Chapter 181
Chapter 181
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 181
Chapter Title: Aki Punch Champion
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“The Manaheart is broadly classified into six lineages.”
Celine began her explanation of the five lineages of the Manaheart first.
Lightning Strike.
Three Powers.
Five Elements.
Taiji.
Cloud Dragon.
Aki’s face, already proven to be none too bright, twisted into a grimace. As if she’d been waiting for just that, Celine flashed a grin.
“But our Cheonhwa Sect doesn’t need to worry about any of that complicated crap. We’re the Extreme Yang Reinforcement type. We use the Manaheart in the simplest way possible.”
“Aki, oooo!”
“Just pour it in, and you’re done. All that power you’ve built up, right into this fist.”
* * *
“Aki Punch.”
Mana power that originated from the heart and circulated through the body converged at the tip of her fist.
Zero-distance strike.
The sequence of movements became a massive surge of force, exploding out through her fist. Flames swirled like a storm around the impact point where the fist had landed.
“······?!”
“······?!”
“······?!”
Everyone in the arena fell silent at once.
Even Rain couldn’t close his mouth.
The Cheonhwa Sect disciple caught in the fiery storm flew through the barrier separating the arena from the outside, slamming right into the edge of the first-floor stairs.
“O-one punch……?”
The faces of those who’d witnessed the unbelievable sight turned pale.
“Taking out a Cheonhwa Sect disciple in one punch……?”
“And Cheonhwa isn’t just any sect—it’s right below the Six Great Sects……?”
Victory with a single punch.
It was the absolute law of power that had stirred ronin hearts since time immemorial.
But, no, but……
“And with that! Aki takes the win in the first round of the preliminaries, boldly entering the inner lighthouse of Palaseiom!”
The moment Aki’s face—still shaking off the blazing flames from her fist—filled the Thousand Li Eye screen, these letters appeared below it.
[W-I-N-N-E-R]
The announcer raised Aki’s hand high, thrusting a voice-amplifying magic tool toward her at the same time.
“Aki, what’s the name of that insane technique you just unleashed?!”
Before her master—now the sect leader—Celine could rush over and answer, Aki spoke up.
“Aki Punch.”
“Aki Punch?”
“Aki Punch.”
“The technique’s name is…… pfft, Aki Punch?”
“Aki Punch.”
“Yes, hard as it is to believe…… that was the Cheonhwa Sect’s technique, Aki Punch!”
The spectators, and even the representatives from the various sects, couldn’t accept this reality. No, they refused to.
“It was luck.”
“Yeah, just a fluke from reading his movements.”
“There’s no way someone who’s only trained four months can pull off Cheonhwa’s ultimate secret art.”
But…… that denial of reality came to an end once all the first-round matches finished. The results of the second, third, and fourth rounds inside Palaseiom were.
“Prepare yourself, I──!”
“─Aki Punch.”
“The foes you’ve faced so far were all weaklings, but this body has mastered the White Bone Sect’s secrets──!”
“─Aki Punch.”
“Hmph, as long as that fist doesn’t hit, my Thirty-Six Stratagems of the Twin Wheel Demon Sect──!”
“─Aki Punch.”
Aki Punch striking in every match!
The terrifying, brutal power that sent even the Six Great Sects’ later-generation disciples crashing into the inner lighthouse barrier with a single blow.
The crowd started with awe.
“Wow, insane! All one-punch KOs!”
“No matter what the opponent does, it ends with one fist?!”
“The satisfaction of watching is unreal!”
By the fifth round, they were starting to go mad.
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
“Aki, she’s a dragon?! Aki, she’s a dragon?! Aki, she’s a dragon?! Aki, she’s a dragon?!”
Yes. They had lost their minds.
To ronin, calling someone a dragon was the highest praise.
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
“A! Ki! Punch! A! Ki! Punch! A! Ki! Punch! A! Ki! Punch!”
Amid the relentless chants of “Aki Punch” that threatened to flood the arena like the sea, Rain blinked in a daze.
No……
Isn’t this getting too strong?
After confirming even the council witches couldn’t identify Aki, Valensidis had said.
“I pondered that line, ‘Aki, she’s a dragon?’ quite deeply.”
“Thinking, thinking, thinking.”
“Don’t think.”
“Putting a true dragon in a human martial arts tournament feels a bit off, doesn’t it?”
“No, it doesn’t.”
“Indeed, indeed, indeed.”
“I see.”
“Yeah. But I do have one worry. Won’t everyone recognize Aki now wherever she goes? It’s gonna be a huge hassle.”
“If the All-World Martial Tournament still had its old prestige, sure.”
“Not anymore?”
“The Red City <Shuriganaqius> is holding a separate Southern Republic All-World Martial Tournament. They call it the Bloodbath Battle…… Most sects with dojos on the Adrion Continent aren’t even showing up, except a few.”
“<Shuriganaqius>…….”
<Shuriganaqius> was a city in the central Adrion Continent, the holy site of the blood sun, Shurigan.
