Chapter 408
Episode 120: Why Ron Hiran? (Part 2)
Every warrior who witnessed the scene was left utterly stunned. Many were so shocked by Grnil’s flawless, unscathed appearance that they seemed dazed, as if their minds had gone blank.
Ron hadn’t unleashed any secret techniques or ultimate moves.
He had simply struck properly—not even with his full strength.
Yet, no one present could have imagined that Ron Hiran’s sword energy would yield such a hollow result.
Except, of course, for Berakt and Jo, who stood at the forefront of Grnil.
“Ron’s sword energy… was completely blocked?”
Jin remained frozen in shock, unable to tear his gaze away from Grnil for a long moment.
“It’s a protective barrier. An invisible shield enveloping the entire ship.”
Because of the chaotic aura emitted by the sword energy and psychic power, it wasn’t immediately obvious, but Grnil was wrapped in an intangible magical shield.
No one knew exactly how this invisible barrier was formed. They could only guess it was some kind of divine power layered onto the magic.
A heavy silence settled among the warriors, while the massive monsters and bio-golems roared again, rampaging through the fortress.
But their ferocity wasn’t what it had been before.
Even the monsters seemed intimidated by Grnil hovering in the sky, their movements somewhat restrained.
In midair, Ron and Berakt locked eyes.
Ron showed only a brief flicker of surprise that his sword energy had been blocked, then his gaze hardened with the absolute authority befitting the Sword Emperor.
Berakt immediately recognized the burning desire flickering in those deep eyes.
The look of a beast whose blood boils upon meeting a worthy opponent—Berakt hadn’t seen such eyes in a long time.
“Ha! Ha ha ha!”
Suddenly, Ron pressed his palm to his forehead and burst into laughter. It was the kind of rare, genuine amusement that brought tears to his eyes.
With every laugh, the ground trembled.
The massive monsters halted their rampage, crushed beneath the force of his aura, while the bio-golems collapsed to the ground. Even the nearby warriors had to raise protective barriers.
After nearly a minute of laughter, Ron finally spoke.
“So you think you’re Sirron Runkandel, Berakt Sidriker? Or do you overestimate that rusted heap of yours?”
Wiping tears from his eyes, Ron shook his head.
Berakt’s faint smile faded.
Not because he felt insulted or annoyed by Ron’s boisterous laughter.
He sensed something else.
The explosive flow of aura Ron had been radiating was shifting.
The once volcanic surge of energy was suddenly refined.
Like a beam of light converging to a single point, it gathered around Rashid with incredible speed and silence.
Those who hadn’t reached the higher realms of cultivation didn’t notice the change at all.
Even most of those who had barely registered it failed to see that Ron swung his sword immediately after the aura refined.
“Something just….”
He sliced through the air.
Even Jin, standing nearby, recognized Rashid’s trace in the void a fraction of a second late. But it was only perception, not a clear sight.
The slash was that fast.
Fsssh!
A crack appeared in the transparent shield surrounding Grnil.
The sword energy that tore through the barrier was formless—colorless, soundless, and shapeless.
Only the enlightenment of the peerless swordsman Ron Hiran existed there.
This was the pinnacle of swordsmanship that only Ron Hiran among the current generation of warriors had reached.
Hiran, who had attained the realm known as the “Formless Sword,” was the true master worthy of the title “Sword Emperor.”
This was a far cry from merely using the title as the ruler of the Sword Emperor Star.
“White Wolf tribe, beastmen.”
Shak!
The formless sword energy pierced Grnil’s shield once more.
Jo, unable to understand why the barrier was breaking, slipped behind Berakt.
Just as the warriors had never imagined Ron’s sword energy could harm Grnil, Jo had never thought the invisible, strange force could shatter its shield.
“You’re nothing but a beast. Some beasts are loyal and admirable like guard dogs, but most are just noisy pests who don’t know their place.”
Each time the transparent shield was sliced by the formless sword, the space around Grnil warped.
“Especially a vile beast like you, who recklessly threatens others without fear—you must be cut down the moment you show yourself.”
“Considering you’re called the Sword Emperor among humans, I showed you some courtesy. But all I get in return are cheap jabs. Who’s the real beast here…?”
“Berakt Sidriker, you harmful beast. Still looking down on me from that ship.”
As Ron finished speaking, Berakt drew the greatsword slung across his back.
Thoom!
The formless sword completely tore through Grnil’s shield, striking Berakt’s blade.
Countless invisible sword energies slashed across Grnil’s hull. The spines that formed the thunderclouds were cut off lifelessly, fragments flying as the ship trembled.
Kuguguk…!
Grnil shook precariously, as if it could crash at any moment.
