Chapter 27

Chapter 27

 

Kim Tae-gwang was not some mediocre tank.

Ha-kyung’s father had been called a pioneer.

Kim Tae-gwang was a first-generation Awakened of the same era as Lee Tae-heon.

Of course, if one judged only by fame at the time, he had fallen somewhat behind.

However, when it came to dueling, his skill was real.

The moment they clashed,

Even Ha-kyung was horrified.

‘This is not the kind of opponent I can handle just by trying not to kill him.’

He was the kind of opponent Ha-kyung was not sure he could defeat even if he poured everything he had into the fight.

That was Ha-kyung’s first impression of Kim Tae-gwang.

The moment that thought crossed his mind, Ha-kyung was driven into a corner.

A countless barrage of axes came pouring down on him.

In the end, he had no choice but to focus entirely on defense.

CLAAAAANG!

A numbing sensation ran through his hands.

For now, Ha-kyung tried to create some distance first.

If he stretched Abyss Refinement as far as possible, it could reach up to six meters.

However, the moment he stepped back, an even fiercer offensive unfolded.

WHOOOSH! WHOOOSH! KRA-CLANG!

“Urgh!”

A hand axe that flew toward him at tremendous speed was knocked into the air.

Then it returned to Kim Tae-gwang’s hand with perfect ease.

Like a boomerang.

Immediately afterward, Kim Tae-gwang began throwing axes like a madman.

CLAAAAANG!

Once again, the same situation as before unfolded.

At the absurdity of it all, Ha-kyung could not help but let out a hollow laugh.

‘Ha! What kind of ridiculous attack is this?’

Now he understood why Choi Hyun-ki had put Kim Tae-gwang forward as his champion.

At this rate, Ha-kyung would be crushed beneath the relentless assault and finished off.

Amid the storm of hand axes, Ha-kyung unconsciously looked toward someone.

Choi Hyun-ki was smiling brightly.

Then the voices of the Raiders guild members reached his ears.

“No matter how much that little punk struggles, he is no match for a first-generation Awakened.”

“He got a little famous and started acting arrogant. Serves him right.”

“Heh heh! Immortal Tyrant, my ass. I knew that nickname was too good for him from the start.”

They said people of the same kind flocked together.

It felt as though the guild members were speaking Choi Hyun-ki’s thoughts for him.

Listening to their petty sneers made something hot surge up inside Ha-kyung.

It was as if his anger had taken physical form.

Ha-kyung ground his teeth.

‘Let us see how long you bastards can keep laughing.’

Honestly, he had not been particularly angry even when the Raiders betrayed them.

Had they not been a group of scum from the beginning?

He had joined the raid expecting that much from the start.

But now they were even mocking him.

They had crossed the line by a wide margin.

Ha-kyung calmly watched the countless hand axes flying toward him.

‘If I wait, there will be a way to overcome this. He cannot keep this up forever.’

His prediction was correct.

When he endured and waited, Kim Tae-gwang’s offensive slowed slightly.

It seemed he had begun to reach his physical limit.

Ha-kyung thrust his karambit into the tiny opening.

Then he tore through it.

[Abyss Challenger’s “Compression” authority increases the density of abyss energy]

TZ-KYUNG!

It had only been a single swing, but the result exceeded his expectations.

Three or four hand axes were knocked aside.

They had been pushed back by the power of compressed Abyss Refinement.

However, Kim Tae-gwang’s response was astonishing.

As if matching Ha-kyung’s refinement ability, the power behind his axe attacks also increased.

KRA-CLANG! THUD-DUDUNG!

‘What? He still has this much strength left?’

Ha-kyung could not help but be shocked.

He had attempted a counterattack because he thought the man had reached his limit.

He had never expected Kim Tae-gwang to respond even more forcefully.

Even so, he did not retreat. Instead, he advanced.

He trusted his instincts and pressed forward.

Then Kim Tae-gwang retrieved his hand axes and backed away.

“Ho…….”

A strange light appeared in the eyes that swept over Ha-kyung.

It seemed that last clash had also been a burden on Kim Tae-gwang.

A moment later, he spoke as if intrigued.

“It has been a long time since anyone lasted this long in a champion’s duel. As expected of the pioneer’s son.”

“……!”

Ha-kyung was inwardly startled.

Kim Tae-gwang had seen through his identity.

Not the recently famous nickname, the Immortal Tyrant.

But the son of the pioneer, Lee Tae-heon.

Lee Ha-kyung.

Until now, few people had recognized him accurately.

After all, he had only been active within the Axis Prime Guild.

