The Weapon Genius: Anything I Hold Can Kill-Chapter 129: Ascension Marks

The countdown ended quietly.

There was no siren, no final chime. Just a shift in the air, subtle but unmistakable, like the system itself had taken a breath.

Jin stood still in the courtyard. The First Sapling pulsed behind him, leaves swaying gently in the morning breeze. Seul stood to his right, arms folded. Joon cracked his knuckles on the other side. Echo rolled one of his disks between his fingers, the edge of it catching the light.

Behind them, the recruits lingered near the cafeteria doors, watching. Not speaking. Not stepping forward. Just there. Waiting, like the world had paused.

And then the sky changed.

The clouds froze. The wind died.

And the voice returned.

Smug. Heavy. Amused. The same voice that had fallen from the sky three weeks ago.

But louder now.

Everywhere.

"Three weeks... and you’re still breathing. Honestly? I’m shocked."

Jin didn’t flinch.

"I had my doubts. Thought you’d all collapse under the weight. Some of you did. But not everyone, it seems."

The sun above flickered—just for a moment, like light deciding whether it still belonged.

"The evolution rate here is... impressive. A few of you even discovered my little game — the hidden legends reawakened as monsters. Good. You’re learning."

Joon exhaled softly through his nose. Echo’s hand stilled.

"A shame, though—so many dead. But what’s growth without sacrifice?"

Jin looked toward the recruits. None of them met his gaze. They didn’t need to.

"Leadership has begun to form. Potential has begun to bloom. And so, for those who endured the Territory Phase, I offer upgrades. Rewards. A taste of what’s waiting."

"Some of you will receive gifts. Others—just strength. And for a few rare cases... a glimpse at the world beyond this one."

"Let us continue."

Then silence.

No music. No flash. Just light—warm, golden light that slipped through the courtyard like a rising tide.

In front of each of them, a system screen unfolded, lines of glowing text appearing like runes traced mid-air. Jin’s appeared last. When it did, it shimmered faintly with threads of green. Sapling green.

[System Reward Distribution – Territory Phase Complete]

Jin Yeong – Recognized as Territory Leader

Designation: Anomaly. Infinite Potential Confirmed.

Reward: [Weapon Ascension Token – Rank: Legendary]

Passive Trait Gained: [Territory Resonance] – All attributes increased by 10% within territory bounds

Status Window Updated

Name: Jin Yeong

Class: None

Rank: 657

Strength: S+

Agility: S+

Endurance: S+

Perception: S-

Intelligence: B+

Willpower: S+

Potential: ∞

Jin read it slowly, eyes scanning every line twice. It wasn’t loud power. It wasn’t showy.

But it felt right.

Earned.

Something shifted behind him. Seul’s screen lit next. She didn’t react, just scanned the text, expression unreadable.

Name: Seul Kang

Class: None

Rank: 479

Strength: A

Agility: B+

Endurance: S+

Perception: B

Intelligence: B

Willpower: S

Potential: A+

New Trait Acquired: [Gravity Core] – Grants the ability to generate localized gravity fields, pulling or suppressing targets within range.

She exhaled softly and closed the screen without a word.

Joon’s light flared bright blue. He gave a quiet whistle.

Name: Joon-Seok

Class: None

Rank: 541

Strength: A

Agility: S

Endurance: B+

Perception: A

Intelligence: B

Willpower: B+

Potential: S

New Skill Node Acquired: [Attractor Engine] – Draws ambient electrical current from the environment to power skills. Improves regeneration and overload capacity.

"Now that’s what I’m talking about," he muttered, flicking sparks across his knuckles.

Echo’s screen flickered violet. His brows lifted.

Name: Echo

Class: None

Rank: 325

Strength: A+

Agility: SS

Endurance: S-

Perception: S+

Intelligence: A+

Willpower: S-

Potential: S+

Skill Acquired: [Perfect Copy] – Echo can replicate non-ultimate active skills within sound range for a limited time. Improved compatibility with resonance-based support skills.

He didn’t say anything right away. Just turned the disk in his hand slowly, feeling the way it pulsed between his fingers.

Jin’s eyes flicked back to his own screen. The token gleamed faintly in his inventory slot. There was no description. No guide. Just the name.

Weapon Ascension Token – Rank: Legendary

He didn’t know what it would do yet.

But it felt like the start of something dangerous.

And permanent.

He dismissed the window with a breath.

The courtyard remained quiet. Not silent, but... respectful. The system’s presence still lingered in the air, like smoke after a fire.

Behind them, the recruits hadn’t moved.

Some were still watching their own screens. Others just stood there, letting it all settle in their bones.

Jin turned back to the others.

"I guess we passed," Joon said.

Echo gave a quiet nod. "For now."

Seul didn’t speak, but the shift in her stance was answer enough.

Jin looked toward the sapling.

Three weeks.

A new quest already ticking.

And now, this.

He didn’t feel relieved.

But he did feel ready.

Not rested. Not finished. But steady—like a blade fresh from the forge. Not yet tested again, but tempered.

The First Sapling swayed gently behind him, still glowing with that strange, slow light. It hadn’t grown much since the planting, but its presence had changed the entire courtyard. Jin could feel it—the way the air moved more easily, the tension in his shoulders eased, the silence no longer felt hollow.

