Only I Am A Reader

Other than having turned 15 in the middle of the 'ongoing' Mount Hua Sword Conference, there were many changes that had taken place with just one day's difference. The most glaring one of them all was the fact that Leo's Reading Points had already managed to surpass what he accumulated back at the Sword Continent!

Additionally, his Internal Energy accumulation was still going along smoothly, albeit a bit slower now that he was approaching the first 'checkpoint'. Most importantly, however, his combat skills had all reached the advanced level!

'It should be possible, right?'

Gwaaaa!

However, Leo didn't have the time to appreciate this growth of his with the gargoyle screaming at him. Although he didn't have the assistance of convenient plot armor, shouldn't real strength compensate for that?

'After all…'

Leo's eyes met Yeon's as they silently conversed within the second separating them from engaging in combat. Just like the lacking protagonist, he wasn't alone! He had Yeon's support, something that she didn't reluctantly do!

The direction of the event had been completely screwed by Leo, but he believed that this was actually the more logical direction!

Gwaaa! Buck!

The gargoyle tyrannically landed with full momentum in front of the two. Immediately greeting them with a swing of its sharp stone claws!

Thud!

Moving at the same time, Leo and Yeon's swords accurately struck the claws away. It didn't look like they would be suffering under the monster's hands, but this was just the beginning.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The gargoyle seemed unbothered by its preys' resistance as it kept swinging down its claws unceasingly. Despite the fact that it didn't possess Internal Energy as a monster, its physical strength was no less than a Peak Martial Artist who was using Internal Energy Strengthening. The difference wasn't that visible, but it was actually quite vast.

'As expected…'

Although his physique's explosive growth had long started to stagnate once he passed the mark of 4, Leo's Internal Energy Strengthening was unrestricted by that value as it brought him extremely close to an overall value of 10. However, even then, the force transmitted with each swing they repelled was quite overbearing.

No matter what, it was obvious that maintaining such a passive role wasn't sustainable. Leo and Yeon's strength was quite high for 1st rate Martial Artists thanks to the nurturing they received in the Heavenly Furnace, but they weren't made of stone like their opponent!

'There is only one way to work this out!'

Thud!

The odds appeared to be completely against them, especially since the gargoyle didn't have a monster's stupidity. However, it wasn't like they didn't possess any advantages as humans!

Fighting was nothing but brute strength like a barbarian was the way of monsters, but Martial Artists possessed martial arts! The reason Leo and Yeon engaged in this disadvantageous exchange up till now had been just to grasp the battle's tempo.

Roar!

The White Tiger's illusory roar resounded within the stage once more as the sword in Leo's hand grew longer and wider. The essence of metal sharply concentrated at the edge as Leo finally managed to grasp the initiative!

Swish!

The gargoyle's arm that was busy dealing with Leo was suddenly pushed back as stone fragments fell down for the point of contact. Although it didn't stumble down, the gargoyle momentarily lost his balance.

Wooooo!

The ominous scream of deceased blades descended on the stage as freezing blades condensed around Yeon's Black Heaven Jade. She didn't get to start their counterattack, but there was no way she would miss a chance like this!

The gargoyle's arm was repelled once more. This time, however, it suffered from frostbite as ice climbed up to its forearm. Stone was tough, but ice and water were one of its major weaknesses!

Zzzzabang!

Without any further delay, Black Lightning exploded as the frozen forearm was pierced by Leo's sudden short throw. The gargoyle's reaction speed wasn't slow, but it could never catch up to their coordinated reaction speed as a pair!

Yeon's Black Heaven Jade was instantly enveloped by black stone as she used it as a club to smash the gargoyle's deformed arm!

Crashhh! Gwaaaa!

A scream of grief rose from the gargoyle's stone lungs as its arm cracked into pieces. Undoubtedly, Leo and Yeon's paired assault was working. As things were, it seemed like a few combos like the one they just executed would be enough to take down the stonewall that threatened their survival…

Leo grimaced as he felt an incredibly sharp Internal Energy drain all of the sudden. Unfortunately, what they faced wasn't just a simple stone golem but a bonafide fantasy monster!

As one of the core creatures in fantasy logic, the gargoyle had quite a lot of cheat abilities that weren't usually applied in most stories because of how scammy they were. However, the gargoyle they were currently facing possessed one of these scam abilities!

