The power that caused materials to move in the direction of the arrows when touched—a power that, when first heard of, might make many shake their heads—didn't seem like a power that could be used effectively in direct combat. When one gains an Ego power, they often desire a formidable strength to make killing monsters easier.
But when that power was wielded by a genius, it became a terrifying force. Asic's powerful attack that had subdued Hammerhead—an opponent requiring a 4-star miner to defeat—was easily diverted. This likely applied to bullets or any attack that touched one of Avid's arrow symbols; they would be deflected in another direction.
Avid had scattered arrow symbols using the Stamp Dump card all over the ground in this area. Unfortunately, it was too dark to discern where each symbol was. If Asic moved recklessly without caution, the Soaring Hopper's power would shift his position as soon as he touched the symbols.
"I'll show you what Soaring Hopper is capable of," Avid said, pulling something out of his pocket—a small bomb, no bigger than a kiwi. He threw it, and instead of falling on the grassy ground, it darted off in another direction at high speed.
"Soaring Hopper," Avid activated his Ego power, and the small bomb changed direction again, accelerating toward the marked spots. It zigzagged between several arrows, rapidly approaching Asic. His amethyst eyes widened, and he fired a rubber bullet at the bomb, knocking it away.
Boom!!!
A violent explosion erupted only twenty meters away. Avid threw another four or five bombs, each hitting an arrow symbol made with the Stamp Dump card, scattering in different directions, making it impossible to predict where they'd come from.
[Master, shoot them now. With your accuracy, it should be easy.]
'Not yet,' Asic responded calmly, rotating the cylinder to load all six bullets. The bombs drew closer, warning signals blaring.
'Overclocking.'
Asic overclocked once again, his body temperature skyrocketing until waves of heat rippled off him. A faint white mist emanated from his body, a sign of heat dissipation. His amethyst eyes sparkled, watching every bomb as if in slow motion.
"Temporal Art: Time Compression, three seconds."
Purple lightning coursed through his body, and Asic swiftly reached out, grabbing each bomb mid-air. He then hurled them back at Avid. When the effect of time compression ended, the bombs were already in front of Avid.
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
Five violent explosions erupted. But instead of finding Avid's body blown to bits, Avid dashed out just in time and kicked at Asic. Asic channeled power into his arm muscles, swinging his staff against the metal leg.
The impact of the kick overwhelmed him, causing the staff in Asic's hand to be deflected. Facing a kick with a power of 1,200 units was like fighting a gorilla with bare hands—the difference in strength was too great. Avid swung his left leg for a second kick in mid-air, but Asic spun and landed a kick to Avid's stomach first.
Overclocking had given Asic about a 10% speed advantage over Avid, whose legs were modified with grasshopper implants. With his injured left arm, Asic reached into his coat to pull out a short shotgun and cocked it. The sound of the firing pin echoed as dozens of small pellets fired. Avid dodged with a swift movement.
Avid reached into his pocket and grabbed a handful of marble-sized metal balls, throwing them haphazardly. But in reality, each throw was calculated. The metal balls scattered due to Soaring Hopper's power as soon as they touched the arrow symbols.
"Which ones are bombs, and which are just metal balls? Can you tell, Crow Mask?" Avid taunted.
"I know more about bombs than you do, Grasshopper Mask." Asic stomped his foot and dashed forward. He stepped on an arrow symbol Avid had marked, but it didn't activate—not because the symbol had expired, but because Avid hadn't commanded it to.
The symbol Asic stepped on would have made him run even faster toward Avid. The second step did the same. Asic dodged the metal balls and used his staff to swat away the small bombs. Asic closed in on Avid, who hadn't yet activated Soaring Hopper.
'Unbelievable. What's his brain made of?' Avid thought. If Asic had only stepped on the arrow symbols once or twice, it might have been luck. But Asic repeatedly and fearlessly stepped on them, advancing closer without hesitation. That could only mean one thing: Asic had figured out the purpose of Avid's arrow symbols.
'I used special ink that only I can see. There's no way he could see it. The only way he'd know is by memorizing them. So that's it—he's accurate enough to shoot every bomb, but he waited for me to use Soaring Hopper to learn which symbols were where. His brain must be made of diamonds.'
Avid was only half right. The truth was that Asic had ordered OC to gather data on the arrow symbols and write a program to create a 3D model in his mind. The human brain and eyes weren't capable of such intense focus, but OC, a powerful AI, could gather data and write a program after seeing something just once.
OC called it the "Anti-Soaring Hopper Program Version 1." The advantage was knowing the location and function of each arrow symbol Avid had used, with updates every second. The drawback was that it didn't know the meaning of any symbols Avid hadn't used. But this was enough for Asic to use in real combat.
