The Player Who Stands Above All

Chapter 38

"Did you have this situation in mind from the beginning when you accepted Mr. Lee Shin's proposal?"

Kim Jae-hyun asked, slowly approaching Cheon Yuhwa.

At that, she thought about the situation for a moment and then obediently nodded.

"I wasn't planning to create this kind of situation from the start, but the moment that guy asked me to spar, I did think I should create this situation."

"I see."

At his indifferent reaction, she, feeling somewhat pricked, opened her mouth again as if to make an excuse.

"But, I was originally planning to create a place like this. I thought it was a necessary thing."

"A necessary thing?"

"Yes, a necessary thing. Those two needed to fight each other with all their might at least once."

She nodded and watched the two swinging their weapons at each other.

Lee Shin was focusing on deflecting Yeonhwa's attacks using the Flame Leaf Returning Step and the [Flames] spear art, and Yeonhwa was chasing him and swinging his sword.

"When we met each other in Pantheon, we were all already established in our respective fields and were being called [Kings]."

"Is that so?"

Although it was a rather sudden remark, he, who had spent a long time with her, responded to her conversation as if he were used to it.

"It's a bit much for me to say it myself, but we were definitely geniuses. And the moment we met each other, we realized that we would be a good stimulus for each other."

"I see."

It wasn't a particularly strange thing to say.

Even if they were geniuses, it didn't change the fact that they were human.

People basically grow higher when they have a rival to work with rather than doing something alone.

"That was enough when we were in Pantheon, but after coming to reality, that stimulus was lacking. The time we had known each other was long, and as we each reached a certain level, the flame that had been burning cooled down."

"And you think Mr. Lee Shin can be the stimulus to reignite that flame, miss?"

At his words, she recalled a memory from the past and chuckled.

That laugh was a chuckle born from a sense of absurdity.

"It's not a thought, it's a certainty."

In the world that had now become the past, the 10 rankers who were called [Kings] had risen to a place so high that the title of king suited them perfectly.

In a world that had collapsed due to the unceasing invasion of monsters, they were literally the kings who led the people.

Everyone looked up to their brilliant appearance and moved their feet and extended their hands with all their might to reach them, but no one could climb up to where they were.

No, far from catching up with them in reality, even the number of people who caught up with them in the game was extremely small.

-Hmm, I finally won. Ah, that was fun.

But one person had overcome the huge barrier of LV.7 and had reached LV.8, where they were.

"A genius is basically the one who chases, not the one who is chased. And we are especially so."

She recalled the past once more.

In the past, they were surprised by his sudden appearance.

His skills were one thing, but what truly surprised them was his growth rate.

His appearance, quickly rising from below, made them feel an emotion they had never tasted before in their lives, and the [Kings] naturally spurred their steps toward a higher place.

She said, looking at Yeonhwa's face as he swung his sword.

He was enjoying the thrill and excitement they had felt in the past once again.

***

-Flame Lightning Tree God Spear

-Flames

-Twenty Leaves

Lee Shin used the leaves of the Flame Lightning Tree God Spear to deflect the power contained in Yeonhwa's sword to another place and, at the same time, used the Flame Leaf Returning Step to distort his form and escape the trajectory of his sword.

'Hmm, I can somehow deflect and dodge the attacks, but I can't do the most important thing, which is to attack.'

The leaves that deflected the attacks and the Flame Leaf Returning Step that distorted his form.

Since both were illusion-type martial arts that used the opponent's power in reverse, he was able to somehow continue the spar against Yeonhwa, who was at a much higher level than him.

But as he continued to spar, he was able to find an unexpected weakness in the Flame Lightning Tree God Art.

He thought, sighing softly.

[Flames] for evasion, [Lightning] for attack.

His fighting style was to mix the two appropriately.

But now, he was using only [Flames] for both attack and defense.

There was only one reason.

'He's not giving me an opening to switch from [Flames] to [Lightning].'

There was no such opening.

'And if I try to force a switch, a gap will definitely appear in my movements, and that guy won't miss that gap and will cut me down with his wooden sword.'

The words 'being cut by a wooden sword' might sound a little strange, but that was actually the situation now.

Yeonhwa was creating a cutting power that should not have been possible by creating a small fragment of sword energy on the blade of the wooden sword he was holding only at the moment he attacked him.

By concentrating his ki on a very small part for a very short time, he had created a sword ki that even a genius would only be able to use at LV.3, at LV.4.

'Well, but seeing that I can somehow endure it with this spear, it seems to be much weaker than the real thing.'

Kagagak-

Hwareureuk-

Pahang-

He pondered while swinging his spear.

He liked the fact that the opponent didn't fall even if he swung his spear as he pleased, but just continuing to dodge was not to his taste.

'Still, I'm gaining a lot, so I want to continue... what should I do?'

As he was continuing his happy contemplation and swinging his spear, Yeonhwa, who had been continuously sticking to him and swinging his sword, stopped sticking to him.

At that, he also naturally stopped a little distance away from him.

"No matter how much I search my memory, I can't find any clues. I've had duels with famous sects and masters, but I've never seen anyone who uses a martial art like yours, let alone someone who uses a similar one."

Yeonhwa said, looking at him with a completely different face from the beginning.

In his eyes looking at him, there was a sense of acknowledgment.

