Synopsis and Starting Chapter Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Chapter 82
Chapter 83
Chapter 84
Chapter 85
Chapter 86
Chapter 87
Chapter 88
Chapter 89
Chapter 90
Chapter 91
Chapter 92
Chapter 93
Chapter 94
Chapter 95
Chapter 96
Chapter 97
Chapter 98
Chapter 99
Chapter 100
Chapter 101
Chapter 102
Chapter 103
Chapter 104
Chapter 105 - Chapter 105
Chapter 106
Chapter 107
Chapter 108
Chapter 109
Chapter 110
Chapter 111
Chapter 112
Chapter 113
Chapter 114
Chapter 115
Chapter 116
Chapter 117
Chapter 118
Chapter 119
Chapter 120
Chapter 121
Chapter 122
Chapter 123
Chapter 124
Chapter 125
Chapter 126
Chapter 127
Chapter 128
Chapter 129
Chapter 130
Chapter 131
Chapter 132
Chapter 133
Chapter 134
Chapter 135
Chapter 136
Chapter 137
Chapter 138
Chapter 139
Chapter 140 - Chapter 140
Chapter 141
Chapter 142 - Chapter 142
Chapter 143
Chapter 144
Chapter 145
Chapter 146
Chapter 147
Chapter 148
Chapter 149
Chapter 150
Chapter 151
Chapter 152
Chapter 153
Chapter 154
Chapter 155
Chapter 156
Chapter 157
Chapter 158
Chapter 159
Chapter 160
Chapter 161
Chapter 162
Chapter 163
Chapter 164
Chapter 165
Chapter 166
Chapter 167
Chapter 168
Chapter 169
Chapter 170 - Chapter 170
Chapter 171
Chapter 172
Chapter 173
Chapter 174
Chapter 175
Chapter 176
Chapter 177
Chapter 178
Chapter 179
Chapter 180
Chapter 181
Chapter 182
Chapter 183
Chapter 184
Chapter 185
Chapter 186
Chapter 187
Chapter 188
Chapter 189
Chapter 190
Chapter 191
Chapter 192
Chapter 193
Chapter 194
Chapter 195
Chapter 196
Chapter 197
Chapter 198
Chapter 199
Chapter 200
Chapter 201
Chapter 202
Chapter 203 - Chapter 203
Chapter 204
Chapter 205
Chapter 206
Chapter 207
Chapter 208 - Chapter 208
Chapter 209
Chapter 210
Chapter 211
Chapter 212
Chapter 213
Chapter 214
Chapter 215
Chapter 216
Chapter 217
Chapter 218
Chapter 219
Chapter 220
Chapter 221
Chapter 222
Chapter 223
Chapter 224
Chapter 225
Chapter 226
Chapter 227
Chapter 228
Chapter 229
Chapter 230
Chapter 231
Chapter 232
Chapter 233
Chapter 234
Chapter 235
Chapter 236
Chapter 237
Chapter 238
Chapter 239 - Chapter 239
Chapter 240
Chapter 241
Chapter 242
Chapter 243
Chapter 244
Chapter 245
Chapter 246
Chapter 247
Chapter 248
Chapter 249
Chapter 250
Chapter 251
Chapter 252
Chapter 253
Chapter 254
Chapter 255
Chapter 256
Chapter 257
Chapter 258
Chapter 259
Chapter 260
Chapter 261
Chapter 262
Chapter 263 - Chapter 263
Chapter 264
Chapter 265
Chapter 266
Chapter 267
Chapter 268
Chapter 269
Chapter 270
Chapter 271
Chapter 272
Chapter 273
Chapter 274
Chapter 275
Chapter 276
Chapter 277
Chapter 278
Chapter 279
Chapter 280
Chapter 281
Chapter 282
Chapter 283
Chapter 284
Chapter 285
Chapter 286
Chapter 287
Chapter 288
Chapter 289
Chapter 290
Chapter 291
Chapter 292
Chapter 293
Chapter 294
Chapter 295
Chapter 296
Chapter 297 - Chapter 297
Chapter 298
Chapter 299
Chapter 300
Chapter 301
Chapter 302
Chapter 303
Chapter 304
Chapter 305
Chapter 306
Chapter 307
Chapter 308
Chapter 309
Chapter 310
Chapter 311
Chapter 312
Chapter 313
Chapter 314
Chapter 315
Chapter 316
Chapter 317
Chapter 318
Chapter 319
Chapter 320
Chapter 321
Chapter 322
Chapter 323
Chapter 324
Chapter 325
Chapter 326
Chapter 327
Chapter 328
Chapter 329
Chapter 330
Chapter 331
Chapter 332
Chapter 333
Chapter 334
Chapter 335
Chapter 336
Chapter 337
Chapter 338
Chapter 339
Chapter 340
Chapter 341
Chapter 342
Chapter 343
Chapter 344
