Chapter 110. Subjugating Arioc (3)
Did it fail?
That was the first thought that crossed Kang Yujin’s mind.
He could tell instinctively that his Awakening Skill, [Shatter Everything], had connected properly.
And yet Arioc remained standing exactly where he was, without any visible change.
“This... makes no sense...”
A voice finally escaped Arioc’s mouth.
“You... at your age... how did you reach such a realm...?”
And then...
Cracks slowly began spreading across Arioc’s entire body.
“This cannot be... I was supposed to protect Pandemonium until He returned... to preserve our glory... the glory of Pandemonium... and yet, here... like this...”
The cracks spread faster and faster.
But Arioc could do nothing except cry out in anguish.
“How could this happen... to a mere human...!”
“Hey.”
Kang Yujin wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling the exhaustion weighing down his body.
“You do realize that the moment you say something like that, you instantly start sounding like small fry, right?”
“ROOOOAAARGH!”
Arioc let out one final roar like a lion.
That was the end.
His enormous body shattered into countless pieces and scattered in every direction.
Then even those fragments broke apart further, crumbling into powder finer than sand before vanishing completely.
Arioc, the second-highest-ranking member of Pandemonium’s forces in the northern region, had been completely annihilated.
Naturally, the chat exploded.
─ Am I dreaming right now?
─ He killed Arioc in one hit?
─ He literally turned him into dust!
─ Incredible, Kang Yujin!
─ Astonishing! How is that even possible?!
─ What the hell did he just do? Someone explain!
─ There must be a lot of Constellations here seeing Kang Yujin for the first time. That skill is his finishing move.
─ If you watch the video uploaded by the ‘Leader of the Expedition,’ there’s a rough explanation of that technique.
─ No, I know that part! I’m asking how it worked on a demon as high-ranking as Arioc!
─ Exactly. High-ranking demons like that wrap themselves in the physical laws of another world through their Demonic nature. Ordinary physical damage doesn’t work.
─ Kang Yujin’s technique is ultimately just a physical strike. No matter how destructive it is, it shouldn’t work on Arioc.
─ Didn’t he break through the Demonic barrier with Divine Power?
─ He couldn’t break it until now.
─ None of you know what you’re looking at. What Kang Yujin just used was martial arts.
─ Martial arts?
─ He neutralized the Demonic barrier with internal energy. Same principle as Divine Power or magic power.
─ Wait, doesn’t it take at least several years of training to learn something like that? Kang Yujin didn’t even have that kind of power until now. How can he suddenly use it overnight?
─ Common sense doesn’t apply to Kang Yujin.
─ That actually sounds right. When watching Kang Yujin, you should abandon common sense about Contractors.
─ I also believe that to be the correct interpretation.
Even the Constellations who had been watching Kang Yujin for a long time couldn’t hide their astonishment.
[S-rank Constellation ‘Dragon-Slaying Immortal’ sponsors 5,000,000 Origin Power.]
[Comment: I offer praise for Kang Yujin’s magnificent achievement.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Hero King of Monstrous Strength’ sponsors 3,000,000 Origin Power.]
[Comment: That was a great punch! I liked it!]
Since this wasn’t the usual method of sponsoring Kang Yujin directly, the donations were somewhat less active.
Even so, several Constellations spent generously, and the total amount steadily increased.
But everyone knew.
This was not the climax.
This was merely the preliminary battle.
The real climax would come soon, when Kang Yujin faced Phenex, commander of the Second Far Eastern Region.
“You’ve done well, Kang Yujin.”
Joo Minha approached Kang Yujin after Arioc’s defeat.
“It appears I didn’t need to step in after all.”
“Seems that way.”
That was right.
The reason Joo Minha had accompanied Kang Yujin instead of Seok Taejun or Lee Jukheon was because she was supposed to intervene if [Heavenly Splendor Great Thunder] failed.
