Flash. Kwarurururung.

Suddenly, clusters of lightning struck down from the sky. This was no ordinary lightning. Deep black. That’s how it was. Just looking at those lightning bolts exuded an ominous aura, an earthen-colored lightning filled with an unsettling energy.

The lightning struck down randomly on everything on the ground. The raid team, locked in battle with the monster before them, could not escape the barrage of lightning.

“Kugh. What the hell, shit.”

Seo Jiwon of the Nati Guild was also grazed by one of the bolts.

Brrrr.

“Kugh…!”

Electrocuted, Seo Jiwon staggered, unable to maintain his balance. He was not the only one. Some of those struck by the lightning completely collapsed.

The direct damage from the black lightning wasn’t as severe as expected, but the real problem was that they were in the middle of a battle.

“Krrr.”

The momentarily fallen were immediately targeted by the approaching Gardis.

“Where do you think you’re looking—”

Fortunately, thanks to Kang Hanil, a major disaster was avoided. However, that didn’t mean the danger had passed.

Kururung.

The sky trembled and writhed once more.

“Everyone, be careful. It’s coming again—”

At Kim Jihoon’s warning, everyone cast wary glances at the sky, tense.

And then, it happened.

―Throw me up.

‘What?’

At Heaven-Splitter’s words, Heo Sungshik questioned momentarily, but he immediately hurled the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword toward the sky.

Kwarururung.

Once again, a considerable portion of the descending black lightning was drawn toward the rising Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword.

Pajijijik— Thud.

The sword, having absorbed a significant amount of black lightning, plummeted back to the ground. The remnants of the black lightning clung to its blade, visibly crackling with electricity.

‘Oh, acting as a lightning rod mid-air? That was a great idea.’

―Hahaha, that was electrifying. But do you really think I asked you to throw me just to act as a lightning rod?

‘What?’

Just as Sungshik was wondering about Heaven-Splitter’s words, a system message echoed in his ears.

―Ding. The "Mana Accumulation" ability of the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword has been activated. Accumulating absorbed mana.

‘!’

Something had changed within the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword.

[Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword]
Rank: Mythical

Description: The divine sword of the Heaven-Splitting Sect. A legendary sword said to have once split the heavens. A sword of absolute indestructibility.

Attack Power: S (Scales with the mastery of Heaven-Splitting Divine Art)

Options:
- Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts power +30% (Scales with mastery)
- Strength and Magic Power +20% (Scales with mastery)
- Ego
- Amplification
- Magic Power Amplification +10%
- Mental Attack Resistance +20%
- Mana Accumulation (New)
- ?
- ?

(Option effects scale with the mastery of Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts. Hidden options unlock as mastery increases.)

Checking the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword’s attributes, Sungshik saw that the “Mana Accumulation” option had been unlocked.

‘This is…’

―As the name suggests, it is the power to accumulate mana. You can now absorb mana from enemy attacks.

‘What? That’s possible?’

It was an unbelievable ability. The higher the rank, the more naturally mana was imbued in every attack. Finding an attack without mana was extremely rare.

Even martial artists who refined only their physical bodies to the extreme would, upon reaching a higher rank, inevitably accumulate mana in their bodies. Consequently, every strike from such martial artists would naturally be infused with mana.

There was a reason why Magic Power was the hardest stat to increase and the most important one.

―Of course, it’s not some omnipotent ability like you’re imagining. If you could just absorb mana from any attack at will, this sword would already be the strongest weapon in existence.

Heaven-Splitter firmly dismissed Sungshik’s assumption.

―This only allows absorption of uncontrolled mana.

The meaning of “uncontrolled mana” was as follows: Any skill made of mana had a core that controlled it. The farther the mana was from this core, the weaker its control became. This ability could only absorb that excess, uncontrolled mana.

―In the previous case, because I acted as a lightning rod and drew in the black lightning, I was able to absorb even more mana… Black lightning is coming again. Throw me up.