Asic slid forward and fired the short shotgun again. The birdshot spread out. Avid remained composed, his powerful legs propelling him into the air.
"Tch," Avid clicked his tongue in frustration. The arrow symbols he had placed numbered over a hundred—a deadly trap to use anything against his enemy. But now that more than half of them had been deciphered, they were practically harmless. Asic reloaded the shotgun and aimed again.
Bang!
'Annoying.' Avid stomped his left foot, using Stamp Dump to place a symbol at his feet. He activated Soaring Hopper, propelling his body forward. He stepped on three or four more symbols and reached Asic within one second, swinging his dual short swords.
Asic, who only had one tonfa left and was holding the shotgun in his injured left hand, was at a disadvantage. Avid's twin sword attacks were rapid, like a mantis slicing leaves in an instant.
"Your Ego is called Hopper, so why are your attacks as fast as a mantis? Maybe you should change it to Soaring Mantis instead?"
"Shut your filthy mouth!" Avid increased his speed, as if he hadn't been fighting at full potential before. The short swords slashed through Asic's armor, cutting through the impact armor and grazing his skin. Though he avoided vital areas, Asic now had numerous cuts.
[Enemy attack speed has increased by 33% since the first strike and could increase further. Detected over 42 wounds. Releasing coagulant chemicals. Considering the damage, recommend discarding the shotgun and holding the staff with your left hand while drawing the katana with your right to strengthen defense.] OC advised.
Asic glanced at the katana strapped to his back. OC's advice was correct, but Asic's pride refused to draw the sword.
'I can't.'
[Why not?]
'It's not time to use the sword yet.'
Underneath his black coat, Asic's body was drenched in sweat, his temperature high enough that it felt like he had a fever. It was about to surpass 45 degrees Celsius, a dangerous threshold for humans. He had overclocked three times today, which had put a heavy burden on him.
[Master, your body is dehydrated,] OC alerted. Asic had been sweating profusely to cool his body, leading to dizziness and sluggish thinking due to dehydration. Asic managed to hold himself together, already planning to carry a water bottle beneath his coat next time, with a straw attached to his helmet for easy hydration.
'OC, can I overclock once more?'
[It will be the last time. If you fail to defeat the enemy in the next use, you will overheat and lose consciousness.]
'I see. Well, OC, I guess it's time for that.'
[You mean *that*, correct? One more minute.]
'One minute… how convenient.'
"Hey, how about we talk?" Asic said. Avid, who was about to slash at Asic's mask, paused in disbelief. Talk? After such an intense fight, did Asic actually want to talk now? Had he gone mad from overthinking?
"Not interested. You'd better surrender now. If I cut your head off here, I might still make it to my appointment."
"The appointment… with who? Care to tell me?"
"Hah, I guess I'll tell you. I'm meeting Joker." Avid smirked, then swung his sword in an X-shape. Asic parried with his metal staff.
'Joker?' Asic had heard of Joker during his time with the police. Joker was the arms dealer behind the trade of rare illegal Asra cards—the "Prince of Crime" most wanted by the police department.
Rumor had it that Joker could make anything happen for enough money—even grant immortality. When Asic realized that Ejin was about to be delivered, and the man in front of him might be the one taking him to Joker, it became highly possible that Joker had ordered the Onizuka Tiger gang to kidnap Ejin.
'There's a high chance. Even if I don't know what Joker wants with Ejin… Joker, huh?' As a former cop, the person Asic most wanted to arrest was Joker. If rescuing Ejin led to Joker, then Asic's fighting spirit blazed even stronger.
[Program complete. Blue Dragon Martial Arts Technique installed.] OC's voice announced in Asic's head. An immense flood of information poured into his brain at once, nearly causing him to faint. He used purple lightning to stimulate his nervous system and prevent himself from blacking out.
[Condition three met. Condition one, two, three—all complete. Fully awakening Blue Dragon Asra card.]
Boom!!!
A massive surge of power erupted from Asic's body, a new type of energy circulating throughout. His already-strong body now had an unfamiliar stream of power coursing through it. It was the *Qi of the Blue Dragon*—the life force martial artists spent over ten years cultivating. Asic received it through Ivy's Blue Dragon Power card.
With the templates of three fighters combining over fifty years of experience, Asic instantly became a martial arts master. The Blue Dragon Qi emanated from him, a purple mist flowing from his body.
The Asra power that was originally like waves now looked like clouds. Asic altered its properties to become lightning, and within the purple mist, lightning crackled. Avid was stunned—Asic had just released this overwhelming power for the first time, despite their life-or-death battle going on for minutes.
