Heaven-Breaking Divine Art (4)

Blood Pact. A unique skill obtained after a desperate, life-or-death battle in the early days. It had been a tremendous help in Choi Yun-seok's path forward. He'd reaped its benefits in duels against Cheonma, Steel King Keriksis, and others, and it had even served as material for Blood Demon Divine Art.... One could say he'd wrung every last drop from it. Of course, reclaiming that ability now wouldn't make much difference. Still, it was undeniable that this skill had forged the man Yun-seok was today.

'Guess they don't recognize me.'

Yun-seok smirked as he scanned his opponent. The man's eyes were rigidly fixed on him, showing no flicker of recognition. If he'd known who Yun-seok was, there would've been some telltale shift.

'Well, it's not that surprising.'

Unlike back then, he was dual-wielding swords now, and most importantly, his face was masked. Plus, he'd grown a good ten centimeters taller. Not that there was any guarantee the guy even remembered his face after all this time.

Like a quietly smoldering flame? The opponent steadily regulated his breathing and heightened his focus right up to the end. It seemed his habit of belittling foes and blathering arrogantly had been naturally corrected as he'd climbed higher.... Yun-seok felt a strange mix of emotions.

Their first encounter had been when neither knew a thing about the other. But having clawed through pinhole-narrow gates to reach the 11th floor, they could both be called veterans now without exaggeration.

How much had the opponent changed? What skills had he acquired, and in what direction had he grown? Who knew.

Soon enough, he'd find out.

As the duel-start message appeared, the restraints vanished. This was different from last time. Back then, the guy had just run his mouth instead of charging right in.... This time, even he proceeded cautiously, probing first. He didn't waste breath on useless talk, conserving it all while focusing every nerve on Yun-seok.

'Does defending first give the advantage?'

After watching briefly, Yun-seok saw no sign the man would attack. He drew his judge sword and charged.

Come to think of it, yeah. Even when victory was easy, he'd grinned sadistically, promising greater suffering. No matter how cautious he'd become, his core nature hadn't changed.

The evil judgment flashed, boosting all his stats. Yun-seok tested the waters first, firing sword energy from afar.

Whoosh!

A colorless crescent of sword energy arced toward him. The opponent raised his palm, and geometric red patterns etched across it.... A blood-red wolf burst forth, devouring the energy and vanishing without a trace.

'Authority... no, unique skill?'

No command prompt, so one or the other. Yun-seok leaned toward unique skill. His instincts as a former user of Blood Pact told him so.

'Still fights with abilities, huh....'

The demon's gear was sparse. Cloak over skimpy clothes that looked like they prioritized style over defense—no visible weapon.

'Just in case, let's probe once more.'

As the distance closed, Yun-seok fired another blast. The opponent blocked it the same way.

'Won't show his hand till I do.'

Not a bad feeling. Yun-seok had held back Judgment of the Destruction Lord till the end himself, letting him topple the absolute Sword God. The opponent seemed to be playing the same game.... Fine, let him try.

Start light.

Whiiiish!

As Yun-seok thrust forward, violet Heaven-Breaking Qi split into multiple strands.

Plum Blossoms Falling Like Rain. The Hwasan technique Sword God had unleashed against him. That's when Yun-seok first grasped it was the essence of illusion and speed distilled into one move.

"......!"

Did this strike feel genuinely threatening? The opponent flinched and raised his palm again. Fresh blood sprayed from it unbidden. The droplets ballooned like inflated balloons.

A new ability unlocked by evolving Blood Pact?

But it wasn't just size.

'...Not exploding?'

They didn't burst. On contact with the sword energy, the droplets flattened and spread wide, forming magic circles in midair.

'Like the summon from before?'

Similar effect, different outcome. Instead of a wolf, the blood circles devoured the violet energy tracelessly.

'Offense and defense in one....'

Yun-seok ignored it and thrust again, curiosity piqued. Fine for defense, but could it handle this?

Shwaaaaa—!

A crimson tidal wave erupted from his sword.

Cheonma Sword. Seemed like a huge jump from the opener, but probably just his imagination. He was still using Blood Demon Sword—no, now Heaven-Breaking Sword without Blood Demon Qi? Anyway, no King of Ten Thousand Swords buffs yet.

First active skill he'd use. A summon? Dozens of soldiers rose from the bare ground. They burst on contact with the wave, but summons kept pouring endlessly, piling bodies to dam the tide.

