Yorimâs opponent used his weapon to strike Yorimâs lower body.
Seol-Hwiâs subordinate quickly jumped back, and, using his spear as a counterweight, attempted to kick Ack Ho.
However, Ack Ho dodged the attack.
ââŠ!â
It was an unexpected failure. It exposed a gap in Yorim to the opponent. But this was actually Yorimâs intention - a situation in which Ack Ho wouldnât distance himself, but rather, would get closer instead.
As a result, Yorim was able to pinpoint from where his opponent would next attack from, and then avoided it.
From the short distance between them, Yorimâs fists flew towards Ack Ho.
âUrgh!â
Ack Ho now had two ways to deal with Yorim. The first was to counterattack, and the second was to use a spear technique to increase their distance again.
The latter wasnât bad, since Yorim was currently separated from his weapon. But Ack Ho chose the former one.
He also had a goal in mind.
Ack Ho released the spear he was holding, and dodged his opponentâs fists. Then, he exchanged a few of his own punches with Yorim.
Puak! Puak! Puak!
âUgh!â
This time, it was Yorim who couldnât block the offensive of his opponent. Yorim grabbed his wrist, and groaned in pain.
âHey you. Did you really think that I wouldnât have any close combat training?â
Yorim wasnât simply pushed back by Ack Hoâs punches. There were hidden needles inside his fists.
Ack Hoâs hands were covered with white cloth, where thin needles were inserted between the knuckles. Because of the white bandages, no one noticed these small needles.
âIt was hidden needlesâŠâ
âThose shameful bastards!â
âNot shameful. Rather, Yorim is the one being reckless. He ran into the opponent first.â
Jeok Song, Yong Jin, and Seo Ryeong, while watching the fight, shared their thoughts. Imugi spoke next.
âAs expected, I should have goneâŠâ
No one bothered listening to him.
âThis was intended.â
At those words, the subordinates turned towards Seol-Hwi. They were curious about what he meant.
âEven Yorim wouldnât have thought that this guy would be using needles in his fists. However, in the end, Yorim will win. Things like hidden needles will only be temporary advantages for the opponent.â
His subordinates still looked at him with eyes that said they didnât understand. Seol-Hwi continued his explanation.
âYorim isnât at a level where he can use Void Movement with his spear right now. So he is aiming for a very close combat fight. The opponentâs movements are swift, and it will be a burden for Yorim to handle, butâŠâ
ââŠâ
âItâs helpful because the opponent is too focused on physical defense. Flame Aggregating Demonic Martial Arts doesnât just disappear when it collides with something, it penetrates beyond that.â
âAh!â
Seol-Hwiâs subordinates finally understood his meaning.
They moved their gazes back to the stage, where Yorimâs spear was embedded into the ground.
Yorim had grabbed onto it, but did not pull it out. Instead, he tried to kick his opponent like he did before, using the spear for balance.
âYou idiot!â
Ack Ho laughed at Yorimâs attempt, and evaded the attack.
âWhatâŠ?!â
But this time, he was surprised. Yorim did not stop trying to kick Ack Ho. As soon as his opponent dodged, Yorim would change the direction of his kicks.
Ack Ho didnât back down. He managed to grab Yorimâs foot, and threw Yorim away from him.
Yorim, whose form was broken, wasnât in a state to fight back. As Ack Ho rushed towards him, he hurriedly backed away, and when there was nowhere to retreat, he got ready to stand his ground.
Ack Ho, who saw Yorim balling his hands into fists, felt it - that Yorim was about to attack him again.
So Ack Ho prepared his hands to block.
Puak!
But something felt strange. He thought Yorimâs fist would collide with his hand, and then he would be pushed back, but when the punch came, something burned.
And when he tried to shake it offâŠ
Ack Hoâs face stiffened at the sight of fire.
âWhat is⊠argh!â
He let out a groan as the flames enveloped the rest of his arm. Ack Ho quickly dropped on the ground and rolled, trying to put out the fire.
But why wasnât it working?
The more he tried to put the fire out, the more it spread to the rest of his body.
âThis is my chance!â
At that moment, Yorim was holding his spear in his hands. It was time to end this fight for real. He wanted to do it, before his opponent came to his senses.
âEnough.â
But someone stepped in to stop him - Yulsa.
âYou win!â
After those words from the announcer, the fire was put out, and Ack Ho was left standing dazedly.
âOhhhh!â
âTwo of them won! From the command unit!â
Unlike the Four Imperial Troopsâ side of the arena, the command units were all cheering for Yorimâs victory.
[Earth Demon] "Who was it that passed on that technique?"
[Seven Messengers] âIt looked rather strong. Even if you use internal energy, the fire probably wouldn't go out.â
[Elders] âIt looks like blood arts⊠you would have to see more to find out. Well, he can not be a simple subordinate with that skill.â
[Fourth Army Squad] âThere are many such martial arts, but it has to be blood martial arts. It must be from the sect.â
[Private Guards Captain] âWhat the hell did that guy teach his subordinates...?â
As the on-site reactions were appearing to Seol-Hwi, Yorim arrived at where he and his subordinates were sitting.
âI must have looked bad.â
Yorim said this, but the others thought differently.
âNo, you could have ended that guy with one hit.â
âYou must have thought that you shouldnât show off your Divine Weaponâs ability. If you had fought properly, you would have overwhelmed him even more.â
âHow is your wound?â
Jeok Song, Yong Jin, and Seo Ryeong spoke words of encouragement and concern. Of course, there was one of Seol-Hwiâs subordinates who was different.
