Chapter 122
Cavillo, startled, furrowed his brow and swung his sword, but the initiative in the area was already entirely Sung-joon Lee's.
Sung-joon Lee deflected the oncoming sword with the back of his hand while closing the distance with Cavillo.
His clenched fist struck Cavillo's solar plexus. Before a pain-filled groan could escape his naturally parted lips, Sung-joon Lee struck upwards with his other palm, hitting Cavillo's chin and forcing his mouth shut.
At that moment, the Blood Light Dance Flow unfolded once again, blocking Cavillo's movements.
In the instant that his tilting body stopped, Sung-joon Lee, with a grin, drove his fist into Cavillo's face.
Crack-!
Blood spurted from his nose and mouth.
"Urgh...!"
The immediate pain was also not something that could be ignored.
But what was most agonizing was his own miserable state of being beaten by a human he had thought was just a bug.
"I'll tear you limb from limb and bury you at the bottom of this cliff!"
Cavillo, his face distorted, violently thrust out his sword, trying to pierce Sung-joon Lee's form.
It was his best effort at struggling, but it was not only meaningless but could be called the worst move.
Whoosh-!
Sung-joon Lee, wrapping around Cavillo's right arm that was thrusting out the sword like a snake, rotated his body half a turn, twisting Cavillo's hand behind his back.
With his body immobilized and his back exposed defensively, the optimal striking conditions had been secured.
'Myriad Bloody Demon Sea, Third Form, Asura Destruction Palm.'
Sung-joon Lee, his eyes coldly settled, took a large step forward, pressing close to Cavillo's back. And simultaneously, he extended his palm.
The blood energy rotated in his extended palm, compressed, and took the shape of a vortex. And it struck Cavillo's spine as it was.
Boom-!
It was a martial art that concentrated power, injected it, and destroyed the interior. Especially, the Asura Destruction Palm that Sung-joon Lee was using contained the subtlety of waves, unlike ordinary internal striking techniques.
It didn't simply destroy the interior, but rather tore it to shreds.
Moreover, the amount of blood energy just used was equivalent to the inner force of 1 gapja, containing enough powerful force to turn even a lump of steel into mush.
No matter how sturdy Cavillo's body was, it was a force difficult to withstand easily.
Crack-crack-crack-!
Cavillo's body, enveloped in the subtlety of the waves, scattered like a kite fluttering in the wind.
Red blood burst like a fountain from his open mouth. If it had been an ordinary living being, not only the spine but also the internal organs should have been turned to mush.
However, Cavillo was no ordinary living being.
He was a monster with skin tougher than steel and protective strong energy enveloping his entire body.
'He won't die from just this.'
As Sung-joon Lee thought this and was readjusting his posture--
"You're certainly different from the bugs I know."
Cavillo, letting out a cold voice, raised his body.
"...I'll acknowledge you as a predator worthy of my full strength."
As Cavillo finished speaking, the skin above his forehead began to split.
Crack.
From within the skin, split like dry earth, a dark red horn sprouted.
Of course, it wasn't an ordinary decorative horn.
'The very aura has changed.'
Indeed, the horn that had sprouted on Cavillo's forehead was emitting an intimidating pressure that made one's skin tingle.
"This should be interesting."
As the corners of Sung-joon Lee's mouth curved upwards, Cavillo, his sharp eyes glowing, opened his mouth.
"Let me formally introduce myself. I am Cavillo, the Death Wind that tears everything apart, queen leading the harpies. Your name?"
"Lee Sung-joon."
"...Lee Sung-joon, you may rejoice. I, Cavillo, will remember your name for a lifetime."
"You won't be able to remember."
Though Cavillo tilted his head as if he didn't understand, from Sung-joon Lee's perspective, it was a perfectly natural answer.
"That's impossible. How could a corpse have memories?"
"..."
For a moment, Cavillo, wearing an expression as if he'd lost his mind, burst into wild laughter.
"Hahaha! That's right! With your skills, Lee Sung-joon, you have the right to be arrogant!"
"Arrogant... You're free to misunderstand, but how long are you going to just keep talking?"
Sung-joon Lee, standing in a slightly tilted posture, wiggled his index and middle fingers.
Though there were no direct words, the meaning was clear enough.
"I apologize, it's been so long since I revealed my true name that I got excited."
The moment Cavillo's eyes lowered, energy exploded from his dark red horn.
"Let's begin an enjoyable fierce battle."
* * *
It felt as if his muscles were twisting and his skin could tear at any moment.
Only after an overwhelming pain struck his entire body did he have to accept reality.
He had underestimated him. The human before him was on a completely different level from the bug he had first encountered.
Thinking this, Cavillo brought out his hidden power.
'Magic power release.'
It was a power that could be called the privilege of the queen's bloodline, and its effect was truly remarkable.
Though temporary, it breaks down the wall of species that could be called a rank. This means that the amount of energy in the body rises explosively, vast power is bestowed upon the body, and the senses become even more keen.
Naturally, he instinctively knew how much power this human called Lee Sung-joon possessed.
'...He's strong.'
Although in terms of total power alone, he was below himself, Cavillo, the aura he felt was definitely not an opponent to be taken lightly.
It was a feeling that could be called strange, but having completely changed his perception of Sung-joon Lee, he could make a quick judgment.
'He's a dangerous enemy.'
Even in his current state with his bloodline power released, he couldn't guarantee a certain victory.
He could be counted among the strongest of those he had fought so far.
It meant that recklessly engaging in close combat was too risky.
It was a situation that could be called humiliating for a swordsman who handles a sword, but it couldn't be helped.
The human before him was skilled in combat and had much experience. Moreover, he possessed unpredictable, strange movements and excellent destructive power.
