Sssss—

Sungshik’s shadow began stretching endlessly. It was a mysterious sensation. It was as if the shadow had become an extension of his body, allowing him to expand his senses through it.

‘So this is the power of Shadow’s Swamp.’

It felt like he had awakened to a new sense. Beyond just his own elongated shadow, the surrounding shadows now felt different. It was as if the areas covered by shadows had become his domain. Especially in this environment, where dense foliage cast shadows across the ground, that feeling was even more pronounced.

Suddenly, he recalled a technique used by Li Xiaoguang during their battle.

‘Shadow Movement.’

Swoosh.

The space folded, inverting his vision, and in the blink of an eye, Sungshik had moved to his intended location.

“With an ability like this, how did he lose so easily to me?”

Here, in this shadow-filled environment, his control over space felt overwhelmingly strong. He even felt like he could defeat opponents of a higher rank than himself within this space.

It was baffling. How could someone with such an ability be so powerless? Especially considering that the [SS Rank] Shadow’s Swamp ability Sungshik was using was still restricted.

[SS Rank] Shadow’s Swamp (LV1) (Restriction—Dark Attribute Trait Not Possessed)
—Allows manipulation of shadow energy.
—Control increases proportionally to the possessed Dark Attribute Trait.
—As the skill level and Dark Attribute Trait rise, shadow manipulation becomes denser and more refined.

It was a trait that could only unleash its full potential if one possessed Dark Attribute Trait.

‘Shadow Blade.’

Shhhhhh.

Numerous shadow blades materialized around Sungshik. The sight was reminiscent of the Infinite Sword Technique used by the Sword Emperor.

That awe-inspiring sight, when the Sword Emperor's countless flying swords swept across the battlefield—it felt like witnessing the beginning of such a scene.

However.

—Cannot manifest due to insufficient control.

A system message rang in Sungshik’s mind. It was an indication that his control over the shadow attribute was too weak to manifest the technique. At the same time, the countless shadow blades floating in the air crumbled into nothingness.

“Tsk, I thought it would work.”

He let out a disappointed sigh. He had hoped to recreate the Sword Emperor’s flying sword barrage.

Of course, if Sungshik reached the 8-Star rank, he might be able to manifest an equivalent technique.

“But that guy had Dark Attribute Trait and likely a higher skill level. Yet, he couldn’t even do this?”

Li Xiaoguang’s attack pattern had been simple—jumping between spaces with Shadow Movement, gathering and firing energy blasts, and summoning spikes from within the shadows. That was it.

—That’s because the difference lies in your manifestation capability.

Heaven-Splitter answered Sungshik’s question.

Manifestation. It was closely linked to one’s mental imagery. The greater the vessel of the mind, the deeper one's mental discipline, the stronger their ability to manifest power.

From the beginning, the difference in manifestation ability between Li Xiaoguang and Sungshik was enormous. It was inevitable.

Before his regression, Li Xiaoguang had been a low-rank superhuman who had never even touched upon the realm of ascension. It was only thanks to his chance acquisition of the [EX Rank] trait that he had been able to regress upon death and exploit his future knowledge to forcibly reach 7-Star.

On the other hand, Sungshik’s constitution had undergone a drastic transformation upon regression. In other words, he had gained natural talents that could only be inherited at birth. This was something he had only vaguely realized.

Moreover, Sungshik had once reached the towering heights of 9-Star during the trial of the Heaven-Splitting Sect. That was why, even though both he and Li Xiaoguang were at 7-Star, there was a significant gap in their manifestation abilities.

—Besides, that guy’s talent was clearly inferior to yours.

“Talent?”

—Yes. What people commonly refer to as talent. That guy had no potential to reach 7-Star. It was as if he had forcibly achieved a breakthrough through artificial transformation.

“You can tell that?”

—Of course. Who do you think I am? It was obvious. His vitality, energy, and spirit were extremely unstable. Even if you hadn’t cut him down, he would have self-destructed soon due to his own instability.

Hearing Heaven-Splitter’s words, it started to make sense. Even considering the natural advantages Sungshik had, Li Xiaoguang had been far weaker than the other 7-Star superhumans he had encountered.