They hadn’t just survived.

They had planted something. Anchored something.

Something that mattered.

Jin turned toward the others. Seul, calm and watchful. Joon, still sparking a faint charge between his fingertips. Echo, quiet but alert, his disk spinning between his fingers like a coin on edge.

They hadn’t said it out loud yet.

So Jin did.

"We keep it alive," he said. "No matter what."

Seul gave a single nod. "I’ll coordinate watches. Reposition sentries."

Joon glanced at the tree. "You think it’s gonna attract company?"

Jin didn’t answer immediately. He just looked at the sapling. The system hadn’t said how the attacks would come, or when. Just that they would. That the sapling would need to be protected for the next fourteen days.

That was the window. The quest. Not a promise of peace.

Just a challenge.

"It’s not about what I think," he said. "The system made it clear. This isn’t a decoration. It’s a beacon."

Echo stopped spinning his disk. "Then we treat it like one."

Seul stepped closer to the tree, stopping just short of touching it. "How fast do you think it’ll grow?"

"I don’t know," Jin said. "But I think it’s tied to us now. Not just the territory. All of us."

Joon folded his arms, tilting his head. "Think it’ll talk?"

"I hope not," Echo muttered. "Last thing I need is another voice in my head."

That got a quiet laugh from Joon. Even Seul’s mouth twitched.

But Jin’s focus didn’t shift.

His gaze was still on the sapling.

There was something about it—not just the system buffs, not just the visual glow—but a sense that it was watching them back. Not intelligently, not like it had a mind, but... aware. As if it remembered things older than the world they lived in.

He didn’t know why, but he thought of Aestros.

That last moment before the rubble collapsed. The fire guardian’s stone arm slamming through the monster’s core. The heat, the light, the words.

"Come visit when you get the chance."

It hadn’t sounded like a farewell.

More like an invitation.

And now, with the system’s rewards settled, Jin knew that day was coming. Not tomorrow. But soon.

He still had to deal with Muramasa.

The broken katana waited in his inventory, blade chipped and dulled, the spirit inside it quiet since the last battle. Jin hadn’t forgotten the voice that rose from it when he was on the edge of collapse.

"Just when I was starting to like you."

He still didn’t know exactly what it meant. But he’d been given a Legendary Weapon Ascension Token—and there was no question in his mind which weapon it would be used on.

The katana had been with him from the beginning.

It had broken with him. Bled with him.

If it was still willing to fight, then they’d keep going together.

He looked back to the group.

They were waiting.

Not for orders. Not even for plans. Just... for him.

Not because he was the strongest. Not because the system had given him the flashiest upgrade. But because they trusted him to hold the line. To keep pushing forward. To see what came next. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

He cleared his throat.

"I’m gonna spend time with the blade," he said quietly. "Try to reconnect before I use the token. See where it stands."

Joon arched a brow. "It has feelings?"

"It has something," Jin said. "And I think it’s been waiting, too."

"You think the spirit will talk again?" Echo asked.

"Maybe," Jin replied. "Or maybe it’ll test me first. Either way, I need to be ready."

Seul turned her gaze from the tree to Jin. "When?"

"Tomorrow," he said. "After we lock down the territory. I want a few hours of quiet. Just me and the weapon."

She nodded once. "I’ll make sure nothing interferes."

That was the thing about her. She never asked why. Just how soon.

Echo stepped forward and leaned back on his heels. "So we’ve got fourteen days to protect a glowing tree, with no clue what’s coming next."

"Sounds like fun," Joon muttered.

Jin cracked the smallest smile. "Let’s just hope we don’t get hit with another quest halfway through."

There was a long pause.

Then Echo spoke, tone dry. "You just jinxed it."

Jin chuckled, just once. "I probably did."

The sapling swayed behind him again. A light breeze stirred across the courtyard. No danger yet. But no comfort either.

Just time.

Fourteen days.

They could work with that.

Maybe in the quiet, they’d get stronger. Prepare for the next territory phase. Train the recruits, refine their gear, scout the surrounding blocks, reinforce the walls. There were a hundred little things to do, and not nearly enough hands to do them all.

But it was something.

It was a direction.

And after weeks of scrambling just to survive, having something to protect felt different.

It felt better.

Jin looked at each of them again. Joon—reckless, sharp, but reliable when it counted. Echo—quietly growing into a leader in his own right. And Seul—unyielding, steady, the one person he never had to worry about standing her ground.

They’d come a long way.

And the path ahead was longer still.

He turned back to the tree.

So much to do.

He had to finish bonding with Muramasa.

He had to visit Aestros, wherever the guardian had gone.

He had to keep the tree alive. Anchor the territory. Prepare for whatever came next.

The world wasn’t done shifting. The system wasn’t finished evolving. And Jin still hadn’t seen what his power could truly become.

But for the first time in three weeks, he wasn’t overwhelmed by that list.

He was ready to carry it.

He took one final glance at the sky—blue and wide above the ruined city.

Then he said quietly, almost to himself, "We’ll hold it."

The others didn’t question it.

They simply followed him as he turned toward the main building.

The sapling rustled behind them, still glowing. Still alive.