Chapter 87
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Two Kill Technique
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Ma Gwang-su had created this new technique based on the First Sight Kill swordsmanship. True to its simple name—"fight and kill"—its structure was equally straightforward.
Observe the opponent, then reflexively exploit their attacks and openings. A kind of automatic offense that unleashed strikes and evasions on pure instinct.
For anyone lacking experience or observational skills, it was a finicky technique perfect for getting yourself killed in a blunder. But...
Two Kill Technique
...there was no technique more perfectly suited to Lee Se-hun, who had devoted himself entirely to executing every motion with maximum efficiency.
'Residual Net...!'
As Lee Se-hun burst through the net and charged back across the lake, Willi panicked but swiftly shifted his attack pattern.
Kwarrr!
Wooden roots surged up from beneath the water once more.
Their trajectories were utterly simple, but the real threat lay in the 'lotus stems' entwined around them.
Pang!
The lotus stems whipped out in every direction like lashes.
Individually weaker than the roots, they were less likely to create footholds or clash to expose gaps—and above all, their power was perfectly calibrated.
'No matter how great his penetration, his stamina has limits.'
Even if these stems were severed, they could regenerate in an instant. But if even one grazed Lee Se-hun, his stance would falter or stiffen.
In a scenario where he effectively faced dozens or hundreds alone, getting tangled up like this would drain his stamina until his physical abilities reverted to normal—then suppression would be trivial.
Just as Willi grew confident in his strategy...
Whoosh!
Lee Se-hun's body pierced the lotus stems in the blink of an eye.
With subtle tilts of his head, shifts of his shoulders, or minute adjustments to his torso, attacks missed him by a paper's thickness. When evasion seemed impossible, he sliced only a few rather than fully parrying.
Slice—
The half-severed or curved stems bent in the precise 'directions' Lee Se-hun desired, tangling together to clear his path once more.
Willi stared in horror at the unbelievable sight, plain as day.
'He... predicted all my attacks?'
His movements were so precise it felt like he was adjusting to Lee Se-hun's rhythm.
Not only did he dodge the strikes, but he anticipated the phenomena they caused and moved accordingly. Willi couldn't even guess how many moves ahead he was seeing.
Slice!
Breaking through the stems, Lee Se-hun severed a single root and dashed atop it.
At its tip, he blasted mana from his soles with explosive force and leaped.
Kwaaaang!!!
His body shot toward the sacred tree like a single arrow.
Puk!
The blade of Five-Colored Flame Blade sank effortlessly into the sacred tree's trunk, tougher than steel. Willi flinched at the cutting power for a split second, then smirked as he grasped the situation.
'Fool. What do you think you're going to do with that...'
No matter how sharp the sword, it couldn't overcome the size difference. Lee Se-hun's blade was far too short to fell the sacred tree spanning dozens of meters.
Crunch
But instead of retreating, Lee Se-hun gritted his teeth, gripped Five-Colored Flame Blade in reverse, and forged a new sword within his body.
Shallow Charge Sword: White Light
A brilliant white flash erupted from Five-Colored Flame Blade.
Feeling the blade tip free itself from the stubborn resistance, Lee Se-hun sprinted forward with all his might.
Kwaduduk!
Lee Se-hun scaled the sacred tree like a wall, carving a trail along its surface.
Perplexed by the incomprehensible action, Willi panicked but summoned a new offensive.
Dudududu!
Lotus stem spears pierced through the bark, thrusting toward Lee Se-hun.
Fired from point-blank range, evasion was tough, but Lee Se-hun trusted his supply cape’s durability and kept running.
He traced a diagonal scar across the sacred tree, etching all its mana circuits—the critical weak points—in a single stroke.
Kwaaang!
Detonating Five-Colored Flame Blade's flames, he signaled Jake.
Thung—!
While Lee Se-hun drew attention, Jake had concealed his presence and closed in. Now he burst forward, pouring all his mana into Radiant Sword.
Kaduk
A massive greatsword, its blade alone over 3 meters long.
Imagining the utmost power he could muster, Jake's eyes locked on the wound Lee Se-hun had marked.
Just once.
Even if it didn't kill, disrupting mana flow even briefly would dispel the fog blanketing the flooded zone.
Then Professor Kasar and the other faculty would rush to their rescue.
'It has to succeed.'
If there was ever a moment that demanded total success, it was now.
Amid his wildly pounding heart, Jake clenched his teeth and gripped Radiant Sword's hilt tighter.
Jejek
A sound that should never have rung echoed in his ears.
Pakaang!
Blue shards scattered everywhere. The blade, infused with all his mana, shattered without even swinging.
At the impossible sight, Jake's eyes widened, time slowing before him.
'Why...'
It had to succeed—no failure allowed—yet why had it ended like this?
What subconscious fear prevented him from unleashing even his own power?
Swept into a flood of thoughts in that fleeting instant...
Puk!
A searing pain stabbed his shoulder, and Jake's body reacted on reflex.
Kwaang!!
A lotus stem spear grazed past him.
Startled by his instinctive dodge, Jake looked up to where the attack had come from.
'This is...'
Lee Se-hun had thrown a dagger to force him to evade.
