Failed Possession Chapter-121

**Chapter 121.**

—

The one who fought the longest—no, endured the longest—was **Cloud Dragon**.

He held out in the air for a long time, clinging to the Calamity Saint as he fought. Even after eventually falling to the ground, he repeatedly leapt back up and rushed in again.

At the very end, he exchanged several more moves with the Calamity Saint after she descended herself, and then, coughing up blood along with curses, admitted defeat.

“I… lost, *cough*.”

It was only natural that he could not win. No matter if one was called one of the Three Heroes or Cloud Dragon, there remained a vast, immeasurable gap compared to the **Martial Zenith**.

And yet Cloud Dragon’s expression was not one that accepted defeat as something obvious.

It had been several months since they had begun staying at the **Pointed Sword Pavilion**.

Judging from the way they repeatedly rushed at her, it seemed they had always trained like this, and naturally they must have lost every single time.

Yet not a single one of them looked indifferent to defeat as something inevitable. Even **Dark Flower**, the lone woman among them, had a vivid green light burning in the pitch-black center of her pupils as she chewed over the irritation of losing.

*‘What in the world are these brats…?’*

To **Yeonri Sang-ah**, this did not look like training—it looked like torture.

Even making them face hidden killing techniques concealed within an avalanche would already have them teetering on the edge of death. Yet immediately after that, they were thrown into a sparring match close to real combat? It was the kind of brutal training that even the most stubborn madman would struggle to endure.

It would not be strange if they had grown accustomed to defeat, their spirits broken and their hearts crushed in despair. Yet on the faces of the Three Heroes there was no such resignation, no familiarity with losing.

What lingered within those expressions was…

*‘Poisonous resolve… killing intent?’*

Even if they could not win, they wanted to land at least one strike on the Calamity Saint.

They wanted to return violence to that madwoman who always smiled brightly, her face filled with delight as she unleashed violence upon them.

At first, they had been grateful for the instruction.

Then the training became so exhausting and painful that they wanted to quit.

To endure it, they hypnotized themselves for the sake of achievement. *This is fun. This is exciting…*

Now they had long since surpassed that stage.

Even **Estor**, who used to force a smile while insisting he was grateful and enjoying himself…
Even **Haryeong**, who felt sincere gratitude for finally learning martial arts properly…
Even **Yuri**, who had found something he was good at for the first time in his life and decided to devote himself to it—

They wanted to hit **Lorelia**.

Just once.

They wanted to strike her properly.

With that desire in their hearts, they endured each day and kept charging at her.

Yeonri Sang-ah knew nothing of those circumstances. And so she could only continue to admire the will possessed by the Three Heroes.

*‘They’re different from the rumors.’*

The first one who surprised her was **Dark Flower**.

She was the hidden daughter of the Poison King, the former head of the Tang Clan, and at the same time an assassin belonging to the **Salho Gate**. Yeonri Sang-ah did not know the exact name of the martial art she used, but she had heard that, like an assassin of Tang Clan origin, she employed hidden weapon techniques.

But seeing it in person, it was somewhat different. Hidden weapons certainly made up a considerable portion of Dark Flower’s offensive methods, yet mixed in with them was high-level hand-to-hand combat.

Just judging by her footwork and the way she used her hands, she could easily call herself a martial artist specializing in close combat.

Next was the **Sword Dragon**. He was already famous as the one who had inherited the true transmission of the Sword Emperor.

*‘At that level, how can he handle a sword like that?’*

The **Sword Saint Style** of the Orsia family was a divine art that could be counted among the finest even when compared to the sword techniques of the sword sects and sword families of the Eastern Murim.

Even taking into account that he had mastered such a technique, the Sword Dragon’s swordsmanship was too outstanding. There was a level of real combat experience mixed into it that simply could not be explained by his natural background or the life he had lived.

If the Orsia family were compared to the Murim world, they would be a righteous sword clan.

But some of the slashes the Sword Dragon had shown resembled the styles of the unorthodox sects, the Demonic Cult, wandering martial artists, or mercenaries… Their flavor was different from that of righteous swords.

Completely different sword styles were mixed together, yet they did not feel crude or mismatched—they harmonized.

Dark Flower and the Sword Dragon. Even if Yeonri Sang-ah had only seen one of the two, she was confident she would have been shocked.

But compared to those two, **Cloud Dragon** was the truly shocking one.