"Unbelievable… It's the first time I've felt my body overflowing with this much power. Not an ounce of doubt about winning." Asic bent his knees slightly, channeling Asra power throughout his body. Avid kept his gaze locked on Asic. Asic stepped forward, lunging at Avid with the roar of a dragon echoing from his body.
*Blue Dragon Martial Arts—Oliver Chang Template: Close-Combat Hybrid Art*
Asic embodied the spirit of Oliver Chang, the fierce combatant of the Blue Dragon School, unleashing a barrage of punches against Avid. Avid swung his short swords at the man in front of him, but suddenly, Asic's reaction time sharpened. Every slash Avid attempted was dodged, and Asic's movements seemed completely transformed, as if he were a different person.
'Weird, it's like someone else's spirit has taken over him. What's going on? It's just like being possessed,' Avid thought, unable to understand the phenomenon before him. Even Asic himself could barely believe that he was able to execute the Blue Dragon School's techniques as effortlessly as if he'd been practicing them his entire life.
Asic had graduated from police academy, where they taught CQC—Close Quarters Combat—focusing on effective fighting against other humans, incorporating weapons and the environment. Meanwhile, other martial arts had been developed for competitions and to deal with monsters, focusing more on causing damage than handling humans.
When the Blue Dragon School's techniques were combined with Asic's CQC skills, it resulted in a powerful and challenging set of moves. Asic now embodied the ferocity of Oliver Chang, nicknamed the "Fierce Dragon" of the martial arts world.
*Blue Dragon School Technique—Woojin Template: Weapon-Integrated Martial Art*
Lightning and the Blue Dragon's Qi flowed into Asic's tonfa. He lunged forward, thrusting the tonfa with tremendous force. Avid stomped his left foot to activate the arrow symbol, propelling himself backward, stepping on other pre-marked arrows to create distance. Within seconds, Avid had put a hundred meters between himself and Asic.
'That's terrifying. If that lightning hits me, I'll be completely immobilized,' Avid thought, feeling a small chill of fear. The power of the Blue Dragon card had elevated the quality of all of Asic's Asra energy. Though the quantity remained the same, it was almost twice as powerful.
[The body is adjusting to the power of the Blue Dragon Card. Physical strength and Asra power are rapidly increasing. Excess energy is being used to temporarily repair the fractured bones. You can now use your left arm,] OC informed him.
Asic clenched his left hand and found that the numbness had significantly lessened. The Blue Dragon Qi had helped his fractured bones regain functionality, but the moment he stopped channeling the energy, his arm would be broken again, and its strength couldn't compare to when it was fully intact.
"I can win this," Asic muttered, lowering his stance slightly as purple lightning flowed and gathered in his legs. The Blue Dragon's Qi circulated from top to bottom. His right hand gripped the tonfa tightly, eyes locked on his opponent like a wolf preparing to strike its prey. The pressure Asic radiated caused sweat to soak Avid's back.
'Last chance,' both Asic and Avid thought. Whether it was Asra power or physical stamina, everything indicated that if Asic couldn't defeat Avid in the next clash, he would lose.
Avid held the upper hand—not just because his legs were enhanced with powerful implants, but also due to his Soaring Hopper power, which had turned the area into his home turf. His Hyper Kick doubled his kick's power, and Asic still hadn't found a way to counter the fact that his attacks seemed ineffective against Avid.
'Victory is mine,' Avid thought, unleashing the full power of Soaring Hopper for all to see. Green-yellow energy gathered in his legs, and the mechanical components in his metal limbs shifted, glowing faintly. His grasshopper-like legs launched him forward, his body wrapped in aura, propelling like a bullet.
Avid's foot landed on an arrow symbol, accelerating him even more. His speed was nearly invisible to the naked eye. This young man had trained and designed his technique to make the most of his Ego power and every card in his arsenal. No matter where Asic compressed time to dodge, Avid would use his full Hyper Kick to finish him off.
It was almost a definitive victory for Avid. But what he failed to account for was that he didn't know Asic's true limits.
"Checkmate," Asic whispered, using his Ego power to overclock one last time. His thought process and physical reactions surged, gaining tremendous speed for five seconds. To Asic, Avid, who was charging like a bullet, appeared to move in slow motion. In the nearly frozen world of Asic's mind, he used time compression to align his body's speed with his accelerated thoughts.
Asic clenched his fist, and purple lightning Asra mixed with the Blue Dragon's Qi, forming a purple storm cloud that shaped itself into a dragon.
"This time... I won't miss."
*Blue Dragon School Technique—Ivy Tesla Lake Template: Martial Art Combined with Special Powers*
*Dragon's Ascending Fist*