They’d always competed with <Terbenopl>, claiming superiority, but for things to escalate this far……
Misreading the worry on Rain’s face, Valensidis shrugged.
“Still, not a bad call. This way, the name Aki of Cheonhwa Sect will spread across the Adrion Continent to some extent.”
“Oh.”
“Don’t you get it? Just having the sect’s signature robes and wooden necklace proves her identity to a degree.”
Oh, that’d be super convenient.
Up until now, with no way to prove her identity, he’d even had to dye her hair red.
They’d gotten through <Terbenopl>’s gates thanks to Celine’s mediation, but they were parting ways with her in this city.
“If she wins, that tournament seal engraved on the necklace would make it perfect.”
“Yeah. Your little hatchling’s grown enough now that one identity won’t cover you both.”
While chatting with Valensidis, Aki’s Aki Punches kept landing whenever her turn came.
One after another.
By the time ten young ronin had been eliminated by her one-punch KOs, only two names remained on the bracket.
“Yes, finally, the moment you’ve all been waiting for—the finals of this year’s All-World Martial Tournament Youth Division!”
And so, Aki ascended to the rooftop of the heavenly Palaseiom Lighthouse.
The instant her face appeared on the screen, cheers exploded from the stands.
The announcer shoved the voice-amplifying magic tool at her once more.
“Aki, any aspirations ahead of the finals?”
Aki rubbed her belly and replied weakly.
“Aki’s hungry…….”
Rain realized with a start. Yeah, her stomach clock was about to hit.
But oddly, the crowd’s reaction to that was scorching hot, like the world itself might melt.
“Aki Puuuuunch!”
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
Even the top ronin who’d viewed Aki through colored lenses up to now slapped their foreheads at that statement!
“Speechless! Climbing to the top on legends alone, yet still starving for victory?!”
No……
That’s not it.
“A true immersion in victory, a profound agony…… That’s the mindset a martial artist dreaming of transcendence should have. Take notes.”
No.
She’s just really hungry.
“Yes, Master!”
Don’t look so starry-eyed, guys.
The announcer delivered the finishing blow to the wave of misconceptions.
“Yes, Aki’s hunger for victory is truly ferocious!”
Woooooooooah!
Amid the earth-shaking cheers, the announcer offered the magic tool to her opponent—the disciple in blue robes from Suun Sect—asking for his aspirations.
“Hmph, I’ll prove that fool’s just been lucky with matchups.”
That bastard dares……?
The dismissive posture toward Aki grated on Rain’s nerves.
“Show him, Aki. Let that lowly human feel a true dragon’s power…….”
Valensidis and Pipi shot him goggle-eyed looks.
“Back to that abyss-gazing dark wizard stare, Rain Ludwig.”
“Shut it.”
“Got it.”
The world-shaking roar faded, and the finals began.
The flow was the same.
The opponent charged at Aki with footwork first, and her fist nailed the opening perfectly.
“……?!”
But this time, the result was different.
Her heart-amplified fist clearly connected, explosive currents surged……
“Heh.”
……only for the Suun Sect disciple’s body to suddenly turn to mist and scatter?
Aki’s eyes widened.
Seizing the inevitable opening from an attack—right in Aki’s midsection—he drove his foot in!
“Hyah!”
“Gah!”
Martial artists’ cheers erupted here and there.
“Ooh, that’s……!”
“Suun Sect’s secret art, Cloud Dragon Body Step……?!”
Cloud Dragon Body Step.
A secret technique of Suun Sect, said to let one turn their body to mist and escape even under a dragon’s flames at its pinnacle.
“Hahaha! I told you! She’s just had good matchups!”
Suun Sect’s fist art then hammered Aki.
Unable to watch Aki take a hit, Rain squeezed his eyes shut.
Aki’s Aki Punch landed again, but the situation repeated.
“A-Aki…… she’s getting cornered. Pushed to the edge……!”
Amid Suun Sect’s onslaught, Aki pursed her lips, showing clear displeasure.
“Ugh…….”
She wanted to end this quick and see Daddy, eat some food, but it wouldn’t wrap up.
She thought.
And realized. The other secret technique Celine had taught her, named—
“─Aki Marking.”
Rain lacked deep knowledge of Cheonhwa martial arts. But he knew what that move Aki just used was.
“The mark Celine used……?”
Instead of her usual right hand for Aki Punch, she thrust out her left. Flames surged before it, forming a circle.
“W-what’s that……?!”
“Cheonhwa’s secret, Fire Shadow Mark……?!”
“No way, how’s a kid like that……!”
As ronin doubted their eyes, Aki slammed her fifth Aki Punch into the mark.
“A-ki Punch.”
Cataclysm.
Flames beyond description engulfed the lighthouse rooftop, dying even the Thousand Li Eye blood-red.
The true essence of Cheonhwa Fist Art, wielded by masters at the peak.
Specialized for zero-distance combat, it was a reactive fist art that shone only up close.
To elevate that power to another level, past leaders devised a new application.
