****(POV)

It has been a long time since I left Eaglevein.

All in order to meet the legendary Zero. But even after searching high and low, there are no signs whatsoever of The Unnamed God Sect.

Of course, I was expecting this. They are definitely one of the very top hidden sects. That is the only way they could teach a man to destroy dwarven swords easily. It also makes sense given how they managed to evade the radar of all the other sects.

Sometimes I wonder if I should have tried to get more information out of that man. But then I remember how quickly he left back then. He obviously wasn't in the mood to talk more about the subject.

It almost makes me wonder if this wasn't a test of some sort. Perhaps the first challenge is to find his master. But anyway I am now heading somewhere any sane person would avoid.

I am heading to the Moon Keep. The strongest sect in the open for sure. They will probably know even about the hidden sects. To reach their bastion I have to go through the archaic savage forest.

As I enter it, I can see the giant trees. The air also seems gloomy for some reason. It almost seems like the shadows are moving, must be my imagination. I don't feel any presence at all.

Now I better stick to the periphery of it. This will make my travels longer but at least it will minimize the risks.

The more I walk the more uneasy I become. There is something strange. There are no monsters whatsoever. It's as if they knew I was here. I concentrate on sensing my surroundings. My claymore is ready.

"Move and you die."

As I hear this, there is something that presses on my neck.

How?! It is a dagger. One about to claim my life!

Whoever managed this is extremely powerful. At the very least a rank 4.

"Now quickly tell me, what are you doing in our domain?"

Wait, someone lives in this forest?! Don't tell me it's a hidden sect? I have no clue what is happening. For now, I'll just tell the truth.

"I am simply passing through, I have no evil intention toward this place."

"Oh? What are you looking for?"

"The Unnamed God Sect."

"…"

Why is he silent all of a sudden?

"Why do you wish to find it?"

Should I spill the beans? For some reason, I get the feeling my assailant may know them.

"I am looking for someone called Zero."

"*Sigh* Follow me then."

I turn around and I see… is that a shadow fox?! A rank 4 beast king for it can talk. I need to be careful. He is clearly more dangerous than a regular rank 4. If I offend him I die.

He guides me toward a clearing. One that has better visibility. In there I see a child lying on the ground, slumbering peacefully.

The fox goes forward and announces that they have a visitor. I can't help but be nervous. Who is this? He is extremely young yet here he is. Is he a disciple of the sect I am looking for?

He wakes up and stretches, noticing me.

"Hey, there. Who are you exactly? What do you want?"

"I'm a member of the iron guardians, I am looking for someone to teach me swordsmanship. I am looking for Zero."

The kid thinks for a second.

"I do know him, how about you show me your swordsmanship and I can introduce you later?"

I approach and then start wielding my weapon, showing the various forms I know. A defensive counter style that I developed over countless years.

The kid looks at me intently. After a while, I finally stop. I have shown everything I know.

He simply nods then rises up. Then I see him generate a sword out of energy! One extremely sharp and pure, something I would have believed to be impossible before today!

This is something only a rank 3 at least could possibly do, even I can't?! How old is he?!

But then it gets worse. I see him start slashing around. At first, I am confused, but then I notice it. The more he goes the more I can see the resemblance with my own style. Before long he has emulated all my moves, except with a shorter weapon.

This is insane! It barely took him any time!

"H-how did you do that?!"

"*Chuckle* I simply watched you do it, copying is easy."

He copied it?! This is inhuman! It took me my whole life to…He keeps going.

"You wanted to meet Zero, right? ...I am. "

"What?!"

"Surprised?"

"Ah, I'm sorry! I just imagined you to be some really old and wise swordmaster."

"Hehe, it's fine if you are disappointed."

No, in fact, this is even better! Age doesn't matter one bit. It is all about skills.

I feel like my whole worldview has been flipped around. I thought I was doing relatively well. Nope! Compared to him I am worthless! But it doesn't matter. I'll learn all I can.

I drop to the ground and beg him to accept me as his disciple. He simply asks me where I heard of him.

I tell him about how I met his student. How he had shown amazing swordsmanship. How he had destroyed that one dwarven weapon.

He simply chuckles. That is when he says something insane. He tells me the man I met wasn't his disciple. He had taught him swordsmanship, but the man didn't master it.

No, this man was in fact the sectmaster. One of infinite potential. One that Zero couldn't even come close to.

As if this isn't enough, something terrifying happens. From every direction comes another beast king, 4 more in total.

If only that was it. No, as they come closer they all ask me about their master. The one that I met at Eaglevein. This is insane!

Just looking at the beasts here, he has enough power to be considered a top faction. Then there is Zero himself that will definitely have all the current swords kings beaten easily in the future.

I ask him if this place is the sect's holy ground. He chuckles saying this is just where he is currently training. He says he will try to find the sectmaster once he is done. Also, find the other members of the sect.

There are others?! Apparently, he knows of one, the first elder of the sect. He doesn't know if there are more, but quite possibly.

Just as I am shocked beyond belief I see him resume his training. He simply starts fighting against all the beast kings at once. Yes, all of them!

I cannot even fight one and I am a renowned swordsman back in Eaglevein. Yet, there he is, dancing around all the creatures.

I can see him use my swordsmanship from time to time. Except that his mastery is already way above mine.

This is goddamn insanity!