The Sword Sanctum-the northwestern tip of the Central Continent, at the westernmost edge of the northern lands.
It was a frigid stretch of frozen ground, covered in snow year-round, with biting winds and barren soil unsuitable for farming.
Compared with Asura's wealth and prosperity, this place could only be described as a remote backwater.
Yet this was the headquarters of the Sword God Style, a place of pilgrimage in the hearts of all swordsmen.
It was said that the Water God Style had seized this place a hundred years ago, before it returned to the hands of the Sword God Style.
Despite being called the Sword Sanctum, at first glance it looked like nothing more than an ordinary town.
There were inns, weapon shops, and an Adventurers' Guild.
Adventurers and merchants could be seen on the roads, everyone busily hurrying about.
However... the vast majority of the residents on the streets were swordsmen. People in thin training uniforms could be seen everywhere, swinging swords and sparring.
Sword training here emphasized freedom of movement, so even on snowy days, many swordsmen would not wear thick, padded clothes.
Today, a boy arrived at the Sword Sanctum.
He did not particularly stand out from the people around him. Perhaps he was merely a child who looked underage; no one noticed him.
"After all that trouble... I'm finally here."
The boy standing on the Sword Sanctum's main street stretched.
The one muttering to himself was none other than Luo Ge.
After slaying that Red Dragon at Dragon's Whiskers, he had traveled northwest without stopping, hurrying along day and night.
After more than a month, he had finally reached his destination.
Come to think of it, a full three years had passed since he had planned to come study at the Sword Sanctum at the age of five.
He was now eight years old.
Luo Ge had thought the Sword Sanctum would be an exceptionally sacred, solemn place. Only after arriving did he discover that it felt more like an ordinary town.
But the farther in he went, the sparser the population became, with fewer and fewer pedestrians along the streets.
Amid the blanket of white snow, only a single road, like a mountain valley, stretched onward.
At the farthest end of the valley, high walls enclosed the Sword God Style's main training hall.
That was the true heart of the sanctum.
Snow filled the sky, cold winds swept across his cheeks, and thick snow covered the frozen ground beneath his feet. The crisp clack of wooden swords colliding kept reaching his ears.
Luo Ge arrived outside the gates of the Sword Sanctum's headquarters training hall.
Even from far away, he could hear swords swinging and clashing inside.
At the entrance, a young blue-haired girl was clearing snow with a broom. She looked only a few years older than Luo Ge.
Perhaps because she seemed approachable, Luo Ge slowly walked up, his eyes slightly narrowed.
"Um, excuse me... could you take me inside?"
"You? What are you planning to do?"
The blue-haired girl's name was Nina. She looked Luo Ge over.
He was so young, with fair, tender skin. One glance told her he was not someone who had trained hard in swordsmanship.
She sighed inwardly. This had to be another child who had run away from home on a whim and come to the Sword Sanctum to chase his dreams.
She had seen plenty of people like that.
People who arrived full of passion, then left dejectedly after failing to last even a few days.
Nina had seen more than enough of them and had no interest whatsoever.
"Sorry... we've already filled all our disciple slots for this year. We aren't accepting any more disciples this year."
"If you want to join the training hall and study the Sword God Style, please go home and apply again next year."
"Next year?"
Luo Ge had never expected the day would come when he would be turned away at the door. He did not choose to force his way in.
Instead, his eyes shifted as an idea struck him. "Then sorry for the trouble, but please pass a message to whoever's in charge inside. Tell them I'm Ghislaine's disciple, and I've come to ask the Sword God for instruction."
"Ghislaine?"
"Huh? What did you say? That Sword King Ghislaine?!" Nina jumped in surprise, her expression visibly changing.
"You really are the Sword King's disciple?"
"Ahem. The genuine article."
Luo Ge could only apologize to Ghislaine in his heart. They were so close, and they had been through life and death together, after all.
Surely she would not mind him borrowing her name for a moment?
Nina, however, remained doubtful.
"Don't worry. I wouldn't lie."
"Whether it's true or not, you can verify it by taking me inside, can't you?" Luo Ge continued to hoodwink the young girl.
"All right, then..."
The simple-natured Nina hesitated before agreeing, but she was still a little uneasy, so she warned him, "But... if you're lying, the consequences will be serious. They'll break your legs and throw you out... I suggest you think it over before going in."
"Don't worry. I never lie."
"All right, follow me!"
With a still-dubious Nina leading the way, Luo Ge stepped into the grounds of the Sword God Style's main training hall.
The instant he crossed the threshold, the atmosphere around him changed.
Everyone he encountered was an expert of the Sword God Style. Sword Saints, one-in-a-hundred talents outside, were everywhere here.
Upon hearing that this boy was Sword King Ghislaine's disciple, the disciples around him in white swordsmen's uniforms cast curious, appraising looks his way.
Luo Ge marveled inwardly.
Ghislaine seemed to be quite famous in the Sword Sanctum. Otherwise, these people would not have reacted so strongly upon hearing that he was her disciple.
"I'll go inform the Sword God. Wait here, and don't wander around," Nina instructed before quickly leaving.
Luo Ge stood where he was and waited.
As his gaze swept over the area near the training hall, it suddenly stopped.
His eyes settled on a light-brown-haired youngster in the crowd, who seemed to be the youngest among them.
