Chapter 136
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: Nothing Will Happen
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Thud!
‘Ha, just this much…….’
The moment he was struck by her delicate, jade-like hand.
Bellos twisted his lips slightly.
Unlike the overwhelming momentum that had shaken the very air, as if something catastrophic was about to unfold, the power contained in her hand had been far too light.
Of course, it was thanks to the 『Bare-Handed Attack Nullification』 he'd just used.
In any case, having nullified Li Chingwei's attack, he no longer needed to be wary of her.
That was what he thought.
『Bare-Handed Attack Nullification』
Thud!
The spot on his chest where Li Chingwei's hand had made contact.
Before he knew it, a black lotus mark had been etched there, and one petal detached, sending a heavy shock through his chest that left it aching—right up until that moment.
But that was only the beginning.
Thud, thud, thud!
“Kuh?!”
With each petal that fell.
The black lotus grew ever clearer.
Proportionate to it, the intensifying shocks rattled his organs and made his joints creak.
And so, the moment all eight petals finally scattered and the black lotus mark seeped deep into his body.
Boom!
“Keurgh!”
Bellos spewed blood and collapsed.
It was because the eight petals that had burrowed into his five viscera and six bowels resonated with each other, triggering an enormous explosion.
They had amplified his already boosted psionics through resonance, detonating them all at once in his body's vital points.
If his body hadn't been strengthened through 『Constellation Descent』?
And if most of the impact hadn't been nullified thanks to 『Bare-Handed Attack Nullification』?
His organs being shredded would have been the least of it.
It wouldn't have been strange if his entire body had exploded outright—a terrifying attack.
“Hm, looks like it fell a bit short with the Eight Extreme Fists. Should I have gone with the Six Harmonies Fists after all?”
The girl muttered nonchalantly, as if she hadn't just unleashed that horrifying blow.
Bellos ground his teeth and shouted at Li Chingwei.
“You…… monster……!”
“Calling me a monster? That's a bit harsh for a delicate girl like me.”
Li Chingwei smiled sweetly.
Seeing her, Bellos shuddered.
It wasn't just because of the superhuman power he'd bone-deep realized from that previous strike.
The moment he saw those dull eyes, chilly with nothing but cold detachment despite her beaming smile, he understood.
This victory was a given for Li Chingwei—nothing worth celebrating.
There had been no chance of winning from the start.
Not even for his own fate.
‘No, not yet!’
Before despair could overwhelm him.
Amid the stabbing pain stimulating his mind, Bellos steadied his faltering resolve and focused his spirit.
He was a specter of the Liberation Brigade, blessed by great protection. He wasn't so frail as to despair over something like this.
‘This much is within expected parameters.’
Considering the Seven Dragon Society's notoriety.
He'd known from the start this could happen.
That's why they'd painstakingly targeted affiliates in a way uncharacteristic of them, weakening Leviathan as much as possible before launching the assault.
Of course, killing Li Chingwei would have been ideal, but if impossible, a fallback was necessary.
‘Then what I need to do is…….’
Even as he vomited blood like a waterfall, he fiercely organized his thoughts for a moment.
The moment priorities were set.
Bellos sprang into action.
『Public Transportation Act, Enacted!』
Fwoosh!
It all happened in an instant.
The moment Bellos grabbed a nearby fallen banner and activated his skill.
The banner floated into the air, carrying his body on it as it shot away from Li Chingwei like the wind.
[Huh!?]
Yuna Kyung's eyes widened.
As Bellos flew off on the banner, he reached out with one hand and snatched something up.
The case containing Heart Darkness's violin that Li Chingwei had dropped mid-fight.
As if he had no further business there.
[That guy…… is he seriously grabbing it and running now?!]
Seeing Bellos clutching the case and rocketing vertically down the hallway without a backward glance, Yuna Kyung was dumbfounded.
She hadn't expected the arrogant bastard to tuck tail and flee like this.
“Oh dear, he had a workaround like that.”
[Princess sis, what are you doing?! Hurry and chase him! What if he slips away with spatial movement?!]
“I'd love to, but I can't chase him quickly right now.”
[Huh?]
“I'm under the restriction of 『High-Speed Action Prohibited』.”
[……Huh? Didn't that restriction lift?]
Unlike Yuna Kyung, who was dying of impatience, Li Chingwei hopped along leisurely after Bellos, prompting Yuna Kyung to gape in shock.
Li Chingwei was indeed moving slowly, but she hadn't realized it was due to restrictions.
“No, the restrictions are still fully in place.”
[Then how are you moving now? It's not like only 『Bipedal Walking Prohibited』 vanished…….]
“Because I'm not walking on two feet.”
[Huh?]
Yuna Kyung blinked in confusion, wondering what nonsense this was.
But she soon realized.
Li Chingwei's bizarre hopping motion—so natural she'd overlooked it until now.
[Wait, don't tell me you're hopping on one foot so it doesn't trigger the restrictions?!]
