Chapter 90

090. Sky Piercing Dragon (5)

For a moment.

I had to recall a fact I had forgotten.

Every challenger entering the tower is granted a unique characteristic by default.

Thus, even a challenger who was just an ordinary person would gain a unique characteristic, and Baek Seon-hak, who came from the martial arts dimension, also had one.

“……”

The same went for Nam Gung Hyuk.

―A combat area has been formed within a 30-meter radius due to the unique characteristic ‘Forced Duel.’

Recalling the message that had just appeared, I looked around.

I then saw a semicircular barrier of light, about 30 meters in diameter, and I let out a bitter laugh.

“Really, there are some ridiculous unique characteristics……”

Did the barrier of light completely isolate the space inside and outside the combat area?

I could hear Catherine shouting something from outside, but her voice was muffled.

I turned my head to look at Nam Gung Hyuk, whose upper body was still engulfed in flames.

He smiled at me and said,

“I didn’t want to rely on such a technique, but even I had no other choice.”

“Frankly, it seemed you couldn’t handle everything, so you tried to kill me one-on-one.”

I didn’t feel the need to provoke him as I did earlier, so I just sneered.

However, Nam Gung Hyuk frowned as if even that was annoying.

“…How vulgar. It seems you lack pride.”

Do all challengers from the martial arts dimension have some kind of mental issue?

Feeling the same irritation I once felt towards Baek Seon-hak, I mocked Nam Gung Hyuk.

“You don’t seem to have any pride either.”

“……”

“If you had pride, you wouldn’t have destroyed a city to find me.”

“Shut up. A thief who steals others’ swords has no right to talk…”

In that instant, I activated my Lightning Sword Qi and quickly launched a piercing strike at Nam Gung Hyuk.

Clang!

“It’s useless.”

Nam Gung Hyuk effortlessly blocked the sword qi and countered with a piercing strike of his own.

Clang!

I swung my sword hard to counter his strike, and my hand trembled from the impact. I clenched it tightly to regain control.

‘Even with some skills sealed by Fire Suppression, he’s still this strong…’

His upper body was still engulfed in flames, indicating that Fire Suppression was still active.

Despite the constraints, Nam Gung Hyuk was holding on with surprising resilience.

I had realized his strength when he buried Kim Seung-hoon in the debris of a building with a single strike while under Fire Suppression.

Even though Nam Gung Hyuk wasn’t at his best, he was still a formidable opponent for me.

“You really think you can handle sword qi properly when you don’t even know martial arts?”

However—

“False sword qi can never match true sword qi.”

I didn’t back down and immediately drew upon all my mana.

「Skill ‘Instant Acceleration’ activated.」

Using my mana to the limit, I maximized the effect of Instant Acceleration.

「Skill ‘Blessing of the Wind’ activated.」

「All speed increased by 70%.」

「Current skill stacking progress – 7/7」

With Blessing of the Wind also activated, I pushed off the ground and dashed forward.

「Speed increased by the Swift Boots (C+) dedicated effect.」

Boom!

I admit it.

I can’t run like Nam Gung Hyuk, who seems to fold space, and I don’t have such remarkable agility.

But the essence of this fight is to endure until Nam Gung Hyuk’s [Forced Duel] is deactivated.

There’s no need to surpass Nam Gung Hyuk at this moment.

As I ran, slicing through the air, I leaped into a shadowy area where a building was tilting.

Then—

「Skill ‘Stealthy Shadow Step (C+)’ activated.」

「Moving while stepping on shadowed areas.」

「User’s movement speed increased by 30%.」

One of the abilities of Stealthy Shadow Step (C+) immediately took effect.

The walking method was optimized, and my movement speed increased in dark areas.

This ability, through synergy with other skills, allowed me to keep up with Nam Gung Hyuk’s movements.

I ran towards Nam Gung Hyuk at a speed that could only be described as transcendent.

“You seem to have quite a few hidden tricks—”

Suddenly, Nam Gung Hyuk left a blurry afterimage and dashed towards me, appearing right in front of me.

He swung his sword expressionlessly, right in front of my face.

Clang!

“If that’s all you can do, mimicking martial arts, you’ll die soon.”