He did not know why-perhaps it was some sort of instinct-but he could not help giving him another look.
Before he could ask the boy's name, however, Nina returned.
"The Sword God agreed... he wants to see you."
Nina led Luo Ge to the "Hall of Audience."
This was the central hall of the Sword God Style's headquarters, used for formal ceremonies, duels, and the conferring of titles. It could also be called the main hall.
The hall was extremely spacious, with a sparring area in the center and room for many spectators around it.
Quite a few Sword God Style disciples were still practicing and sparring there.
The instant Luo Ge stepped into the hall, everyone fell silent, all their gazes turning toward him at once.
After bringing him to his place, Nina quickly ducked to one side, looking ready to enjoy the show.
"That's Ghislaine's disciple? The Sword King's disciple?"
"So young? He doesn't even look like an adult... but would someone like Ghislaine really take a disciple?"
"Could he just be some impostor who wandered in?"
Whispers kept rising around him, the gazes directed his way full of scrutiny and suspicion.
"Silence!"
A voice rang out, carrying unquestionable authority.
The speaker was a blue-haired man with scars on his face. He bore some resemblance to Nina, and a wild, sharply aggressive pressure radiated from his entire body.
He was the master of the Sword Sanctum.
Sixth among the Seven Great Powers, Sword God Gal Farion.
Sword God Gal stared at Luo Ge, his gaze piercing like a sharp sword. "You're Ghislaine's disciple?"
Luo Ge met the Sword God's eyes without looking away and nodded. "That's right. I'm Ghislaine's disciple."
"I haven't heard anything about Ghislaine taking a disciple."
"Boy!"
"Your word alone doesn't prove a thing."
An amused smile curled Gal's lips. "You'll have to give me some proof, won't you?"
"Proof?"
Luo Ge narrowed his eyes slightly, lowering his stance as much as possible. "There's no need for anything like that. If you want the answer, ask my sword."
Although he believed he had already humbled himself, those arrogant words immediately displeased many of the Sword God Style disciples present.
After all, the man standing here was the master of the Sword Sanctum, Sword God Gal Farion, sixth among the Seven Great Powers.
A little brat... and he did not even use basic respectful language.
Gal took no offense. Instead, he threw back his head and laughed. "Ahahahahaha! Your personality really is just like Ghislaine's used to be. Just my kind of kid. You know what... I'm actually starting to believe you're her disciple."
"..."
Inwardly, Luo Ge wore an expression that said, Just as I thought.
When faced with an expert, ordinary people humbled themselves and acted meek, but the expert would only look down on their cowardice.
But as long as he showed enough confidence, he could instantly draw the other person's attention.
He held his head high and puffed out his chest, his face expressionless... trying to look more like Ghislaine's disciple.
Even with the Sword God's gaze on him, Luo Ge kept his eyes slightly narrowed and his expression perfectly composed.
Gal's smile faded. Staring at Luo Ge, he asked, "Tell me. What did you come to the Sword Sanctum to see me for?"
"To become stronger."
Gal seemed dissatisfied with that answer. He kept staring hard into Luo Ge's eyes. "Wrong!"
"If that's all the half-hearted answer you can give, get out of here, until you can give me a reason that satisfies me."
Luo Ge fell silent for a moment, then repeated, "To become stronger..."
He paused, his gaze turning serious. "And, along the way, to defeat someone."
Gal burst out laughing again. "Hahaha! Don't tell me the person you want to defeat is me?"
"Even if you're Ghislaine's disciple, I'm the one who taught her swordsmanship. You'll have to wait until your next life to beat me!"
"Not necessarily. You're already old, after all, and I'm still very young."
Luo Ge's words were like a depth charge planted in a pond, instantly setting the crowd off.
"Insolent!"
"Who are you to pass judgment on the Sword God?"
"A novice swordsman, and you've got some nerve! Didn't that Ghislaine teach you the etiquette of the Sword God Style?"
Luo Ge remained silent.
Sword God Gal merely leaned forward slightly, his eyes burning as he looked at Luo Ge. "Boy, do you know what becoming the Sword God means?"
"Women, wealth, fame-all yours for the taking. Money you couldn't spend in hundreds of lifetimes. Princesses of kingdoms and noblewomen will line up begging for your favor."
"Once you become the Sword God, you can do whatever you want."
An amused smile curled his lips. "If you want to become the Sword God, come defeat me someday!"
Yet the very next second, Luo Ge shook his head. "No, Sword God. You've misunderstood."
"You may be strong, but I didn't come here to train... in order to defeat you."
"???"
Gal.
"???"
Everyone present.
Then Luo Ge looked straight into Gal's eyes and said calmly, "Because compared with the person I want to defeat, you seem a little weak."
"Huh?"
"What's he saying?"
"He doesn't even take the Sword God seriously! Arrogant, utterly arrogant! How dare he show the Sword God such disrespect!"
"Sword God, please let me teach this ignorant brat a proper lesson."
The crowd erupted, angry voices rising one after another.
Gal, however, was not angry. Instead, his interest grew. "Oh? So the person you want to defeat isn't me. Who is it, then?"
"The Dragon God!"
The moment those words left his mouth, the entire gathering fell silent.
The whole hall was so quiet that a falling pin could have been heard. And before everyone, Luo Ge spoke not only the title, but that man's name as well.
"Dragon God... Orsted!"