How Did They Get So Strong?
The sound of a whistle echoed.
“A wolf silhouette with flaming wings…”
Mi Yeo-yeon, gazing into the distance, recognized something and spoke.
“It’s So So-yeon’s Flame Wing Wolf Unit.”
Following her, Ak Hong-hyang quickly rattled off information about the unit’s members. The Flame Wing Wolf Unit was led by squad leader So So-yeon, and consisted of four members: Lin Pum, Wang Taek-ryong, Ryu Ah-nam, and Wang Eon-ho. All of them were strong students who were at the forefront of their respective rankings.
“You all handle this battle yourselves.”
From high on the mast, Bukjin, who had been looking into the distance, pulled out his smartphone, activated the Wi-Fi function, and connected to the four students’ signals.
“Ah…”
“Uhh…”
Groans emanated from the four students on the deck of the Ryu Chae Jewel Merchant Ship.
“What was that sound?”
The spectators, watching the crystal screen, wore blank expressions.
“Why are they suddenly making those noises?”
“Ah! I get it! That must be a special sound the Im Bukjin Unit makes to boost morale before battle!” someone shouted loudly.
People thought it was a very peculiar sound for that purpose.
Just then, the crystal screen showed the Flame Wing Wolf Ship and the Ryu Chae Jewel Merchant Ship confronting each other. The two battle ships were within three jang of each other in the blink of an eye. Both were ready for battle. And soon, another battle began. Many people, filled with tension, began to focus on the fight.
So So-yeon had boasted much higher scores than Ju Ga-a in the previous test. She had once been known as one of Unmong City’s Three Great Genius Beauties, alongside Im Jin and Chang San-seol, and she was a student who overwhelmingly surpassed Ju Ga-a in popularity, skill, and potential.
“Im Bukjin, that monster, overwhelmed Ju Ga-a, but can he really overwhelm So So-yeon too?”
This battle was very different from the previous one. In this fight, the Ryu Chae Jewel Merchant Ship was using completely different tactics, which greatly surprised the spectators.
The moment the two battle ships entered attack range, Baek Geum-un, as if she could wait no longer, lightly lifted a massive iron anchor, spun it around, and hurled it towards the Flame Wing Wolf Ship. The spectators who witnessed the scene almost had their eyeballs pop out.
The anchor Baek Geum-un had just thrown clearly weighed over 400 geun. Furthermore, considering the weight of the iron chain attached to the anchor, it would be impossible to throw it three jang away without at least 2,000 geun of strength. But the small girl, Baek Geum-un, had lifted the anchor as if pulling out a weed and lightly tossed it towards the deck of the opposing battle ship.
Thud—!
With a deafening impact, an iron chain bridge was laid between the two battle ships.
“My goodness!”
The spectators gasped in surprise. Many people doubted their own eyes. ‘That tiny girl just threw an iron anchor bigger than her head! Where did she get such monstrous strength?’
Even the representatives of the prestigious academies in the evaluation section jumped up in shock.
“Data! Bring me the data related to that girl!”
“What’s that girl’s name? Baek Geum-un? How many geun of strength did she record in the previous test?”
“I’ll give you one minute! Bring me all the data related to that girl!”
Some principals were losing their composure.
On the other side, in the military viewing section, Unmong-wi Commander Dan Si-bi inhaled sharply. As a soldier, he naturally favored warriors with innate divine power. The stronger a person was, the greater their contribution could be on a battlefield where battles lasted for extended periods. Even a Heavenly Person would take about ten to fifteen days to recover their Hyeongi after expending their full strength for a long time. However, a warrior born with innate divine power could return to battle after only a short rest.
“I didn’t expect that young lady to possess such strength.”
At that moment, a cold, emotionless voice, showing no trace of agitation, spoke beside Dan Si-bi. Hearing that voice, Dan Si-bi felt a chilling coldness in his heart. Every time he heard this mechanical, emotionless voice, he felt an inexplicable fear.
Dan Si-bi had seen countless death gods and iron-blooded generals when he participated in the Northern War, following the Empire’s War God, Jeoncheonhu Im Geun-nam. But only before this cold-voiced man did he feel an inexplicable fear.
On the crystal screen.
“Charge!”
Han Bul-bu shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring. His sturdy figure, with black hair fluttering as he ran forward, resembled a hunter. Mi Yeo-yeon and Ak Hong-hyang were also incredibly fast. Baek Geum-un, who had thrown the iron anchor, hadn’t shed a single drop of sweat, nor was her breathing labored. Baek Geum-un drew her greatsword and charged fiercely. The speed of the four was astonishing. They were so fast that the sound of breaking air could be heard in the space between the two battle ships.
The battle began in an instant. Mi Yeo-yeon chose So So-yeon, the strongest on the Flame Wing Wolf Ship, as her opponent. The battle between the two beautiful girls began, and countless sword lights crisscrossed the air. Han Bul-bu firmly held his sword and blocked Wang Taek-ryong. Ak Hong-hyang’s opponent was Ryu Ah-nam. Baek Geum-un, wielding her greatsword, faced Lin Pum and Wang Eon-ho simultaneously. It was a four-on-five engagement.
“Are those guys crazy?”
