Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: Skeleton Saber Crushes Black Tortoise Hall
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[Skeleton Saber No. 1 uses Protect Guard.]
Zzzzt!
Boom!
Skeleton Saber No. 1 slammed the expanding kite shield into the ground.
Right after, the blue lightning cross-slash launched by Choi Ki-young collided with the kite shield.
Krunch!
The cross-slash dug into the kite shield, cracking it.
Then the blue lightning carried on the cross-slash wrapped around Skeleton Saber No. 1.
But.
Skeleton Saber No. 1 had already acquired resistance to all attributes above a certain level.
After all, he'd ground down a Rare-grade Ring of Resistance to infuse its options into the bone equipment.
"Not yet!"
Choi Ki-young charged at Skeleton Saber No. 1, who was bracing the kite shield against the ground, and swung his greatsword.
Clang! Clang-clang!
Surprisingly, Choi Ki-young wielded the heavy greatsword lightly, unleashing a flurry of strikes.
It was a trait of his aura attribute.
The blue sparks paralyzed foes while accelerating himself.
That enabled rapid combos like this.
'Still, he's a 4-star Superhuman. Not bad.'
Shin Yu-hyun eyed Choi Ki-young with unexpected approval. He'd thought the guy was all talk, but he had real skill.
In fact, Skeleton Saber No. 1 was barely defending against the onslaught of greatsword strikes.
But.
Thwung!
Suddenly, Skeleton Saber No. 1 repelled Choi Ki-young's attack with his shield in a massive deflection.
"What?"
Choi Ki-young's greatsword flew upward, leaving his front completely exposed.
Skeleton Saber No. 1 didn't miss the opening.
Thud!
Kicking off the ground, Skeleton Saber No. 1 lunged forward.
Armored in heavy bone armor, Skeleton Saber No. 1 rammed his shoulder into Choi Ki-young's chest.
Pang!
But Choi Ki-young's mass-produced barrier coat activated instantly, blocking the attack.
However, it couldn't fully absorb the impact from Skeleton Saber No. 1's charge.
"Guhk!"
Choi Ki-young flew back several meters like a puppet with cut strings.
Skeleton Saber No. 1 then pursued, unleashing Thunder Cloud Steps in rapid succession to close in fast.
Catching up in the blink of an eye, he brought down his bone sword.
Black Tortoise Heavy Sword.
Third Form: Heavy Breaking Slash.
Skeleton Saber No. 1's massive strike plummeted toward Choi Ki-young.
Kwaaang!
Pzzt!
The barrier coat's shield activated, blocking the blow.
But just like with the Shoulder Charge, Skeleton Saber No. 1 smashed Choi Ki-young into the ground along with the barrier.
"Kehek!"
Thus, Choi Ki-young crashed into the dirt of the outdoor training ground and lost consciousness.
"Heavy Breaking Slash?"
"No way... How can a skeleton use martial arts...?"
The Black Tortoise Sword Division members who witnessed it were stunned.
The skeleton had followed up Thunder Cloud Steps with their own Black Tortoise Heavy Sword techniques.
They couldn't believe it.
"N-No way!"
"Senior Choi Ki-young lost?!"
On the other side, they were shocked that Choi Ki-young had been defeated.
They stared back and forth between Skeleton Saber No. 1 and Shin Yu-hyun in astonishment.
To them, Shin Yu-hyun tossed a word with a smile.
"Next."
At that, the Black Tortoise Sword Division members looked doomed.
Like office workers suddenly hit with overtime.
The outdoor training ground of Black Tortoise Hall.
Now, groans close to wails echoed from all around.
After Choi Ki-young, Shin Yu-hyun had pitted Skeleton Saber No. 1 against the Black Tortoise Sword Division members in spars.
But Choi Ki-young was one of the top five in Black Tortoise Hall.
Regular members couldn't beat the Saber No. 1 that had swatted him aside like a fly.
Their morale was in the dirt. They figured they'd lose anyway.
'I dangled the bait, but I didn't expect it to work this well.'
To the unmotivated bunch, Shin Yu-hyun made an outrageous offer.
If they beat Saber No. 1, he'd reward and give vacation to all Black Tortoise Sword Division members.
Of course, one-on-one.
Offended by the provocation, the prideful members took the bait.
Even one-on-one, if everyone fought, they figured they could take down at least one skeleton, no matter how strong.
A skeleton would tire eventually.
So they believed they'd surely bring it down.
And that's exactly what happened.
'Skeletons don't get tired.'
Shin Yu-hyun smirked as he watched the Black Tortoise Sword Division members.
"Get it now? This is your level. You couldn't even beat one skeleton."
"Hall Leader, isn't your skeleton a bit too strong?"
Shin Yu-hyun nodded at the complaint from one member.
"I'll grant you that. My skeletons are definitely stronger than your average necromancer's. But you all ganged up and still lost. No excuses."
