[Vol. 9] Chapter 80: The Asura Sword
She didn’t look at Barton for long. After slightly nodding to acknowledge his kind warning, the gray-haired girl turned back to face the mutated beings surrounding her from all directions and silently closed her eyes.
“Servants of the Flame Calamity…? Since it is Her guidance, then let me use you to sharpen my sword.”
There was no earth-shaking power, no long and complicated spell. She only bent her knees slightly and pushed the sword guard with her left thumb.
“Clang—!”
In that instant, a clear, soul-purifying sword sound pierced the sky like the cry of a lonely crane breaking through the clouds.
A dazzling sword light, sharp enough to seem as if it could slice through space itself, burst from her waist like moonlight falling from the heavens or like thousands of swallows returning to their nest. It swept outward all at once!
“Absolute Sword: Swallows Fluttering.”
Where the sword light passed, time itself seemed to stretch endlessly. Centered on where the girl stood, the shining blades covered every inch of space within a hundred meters. Hundreds of prisoners, their bodies wrapped in black flames, froze instantly!
Their twisted faces, their raised arms, even the flying drops of blood and sparks of black light. All stopped completely, locked in place by an invisible and ultimate sharpness.
This wasn’t a freezing of temperature in the physical sense. It was her sword will cutting off all flow of time and space in that area.
Even the eerie black flames, which could not be stopped or extinguished by any means, shattered under that brilliant light.
Unstoppable. Unbreakable.
The fastest, the sharpest—
This was the Absolute Sword!
“Click~”
That was the sound of her long sword returning to its sheath after releasing countless unseen strikes in the air, so fast that the human eye could not follow.
And it was this faint sound, barely audible, almost lost on the battlefield, that quietly broke the absolute silence around the girl.
The countless lights of the sword had seemed dazzling, but they lasted only a heartbeat. When the radiance faded, the gray-haired girl was already standing straight again. Her calm eyes, unchanged from start to finish, opened silently as she took a step forward.
“Hoo…”
A gentle breeze blew past. The hundreds of prisoners within a hundred meters, frozen in various positions, scattered like piles of dust blown apart by the wind.
Their bodies and the black flames that had been frozen with them, vanished quietly into the air, without even the sound of a final explosion.
Only one strike.
The remaining sword energy was still lingering, refusing to fade. Even the countless prisoners on the prison island, driven mad by outside forces, were now trembling in awe of this sword intent that surpassed human understanding. None dared to step forward.
Alone, the gray-haired girl stood like an unshakable wall in the [Endless Corridor], cutting through the tide of berserk enemies charging toward Gore Fortress. Those in front hesitated in fear. Those behind, unable to stop, crashed into them. The chaos instantly grew worse.
“……”
On the city wall, more than ten thousand soldiers fell silent at once. That breathtaking sword strike had carved itself into the heart of every witness, shocking, confusing, and unbelievable. Even the prisoners who were still attacking the fortress gate slowed their movements noticeably.
The power of a single person… Could it really reach such a level?
At that moment, countless people shared the same thought—
Who… exactly is she?
Suddenly, Barton raised his long sword high and shouted with all his strength, his thunderous voice echoing across the entire [Endless Corridor]!
“Reinforcements have arrived!!! Citizens of the Snow God! Show your courage and determination, fight with our friend and drive back the enemy!!!”
As soon as he said this, several of his lieutenants quickly understood and followed his lead. They raised their weapons and shouted in unison.
“Yes, sir! Counterattack with full force! Fire at will, drive these madmen out of the fortress!”
“BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!”
In an instant, the morale of the soldiers in Gore Fortress surged. The magic cannons, which had started to lose rhythm, once again roared furiously.
Countless arrows rained down like a storm, piercing through the enemies charging at the gate, turning them into sieves and triggering waves of deafening explosions.
Under this relentless bombardment, even the prisoners possessed by the black flames, who had shown no fear of death, could no longer advance.
They were slowly forced back, retreating hundreds of meters away from the fortress. And during this time, the mysterious gray-haired swordswoman who had suddenly appeared didn’t stand idle either.
She moved alone into the enemy ranks. Her figure darted through the narrow bridge of the [Endless Corridor] like a ghost.
Though she didn’t use the devastating technique “Absolute Sword” again, every flash of her blade meant another prisoner covered in black fire stopped moving, then fell lifelessly to the ground.
Most people didn’t know how she did it, but her sword clearly had some restraining power against that strange black flame.
Each strike was precise and clean, whenever that faint slicing sound rang out, a thin golden line would instantly appear on her target’s throat.
The black fire would go out, their life would end, and they would collapse like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
What she severed wasn’t just the visible body, but also some hidden, unseen link within the soul itself.
Efficient. Cold. Calm.
Like the most precise killing machine—
Or like the Asura, the mythical being who delivers judgment through slaughter, killing to stop killing, and violence to end violence.
Her steps never stopped. She advanced as if no one could block her path, her sword turning into a blur of silver-gray light.
Her sword moves were simple and practical, yet they carried a terrifying depth. Sharp enough to cut through illusions and strike at the truth itself.
Even the ordinary-looking scabbard in her hand shone faintly, helping her carve a path through the enemy ranks, tireless and unstoppable.
She cut through the entire [Endless Corridor], then turned back to fight again, throwing the battlefield into complete chaos.
That was clearly her goal.
No matter how strong one person might be, it was impossible to kill every single prisoner from Icefang Island. But as long as Gore Fortress didn’t fall, there was still hope.
“What an amazing sword...”
On the cliff above, Moraya, who had just arrived and witnessed everything, couldn’t help but whisper in admiration.
This woman’s understanding and use of the sword had reached perfection. Not only was she incredibly strong, but her judgment and execution were exceptional.
Even they, who were part of this mission, had only just arrived, so the swordswoman could not possibly have known about the attack beforehand. Everything she did must have been improvised on the spot.
The black flames clinging to those prisoners were not as powerful as the Flame Calamity itself, but they were still far beyond what ordinary beings could fight against or erase.
When did the snowy lands produce such a powerful person?
Moraya instinctively turned toward the priestess beside her. Only to see that the silver-blue eyes woman was also watching the swordswoman cut through the enemy ranks. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and a playful smile appeared at the corner of her lips.
“So this girl came to the north too? My, my... none of these people ever let things get boring, do they~”