"Do you know?"
In fact, the Ten Thousand Heaven Flower technique was the vision element of the Open Ship's Key.
It meant "original," older than the Dangga, and it was a fact not many modern martial arts readers knew.
He didn’t learn this because he particularly wanted to know.
It was simply...

 

 

It was useless information he learned thanks to Dogo, who had always been deeply passionate about martial arts.
‘...You think about too many random things.’
It seemed like his state wasn’t entirely intact either.
Considering he was focusing on pointless details in this situation.
Then again, he did just trigger a self-destructive move with a "kill me, kill you" mentality.
"I’m the crazy one..."
Zing—!
Ihan didn’t even think about holding his aching ears as he stood up, cursing himself.
While it was fine that he used an axe as a sacrifice to trigger the burst of energy, he hadn’t thought through the aftermath at all.
Clearly, this was something a madman would do.
...Still.
‘In the end, I didn’t die, and the effect was good.’
So it wasn’t a total loss, right?
"Aaaagh—!"
Ihan looked down at Iliad, writhing in pain on the floor, and smirked.

 

***

Honestly, he was lucky.
‘This guy... his swordsmanship is insanely impressive.’
His sword skills and talent were undeniable.
The Great Sword Style and White Night, while the naming was a bit childish, the power behind them was nothing short of real.
But…
‘His willpower is lacking.’
To put it more precisely, it was clear he had been away from the field for a long time.
Since his leg injury was over ten years ago, it was only natural.
Even so, while his talent remained,
‘He’s falling for such a simple-minded strategy.’
His ability to respond was painfully slow.
The catastrophic consequences this would have in a real battle are too obvious to even discuss.
“……”
However, there was no trace of satisfaction from victory on Ihan's face.
And that was understandable.
[Growl-!]
“…You’re not even a dog.”
...It wasn’t over yet.
If he were facing an ordinary human, it would have ended here. But unfortunately, his opponent was not a regular human.
He was a mana creature.
Crack!
Just moments ago, they had been able to communicate, but now, from the fallen Iliad came the sound of a beast’s growl.
He wasn’t merely imitating a beast; his humanity was truly disappearing.
“C-Captain! You have to resolve this quickly! If he fully transforms, there’s no hope!”
...I don’t need you to tell me, kid.
Even without Taechang’s urgent shout, Ihan knew this was a troublesome situation.
The mana transformation has three stages.
Stage 1: Personality change.
Stage 2: Murderous impulse.
Stage 3:…
‘The loss of humanity.’
Just moments ago, they could still talk, but now, it was as if Iliad had truly forgotten all his intelligence and emotions, becoming a monster. Once a creature reached this stage, it was like crossing a river that could never be crossed back.
[Ka-haaaah!]
Crack! Crack!
Iliad’s body began to slowly recover.
The burns and wounds from the explosion, the broken joints, all healed quickly, like a lizard regrowing its tail.
This was bad.
‘The end for a mana creature is always…’
The depletion of life force, leading to a fatal end.
Naturally, the more his body forced itself to heal, the quicker it accelerated the depletion of his life force—a suicidal act.
Paaat!
[Ka-haaaaah!]
Iliad’s body shot up.
Now, as he was turning into a beast, he seemed to still remember only the one who had pushed him so far, and he showed intense hostility toward Ihan.
But even so,
“…You’re still not letting go of that sword? Disgusting.”
Crack!
[Haaaah!]
The sword, held so tightly that blood poured from his hands, flashed.
Swoosh!
It was natural that a beast, after descending into such a form, wouldn’t be able to use swordsmanship anymore. But sadly, humans learned with their bodies, not their minds.
Crunch-!
“…Wow, this guy’s getting stronger as he goes crazy.”
Iliad’s sword pierced Ihan’s side.