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Sophia, who had sensed the crisis of Conra and Maria from the ominous clouds heading southwest, found herself facing an insurmountable problem on her way to rescue her disciples.

“So, how do you plan to get there? Your disciples are in Hiberia, and we’re on the island of Gotland. It’s like going from one end of Europa to the other.”

The problem was the distance. Just as Spirit Drayg-Haegis had pointed out, Conra and Maria were in the southwestern tip of Europa, in Hiberia, while Sophia herself was in the northern Gotland.

Even if she were a superhuman embodying the Mind-In-Action or the divine powers spoken of in Buddhism, it would take her a day and a half of non-stop walking. Considering the immense mental energy required for Mind-In-Action, surpassing even the Heart Sword, she might need to conserve her strength, potentially taking over two days.

“What if I use the Foot-Binding Spell? No, that’s too slow. The Earth Spell is too taxing for movement. Then the only option left is the Spatial Teleportation Array…”

The Foot-Binding Spell, a type of swift magic, allowed one to run tirelessly for long distances by enhancing each step. However, it was more about endurance than speed, and the distance covered per step wasn’t significant enough, so it was out of the question.

Among Earth Spells, there were some like Thunder Step that could achieve high speeds, but Earth Spells were originally designed for survival in dangerous battlefields, not for travel. Naturally, the cost-effectiveness was too low.

On the other hand, the Spatial Teleportation Array was a service provided by Spell Towers across the continent in this world, not from Sophia’s past life. Specifically, it allowed travel between Spell Towers, covering considerable distances…

But there was a catch.

“Since ancient times, the services provided by spellcasters have been notoriously user-unfriendly. It’s bound to be troublesome.”

Spirit Lucas-Kukunis grumbled, and Sophia couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

The main issue was the nature of the Spell Towers. While they did offer Spatial Teleportation Arrays, it wasn’t because they were running a teleportation business. The necessary spatial coordinates and the mutual resonance system were only available at each Spell Tower, so they provided the service to those who wanted to use it, but they had no intention of running it as a business.

Naturally, the service itself was riddled with cumbersome and unnecessary procedures.

“Not to mention, do you know how much it costs to activate one of those?”

Sophia’s point hit the mark.

The Spell Towers had no plans to run the teleportation service as a business because it was fundamentally unprofitable. While the Spell Towers did possess the Spatial Teleportation Arrays and managed the related data, the arrays were complete as ‘spells’ but not as ‘transportation methods.’

Thus, the spells were highly inefficient and ‘heavy,’ requiring resources worth a small castle to activate each time. Moreover, there was no long-distance teleportation array that could span the continent in one go, so one would have to use nearby Spell Towers as hubs and reactivate the array multiple times.

“I don’t have the resources to activate it multiple times.”

It was a truly urgent and frustrating situation.

As Sophia pondered other options, a few spells suddenly came to mind. Was it a coincidence?

[……?]

At the moment she heard the advice from the spirit Gabrielle, suggesting that she didn’t need to focus solely on movement spells but could extend a helping hand, Sophia felt a divine inspiration strike her.

“This is it. Why didn’t I think of this before?”

“I never imagined it. This might actually work.”

With Spirit Drayg-Haegis’s agreement, Sophia felt more confident in her idea and began to solidify her plan.

The methods Sophia thought of were none other than the Immortal Sword Art and the Soul-Splitting Transmission.

Originally, when one mastered the Sword Art to its peak, they would progress from Hand-Sword, Eye-Sword, and finally reach Heart-Sword. But once the Heart-Sword training surpassed a certain level, two paths would open.

One was the Formless Sword, the essence of the Heart-Sword, where the sword’s intent hidden in the heart is scattered, pursuing a sword art without fixed forms, allowing one to fully unleash the sword in their heart without any hindrance.

The other was the Immortal Sword Art, where the swordsman’s ego and attachments are removed from the heart’s sword, replaced by the connections and virtues exchanged between all things, including the self and others.

Those who pursued the Formless Sword would achieve infinite, boundless, and endless transformations, while those who pursued the Immortal Sword Art would enter the cosmic laws woven by cause and effect, transcending the self.

Sophia focused on the part of the Immortal Sword Art that ‘transcends the self and touches the web of cause and effect.’