It seemed Nam Gung Hyuk was telling me that the hellish 10-minute duel had just begun.

***

Evil Arts.

Abilities that rely on external factors rather than one’s own will.

Nam Gung Hyuk had encountered such special abilities many times in the martial arts world.

Most were merely inferior versions of martial arts and were hardly impressive.

Naturally, Nam Gung Hyuk believed that evil arts were inherently weaker than martial arts.

It made sense.

―Abilities that one can’t use on their own and rely on external factors can’t be stronger than martial arts.

As his grandfather, the Sword Sage, had said, martial arts were the only path to transcendence.

By controlling the invisible energy (氣) and gradually twisting the laws of reality, one could become a transcendent being.

That was martial arts.

Abilities that tried to compensate for one’s weaknesses with external help couldn’t possibly work.

But after being chosen by the tower and acquiring his first skill, Nam Gung Hyuk began to doubt.

―If it’s an ability one can’t manifest on their own, how can it be activated?

Abilities that relied on external factors were often either ineffective or came with significant costs.

However, skills were different. They could be easily activated by the user without any drawbacks.

Nam Gung Hyuk felt a sense of confusion as these abilities contradicted everything he had built up until then.

While acquiring and using these transcendent skills, Nam Gung Hyuk realized something.

There was no personal growth in simply acquiring and using skills.

―They were merely abilities granted by the transcendent tower.

If he couldn’t manifest them on his own, using them only proved that they were granted by the tower.

They were fake, not real like martial arts.

Skills were not abilities one could control through their own energy (氣) but were forcibly activated by an incomprehensible system.

Realizing this, Nam Gung Hyuk mocked those who relied on skills.

―What value do those who depend on fake abilities have?

Counterfeits.

They were fakes that couldn’t achieve anything on their own.

They seemed to grow stronger like martial artists, but in reality, they were just giving the tower an invisible leash.

Thus, Nam Gung Hyuk believed that skills were inferior versions of martial arts and had no potential for growth.

Using skills only increased a virtual proficiency level, and even if the level increased, the ability’s content remained the same.

So, he lived believing that skills were fake and martial arts were real.

“……”

Until he saw Han Seung-yun right in front of him.

「Skill ‘Ashen Blood’ activated.」

「All types of pain inflicted on the user reduced by 31%.」

The man in front of him, covered in wounds, was different from the others.

I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what made him different, but—

‘His eyes are different.’

Even on the brink of death, Han Seung-yun’s eyes shone brighter.

As if there was a chance for a miraculous turn of events in this hellish situation.

Of course, it was mostly one-sided violence, so Nam Gung Hyuk initially thought it was just a feeling.

This man had nothing special and had only relied on fake abilities like characteristics and skills to get this far.

But that wasn’t the case.

‘Why…? Why isn’t he dying…?’

He had suffered fatal injuries multiple times and should have lost his will long ago.

Yet, Han Seung-yun was struggling to react to Nam Gung Hyuk’s sword and enduring.

Annoyed, Nam Gung Hyuk intensified his sword techniques, attacking from blind spots where it was impossible to react.

Skills were mostly inferior versions of martial arts.

Under this extremely martial arts-centric mindset, Nam Gung Hyuk tried to overwhelm Han Seung-yun with his sword techniques.

He aimed to push Han Seung-yun to the brink where he couldn’t recover, using attacks that were impossible to see.

Then, something astonishing happened.

Clang!

“…!?”

Han Seung-yun effortlessly blocked the sword qi that came from the blind spots.

Nam Gung Hyuk immediately understood why.

「Skill ‘Eagle Eye’ activated.」

Han Seung-yun had a skill that was useful in this situation.

‘What a ridiculous…’

But even more ridiculous was Han Seung-yun, who blocked the sword qi and then hesitated, closing his eyes.

Nam Gung Hyuk saw this as an opportunity and scattered sword qi, colliding with Han Seung-yun.

As Nam Gung Hyuk had sensed, Han Seung-yun, with his eyes closed, suffered more injuries and was pushed closer to death.

Until that moment, Nam Gung Hyuk thought Han Seung-yun was making a foolish choice by relying on skills.

But then, something changed.

“…?”

