Chapter 65 – Part 2: Arrival of the Private Guards Captain (4)

Seol-Hwi wasn’t sure what he was expecting. He wanted to fight Bigun, but he really wanted to test his own strength. 6 to 7 million combat power—how different were they? Now that he’d done that, however, he’d rather just be friends.

Unfortunately, the other man was red-faced and obviously hostile.

“H-How dare…!”

Seriously, what is this?! That face! Seo Ryeong hated it, and this man did too—but he couldn’t keep asking him questions. I think I need to take him down first.

Bigun was a difficult opponent. Whether in health, internal energy, or combat power, he was not inferior to Seol-Hwi in any way. He wasn’t backing down, either, despite being trumped once. Seol-Hwi needed to be cautious.

Here he comes! Seol-Hwi watched his opponent’s movements carefully. Even with a thigh wound, Bigun’s movements were too fast to catch with the naked eye. Still, Seol-Hwi was able to rouse his flames once more and blocked Bigun’s sword.

“I… will kill you.” Bigun’s expression twisted as they clashed. What Seol-Hwi saw made him nervous.

“Before that, what did I say to—ah!” Seol-Hwi staggered back. But before he could catch his breath, Bigun was on the move. He seemed to be matching Seol-Hwi’s movements. Rather than taking steps of consistent length, Bigun’s strides varied in length and speed, and the sound of his footsteps didn’t seem to line up. He was manipulating his speed and timing to confuse Seol-Hwi.

When Seol-Hwi tried to pursue him, Bigun hit him with a surprise sword energy attack.

“Hm!” Seol-Hwi, however, was expecting it and neatly avoided it. Suddenly, however, Bigun leaped into the air and vanished. Seol-Hwi took a few steps back and scanned the area.

What new technique is this…? He couldn’t afford to be confused right now.

But before he could figure out Bigun’s movements, the captain’s sword was racing towards Seol-Hwi’s back. Seol-Hwi managed to avoid it, but then:

[Warning! Bigun has discovered a weakness in Seol-Hwi. How will you respond?]

▶ Counterattack

▷ Defend

▷ Run Away

I can fight back. Seol-Hwi was confident it’d be better to counterattack than withdraw. Running or defending would give his opponent another chance to attack him.

Time resumed. Immediately, Bigun’s third attack was coming towards him, and Seol-Hwi was ready to meet it.

Their clash created a powerful resonance of energy. Seol-Hwi was pushed back despite his best efforts and left his head spinning.

And then it came again.

[Warning! Bigun has discovered a weakness in Seol-Hwi. How will you respond?]

Damn it! If he tried to counter and got hit, it would be dangerous. Seol-Hwi had no other choice.

Seol-Hwi thought he’d be able to avoid Bigun’s sword, but that sense of security fell apart when Bigun stabbed him in the shoulder a few times.

Health: 680k(↓30k)/710k

“Ugh!” He barely had time to even groan. Just standing in the face of such attacks was difficult. He had a chance, but Bigun’s attacks just kept coming.

“Kuak!”

Bigun continued to hammer down on Seol-Hwi with a storm of footwork and swords. It wasn’t just his speed, all of his martial arts were on the same level as the one-hit attack Seol-Hwi had learned.

Health: 350k(↓330k)/710k

This is bad. Seol-Hwi couldn’t keep his cool. His opponent was hard enough to keep up with because of their similar combat power, but his footwork was the real problem.

What is this?! The man would slow down and then speed up and turn in an instant. He could adjust his path and breathing mid-movement.

“Urk!”

He avoided taking any fatal wounds, but the stab wounds were accumulating.

“You went too far.” Bigun laughed confidently. He thought he would lose at first, but it turned out that Seol-Hwi was nothing.

Let’s change tack. Seol-Hwi channeled internal energy into his hands and feet. Then, a white chill spread over the ground he walked on the sword he held. It crackled like brittle ice and a faint mist arose as it hardened.

