Chapter 470: Lighting Degree 6

In the game, mastering the [Hidden Blade Technique] was as easy as dumping points into the skill description.

Just allocate, level up, and boom — mastery.

But in reality, it wasn’t that simple.

Progress only came from repetition.

Constant, focused repetition.

And that part, at least, hadn’t changed.

Dashing deeper into the forest, I tightened my grip on the blade — still sheathed — while igniting my mana with more control than before.

No flares, no surges. Just calm, steady flow.

[Skill: Hidden Blade Technique (S)]

[First Form: Blue Moon]

Whoosh…!

The blade slipped free in less than a second — a clean arc — and returned to its sheath just as fast.

The trees and brush in front of me were sliced apart before they even realized they’d been cut.

Thin trails of electricity flickered across my limbs, a side effect of mana moving through my body with that much force.

As expected, the first form was easy to get used to.

It hadn’t even been ten minutes, and I could already feel the rhythm of the technique settling into my body.

The core idea behind it was simple.

Now all I needed to do was fine-tune the range and adjust the mana output depending on the situation.

Honestly, my sword wasn’t exactly made for this technique.

Valeria was a longsword, not a katana, and that alone should’ve made this harder.

But surprisingly, the damage output wasn’t suffering.

Not enough to matter.

Valeria was still the best sword for me — not because of its shape, but because it scaled off my strength.

And once I activated my Divine Will and blessing, the way I swung the sword hardly mattered anymore as Valeria will just adjust her shape in no time to match my strength….

My stance, grip, form — all of it became secondary.

So, for now, there was no need to change.

[Second Form: New Moon]

BZZZT…!!!

With just a single, light step — I was gone.

My body shot forward, launching into motion like a bolt of lightning. Leaping from branch to branch across the snow-covered trees, I felt like I could circle the entire forest in seconds.

Everything around me blurred. The wind couldn’t catch me. Even the sound of my movement was being left behind.

It was fast — faster than both Dash and Blink Step by a long shot.

No doubt about that.

But in terms of how it worked, it wasn’t the same kind of speed buff. It didn’t stay active.

It wasn’t like Haste, or Dash, where you could keep your speed going over time.

This was just a short burst — one step, one direction, full force.

Still, it made sense.

For the [Hidden Blade Technique], this was the ideal movement skill.

Especially when used right after the First Form, the result was deadly. In that instant of movement, I could cut someone down before they even realized I’d moved.

A full hit combo — clean, precise, invisible.

This is probably one of the reasons why the technique earned its name.

The Hidden Blade wasn’t about flash. It was about silence. Suddenness.

You wouldn’t even see your own death.

Landing in the middle of a clearing — one I’d just carved out with my own speed — I stopped.

My boots hit the ground like thunder, kicking up snow and dust in every direction.

I drew in a breath.

Mana flared once again, flowing through me with purpose.

Opening my eyes I activated the next technique.

[Third Form: Full Moon]

SWIISSHH—!

In the next breath, it was over.

All the trees around me — within a meter, then five, then ten — were shredded.

Clean, perfect cuts.

Branches, trunks, even the snow in the air got sliced apart. It was like a storm of blades had exploded outward from my position.

If the First Form was a single, unseen slash — and the Second Form was a burst of movement — then the Third Form was what you used when you were surrounded.

It took the same clean motion as the First Form, but turned it outward in every direction.

No gaps. No delay.

But the strain was real.

This was the form that hurt the most.

My body had to move in all directions at once, over and over, at blinding speed.

I could feel my muscles tightening, mana burning faster than before.

Even with my current strength, I knew I couldn’t spam this one.

Still… it was worth it.

A clean defense. An absolute offense.

The Full Moon — a perfect, beautiful storm.

I turned toward a nearby boulder — a massive one, buried deep into the snowy ground like it had always been there.

This time, I didn’t keep Valeria in her sheath.

I drew the blade out slowly, deliberately, as my mana surged and flared again — but unlike before, it didn’t just wrap around the blade. It condensed into it.

Valeria began to glow.

A pale blue-white light crackled along its edge — lightning, compressed and focused.

It wasn’t just surrounding the sword anymore.

It was the sword.

Mana sparked across my body as I shifted into position.

The energy buzzed against my skin, warning me of the pressure building in my arms.

And then—

[Fourth Form: Eclipse]

Whizzztt…!

I vanished.

In the next moment, I was in front of the boulder.

Three slashes, fired off all at once — a triple strike meant to overwhelm defenses, no matter what kind.

I barely felt the resistance.

The edge of my blade cut clean through before the sound of the impact even registered.

The boulder crumbled.

Chunks of it slid apart and collapsed into the snow with a dull thud, dust and steam rising from the cuts where the condensed mana had carved through solid stone like it was nothing.

It wasn’t much different from the First or Third Form at a glance.

Same basic principle — fast, clean, overwhelming force.

But the difference was in the condensation.

