Chapter 275
Chapter 275
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 275
Chapter Title: Gears of Thunder and Lightning
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After meeting Ye-ryeong and Si-woo, the time Lee Soo-hyuk spent with them was none other than sparring.
The two possessed the skill to withstand all of Soo-hyuk's abilities.
During that time, Soo-hyuk honed his battle instincts and tried to grasp his own powers.
By the end of each sparring session, Soo-hyuk collapsed, utterly exhausted.
It was unavoidable due to the nature of his Lightning skill. Especially today, Soo-hyuk repeatedly lost consciousness, collapsed, and got back up several times.
By his side was Si-woo.
"Awake?"
Without any movement or sound from Soo-hyuk, Si-woo noticed like a ghost.
"......How long?"
"About three hours."
"Slept a long time."
"Was that sleep? You passed out."
Unable to argue, Soo-hyuk gauged Si-woo's expression.
A slightly singed face.
It was the first time.
The singe meant he'd succeeded in piercing through the armor Si-woo had created.
"You pierced it."
"Catch up to twenty years in no time. Annoying."
Si-woo and Ye-ryeong had grown stronger relentlessly for twenty years.
Breaking through the 8th floor trial was long ago, and they never stopped hunting. They constantly sparred with each other to sharpen their skills.
'I thought I was progressing steadily......'
Si-woo glanced at Soo-hyuk, feeling a subtle dread.
The path he'd walked steadily was now being chased from behind by Soo-hyuk. The difference was that while Si-woo had walked slowly, Soo-hyuk was sprinting at terrifying speed.
And what made it possible was none other than the new things Soo-hyuk had acquired.
"Side effects must've reduced a lot."
Si-woo handed him a water bottle. Soo-hyuk shook his dizzy head, sat up, and drank.
"Yeah. Now it feels real."
He poured cold water over his feverish head, but Soo-hyuk's eyes still burned fiercely.
"Of course, the output increases accordingly, which is the problem."
"Is that a problem?"
"Who knows."
Mumbling uncertainly, Soo-hyuk placed his hand on his chest.
"Still too early to tell."
Thunder and lightning.
And two hearts.
These meshed like gears. Soo-hyuk was, in a way, the machinist turning them.
'How far can this go.'
He needed to raise output while reducing side effects. Even a single misalignment of the gears would amplify the strain on his body.
Especially the second heart.
The Thunder heart imposed far greater burden.
'It's completely different in use from the Lightning heart.'
Unlike the Lightning heart that stabilized lightning, the Thunder heart focused purely on explosive power.
Of course, the bodily strain was inevitably greater.
'The ideal form is them beating in sync.'
Like perfectly matched gears, the two hearts pulsing at the same rhythm.
After countless tests sparring with Si-woo, that proved most optimal.
It allowed the Lightning heart to suppress the rampaging Thunder heart's burden, harnessing its output with minimal strain.
Even during breaks, Soo-hyuk mentally turned the gears. How to increase stability, how to boost output.
How to pierce Si-woo's armor.
After a long rest catching his breath, Soo-hyuk stood first.
"Again."
Si-woo looked up at the sky in surprise.
"No clouds?"
"Yeah."
[Second Gear Ignited]
[Hot-blooded pulse]
"This time, a bit different."
Uncheongeuk suddenly felt as if his opponent's heartbeat echoed in his ears.
The atmosphere shifted. Not a change in expression or aura.
Nothing had changed. If anything, just the illusory pulse.
But his instincts screamed.
'Dangerous.'
The instincts honed through countless brushes with death. Uncheongeuk trusted them above all.
Shuuuak-.
Soo-hyuk lowered his stance and closed the distance right then.
A noticeably faster speed.
What startled Uncheongeuk most was the lightning output surging at his sword tip.
[Iryongseom (Twin Dragon Flash)]
[Dual blue lightning strikes from both sides]
Two flashes, blue lightning flying simultaneously from left and right.
An interval too fast to block even one.
Instead of swinging individually, Uncheongeuk unleashed another technique.
[Ssangryongbicheon (Twin Dragons Flying to Heaven)]
[Sword strikes rising from below like dragons soaring skyward]
Two dragons soaring heavenward, sword strikes erupting from below upward.
Lightning clashed with sword strikes, forcing Uncheongeuk a step back. His hand tingled from the impact.
'This......'
Kwadudud-.
The technique to block Soo-hyuk's lightning-wreathed sword crumbled. No special skill—just pure power overwhelming it.
'Destructive.'
Swords collided, thunder booming on the ground. Each clash of Uncheongeuk's sword aura and Soo-hyuk's lightning scattered energy everywhere.
Their battle ravaged the Tang Clan grounds. Though warriors sworn to protect the clan, they could only watch.
No one in the current Tang Clan could intervene in Uncheongeuk and Soo-hyuk's fight.
They had eyes and had witnessed Tang warriors dying by Uncheongeuk's hand.
