Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Slaughter Emperor VS Fist Emperor (2)
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Crack!
Song Hana’s sword clashed against the Fist Emperor’s fist, erupting with the sound of metal striking metal.
“Ugh!”
Overpowered in raw strength, the Fist Emperor groaned and twisted his body.
Song Hana unleashed a ferocious barrage on the Fist Emperor.
She surpassed him in both power and speed.
The Fist Emperor’s edge lay only in his superior situational awareness and battle instincts.
But Song Hana was no mere pure swordsman.
Roar! Crackle!
Boom!
Blue flames and pitch-black lightning burst forth, slamming into the Fist Emperor’s body.
In an instant, his body was reduced to a battered wreck.
The fight up to now had been overwhelmingly one-sided.
However.
‘He’s still holding on somehow.’
The Fist Emperor was hanging in there by a thread.
And moreover.
‘Those eyes don’t belong to someone who’s given up on victory.’
His gaze burned with unyielding fighting spirit.
‘Let’s watch.’
In Kang Hyun-soo’s memories, the pre-regression Fist Emperor and this one were the same yet different.
‘He’s not fully formed yet. But still.’
The Fist Emperor that Kang Hyun-soo knew wasn’t someone who only won from advantageous positions.
He was the type who snatched victory even from utterly hopeless situations.
As the battle dragged on, wounds accumulated across the Fist Emperor’s body.
Yet he pressed forward relentlessly, refusing to yield.
In that moment, the Fist Emperor’s eyes flashed.
He had spotted the opening in Song Hana’s defenses that he’d been patiently waiting for.
Boom boom boom boom!
His fist, enveloped in golden aura, rocketed toward her left chest.
At that instant, Song Hana’s sword, crackling with pitch-black lightning, swung toward the Fist Emperor’s throat.
“Stop!”
Kang Hyun-soo raised his voice, halting the spar.
“Whew!”
He had been ready to throw himself in if needed.
Fortunately, they both stopped just fine.
The golden aura around the Fist Emperor’s fist faded, as did the pitch-black lightning cloaking Song Hana’s sword.
It had been a close call.
The Fist Emperor’s fist was pressed against Song Hana’s left chest, and her sword tip rested against his nape.
If they had been even a fraction slower to stop?
‘They both nearly died.’
The Fist Emperor’s fist was harder than iron.
Infused with aura, no less.
Had it connected, it would have pierced straight through Song Hana’s heart.
Song Hana’s lightning-clad sword was equally lethal.
Even with the lightning gone, red blood dripped steadily from the blade at his nape.
‘Their fighting spirits are too intense.’
That drive was the source of their growth.
But if not properly managed, it could lead to serious trouble.
‘I need to keep a close eye on them.’
He couldn’t afford to lose the Slaughter Emperor and Fist Emperor he’d worked so hard to acquire—not like this.
“What a shame. I had you beat.”
“That’s my line.”
Sheathing her sword and fist, Song Hana and the Fist Emperor glared at each other, growling.
“Here, drink this.”
Kang Hyun-soo handed the Fist Emperor a pre-prepared potion.
Song Hana had only depleted her stamina and mana—no wounds.
Smirk.
Song Hana sneered at the Fist Emperor as he drank the potion.
Grit.
The sight made him grind his teeth.
‘No, they’re not kids—what’s with this?’
Especially Song Hana, who always came across as so rational, picking the fight first. It was surprisingly out of character.
“Now I gotta take you on.”
The Fist Emperor looked at Kang Hyun-soo and declared.
“Wouldn’t it be better to rest a bit first?”
His wounds were healed by the potion, but his depleted stamina and mana hadn’t recovered yet.
“No need to worry. My stamina’s still full.”
Kang Hyun-soo nodded at the Fist Emperor’s words.
No point forcing it when the opponent rejected the concern.
Kang Hyun-soo and the Fist Emperor took their positions in the training grounds.
“Spar starts!”
At Song Hana’s natural call as referee, the Fist Emperor charged at Kang Hyun-soo.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Kang Hyun-soo calmly blocked the Fist Emperor’s assaults.
‘He’s no ordinary foe.’
If someone else had the same stats as the Fist Emperor?
All one hundred would lose.
‘If Song Hana’s stats matched his.’
The Fist Emperor probably would have won.
Song Hana’s stats were high, but.
Her swordsmanship proficiency and combat experience fell short of his.
Kang Hyun-soo’s situation was different.
“Huff! Huff!”
Rough breaths escaped the Fist Emperor’s lips.
No matter how fiercely he attacked, Kang Hyun-soo showed no signs of faltering.
And he couldn’t find any openings to exploit.
Normally, if there were no gaps, you created or baited them.
That’s how the Fist Emperor had racked up countless victories.
But Kang Hyun-soo didn’t fall for any tricks, no matter what.
His foundational swordsmanship was rock-solid.
Offense was pure offense, defense pure defense.
There was no way to break through.
“You’ve got a ton of combat experience.”
Kang Hyun-soo gave a faint smile at the Fist Emperor’s question.
‘With all the battle seasoning I’ve got.’
Over thirty years of living by the blade.
Traversing countless battlefields, dancing on the edge of life and death.
That’s how his swordsmanship was forged.
Experience carved straight from torn flesh and spilled blood.
No way he’d fall for the Fist Emperor’s feints.
The Fist Emperor was special, sure.
But this unfinished version?
In Kang Hyun-soo’s eyes, he was just a promising rookie brimming with potential.
“Huff! Huff! You’d better brace yourself from here on out!”
The moment the Fist Emperor spat those words.
Whoosh!
His power and speed exploded upward.
Boom boom boom boom!
Fists loaded with golden aura unleashed a storm of blows.
‘What the?’
His physical abilities had surged like he’d suddenly gained a massive level-up.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Continuous explosions rang out.
