32: Artificial Intelligence (2)

As soon as the AI started fighting, Seol-Hwi realized he’d made a mistake.

Ah, the Flying Dragon Pill and the Bisa Pill! He was so determined to fight that he forgot to take the pills from Goeun. That would have given him an advantage—but was already spilled milk.

“What are you doing with that?” Goeun looked at the Martial Spirit Blade in Seol-Hwi’s hand.

He was in the middle of putting it on his belt, but Seol-Hwi had no idea what was going to happen now.

“I was training.”

Huh? It talks? Hearing his body speak was surreal; the way it spoke was strange, too.

“Take this.” Goeun handed over the pill. AI Seol-Hwi took it and popped it in his mouth.

Oh! It eats, too! It turned out that the AI would talk, eat, and twist the situation to its advantage.

“Follow me.”

AI Seol-Hwi remained still and stared at the ground. Seol-Hwi waited expectantly, eager to see how it would fight.

“The Earth Demon told me he would give me a Flying Dragon Pill.”

Seol-Hwi was shocked. He thought the AI was just for fighting, but it was acting just like Seol-Hwi did.

“What did you say?” Goeun was as irritated as ever.

“You must’ve not been told. The Fourth Disciple was clear that he would give me a Flying Dragon Pill as well.”

Same as always, Goeun produced the pill while readying his fist at the same time.

Huh?

Instead, it was the AI that struck first. Despite the sharp movement, Goeun managed to spin back from the attack.

AI Seol-Hwi didn’t give up, however. This time it wasn’t a simple jab, but a true martial arts technique: the White Light Demonic Arts, fiercely clawing its way towards the enemy. A faint, subtle haze emerged as Seol-Hwi continued to attack.

Goeun didn’t dodge away this time, instead opting to meet the flurry of blows—and counterattack. AI Seol-Hwi’s assault faltered and he stepped back.

He’s—! The AI switched its sword from his right hand to his left hand, but not in response to Goeun’s attack.

[Using the Great Sword.]
“….Agh!” Goeun’s stumbled away, trying to open the distance.

An unimaginable aura came from the end of the AI’s sword. The sword energy struck with as many as five slashes, sending Goeun crashing into the wall. He quickly got back to his feet, but he couldn’t do much but clutch his shoulder and groan.

Half his left arm had been cut off.

So you can use the Great Sword with a blade. It didn’t lose strength at all—in fact, the swordsmanship was very natural. This guy has it all figured out.

Seol-Hwi didn’t try to fight Goeun with the AI last time because he thought the AI would be a little lacking in judgment. Of course, he also had a personal grudge against Goeun that he wanted to settle.

Looking at it now, though, the AI had used the Great Sword so easily. Seol-Hwi had a feeling that it had planned out the movements leading up to the strike as well—everything from pulling out his blade and exchanging fists to taking the pill and asking for the Flying Dragon Pill as well. Then, at the right moment, he struck back at the opponent and even wielded martial arts.

All of this to set up one strike with the Great Sword.

What an incredible sense for battle!

Seol-Hwi looked back at Goeun. The man had been heavily injured, but it was unclear if it would be fatal. Goeun’s status had been hidden once he started AI mode.

“Sword energy…” Goeun’s expression was ghastly, but his voice was even calmer than before. “What a weird guy. Are you using the Sword Energy like an actual sword? It’s not dangerous, but it isn’t easy. How does it work?”

The AI didn’t answer, it simply swung its sword from hand to hand.

“Well, I can find out later.”

Footwork technique! Seol-Hwi immediately realized that this was the same technique that Goeun had used on him in the past. Unsurprisingly, Goeun closed in on Seol-Hwi in the blink of an eye.

He struck once, twice, and on the third strike the AI managed to push Goeun back. The AI had managed to take the advantage, but now its hand was trembling.

Applying it like that… The AI had used the Explosive Flaming Force, a technique of the Peak Flourishing Demonic Martial Arts, to compensate for Goeun’s advantage in speed. In the last attack it purposely met Goeun’s sword, repelling it with internal energy.