‘He felt stronger than a 6-Star+, but weaker than a true 7-Star.’

Looking back, that assessment seemed just right.

---

Sungshik gazed at the shadows rippling at his command and thought to himself.

‘I need to obtain Dark Attribute Trait as soon as possible.’

If he could fully control this power, he was confident he could wield it far more effectively than Li Xiaoguang ever had.

‘Are there any more Black Moon Fragments?’

He returned to where Li Xiaoguang’s corpse lay, searching once more. However, there was nothing else to be found. The only thing he had acquired was a single Black Moon Fragment ×1. Additionally, he could no longer absorb the One More Time trait.

‘Not that I particularly want to regress again, but I had hoped for a chance… Turns out it’s not possible.’

After all, if he could repeatedly obtain the trait, he would be able to regress infinitely just by killing Li Xiaoguang over and over. That would be an outright cheat.

—Alright, now tell me. What exactly is regression, and how did it happen?

At that moment, Heaven-Splitter, sensing that Sungshik had mostly finished dealing with matters, asked about regression.

“Hmm, where should I start? Alright, this is how it happened…”

There was no reason to hide it from Heaven-Splitter. As the only inheritor of Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts, Heaven-Splitter was practically a part of him. Sharing the truth about regression with him might even make it easier to receive his support in the future.

He had meant to explain it earlier, but time had slipped away. Now was finally the moment to talk.

Thus, he spent a long while recounting the events of his past to Heaven-Splitter.

—Huh, Chronos, huh. That god, infamous for his indifference to humans, actually granted his absolute authority… as a trait? That’s hard to believe.

Heaven-Splitter spoke as if he knew a lot about Chronos.

“Do you know much about Chronos?”

—I’ve only seen him once in person. But his indifference toward humans is well-known among those with even the slightest connection to the divine realm.

Heaven-Splitter murmured to himself, "Chronos would never share his power with humans…"

—Well, setting that aside. So that's why your growth was so fast.

Yeah. With knowledge of the future and the Pocket Watch trait, it’s no wonder his growth is so fast.

The Pocket Watch was also a trait imbued with the power of Chronos. In truth, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Sungshik’s rapid growth up to this point was entirely thanks to the ‘Pocket Watch.’

Even during the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts trial, it was thanks to the ‘Pocket Watch’ that Sungshik was able to rise as the strongest in that fabricated world. No matter how exceptional his talent was, without the Pocket Watch, he would never have achieved such results.

Because of this, Sungshik was able to reach the profound realm of Transcendence in that world, and the lingering traces of that experience created a virtuous cycle that continued to benefit him even now.

—By the way, to think that before the regression, no one had ever obtained the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts. That means the Martial Emperor had no eye for talent. And yet, he was one of the 11 Thrones… Heh, this really says a lot about their level.

“Haha, well, the Martial Emperor must have had his own circumstances. Thanks to that, I was able to obtain the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts now, right?”

—Circumstances, my ass…

Seeing Heaven-Splitter sulk as if he were genuinely upset at the Martial Emperor, Sungshik couldn’t help but laugh. At times, Heaven-Splitter spoke with the wisdom of ages, exuding the presence of an elder. Yet at other times, like now, he seemed like nothing more than a childish spirit.

‘He really is an untainted soul.’

Sungshik even felt a sense of purity in Heaven-Splitter’s demeanor.

“So, does that mean Li Xiaoguang can never regress again?”

—Yes. I can say that with certainty. Regression isn’t a power that can be so easily used. Besides… the fact that both you and that guy managed to regress already means there’s a serious distortion in causality…

“Causality? There’s a restriction like that?”

—Any being with divinity is bound by that restriction when interfering with the present world. Think about it. What if Chronos, whom I just mentioned, kept interfering with the present world and rewinding time?

“Well… wouldn’t that twist the flow of time into a complete mess?”

—Exactly. That’s why beings with divinity face extreme restrictions when interfering with the present world.

“Then how do these traits even get granted? Aren’t they bestowed by transcendental beings or gods?”

