Parents' Enemy!
"The enemy of my parents!"
Whip!
"Hey, if anyone overheard that, they'd think I was the villain. Your cult sacrificed people as offerings and slaughtered thousands—hundreds of thousands—just because they got in the way of an operation. You never think about that?"
"Those people contributed to the cult!"
"Wow… seriously. Talking to lunatics like you is a complete waste of breath."
What, then, were the screams of every victim's family he had ever seen? Families who had lost husbands, children, parents, brothers and sisters to the cult—people who wept and howled in grief every single day. And now this bastard dared call it "contribution"?
It was just sacrifice. Plain and simple.
"There's a saying back in Korea: double standards. Fits you cult freaks perfectly."
Whoosh!
Thud!
Do-ha twisted his body just enough to the side and drove his knee straight into Germa's jaw.
Something's off.
The robes the man wore marked him as a cardinal. Yet for a cardinal, he was far too weak. His attacks weren't even particularly tricky—just straightforward and crude. If you ranked him as a martial artist, he was barely Super-Peak entry level. Generously, Super-Peak extreme at best. So how the hell had he become a cardinal?
"Why are you so weak?"
"Shut your mouth!"
Whoosh—!
Germa drew out demonic energy like a long whip and lashed it through the air. Cultists usually fought with demonic energy—either shaping it into magic or reinforcing their bodies. The higher their rank, the more they could give that energy actual form, exactly as Germa was doing now.
Whoosh.
Crack!
The tip of the whip broke the sound barrier and produced a brief sonic boom.
"You know what? The whip was the first weapon humanity ever invented that could break the sound barrier…"
"Why the hell would I need to know that?!"
"Because you should. The whip is the cult's favorite toy—and the reason they love it is pure sadism."
Cultists always kept a whip coiled at their waist inside their temples. Ready at any moment to beat anyone they labeled a heretic—anyone who refused to worship the Demon God. An ordinary person struck by the tip of that whip had their flesh torn open. As he had just said, the tip broke the sound barrier. Taking that kind of force bare-skinned sent unimaginable agony racing through every nerve.
And the reason they whipped people was simple. Not to convert them. They believed the screams of humans rose like sweet music to the ears of the Demon God—and every demon in the Demon Realm. That deranged delusion had once driven them to snatch random people off the streets, torture them with whips, release them, and repeat the cycle.
"So stop playing the victim. It's disgusting."
Whoosh—!
Do-ha's expression turned ice-cold as he shot forward.
"I'll start by smashing that punchable face of yours."
Hummm!
A grin.
"?!"
Spin.
Thud!
Just as he was about to unleash the Extreme Grinding Thunder Fist, Do-ha spun his body and drove a kick into the cardinal's gut instead.
Just now… something…
The moment he prepared to attack, the man had smiled as if he had been waiting for it.
"Hoo… slippery little eel, aren't you?"
Germa, sent flying backward, glared at Do-ha. One grab. Just one successful grab and he could flip this entire fight. But the bastard was simply too fast.
"What exactly are you trying to grab me for with all that flailing? You only reach whenever I attack."
"…You noticed?"
"Only an idiot wouldn't."
Do-ha shook his head at the cardinal's question. Germa's eyes kept locking onto his arms or legs, and every attack flew in a dead-straight line toward whatever he was staring at. Anyone could see he intended to wrap the whip around a limb and yank. If the goal had simply been to inflict damage, the whip would have aimed for the head or the broad target of the torso.
Hmm… and when we just stand here facing each other, he goes completely quiet.
Only when Do-ha moved did the whip come flying. What was this awkward stalemate?
Got it.
Do-ha's eyes narrowed as he finally grasped the activation condition of the cardinal's ability. He had wondered why the man froze whenever he stopped moving. To erase an ability, that ability first had to manifest outwardly. That was why the bastard had smiled the moment he sensed Do-ha's energy earlier.
"I'm curious what kind of ability it actually is."
Crackle.
Sparks began dancing across Do-ha's body.
Whoosh!
In a single step of Lightning Spirit Movement he closed the distance and threw a punch exactly as before.
Thunder Light Fist.
The technique that paired perfectly with Lightning Spirit Movement streaked forward like a bolt of light aimed straight at Germa's face.
And Germa, as if he had been waiting for precisely that, began wrapping his arm.
Whirl.
Thud!
"Hahahaha! You idiot!"
Shrrrrrrrk!
Hisssss.
"Oh?"
The sensation of something draining out of his body made Do-ha's eyes widen slightly. The energy of Thunder Light Fist that had been circulating from his dantian through every meridian vanished completely.
"That's interesting."
"Keh-heh-heh. How does it feel? That Extreme Grinding Thunder Fist you were so proud of is gone forever."
"That wasn't Extreme Grinding Thunder Fist."
"…Huh?"
"That was Thunder Light Fist. Third-rate fist technique. You can buy the manual at any market stall on the Eastern Continent."
"D-Don't lie to me!"
Germa looked rattled. Impossible. How could a third-rate fist art produce such a powerful, clean strike?
"Tsk tsk. Moron."
Hummm!