‘It’s true that I haven’t deeply explored the Immortal Sword Art. But I can mimic the initial techniques.’

Sophia originally pursued the perfection of the self, embodying a higher realm as a swordsman. Naturally, her path leaned more towards the Formless Sword.

But that didn’t mean she was entirely ignorant of the Immortal Sword Art. She simply had no particular interest in achieving enlightenment through the sword, but the Immortal Sword Art was still a possibility for a swordsman.

‘The first step of the Immortal Sword Art is to sense and discern connections. Once you can sense the connections, you can send the sword there. No matter how far.’

Unlike the Formless Sword, which fiercely pursues the ultimate through rigorous training, the Immortal Sword Art is closer to the path of spiritual cultivation, even though it was opened by the Heart-Sword.

Like enlightened monks who train in the Mystic Eye, letting go of attachments and moving towards liberation, the Immortal Sword Art involves sensing cause and effect and karma during training, achieving merit to become a sword immortal.

Starting with close relationships like family and friends, then discerning connections with enemies or rivals, and gradually expanding to accept connections with all things in the universe. That was the training method of the Immortal Sword Art.

Once you can sense and discern connections, sending the sword there is a natural act, no need to elevate the sword art further. After all, sending the sword where the heart goes is the realm of the Heart-Sword.

Once you can send the sword, the next step is simple.

Objects that have been kept close for a long time and exchanged connections with will harbor spiritual energy. This spiritual energy is fundamentally close to the person who exchanged connections with it, almost like a spiritual clone. Using this as a medium to share consciousness and manifest is called Soul-Splitting Transmission or Soul-Transforming Transmission.

‘In that sense, a sword connected by the Heart-Sword is the most suitable medium for Soul-Splitting Transmission.’

Connected by the heart, flying through the sky as if alive, with the heart and sword communicating as one—this is the most appropriate state for Soul-Splitting Transmission.

Having organized her thoughts, Sophia immediately sat down and began to immerse her consciousness within.

Gradually removing the six senses of external stimuli—sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mind—she calmed the seventh sense, the ‘self-consciousness rising from within,’ and the eighth sense, the ‘latent unconsciousness within.’

Then, her inner vision expanded, and a discerning power not based on the self emerged. A transcendent realm beyond the five senses began to flow into her perception.

In this expanded perception, Sophia could see that all things in the world were connected by extremely subtle and profound threads. Although most were obscured by a mist-like haze, this would gradually clear as she advanced in her Immortal Sword Art training.

The important part was what fully touched her perception—the parts directly connected to Sophia herself.

Threads connected to Sophia, shining in various colors and vibrating at different frequencies. Each vibration emitted corresponding sounds, intersecting to create harmonies or dissonances.

These were the threads of connection, from which all cause and effect and karma originated, giving direction to the forces of attraction and repulsion that moved things.

Perhaps the essence of wielding a sword with the Heart-Sword was no different.

To wield a sword, a swordsman holds it with their hand, controls their body with their shoulders and arms, connected to their torso. They see with their eyes, hear with their ears, feel with their body, think with their mind, and their body reacts, moving muscles to finally execute sword techniques—this is the interaction of the body’s parts handling cause and effect and karma.

This extends to wielding the sword with energy, and then with the mind, as the swordsman interacts with the sword through energy and mind, creating cause and effect and karma…

Quietly storing the sudden insight (self-consciousness) in a corner of her mind (unconsciousness), Sophia continued to observe the web of connections.

‘Found it!’

It didn’t take long to find the threads connected to Conra and Maria. The bond between master and disciple was among the closest of connections.

Once she found the threads of connection, the next step was clear. Follow the force of connection and send the Heart-Sword like floating on flowing water.

“Gabrielle, help me!”

Immediately after Sophia’s call, the spirit Gabrielle manifested behind her, emitting a brilliant milky light and embracing the seated Nun Knight. The next moment, the claymore resting on the Nun Knight’s lap emitted a blue light and disappeared.

+++++

Crack!

“[You all held out well. From now on, this Nun Knight will take over.]”