Suddenly, Han Seung-yun, with his eyes closed, began to read Nam Gung Hyuk’s sword movements.

As time passed, his movements became more controlled, almost like a dance.

When Nam Gung Hyuk started to feel anxious, a more significant change occurred.

Swish!

Han Seung-yun’s sword bent and inflicted a stab wound on Nam Gung Hyuk’s arm.

This was not just a skill but a clear improvement in skill.

‘How can a mere inferior version of martial arts do this…?’

Nam Gung Hyuk’s common sense couldn’t accept the current situation.

Why was this man, who had been enduring his sword and suffering injuries, gradually improving his movements?

Why was this man, who relied on skills, growing so rapidly?

Why was this man, using fake abilities, starting to match real strength?

None of these things were acceptable to Nam Gung Hyuk.

Because this was now in the realm of martial arts, not just skills.

Enlightenment.

Han Seung-yun had reached a realm of accelerated growth, something only those who had reached the realm of martial arts could experience.

And—

“……”

Nam Gung Hyuk acknowledged Han Seung-yun, who now had a faint smile on his face.

This man was not just someone who relied on fakes but someone who turned fakes into reality.

A Sword Demon.

***

The world is dark and blurry.

Like walking in a daze, my body feels heavy, and my sense of balance is all over the place.

It’s understandable.

I had already drained a massive amount of stamina with the Ashen Blood skill and pushed my mana to its limits.

Even closing my eyes to activate the Eagle Eye skill made me feel more dizzy.

But I had no choice.

Eagle Eye, which allowed me to sense attacks from unseen directions, could perceive everything when my eyes were closed.

I couldn’t survive without relying on the Eagle Eye skill.

I never thought that a mere 10 minutes could be so painful.

But—

If I were to ask if this time was just painful for me, the answer would be no.

「…You have realized the true nature of Eagle Eye.」

「…Skill ‘Eagle Eye (D-)’ has grown to B-rank.」

Perhaps because I had to close my eyes to block Nam Gung Hyuk’s bizarre sword techniques,

At some point, I could use the Eagle Eye skill as if I had a real third eye.

What was once just the ability to sense attacks from unseen areas

Now allowed me to perceive the 30-meter light barrier and the debris scattered within it.

That’s not all.

「…You have engaged in a life-or-death battle relying solely on your senses.」

「…Skill ‘Sixth Sense (C+)’ has grown to B-rank.」

The Sixth Sense skill, which I had forgotten I even had, evolved, and my senses became even sharper.

「…You have survived and withstood the sword of a master swordsman.」

「…Skill ‘Demon Hunter Sword (C)’ has grown to B-rank.」

My clumsy sword techniques improved to an unbelievable degree in a short time.

「…You have experienced regeneration beyond your physical limits through numerous crises in a short time.」

「…Skill ‘Ashen Blood (B-)’ has grown to B+ rank.」

Feeling the growth of most of my main skills, I opened my eyes.

“……”

I saw Nam Gung Hyuk, who was quietly holding his curved sword with both hands, staring at me.

‘What is it?’

I wasn’t sure how much time was left in the duel, but it was clear it was about to end.

Yet, Nam Gung Hyuk didn’t use his sword; he just held it with both hands and stared at me.

As I tensed and narrowed my eyes, he said,

“Just borrowing the tower’s power… Do you think you can surpass martial arts?”

Nam Gung Hyuk raised his sword, and I was taken aback by his calm demeanor, despite the tense situation.

It was understandable.

Unlike before, Nam Gung Hyuk’s eyes didn’t see me as just a target to eliminate.

A different level of hostility was evident in his gaze, unlike when he called me vulgar.

“I will end this stubborn will and these borrowed, fake abilities right here.”

And—

I understood why Nam Gung Hyuk could be so calm about ending it.

The flames that had enveloped his upper body had visibly diminished.

This meant one thing.

‘The duration of Fire Suppression is ending…!’

But before I could react in shock and prepare myself,

“This is true sword qi, which fake sword qi can never match.”

The flames on Nam Gung Hyuk’s upper body completely disappeared.

And—

“This is the realm beyond sword qi, Sword Flame.”

Sword Flame, which transcended sword qi, rushed towards me.