He didn’t understand how it was possible. The AI had made it through without a scratch on his body, whereas Seol-Hwi had been brutalized by the same attack. It might even be in a better position than it started.

Goeun moved in to attack once more.

“Haa!” He stabbed towards Seol-Hwi’s chest.

You can’t counter that! He knew that the stab was an illusion—it had fatally wounded him, after all. The real attack was a vertical turn followed by a downwards attack.

The AI, however, judged things differently than Seol-Hwi. Goeun’s sword barely brushed Seol-Hwi’s robe as the AI danced away from the blow. Goeun swung again, and the AI kicked off the wall, twisting in midair to add the centrifugal force to its parry.

Goeun backed away, shocked. Even Seol-Hwi was confused.

This is insane! An incredible improvisation! It’s definitely predicting everything! Even with the speed mismatch, the AI could match Goeun using its snap judgment. Win! You’ve got this!

Goeun gasped for air. His left arm was crippled, and he was definitely on the back foot. On the other hand, the AI’s breathing remained relaxed and stable. There was no way the AI could lose now.

But then came an unexpected variable. Seol-Hwi’s sword—

—shattered.

Despair fell over Seol-Hwi.

This is bad! It couldn’t handle the power of the Great Sword. The Great Sword required a huge amount of energy and stability. Maybe the blade didn’t work well with the technique, or the blade had been damaged from the start. Whatever the case, it was too late.

“How unfortunate.” Goeun smiled. With the AI disarmed, it was his time to shine. “The Earth Demon told me to give you a sword… but it looks like it’s in my hands right now?” He pulled out the sword from his robes.

Damn it. I should have gotten the Short Sword… It really was unfortunate.

Wait, the AI didn’t account for that? It seemed like a bit much, but after what he’d seen it didn’t seem that strange. It even asked for the pills from Goeun. Now that I think about it, maybe its attack was successful because the AI didn’t ask for the sword. If it had asked for the sword, Goeun would’ve been on alert.

“It must be my lucky day,” Goeun said. It seemed like he was ready to attack.

“Lucky? What the fuck are you talking about?”

…Huh? What!? Seol-Hwi questioned his ears. The AI was swearing?

“Listen, your technique and your footwork are so slow that I’m beyond bored.”

“…What?”

“If you don’t believe me, then come at me. I’ll crush your head into a bloody pulp.”

“Y-y-you…”

Seol-Hwi felt weird, like someone else was in his body.

“This bastard…!” Goeun hurled himself at Seol-Hwi.

The AI quietly dodged and tipped a bookshelf into his path. Then it kept doing it.

“Where are you going?! Are you running away?!” Goeun kept chasing the AI until there was only one shelf left.

Seol-Hwi knew everything was going according to plan.

“Didn’t I tell you? I’m going to smash your head.”

“Ah?”

“Look, spy.” AI Seol-Hwi created embers using the Red-Hot Palm and aimed it at Goeun.

The resulting explosion rattled the fallen bookshelves and sent Goeun hurtling into the wall again. He didn’t get a chance to stand up—the AI didn’t let him. Seol-Hwi’s hand rose and fell, holding the Moon-Scented Dagger.

“Like a star,” the AI grumbled.

Goeun didn’t answer. The Iron-Blood Poison on the dagger spread through his body and he fell to the ground. Then the AI reached for his shattered sword.

Stop! Seol-Hwi panicked. If it stabbed Goeun with that, he would definitely die. He needed to detoxify the poison…

“This isn’t enough. You have to pay for screwing with me, right?”

Stop! Seol-Hwi didn’t actually care if Goeun lived or died, but the Earth Demon needed to know.

The AI paced towards Goeun, lifting his arm with a sly smile.

Stop! Stop it, you bastard!

<How would you handle this?>
▶ Kill
▷ Stun
He didn’t hesitate.

<You have selected Stun>
A light wrapped around Seol-Hwi’s body. As soon as he opened his eyes, he grabbed the antidote from the Toolbox and shoved it into Goeun’s mouth.

“Take this, quick, bastard!”