Just a few months ago she had heard he was only at the **5th Rank**…

*‘He reached the 6th Rank. And he’s not even at the beginning stage….’*

Even among the later-generation talents of prestigious sects and noble families—geniuses praised by all and granted titles like *Dragon* or *Flower*—not a single person had reached the **6th Rank** before the age of thirty.

Even **the Silver Martial Queen** herself had only reached the 6th Rank after passing thirty.

*‘Even among the martial houses of the West… no, even among mages, there shouldn’t be anyone who reached the 6th Rank before thirty….’*

And it was not only the Rank that was shocking.

Cloud Dragon was simply strong.

He fought well.

He was accustomed to fighting…

“Earlier the situation didn’t allow me to properly greet you.”

Yuri spoke while sitting down on the snow-covered ground, catching his breath. The gaze Yeonri Sang-ah was directing at him was far too blatant and intense to ignore.

“So… my title is **Cloud Dragon**, and my name is **Yuri**.”

He had already heard from **Gongsun Myeong** that **the Silver Martial Queen** would soon pay a visit.

In the game, she had been a boss NPC at **Level 84**.

*‘So that’s the **Moonfang Nether Blade**.’*

The enormous crescent-bladed guandao standing upright in the snow was as tall as Yeonri Sang-ah herself. The **Moonfang Nether Blade** was a spear-class weapon treated as an endgame-tier item in the game, possessing specifications equal to **Atria**, the beloved sword of the Sword Emperor.

The martial art **Heavenly Snow White Transformation Art** used by the Silver Martial Queen was not magic, yet it resembled magic—an extremely yin martial art.

Regardless of one’s anti-magic resistance, if one did not prepare elemental resistance, simply standing within the field would inflict slowing and damage-over-time through the status effect **“Frostbite.”**

The irritating part was that even with resistance, once physical damage accumulated, one could be forcibly inflicted with frostbite—and if unlucky, even **Frozen**, rendering them unable to move.

If an attack struck while in that frozen state, it meant certain instant death.

Based on Yuri’s experience in the game, she—like **Orca**—was a boss designed to torment melee warrior classes: an extremely annoying and malicious opponent.

When Yuri had still been **Lee Su-hyeok**, he had been instantly killed by freezing several times and had cursed the Silver Martial Queen’s ancestors.

And now that very Silver Martial Queen was staring at him with an intense gaze…

*‘Does age have no meaning in this world…?’*

She had been a boss even in the game. If more than thirty years had passed since then, her age should be impossible to guess.

Yet the woman staring at him now looked, at most, in her late twenties.

*‘Orca was like that too. Lady Lorellia as well…’*

*Just how old are they…?*

It was a question he could not possibly ask. Even thinking about it gave him cognitive dissonance, so he forcibly pushed the thought away.

Yuri tried to stand up in order to greet her properly.

“There’s no need to get up. Aren’t your injuries too severe?”

Yeonri Sang-ah hurriedly stopped him. The injury to his leg she had seen earlier was already serious, and after being struck and thrown down multiple times, the condition of his entire body was dreadful.

No matter how sturdy a martial artist’s body was or how quickly they recovered, injuries like that would require several days of proper rest.

“Surely you don’t train like this every time? Your body won’t endure it. Even if you trained once a week like this, your body would—”

“Every day!”

“?”

At the sudden voice, Yeonri Sang-ah’s head snapped around.

**Lorellia**, who had been removing the blood-soaked bandage wrapped around her fist and rubbing her hand against the thick white snow, beamed with a bright smile.

“Once a week? What kind of training is that? Training only has meaning when you throw yourself onto the brink of death every single day, every moment you live and breathe!”

“You’re saying you do this… insane thing every day?”

“Of course! If you hadn’t come here today, we would have resumed after resting!”

“Re… resumed? Re-sumed?”

Yeonri Sang-ah’s eyes widened in disbelief. She looked at the three sitting pitifully in the snow while resting, then twisted her face and glared at Lorellia.

“Are you planning to shatter these young jewels with your sadism?”

“Sadism? Whatever do you mean? You must have some misunderstanding about me, Lorellia!”

“How vicious…! Aren’t the children’s injuries far too severe!”

“Mistakes must be sternly reprimanded!”

“Mistakes?”

What mistake could there possibly have been? While Yeonri Sang-ah hesitated, Lorellia continued her passionate explanation.

