The third secret vault.

I looked into the place I had opened with Moon Heaven.

I activated Moon Eyes and pierced the darkness, scanning every direction. The moment I saw the inside, I had to go still for a second.

“What the hell.”

What was this?

This was actually unbelievable.

So unbelievable, in fact, that—

“There’s nothing here?”

There was nothing. It was almost laughable. I’d come in expecting maybe something extraordinary, and the interior of the vault didn’t even have a speck of dust left in it.

“...What is this?”

I looked straight at Yoo Cheongil. He was staring into the space with calm eyes.

Then—

[Can’t you see it?]

He spoke to me as if something was there.

What couldn’t I see...?

“...What do you see, old man?”

What the hell was I supposed to find in this completely empty space?

There had to be something there to find in the first place. No matter how I looked at it, it was just an empty room.

“What exactly are you telling me to look at—”

I stopped mid-sentence.

Because I thought I understood.

“...”

I put force into my dantian. Light seeped into my eyes as energy slowly rose.

Moon Immortal Sword’s Path lit up again, and I focused on the room once more.

Only then did I understand.

“Ah.”

What Yoo Cheongil had meant for me to see.

What was actually inside this room.

Only then did I realize it.

“This is...”

Something carved all across the wall. Blue lines had been cut into it, sharp and countless.

These were—

‘Sword marks.’

Traces left behind by a sword.

Every line in this room was one.

‘...Ha.’

Blue sword marks. What did they mean? At first glance, they looked like nothing but a chaotic mess slashed across the wall, but there was something strange about them.

Especially—

‘The colors are different.’

Even though they were all blue, some were darker while others looked faint.

“...What is this?”

I asked Yoo Cheongil as I studied the sword marks.

At my question, Yoo Cheongil laughed aloud.

[What does it look like to you?]

“A wall somebody hacked to hell with a sword.”

[...Hacked to hell?]

“Doesn’t it look pretty damn close?”

[Insolent brat. You may be the only one in the world who would look at this and call it a mess.]

“So what is it?”

Slide.

I touched the wall. While feeling the rough texture beneath my palm—

I gripped my sword with the other hand as I looked at the densely packed sword marks.

I raised the Divine Sword and widened the distance a little.

Then—

SHIIING—!!

[Oh.]

I moved my body in line with the sword marks. Starting from the darkest traces, I followed them as the color gradually lightened.

Krrk.

As I moved, my internal energy seemed to start moving on its own.

‘Is Blue Moon Heart Art moving in response to the motion?’

Or was my body moving to follow the energy?

I couldn’t tell which came first, but I could tell the sword marks and Blue Moon Heart Art were reacting as if they were resonating with each other.

FWAAASH—!!

The fourth strike.

I didn’t even know what movement I was supposed to use. I was following pure instinct.

Then, just as I was about to draw the fifth strike—

Sting!

“...!!”

The movement broke, and pain shot through me.

Krrk—! The sword that had been continuing forward stopped before it could reach the end.

“...Hah.”

I stared at the wall with an incredulous look. The positions didn’t connect. There was no way for one motion to flow into the next.

“What is this?”

I asked as I looked at Yoo Cheongil.

“How the hell am I supposed to connect that?”

[That, kid, is what you must find from here on.]

“...Ah.”

I understood.

That meant—

“...This is training, isn’t it?”

It meant Yoo Cheongil had finally given me training again after a long time.

[The Fourth Form. If you obtain this— from that moment onward.]

Yoo Cheongil spoke with a vicious grin.

[There will not be a soul alive who could deny the name Sword Saint.]

His tone was utterly certain.

*****

Before even half a quarter-hour had passed, I came back out of the vault.

I wanted to stay longer and keep looking at the sword marks, but I didn’t have the luxury of pouring time into that right now.

I slid the sword back into my waist and moved. Once I came out and started walking while avoiding people—

“Master.”

“...!”

Strange Demon appeared behind me.

“Jesus, you scared the hell out of me.”

It’d be nice if he made some noise once in a while. While I was still startled by his sudden appearance—

“The sect master is looking for you.”

Strange Demon lowered his head as he spoke.

‘So he’s back.’

Moon Immortal Sword had returned.

“...Let’s go.”

At that, I headed straight for where Moon Immortal Sword would be. By the time I reached the sect master’s quarters—

“I will wait for you here, Master.”

“Here?”

It was still quite far from the entrance. I was wondering why Strange Demon was sending me in from all the way over here, and he must have noticed my confusion, because he answered.

“If I go any closer, the sect master may notice me.”

“...Hm?”

At Strange Demon’s words, my face tightened. If he got any closer, Moon Immortal Sword would notice his presence?

Strange Demon had wandered freely through the Martial Alliance and Mount Hua without concern, so it was strange to see him being cautious around Moon Immortal Sword.

‘...Does that mean Moon Immortal Sword’s senses are just that sharp?’

That thought stayed in the back of my mind while—

“Then I’ll go on ahead.”

Since Moon Immortal Sword had summoned me, I headed into the sect master’s room first.

*****

By the time I arrived at the sect master’s room, Small Moon Unit Leader was already inside.

“So, you’ve come.”

“I greet the sect master.”

Moon Immortal Sword’s blue eyes turned toward me, and I lowered my head in respect.

Then, after looking at me, Moon Immortal Sword shifted his gaze to Small Moon Unit Leader.

“Unit Leader, you may leave now.”

“...Understood.”

At the order to withdraw, Small Moon Unit Leader paid his respects and went outside.

Our eyes met for a moment, but only for an instant.

After that, I was left alone with the master of Blue Moon Sect.

“I heard you accomplished something significant at Mount Hua. You worked hard.”

“...It was nothing.”

