Ascension Through Skills

The reconnaissance had concluded. Taesan’s movements accelerated. He unleashed his swordsmanship, known as Ability Sword.

Clang!

Quaned countered with his own swordsmanship.

His technique seemed uncentered, more akin to erratic swinging.

Yet, it was deceptive. Quaned’s sword, initially aimed at Taesan’s head, suddenly shifted direction. Taesan anticipated this change and blocked it.

Clang!

Quaned pressed on, restricting Taesan’s movements. He twisted his sword, aiming for Taesan’s shoulder.

Taesan contorted his body to dodge, and Quaned swung his sword once more.

It was an unstructured street swordsmanship, yet it was challenging. With seamless movements, Taesan found himself gradually being pushed back.

Taesan propelled himself backward to gain some distance. Quaned promptly pursued.

“Indeed, there’s talent,”

Taesan mused. At first glance, Quaned’s swordsmanship seemed unconventional. Yet, aside from the connected skills, it was not vastly inferior to the Ability Sword.

[I've also completely overhauled the Stormscar Sword, so creating it myself isn't out of the question. With that level of talent, it's certainly feasible.]

Quaned’s innate talent appeared to surpass Taesan’s. Winning solely through swordplay seemed unlikely.

It was time for Taesan to leverage his advantage.

He charged forward.

Quaned recoiled from the aggressive attack that neglected defense. Taesan advanced on Quaned with a fierce sword strike.

At first glance, it appeared Taesan, previously on the defensive, had grown impatient and attempted to overwhelm Quaned with broad movements. It was a scenario where Quaned could have gained the upper hand by simply counterattacking due to the large opening.

However, Quaned, after briefly displaying a puzzled expression, raised his sword.

Clash!

Their swords met. Taesan continued with broad, aggressive movements, pressing Quaned.

Instead of counterattacking, Quaned adopted a defensive posture. He parried the attacks while creating space between them.

Taesan clicked his tongue softly and surged forward.

Quaned’s sword barely grazed Taesan.

[Your First Attack Nullification has been activated.]

Quaned’s body reverted to its state before the sword grazed him, his pupils dilating due to the sudden physical movement.

“Kuk!”

Taesan’s sword plunged into his chest.

For the first time, he groaned.

Twisting his body to minimize the damage, he slammed his elbow down, knocking Taesan’s sword aside, and created distance.

[403 damage to Quaned.]

Thud!

Distance was created.

Taesan frowned, clearly unsatisfied.

‘To grasp even this.’

Attack nullification was, in essence, a selfish exchange. It negated attacks directed at oneself, allowing one to freely attack the bewildered opponent.

He had planned to gain a significant advantage using this, but Quaned’s response was quicker than anticipated.

Seeing Taesan press on and realizing something was amiss, Quaned avoided combat and forced his way in to activate nullification, managing to block without much confusion. Although his attack landed, it was a disappointing outcome for Taesan, who had hoped for more.

“What is that?”

But Quaned was equally astonished.

The attack had landed, yet it vanished. Not only that, but time itself seemed to reverse.

Even he, with his myriad of skills, had never encountered such a level of ability.

“Find out for yourself.”

Taesan pressed on once more, with Quaned hastily beginning to defend.

Clash!

Quaned’s movements were more cautious than before. Instead of aiming for a solid hit on Taesan, his actions suggested he was targeting minor attacks.

It appeared he was being careful to avoid triggering the Attack Nullification again.

“Sigh.”

Taesan chuckled.

This was the first time someone had perfectly understood the concept of Attack Nullification while he was navigating the Labyrinth.

He was also adept at avoiding the curse left in the spots where Taesan had stepped.

Clash!

Quaned parried sword strikes and waved his hand.

[Quaned activated Ronobe's Ashen Rain.]

The ceiling of the Labyrinth opened, and from it, black slime began to fall like rain.

[You activated Seir's Black Wind.]

Whoosh!

The wind scattered the raindrops.

However, despite being obstructed by the wind, the raindrops stubbornly began to fall where they were meant to.

The raindrops, possessing significant physical force, forced Taesan to focus on bodily protection, and Quaned seized this opportunity.

[Your Second Attack Nullification has been activated.]

Quaned’s body returned to its original state.

The moment Attack Nullification was activated, Taesan abandoned defense and thrust his sword into Quaned’s back.

[602 damage to Quaned.]

He successfully inflicted damage…

But Taesan’s expression was far from bright. Excluding the Attack Nullification, inflicting only about 600 damage felt insufficient.

Of course, it wasn’t a favorable situation for Quaned either. The very notion of having to take damage just to negate one skill was absurd.

“How many more do you have?”

Quaned muttered, regaining his composure.

The falling rain had already ceased. Taesan observed Quaned.

‘There’s no particular weakness.’

The adversaries he had encountered so far each had a vulnerability. But not this demon.

His swordsmanship was also of a high caliber. His handling was exceptional, and he coolly assessed the situation.

And his proficiency in black magic was quite advanced. He likely possessed most of the active skills, including Flow.

He was nearly well-rounded.

Just like Taesan.

“You’re strong.”

“I won’t lose.”

Quaned declared with vigor. There was undeniable confidence in his voice.

The confidence that only someone who had overcome numerous challenges and hardships through their own strength could possess.

Taesan grinned.

“Good.”

In fact, the strategy to win was straightforward.

Use Apostle Transformation.

No matter how skilled Quaned was…

He wouldn’t have a means to counter the power of an apostle. He would fall, unable to withstand the elevated status. Even if he somehow managed to endure, he would be defeated by the power exhausted in the process.

But that wouldn’t be fun. More importantly, it wouldn’t serve as training.

“This is also a form of training.”

Taesan muttered as he rushed in.

