The Swordmaster Wants To Live Peacefully [EN]: Chapter 95

Swordmaster Wants to Live in Peace – Episode 95

Swordmaster Wants to Live in Peace Episode 95

The Black Divine Tree (2)

In the dim dawn, Yoo Seong-woo and Schua Nel ascended Mount Bukhan.

They walked with leisurely steps, slowly.

Thick darkness blocked their path, but it wasn’t much of a problem.

Yoo Seong-woo could see as clearly as day even in the darkness, and spirits of light gathered around Schua Nel, illuminating her path.

“I wanted to eat a little more.”

“I’ll order more when we get back later.”

“Oh, sweet.”

Yoo Seong-woo thought he should take Schua Nel’s internet access away.

Her language habits seemed to be getting increasingly… colorful.

And before long, they reached the location of the black tree.

The collaborative effort between the Osaek Mudang Association [Five Colors Shaman Association] and the Magic Tower might have been somewhat forced, but its execution was magnificent.

Talismans densely covered the black tree, and numerous magic circles overlaid them.

Moreover, talismans were lined up in the air at regular intervals above it, with magical formulas filling the spaces between them.

The two groups explained that the first layer was a barrier of ‘suppression,’ and the second was a barrier of ‘stabilization.’

Finally, the third barrier was said to embody the concept of ‘stasis.’

They claimed that the inside of that barrier could be considered to be in a state where time had nearly stopped.

It wouldn’t truly stop time, but it would maintain its effectiveness for at least a week.

They didn’t know what would happen after that.

Barriers typically take a long time to prepare.

The barrier they had erected this time was hastily made, so its effectiveness was questionable.

They believed that even if they tried to reinforce it later or install a new one, the same methods wouldn’t work because they were dealing with a being of terrifying power.

Therefore, it had to be dealt with within a week.

“Seeing it up close, it definitely has a more… ominous aura,” Schua Nel muttered, standing before the black tree.

The spirits didn’t dare approach the tree.

They scattered at high speed, as if they had seen something forbidden.

The spirits hiding behind Schua Nel trembled.

“…It’s okay, everyone. Calm down.”

She calmed the spirits and slowly moved towards the black tree.

She couldn’t go beyond the barrier, but she could still understand the situation from there.

Schua Nel looked up at the black tree with a pitiful expression.

“…It’s a pity, truly a pity.”

The tree was screaming.

The giant tree, once revered as a divine tree, was in a pitiful state, begging for death.

“How did it come to this…”

Schua Nel didn’t feel any sympathy for the elves who betrayed the parent tree.

She only pitied the Grand Lotus, who should have embraced them all.

The World Tree does not betray its children.

Even if they stab it with a knife and drain its life force, it will simply give it away.

That’s why the World Tree, even in this state, did not curse its children.

It simply wanted its life to end.

“Did you come up with a way to deal with this? You know the most about the World Tree.”

“…I want to have a moment of mourning for now.”

“Mourning is for the dead, not for the living.”

“You always have to say it like that…”

“Just tell me how to attack it.”

“…Remember when you came to save me before? When you entered the World Tree and climbed up.”

Yoo Seong-woo nodded.

He had ascended the Great Sephirah [a mystical tree in Kabbalah] to its deepest part to catch the thing that was gnawing at its roots.

He had reached it after passing through all sorts of traps and barriers.

“You’ll have to do something similar. You have to break inside and go to the core. That’s what I see.”

“There’s a path inside that tree?”

“Probably. It used to be the Grand Lotus, so there’s a high possibility that the information from that time was recorded and grown as is. You have to go to the core and destroy the ‘nucleus’ to stop its growth.”

“It’s the same as the Abyss.”

The attack structure itself was the same as the Abyss.

Enter the interior, break through all sorts of traps and monsters, and destroy the core.

“But while you’re attacking inside, it’ll be making a fuss outside.”

“We’ll need two teams: an internal attack team and an external suppression team.”

“…It was once a divine tree. I don’t know what it ate to grow, but divinity must still remain.”

“What do you mean?”

“It will be difficult to enter unless you are someone who can withstand divinity. Even if you manage to get in, you won’t be able to move properly because you’ll be crushed by the pressure.”

“That’s a headache.”

Could the current S-class heroes withstand divinity?

Yoo Seong-woo didn’t think so.

Then, in the end, he would have to go inside alone.

He had to cut down Beyorgan’s body, which had become the core, and cut out the seed inside.

“Compared to the Great Sephirah, what do you think the inside will be like?”

“The defense of the Great Sephirah will be stronger. The Great Sephirah’s main focus is ‘protection’ to prevent intruders from invading, but what I feel from this tree is more than that, it’s ‘malice.’ It will only try to kill.”

“Malice…”

Yoo Seong-woo, who had been thinking about her words, opened his mouth.

“Then there won’t be much of a problem. Malice is easier than protection.”

Wasn’t his specialty cutting down hostile guys rather than breaking through something he was trying to protect?

Yoo Seong-woo took a long breath and said.

“What else?”

“…Somehow, I feel a nostalgic feeling from the tree. Maybe… all the World Trees may have the same root.”

“…That’s not a big deal. Then it’s better to go back today.”

“It’s hard. Carry me on your back.”

