes. So promise me. No matter what trials come, inherit everything I have. Carve the existence of ‘me’ somewhere in this world.
I was simply keeping that promise.
For the Elder’s resentment.
And for my own dreams and desires.
“Heh heh.”
Laughter spilled out for the first time.
It was enjoyable.
The pain was enjoyable.
And I was proud of myself for enduring to the end.
Swoosh! Swooosh!
Stage 4 continued.
As my limits expanded, the arrows accelerated even further, and the floor shook violently.
As if screaming for me to give up.
To stop.
They caused a ruckus.
But I endured.
One hour. Five hours. Ten hours.
There was no particular reason.
‘I’ll endure until I can’t anymore.’
That was the only thing in my mind.
And finally—
[24 hours have passed.]
[Switching to Stage 5.]
When the transition message appeared,
That was the last thing I remembered.
After pouring out everything—
I fainted.