Whoosh— Kwarururung— Thud.

Once again, the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword returned after absorbing the mana of the black lightning.

―Kugh, this tingles. Anyway, attacks like this are especially ideal for absorbing mana.

Hearing those words, Sungshik suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

‘Wait, then… If I slash through a skill’s core…’

―Kukukuk, you’ve figured it out. That’s right. This connects to the fundamental principle and techniques of the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts.

Heaven-Splitter chuckled like an old master before continuing.

―The second technique of the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts: Law-Breaking Strike (破法式). This technique is so powerful it could be considered anti-magic or anti-skill. You rarely use it, but if you cut through a skill or magic, not only does it get nullified, but the dispersed mana is instantly accumulated.

Hearing this, Sungshik realized the various applications of the Law-Breaking Strike.

Back in the fictional world where he had mastered the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts and reached its pinnacle, the concept of skills or magic had barely existed. It was a world composed purely of martial artists.

Because of that, he had often used the first technique, Weapon-Breaking Strike (破兵式), to destroy enemy weapons, but he had rarely used the second technique, Law-Breaking Strike. The only times he ever used it were against rare top-tier opponents who employed energy-based techniques.

‘So that’s why I overlooked it.’

Thinking back, it was a foolish oversight. There was a reason why people always emphasized mastering the basics. Although it was a basic technique, Law-Breaking Strike carried the essence of the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts, capable of nullifying an opponent’s skills with devastating effectiveness.

―And the mana accumulated in this way… can be manifested in various forms, depending on the situation.

At that moment, Sungshik instinctively understood how to use this power, as if the will of Heaven-Splitter had been transferred to him.

Pajijijik.

In response to his will, tendrils of earthen-colored lightning surged from the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword.

‘This is…’

At that moment, Sungshik spotted an opening in a young Gardis. From a distance, he swung the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword through the air.

―You have confirmed the skill "Black Lightning" stored in the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword. Manifesting "Black Lightning."

And in that instant—

Flash. Kwajijijijik—

A thick bolt of earthen-colored lightning erupted from the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword and struck the young Gardis.

“Kyageng—”

Thud.

The beast trembled violently before collapsing to the side. Though it seemed to have a decent resistance to lightning, the attack was more than enough to momentarily paralyze it.

Faced with the sudden situation, the superhumans fighting the young Gardis hesitated.

“Now! Finish it!”

The superhumans snapped out of it at Kim Jihoon's command and finished off the fallen young Gardi. Then, as if forgetting they were still in battle, they turned to look in the direction from which the black lightning had come. There stood Sungshik, frozen in the exact stance he had taken when he swung the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword.

“How… the black lightning…?”

They had seen him throw his sword earlier, intercepting the falling dark-hued lightning from the sky, but they had never imagined that he could reuse the exact same black lightning as an attack.

“Could that be the power of your weapon?”

One of the mercenaries from Team B, who had been watching, asked.

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Wow.”

At Sungshik’s affirmation, murmurs of admiration spread through the crowd.

“It didn’t look ordinary from the start… At the very least, it has to be [Unique]. No, maybe even [Legendary]…”

Someone guessed while looking at the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword. Sungshik just responded with a knowing smile.

‘This is pretty useful.’

It seemed to replicate the original skill’s power almost perfectly. If utilized well, it could serve as an additional unpredictable attack in his arsenal.

‘Though, it would’ve been great if I could absorb the accumulated mana myself. Too bad.’

If that were possible, the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword could function as a walking elixir tank. The thought made him chuckle at his own greed.

―You can’t, but I might be able to make use of the stored mana in the future.

‘What do you mean?’

Sungshik asked, glancing at the sword in his hand, intrigued by Heaven-Splitter’s unexpected words.

―As you know, my full power hasn’t been unlocked yet. But if I continue to absorb this accumulated mana, I may be able to regain my strength at a faster rate.

“Oh.”

Sungshik let out a small exclamation.

The Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword had been regaining its power based on his martial realm. But from what he was hearing now, it could also regain strength by naturally absorbing mana.

While Sungshik was impressed by this revelation, Team A seemed to be finishing up their battle against the monsters. His attack, which had taken down one of the creatures, had significantly shifted the tide of the battle in their favor.

The black lightning that had been raining down also stopped after Sungshik absorbed it twice with his sword.

Thud.

The sound of the final 6-star-ranked Gardi collapsing echoed through the battlefield. It had been a tough fight against such a powerful creature, but thanks to Kang Hanil closely marking it, they had managed to win with minimal casualties.

“Whew, good job, everyone.”

“Good work. Man, that was tough. That was really a 6-star monster, right?”

“Yeah, it looks that way.”

At that, everyone’s expressions darkened. They had all realized it—if the 6-star monster wasn’t the boss, then there was a high probability that the actual boss was an even higher-ranked monster.

“So the boss… it’s likely a 6-star+ rank, right? No way it’s a 7-star, is it?”

“It… should be 6-star+. If a 7-star boss appears, that’s basically a death sentence, hahaha.”

The atmosphere suddenly became tense. Though spoken in jest, it was hardly a laughing matter in this situation. They had struggled against the 6-star monster, and the thought of facing something even stronger filled them with unease.

That was the issue—many among them had never fought a 6-star or higher-ranked monster before. The fear of the unknown was beginning to eat away at their nerves.

“Well, Kang Hanil is here, so we should be fine, right?”

“Haha, I’ll do my best.”

“Honestly, the 6-star we just fought was basically a 6-star-level monster combined with two 5-star+ ones, right? They said those creatures were 5-star+, but they felt way tougher than the other 5-star+ monsters we faced before.”

“Essentially, we fought against more than two 6-star monsters at the same time. If we managed that, we should be able to handle something even stronger.”

“Now that you put it that way…”

Fortunately, emphasizing Kang Hanil’s presence helped ease the tension. The group slowly steeled themselves for what lay ahead.

The conversation eventually shifted to Sungshik’s role in the battle. His actions had marked the turning point, leading them to victory.

“By the way, that black lightning… how did you use it?”

“It’s an inherent ability of my sword.”

“Ohhh…”

The members of Team A murmured in admiration. They had been too busy fighting earlier to hear what he had told Team B.

“So… does that mean you can absorb skills and then reuse them?”

“Yes, something like that.”

“Wow… that’s so broken. If I had a weapon like that, I could solo a boss myself.”

One of them joked with an exaggerated expression, making the others chuckle and roll their eyes. But many were still gazing at Sungshik’s Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword with envy—some even with outright greed.

“That weapon… it might actually be legendary.”

“Lucky bastard. He’s a mercenary for sure, right?”

“Yeah, I checked earlier. He’s a merc.”

It was the trio from the Nati Guild. Their eyes were filled with undisguised greed as they stared at the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword.

―Kahaha! Look at them. They all want me, don’t they? Kid, you should feel honored to wield someone as magnificent as me.

At Heaven-Splitter’s cocky words, Sungshik let out a quiet chuckle.

―But those three idiots over there… their eyes are dangerous. I’ve seen that look before. Extreme greed. That’s the look of someone who will cause trouble no matter what.

Sungshik had already noticed it. Their blatant display of hostility and avarice was impossible to miss.

‘They’re quite careless. No matter what they plan, shouldn’t they at least hide their intentions?’

―Kukuku, that’s just you being perceptive. Most people wouldn’t notice a thing.

That was true. With his high martial realm and exceptional senses, Sungshik had easily seen through them. An ordinary superhuman likely wouldn’t have picked up on their expressions.

‘Well, whatever they try, I’ll just send it right back at them.’

At Sungshik’s thought, Heaven-Splitter chuckled once more.

―Hah! You’re actually looking forward to seeing what they try, aren’t you?

Sungshik didn’t answer. He simply smiled—an amused, knowing smile.