'Here it comes.'

Petrification!

The gargoyle's eyes shone with black light as it hatefully stared at its assailants. They were supposed to start turning to stone, but other than the frowns on their faces, nothing had changed.

"We need to finish this before our Internal Energy runs out!"

Yeon was confused about the sharp drain that she similarly suffered, but Leo couldn't have known more about it. The gargoyle's petrification was an extremely effective ability, but they weren't Martial Artists for show!

Although they didn't do it intentionally, the Internal Energy in their bodies had already registered the harmful effect of the ability and automatically blocked it at the cost of burning itself. They were temporarily safe from the danger of turning to stone, but even their few dozen years of Internal Energy wouldn't last for long under the ability's assault…

'We can do it.'

From a reader's point of view, this ability was specifically added just to push the protagonist to a corner. Even with his forcefully cleared channels, his energy absorption ratio was the world's worst. If it wasn't for the Murim Lord's stashed resources, even his becoming a 2nd rate Martial Artist would have been a dream.

A deadly edge, timing, bursting power… These were all elements that were prepared for Geochin not only to survive, but also to nurture the bond with Yeon. However, Leo wanted to overcome this by his true ability. He wanted to change this divergent situation even more!

The gargoyle wasn't that perplexed by the fact that its ability didn't work as it already had a similar experience earlier. It was merely annoyed by the inconvenience.

'Again!'

Thud!

Naturally, the two of them wouldn't let such an opening go to waste. Although the constant draining was greatly unsettling, taking care of the source was the only way they could end it.

Disregarding the already dangerous consumption, Leo's White Tiger Energy continued to intensify as he burned his Internal Energy even more! The mythical beast behind him grew more intimidating as he precisely swung at the crack that he left earlier!

Gwaaaa!

Like a knife growing through butter, the gargoyle's claws flew into the sky with a clean cut. Unlike how the situation looked like, this matching wasn't that imbalanced.

The monster was clearly strong enough to have ended a Peak Martial Artist on its own, but it also suffered from the damage that his victim had caused. It was just that as the Martial Artist was a palm user, the injuries weren't too clear. As for Leo who was aware of that, he had every intention to make use of that!

This fight seemed like a race with time, but it was actually just a tug of war. Survival could only be achieved by pushing at the right time.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Yeon didn't sit still as she adopted the same reckless behavior of Leo. Both of them pushed their martial arts to the limit, landing every strike they could in between blocking the gargoyle's blows.

Zaaaap!

As minute after minute went by, the illusions supporting the two of them grew stronger. The Black Dragon made its first appearance on the stage by destroying the gargoyle's other arm, but the battle didn't reach its end!

Another characteristic of gargoyles just happened to be immortality!

Gwaaag!

Although the monster wasn't completely invulnerable to injuries or possessed the ability to instantly regenerate, the blown off forearms were slowly growing into form with time. Even with no claws, the gargoyle used its club-like limbs to strike down at the two.

"More!"

'More! More! More!'

Swish! Swish! Thud! Zzzap! Swish!

Receiving the gargoyle's attacks had long riddled Leo and Yeon full of internal injuries, but they both used their Internal Energy to hold on and keep on going. The two of them detested the idea of fighting each other after their first exchange, but they hungered for the harmony that came with giving their everything together!

At one point, Leo Internal Energy started automatically flowing throughout his body as he firmly grabbed both weapons. The Black Dragon's snake-like body entwined with the White Tiger's body as they appeared together for the first time!

Sprranggg!

Their Internal Energy that had almost run out of the two was suddenly replenished and the two mythical beasts ran through the sword grave surrounded with an endless sea of blades. After making countless cracks, Yeon's Black Heaven Jade finally pierced through the gargoyle's abdomen…

Zzaaaaappp!

Leo suddenly jumped into the air as Yeon retreated, leaving her sword embedded in place. Building up on the opening that was already made, Leo plunged the Silver Dragon just above the black eastern blade, exploding the gargoyle's insides with deathly black lightning! At the same time, the White Tiger didn't stop moving as it went through the monster's neck!

[ Plot Change confirmed… ]

Just then, the whole field's ground was suddenly covered in ghostly white, devouring the illusion of the dark sword graveyard…