Kwang-!
The two clashed again. After a prolonged standoff, Uncheongeuk's body flew, smashing through the manor wall.
Something flashed, soaring again. To their eyes, it was a straight line.
Another clash from the ruined wall. Each flash birthed thunder, red sword aura slicing the overhead clouds.
A dazzling battle, blindingly brilliant.
Unlike Ye-ryeong's epitome of stealth, their fight was the opposite.
And those with eyes could see which way the tide was turning.
"The Divine Lotus Castle Lord......"
"H-He’s being pushed back?"
Unbelievable.
Who was the Divine Lotus Castle Lord?
A figure with skill and influence surpassing even the Murim Alliance Leader. Even Poison King Tang Paegun, king of Sacheon, yielded several moves to him.
The swordsman closest to the pinnacle of modern Murim, beyond the Alliance Leader, under Jindo-ha. That was Shinryeon Castle's master, Uncheongeuk.
Yet Uncheongeuk was being pushed. A sight hard to believe even seeing it.
Thwack-.
Soo-hyuk's form leaped upward. Uncheongeuk laid his sword sideways, naturally preparing defense.
But.
Kurur-.
Thunder rumbled overhead.
Uncheongeuk, expecting an overhead sword swing, realized his misjudgment.
'Spear?'
Chijiji-.
Soo-hyuk floated above, stepping on air, manifesting a spear at point-blank range.
Too close for a sword, he’d assumed.
Kwaung-!
The incoming spear exploded like a thunderbolt, engulfing Uncheongeuk. He instinctively summoned his protective aura.
Kuuu-.
"Kuh."
The ground swept by the spear cratered deeply, charred black.
Thanks to the aura, no penetration, but visible residual lightning crackled on Uncheongeuk's body.
No time to recover or regroup.
Soo-hyuk, gaining distance, prepared more spears. To counter the raining lightning, Uncheongeuk swung relentlessly.
Kwang, kwarang, kwang-!
Tsutsutsutsu-.
Lightning fired, offset by aura-infused sword. Chopping down eye-blurring bolts individually—Uncheongeuk's skill was divine, yet he broke a sweat.
Drip-.
'This is that streamer?'
His initial interest in Soo-hyuk stemmed from Unhyang.
The streamer managed by the Unhyang he sought. Coincidentally named Lee Soo-hyuk, like the dead one.
Until recently, just an exceptionally talented streamer. Watching his rapid climb, he'd anticipated meeting someday.
Shocked hearing Lee Soo-hyuk the streamer and Unhyang turned Shinryeon upside down, but thought it just that.
Yet.
"Don't mistake me. I'm not the rookie streamer you think."
As if the dead Lee Soo-hyuk had truly returned.
'Real or not, ridiculous either way.'
Tsutsutsutsu-.
His feet slid back under the barrage. Stance wavering, shock traveled sword to arm.
Uncheongeuk didn't believe anger made one stronger. Quite the opposite.
Anger dulled reason, hastened movements. True warriors needed cool clarity like a mirror-still pond.
But now, he felt a crack in that belief.
Then what was this?
A man whose heart raced seeing dead warriors, growing this strong.
'No.'
Kwarung-!
Splitting the final bolt, he glared at Soo-hyuk overlooking from beyond.
Having unleashed all lightning, Soo-hyuk descended. Seeing sweat beads on Soo-hyuk's forehead, Uncheongeuk's mind cooled sharply.
'Nothing like that.'
Momentarily flustered by the onslaught, he quickly assessed calmly.
Not hard upon reflection.
Not just this Lee Soo-hyuk, but the old one had the same weakness.
"You're overexerting."
Twitch-.
Uncheongeuk's lips curled seeing Soo-hyuk's brow twitch faintly.
"As I thought."
"......"
Soo-hyuk didn't answer.
Kwajijiji-.
Instead, denying it, he stepped forward, crushing the ground. Overflowing blue lightning flaunted its might.
No reply. Silence usually meant affirmation, but not from Soo-hyuk.
......Was he truly overexerting?
Uncertain, but one thing clear.
No longer could he dismiss him as mere streamer.
Gooo-.
Uncheongeuk revealed his reserved aura, crimson eyes flashing.
"One question."
"......"
"If I kill you here, will my daughter come for me?"
To that question, Soo-hyuk sensed a shift in Uncheongeuk.
'He's changed.'
First killing intent since the fight began.
Uncheongeuk rarely harbored it, able to kill without. A sword swung to kill differed utterly.
The real fight started now. And battling the real deal was among Soo-hyuk's deepest desires.
"Find out."
Drop-.
Rain began falling.
Once started, it intensified rapidly.
Shwaaa-.
Just as the two moved again.
Kugugugu-.
Far off, at the Tang Clan's heart.
Tremendous mana surged from the collapsed guest hall. Even visually, shrouded in hazy green-black poison smoke.
Both intuited simultaneously.
The battle there had reached its conclusion.