[You activated Acceleration.]

Quaned quickly responded to Taesan’s suddenly accelerated movements, raising his sword to block the attack.

[You activated Strong Blow.]

Clang!

As their swords collided, Quaned’s body was slightly pushed back.

However, Quaned was not flustered. Having seen the skill Strong Blow several times before, he regained his stance and blocked the attack.

Clang!

“Ha.”

But this time, he couldn’t help but be surprised.

Even after the effect of Strong Blow had ended, the force felt as if Strong Blow was still active along the sword.

Taesan swung his sword in succession.

Clash!

Quaned kept being pushed back, but only for a moment. He began to respond calmly.

[Quaned activated Wave Variation.]

Whoosh.

Rippling waves emanated from Quaned. Even though the sword was swung, its trajectory was forcibly twisted.

‘Is this a continuous dodging skill?’

It was a skill Taesan had not learned. The trajectory of the attack did not reach Quaned.

But Taesan stepped forward.

[You activated Sure Hit.]

The sword, being bent by the wave, forcibly flew towards Quaned.

Quaned, who was preparing to counter, was startled and tried to block it.

[You activated Flow.]

However, Quaned’s sword was forcibly deflected.

Ultimately, he failed to block and allowed the attack.

[703 damage to Quaned.]

“Kuk!”

Quaned groaned, his eyes filled with bewilderment.

‘What?’

Flow was a skill that only dodged physical attacks. He had never imagined it would apply to the sword as well.

Quaned countered, stabbing Taesan’s chest with his sword.

[You activated Counter.]

His body moved to block the sword.

And Taesan countered, but Quaned blocked it.

Quaned swung his sword again.

The conditions for Counter were met.

Taesan’s sword disregarded Quaned’s attack and struck his shoulder.

“What, how?”

Quaned grasped his shoulder and retreated.

The outcomes were completely different from the skills he knew.

He could have tried rushing in again, thinking he had misjudged, but Quaned quickly assessed the situation.

The opponent had altered his skills. Quickly determining that he couldn’t accurately understand the changes made, he created distance.

He gave up on close combat and waved his hand.

His forte was not just in swordsmanship.

[Quaned activated Focalor's Beast Mist.]

The mist stretched out like the claws of a beast, leaving marks everywhere.

Quaned also knew that Taesan used black magic and magic.

But Taesan was human, and he was a demon. In handling black magic, he judged himself to be superior.

Quaned decided he could suppress Taesan with black magic linked together, and it wasn’t a wrong decision. In fact, he couldn’t beat Taesan in close combat.

However, just because it wasn’t wrong didn’t mean it was the right answer.

Towards the creeping mist, Taesan clenched his fist.

[You activated Marbas' Pitch-Black Wave.]

Space opened around Taesan, and a dark wave rose greedily.

The wave swallowed the mist. The mist howled like a beast in resistance, but the wave trampled everything and absorbed it into itself.

“What!”

Quaned’s eyes widened, not expecting his black magic to be overcome by another.

Taesan rushed at Quaned with the surging wave.

Quaned hastily created distance, waving his hand.

[Quaned activated Eligor's Thorn of Rose.]

Sharp thorns fell in droves. The power contained in them was crushing, trampling like the wave.

Taesan responded.

[You activated Decarabia's Twisted Vegetation.]

Rumble!

Roots rose, filling the room.

Of course, they couldn’t block the thorns. There was a clear difference in the ranks of black magic, and Twisted Vegetation was on the lower end. It was pierced by the thorns.

But it was enough to slightly twist their trajectory.

Taesan dashed through the opening created by the twisted trajectory.

Quaned had no choice but to raise his sword.

Crack.

[864 damage to Quaned.]

Quaned didn’t even groan. He simply continued to think, unflustered, about how to shake off Taesan.

He used Flow, Counter, and various skills to create distance.

But Taesan wouldn’t back down. He too responded with skills and movements, sticking close to Quaned and attacking.

Gaining the upper hand in close combat was difficult. The black magic Quaned thought he had an advantage in wasn’t superior either.

Despite the desperate situation, Quaned did not give up.

Descending the Labyrinth, he faced numerous obstacles and trials. It wasn’t once or twice that he thought everything was blocked and it was the end.

But he overcame all those trials with his skill and talent, advancing further than before.

Quaned firmly believed he would do so again.

He focused his mind. Lightly touching the ground, he rose into the air and clenched his fist.

[Quaned activated Eligor's Thorn of Rose.]

Once more, thorns scattered down. But the speed and quantity were qualitatively different from before.

Each thorn moved at a different speed, and there were twice as many as before. Avoidance seemed nearly impossible.

“Ha.”

Quaned unwittingly let out a sigh.

The more magic power consumed by black magic, the more its power could be adjusted. Not just increasing power, but even the minutiae of black magic could be controlled.

But it was too difficult and complex, and until now, Quaned hadn’t achieved it. He thought it would only be slightly touched even with long training.

The difficult task he believed he couldn’t achieve, he now accomplished.

He reached a new level once again.

Taesan quietly watched the falling thorns.

The power contained in each was immense, not something that could be easily dismissed.

Then, there was only one option: to deflect them. He memorized the trajectory of all the thorns and raised his sword.

[You activated the Flow.]

Dodging one thorn, he leaped.

He shifted the tip of his sword. The trajectory of each touched thorn twisted.

Thus, a thorn with a twisted path collided with another.

Arrows sprang from Taesan’s body. They weren’t strong enough to knock down the thorns but were sufficient to alter their path.

One by one, the thorns veered away from their intended landing spots. Like a receding wave, thorns began to disappear one by one from Taesan’s path.

Quaned’s pupils dilated, snapping him out of his trance.

Taesan’s sword pierced through his chest.