And he had been nothing more than a mere prospect.

Ha-kyung steadied the mind that had briefly loosened.

‘Here it comes again. I cannot let my guard down.’

He had realized that Kim Tae-gwang’s relentless offensive was about to resume.

Sure enough, more than ten hand axes began to dance once again.

CLAAAAANG!

The path of the axes as they crashed violently, then returned like boomerangs, was astonishing even after he had already been dealing with it for several minutes.

Ha-kyung continued searching for a way to break through.

‘That natural return path of the hand axes. I have to cut it off somehow.’

However, that was not easy.

The power contained in the hand axes was far too fierce.

The moment he made contact, an enormous repulsive force erupted.

How was he supposed to stop them?

Then Ha-kyung suddenly looked down at the blade growing from his karambit.

It was the result of applying the Compression authority to Abyss Refinement.

On the surface, it looked like the second stage, but its power easily surpassed the third stage.

With that kind of force, there was no way a repulsive force would not arise.

‘It is a clash of strength against strength. Eliminating the repulsive force was impossible from the beginning. In that case?’

He spread Abyss Refinement from his left hand.

In the shape of a rope, just as he had done when rescuing his teammates.

Ash-gray, tentacle-like strands embroidered the air.

SNAP! SNAP! SNATCH!

The hand axes caught by Abyss Refinement dropped into the sea one after another.

Ha-kyung smiled in triumph.

With this, Kim Tae-gwang would no longer be able to continue his offensive.

Now it was time to counterattack.

SSSSSSSS!

Ash-gray flames rose from Ha-kyung’s karambit.

The abyss energy calmly aligned itself.

And “Compression Soul-Sever” took on an eerie radiance.

Immediately afterward, Ha-kyung’s attack pierced through an opening in Kim Tae-gwang’s defense.

SWAAAAASH! KRA-CLANG!

“Urgh!”

With a low groan, Kim Tae-gwang was forced backward.

However, Ha-kyung’s expression did not look pleased, even though he had been the one to attack.

‘He withstood Compression Soul-Sever?’

It was powerful enough to ruin even Unknown-grade boss monsters.

Yet Kim Tae-gwang had taken it without even a shield.

A tank was truly a tank, it seemed.

However, Compression Soul-Sever’s strength was its sustainability.

Beyond the original skill’s effect, he could launch consecutive attacks.

Ha-kyung quickly moved into his next action.

His swordsmanship unfolded as naturally as flowing water.

It was a strike that properly pierced through a gap.

No matter how sturdy the tank was, he would not be able to endure this one.

Yet a shocking result followed.

CLAAAAANG!

Kim Tae-gwang’s body staggered with a thunderous roar.

However, in the end, he was not sent flying.

Soon, Ha-kyung realized how his attack had been blocked.

‘He drew a shield in that split second? Is he a cardsharp or what?’

A silver pentagon covered Kim Tae-gwang’s front.

He had clearly been holding nothing but hand axes.

Where in the world had that shield come from?

Ha-kyung caught his breath and carefully observed Kim Tae-gwang.

‘So part of his armor transforms into a shield.’

His decisive strike had been blocked, but he did not grow impatient.

The flow had now shifted back to Ha-kyung.

If he attacked calmly, he felt strongly that he could win.

At least until a brilliant light burst from Kim Tae-gwang’s shield.

ZZYOOONG! KRA-GRA-GRA-GRAK!

Ha-kyung instinctively blocked the attack and staggered violently.

He had been startled by its tremendous power.

He restored his balance as quickly as possible.

“This is bad, damn it…….”

Then a curse slipped from Ha-kyung’s mouth.

Kim Tae-gwang’s axe show had resumed.

WHOOOSH! WHOOOSH! WHOOOSH! KRA-CLANG!

A countless storm of hand axes came flying in.

Ha-kyung was on the verge of losing his mind.

A beam cannon fired from the shield, followed by repeated axe juggling.

He had to make a decision.

‘If I keep getting dragged around like this, I will lose in the end. I have to break through his defense with a single strike.’

Why were melee damage dealers weak against tanks?

Because they were dragged into a sluggish war of attrition like this.

To break that damned cycle, overwhelming power was necessary.

Ha-kyung glared at Kim Tae-gwang and murmured quietly,

“First, let us drain some of that strength.”

[Kin-Eater skill target set]

[Target: Kim Tae-gwang]

PIIIING!

A sharp noise rang out, but the pressure was weaker than usual.

It was because his target was not a being of the Abyss, but an Awakened person.

Even so, the effect should be enough.