Baek-bo Myeol-hwang Gong, Fourth Step: Extreme Grinding Thunder Fist.
Boom!
Do-ha clicked his tongue lightly and this time truly drove Extreme Grinding Thunder Fist into Germa's face.
KRAAANG!
"Gyaaaaah!"
Both of Germa's arms snapped under the blow; he screamed. He had seen the fist coming and tried to catch it again, but at the last instant the speed surged higher and the timing slipped completely.
"You said the ability vanished, so I got a little tense… but this is worse than fighting a bug."
The man could steal an ability, yes—but not every scrap of energy. Only a single technique or secret art at a time.
"Star Absorbing Great Art would actually be better… or sealing energy with pressure-point strikes…"
The ability was far too awkward. Like a machine missing a critical screw. Even a basic mage knew dozens—hundreds—of spells. Take first-circle alone: Light, Fire, Ice, Wind, and more. Trying to steal them one by one meant constantly diving into lethal attacks just to get close.
"You can't even absorb long-range attacks, can you? You have to get right up next to someone to steal anything."
Hummm.
Myeol-hwang Sword Technique, Sixth Form: Evil-Breaking Severing Sword.
Shing—!
Un-jeop-bi-jang was already in Do-ha's hand, moving with liquid grace as it formed sword qi.
"Hahahaha! You fool!"
Clang!
Shwaaaaak!
Germa, waiting for exactly that, stole the Evil-Breaking Severing Sword form clean out of Do-ha's technique.
"You think absorption only works up close?! What a massive misunderstanding!"
Having erased one form of Myeol-hwang Sword Technique, Germa crowed in triumph. That was why he had stayed quiet while Baek Do-ha monologued. Delusion was free—but that delusion would be the man's undoing.
"Wow, now that's a cardinal for you. All that obvious grabbing earlier was just to make me think you needed contact?"
So that was why the attacks had been so blatantly telegraphed. Deliberate bait.
"Keh-heh-heh. Realizing it now is too late. I've already taken one form of your Myeol-hwang Sword Technique."
"It's still just one."
"One is enough to shatter the balance."
Do-ha nodded. That much he agreed with. For ordinary martial artists, awakeners, or mages, losing even a single ability wrecked their entire combat rhythm.
And now I understand why this guy operates on Earth.
As he had said before, Earth's awakeners received their powers in a single flash. Unlike the martial artists and mages of Belhart who built strength step by step, they gained power overnight. More than half of them simply used what they had and never tried to develop it further. Most believed that growing stronger meant only increasing raw power. That was a fatal mistake. Increasing power was just inflation—not true development.
Imagine a Mount Hua swordsman who drilled only one form of Plum Blossom Sword Technique until he could slice through mountains. Would the martial world call him strong? No. He would probably lose to some third-rate fighter and vanish from history. Earth's awakeners needed to diversify their power the same way—expand the number of practical attacks they could actually use in real combat. Not mindless factory production of techniques, but real, usable variety.
So far he's only been absorbing mid-tier awakeners.
No wonder. There had never been reports of Cheon-oe-cheon or Divine 200-level hunters losing abilities. Fighters of that caliber possessed a wide arsenal of techniques.
"You seem to be under a serious misconception… Myeol-hwang Sword Technique isn't the only thing I have."
Zzzzaaang!
Fire Pillar.
Whoooosh—!
Do-ha flicked his fingers. A massive pillar of flame erupted from beneath Germa's feet.
Sizzle.
"Kh! Not a chance!"
Shwaaaaak!
One arm scorched, Germa thrust out his hand and stole the Fire Pillar spell.
"Keep taking hits just to absorb one ability at a time and you won't last long."
Hummmm!
Ice Soul Divine Art, First Form: Ice Flower.
Thud!
Crack-crack-crack-crack!
Do-ha closed in and thrust his palm toward Germa's stomach. An ice flower bloomed and spread from the center of the cardinal's body.
"You idiot! The more you attack, the worse it gets for you!"
Crack! Crack!
The cardinal retreated, shattering the ice and stealing Ice Flower as well. He wouldn't last? Fool. He possessed the regenerative power of demons. Attacks of this level would never deal fatal damage.
"Attack as much as you want. You're the only one who loses."
"As much as I want?"
Ssssssss.
◈ Baek-bo Myeol-hwang Gong, First Step: Cheon-roe
◈ Joyous Sound Sharp Raising Art, First Form: Melody Path Bird
◈ Mokhon-sura-gong, Second Form: Sea God Flood
◈ Yeokcheon-mudok-ma-gong, Third Absolute: Sweet Fruit Honey Poison
◈ Blood Fog
◈ Tornado
◈ Hellfire
Whoosh!
Crackle-crackle-crackle.
Gurgle-gurgle.
Sssssshhh.
As Do-ha tilted his head, martial arts and magic began pouring out of him in a chaotic, overwhelming torrent. The ground itself started to tremble.
"I'm curious how long you'll last."
Faced with power that shook heaven and earth, the cardinal's pupils began to quiver violently. Was this truly still a human being…?
"W-Wait a second…"
Germa desperately thrust out his hand.
But Do-ha's assault had already begun to crash down.