Divine Power and internal energy were not the only forces capable of destroying a Demonic barrier.
Magic power could do it as well.
The problem was that if Kang Yujin charged into Arioc while Arioc was being bombarded by attack magic, Kang Yujin would be caught in it too.
Magic powerful enough to destroy Arioc’s barrier would also be enough to seriously injure Kang Yujin.
That was why using Joo Minha had been considered the last resort.
Fortunately, Kang Yujin had managed to win alone.
“How is your body?”
“I can barely stand.”
Kang Yujin sighed.
“Internal energy really is difficult to use.”
“That would be expected. Normally, one accumulates internal energy through years of training.”
Kang Yujin wasn’t a martial artist from some wuxia novel who had spent decades accumulating internal energy.
He was forcibly drawing out his biological energy through skills and using it like internal energy.
Of course it would leave him completely drained.
“Is there some way to instantly increase my internal energy?”
“You’re always looking for shortcuts, Kang Yujin. I’ve heard that there are elixirs in China capable of greatly increasing internal energy.”
“I should probably get some.”
Kang Yujin muttered as he forced himself upright.
“I’ll support you.”
“Thanks.”
Normally, he would have told her he was fine.
But right now, he genuinely had no strength left, so he appreciated Joo Minha’s help.
“Anyway, with this... we’ve confirmed that your technique works.”
[Heavenly Splendor Great Thunder] erased the Demonic barrier.
Then, while his fist remained in contact, [Fa Jin] generated the impact needed to activate [Shatter Everything].
This chained technique was Kang Yujin’s new finishing move, created specifically to defeat Phenex.
“Kang Yujin, you’re becoming stronger and stronger.”
"..."
“Honestly, I’m proud of you.”
“What’s there to be proud of...”
Normally, Kang Yujin would have snapped at her to stop saying unnecessary things.
But he was too exhausted to respond properly.
“Kang Yujin, it goes without saying, but with our current strength alone, it is impossible to completely drive Pandemonium out of the northern region.”
“Obviously...”
“However, by eliminating command-level demons like Arioc and Phenex, we can make them hesitate to attack humanity again for some time.”
Joo Minha’s voice was filled with certainty.
“And you will be the one at the center of that, Kang Yujin.”
“I’m just doing what I can.”
“Yes. Of course.”
Joo Minha smiled and nodded.
“Seok Taejun and Lee Jukheon are waiting outside. Let’s regroup and leave this place as quickly as possible.”
With Arioc defeated, the final verification was complete.
Kang Yujin now knew that the technique prepared for Phenex would work.
It was time to head for Sariwon...
and prepare for the final battle with Phenex.
“Yes, Naval Commander Holding a Pitchfork, thank you for the donation! And thank you for always supporting Kang Yujin. Ah, Hunter Favored by the Moon Goddess, thank you as well. I’ll make sure to tell Kang Yujin that you’re looking forward to his future exploits. And next...”
Arlecchino Number 49’s voice continued through the livestream as he responded to donation comments.
If the donations increased much further, it might become impossible to answer every single one.
Still, he looked delighted.
As one of the people responsible for creating this feverish atmosphere, he was clearly enjoying himself.
Everything is going well.
I shrank the Constellation Tube screen back to its normal size and stretched lightly.
This project, which Number 49 and I had been preparing nonstop for several days, was a tremendous success.
The Constellations had reacted explosively to this exclusive livestream through Constellation Tube.
Since their donations were converted directly into Origin Power, the profits were also considerable.
Of course, this method was only possible inside Pandemonium, where the Constellations couldn’t observe things individually.
But considering how positive the response had been, it would be worth trying again in the future.
No. Maybe there’s demand for this even outside Pandemonium.
I was considering the endless stream of chat messages when a communication window suddenly opened beside me.
“Nameless, everything fine over there?”
The one calling me was Jason, the B-rank Constellation ‘Leader of the Expedition.’
“Yeah. How are things on your end?”