“They had to resist the avalanche without losing consciousness! Yet they failed and were all swept away. Bones were broken, and they even lost consciousness!”

“……”

“If it had been a real battle, they would have died while unconscious! But since this was not real combat, I, Lorellia, showed mercy! I admit the discipline was somewhat excessive today, but it is not usually this severe!”

Just what was she talking about? As Yeonri Sang-ah struggled to respond, **Estor** muttered irritably.

“I told you we should cut straight through it and push forward. If we’d combined our strength and carved through a single point, we could’ve held out.”

“Why insist on the crazy idea of cutting through an avalanche? We should’ve followed my suggestion and sprinted over the top.”

“As if that would’ve worked so easily. If we’d all run together, Lady Lorellia would’ve beaten us nicely in a group. It was better for each of us to fend for ourselves.”

“And that’s how your leg ended up like that? As expected of our Lord Yuri—so~ capable even alone.”

“To be honest, I did the best and lasted the longest. Haryeong-nim and Estor should be grateful to me. While I was holding out against the avalanche and keeping Lady Lorellia occupied, the two of you were able to come out relatively fine.”

Yuri grumbled as he rubbed his shattered knee. He had only aligned it and held it together with internal energy; he had not yet properly treated it.

“Are you really going to keep your leg like that? If it had been fine, I could’ve landed at least one hit earlier.”

“You’re talking nonsense.”

Lorellia smiled brightly and took out **holy water**.
Just how many bottles had this been already? Fortunately, they had looted plenty from the Grand Temple of the former War Church during the past war.

“……”

Yeonri Sang-ah herself had undergone harsh training many times in her life. It was through such training that the current **Silver Martial Queen** had been forged.

But even she had never trained to *this* extent…

“You… you’re truly fine, aren’t you?”

Yeonri Sang-ah asked hesitantly.

“If it’s too painful and unbearable, and you’re only enduring it because the Calamity Saint forces you… then I will step forward on your behalf.”

“You’re trying to steal Lorellia’s students!”

“Holy water may heal the body, but it does not heal the mind…! If this continues every day, your minds will break!”

“Overcoming that is perseverance and self-discipline!”

Perhaps if this had been a few months ago, Yeonri Sang-ah’s words would have struck deeply.

They did not wish to stop training altogether, but they might have hoped it would at least be eased somewhat.

“Thank you for your concern, but I’m fine.”

The first to answer was **Haryeong**.
She—the one who had said she wanted to run away whenever she had the chance in the early days—now calmly declined Yeonri Sang-ah’s offer.

“I endure because it is bearable. If it were truly impossible to endure, I would have already fled of my own will.”

She had not yet reached the **6th Rank**. But she believed it was now within sight. She had also achieved great progress in the **Taiji Reversal Scripture**, opening a crack in her tightly sealed upper dantian and entering the realm of **Intent**.

Deep within Haryeong’s eyes flickered a green light.

It was the **poison flame of Intent** ignited through the Taiji Reversal Scripture.

“I’m fine as well.”

Estor had likewise not yet reached the **6th Rank**. But his **Radiant Blade** had now ignited instantly from a swinging slash, and his swordsmanship itself had greatly advanced through repeated real-combat experiences on the edge of death.

He was achieving what he had desperately hoped for when leaving **Panteleon**. After all, Rank could only harmonize when one possessed the appropriate techniques.

After being refused again and again, Yeonri Sang-ah’s eyes became blank.

She had offered help to free them from what seemed like torture fit for hell, yet she had never imagined they would refuse without the slightest hesitation.

Only **Cloud Dragon** had not answered yet.

Naturally, Yeonri Sang-ah’s gaze turned toward Yuri.

*‘Ah….’*

Just by looking at his face, she could tell she would not receive an answer.

Cloud Dragon’s eyes were directed toward her, but Yeonri Sang-ah could sense that what those eyes were seeing was not reality.

*‘Is he seeing the past? Or the future?’*

Was he replaying the sparring match where he had been utterly defeated?

Or imagining the moment when he would pour out the venomous resolve he once harbored?

One thing was certain—he did not even glance at the idea of a more comfortable reality.

His eyes blazed like hellfire, yet his expression remained utterly calm.

No matter how fiercely Cloud Dragon struggled, he could never threaten Yeonri Sang-ah.

And yet, in this moment, Yeonri Sang-ah clearly felt an invisible **fighting spirit**.