"......"
The complaining member clamped his mouth shut at Shin Yu-hyun's words.
He had nothing to say, even with ten mouths.
It was the truth.
'Though I didn't expect them to fail to take down even one.'
Even Shin Yu-hyun was a bit baffled.
Were the Black Tortoise Sword Division members weak, or was Saber No. 1 too strong?
Probably both.
Other halls' members might've taken down one or two Sabers.
At least the Black Tortoise members had fought hard—Saber No. 1 was battered.
His bone shield was long shattered, half his bone armor broken, and his bone sword chipped.
He'd taken damage.
But Shin Yu-hyun had used Repair to fix it in seconds.
"Anyway, now you know how lacking you are. So starting today, special training."
"S-Special training?"
The Black Tortoise Sword Division members looked at Shin Yu-hyun in shock.
"You need to get at least as strong as a skeleton."
"Gasp!"
"No, that's a bit..."
They flinched at his words, recalling the recent opponent.
How much training would it take to match that?
"That's too much!"
"Right, Hall Leader! The skeleton's too strong!"
Grumbles erupted from the Black Tortoise Sword Division members.
Sure enough, Skeleton Saber was upper 4-star level.
Most Black Tortoise Sword Division members were early 3-star Superhumans.
The gap was inevitable.
"If you can't hack it, leave."
Shin Yu-hyun had no intention of coddling them.
He'd give chances, but not drag dead weight.
'They'd just hinder me against the Getia bastards.'
Shin Yu-hyun's goal was revenge and elimination of the Getia who would appear on Earth in five years.
Before that, purge Superhuman villains who become Getia worshippers or humanity's traitors.
To achieve that...
'I need to make the clan mine.'
In his past life, he'd been cast out for lack of talent. This time, he'd devour the clan instead.
That meant reaching the top of Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan.
'I've changed a lot.'
Shin Yu-hyun smirked inwardly.
He'd never dreamed of it before.
Standing at the top of Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan.
First, he needed to bolster Black Tortoise Hall's forces.
The Black Tortoise Sword Division members had to grow stronger.
If they couldn't follow, he'd have no choice.
Expel them from Black Tortoise Hall.
'The tables have turned.'
Shin Yu-hyun chuckled to himself.
Until recently, he'd been the one needing approval from Black Tortoise Hall.
Now, Black Tortoise Hall's swordsmen needed his.
"You know how Black Tortoise Hall has been treated. Mocked by other halls, starved of clan support."
Most of it was because of him. He'd been Hall Leader without even opening his energy channels or reaching 2-star.
Capable people left for better spots, new talented disciples got poached by other halls, and funding was cut.
"I know it's mostly my fault. So hear this: Black Tortoise Hall changes now. I'll make it happen."
There, Shin Yu-hyun declared.
Black Tortoise Hall would change.
"So get stronger than you are now. I don't want a single one of you left behind."
In his past life, Shin Yu-hyun had been abandoned by the clan. He knew that pain better than anyone.
That's why he was giving the Black Tortoise Sword Division members this chance.
And not just that.
"I've already prepared your training regimens."
Shin Yu-hyun handed out printed sheets to each member.
"Th-This is...?"
"How did you...?"
The Black Tortoise Sword Division members stared at Shin Yu-hyun in amazement.
The sheets listed personalized training for their weaknesses and improvements.
He'd known them from his past life.
Plus, Commander's Eye let him scan their stats and skills.
Based on that, he'd prepped custom regimens.
'He was watching us?'
Seeing their unique menus, the members felt a swell of emotion amid the surprise.
"You are Black Tortoise Hall's pillars. I expect you to grow stronger."
Each hall's core was the sword divisions of Superhumans who raided dungeons.
Halls ran on byproducts from those raids—mana stones, magic beast corpses.
Especially profits from 4-star or higher raid dungeons were immense.
The clan's emphasis on sword divisions was obvious.
Raids also reduced magic beast threats.
"Understood!"
"Leave it to us!"
Hearing Shin Yu-hyun's expectations fired them up.
'Too bad I can't use the Tower of Trials for training.'
Shin Yu-hyun inwardly sighed watching their enthusiasm.
He'd planned to train them there, but the tower required a transfer ring to enter.
Only he could go back and forth.
At least he could store summons in his shadow.
'Anyway, if I drill them hard, they'll get stronger.'
Shin Yu-hyun eyed the Black Tortoise Sword Division members.
Consistent training per the menu would make them far stronger.
"Shin Yu-hyun! Where's Shin Yu-hyun?!"
Suddenly, a voice calling for Shin Yu-hyun rang out in the outdoor training ground.
At the sound, Shin Yu-hyun and the Black Tortoise Sword Division members turned.
And saw him.
Explosive Sword Shin Cheol-jin, face flushed red with fury, searching for Shin Yu-hyun.