Chapter 93
"Kuhp-!"
Kang Yi-ryeong's brow furrows as she forcibly swallows the groan trying to escape.
As an SSS-rank hunter with high stats and having prepared by drawing out her inner energy to the extreme, the physical impact itself wasn't that great.
But the mental shock was considerable.
'...Far from reading his movements, I was the one being read.'
It meant she had been defeated in a battle of wits where she should have had an overwhelming advantage, given the information gained through the friendly matches.
It was a humiliation like no other, and what's more, this match was being broadcast worldwide.
How would rival sects like Paryong Castle or Cheonmu Gate think when they saw this scene?
Surely, they would laugh and mock.
It meant the honor of the Great Nalachal, Kang Yi-ryeong, would hit rock bottom.
In the worst case, her qualifications as an SSS-rank hunter might even be doubted.
"You damned bastard!"
Kang Yi-ryeong, emitting a fierce aura, fiercely rushed at Lee Seong-jun, but the result was no different from the previous exchanges.
No, it could be said to be even more miserable.
'How on earth?!'
Not only ordinary attacks, but even attacks she thought had caught him off guard didn't reach Lee Seong-jun.
Lee Seong-jun deflects all the attacks with light movements, as if he had known from the beginning.
But the bewildering point wasn't just that the attacks didn't reach.
'...I can't block his attacks.'
When she prepared for a frontal attack, he would strike from behind as if he had been waiting.
When she prepared for the rear, he would immediately dig into her side.
Lee Seong-jun always accurately penetrated the blind spots and succeeded in all his attacks.
Even after dozens of continuous exchanges, Kang Yi-ryeong hadn't been able to grasp the upper hand even once.
"Aaaagh-!"
As Kang Yi-ryeong, with blood vessels bulging on her neck, screams in rage at her own incompetence, blue energy spreads throughout the area.
The half-destroyed arena, which had barely maintained its shape, loses its original form and crumbles, rising into the air.
Kuguugung-!
Fragments scatter in all directions, colliding with the invisible barriers surrounding the arena and creating shockwaves.
But just like the previous attacks, not a single one even grazed Lee Seong-jun's collar.
"Unable to respond to variables at all... Below expectations."
Kang Yi-ryeong's face crumples at Lee Seong-jun's excessively relaxed attitude.
"Who exactly are you? What did you experience in the other world?!"
She had suffered consecutive defeats in a battle of wits she thought she couldn't lose.
In fact, it was embarrassing to even call it a defeat.
'...The battle of wits itself didn't even materialize.'
As Kang Yi-ryeong couldn't hide her bewilderment at Lee Seong-jun's overwhelming skill, which could be called the best among all the strong opponents she had met so far,
Words full of disappointment flow from Lee Seong-jun's mouth.
"Judging by your attempt at a battle of wits, your eye for detail and intelligence don't seem bad... But it seems you can't utilize them properly due to your poor inherent skills."
Kang Yi-ryeong's face contorts like an evil spirit at Lee Seong-jun's humiliating words and actions.
Looking at the aura she was emitting, it seemed like she would tear Lee Seong-jun apart right away, but she doesn't immediately take action.
'Lee Seong-jun is strong.'
Given the miserable results of the previous exchanges, she had no choice but to acknowledge it.
Especially his understanding of martial arts could be said to be overwhelming.
'He's only been back on Earth for 4 months, yet he already has this much power...'
What would Lee Seong-jun become if a year, no, even half a year passed in this state?
Having directly seen and experienced Lee Seong-jun's abilities with his overwhelming understanding of martial arts, she could quickly make a judgment.
'He will reach the position of the world's strongest.'
If she couldn't subdue Lee Seong-jun here and now, there would be no future opportunity.
'Coming to Korea personally was a godsend.'
As could be seen from the defeat of the previous executives, if she had sent some random underlings, they would never have been able to subdue Lee Seong-jun.
Rather, they would have become nutrients promoting Lee Seong-jun's growth.
But she, Kang Yi-ryeong, was different.
'As long as I have the SS-rank unique skill, Empty Thought Empty Mind, I won't be defeated.'
As the name suggests, Empty Thought Empty Mind had the ability to control air.
Of course, she couldn't control all the air in this open arena.
But she could temporarily block the air at desired points.
It meant she could cut off breathing for a moment.
It could be said to have a significant impact even in battles with ordinary hunters, as it could change the flow of the battle itself.
But the true value of Empty Thought Empty Mind is demonstrated in battles with martial artists, especially those like Lee Seong-jun who use inner energy as their foundation.
'The foundation of inner energy is breathing.'
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it starts with breath and ends with breath.
Therefore, if the amount of inhaled breath is insufficient, one cannot exert proper strength.
This meant that the ability of Empty Thought Empty Mind to block air, even if temporarily, was a skill with the worst compatibility for martial artists who use inner energy.
'No matter how overwhelming his understanding of martial arts is, to the point of being considered the world's strongest... looking at just his current physical abilities, they're about equal to mine.'
Indeed, although she had allowed dozens of hits, she hadn't suffered any injuries that could be considered fatal.
In this evenly balanced state of power, if she restricted his inner energy?
The result was obvious, so there was no need for much deliberation.
'I can make Lee Seong-jun submit at my feet.'