Even **Silver Martial Queen** herself felt it.

The three standing behind her felt suffocating pressure from Yuri’s fighting spirit.

“Ugh…”

The youngest among them was **Nangong Yeon-bi**, the **Heavenly Sky Sword Flower**. At twenty-one, she had only recently reached the **4th Rank**, and she was called the future of the slowly declining **Namgung Clan**.

But she was only the future—not the present.

Right now, Namgung Yeon-bi clutched her aching chest as she gasped for breath. It felt as though something were gripping her heart tightly.

Snow fell, and the wind was cold.

Yet cold sweat beaded across **Yeonri Eunha**’s forehead.

Until seeing him today, she had never paid attention to the man called Cloud Dragon. She had not even been interested.

But the Cloud Dragon she saw now was someone she could not ignore.

Truly outstanding people drew attention whether one wished it or not.

Yeonri Eunha swallowed hard and clenched her fists.

*‘Haa….’*

The one feeling even greater pressure than Namgung Yeon-bi was **Hwangbo Jin-cheol**.

At some point, Yuri’s gaze had shifted away from Yeonri Sang-ah and settled upon Hwangbo Jin-cheol.

The sharpened pressure focused at a single point poured down upon him.

*‘What is this…?’*

He had come here with the ambition to prove himself the greatest among dragons.

But at this moment, that determination had completely vanished from Hwangbo Jin-cheol’s mind.

The intangible fighting spirit pressing down on his entire body was an **Intent** far beyond what he could accept.

*‘To wield Intent at this level… then Cloud Dragon’s Rank must be….’*

Just as Hwangbo Jin-cheol swallowed hard, Yuri finally spoke.

“When would you like to do it?”

Yuri’s gaze still remained fixed on Hwangbo Jin-cheol. The sudden words were directed at him.

“W… what?”

Hwangbo Jin-cheol stammered.

At the question, Yuri tilted his head slightly, looking puzzled.

“Young Hero **Tyrant Dragon**. Didn’t you come here because you wanted to fight me once?”

“……”

“You didn’t travel all this way just to see my face and exchange greetings, did you? You’re not even a disciple of the Yicheon Sword Sect.”

“No… that’s…”

“I’m also interested in your skill. As you know, martial fighters who have reached such a realm are rare. Especially since the **Hwangbo Clan** is a prestigious martial family that has trained fist techniques for generations—I would very much like to test those fists.”

Yuri slowly rose to his feet.

Hwangbo Jin-cheol could only swallow hard without answering.

It was true—he had come out of interest and the desire to test himself.

The problem was that Cloud Dragon was far stronger than he had expected.

Judging from how he wielded Intent, he had already surpassed the **5th Rank**.

*‘No… it’s not just a matter of Rank….’*

Hwangbo Jin-cheol was not someone whose fighting spirit would break simply because his opponent was stronger or higher in Rank.

The reason he hesitated now was the **alien aura** he felt from Cloud Dragon.

Clothes soaked with blood.

Hair disheveled and covered with snow.

Eyes shining blood-red beneath messy bangs.

At this moment, Cloud Dragon looked like some **asura or vengeful spirit**.

“Since I’m in the mood as well, how about right now?”

“Hmm…”

A younger junior was urging him repeatedly.

To refuse here would be dishonorable.

Hwangbo Jin-cheol clenched his fists and nodded.

“If Young Hero Cloud Dragon is willing, I have no objection to doing it now as well…”

At those words, a faint smile appeared on Yuri’s lips.

*‘What are those expressions…?’*

As Hwangbo Jin-cheol stepped forward while loosening his wrists, he caught sight of the **Sword Dragon** and **Dark Flower**.

Both of them were licking their lips while staring at Yuri.

Their faces looked almost… envious.

They were correct.

Estor and Haryeong were envious of Yuri for suddenly getting to fight.

Yuri himself was simply satisfied to be able to fight.

He genuinely wanted to fight Hwangbo Jin-cheol.

During the months they had spent at the Yicheon Sword sect, the three of them had always been the ones getting beaten.

They had never had the chance to beat someone else freely.

And to Yuri, the large and sturdy Hwangbo Jin-cheol felt like **rain after a long drought**.

Especially since he had been beaten particularly badly today.

*‘It’s been a while since I got to beat someone instead….’*

The spar had not even begun yet.

But just thinking about pounding that huge body already made Yuri’s heart race with excitement.