The Cunning Treasure Hunter

"...This is impossible."

Aetheris instinctively realized it.

That Sword Radiance—he couldn't endure even a single strike from it.

It wasn't quite Sword energy, the hallmark of a true grandmaster, but it was the stage just before that—a blade infused with a constrained, almost tangible energy.

Even Magnus, seated in the tent, ground his teeth in frustration.

Of course, attaining Sword energy did not make one invincible.

How many grandmasters had fallen, relying solely on Sword energy?

How many martial artists, having achieved Sword Radiance, had met their end despite it?

It was proof that one had transcended human limits.

But such mastery didn't guarantee one's techniques were invincible.

Still…

Still, the skill of a master who had reached such a level could never be dismissed.

For a martial artist of a lower rank to defeat someone of such high standing through sheer skill alone?

It was a feat so rare that only a handful of cases existed in the Martial World, passed down as legends.

Sadly, Dylan was not one of those exceptions.

And Vera was no clumsy fool.

Everyone watching the duel knew this from the battles they had already seen.

Yet Dylan bet on a miracle and charged forward with her sword.

Bang!

Power gathered in Dylan's small feet, and as she stomped the ground, the floor of the Arena cracked in concentric circles.

Her body shot forward like a projectile.

This was the third and final technique of the initial forms of the Nine Heavens Cherry Blossom Sword Style, a devastating downward slash meant to transition into the middle techniques.

It was the fiercest strike in terms of sheer strength.

Third Technique of the Nine Heavens Cherry Blossom Sword Style:

alling Blossom Torrent.

A torrent of blooming petals, falling endlessly.

Her sword screamed with the roar of a wild beast as it tore through the air.

Scarlet Cherry blossoms filled the sky, their crimson hue painting the battlefield.

She poured all her inner energy into the strike, leaving only a sliver of her life force untouched.

Her understanding was shallow, and she hadn't practiced the technique for long.

But she bet everything on alling Blossom Torrent.

Looking into Vera's dark, vacant eyes, catching a glimpse of the star-like glint within them, Dylan knew: if she faltered on the first strike, it would all be over.

So she gave it her all.

If nothing else, she wanted to be able to tell herself that she had tried her best.

Scarlet blossoms bloomed wherever her blade touched, though she couldn't summon enough to cover the sky.

Her core was emptied, and her heart felt as if it would burst.

She had poured everything into this single attack.

"…I understand, Senior Sister," Vera said softly.

She could feel the sincerity and resolve behind the strike.

Even in Dylan's fierce, desperate gaze, she could sense a hint of wild determination.

So how could she respond half-heartedly?

The energy of the Soul-Harmony Realm surged through her.

And at the tip of her sword, she drew the first form of the Nine Heavens Cherry Blossom Sword Style.

"...!!!"

Dylan's face twisted in disbelief.

The Nine Heavens Cherry Blossom Sword Style? From Vera?

When had she learned it? How?

But it was too late.

The tip of Vera's blade lightly grazed the ground, tracing a circle.

From that circle, branches laden with blossoms began to sprout.

It was a full bloom.

The blossoms spread across the entire Arena, overflowing to the point that they reached the edge of the tents where the masters sat.

The air was filled with an intoxicating fragrance, a scent so potent that it seemed to silence all who witnessed it.

It was a surreal scene.

Who could conjure such a breathtaking display?

Not crimson blossoms, but dark Cherry blossoms, almost black in hue, covered the ground.

They swirled and danced around Vera, following the trail of her raised blade like a storm.

First Technique of the Nine Heavens Cherry Blossom Sword Style:

Blossoming Spring.

The blossoms erupted as though welcoming the arrival of spring.

What Jace had done before was mere imitation.

And even what Vera now performed couldn't be called the original.

She lacked the foundational teachings of the technique and had adapted it to suit her Soul Harmony Realm, creating her own variation.

Yet the brilliance and mastery of her version lacked nothing compared to the original.

The cascading blossoms of alling Blossom Torrent were shattered one by one, disintegrating upon contact with the storm of dark Cherry blossoms.

Each petal dissolved into nothingness as it met the maelstrom.

"Why… why…?" Dylan whispered.

"How could you understand the beauty of a flower when you try to mimic immortality?" Vera replied calmly.

The Cherry blossoms of Mount Suncrest Sect are eternal.

Though it is said that no flower lasts more than ten days, the blossoms of Mount Suncrest had bloomed for over thirty years without wilting.

Eternal Cherry blossoms.

The Nine Heavens Cherry Blossom Sword Style, too, sought to emulate this immortality.

But the true beauty of a flower lies in its falling.