'First, I'll probe him.'
Cavillo, on full alert, made his move. It was a significantly different approach from the beginning.
Whoosh-!
Cavillo, who soared into the sky by spreading his wings, opened his mouth and shot out dark red spheres.
As many as 10 shots, though made at once, were all spheres crafted from strong energy, so their destructive power could not be ignored.
It wasn't an attack that could be received standing still.
Having become cautious from earlier experience, he was launching an attack to read Sung-joon Lee's movements while securing a safe distance.
The plan itself wasn't bad.
But this was a mistake made because he didn't properly know Sung-joon Lee.
"Aerial combat..."
Unlike in the Thousand Continent era, where he could freely walk on air, if Cavillo had bombarded from the air, it would have been quite troublesome.
However, with the skills obtained through his 4th job advancement, Star Spiritual Artist, there was no problem at all.
"It's been a while."
With a smile playing on his lips, golden heat haze shimmered around Sung-joon Lee's body.
Ding-!
[User 'Lee Sung-joon' uses Star's Favoritism.]
[Free flight becomes possible for 5 minutes.]
Sung-joon Lee, floating in the air, lightly deflected the pouring spheres while trying to close the distance with Cavillo.
Cavillo's eyes widened at the sight of Sung-joon Lee gradually closing the distance, splitting the air.
'Flying ability...?'
A human flying without wings, it was a somewhat bewildering situation, but being on full alert, Cavillo quickly accepted the situation and sought a countermeasure.
'...I still have the upper hand in speed.'
If he kept his distance and poured in long-range attacks, there would eventually be no way to cope.
Just as Cavillo, having quickly made his decision, was about to leave his position--
"Too predictable."
Sung-joon Lee's entire body, with a cold smile playing on his lips, was enveloped in golden energy.
Ding-!
[Skill, Star's Suggestion consumes 30 blood energy, increasing status (Strength, Agility, Vitality) by 10 each.]
[User 'Lee Sung-joon' uses Star's Affection, Earth's Blessing, Wind's Protection, Strength, Vitality, and Agility Enhancement.]
[The number of applied buffs is 5 or more, activating the skill Star's Fusion.]
[Status (Strength, Agility, Vitality) additionally increases by 15 each.]
[Due to the effect of the active skill Amplification, the effects of enhancement skills increase by 50% each.]
[Agility status increases by 80.]
[Strength and Vitality status increase by 72 each.]
Whoosh!
Sung-joon Lee's form, shot out at high speed, rapidly closed the distance with Cavillo.
"It won't go as you wish!"
Cavillo, shouting confidently, immediately opened his mouth and shot out spheres.
Dark red spheres painted the sky, and immediately attacked, aiming at Sung-joon Lee.
Sung-joon Lee, showing movement like a trick, easily eluded dozens of pursuers.
However, Cavillo's attack wasn't just a one-time thing. Seemingly unwilling to give up any distance, he was continuously shooting out spheres.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
As dark red spheres once again covered his vision, Sung-joon Lee's eyes narrowed.
'...How annoying.'
Having no desire whatsoever to play this meaningless hide-and-seek, Sung-joon Lee immediately raised red strong energy from his toes.
'Blood Sea Dragon Step, Transformation, Cloud Mist Scattered Blood Strike.'
As if dark red mist was settling in the sky, it created dozens of Sung-joon Lees.
Of course, as their power itself was somewhat lower, even if they succeeded in directly hitting, they wouldn't be able to penetrate Cavillo's skin and inflict damage.
However, there was no way that Sung-joon Lee, who had been called a demon god, would not have been aware of such a problem.
'There's no need to hit directly...'
He simply returned it.
The clones created by the Cloud Mist Scattered Blood Strike underwent another transformation. After all, that's what clouds are like, changing freely and not bound by any form.
'What's needed now is softness.'
He imbued them with the ultimate principle of using softness to overcome hardness and subdue all things.
A very soft energy settled in the hands of the clones in Sung-joon Lee's form.
It was a softness like gentle clouds on an autumn day when warm sunlight shines.
The clones, moving so softly, caught the dark red spheres, rotated them, and then let them flow back towards where they had been shot from.
"What...!?"
An exclamation of shock flowed from Cavillo's mouth.
Although he was on full alert, it was too unexpected.
No, it was something that no one could have anticipated.
Cavillo's spheres, which should have exploded upon contact, were returning along the path they had been shot.
He had caught spheres of materialized energy, even containing fierce wind, with clones created from energy, not his real body, and reversed their movement.
It was truly an unbelievable ability to control energy.
He tried to respond urgently, but the spheres enveloped in blood energy were moving even faster than when they were first shot.
Boom!
Cavillo's body, attacked by his own power, fell to the ground in an unsightly form.
The once white feathers were now all covered in red.
"Cough...!"
As Cavillo spat out a mouthful of red blood, Sung-joon Lee, who had landed on the ground following him, clicked his tongue.
"Tsk, I had expectations when your aura changed, but is this the limit of your vessel after all? Disappointing."
Cavillo's eyes shook as if an earthquake had occurred at the sight of Sung-joon Lee overflowing with composure.
"...Are you truly human?"
"As you can see."
Sung-joon Lee's exterior, shrugging his shoulders as if it was no big deal, was clearly undeniably human.
However, his inner self could absolutely not be seen as human.
Right now, in Cavillo's view, Sung-joon Lee's form felt like a vast darkness.
'Impossible... This can't be human.'
Perhaps due to the overwhelmingly majestic presence?
Suddenly, one word flashed through his mind.
'Demon King...?'
It wasn't an exaggerated expression.
The appearance of the human before him, Lee Sung-joon, felt like facing a Demon King that he had only heard about in stories.