“Mi Yeo-yeon chose So So-yeon! That’s a complete suicide mission! She must have lost to So So-yeon more than once or twice!”
“Soon we’ll see those 3rd Academy kids crying… huh?!”
The spectators had already considered the outcome of the battle to be obvious. In fact, they had judged it to be a battle where one side would be completely overwhelmed. And indeed, the crystal screen showed one side being completely pushed back.
However, the side gaining the upper hand was completely different from what the spectators had imagined. Mi Yeo-yeon was displaying an unimaginable, immense power. Her wind-attribute Hyeongi seemed to have opened up a new realm. Her formidable skill, emanating from her rapier, overwhelmed So So-yeon in every aspect: Hyeongi, strength, and speed. So So-yeon, one of Unmong City’s top three female geniuses, was continuously forced to retreat.
“How can you have such power?”
So So-yeon twisted her body to dodge an attack and quickly retreated. Mi Yeo-yeon said nothing, relentlessly pursuing her and swinging her sword. So So-yeon was forced to retreat again, deciding to abandon a direct confrontation with Mi Yeo-yeon. So So-yeon judged that she had no choice but to prolong the battle. She decided to wait for her unit members to subdue their opponents and come to her aid. And fortunately, Bukjin had not yet made a move. Bukjin remained motionless on his battle ship, and So So-yeon was convinced that, just as Jo Pacheon had informed her, Bukjin was truly afraid of the sea and dared not descend to fight.
But soon, So So-yeon’s face was filled with bewilderment. This was because the support from her unit members that she had been waiting for never came. Instead, the situation evolved into So So-yeon being surrounded and attacked.
“How can this be?”
“How could the battle turn out like that?”
All the citizens in the spectator stands looked stunned and bewildered. They had witnessed Han Bul-bu subdue Wang Taek-ryong with a single sword strike and claim victory. They had seen Ak Hong-hyang flash her movements, engage Ryu Ah-nam head-on, and force Ryu Ah-nam to drop her sword. And they had seen Baek Geum-un, wielding her greatsword, defeat Lin Pum and Wang Eon-ho by herself, with both Lin Pum and Wang Eon-ho spitting blood from their mouths.
The three members of the Ryu Chae Jewel Merchant Ship had appeared to the spectators as naive and weak lambs. But now, they had crushed their opponents from the Flame Wing Wolf Ship with overwhelming skill, as if they were invincible thunder tigers. Moreover, even So So-yeon, the strongest member of the Flame Wing Wolf Ship, could not withstand Mi Yeo-yeon’s fierce assault and eventually collapsed.
The four metal boxes placed on the deck of the Flame Wing Wolf Ship quickly opened, and Bukjin’s unit members acquired the keys. So So-yeon tried to stop Bukjin’s unit members with a relentless barrage of attacks until the very end, but all her attacks were repeatedly blocked by Mi Yeo-yeon. The soft rapier in Mi Yeo-yeon’s hand, like a willow branch, continuously exuded a powerful aura that seemed to cleave space itself, leaving So So-yeon utterly helpless.
Ultimately, exhausted and depleted of all her strength, So So-yeon could only watch with wide, pale eyes as the Flame Wing Wolf Ship’s flag was seized by Han Bul-bu. Defeat!
So So-yeon’s heart sank heavily. She wanted to counterattack the Ryu Chae Jewel Merchant Ship, but all the Hyeongi in her body was already depleted. Even with the opponent’s battle ship only three jang away, she lacked the strength to leap across that distance.
‘How can this be?’
So So-yeon simply couldn’t understand. The spectators watching the battle from the stands shared the same thought. High-ranking teachers from each academy and officials from the education office also had wide eyes.
Mi Yeo-yeon, Baek Geum-un, Ak Hong-hyang, Han Bul-bu! The skills these four students displayed in this battle completely surpassed their understanding. The increase in their abilities was far from ordinary. It was an explosive surge, multiplying their original strength several times over.
‘How did they do it?’
A huge question mark floated in many people’s minds. But at this moment, the most agitated people were the representatives of the prestigious academies in the evaluation section. They clutched the personal data of the students in their hands, feeling that all the information they had previously gathered was utterly useless. There was a huge discrepancy between the reality unfolding before their eyes and the figures presented in the data, making them feel as if all the data was false.
“How did they get so strong?”
Students from various academies all wore shocked expressions. Even if they had been hiding their skills, they couldn’t have hidden them for such a long time. Even those who understood Mi Yeo-yeon, Han Bul-bu, Baek Geum-un, and Ak Hong-hyang best could not believe what they saw on the crystal screen.
Cho Heun, Ban Wae-min, and Ryu Gye-hae looked at each other with wide eyes. They wore expressions that showed they simply couldn’t understand what had just happened. Mi Yeo-yeon was not a student they had taught, so she was an exception, but the skills displayed by Han Bul-bu, Ak Hong-hyang, and Baek Geum-un in this battle had increased by at least three or four times compared to what they had seen during training yesterday. In particular, Ak Hong-hyang and Baek Geum-un, despite not yet having awakened their Hyeongi and reached the Martial Warrior rank, completely overwhelmed three students who had already reached the Martial Warrior rank.