He had stolen a portion of Kim Tae-gwang’s mana.

In that state, Ha-kyung deployed Compression Soul-Sever.

SWIIISH!

The blade rushed straight toward Kim Tae-gwang’s front.

It was an honest thrust, without any technique or trickery.

Kim Tae-gwang tried to block Ha-kyung’s karambit with his shield.

KRA-CLANG!

But the moment the sword strike landed,

Ha-kyung suddenly stretched out his left hand.

SWAAASH! THUD!

A rope-shaped Abyss Refinement unfolded out of nowhere.

The tentacle-like strands seized the shield tightly.

“Huh?”

For the first time, a flustered voice burst from Kim Tae-gwang’s mouth.

It seemed he had never dreamed Ha-kyung would remove the shield this way.

Then Ha-kyung drove his fist into Kim Tae-gwang’s face.

THUNK!

It was the option he chose because swinging the karambit seemed difficult.

Surprisingly, the effect was fairly good.

Even though Kim Tae-gwang was wearing a helmet, he staggered.

On top of that, the impact must have been quite severe, because he even lost his grip on the shield.

At this point, victory had practically shifted completely to Ha-kyung.

If he merely widened the distance a little, it would be very easy to finish him off.

However, Kim Tae-gwang was, as expected, no easy opponent.

He grabbed Ha-kyung as he tried to pull away and instead forced him into close-quarters combat.

WHOOOM! KANG!

A heavy punch struck.

Ha-kyung raised his left arm to block, then immediately counterattacked.

THUNK! TUNG!

Then the sound of metal rang out again and again.

Before they knew it, the duel had turned into a raw men’s fight, with each of them taking turns exchanging blows.

Neither Ha-kyung nor Kim Tae-gwang retreated even a little.

Watching the duel, Kang Woo-jin clapped with a satisfied expression.

CLAP! CLAP!

“Ha! They are on a different level from the pathetic losers who only throw skills from far away.”

“Are you saying that for me to hear?”

Choi Hyun-ki snapped back with an indignant expression.

It felt as though a thick murderous intent had changed the very air.

But Kang Woo-jin paid it no mind and continued speaking.

“Of course I am. If you have someone that skilled, do not use him as a champion. Take him into the Abyss with you.”

“What are you talking about? We had a guest member contract with Lee Ha-kyung.”

“So? What difference does that make? I can tell you did not make proper use of him anyway.”

“Do not make groundless assumptions when you know nothing.”

“If you had handled things properly, would this dispute have happened in the first place?”

“…….”

At Kang Woo-jin’s sharp remark, Choi Hyun-ki had no choice but to shut his mouth.

Because it was true.

In an instant, Choi Hyun-ki’s face flushed red.

It was not because he had any sense of shame.

He was merely furious that he had been struck where it hurt.

Soon, the duel moved toward its final stage.

The wild close-range brawl between two fierce men had become impossible to predict.

They were evenly matched.

Then a decisive blow landed.

Kim Tae-gwang’s kick struck Ha-kyung’s temple.

THUUUNG!

Ha-kyung staggered and barely managed to regain his balance.

Immediately afterward, Kim Tae-gwang’s one-sided assault began.

THUD-THUD-THUD-THUD!

Merciless punches landed countless times.

The atmosphere made it seem as if the duel would end with Kim Tae-gwang’s victory.

Choi Hyun-ki clenched his fist.

“That is it!”

But one minute passed.

Then two minutes, then three, and still Ha-kyung did not collapse.

Instead, Kim Tae-gwang, who had been attacking like a madman, was the one who was growing exhausted.

Choi Hyun-ki could not close his open mouth.

“Damn it! Why is this not ending?”

At that, Kang Woo-jin smiled faintly and said,

“Didn’t you know?”

“Know what?”

“That guy’s nickname is the Immortal Tyrant. I heard he never dies.”

“What are you talking about? The effect of the bracelet should have run out long ago!”

Naturally, Choi Hyun-ki also knew very well about Tyrant’s Bracelet.

He, too, had taken part in the Fusion Abyss raid.

However, he knew nothing about the Restoration Veil Ha-kyung had obtained recently.

The two guild masters watched the duel with completely opposite expressions.

“Haaah! Hah! Hah!”

Kim Tae-gwang’s rough breathing rang out.

He had exhausted himself by pouring out attacks without end.

Soon after, Ha-kyung raised his head with a chilling smile.

His face, which had been reduced to a bloody mess, had already returned to normal.

“Are you finished already? I am nowhere near done.”

“…….”

At that, Kim Tae-gwang’s face turned deathly pale.