Chapter 345
Chapter 346
Chapter 347
Chapter 348
Chapter 349
Chapter 350
Chapter 351
Chapter 352
Chapter 353
Chapter 354
Chapter 355
Chapter 356
Chapter 357
Chapter 358
Chapter 359
Chapter 360
Chapter 361
Chapter 362
Chapter 363
Chapter 364
Chapter 365
Chapter 366
Chapter 367
Chapter 368
Chapter 369
Chapter 370
Chapter 371
Chapter 372
Chapter 373
Chapter 374
Chapter 375
Chapter 376
Chapter 377
Chapter 378
Chapter 379
Chapter 380
Chapter 381
Chapter 382
Chapter 383
Chapter 384 - Chapter 384
Chapter 385
Chapter 386
Chapter 387
Chapter 388
Chapter 389
Chapter 390
Chapter 391
Chapter 392
Chapter 393
Chapter 394
Chapter 395
Chapter 396
Chapter 397
Chapter 398
Chapter 399
Chapter 400
Chapter 401
Chapter 402
Chapter 403
Chapter 404
Chapter 405
Chapter 406
Chapter 407
Chapter 408
Chapter 409
Chapter 410
Chapter 411
Chapter 412
Chapter 413
Chapter 414
Chapter 415
Chapter 416
Chapter 417
Chapter 418
Chapter 419
Chapter 420
Chapter 421
Chapter 422
Chapter 423
Chapter 424
Chapter 425
Chapter 426 - Chapter 426
Chapter 427
Chapter 428
Chapter 429
Chapter 430
Chapter 431
Chapter 432
Chapter 433
Chapter 434
Chapter 435
Chapter 436
Chapter 437
Chapter 438
Chapter 439
Chapter 440
Chapter 441
Chapter 442
Chapter 443
Chapter 444
Chapter 445
Chapter 446 - Chapter 446
Chapter 447
Chapter 448
Chapter 449
Chapter 450
Chapter 451 - Chapter 451
Chapter 452
Chapter 453
Chapter 454
Chapter 455
Chapter 456
Chapter 457
Chapter 458
Chapter 459
Chapter 460
Chapter 461
Chapter 462
Chapter 463
Chapter 464
Chapter 465
Chapter 466
Chapter 467
Chapter 468
Chapter 469
Chapter 470
Chapter 471
Chapter 472
Chapter 473
Chapter 474
Chapter 475
Chapter 476
Chapter 477
Chapter 478
Chapter 479
Chapter 480
Chapter 481
Chapter 482
Chapter 483 - Chapter 483
Chapter 484
Chapter 485
Chapter 486
Chapter 487
Chapter 488
Chapter 489
Chapter 490
Chapter 491
Chapter 492
Chapter 493
Chapter 494
Chapter 495
Chapter 496
Chapter 497
Chapter 498
Chapter 499
Chapter 500
Chapter 501
Chapter 502
Chapter 503
Chapter 504
Chapter 505
Chapter 506
Chapter 507
Chapter 508
Chapter 509
Chapter 510
Chapter 511
Chapter 512
Chapter 513
Chapter 514
Chapter 515
Chapter 516 - Chapter 516
Chapter 517
Chapter 518
Chapter 519
Chapter 520
Chapter 521
Chapter 522
Chapter 523
Chapter 524
Chapter 525
Chapter 526
Chapter 527
Chapter 528
Chapter 529
Chapter 530
Chapter 531
Chapter 532
Chapter 533
Chapter 534 - Chapter 534
Chapter 535
Chapter 536
Chapter 537
Chapter 538 - Chapter 538
Chapter 539
Chapter 540
Chapter 541
Chapter 542
Chapter 543
Chapter 544
Chapter 545
Chapter 546
Chapter 547
Chapter 548
Chapter 549
Chapter 550
Chapter 551
Chapter 552
Chapter 553
Chapter 554
Chapter 555
Categories Genre: Action, Adventure, All, Fantasy, Martial Arts, Ongoing, Supernatural Status: Ongoing Alternative names: HR, 영웅; 회귀하다, ______
Total Chapters in book: 555
Estimated words: 1462055 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 7310(@200wpm)___ 5848(@250wpm)___ 4874(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 1462055 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 7310(@200wpm)___ 5848(@250wpm)___ 4874(@300wpm)
______
LIST OF LAST 10 CHAPTERS:
Page No. 555 Page No. 554 Page No. 553 Page No. 552 Page No. 551 Page No. 550 Page No. 549 Page No. 548 Page No. 547 Page No. 546 Page No. 545 Chapter 296
Chapter 296: Chapter 296
Whoosh—
A gentle breeze blew by.