Create a mana-amplified mark at fist’s reach, then amplify and detonate any Cheonhwa Fist power touching it into a force that obliterates everything ahead.
To dodge, one had to move sideways fast, not backward.
“G-gah……?!”
But overwhelmed by this absolute power, the Suun disciple instinctively used Cloud Dragon Body Step backward……
And was swallowed by the dragon’s breath that vaporized even mist, devouring all in front.
The moment the transcendent flames cleared, the boy was pinned against the semicircular rooftop barrier.
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
Aki withdrew her flickering fist and straightened her stance. She offered a fist salute to her fated rival from Suun Sect.
A moment of silence passed.
The announcer rushed over, raising her hand high.
“Yes, claiming the Youth Division championship of this All-World Martial Tournament undefeated…… it’s Cheonhwa Sect’s Aki!”
Cheers shattered the silence like never before.
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
“Aki! She’s a dragon! Aki! She’s a dragon! Aki! She’s a dragon! Aki! She’s a dragon! Aki! She’s a dragon!”
“A! Ki! Punch! A! Ki! Punch! A! Ki! Punch! A! Ki! Punch!”
“Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch! Aki Punch!”
Rain stared at the scene with an almost expressionless face. His own felt like it might burst from flushing heat.
“Hey, Valensidis.”
“What.”
“I can’t even be happy because of you. How do I deal with this conscience-pricking feeling, like a needle gouging it?”
“Surprisingly, you’ve got a conscience. Even after massacring your 1388th batch classmates with that skill and strutting around.”
“Who says I didn’t?”
“True.”
“Yeah.”
The awards ceremony began then, and the Alliance Chief of the Northern Republic’s Martial God Alliance stepped forward.
Even the Martial God Alliance had split by continent, it seemed. Though the Six Great Sects still transcended continents.
The chief personally placed the laurel wreath on Aki’s head, offering blessings.
“To gain such a great talent, Cheonhwa Sect’s future looks bright indeed.”
The wreath turned to light, landing in Master Celine’s hand.
She’d gift it to Aki differently later.
Amid 30,000 cheers, Aki looked puzzled, then spotted Rain’s direction and beamed.
That’s when even the old masters—who’d been stroking their beards all stern—lost it completely.
“Aki! Take my grandson! Bear a strapping boy and revive our sect!”
“No, take my son!”
“What nonsense! Aki, I offer myself! Come to this old man’s bosom!”
“What the hell, man? That monk’s lost it!”
Rain shot to his feet, a combustion barrier array forming in his palm, but Pipi immediately pecked his temple to calm him.
“…….”
Valensidis shook his head while eating the last melon slice. Then murder gleamed in his eyes.
“Rain Ludwig.”
“I know.”
Valensidis hurled his plate aside, gripping the fan at his waist—Kashasur—and stood.
Blood smell……
Someone reeking of sewer rot and blood was climbing the sliding door to the deck.
“Hm……?”
A lightly armored swordswoman, evoking Miria for a moment.
Panting like she might collapse any second, she spotted them and exhaled in relief.
What she said wasn’t “Help me” or “Save me.”
“I’ll tell you a secret──”
Before she could reveal what secret, just as she tried to speak, a stifled scream escaped as both her knees buckled.
Her convulsing body turned blue-black from the neck down.
Rain panicked more at the sudden mana reaction of ‘that guy’ than the scene itself.
“Rain Ludwig!”
“I know, Bell Quirius!”
01010010101.
Opening his red-enhanced sight, he spotted the deathly mana spreading from her throat across her body.
The grotesque, wriggling form……
Unforgettable since Harbadonia—the mana of Zernix.
Instant reversal.
Reversal verification.
Formula substitution.
Rite nullification.
He had to complete the ability interference in a brain-blinding instant. Or she’d die.
‘I’ve definitely seen this before.’
Not just similar—the exact same form and texture.
Where was it?
Right, in <Oltaris>.
Miria had the identical rite, 100% match, and he’d erased it. Even the position was the same.
“Zernix, it’s Zernix. He’s nearby. He planted this, so he’s close.”
This bastard tracked us here? Breathing hard, he scanned the area frantically.
Witches and soldiers on alert had all turned to the ceremony, missing the swordswoman’s affliction.
Valensidis shook his head, dismissing Rain’s guess lightly.
“No.”
He cradled the fallen swordswoman, laying her comfortably and casting a healing rite on her discolored skin.
“This isn’t that kind of rite.”
“What?”
“I told you. True Slayers have marks. What you just erased was probably a true Slayer’s mark.”
A skull-scraping unease—like the words didn’t add up.
True Slayers were Link’s descendants, right? Then how, why Zernix’s magic?
Then, tears welled in the swordswoman’s unfocused eyes.
“H-help…… please…… you guys…… you solved…… the Red Mountains incident…….”
Rain and Valensidis exchanged stunned glances.
How does she know that?
The answer came right away.
“No one…… else but you…… Miria…… might die…….”