Only when a flower falls does fruit begin to form.

And only through fruit can seeds grow ripe.

Seeds feed the creatures of the earth, who scatter them to new places.

Life and death turn endlessly, creating an eternal cycle.

Flowers are most beautiful when they fall.

The brilliance of life shines because it has an end.

Thus, the Cherry Blossoms of Mount Suncrest, with their unyielding immortality, had lost their luster.

Before the power of the Black dragon, the natural counter to immortality and a reaper of undying spirits, they stood no chance.

In the end, all the Cherry blossoms conjured by alling Blossom Torrent vanished into nothingness.

Yet the sword in Dylan's hands did not break.

And Vera did not use her conjured blossoms to shred her opponent.

Instead, sword met sword.

Ka-aang!

A piercing shriek echoed as Sword Resonance clashed with Sword Radiance, sparks flying from the impact.

But that was as far as it went.

"It's over, Senior Sister," Vera declared.

Schlick.

Vera's Sword Radiance, though not manifested externally, had reached its peak—an energy akin to Sword energy trapped within the blade.

No half-forged black Iron Sword, paired with the mid-tier skill of someone barely at the middle rank of a first-rate martial artist, could withstand it.

In an instant, the blade in Dylan's hands was severed.

As the shattered sensation spread through her fingers, Dylan lost her balance.

At that moment, the pommel of the Blossom Descent Sword struck her squarely in the solar plexus.

"...Khuh!"

A pained gasp escaped her lips.

She tried to move, but her consciousness was already slipping away.

Her vision blurred, and darkness enveloped her.

It was over.

"The winner is…"

Vera gently laid Dylan down on the ground.

From the audience, Jace rushed onto the Arena.

"…The second disciple of the Mount Suncrest Sect, and the youngest student of the renowned scholar of the White Cherry, Aiden…"

Jace immediately checked Dylan's pulse and caressed her cheeks. Only after confirming her breathing and heartbeat were normal did he collapse to his knees in relief.

"Vera!!!"

The crowd erupted into thunderous applause.

Vera sheathed her Blossom Descent Sword and bowed politely to the cheering spectators.

Then she turned to the kneeling Jace, who now carried Dylan on his back, and whispered:

"Did I go too far?"

Jace shook his head.

Without such a decisive strike, it wouldn't have ended in the first move.

If the match had dragged out to three moves, Dylan, having spent everything in her initial strike, would likely have suffered a humiliating defeat.

"No, if anything, I'm grateful."

This was Vera's strength: her ability to end things decisively.

Jace recognized that.

There is a saying in the Martial World: "Always hold back 20% of your strength."

Vera had ignored that wisdom, giving her all in this duel.

How could he not feel grateful?

But Vera merely smiled awkwardly and shrugged.

After all, she hadn't shown her full hand.

Neither the Cherry Blossom Descent Manual nor her mastery of the Soul Harmony Realm was known to anyone except Aiden.

"Take care of Dylan, Senior Brother," she said.

"I will. Leave it to me," he replied.

As Jace carried Dylan away, his gaze briefly shifted to Aetheris's tent.

Aetheris stood frozen, his eyes fixed not on Jace or Dylan, but on Vera.

"You fool!!!"

Gideon's furious roar filled the room.

Fortunately, no one outside could hear him.

Scarlet Crown Chamber was well-prepared for such outbursts.

"So you're just going to hand over Jace and Dylan!?"

"Elder Thorn personally witnessed the agreement…"

"You should have backed out! Even if you had to crawl in filth to do it!"

Gideon's bellowing left Aetheris pale-faced.

Standing behind him was Magnus, his expression cold.

With pressure from both sides, Aetheris looked as though he might collapse.

Had his martial prowess been any weaker, he might have fainted already.

There was nothing to be done.

The first to propose such an outrageous wager was Aetheris himself.

He had fallen for Aiden's scheme entirely, and even a Grand Elder had signed off as a witness.

What should have been an invalid wager was now irreversible.

"There's only one solution, Master."

Magnus, who had been silently standing behind them, finally spoke, his head bowed respectfully.

At last, Gideon's expression softened.

"Speak. What's the solution?"

"These children were failures. Even with monthly Bone-Cleansing Rituals, they've shown no results."

A sinister smile curled across Magnus's lips.

Even Aetheris shivered at the sight, unable to comprehend what his master was planning.

"Remember what lies sealed beneath the highest peak of the Southern Ridge?"

"...What?"

Even Aetheris couldn't follow the conversation.

Deep within the caves beneath the Southern Ridge, in an underground prison, lay something only the Sect Leader and his successor knew about—an ancient remnant of evil.