“They say you even healed the alliance leader. I didn’t know you had talent in medicine as well.”

“...”

The way he looked at me made my body want to stiffen on its own. No matter what else could be said, this man’s sheer presence was overpowering as hell.

“I will not ask who taught you medicine.”

Should I be grateful for that? In truth, even though he said he wouldn’t ask, it felt more like—

‘It feels like he already knows.’

For some reason, it felt like he had already figured it out long ago.

“You saved the alliance leader and resolved Mount Hua’s problems... truly impressive.”

I was hearing praise, but even that didn’t feel good.

“...No. I only did what had to be done.”

“What had to be done? Do you truly think that?”

“...”

Honestly, no.

More than anyone, I knew that wasn’t something I had to do.

“You have honest eyes.”

‘Damn.’

Without realizing it, I had forgotten to keep acting.

At the unpleasant moment when it felt like he had seen straight through me—

“You’ve advanced.”

Moon Immortal Sword had noticed that change too. He had grasped that my body had reached Transcendent Peak.

“Did you encounter some fortunate opportunity?”

“...I gained a small insight.”

“To call it small when what you obtained is as great as the heavens. That does not fit.”

“...Haha.”

I laughed awkwardly.

Then I erased the expression from my face as well.

“Sect Master.”

“Speak.”

“May I ask you something?”

Instead of answering, Moon Immortal Sword simply stared at me. It looked like he was telling me to say whatever I wanted to say.

“I mean the letter you sent. Sect Master... did you already know that Mount Hua’s sect master was in poor condition?”

I brought up the letter from Moon Immortal Sword that had led to me bringing the divine pill.

At the mention of it, Moon Immortal Sword’s brow twitched just slightly.

“I did not know.”

“Then how—”

“It was nothing more than suspicion and inference.”

“...Inference?”

“It had been years since the sect ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) master shut himself away within Mount Hua and ceased coming out. Considering the information gathered during that time, and the surrounding circumstances, it was something I suspected.”

Rustle.

A single sheet in his hand turned.

“I sent that because, though it was only suspicion, I believed that if it was Unit Member Bang, you would be able to make use of it.”

“...You pushed that suspicion that far based on nothing but intuition?”

“And yet you did it in the end, did you not?”

“...”

Should I believe that or not? In truth, the choice I would make was already decided.

“I see.”

Believe it.

No— pretend to believe it.

That was all I could do right now.

The problem was the trap Moon Immortal Sword had already laid.

That line earlier, about not asking how my medical skill had come to be.

That one sentence had sealed my mouth shut.

If I doubted him and kept pressing further, I’d only be handing Moon Immortal Sword justification.

‘...What a slippery bastard.’

He wasn’t just strong. He was skilled with words too.

He really was a difficult man to deal with.

“Understood. I’ll let that part go, then... Sect Master, do you truly want me to act as an alliance leader candidate?”

I brought up the letter Cheonrijinan and I had looked at together.

It had clearly been meant to push me into becoming an alliance leader candidate somehow.

“...You know it won’t happen anyway.”

For someone this sharp, he didn’t seem like the kind of man who actually believed I could become alliance leader.

I wanted to know what his real intention was.

“Alliance leader. Yes. Most likely, Unit Member Bang truly will not become alliance leader.”

“Then why—”

“This time.”

“...!”

My eyes widened at Moon Immortal Sword’s words.

Because I understood something from his tone.

“...Don’t tell me. Sect Master.”

This man—

“Do you actually want to raise me to alliance leader?”

Even if not now, then someday. Even if it was difficult at present, maybe not this time, but the next time.

“Is that why you’re telling me to remain active as a candidate?”

Just having that record—having once stood as a candidate—would help later. So for now, I was being told to remain in that position.

“They are preparing for a meeting with the DEMON CULT, I hear.”

Something only Cheonrijinan and Divine Spear should have known was coming out of Moon Immortal Sword’s mouth too.

“It is a good pretext. Go there and build your reputation step by step.”

“...And then?”

“Then advance to the end of the righteous sects.”

The end of the righteous sects. Did that mean alliance leader?

“Me? Why? If anything, it would be faster for you to do it yourself.”

With Moon Immortal Sword as he was now, he could sit in the alliance leader’s seat whenever he wanted, so I couldn’t understand why he was trying to push me instead.

“It holds no meaning for me.”

“...What do you mean, no meaning?”

“...”

Moon Immortal Sword did not bother answering anything after that.

“Now I will ask.”

It was obvious he had no intention of answering what came before.

“What alternative did the Strategist propose to you?”

I flinched.

Moon Immortal Sword seemed to know. That Cheonrijinan had set conditions for me stepping down as an alliance leader candidate.

‘That’s terrifying.’

It sent a chill down my spine. Just how far did this man’s gaze reach? What exactly was Moon Immortal Sword thinking? I couldn’t tell.

‘At first I thought he was just some extraordinary old man.’

But the more I saw of him, the more he felt like he had something downright chilling hidden inside.

There was no point trying to circle around it.

“...He told me to bring back someone to replace me.”

So I answered honestly.

“Someone to replace you?”

“Yes. He said that person was already on the way to Blue Moon Sect, so I should persuade him and bring him back.”

“...I see.”

He didn’t even ask who it was.

Moon Immortal Sword simply nodded.

“Then do that.”

“What?”

“If you can persuade him and raise him as the candidate in your place, I will not force the matter. And furthermore.”

Tap.

Moon Immortal Sword tapped the table with a finger as he spoke.

“From now on, no matter what favor you ask of me, I will willingly grant one.”

“...!”

The moment I heard that, I became certain.

Moon Immortal Sword was convinced I would never be able to pull this off.

He really seemed that certain.