The Fourth Form focused all that energy into three simultaneous strike points, making it more like piercing through a shield than slicing a target.

It was meant to break through. Period.

Definitely more of a supplementary technique than a core move — a finisher, or maybe something to throw in mid-combo after the First or Third Form.

Still, its use was clear.

The control it needed reminded me of Aura techniques — precise, balanced, and heavy on focus. But that also meant it wouldn’t be too hard to master.

“Hoo…”

I exhaled slowly, letting the cold air escape my lungs as I drew my mana back in.

The flare around my body died down, and for the first time in a while, I let myself relax.

Out of all the forms, this was the one I’d used the least — maybe less than five times in total — but even so, it felt strangely familiar.

Comfortable, even.

Right behind the First Form, this was probably the one I had the most natural connection with.

Lifting Valeria, I held the blade upright in front of me. Still. Calm. Focused.

Mana began to gather at the tip, but it wasn’t violent like before — it didn’t roar or crackle.

It hummed.

The air quieted.

The snow stopped falling.

Even the sound of the wind faded into nothing.

It felt like the world itself was holding its breath.

This technique ignored everything — armor, shields, barriers, even presence.

It didn’t care what stood in its way. It just… cut.

That was its whole purpose.

And I could feel it working perfectly with everything I’d learned up to now.

Every skill I had, every technique I’d practiced — they all fed into this one moment.

I brought the sword down.

Not fast.

Not slow.

Just… deliberate. Controlled.

And then the world darkened.

[Final Form: Null Space]

VOOOSHHH…!!!

A wave of dark violet energy erupted from my blade, tearing through the ground in a straight vertical arc.

It wasn’t flashy — it was clean.

Precise and Final.

The energy left behind a long scar in the earth.

Even the ground itself had been carved through like thin paper.

Nothing had been spared — not the snow, not the trees, not the air.

Lightning — a faint, purplish hue — danced through the destruction like it was alive.

I let out a long breath.

A thin puff of smoke escaped my lips, fading into the cold.

“…This one’s gonna take the longest to control.”

That much was obvious.

Unlike the other forms, this one didn’t just build on speed or pressure.

It took everything — precision, movement, timing, control — and forced them to work together perfectly.

Like it was drawing power from all the earlier forms and pushing it out in one cut.

A cheat technique, basically.

If it lands, it kills.

Unless, of course, the thing I’m cutting down can’t be killed just by being cut like the White Queen for example… but most of the monsters and bosses in the future isn’t a cheat like the White Queen or any of the other epilogue bosses.

Though I’ll probably need a few monsters to test it on to effectively increase proficiency.

Willing Valeria back into my hand, I felt the stigma on the back of my hand flicker with a faint light before fading. Just a brief glow — a quiet reminder of the bond between us.

The sheath I’d been using, though… was completely done for.

It couldn’t handle the mana pressure anymore. I’d borrowed it from the armory, just a common piece meant for standard weapons, but Valeria wasn’t something that could be contained so easily.

She didn’t even need a sheath in the first place — I just used one out of habit.

I should probably return it. Or pay for it.

Then again… considering the armory technically belonged to my household, would that even matter?

The butlers would probably intercept any attempt I made at reimbursement anyway.

Still… maybe I’ll leave a note or something.

Anyways.

It’s not important right now.

Exhaling, I calmed my thoughts and let the last bit of mana flow naturally through me.

I closed my eyes.

My progress with the Hidden Blade Technique had come far — especially considering I’d been practicing alone.

A few more solid sessions.

A few monster hunts.

Then maybe I could officially say I’d mastered it.

Still, I wasn’t arrogant enough to think I didn’t need guidance.

Even if I could learn the technique solo, having someone who knew the ins and outs — someone who created it — would push my understanding to the next level.

And speaking of that…

Any moment now.

‘This much bait should been more than enough for that old man…’

Then, right on cue—

RUMBLE…!

RUMBLE…!

BZZZT—!!

BOOOOM!!!

Ten meters in front of me, purple lightning struck the snowy ground like a meteor, exploding with enough force to crack the earth and send debris flying in every direction.

The pressure that followed wasn’t just heavy — it was suffocating.

I didn’t need to see who it was to know.

That presence.

That weight.

It felt just like the Grand Duke when he wasn’t holding back his presence.

Or Lavine, when she’s in her true form and let her real strength show.

A human — but one who had climbed past the limits.

Someone who had reached the peak of what a mortal could become.

An Ascended…

As the smoke began to clear, a silhouette took form in the center of the destruction.

Broad-shouldered. Calm. Still crackling with energy.

The smoke cleared and I saw him.

The clan head of the Gyeoul Clan.

The man who created and perfected the [Hidden Blade Technique] himself.

Beon Gyeoul.

He stood there, silent, with his sharp eyes locked on me — and within them, faint arcs of purple lightning danced.

Just as planned.

He was here.

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