Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Gaon Academy’s sparring arena.
A celebrity has come to visit this sacred training location.
“Yeow! It’s far!”
Anchor Yu HanNah, often called the “billboard” of Korea’s representative public service broadcast, K Channel. She was looking at the cameraman next to her, and her eyes blazed with the hunger for a scoop.
“Isn’t this huge news?!”
“Uh, w-what is?”
The cameraman with a large body asked while wiping his sweat. Yu HanNah was all fired up, despite the cameras not even rolling.
“The hunter world’s legend who sequestered himself for 20 years! The Fist King! They’re saying the disciple of that Fist King is going to appear at the Academy!”
“T-that’s… definitely news.”
“Fufu! But that’s not even the end of it! According to the tip, that disciple is going to debut today with a spar! Iiiif!!”
Yu HanNah pointed to herself with a raised thumb to grab the cameraman’s attention.
“I-if?”
Gulp.
Yu HanNah giggled cutely as the cameraman swallowed.
“Fufu! If we, K Channel, films his debut fight, wouldn’t that be huge?”
“Ohh!”
“What kind of reaction is that? Oh boy~ even explaining this to you has gotten to be a bother.”
She immediately opened her mouth again, even after she herself said that it was a bother.
“Anyways, the producer just ordered us to film it, so focus! Don’t miss anything! If it goes well, this can be the birth of a star hunter from his student days~ so focus! Focus! Capiche?”
“C-capiche!”
The robust cameraman nodded. Right then, Gaon Academy’s headmaster arrived at Yu HanNah immediately, despite having been far away.
“Oh my, what is K Channel doing at Gaon Academy? Are you perhaps here to interview our Adela?”
“Hm? Of course, we’re here for the disciple of the Fist King! I was under the impression that our news station, as your publicist, had the right to freely shoot anything here… is there a problem?”
As Yu Hannah squinted at Jin ByungCheol, he gulped and waved his hands together.
“Ah yes, you’re always welcome to shoot! B-but the student isn’t anyone strong enough to be worth broadcasting…”
“Oh no! A hunter’s star quality isn’t entirely dependent on their strength. And, headmaster?”
Yu HanNah shook her head, then thumped her chest. Thump thump.
“The decision to air the footage will be made by this broadcasting genius! This news rundown genius! By Yu HanNah! Don’t you get it? No one has an eye for star quality like I do!”
Jin ByungCheol laughed good-naturedly while thinking to himself:
‘…She’s definitely crazy.’
But this was a society where being popular with the mass public was synonymous with the level of renown of a corporation, which led to more grants. The headmaster always had to look good to the mass media.
‘Hum… they’re too excited. Even if he’s the disciple of the Fist King, no, that Yu WonHak, he can’t win against a D Class student with his F-rank Trait… what should I do?’
While the headmaster was deep in thought, the participant from D Class, Ju HaJin, was mussing up his orange hair and stepping onto the white tiled stage of the sparring arena.
“Now then, first-year D Class Ju HaJin. All ready.”
Shin YuSung drew the attention of the crowd as he slowly walked onto the arena.
“I’m also ready.”
Right then, everyone lost it. The first reason was because of the arrival of Shin YuSung, the one with the title of the disciple of the Fist King. The second reason was because of the good looks he had gotten from his nine yin blocked pathways.
“Oh, t-take a look at that. This is a first, even for me.”
Yu HanNah’s eyes were sparking while looking at Shin YuSung. She tapped the cameraman who was next to her.
“His face is perfect. Go ahead and zoom into it! Zoom! Zoom!”
“O-okay!”
While the two were focused on Shin YuSung’s looks and his star quality, the students were starting to wonder about his skills.
“Will he fight well, even with an F-rank Trait?”
“Well… Traits and skill aren’t completely proportionate to each other.”
“Naw, even then, fighting a D Class student… Wouldn’t it be a bit too hard for an F-rank Trait to win against that?”
The din was increasingly getting louder.
Shin YuSung ignored all such distracting sounds and concentrated on his opponent. Ju HaJin made fun of Shin YuSung’s sincere attitude.
“Hey, why’re you so tense? Can you even spar properly when you’re so scared?”