âYorim, you did fine. Well, maybe not as much as Jeok SongâŠâ
âWho will come forward this time?â
After Yorimâs fight was over, a person sitting next to the stage got up. His health and internal energy were lower than Ack Hoâs, but he still wasnât an easy opponent.
Because he had a combat power of 4.88 million.
âIs no one willing?â
At Yulsaâs words, the crowd was silent.
Was it because they had suffered two consecutive losses? No one came from the Four Imperial Troops.
The system asked Seol-Hwi a question for the third time.
<Who will you send out?>
â¶ Yong Jin [5.21 million combat power]
â· Seo Ryeong [4.91 million combat power]
â· Imugi [4.55 million combat power]
Seol-Hwi didnât worry about choosing Yong Jin. When it came to fighting battles, Yong Jin was dependable.
âIâve been waiting for this moment!â
Yong Jin walked to the stage with confidence.
<Would you like to watch the battle?>
â¶ See
â· Don't see
Seol-Hwi chose not to watch the fight this time.
Time passed in an instant, and the movements of the two on the stage went by extremely quickly.
<Yong Jin has won.>
The result of the battle appeared with this notification.
âIt was a great fight!â
Yong Jin came back with a satisfied expression. Seol-Hwi had nothing to say, since he didnât know how the fight went.
As for the others,
âYou did good.â
âNice work.â
Seol-Hwiâs subordinates praised Yorim with simple words, so he also couldnât know what happened in the fight from them.
The on-site reactionsâŠ
Seol-Hwi was curious about the reactions from the audience members.
[Earth Demon] âAll of them have improved their skills."
Nothing other than the Earth Demonâs reaction appeared.
Does no one else have anything to say�
âNext!â
While Seol-Hwi was thinking, the old man on stage shouted out for the next battleâs participants.
But this time, there was no question as to who would come forward - the Private Guards Unit and Four Imperial Troops.
âFour Imperial Troops wins!â
And then the result came out after a while. For the next fight, even though no one was going up this time, Seol-Hwi was asked,
<Who will you send out?>
â¶ Seo Ryeong [4.91 million combat power]
â· Imugi [4.55 million combat power]
It should be Seo RyeongâŠ
Seol-Hwi chose to watch the fight.
ââŠâ
The battle didnât last long.
Seo Ryeong didnât make any hasty moves toward her opponent, but the old man ended things quickly.
âThey win again!â
<Seo Ryeong has won.>
âThere was a huge difference in skills. You did well.â
âIt seemed like he could barely avoid it.â
When Seo Ryeong came, everyone complimented her. Seol-Hwi agreed. Seo Ryeongâs opponent was too weak.
<Who will you send out?>
â¶ Imugi [4.55 million combat power]
And finally, it was time to put Imugi in. Seol-Hwi chose not to see the fight, but then, an unbelievably shocking thing happened.
<Imugi has been defeated.>
[Elders] âDoing such a horrid thing in battle! What a bad subordinate! Who taught him?! What did you say, Elder Gal? His master was...?"
Among the Elders, the face of Elder Baekhon was red enough to be recognized from a distance.
âWhy did he have to do that hereâŠ?â
âHey⊠that abilityâŠâ
âShhh! You idiot, just leave him aloneâŠâ
When Imugi arrived, Seol-Hwiâs subordinates were talking with one another. After seeing his drooping shoulders, they stopped.
How did you lose�
Seol-Hwi was genuinely shocked. The combat power of Imugiâs opponent was only 2 million, so there should have been no way for him to have lost.
<Would you like to see the reason for the defeat? >
â¶ See
â· Don't see
The notification from the system appeared, as if it knew what was on Seol-Hwiâs mind.
Seol-Hwi chose to see the fight that he had skipped.
<The view will be shown.>
Time passed by in reverse. And when it stopped at a certain point, Seol-Hwi grasped the situation.
The fallen opponent on the ground.
And⊠Imugi, who was doing his âfrogâ movements.
âLetâs go, letâs go!â
Ah, thisâŠ
Seol-Hwi dropped his face into his hands.
Now he understood.
This was the reason why. The frog movements that seemed to poke fun at the opponent.
He tried to use the power of the Divine Weapon.
That was the issue. A guy who everyone thought was already down, and this guy who was activating the special ability of his Divine Weapon.
âHaahhh!â
And when Imugi was ready to use it,
âEnough!â
The old man Yulsa decided to stop him.
âWhat I was doing was necessary! Really!â
Imugi protested, but his words fell on deaf ears. Yulsa didnât want to hear the truth. The old man was frowning heavily.
âNow for the last fight, who will come forward?â
Seol-Hwi was back in the present, and the first thing he heard was this announcement from Yulsa.
<Private Guards Unit Captain will not come forward, as he lost to Seol-Hwi previously.>
<Would you like to fight? >
â¶ Participate
â· Provoke the opponent
â· Wait for a moment
What�
Seol-Hwi, who was about to choose âparticipateâ, stopped himself. There were unexpected options below it.
I think I understand.
In the past, he would have been too shocked and confused at this, but now, he was able to know its intention.
Especially the âprovokeâ option.
There must be some kind of meaning behind it.
And according to the current situationâŠ
It suggested that Seol-Hwi would have to drive the current situation to an extreme.