At the same time, various questions about him had also arisen.

"At first, I thought it was a martial art that was in line with the martial arts of the Huashan Sect, but as I continued to watch, it seemed to have only taken the appearance of the Huashan Sect's martial arts and filled the inside with other things."

"So what's your point?"

Lee Shin said to him in a slightly grumbling voice, feeling disappointed.

He was disappointed that the fortuitous encounter Yeonhwa was giving him had ended.

Although his skills were excellent, the decisive reason the exchange had been able to continue until now was that Yeonhwa had not used his full strength and had been going easy on him.

No, the word 'going easy' was wrong.

He had been giving him a gift in his own way.

'The martial arts of the Huashan Sect... it's certainly different seeing it in person than on video.'

Yeonhwa, who had smelled the scent of Huashan from his martial art, began to show him the sword of Huashan that he knew.

It was a gift that an ordinary person would find hard to understand, a gift that only a martial artist could give to another martial artist.

As he was inwardly mulling over his movements, he looked at him for a moment and then asked.

"Is it a martial art you created after seeing the martial arts of the Huashan Sect?"

At Yeonhwa's question, Lee Shin obediently nodded.

Although there were many spectators, it wasn't a secret, so it didn't matter.

In fact, Eun Yeon-woo already knew.

"Well, I dismantled it and used it as a reference, but that's all. The martial arts of the Huashan Sect were too noble for my taste."

"You mean you made it on your own?"

"Yeah. Well, if you don't believe me, you don't have to."

Chuckle-

"No, I'll believe you. I just asked because it was a slightly interesting situation."

Seeing Yeonhwa let out a chuckle as if he had heard a funny yet absurd story, Lee Shin asked with a broad smile.

"Are you finally in the mood to do it properly?"

"I've been serious until now."

At his words, Lee Shin said playfully.

"No, I mean, are you thinking of unfolding the martial art you've been hiding?"

"...On what basis do you think I'm hiding a martial art?"

Seeing Yeonhwa trying to hide his surprise, Lee Shin thought for a moment about how to say it and then answered.

"Should I say it's a feeling? When you were swinging your sword at me and showing me the martial arts of the Huashan Sect, I got the feeling that you were hiding yourself and recreating your past self. And the decisive thing was the conversation just now."

In his eyes as he said so, a kind of certainty had already taken root.

"You, you've created a new martial art."

"Ha, right. It's a funny thing to say, but after reaching a certain level, I suddenly felt that the martial arts of the Huashan Sect were suffocating. So I just made a new one."

At Lee Shin's words, Yeonhwa obediently admitted and raised his sword.

At the same time, the scent of plum blossoms that had been lingering on his sword disappeared, and a new scent of flowers began to fill the place.

Unlike a moment ago, it was not flashy.

On the contrary, it was simple and slow.

But watching it, he felt as if something huge was slowly moving.

"Well, since what I learned and what I referred to were from the Huashan Sect, the result is like this."

Thump-

Yeonhwa lightly tapped the ground with the tip of his wooden sword, and from there, a lotus flower with the same light purple color as his hair bloomed.

And the spot where the lotus flower had disappeared was dented as if something had pressed down on it.

"...Can I ask you for one thing?"

Lee Shin, who had been looking at the spot where he had tapped the ground with the tip of his sword for a moment, opened his mouth, hesitating as if in thought.

"What is it?"

At his sudden words, not only he, but even Eun Yeon-woo, who was far away, narrowed his eyes and looked at him.

But only Cheon Yuhwa sighed lightly, as if she could imagine what he was going to say.

It was a remark she had also heard in the past.

"Is it okay if I attack you with all my might, as if to kill you?"

"...Are you serious?"

"Yeah, you can come at me as if to kill me too. I have no intention of resenting you even if you end up killing me by mistake."

He looked at his eyes, but unlike a moment ago, his eyes were so turbid that he couldn't see anything.

"Thinking of killing..."

Curiosity arose in Yeonhwa mind as he muttered for a moment.

A light curiosity of 'what else is he trying to show me?'

So Yeonhwa said.

"Alright, come at me as if to kill me."

Hwaaa-

And the moment he heard his words, Lee Shin smiled brightly and genuinely.

Click-

At the same time, the switch of [Madness] was pressed.

This time, it wasn't him who had intentionally pressed the switch.

It was the same as when he had caught the Black Horned Rabbit.

The switch was naturally pressed as his spirit was heightened.

-Extreme madness is encroaching on your body.

-[Atypical Madness] is beginning to awaken in response to your actions.

Along with a message he had never seen before, the gears in his body began to turn at a speed greater than ever before.

In response, the ominousness and eeriness that [Madness] emitted grew even larger.

But that wasn't all.

From within the eeriness of [Madness], something came out and revealed its presence.

It was the pure killing intent that he had carried in his body since he was born.

The huge killing intent, which seemed to have no end, began to mix with [Madness].

At that energy, the team leaders raised their energy without realizing it and entered a battle stance, and Eun Yeon-woo instinctively moved to the safest place, next to Cheon Yuhwa.

"Beyond imagination."

Yeonhwa, while facing the energy that would make an ordinary person suffocate, calmly uttered a single sentence, then threw away his wooden sword and took out his own sword from his inventory.

What was about to happen from now on was not something that could be called a spar.

(End of Chapter)