—That’s likely due to the Trial of the Night. From what I see, this dimension is being invaded. Humanity has no power to resist, so these traits are granted to give them the strength to fight back.

“Then does that mean once the Trial of the Night ends, this power will disappear?”

—No. Humanity will earn the right to fully obtain this power. Using that power as a foundation, some may even ascend to divinity. In short, the dimension itself will rise to a higher level.

“Oh, I see.”

Heaven-Splitter’s explanation cleared up many of Sungshik’s lingering questions.

“But Heaven-Splitter, how do you know all this so well?”

As he listened to Heaven-Splitter’s explanation, an unexpected question arose. His knowledge wasn’t something one could gain simply by existing for a long time.

—I have been to the Divine Realm before.

“The Divine Realm?”

—Yes. I’ll tell you the details another time.

Sungshik sensed hesitation in Heaven-Splitter’s tone.

‘So he has a story of his own.’

From that reaction, Sungshik realized that Heaven-Splitter had his own circumstances.

‘Well, I can hear about that later.’

Looking at Heaven-Splitter, Sungshik spoke again.

“Alright, I understand. Now then, shall we go make a scabbard?”

Fortunately, Sungshik’s Arbang was unharmed. In that fierce battle, his car, made of mere steel, should have been destroyed at the slightest impact.

But perhaps because he had done his best to fight in areas away from the vehicle, it remained completely unscathed—not even a scratch.

“I would’ve cried if my car got damaged.”

—Is this such a precious divine artifact?

Hearing Sungshik’s words, Heaven-Splitter wondered if this vehicle he was riding in, called an Arbang, was some kind of sacred relic.

“Haha, not exactly… How should I explain it?”

Laughing at Heaven-Splitter’s misunderstanding, Sungshik searched for the right word.

“Ah, I got it. Think of it as a beloved steed.”

—Oh, I see. That makes sense. The masters of Heaven-Splitting Sect also cherished their steeds as if they were their own children.

With that, Heaven-Splitter quickly understood what the car meant to Sungshik. As a sword spirit, he still didn’t fully grasp the concept, but he knew that men often had a strong attachment to their means of transport.

Engaging in lighthearted conversation with Heaven-Splitter, Sungshik continued driving. About two hours later, he finally reached the outskirts of Paju.

It was the first time he had set foot in Paju since his regression. A vast plain stretched beneath a clear, cloudless sky. Despite being a rural area, the roads were paved with asphalt. The scenery was vastly different from the Paju in his past memories.

‘Back then, it was devastated.’

Paju had been one of the places directly struck by a Gate Break.

All artificial structures had been reduced to ruins by the invading monsters. Survivors had barely managed to hold out in the fortified area where Paju’s workshops were concentrated, resisting the flood of monsters. The contrast between that brutal reality and the current peaceful landscape was striking.

Following the GPS, Sungshik drove deeper into Paju and soon arrived at his destination—the Paju Workshop District.

Screech.

His car came to a stop at the entrance of the district. From here on, general visitor vehicles were not allowed entry. Parking in a nearby lot, Sungshik got out with the Heaven-Splitter Divine Sword in hand.

Clang— Clang—

Even at the entrance, the sound of hammering metal echoed from all directions. This place was truly the heart of craftsmanship.

The area was a massive blacksmithing hub with over thirty workshops clustered together. As a result, it was always bustling with visitors.

“Hey, can’t you lower the price just a little? I came all the way from Daegu—”

“We’re not running a charity here. No discounts.”

Many people were haggling over goods. While the system allowed one to buy weapons, and dungeon raids could drop equipment, weapons below Heroic rank were actually of better quality when crafted in workshops.

‘Especially Elder Jin’s metallurgy… It was recognized as the best in the world. He could even forge Legendary-grade weapons.’

That’s right. The reason Sungshik had come here was to meet Jin Yongchan, the most skilled and revered blacksmith in this sacred land of craftsmanship.

‘Elder Jin helped me a lot before my regression. Being here again feels nostalgic. I might as well take some time to rest here.’

Reminiscing about his past life, Sungshik made his way toward the deepest part of the workshop district.

However, he had no idea that a major crisis was unfolding in the workshops at that very moment.