Su-hyeun lightly swung the sword as if it was a hand fan, and Waffman, who was watching this scene, couldn’t help but form a puzzled expression.
“…?”
Just what was he trying to do here?
He was acting so mysterious and all, as if he wanted to display something truly immense, yet to take a lame swing like that?
“You dare to fool around in our current situ—?”
Slash—
Slash, slaaash—
Just before Waffman could say something to express his dismay…
He looked down at his own body and discovered numerous thin red lines running across his entire figure.
“Huh?”
Splaaaash—!
Fountains of blood exploded from Waffman. The wounds themselves weren’t all that deep, but there were just too many of them. As a result, a lot of blood flooded out from him.
Waffman suddenly felt dizzy and went down on his knees.
Plop—
Keo-uhrk…
He tried to prop himself up with his hands to prevent himself from collapsing on the ground, but he still ended up kissing the floor with his face.
“My…My arms…”
His arm was torn to rags.
Unlike the rest of his body, only his arm was inflicted with deep injuries. With all the important muscles severed like this, his arm was now no better than a dirty rag.
Both of his arms were in the same state.
Would he be able to wield his sword ever again with these arms?
When that thought filled his head, Waffman’s pain was quickly overtaken by the fear welling up from deep within him.
U-uwaaaah—!
“You asked me to show it to you, didn’t you?”
“I—I’ll kill you!!!”
“It’s what you’ve been telling me only a few seconds ago. Yours is not my life, anyway.”
Clack—
Su-hyeun sheathed his sword and continued to speak, “You’re indeed correct, so do your best to live on with those arms.”
Uwaaaah—!
Waffman’s screams resounded throughout the drill hall.
Su-hyeun no longer paid attention to that. With both of Waffman’s arms in that state, he should not be able to wield a sword ever again.
“Or maybe he’ll start swinging one around with his feet. Who knows?” he thought.
Step—
Su-hyeun began walking away.
A bone-chilling air circulated within the drill hall now. Several members of the crowd, who were previously scared silly by Waffman’s sudden bout of madness, had shifted the target of their fear—from Waffman to Su-hyeun, that is.
Su-hyeun nonchalantly accepted their gazes. He was ready for this eventuality when he decided to leave Waffman in that state.
Of course, that was that, and this would be something else…
“Did you enjoy the proceedings?”
Riiiip—
Su-hyeun walked toward a certain spot and stopped to extend his hand in the empty air. Then, when he moved his hand as if to rip the air itself, that space wavered slightly before a person’s figure was revealed to the world.
It was a person that everyone present could easily recognize.
“Y—your…”
“Your Majesty?”
Wick Bradley.
Indeed, it was none other than this nation’s emperor.
He stood there with his arms crossed and smiled in amusement. He then alternated his gaze between Su-hyeun and Waffman. The latter still hadn’t been able to get a hold of his body and was kneeling on the floor.
“That was an entertaining match,” Bradley said.
“It wasn’t a normal match either.”
“Indeed, his state isn’t very good. Men, hurry and take Waffman to the healers.”
The knights responded quickly to Bradley’s order and helped Waffman out of the drill hall.
Su-hyeun observed Bradley, who was still smiling despite his loyal subject ending up in that state, and decided to ask, “Did you plan for this?”
“Plan for what, exactly?”
“That guy going out of control.”
“Of course not. But thanks to you, the match ended without any further issues, and I’m much relieved by that.”
Any further issues?
Su-hyeun narrowed his eyes into blade-like slits and stared at Bradley. The latter seemed to really think that there had been no issues with this match, judging from how his expression didn’t waver once.
That would be understandable from Su-hyeun’s perspective, but wasn’t Waffman a loyal retainer who served Bradley until he reached that advanced age?
