Re-Overlord: I Can Acquire Anything!-Chapter 132: Invitation

"That’s not the way to train your Martial Art, Dao Child. That path leads only to reckless destruction. It may strengthen your body, but it will wound the world."

The woman spoke, her voice like flowing water over polished jade. Serene yet firm, melodic yet absolute.

She gently stroked the strings of her zither, and the air itself seemed to calm under her influence.

"Let me be your sparring partner instead. You may unleash all of your power without restraint," she offered, her eyes meeting his without flinching.

Igaris hovered in the air, eyes sharp with astonishment. He had only seen her once before from from the Dragon Ascension Stairway.

"Am I right to assume you’re Supreme Elder Serenity?" he asked, tone steady, though laced with curiosity.

The woman nodded gracefully.

"You are correct. I have watched you quietly for some time. Now, I wish to see your true strength with my own eyes. Do not hold back."

Her words were not a challenge, but an invitation.

Igaris’s eyes gleamed faintly, the Architect’s glow flickering in his pupils. A Supreme Elder personally requesting a spar? This was no coincidence. She had descended not just to stop his reckless blast, she had come to test him.

"Very well," he answered with a small smile. "But you elder asked for it. I won’t hold back."

He raised his hand once more. Lightning crackled faintly around his fingers, and the winds began to circle his frame.

Supreme Elder Serenity’s hands settled on the zither, her fingers poised like a conductor before the storm.

A duel between melody and destruction was about to begin.

The air trembled.

A single breath passed between them, and the world changed.

Igaris moved first, flashing forward like a streak of lightning. His form vanished, then reappeared above the Supreme Elder. His palm shimmered with power.

"World Destroying Finger."

The crimson dragon formed instantly, its coiled body surging with cataclysmic energy. It let out a draconic roar, as if announcing the coming of judgment itself.

But Serenity’s hands were already in motion.

Qing—Ling—Shiiing...

A hauntingly beautiful melody spilled from her zither, gentle and soft like a lullaby at first, yet growing deeper and heavier with each pluck. It resonated with the world itself.

BOOM!

The two forces clashed.

The crimson dragon let out a screech as it shattered midair, torn apart by invisible threads of sound. The pressure rebounded toward Igaris.

Eyes wide, he crossed his arms to block, but—

BANG!

He was thrown across the sky like a leaf in a storm. He struck a distant cliff with a dull crack, sending dust and broken rock flying.

Cough!

Blood spilled from his lips. His body ached, his bones groaned. He barely caught himself mid-fall with Gale Wings.

Still floating, bruised and panting, Igaris looked up.

Serenity stood untouched, robes fluttering, not a strand of her silver-white hair out of place. The zither on her lap hummed softly as if mocking the earlier clash.

"You are indeed talented, Dao Child," she said gently, "but you have a long way to go."

The wind quieted. The dust settled.

Igaris slowly stood from the crater, wiping the blood from his lips. Despite the blow he had taken, there was no resentment in his gaze. Instead, his eyes glimmered with a deep respect.

’She didn’t just stop my attack. She unraveled it. Like peeling apart the laws behind my art itself...’

He looked up toward Serenity, who was descending gently through the air, her zither cradled under her arm. Her expression remained calm, unreadable.

"You held back, didn’t you?" he asked with a tired smile.

Serenity nodded slightly. "Had I used my true intent, you would have long disappeared from this world." Her voice was smooth, like a stream flowing through the forest. "But you have potential. Raw, untamed, and burning like a wildfire. It would be a waste to let it go unshaped."

Igaris bowed. "Thank you for the lesson, Supreme Elder."

Serenity studied him in silence for a moment, then slowly sat on a nearby stone, placing her zither to the side. She gestured for him to sit.

"Yuhan, I won’t ask you to fight me again," she said. "Not today. But let me guide your art. I want to see how far you can reach with the proper direction."

A bit surprised, Igaris nodded and joined her. What began as a duel shifted into a deep exchange of ideas. Serenity asked him to show each of his techniques, one by one, not to overpower, but to observe. She corrected his stances, reshaped the flow of his energy, and offered ways to harmonize his inner world’s expansion with his martial output.

Time slipped away unnoticed.

The sun began to dip low on the horizon by the time Serenity finally lowered her hand and exhaled. Her tone softened.

"You learn quickly. Faster than the prodigies I have seen. You have a sharp instinct for rhythm and flow. But your strength is also your weakness. You walk alone, and that path is heavier than you think."

’But, I am not alone. Not anymore,’ he muttered inwardly.

Still, Igaris remained quiet and listened:

"Yuhan," she said after a pause, addressing him with rare familiarity, "I would like to take you as my personal disciple."

"Huh?"

His eyes widened slightly. The offer from someone of her stature was no small matter. To be taught personally by one of the most powerful elders in the Soaring Dragon Sect would place him far above others. It was the kind of opportunity that most disciples could only dream of.

But after a moment, he smiled softly and shook his head.

"Thank you, Elder. Truly. But I must refuse."

Serenity’s brows lifted slightly. "May I ask why?"

"I walk a path different from the one that belongs to this sect. I’m not meant to be under anyone’s wing, no matter how powerful or wise. I need to grow with freedom, make mistakes, find truths in ways that cannot be taught."

There was no arrogance in his voice, only quiet certainty.

Serenity watched him for a while, her gaze unreadable once more. Then, she nodded slowly.

"Very well. I will not press you. But know this, Yuhan. Should you ever need guidance again, my door will remain open. After all, You’re Shirley’s dao companion. That’s makes us related," she said with a genuine smile.

"I’ll remember that," he replied sheepishly.

With that, Serenity rose, her robes fluttering gently in the breeze as she walked away.

Igaris stood there alone, watching the sun dip below the mountains, feeling the pressure of his future stretch out before him.

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