The blue light that flew from the north struck like lightning, slashing through the golden torrent of strikes. Compared to the calamitous golden torrent, the blue light seemed fragile at first glance. But the moment they clashed, the golden strike dissipated as if it had never been.

“My God… What just happened?”

The people stood dumbfounded, unable to hide their shock. It was understandable. The enemy’s attack, so threatening, vanished as if it were nothing, leaving only a gentle breeze—a scene too surreal.

“{You finally arrived.}”

The golden Great Demon, who had just fired the golden strike, smiled faintly and watched the blue light that had just arrived.

The blue light that nullified the strike soon condensed into the form of a sword, then began to change shape again with a divine light. Seeing the figure materialize, Conra and Maria blurted out a word.

“”Master?””

But even as they said it, they couldn’t help but tilt their heads in confusion.

Conra and Maria’s master usually looked like this: a Nun Knight always clad in black nun’s robes with plate armor.

A beautiful woman with delicate and elegant features, but the seasoned and confident aura on her face made her seem more like a warrior or a young-faced old knight rather than just a beautiful woman.

However, the being that had manifested from the blue light, though resembling Sophia, looked quite different.

The being before them looked like this:

A wide and voluminous white robe (Daoist robe) and a layered white garment resembling the ancient Eastern Empire’s toga (Kasaya). On the head was a white crown with dangling tassels (Mianliu Pingtian Crown). On the feet were long-necked shoes made of silk and leather (Rain Master’s Cloud-Walking Shoes).

Behind, a shawl-like wing garment fluttered and floated, and from the armpits and sides, three pairs of large wings sprouted, one pair covering the face, another the feet, and the last pair spread wide.

A faint halo flowed behind the head. Sitting cross-legged in the air, below was a giant lotus-like seat (Lotus Throne) surrounded by clouds and mist.

From the shoulders, visions of multiple arms appeared, each holding various objects: a glass bottle, a herb basket, an incense burner, a feather fan (White Feather Fan), a plum branch, a lotus stem, a treasured sword, a pagoda, a lightning-shaped staff (Vajra), an ash tree staff, a horn, a bell, a mirror, a jade, a wheel, a lute-like stringed instrument (Pipa), a golden orb adorned with a cross, a silver candlestick with a six-pointed star pattern (Menorah), a balance scale, and hands forming fourteen strange mudras.

The face bore a serene and mysterious smile, but it lacked any human warmth.

In every aspect, this was a figure unfamiliar to the people of the continent, so it was no wonder Conra and Maria felt strange.

But when the being stood up from the lotus seat and stepped on the ground, the three pairs of wings, lotus throne, and countless arm visions disappeared, and the mysterious smile was replaced by a seasoned and cheerful one.

“Almost too late. Is everyone safe?”

Regardless of the attire, the aura was familiar to the disciples. Finally, Conra and Maria recognized her as Sophia and cheered.

“”Master!!!””

“Heh. You all look well. It seems this master wasn’t too late.”

While the master and disciples were happily reunited, others were equally happy but more surprised and puzzled.

“Is that really Lady Shazel? What is that appearance…”

Karl and Brantley felt unfamiliar with Sophia’s appearance but soon had to admit it was her. The composition of the spiritual entity she projected confirmed it was the Sophia they knew.

“I’d like to catch up, but it seems we’ll have to postpone. This form has a time limit. Let’s deal with the urgent matter first.”

Though they all wanted to enjoy the reunion, they hadn’t forgotten the situation.

Leaving the group behind, Sophia turned her gaze to the golden Great Demon who had been watching her with an enigmatic smile.

“Hmph, it’s been a while. So that’s your true form?”

“{And you, quite the mysterious figure. That form, it’s not your true body, is it?}”

The remark hit the mark. Sophia’s current form was not her true body but a manifestation sent through the Immortal Sword Art, a clone. Naturally, there were differences from her original body.

Despite the opponent’s keen insight, Sophia remained unfazed and calmly retorted.

“Indeed, as expected of an ancient spellcaster. But you’re not in your true body either, are you?”

The golden Great Demon nodded in agreement. Their level and achieved realms were too high to be bound by such trivialities.

Rather, it was the human spellcasters who were flustered by the conversation.

“Not the true body? That sounds like the main body is elsewhere, and that form is a manifestation.”

