The Swordmaster Who Returned After 1,000 Years-Chapter 212

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

Chapter 212

The Spirit Realm.

Though it was called the Spirit Realm in name, the spirits themselves were nowhere to be found.

Until now, only four massive stars had been installed, each representing one of the elemental attributes.

However—

The Spirit Realm that Kaylen and his group encountered after returning from the Abyss was completely different from before.

“This is…”

A space where the darkness of spirits had receded.

Inside, countless spirits were now drifting about.

Spirits of the four great elements, which should have been trapped within the four Infinities, had been released in great numbers.

“What in the world happened…?”

“But seeing so many spirits like this… This looks like the Spirit Realm we originally imagined.”

As Eldir pointed out, the Spirit Realm now matched its name.

It resembled the sanctuary the elves had hoped to claim as their new refuge.

“However… something seems off.”

“It feels like they’re entranced…”

Yet—

The freed spirits were in an abnormal state.

Elves had always envisioned the spirits of the Spirit Realm freely roaming its vast expanse.

But the spirits now drifting around—whether they had humanoid forms or animalistic shapes—wandered aimlessly, as if in a daze.

“Let’s head to the central area.”

The path leading there was also filled with spirits.

But since they had smoke-like forms without physical substance, it should be possible to pass through them.

With that in mind, Kaylen led the group forward, walking through the spirit-filled path.

Srrrk.

“…I don’t have a good feeling about this,” Eldir murmured, his voice trembling slightly.

As the three of them moved through the spirits—

the spirits along their path gradually turned their gazes toward Kaylen’s group.

Ssssshhh…

And soon—

it wasn’t just the spirits from the path they had passed.

Even the ones ahead of them began to react in the same way.

[Enemy…]

[Target identified.]

[Eliminate.]

And at that moment, all at once—

countless spirits launched a simultaneous assault on Kaylen.

The fire spirits unleashed torrents of flames.

The water spirits rained down countless shards of ice.

The earth and wind spirits pressed down on Kaylen with their respective elements.

In an instant, they were surrounded on all sides by enemies.

“No way…”

“Why are the spirits…?!”

The elves were in utter shock at being attacked by the very spirits they had always considered their steadfast allies.

“…Hmph.”

Yet—

Kaylen, arms crossed, simply stood still and watched the attacks unfold.

The spirits’ attacks were meaningless to him.

However—

“What did the spirits just say?”

“Target identified… Eliminate?”

“Target, huh…”

He was merely curious about why they had suddenly begun attacking him.

‘The only thing that has changed since earlier is that I completed Stellar Extinction…’

Transcendence Realm — Stellar Extinction.

Could it be because of that sword?

An image of the Infinity located at the center of the Spirit Realm flashed through Kaylen’s mind.

‘I’ll have to head there.’

But first, he needed to deal with this attack.

Srrrk—

As six swords rose behind Kaylen’s back—

[The target is confirmed.]

[Attack! Attack!]

Even spirits from afar gathered, launching relentless assaults toward him.

Six Sword Path.

Three Swords.

Bottomless Abyss.

The moment Kaylen unleashed Bottomless Abyss, all the attacks aimed at him were sucked into a swirling black vortex.

“This is nothing.”

Then—

Bottomless Abyss expanded further, absorbing not just the spirits’ attacks but the spirits themselves.

In an instant, all the spirits that had filled the Spirit Realm were completely swallowed up.

Kaylen turned to the elves and spoke.

“Let’s go.”

“Y-yes.”

There’s a saying that even a mongrel has an advantage in its own yard—

Yet the spirits within the Spirit Realm were so helplessly absorbed that Eldir’s eyes widened as he hurriedly followed behind Kaylen.

‘I don’t even know what confidence made me challenge my master back then…’

As they advanced, absorbing spirits along the way—

At some point, the attacks ceased entirely.

“Did the spirits… give up?”

Had they retreated after realizing they couldn’t stand a chance no matter how much they tried?

Seeing that the spirits had vanished from sight, Eldir assumed as much.

“No.”

Kaylen’s cold, sunken eyes remained fixed forward.

“They realized they couldn’t handle this themselves—so they’ve possessed the elves.”

Whoooosh.

A breeze blew past.

A faint green glow surrounded translucent figures—elves whose eyes had turned completely white—as they approached Kaylen’s group.

It resembled the process of Spiritization—but the key difference was that this time, the ones taking control were not the elves—but the spirits themselves.

“Uhh… Uuugh…”

The elves staggered forward like zombies.

However, unlike zombies, their speed was terrifyingly fast.

Among them, Eldir recognized several familiar faces.

But the one who caught his eye the most—

“Irene! Snap out of it!”

It was none other than his younger sister, Irene.

He desperately called out to her, but—

“It’s useless.”

It was as if Irene couldn’t hear his voice at all.

Whoosh!

The elves who had been residing in the Spirit Realm all leaped into the air simultaneously.

“D-die…!”

They lunged toward Kaylen.

‘So they think Bottomless Abyss won’t work on them.’

Since they were elves, Kaylen wouldn’t be able to absorb them as easily.

‘They’re underestimating me.’

Kaylen smirked.

For the sake of Melvria and Eldir, he wouldn’t keep using Bottomless Abyss as they intended.

However—

That didn’t mean he had no way to subdue them.

Srrrrrk—

Kaylen gripped the Wind Sword.

No—more precisely, he grasped the Divine Windblade contained within it.