This was a high-efficiency technique of the White Light Body Demonic Martial Arts. These small pieces of ice and mist coming from his body and sword would mix with the air, causing anyone caught within to stiffen immediately. It consumed a lot of energy, but Seol-Hwi had no other choice.

Ice Fence Armor. Another faint barrier was erected around Seol-Hwi’s chest, protecting his body.

“Looks like you’re finally taking this seriously.” Bigun moved back, monitoring the strange energy coming off of Seol-Hwi carefully. He, too, began searching for a new way to fight.

Fire energy? Flames rose from Bigun’s sword, but it was a little different from normal fire. It was red and blue and spread to his arms and shoulders, proof that he had a higher mastery than Seol-Hwi. He was obviously a grandmaster. Not only was he a captain, but he also had bizarre martial arts.

This won’t be easy…

“At this point, honestly…” Bigun began walking. He sounded very confident.

“…What are you saying?”

“Did you have to provoke me like that?” It was Seol-Hwi who provoked him, although he came looking for Seol-Hwi. Of course, Seol-Hwi didn’t know what he’d said, but he couldn’t use that as an excuse.

“You looked down on me. Sweet captain of the command unit, I will discipline you.”

“…as expected, you have an inferiority complex.”

“Think whatever you want.”

Seol-Hwi remained focused on his sword. He intended to move first, unlike before.

“If you touch my people again…” He carefully watched the distance between them. “…All of you will die.”

Seol-Hwi moved as quickly as he could. Bigun, too, moved, trying his best to follow Seol-Hwi’s movements.

Martial Ghost Walking Method. It was a technique everyone in the Hidden Truth Corps would be taught, something all of them would know. But just because you knew it, didn’t mean you could counter it—because this method also controlled speed.

“Hah!” Seol-Hwi slammed his sword into the ground as soon as he felt his opponent close by. It didn’t take long to turn it into an attack—as soon as the sword struck the ground, ice energy scattered and spread.

The effect was similar to what manifested on his sword, but it was much, much broader and more powerful.

“Tch.” Bigun was forced to withdraw immediately, worried that the fine ice would hinder his movements.

Seol-Hwi was watching eagerly.

Got you!

“Haah!” Seol-Hwi shot ice energy at Bigun, and Bigun responded with fire energy.

Both of them got hit.

[A great opportunity! Found a weakness in Bigun. How would you like to respond?]

[Warning! Bigun discovered a weakness in Seol-Hwi. How would you like to respond?]

An opportunity and a threat.

Hm? I only get one option? Unusually, the only choice it gave him was martial arts.

▶Unified Light Demonic Martial Arts

▷White Light Body Demonic Martial Arts

Also—perhaps because he had a sword—he had two options for martial arts. It didn’t take much thinking for him to decide. The White Light Body Demonic Martial Arts was the stronger of the two.

– Using technique.

With guidance, he was able to use the technique for a brief second. He struck with the Glacial Moon at the same time as his opponent’s fire struck him.

Bigun [Captain of the Private Guards]

Health: 1.8 million(↓3 million)/5.5 million

Seol-Hwi [Vice-Captain of the Hidden Truth Corps]

Health: 180k(↓410k)/710k

“Ugh!” Both Seol-Hwi and Bigun staggered and groaned in pain, yet neither collapsed. But when Seol-Hwi came to his senses, his expression was grim. His opponent’s health was still higher than his, even after Seol-Hwi landed his strongest attack.

Bigun [Captain of the Private Guards]

Health: 1.8 million(↓3 million)/5.5 million

Internal Energy: 3.48 million(↓770k)/4.2 million

Seol-Hwi [Vice-Captain of the Hidden Truth Corps]

Health: 180k(↓410k)/710k

Internal Energy: 70k(↓1.14 million)/1.21 million

Even his internal energy was lower. The difference between the two men was clear.