“Everything’s going smoothly here too.”
As I listened to Jason’s answer, I looked toward a screen displayed in the corner.
It showed Contractors from the Capital Region fighting zombie-like humans in the Hanam area.
“I want to finish things up here quickly so I can focus on Constellation Tube, but this battle is important enough that I can’t take my eyes off it.”
“Sounds like a lot of work.”
The forces fighting in Hanam were those of the remaining Eight Guardians.
Naturally, Jegal Geum’s Hwaseong Sect, which Jason managed, was participating as well.
Thanks to Jason carefully assigning Blessings to each member, the Hwaseong Sect’s combat ability had risen dramatically.
It was hard to believe this was the same organization that had suffered heavy losses in its recent internal conflict.
“Jegal Geum didn’t come to the front?”
“No. Lee Sion is leading them instead.”
Jegal Geum had apparently worn himself out training Kang Yujin intensively over the past few days.
In his place, Lee Sion, an A-rank Contractor contracted with Li Kui, the ‘Murderer with Two Axes,’ was leading the Hwaseong Sect.
“And... well, Lee Hyeonje is here too.”
A bolt of lightning swept across the center of the screen.
With Cheon Sangwoon gone, Lee Hyeonje could now be considered the strongest Contractor in the Capital Region.
Near him was his right-hand woman, Seo Youngmi, Contractor of Princess Longji, the ‘Fairy Who Controls Water.’
“You don’t need to worry about this side. We’ll handle it.”
By we, Jason meant Li Kui and Princess Longji as well.
Like Jason, both of them were currently focused on the Hanam battle.
“Thanks. Keep at it.”
“No, you made things much easier by tying Pandemonium’s hands.”
Originally, Pandemonium had probably intended to trigger the zombie outbreak in Hanam and invade the Capital Region while everyone was distracted.
If that had happened, the Eight Guardians would have been trapped between Pandemonium’s demons and the zombies.
It would have been a disaster.
But Belial had used political means to delay Pandemonium’s advance.
On top of that, Phenex had been deceived by false intelligence and was currently near Cheorwon.
And Arioc, who had been covering for him, had just fallen to Kang Yujin.
Because of that, the Eight Guardians could focus on exterminating the zombies without worrying about Pandemonium attacking them from the north.
“I seriously have no idea what kind of sorcery you pulled this time. Hahaha.”
“I’ll tell you later.”
I couldn’t exactly explain Belial to Jason in detail.
So I brushed it off and changed the subject.
“We defeated Arioc on this side. Phenex is the only one left now.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“First, we head to Sariwon, his base. If Phenex comes rushing back, we kill him there.”
“Then I guess we need to finish things up here by then. Roughly when?”
“Well...”
Phenex returning to Sariwon wasn’t the only thing I had to consider.
Kang Yujin had just used his Awakening Skill, [Shatter Everything].
That meant twenty-four hours had to pass before he could use it again.
The Great Blessing I had just granted him also had a twenty-four-hour cooldown.
So ideally, the showdown with Phenex should happen after both were available again.
“Think of it as sometime after twenty-four hours.”
“Tomorrow afternoon, then. Got it. We’ll do our best.”
With that, my call with Jason ended.
Judging from the current situation in Hanam, it seemed safe to leave things there to Jason, Li Kui, and Princess Longji.
Fortunately, only residents near the Church headquarters had been turned into zombies.
If every Church follower in Hanam had become one, even the Eight Guardians’ forces might not have been enough to deal with it.
Then...
Just as I turned my attention back toward Constellation Tube, another communication window appeared.
“Um... hello.”
A blond woman spoke to me in a slightly awkward voice.
It was Bradamante, the A-rank Constellation ‘Knight of the White Feather,’ Hector’s close subordinate and the one who had once invaded my throne and attacked me.
“I finished the task you gave me... may I report now?”
Bradamante carefully watched my expression as she spoke.