'Even blocks this, huh.'

Pure human wave tactics, straight out of ancient China. Crude but effective. Still, Yun-seok tilted his head.

'Mana holding up with that output?'

Actives consumed mana, and that volume demanded a hefty price. Looked like plugging a hull breach by ripping out bulkheads.

But....

'Not swinging blindly after all.'

The ground pooled with blood from burst summons. It floated up, condensed into orbs, and reabsorbed into the opponent. Not full recovery, but a hefty chunk.

Mistaking Yun-seok's pause for tension? The opponent smirked faintly.

Too bad....

'Wondered why the summon skill—nice synergy.'

That was Yun-seok's whole take. Interaction between unique and normal skills. No surprise there. Challengers ignoring that wouldn't reach this floor.

Puk.

Using spatial movement, Yun-seok stabbed the opponent's lower abdomen without hesitation. Right where Blood Pact's core had been.

But the man was fine.

Sizzle!

The wound cauterized and healed as the sword withdrew. He exploited the split-second lapse after the hit for a counter.

Futile.

Tat.

Yun-seok retreated before the counter launched.

How was healing possible with a core shattered? No question there—he'd known from the start.

'One down.'

When synthesizing Blood Demon Divine Art, he'd raised Blood Pact to D-rank.

Rank D—increases cores to 9.

Conveniently, Yun-seok remembered all their positions.

Not the opponent. Precisely piercing one core, Yun-seok pulled back as if he knew the ability inside out. The man panicked visibly.

"......!"

No wonder. Blood Pact's cheat-level healing was useless with a core destroyed. After that, decapitation or heart pierce meant death.... He'd just lost one life.

Probably wondering if it was luck or not, mind in turmoil.

Whatever. Yun-seok just waited.

'What's next?'

Eight cores left. To survive longer, he'd have to pull out everything.

From there, Yun-seok methodically smashed cores one by one, cornering him. He confirmed nearly all the guy's skills in the process.

Nothing impressive.

Time for restrictions.

High-difficulty precondition? Even with Heaven-Breaking Divine Art skyrocketing his mana, consumption was insane. Maintainable for about 20 minutes. Sure, it locked Yun-seok's normal skills too.... But incomparable to the pressure on the opponent.

One unique skill left. If he hadn't lost the will to fight, he'd stake his life on it.

Exactly what Yun-seok wanted.

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"Who the hell are you?!"

The opponent finally spoke, voice thick with rage or bewilderment. Fair enough. Yun-seok had unerringly targeted cores like he knew their spots—no mistakes.

And he'd caught on.

"With power like that, why toy with me?!"

That Yun-seok could end him in one go if he wanted. Spot on. Shaman's Law blocking Blood Pact would've ended it sooner.

But Yun-seok stayed silent.

"......"

He just kept reducing cores, backing him into a corner. Maybe a fresh application would emerge.

But....

'Nothing new.'

No matter how much time he gave, dragging it out—no big changes from the start.

He figured he knew his own power best. Wrong?

Maybe anger would shift things? Yun-seok removed his mask.

The opponent gnashed his teeth on seeing his face.

"Y-you're that bastard from back then...!"

Hadn't forgotten the face. Yun-seok's faint smirk without a word spurred him on.

"Filthy human worm...! Do you know who I...!"

Poof! Boom!

Attacks grew more savage. But that was it. No improvement.

Time to end it. One core left.

Slash!

Yun-seok stabbed the final core, answering the earlier question.

Why toy with him despite the power?

Simple.

"Just wanted to see how you used it before taking it."

Why stumble through trial and error in the waiting room when a live textbook was right here?

* * *

He'd decided on the skill before the duel even started. Next, equipment. He picked the highest rank, then mana—the top stat. Rewards complete.

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Back in the waiting room, Yun-seok checked the wall first. "Moving to 12th Floor Waiting Room," yet the hole remained. Same with Namgoong So-so ahead.

"Duel? What're you talking about? Wait, when did you even go there?!"

Time froze during the duel? He'd returned mid-sentence as she spoke to him. But his position had shifted to the room's center.

Yun-seok tilted his head at her puzzled look.

"Don't worry about it. So, what were you saying earlier?"

Telling her he'd overcome a trial would just drag out the chatter needlessly.