Having finished her calculations, Kang Yi-ryeong, with intense killing intent in her eyes, kicks off the ground and rushes towards Lee Seong-jun.
Tadak-!
It was the moment when Lee Seong-jun's eyes narrowed, feeling puzzled at Kang Yi-ryeong's recklessly direct charge.
Kang Yi-ryeong stretches her hand into the air and uses Empty Thought Empty Mind.
Woong-!
The energy emitting a resonant sound immediately stretches out from Kang Yi-ryeong's hand and scatters the air around Lee Seong-jun.
It meant she had forcibly cut off his breathing.
"...!"
Seeing Lee Seong-jun's furrowed brow, Kang Yi-ryeong lets a sinister smile slip onto her lips.
"Looks like you're quite flustered?"
Kang Yi-ryeong's face was full of confidence, as if assured of victory.
"So... you should have kept pressing when you had the upper hand, blame your own foolishness for showing unnecessary composure!"
It was the moment when Kang Yi-ryeong, shouting at the top of her lungs, throws her clenched fist towards Lee Seong-jun's face.
Whoosh-!
With the sound of wind, Lee Seong-jun's figure before her eyes disappears like a ghost.
Kang Yi-ryeong's eyes widen at Lee Seong-jun's sudden disappearance.
"What?!"
It wasn't just that he avoided the attack.
He was showing movements no different from before.
It meant he had used inner energy.
"How on earth...! You shouldn't have been able to breathe properly?!"
"An ability to block air momentarily... It would have been quite troublesome for an ordinary martial artist."
Seeing Kang Yi-ryeong's expression unable to hide her surprise, Lee Seong-jun lets a leisurely smile slip and opens his mouth again.
"But I'm not an ordinary martial artist."
Being able to handle the blood and vital energy in one's body means being able to control even the heartbeat as desired.
Of course, there could be abnormalities in the body if blood supply wasn't smooth throughout the body.
But Lee Seong-jun, who could freely handle blood and vital energy, was unlikely to have problems with blood supply.
In other words, Lee Seong-jun could handle inner energy smoothly even with the minimal restricted breathing.
It meant Kang Yi-ryeong's calculations had gone completely awry.
"Impossible...!"
Kang Yi-ryeong, letting out a bewildered voice, tries to belatedly and hurriedly defend, but there was no way she could receive Lee Seong-jun's attack without even having taken a proper stance.
Whoosh-!
Her stance, barely maintained against the fierce wind pressure, completely crumbles, and her chest opens wide.
Lee Seong-jun, his eyes gleaming, stretches out his tightly clenched fist forward.
Crack-!
With the sound of bones breaking, Kang Yi-ryeong's figure rolls on the arena floor.
"...Kuhup-!"
Red blood bursts from the mouth of Kang Yi-ryeong, sprawled unsightly on the floor, her eyes looking as if in a daze.
Lee Seong-jun shakes his head as he looks at this sight.
"I had some expectations since the aura itself didn't seem bad... How disappointing."
Lee Seong-jun, sending a cold gaze, stretched his hand into the air and opened his mouth once more.
"If you have nothing more to show, let's end this."
Woong-!
At the sight of the red energy, the vital force, rising with a resonant sound and concentrating in one place, Kang Yi-ryeong's eyes shake violently as if an earthquake had occurred.
"St-Strong Energy?"
She thought her calculations had gone awry due to Lee Seong-jun's unexpected special ability.
But now it seemed that the calculations themselves had been wrong from the beginning.
'He wasn't even using his full power...'
A master who had reached the pinnacle of transcendence.
Lee Seong-jun was a being who had crossed the barrier of the realm that she, Kang Yi-ryeong, couldn't surpass.
The fact that the fight had been somewhat balanced earlier could be said to have been due to Lee Seong-jun's mercy.
He was a being that couldn't be subdued from the start.
She could fully understand the cause of her defeat.
But that didn't mean she had any intention of admitting defeat and backing down here.
No, she couldn't back down.
'...If I crumble here, it's over.'
The friendly match they were currently engaged in was being broadcast live worldwide.
It meant the prestige of China as a nation was hitting rock bottom.
The Chinese government, which upholds Sinocentrism as its guiding ideology, wouldn't let this situation slide.
'They'll try to make it as if it never happened.'
They would try to erase the very existence of herself, Kang Yi-ryeong, and Sosu Gate.
Of course, being a valuable talent as an SSS-rank hunter, she wouldn't really lose her life.
'They'll probably try to put a leash on me through drugs or contracts, imposing all sorts of restrictions.'
And in the end, she would have her name, identity, and all rights as a human stripped away, becoming a shadow living in darkness, out of sight.
It meant she would live the rest of her life as the government's dog.
"No... absolutely not."
Kang Yi-ryeong, biting her lower lip hard, forcibly raises her body that's trembling like an aspen leaf.
She already knew that ordinary energy couldn't overcome Strong Energy, which could be called a pure concentration of energy.
However, handling a pure concentration of energy wasn't a privilege exclusive to transcendent martial artists.
'Rather than living a miserable life no different from a government dog, a puppet... I'll stake everything on this fight.'
Innate True Energy.
The spark of life, energy that could be said to be purer than any other, began to surge in Kang Yi-ryeong's body.