At Schua Nel’s request to carry her on his back, Yoo Seong-woo grabbed the back of her neck and slung her around his waist like luggage.

“I said carry me on your back…”

“This is enough for you.”

Carry her on his back, my foot.

Who knows when she’ll stab him with a knife.

If he were to be stabbed, his side would be better than his back.

* * *

The day of the operation was set for two days later, after the meeting.

The operation was simple.

While others held out on the outside, Yoo Seong-woo would destroy the inside.

It was an operation that depended on one person, but there was nothing more effective than that.

“You guys still need to get stronger. You’re still too lacking.”

Yoo Seong-woo called three people to a secluded place.

It was Yoo Ji-woo, Hong Seo-hwa, and Baek Woo-hyun, whom he saw regularly.

The three were still staying in Seoul for the operation, so they gathered immediately at Yoo Seong-woo’s call.

Yoo Seong-woo, who had chartered an Abyss nearby, looked at the three with Schua Nel.

Schua Nel nodded in agreement from the side.

“Yes, they’re just weaklings right now. But there seems to be potential.”

“…Master, who’s the little kid next to you?”

“Don’t worry about it. She’s just an internet warrior [someone who is brave behind the keyboard but not in real life].”

“I can be a warrior in real life too. Want to fight me?”

“Really?”

Yoo Seong-woo said, tempting fate.

Then Schua Nel took a step back and avoided his gaze.

“She’s really an internet warrior.”

“…A big adult man is seriously trying to fight a small, frail girl.”

“That’s right! Master! That was too much, even for me!”

“Are you going to fight instead?”

“No.”

Hong Seo-hwa immediately backed down.

Anyway, Yoo Seong-woo, who pulled Schua Nel behind him, said to the three again.

“I’ve been teaching you guys pretty gently so far. From now on, I’m going to treat you harshly.”

At his words, the three had the same thought.

‘That was gentle?’

‘…It was hell?’

‘My brother is not in his right mind after all. I should just think of him as a crazy guy from now on.’

Whatever their thoughts were, Yoo Seong-woo added, outlining the standard of strength he expected.

“…At least, I think you should be able to face one of the Ascension Church’s executives. Sooner than I thought.”

“Were the Ascension Church executives that strong, Master?”

He shook his head at Baek Woo-hyun’s question.

“They’re weak compared to me. But they’re strong compared to you. The guy I met, Andro, was a skilled magician. The guy named So… from the Magic Tower this time wasn’t even close to being a combat magician.”

Basically, magicians had a strong image of being locked up in a room and doing research.

That’s what it was in reality.

Those who are good at using their heads are locked up in their rooms and using their heads, and there are few who bother to crawl into dangerous places to improve their combat skills.

But that guy Andro skillfully executed a magic battle.

He was a typical combat magician who used various traps, lured them in, and tried to win with firepower.

He had quite a bit of experience, so his skills weren’t bad either.

“I don’t know how many of those guys are in the Ascension Church. That guy might be a mere subordinate.”

Looking at the fact that they make things like what they fed Beyorgan, it doesn’t seem like he’s just a subordinate, but he said that to instill a sense of alertness.

Then Yoo Ji-woo asked a natural question.

“If there are many of those guys, shouldn’t the Earth have already been destroyed? You’re saying that only 오빠 [older brother/term of endearment] can handle them.”

“That’s because that’s not their purpose. I don’t know the thoughts of crazy guys, but I guess they have a purpose that they can’t achieve if the Earth is destroyed.”

“What’s that purpose?”

“Ascension. Getting out of the current body and heading to a higher place. Climbing the stairs to God.”

At the words that flowed from his mouth, the three made expressions that they didn’t understand well.

They might know Nirvana, which is used in Buddhism, but the expression ‘ascension’ didn’t resonate with them.

Yoo Seong-woo added an explanation.

“What constitutes God is divinity. You must have divinity worthy of it to ascend to the position of God.”

“So?”

“And what creates that divinity is ‘worship’ and ‘adoration.’ It blooms from people’s emotions.”

Yoo Seong-woo said that the existence of humanity is essential to have divinity or divinity.

“Humans give up on God in absolute despair, but they believe in God fanatically in moderate despair. Aren’t there many of those guys in Korea?”

“There are a lot.”

“The purpose of the Ascension Church is that: to use such humans, or the descended God itself, as a material to attempt ascension.”

Yoo Seong-woo, even though he came up with it himself, could only think that it was a really crazy idea.

Besides, isn’t there evidence?

Schua Nel confirmed that the black tree currently growing on Mount Bukhan would be the ‘Grand Lotus,’ which was once a divine tree.

That’s why Yoo Seong-woo concluded that he had to raise the strength of the three even a little faster.

“Now you really feel that you need to get stronger to stop such an Ascension Church, right? If you don’t, there’s nothing I can do.”

“…I want to get stronger!”

“Me too.”

“Me too.”

The three spoke in succession.

Yoo Seong-woo licked his lips and nodded.

He knew all three would react this way.

Ambition and competitiveness.

The three had qualities essential for those who want to get stronger.

That’s why Yoo Seong-woo said, aiming his life at the three with a happy heart.

“I’m not going to let you off easy from now on. You might die, so survive on your own.”

Originally, skills increase the most in actual combat.