Right now, the Fist Emperor’s stats.
Exceeded Kang Hyun-soo’s.
And through this spar with Kang Hyun-soo, he was growing nonstop.
You could clearly feel him picking up the finer points of fighting a swordsman as a martial artist.
‘Not bad for a rookie.’
As expected of the Fist Emperor.
However.
‘Not quite yet.’
He wasn’t at Kang Hyun-soo’s level.
Thud!
Kang Hyun-soo’s kick sent the Fist Emperor’s right arm flying into the air.
In that opening.
Whoosh!
Kang Hyun-soo’s sword came to rest before the Fist Emperor’s left chest.
“I lose.”
The Fist Emperor readily admitted defeat.
His expression was calm.
But his long ears drooped limply.
The loss had hit him hard.
“Good fight.”
“Yeah, good fight for me too. But, uh…”
The Fist Emperor trailed off in response to Kang Hyun-soo.
“What’s up?”
“Could we spar again sometime?”
The Fist Emperor asked Kang Hyun-soo.
‘He’s fired up.’
His eyes smoldered with quiet flames.
Pure determination to grow stronger and topple Kang Hyun-soo.
“Anytime.”
“Thanks!”
The Fist Emperor’s face lit up.
‘Lost, but I learned a lot.’
The spar with Kang Hyun-soo had taught him plenty.
The one with Song Hana? Not much to take away.
At best, a slight uptick in handling magic swordsmen.
But this was different.
The psychological warfare, built on reading the opponent’s moves—it was masterful.
And despite being a swordsman, he handled martial artists perfectly.
Naturally, it gave the Fist Emperor valuable experience fighting a martial artist-savvy swordsman.
‘If I hadn’t fallen for that feint at the end and eaten that kick?’
He could’ve dragged it out longer.
Regrettable.
Truly regrettable.
Deep down, he wanted to beg for a rematch right away.
But.
‘That’d be rude.’
Kang Hyun-soo was a cut above.
Stats and levels aside, purely in terms of martial prowess.
Sparring him helped the Fist Emperor, but it’d just be a hassle for Kang Hyun-soo.
‘Better to train up a bit more first, then challenge him.’
As the Fist Emperor mulled this over.
Kang Hyun-soo was deep in thought too.
‘He’s hooked on sparring.’
It made sense.
Opportunities to face a swordsmanship master weren’t common.
Kang Hyun-soo’s pure sword skills ranked in the top ten across the entire Atlantis dimension.
“How about tonight?”
“Tonight?”
The Fist Emperor’s face registered shock at Kang Hyun-soo’s words.
“You okay with that?”
He asked, his expression a mix of guilt and anticipation.
“Of course. I was just about to head out hunting anyway. We can spar after.”
“Hunting?”
“Yeah.”
The Fist Emperor’s mind raced.
‘That’s an invite to join his party.’
He’d planned to temporarily join Kang Hyun-soo’s party to repay the debt anyway.
‘No downside for me.’
If he ended up enlisting in the Mura Kingdom army?
He could just leave the party.
“Sounds good!”
Kang Hyun-soo’s lips curled into a sly grin at the Fist Emperor’s reply.
He could read the Fist Emperor’s thoughts like an open book.
‘Come in whenever you want. But leaving? Not so easy—I’ll make sure that sinks in.’
Shiver.
“Huh?”
A sudden chill made the Fist Emperor shudder and cock his head.
But no matter where he looked, no threats lurked.
“Oh, one thing I’m curious about—how’d your physical abilities explode like that all of a sudden?”
“It’s one of my skills. When my stamina drops below 50%, all stats rise 20%.”
The Fist Emperor answered Kang Hyun-soo’s question straightforwardly.
‘A skill like that exists?’
Kang Hyun-soo’s eyes gleamed.
The Fist Emperor was definitely worth keeping around.
His combat prowess alone, plus all those stealable skills.
“Let’s move you to our inn first. Easier to team up if we’re staying together. Sparring’s more convenient too.”
The Fist Emperor beamed and nodded at Kang Hyun-soo’s suggestion.
* * *
Kang Hyun-soo, Song Hana, and the Fist Emperor formed a party and went hunting.
The hunt progressed smoothly.
All three were ace-level players who could carry any party.
With three of them together.
The pace was insanely fast.
‘When’s it gonna drop?’
Kang Hyun-soo kept activating Replica Skill on the Fist Emperor whenever stacks built up.
To snag the skill he’d used in the recent spar.
But it kept whiffing.
Especially annoying: the skills he’d deleted kept coming back instead of the one he wanted.
‘Plenty of time.’
The Fist Emperor was party now.
Stuck together, he’d get it eventually.
As the trio kept hunting.
A unique monster appeared.
A three-headed leopard.
Rooaaar!
The three-headed leopard burst onto the scene with a furious roar, charging at Kang Hyun-soo, Song Hana, and the Fist Emperor.
But.
Slash! Boom! Thud!
Kang Hyun-soo’s sword, Song Hana’s magic skill, and the Fist Emperor’s fist each took a head, turning it into a cold corpse tumbling to the ground in seconds.
‘This’ll do nicely.’
Kang Hyun-soo activated his squad composition skill.
Shimmer.
A mana-constructed three-headed leopard materialized.
At that moment.
“What the hell is this?!”
The Fist Emperor jumped back in alarm.
“It’s a summon from my class skill.”
The Fist Emperor tilted his head at Kang Hyun-soo’s explanation.
“Class skill? Summon? What’re you talking about? Aren’t you a swordsman?”
“Nope. I’m a summoner class.”
The Fist Emperor’s face went blank.
“M-Me? A non-swordsman summoner beat me? And one-on-one, without even summoning anything…”
He muttered in a dazed tone.
The shock was massive.