How could he not feel at least a bit concerned about Waffman’s current state?
From what Su-hyeun had observed so far, Bradley didn’t seem like a righteous enough person to simply think that Waffman did something wrong and, thus, needed to be punished.
“And so, everyone’s suspicion has been cleared with this, I hope?”
Bradley looked around at the crowd with an expression that said, “See, I told you so.”
The gathered nobles at first questioned Su-hyeun’s abilities, and then, after Bradley made his declaration, they wanted to defeat Su-hyeun and become the next personal guardian knight of the emperor.
But now, they knew the truth.
They understood now why Bradley suddenly created a position of the “guardian knight,” which didn’t exist until today.
They also knew how much of a talented individual the man named Kim Su-hyeun was.
“In that case, go home, take a bath, and have a good night. Alternatively, you can reflect on your own inadequate strength.”
Bradley sneered at his own retainers and dismissively waved his hand around. He was signaling them to stop complaining and go home.
The gathered crowd began dispersing from the drill hall, and by the time everyone was gone, Su-hyeun turned to look at Bradley and addressed the emperor, “We need to talk for a minute.”
“With me? Why?”
“It’s only for a minute. I know you’re not busy anyway, so make some time for me.”
“Well, I don’t have any problem with that.” Bradley maintained that amused smile as he stepped outside the drill hall. “Follow me. We should move from here first.”
* * *
Bradley led Su-hyeun to the flower garden at the back of the imperial palace.
The garden that boasted of tens of thousands of square meters in size was so complicated that a first-timer could potentially get lost inside it; nonetheless, it was just as beautiful to behold.
Su-hyeun spoke first. “You seem to like this place.”
“Why? Doesn’t it suit me?”
“You don’t seem to be the type to enjoy looking at flowers, actually.”
“Is that so? But then again, I’m a tyrant and not some benevolent leader, after all. Honestly speaking, I don’t like them all that much. Even then, isn’t it wonderful? Knowing that I possess a garden of such unparalleled beauty.”
He didn’t like it but still wanted to possess it.
Su-hyeun could understand where that mindset was coming from. A person, regardless of who, would always harbor some desires to possess and show off their possessions. It was just a matter of how big or small those desires were.
The story wouldn’t be any different just because the person was an emperor.
“Alright, so? What did you want to talk to me about? No one can enter here without my permission, so you can relax and speak freely.”
“Just what did you teach those people?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve heard that it was you who invented aura control and made others train in this discipline. But this…” Su-hyeun recalled the figure of Waffman from earlier and frowned deeply. “It’s far too different from what I know.”
Su-hyeun had been under the impression that the discipline of this world was exactly the same as the Sage Arts because the nature of the energy that accumulated in one’s body after mastering aura control was the same.
As the two discipline branched off in different directions from the same root, there should be different and new types of techniques to be found within aura control, and he was thinking about spending some of the remaining time to learn those techniques.
However, through his match against Waffman, he came to realize that his thoughts were wrong.
For sure, both the Sage Arts and aura control had the same roots. The starting point for both was the same, so unsurprisingly, the energy type that accumulated in one’s body was also extremely similar in nature.
However, the direction of the growth of one’s strength was completely different. Only their starting point was the same, but as the two disciplines branched off into completely disparate directions, it was inevitable that the distance between them would grow further apart the more you trained in either one.
In Su-hyeun’s eyes, this aura control was…
“Do you believe that a discipline that allows you to become stronger after discarding more of your humanity is truly beneficial?”
“Is there something bad about it?”
And then, that answer came his way.
Su-hyeun had been wondering to himself.
Did Waffman twist this discipline called aura control and master it incorrectly, or was this the correct way of mastering it in the first place?
However, he eventually thought that Waffman had mastered aura control the correct way.
The reason for that was simple—rather than the other knights who also had practiced aura control, the air Waffman gave off happened to resemble Bradley’s the closest.
It was precisely Bradley who came up with aura control and taught it to everyone.
“At the end of the day, the purpose of the martial arts we train in is to kill people. We don’t need emotions to do that. When you discard all your emotions and focus solely on killing, then inevitably, you will end up becoming stronger.”
Bradley replied in a perfectly matter-of-fact tone.
However, that reply only caused Su-hyeun’s brows to furrow heavily.
But at the same time, his heart shook. What Bradley said just now had something similar to the larger framework of the Sage Arts’ ultimate goal that the Bull Demon King told Su-hyeun in the past.