“If so, doesn’t that mean they’ve already ascended to the ranks of gods?”

For spellcasters, a manifestation was akin to a divine being descending to influence the mortal world.

According to legends, in ancient times, priests who were established from the beginning as intermediaries offered precious sacrifices to widen the path to the gods. In the present, it was said that devout clergy with well-formed spiritual entities and deep light power could manifest them.

Among spellcasters, there was a hypothesis that those who elevated their spiritual entities to the divine realm could learn to manifest like gods.

Given that, it was no wonder the spellcasters were in an uproar.

But not all spellcasters were shocked.

“Hah, I see. So that’s why she looked like that.”

“What do you mean? Explain it to me.”

“It’s simple.”

Brantley, who seemed to have had his doubts cleared, began to explain to Karl, who was standing beside him.

According to the traditions passed down to court poets, when a god manifests, symbols representing the god’s essence—divinity, divine power, and divine nature—appear first. For example, a war god or martial god would have symbols related to war and martial prowess, a god of law would have a law book or scales, and a household god would have a hearth or loom.

These symbols, along with a divine statue resembling the god, would manifest before the god’s consciousness awakened. Like molding a vessel and then filling it with content.

“So, the strange symbols Lady Shazel showed when she manifested must represent her essence.”

“Indeed. I understand.”

Karl nodded in agreement, though Brantley knew Karl didn’t really understand. But he didn’t blame Karl. It wasn’t crucial knowledge, and whether one knew it or not didn’t matter much.

‘But then, what exactly is Lady Shazel’s essence, to have such symbols appear?’

Recalling the symbols that appeared just before Sophia’s manifestation, Brantley’s curiosity burned again.

The glass bottle, herb basket, incense burner, feather fan (White Feather Fan), plum branch, lotus stem, treasured sword, pagoda, lightning-shaped staff (Vajra), ash tree staff, horn, bell, mirror, jade, wheel, lute-like stringed instrument (Pipa), golden orb adorned with a cross, silver candlestick with a six-pointed star pattern (Menorah), balance scale, and fourteen mudras, the floating shawl and three pairs of wings, the lotus throne supporting the seated figure…

What realm had she expanded into to make such symbols appear? Brantley couldn’t guess.

Meanwhile, Sophia and the Great Demon Rupifer continued their conversation.

“By the way, you. You’ve been quite the nuisance to my disciples, haven’t you?”

“{That accusation is unfair. Didn’t we agree to fight each other?}”

“What?”

Caught off guard by the unexpected remark, Sophia paused, and the Great Demon Rupifer continued in a matter-of-fact tone.

“{If I want to achieve my goal, you and your people will stop me, and if you want to stop me, my kin and I will defeat you to achieve our goal. That’s the relationship we agreed on… Or was I mistaken?}”

The confident assertion, as if no other possibility had ever been considered, momentarily stunned Sophia. But soon, she smirked and retorted.

“Indeed, you’re right. Let me correct one thing.”

“{Hmm? What’s that?}”

“It’s simple.”

Sophia, who had been standing with her arms crossed, changed her posture without breaking her natural stance. Her left hand went behind her back, and her right hand pointed at the golden Great Demon with her index finger. In that pose, she declared without hesitation.

“People will stop you.”

The bold declaration made the golden Great Demon momentarily stunned, then he bowed his head and began to laugh, his shoulders shaking.

“{Heh, heh heh, heh heh heh…}”

The Great Demon’s laughter, initially suppressed, soon turned into uncontrollable guffaws.

“{Heh heh, hahahahahaha——!!!!!}”

After laughing like a madman for a while, the Great Demon finally calmed down. Wiping away the remaining laughter, he spoke.

“{Quite the spirit.}”

There was a hint of condescension, an arrogant gaze. But Sophia remained unfazed, calmly watching the Great Demon. Sensing her demeanor, the Great Demon’s laughter completely faded.

In its place was intense interest and burning fighting spirit.

“{Alright, fine. But first, let’s see if you have the power to back it up.}”

“Feel free to check.”

Sophia, as if responding to the fighting spirit, began to reveal her own determination.

“But by then, you won’t be in a good state either.”

And so, the battle began.

A clash of beings closest to the divine realm.

 

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