“Something like that.”
[That makes no sense?!]
Yuna Kyung was at a loss for words.
It was unbelievable that 『Rule of Law』, a skill comparable to absolute skills, was foiled by such wordplay.
“It does make sense.”
But Li Chingwei answered innocently.
Precisely because it was 『Rule of Law』, not some other skill, it could be bypassed with such tricks.
“『Rule of Law』 is certainly a tricky skill. It can produce all sorts of effects, and most notably, it forces your self-defined laws on the opponent.”
Attack, defense, support, healing, etc.
Few skills could achieve every effect.
In that regard, the versatile 『Rule of Law』 clearly outshone other unique skills.
“But from what I've seen, it has many glaring weaknesses proportional to its power.”
[Weaknesses?]
“First off, why did he take my attack almost defenselessly?”
[Uh…… because you hit him so well?]
“Normally, yes, but even though I'm restricted and can't move quickly?”
[Now that you mention it, yeah. Why didn't he block it?]
Yuna Kyung tilted her head.
With restrictions preventing quick movement, Li Chingwei's attack shouldn't have been that hard to block.
“Probably the same reason he kept floating in the air earlier.”
The moment she heard Li Chingwei.
Yuna Kyung's eyes widened.
Recalling when Bellos had started levitating.
A thought popped into her head unbidden.
[No way, because of 『High-Speed Action Prohibited』 and 『Bipedal Walking Prohibited』? His own skill restricted him too?!]
“Laws are equal by nature.”
Unless you bribed the skill itself, no one could do what the law prohibited. It was only natural.
Li Chingwei stated simply.
Yuna Kyung groaned at her.
[Then not using 『Spatial Movement Prohibited』 from the start when chasing me, and fleeing by flight on purpose?]
“Blocking spatial movement would cut off his own escape. He'd avoid it unless desperate.”
[So he imposed it but couldn't release the skill easily later…… Yeah, that's why he couldn't slap restrictions on lightly.]
“Yes, that would be the second flaw.”
If you had to follow your own rules without easy revocation?
A significant drawback.
[……I never knew 『Rule of Law』 had so many loopholes.]
“It has to.”
Yuna Kyung was stunned by the unexpected vulnerabilities in 『Rule of Law』, the cheat-like unique skill of the legendary player, the Archduke of Justice.
Li Chingwei spoke leisurely to her.
“No matter how well you craft laws, loopholes always remain.”
[Coming from you, Princess Sis, that really hits home…….]
The seventh princess of the criminal syndicate Seven Dragon Society.
One of the owners of Seven Dragon Group, which controlled the world's wealth.
In matters of illegality and bending rules, she was the ultimate expert. Yuna Kyung was impressed.
Exploiting 『Rule of Law』's loopholes so cleverly, and analyzing someone's unique skill that deeply from mere clues.
At this point, Bellos—who'd been toyed with and fled—seemed almost pitiable, purely because he'd faced Li Chingwei.
But that thought didn't last.
Yuna Kyung snapped to attention.
[Wait, no! This isn't the time for casual skill breakdowns! Hurry and catch him!]
“Should I?”
[Why ask the obvious? He took Team Leader's violin! What if he gets away?!]
Yuna Kyung stomped her feet.
After all that chaos, losing the violin would make them the dog that lost the chicken.
“Nothing will happen, probably.”
[Exactly! Nothing will…… Huh?]
Yuna Kyung gaped at the nonchalant reply.
Li Chingwei smiled at her.
“Forgot? This is Leviathan.”
Li Chingwei looked up slightly.
Gazing at Bellos, who was finally escaping the underwater palace on his banner, she continued softly.
“You can enter Leviathan easily enough, but leaving whenever you please? Not so much.”
“『Emergency Welfare Support Act, Enacted.』”
“『Medical Protection Act, Enacted.』”
Bellos, vomiting blood in gulps, rasped for breath but barely managed to activate his healing skills.
Fortunately, they worked.
The blood coughs mixed with organ bits lessened, and strength slowly returned to his immobilized body.
But that was it.
The pain as if his viscera were shredded remained, and he could barely move.
Li Chingwei's strike had inflicted that much critical damage.
‘What a shitty situation.’
Bellos muttered inwardly.
He could handle facing a monarch, maybe.
But getting wrecked by some Seven Dragon Society princess from a millennium ago?
If Ryu Gangcheol saw this, he'd die vomiting blood from shame, not wounds.
‘Still, the mission isn't a failure yet.’
His sole consolation: the case in his arm.
Escape with this, and he could endure the humiliation of defeat.
For Liberation Brigade specters under great protection, the top priority was always the mission from above.
‘All that's left is escaping…….’
Bellos judged quickly.
With 『High-Speed Action Prohibited』 still binding her, Li Chingwei would take time to catch up.
Plenty of leeway to flee Leviathan.
The problem was after.