“The first brother, he had to discard all of his emotions to become a god,” he thought.
It was the same story for Bradley as well—the emperor said one should discard all of their emotions. It also means discarding one’s humanity.
In the end, those two ways were the same.
In a certain sense, you could say that you being truly honest with your purest ambition was the same thing as you discarding all of your emotions.
Su-hyeun spoke, “The path I walk is different from yours.”
They had similar yet different disciplines. No, more correctly, they were the same, yet the paths they were taking were different.
Or as the Bull Demon King told Su-hyeun while he was teaching him about the Sage Arts, “The one who taught me said that this power had been created for ‘man’ to become good again.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, those words came across as utterly nonsensical to Bradley’s ears. He was the one who invented aura control in this world, after all.
“I’m the one who came up with aura control. Where did you even hear such a crazy—?”
“It’s merely the difference in the direction.”
Bradley’s forehead creased ever so slightly from Su-hyeun’s reply. “Direction?”
“Yes, direction.”
With this, Su-hyeun witnessed two different paths.
The first one was about discarding all attachments and emotions like the Bull Demon King had done to earn the qualifications of a god.
The second path was about discarding one’s humanity and only leaving behind one’s desire—one’s ambition—like Bradley before his eyes had done and slowly erased one’s emotions away.
Su-hyeun couldn’t say either of these were the correct way.
“Well, I’ll acknowledge some parts of that. I’m the one who created it, after all, so of course, I would know. If one can reach godhood by discarding all emotions and even lingering attachments, then yes, that method seems rather viable.”
In the end, it didn’t matter whether it was the Sage Arts or aura control. They both had the same roots.
Bradley was the inventor of aura control that happened to have the same roots as the Sage Arts, and both disciplines’ ultimate aim was to reach godhood in the end.
“But why should one do that?” Bradley asked.
“What do you mean?”
“That method is much harder, isn’t it? The easiest way to discard your emotions is to throw away your humanity and become a monster that’s only true to your desires. Why should you choose a harder path when there’s a simpler one right there?”
Those words helped Su-hyeun understand why aura control, which was seemingly the same as the Sage Arts, was headed down a different path.
“An easier path and a harder one exist on the road for one to become stronger. In that case, why do you need to select the harder path, especially so when there’s a much easier and quicker path to your goal?” Bradley said before narrowing his eyes. “Do you remember what I said about you ending up as the same type of person as I am in the future?” he continued.
“Yes, I do remember.”
“I’ll acknowledge that for the time being, you and I are rather different. However, as long as the ideal end you seek to reach is the same as mine, there will come a day when you don’t have a choice but to accept that my way is correct.” Bradley smiled mockingly and turned around to leave. “I’m sure you want to reach it too. Godhood, I mean.”
He left behind some words meant to provoke Su-hyeun.
“…”
Now left alone in the garden, Su-hyeun quietly stared at the spot where Bradley previously stood.
The difference between aura control and the Sage Arts was how one’s attachments and their emotions were discarded. Rationally speaking, Su-hyeun knew that Bradley wasn’t wrong with his assertion.
In fact, everything he said so far was correct.
Su-hyeun desired to be stronger, and all the trials he had gone through were precisely for that purpose.
If he discarded his humanity and chose the easy path rather than the hard one, then he would become stronger.
Also, doing so could make him stronger much faster. Honestly, if he heard those things first, then he might have been swayed by them.
However…
“You have no idea,” he inwardly said.
Su-hyeun truly felt that he was fortunate to have met the Bull Demon King first.
“You don’t know that on the path I’m walking on, there exists one being who has managed to reach a realm far higher than you can even imagine.”
Su-hyeun had witnessed that person who walked on the path that Bradley had deemed too difficult and unnecessary, and he ended up becoming stronger than anyone else.
And that’s why Su-hyeun’s belief wasn’t shaken.
“I was right, wasn’t I?”
Jiggle—
Whitish cloud-like currents wrapped around Su-hyeun’s figure, and then, the Somersault cloud’s voice entered his ears.
“Yes.”
Su-hyeun made his reply while still mulling over what Bradley had told him just now.
“I think you were right.”
Total Chapters in book: 555
Estimated words: 1462055 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 7310(@200wpm)___ 5848(@250wpm)___ 4874(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 1462055 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 7310(@200wpm)___ 5848(@250wpm)___ 4874(@300wpm)
______