In exchange, Lee Se-hun took hits, blood flowing from wounds across his body—yet he silently deflected the incoming spears, protecting Jake.
Watching that, Jake recalled the role Lee Se-hun had entrusted him.
'Swing with everything you've got.'
Blade shatters, mana runs dry—none of that mattered. His task was singular.
Realizing it anew, Jake gritted his teeth and charged forward again.
Tudududu!
Ignoring the spears whizzing perilously close, he shoved every last drop of mana into Radiant Sword to rebuild its foundation.
Wooong!
But compared to before, it was laughably small. Far too inadequate to cleave the sacred tree or contain his full power.
'Something else as material...'
Beyond mana crystals, was there anything else he could compress?
Tok—
A droplet sound reached his ear, drawing his gaze downward.
Blood from his shoulder dripping into the lake water, scattering. Like it was becoming 'one'—Jake's eyes widened.
"Hup...!"
He plunged Radiant Sword's crystal-tipped end beneath the surface and sprinted with all his strength.
Kwagagak!
An imperfect blade cut through the water. Staring at the blue gleam below, Jake compressed every ounce of his power into his hands.
Dugeun-dugeun-dugeun—
Heart bursting, body shattering, sword crumbling—he no longer cared.
For the first time, all the power comprising Jake Myers coalesced in his grip.
Kaduk—!
A blue star shone beneath the surface. He wrenched the newly forged Radiant Sword blade from the depths with full force.
Clear Radiance Star
A blue light spanning dozens of meters slashed through everything.
A blinding flash threatened to blind him. Amid the fulfillment surging through his fingertips, Jake turned not to his foe, but his sword.
Wooong!
A colossal blade born from even the lake's waters. And atop it, a vivid blue sword aura.
"...It's done."
Jake smiled wearily at the sight.
Kugugung!
The sacred tree split along the trajectory, its halves slowly parting and collapsing.
Shwaaaa!
As the shattered trunk tumbled down, the lake churned massive waves that battered the surroundings.
A torrent strong enough to sweep away nearby trees. When the aftermath finally calmed, two shadows simultaneously rose above the surface.
"Puha! Hoo... Hoo..."
"Kuhok! Kuhok!"
Lee Se-hun caught his ragged breath while Jake coughed up water. Exhausted beyond standing on the surface, both had been swept away by the currents.
"You alive?"
"Feels like 'alive' is all I've got left..."
His chest ached like it was being wrung out—strain on his heart—and the rest of his body felt utterly drained, barely movable.
His mind was foggy, thoughts refusing to connect properly. It was as if he'd poured out every shred of strength.
'Is this my full power...'
The exhaustion was so profound it sent chills—could he just die like this? Yet there was also a cathartic relief in having given everything.
Floating blankly on the lake, staring at the lingering fog overhead...
"Hey, hey. Snap out of it. It ain't over yet."
Lee Se-hun beside him lightly slapped Jake's cheek.
"Not over...?"
"What we just cut was like its limbs. The core's probably fine."
"What do you...?"
Jake, who'd assumed victory, looked baffled—until...
Kwaduk!
From the sacred tree's wreckage, a massive lotus bud surged up on its stem.
Its leaves, half-stained black, bloomed wide, and a gigantic eye at the center glared at them.
Damage: 95%... Flood zone control impossible... Spatial abilities unavailable... Nutrients required...
A dissonant voice echoed directly in their minds—from the lotus. Jake's eyes bulged.
'It can speak?'
Monsters of the same grade varied wildly in threat based on abilities and intelligence.
Realizing this one was abnormal, Jake forced his bloodflow to accelerate—when...
"What're you doing?"
Lee Se-hun floating nearby poked him, forcibly calming his bloodflow.
"It's glaring right at us! We gotta attack or defend or something!"
"You don't have the strength. Don't push it—just stay still. Fog's clearing anyway."
"...The fog's clearing?"
At Lee Se-hun's casual words, Jake looked up in bewilderment.
The thick fog blanketing the sky had dulled slightly from its original hue—when...
Thung—
A massive greatsword emerged from the smoke, impaling the lotus's trunk.
────!!!
Screams rang in their ears as the lotus stems writhed in agony. Jake gaped at the greatsword from the sky.
A rectangular blade of dull gray, its black hilt cracked like charred wood.
"Ash Smoke..."
A legendary sword crafted by the Summit Climber 'Stellar Flame Artisan' Li Kensay, in recognition of Kasar's talent and character.
As Jake reeled at the sudden intervention, Lee Se-hun chuckled and glanced upward.
"You think an S-rank hero was just sitting around?"
Kururung—
The sky-spanning smoke churned violently, morphing into sword shapes akin to Ash Smoke and raining down across the flood zone.
Kugung!
Smoke Heaven Rain, Kasar's signature technique with Smoke Army Sword.
It spread smoke via Ash Smoke, shaped it precisely, and bombarded wide areas—with exceptional scale and accuracy.
Sur——... Life—... Contin——...
Kwagak!
Dozens of greatswords crushed the sacred tree's regenerating core, fully subduing it. Witnessing this, Jake murmured softly.
"We got it...?"
The incantation said to revive even the dead.
But despite its fame, no more voices echoed in their ears.
"Yeah, we got it."
The sacred tree had fallen completely.