The first High Elf—

The Sanctuary, infused with the Divine Windblade that had absorbed Holy Emperor Benedict.

As Kaylen channeled his aura into it, a violent gust erupted from Sanctuary—

And slashed through the possessed elves in an instant.

“Ah…!”

At that moment, the Spiritization binding the elves was dispelled.

The Wind Spirits that had taken control of their bodies were swept up by the gust and sucked into Sanctuary.

“No matter what tricks you try…”

They had attempted to use the elves as hostages to hinder Kaylen—

But the gap between their power was simply too vast.

No matter what they did, stopping him was impossible.

“Irene…! Are you okay?”

“A-ah, Brother… What in the world is happening…?”

As the Wind Spirits left her body, Irene regained her senses. She touched herself in confusion, trying to make sense of what had happened.

Kaylen approached her and asked,

“What exactly happened?”

“A-a little while ago… Spirits started pouring out endlessly from the central star.”

Without any prior warning, spirits had suddenly begun surging out of the four stars.

“At first, we didn’t understand what was going on… But we thought it meant the spirits were finally returning to the Spirit Realm to settle again. We were hopeful… thinking it would become the Spirit Realm we had always dreamed of. But then…”

“And then?”

“The spirits looked strange no matter how I saw them. They wandered around in a dazed state… and eventually, they all started gathering in the direction the Emperor went.”

The massive dungeon portal, where the Dark Spirits had been leaking out—

Had the spirits already emerged and stationed themselves there?

“We were curious as to why the spirits were heading toward that portal, so we followed them… But at some point, we lost control of our bodies due to the Wind Spirits.”

“So in the end, the root of the problem is Infinity.”

At those words, Irene nodded.

“I’ll go check it out. Now that there are no more spirits around, I shouldn’t have to worry about losing control of my body.”

“Yes, Father. Don’t worry about us. Infinity may have been destroyed, but I can still use my power.”

Thanks to Kaylen completely erasing the star with Star Annihilation—

Even though Melvria’s Six Demonic Paths Star was shattered, she could still wield her power without difficulty.

As long as she held her ground, the elves wouldn’t be so easily taken over again.

“Then, I’ll leave it to you.”

Leaving them behind, Kaylen moved toward the center of the Spirit Realm.

With each step, the distance closed in an instant.

Spirits were no longer capable of hindering him. His very existence was on a different level.

“There you are.”

Rumble…

As Kaylen approached—

The four Infinities within the Spirit Realm slowly began drawing closer to one another.

The massive stars, each radiating their respective attributes—red, blue, brown, and green—gradually took on a golden hue as they converged.

—Insolent fool.

—A mere mortal.

—Do you realize what you’ve done?

—Do you understand?

From within the four stars, a familiar voice resounded.

A voice Kaylen knew all too well.

No—out of everyone in this world, he knew this voice the best.

‘It’s the same as Ernstine’s voice.’

If that was the case, then was this Infinity connected to the Dragon God?

“What exactly have I done to cause this?”

Kaylen shrugged.

The stars trembled as a voice, seething with rage, echoed out.

—You dare destroy a star…?!

—A mortal who has sustained his existence by leeching off this world…

—Would dare attempt the blasphemous act of erasing a star’s existence?!

—You are only alive because you were born from these stars!

Ah—

So it was because of Star Annihilation.

The transcendent sword that annihilates stars—Star Annihilation.

It had completely erased Melvria’s Infinity.

He hadn’t expected even these massive stars to regard it as a threat.

Perhaps—

‘This might be the very source that produces infinite mana…’

Where had Infinity been drawing the mana that lived up to its name of boundlessness?

As Kaylen gazed at the four stars within the Spirit Realm, he wondered—

Could those be the very source supplying mana?

And now—

Judging by what was happening to the four stars, that hypothesis seemed to be true.

—We could have stopped the intruder…

—Without disrupting the balance of the world…

—But because of you, that is no longer possible.

—Born from the stars, yet you seek to destroy them…

The differently colored stars all glowed with golden light.

The four Infinities began merging into one.

The sheer amount of mana it radiated was overwhelming—

Standing idly by and watching it fuse would be nothing short of madness.

However—

“You’re so slow. Why don’t you hurry up and merge already?”

Kaylen smirked as he encouraged Infinity instead.

Floating behind him, his six swords hovered in place.

—Insignificant beast.

—How arrogant…!

The four voices gradually merged into two—

—We shall erase you.

And soon after—

They fused into a single voice.

A brilliant golden Infinity was formed.

As it became one, its size rapidly expanded.

If left alone, it felt as though it would one day fill the entire Spirit Realm.

“You’ve finally become one.”

Yet, Kaylen remained unfazed.

He merged his six swords into one, forming a single steel blade.

“Then—take this sword.”

Six Sword Path

Transcendence Realm — Star Annihilation

The blade extended forward.

This content is taken from fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm.

Hiss—

The star’s surface—

A small hole seemed to pierce through it.

—Ah…

The massive Infinity rapidly shrank, losing its golden radiance.

And in proportion to the fading light—

The wound etched upon it grew larger and larger.

At the same time—

Deep beneath Geysir Castle—

The magic circle for the Dragon God’s resurrection suddenly flashed uncontrollably.

“Kuh… Ugh…”

A being that should not yet have awakened—

Abruptly rose from within the magic circle.

“Six… swords…”

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]