It was unbelievable that this ship, which had taken a massive slash that lit up the area, remained unscathed until now.
A strike imbued with mere “power” and one born from “enlightenment” belonged to entirely different realms.
Ron was using far less aura than when he first struck Grnil.
That meant something else—perhaps mental strength or sheer will—was being consumed.
“Is this truly the caliber of a warrior who has long competed with my father?”
Watching Ron’s sword, Jin felt a chill run down his spine.
The limits and horizons of the sword as Jin had known them shattered, opening a new domain.
Despite the chaos and urgency, Ron’s formless sword was a realm so enviable it made the hairs on Jin’s arms stand on end.
“B-Berakt! Something’s wrong. What on earth is breaking Grnil? Could that damn brat be pulling some trick?”
Cold Jo had never shaken his fear of Jin since the Dark Magic Council’s destruction.
“No wonder Chukon told me to fear that kid…”
With his poor perception and senses, Jo couldn’t even realize Ron was swinging his sword, let alone understand the transcendent realm of the formless sword. He mistakenly thought the force breaking Grnil belonged to Jin.
Berakt was speechless, dumbfounded by Jo’s ignorance.
“Jo, you worthless…!”
Bang! Kkik!
Berakt’s words were cut off as he tried to block the formless sword.
“This invisible sword energy isn’t that brat’s—it’s Ron Hiran’s power. Get your head straight and find the deputy commander’s group before I tear you apart!”
“Y-Yes! Invisible sword energy… right. There’s no way that brat could have such power. I must have lost my mind for a moment.”
“Shut up and find the deputy commander’s group!”
The deputy commander’s group.
Ron knew this referred to Vishkel, Marjiela, and their attendants.
That only deepened his curiosity.
Before it was revealed that Vishkel was Kinzel, he was known as the hope to revive the declining Ibliano family.
But warriors like Sirron or Ron himself hadn’t considered him a figure with enough potential to shake the world.
Yet now, the strongest White Wolf and a mysterious ship had come to rescue Vishkel’s group—and sought out Hiran.
“Is this just a pretense to ignore the terror? Or does Vishkel possess some extraordinary ability? It was strange from the start that Vishkel Ibliano was the deputy commander of those suspicious types.”
They had to be captured.
“Sword Emperor Star! Secure Vishkel Ibliano and his followers.”
“Yes!”
“If resistance is too fierce, lethal force is authorized. Capture or kill—one of the two must be carried out!”
“Understood!”
The massive monsters and bio-golems were nearly dealt with, but the ship Grnil and the energies of Jo and Berakt remained a problem.
Kwaaaah!
Berakt’s roar made the knights on the ground flinch and halt.
The strongest among them instinctively raised shields, but those who couldn’t suffered bleeding from ears and mouths.
Berakt’s roar had damaged their insides and ruptured their eardrums.
As the knights faltered, Jin had to make a choice.
Should he seek Vishkel, as he had sought Veradin?
“…This time, protecting the fortress personnel is the right choice.”
He reached that conclusion without hesitation.
Ron and Berakt’s battle was only just beginning.
Once they truly clashed, the shockwaves alone could kill people by the second.
Berakt’s claim that not a single Sword Emperor Star follower would survive was no empty boast.
Knowing this, Ron didn’t order Jin to find Vishkel this time.
Those among the Sword Emperor Star who had reached the level of transcendent beings had one task: to protect everyone else from the battle between these two and from the ship Grnil.
The intangible blades surged more violently, their invisible edges slashing through the air. Berakt was fending off the transparent sword energy purely by instinct, but it was clear he was reaching his limit.
Even someone like Berakt couldn’t fight while protecting Grnil from those intangible strikes.
Losing Grnil so easily was out of the question. In the end, Berakt had no choice but to throw himself down to the ground.
If Grnil was destroyed, it would cause serious problems for the deputy commander and his team’s return.
Thud…!
Berakt landed on the ground, narrowing his eyes.
Ron leveled his sword at Berakt, a smile playing on his lips.
“So, you finally came down, beast.”
“Ron Hyland, you’ll regret pulling me out here.”
“But you really are a big beast. Judging by how you’re still looking down on me, you must think you’re above me.”
Suddenly, Berakt’s right thigh was sliced, blood spurting out.
It wasn’t a deep cut, but as soon as he stepped off Grnil, he’d already taken a valid hit.
And Ron hadn’t even swung Rashid directly at him.
He’d gathered the intangible sword energy floating like the wind and sliced with sheer willpower.
“If you just drop to your knees like that, you’ll be at the perfect height. Don’t you think?”
Ron smiled, adding the taunt with a casual ease.