Chapter 160
The one who had entered under the name Nameless...
Was Hyeon Dowoon.
The appearance of someone Suhyeok had never expected made his pupils widen in surprise.
And for good reason.
The qi inside that man's body hadn't felt like Hyeon Dowoon's at all.
In fact, Suhyeok hadn't been able to sense any qi from him whatsoever.
He'd assumed the man was hiding his identity.
But he never would've guessed it was Hyeon Dowoon.
The brief joy of seeing him again faded quickly.
The qi that had been completely hidden until now began circulating through Hyeon Dowoon's body from his dantian.
Then an incredibly pure aura flowed out.
Far beyond what Suhyeok remembered from before.
"...Looks like you've broken through to a higher realm."
Hyeon Dowoon shrugged.
"Yes."
"I've been living by helping others, and somehow my martial arts grew along with me."
"It's all thanks to you, Young Master."
"You aren't making as much of a fuss as you used to."
Suhyeok studied him.
"So this is your real personality."
"Haha."
"You only realized that now?"
"I'm naturally quite introverted."
"It was exhausting forcing myself to act extroverted all the time."
"But now I can switch whenever I want."
"If you'd like, I can show you."
Even now...
He still carried that sly, playful attitude he'd shown in the Heavenly Demon Cult.
"I think that's enough catching up."
"Yes."
"I was just about to say the same thing."
Silence followed.
Even those watching from outside the training ground held their breath.
Then...
"A-Achoo!"
Someone in the crowd sneezed.
At the exact same moment...
The two figures standing on the training ground vanished.
Crack! Fwoosh! Swish!
Their speed was so great that the sounds of impact came after their movements.
Short, sharp noises rang out one after another across the training ground.
Each time they did...
The martial artists' heads snapped from side to side, desperately trying to follow the exchange.
Some even voiced their amazement.
"B-Both of them are incredible...!"
"How can they move like that...?"
"Neither is showing even the slightest opening."
"I honestly can't tell which one of them will win...."
The eliminated martial artists were stunned.
So were the participants who had advanced to the main tournament.
Everyone with enough skill to understand what they were watching was left speechless by the fierce exchange unfolding before them.
Meanwhile...
The high-ranking officials sitting farther away were sweating nervously for an entirely different reason.
They couldn't understand why the martial artists were reacting so strongly.
"W-What is happening right now?"
"Exactly...."
"I can't see anything."
"Why do they keep moving their heads around like that?"
To their eyes...
The training ground looked almost completely empty.
Only the sounds of combat could be heard.
As far as they were concerned, it was nothing more than a boring match.
Some even began protesting, demanding to know what they were supposed to be watching.
But those complaints meant nothing.
Even the Martial Alliance Leader and the Elders were staring intently at the arena in amazement.
"I-Is this truly possible...?"
"What in the world...."
"They're on an entirely different level from the other participants...!"
"Both of them are at least in the Transcendent Realm."
"Perhaps even beyond it...."
The Elders were the Martial Alliance's strongest forces.
No.
They were pillars of the entire orthodox martial world.
There were differences even within the same realm, of course.
But every one of them had reached the Transcendent Realm.
Across the entire Central Plains...
There were fewer than twenty martial artists at that level.
And those very people were judging Suhyeok and Hyeon Dowoon to be equal to them.
No.
Possibly stronger.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Still the same."
"Still the same."
The Martial Alliance Leader laughed heartily.
"How can he possibly be that strong?"
Then he paused.
"Ah, no."
"Calling him the same would be rude."
"He's even stronger than the last time I saw him."
"Five exchanges?"
He shook his head.
"No."
"If he were serious..."
"It would end within three."
Beside him, True Man Cheongheo stroked his beard and added,
"I had already guessed something when he drew my sword."
"But this is beyond what I expected."
"It seems the Alliance Leader's words were no exaggeration."
The Sect Leader of Mount Hua flinched violently.
"B-Both the Alliance Leader and True Man Cheongheo know that man?!"
The Martial Alliance Leader simply laughed, clearly enjoying everyone's reaction.
"Of course I know him."
"I sparred with him personally when I visited the Heavenly Demon Cult."
"S-Sparred...?"
"With everything I had."
The Alliance Leader smiled.
"And I only lasted ten exchanges."
"If he'd taken it even more seriously..."
"The match would've ended in fewer than five."
"That was back then."
"More time has passed since, so there's even less to say now."
Every Elder present stared at him in disbelief.
The Martial Alliance Leader.
A man who could rightfully be called the strongest under heaven.
The pillar of the orthodox martial world.
He understood the weight of every word he spoke better than anyone.
And yet...
He had openly admitted that Suhyeok stood several levels above him.
He'd even acknowledged his own defeat.
"..."
Gulp.
The Elders slowly turned their trembling gazes back toward the training ground.
"Th-Then..."
"If that man called Nameless has already exchanged dozens of moves with Heuk Mujin..."
Before the sentence could finish...
CRACK!
Suhyeok and Hyeon Dowoon had already exchanged more than twenty blows.
Their fists collided.
Both were pushed toward opposite ends of the training ground.
"Huff..."
"Haa...."
Unlike Suhyeok, who remained almost completely fine despite the nonstop exchange...
Hyeon Dowoon was breathing heavily.
Suhyeok opened and closed his tingling hand a few times.
Then looked toward him.
I never expected him to grow this much....
Suhyeok was genuinely surprised.
Not because he'd underestimated Hyeon Dowoon.
Right now...
Suhyeok possessed the Rank of a Constellation.
And unlike on some floors, his power wasn't being restricted by a portal here.
Even though Suhyeok was holding back...
Hyeon Dowoon's attacks were still affecting him to some degree.
This fight is already unfavorable for him.
His martial arts disturb Internal Energy flow, but that doesn't work properly against me anymore.
Suhyeok looked at him.
"You all right?"
"Haa..."
"The gap is bigger than I expected, so I was a little surprised...."
"But I'm still fine."
His words said one thing.
His body said another.
Unlike Suhyeok, whose hand merely tingled...
Hyeon Dowoon's entire body was covered in heavy bruises.
His legs trembled as he forced himself to remain standing.
During the previous exchange...
Several bones had already broken.
"Cough...."
Blood ran from the corner of his mouth and gathered at his chin.
Drops fell onto the ground.
Still...
He refused to give up.
He assumed his stance again.
Suhyeok looked at him.
"Your internal injuries are already severe."
"And it seems you're reaching your limit in controlling your qi."
"We should settle this soon."