But Shin YuSung was cautious and careful, never lowering his guard in front of his opponent. He was taught by the Fist King to give his all against any foe.
Ju HaJin, whose specialty was trash-talking, was dissatisfied with Shin YuSung’s demeanor.
‘Why’s he not reacting? It ain’t fun unless they get worked up by my taunts…’
An angry opponent’s movements became wider and created openings. Of course, that sort of taunting didn’t work on Shin YuSung.
Ju HaJin spat on the ground and lowered his stance.
“Tch, no fun… well, whatever.”
“I look forward to a good fight.”
At Ju HaJin’s movements, Shin YuSung got into stance as well, putting one foot in front. As he did so, the speakers started to make an announcement.
—The spar will soon start.
Shin YuSung looked at Ju HaJin’s stance and fell into thought.
‘What a poor posture with an incredible number of openings. What are his intentions?’
—Get ready!
Shin YuSung looked at Ju HaJin with a serious expression while steadying his balance with both legs.
‘…What an easygoing expression. So he’s sure he’ll win, even with a stance like that.’’
He concluded that Ju HaJin’s sloppy stance was a kind of handicap.
‘What incredible confidence.’
—Start!
As the speakers announced the start of the match, Ju HaJin kicked at the ground with his feet. He ran dizzying circles around Shin YuSung.
“Kuhaha!”
His Trait, [Speed Up], made him faster the more he ran. Ju HaJin fought by heightening his speed as much as he could to assure that his blows would connect.
“How’s this? You can’t see me, huh?”
Even at the question, Shin YuSung didn’t reply. Instead, he followed Ju HaJin’s movements with his eyes.
‘What’s going on?’
He was panicking because of Ju HaJin’s actions.
‘…He’s slow.’
The reason was because Ju HaJin was incredibly slow.
‘…He’s much too slow.’
This was because of Shin YuSung’s Trait, [Heightened Focus]. When he poured all of his focus into combat, he would subconsciously use [Heightened Focus] and increase his concentration.
Shin YuSung’s world was moving very slowly due to this.
“Eat this!”
Ju HaJin threw a triumphant kick at Shin YuSung, but the other boy dodged his leg and aimed a punch at his torso.
Battle God Style Third Form – Heaven Shattering Fist Strike
Craaack!
In a flash, Shin YuSung’s punch hit Ju HaJin squarely in the torso. The impact made a shockwave and lifted Ju HaJin’s body into the air.
“Keuk!”
Booooom!
Shin YuSung didn’t immediately assume that the Academy hunters that his master told him about would be taken down this easily.
‘Maybe he has a Trait related to absorption? Or is his body is strong enough against regular hits to take an attack of this caliber with no protection?’
He didn’t think about it for long. Quickly making a decision, Shin YuSung blasted energy in front of him from his palm.
Crash!
A perfect combination play.
Shin YuSung’s martial arts skills, which he had been honing all this time, displayed the full potential of the nine blocked yin pathways and the abundance of bodily yang.
‘He can’t have been hit by that blow so easily. Maybe his Trait has something to do with illusions…? I also have to keep the possibility of his Skill in mind.’
The ragged Ju HaJin was hit by a shockwave and flew back, but Shin YuSung’s assault did not stop.
‘In any case, since I don’t have enough information, I’ll have to put my all into my blows.’
His master, the Fist King Yu WonHak, had a saying that he often said.
[It’s important to have a finisher for every attack]
Shin YuSung never went easy on his opponent as long as he was in a fight.
Bam!
He kicked the ground with his foot.
His well-trained physique actually ended up overtaking the flying Ju HaJin. Shin YuSung lifted his foot towards Ju HaJin, who was sailing towards him.
Battle God Style First Form – Falling Moon Kick
He twisted the foot he was using as a fulcrum and transferred the momentum to his other foot.
Bam!
His clean roundhouse kick bunted Ju HaJin into the air like a ball. Unlike Fist King Yu WonHak, who had a repertoire of punching attacks befitting his name, Shin YuSung’s techniques had a larger degree of freedom.
Nine blocked yin pathways.
Abundance of bodily yang.
His physique had surpassed human limits. Unlike modern hunters who always relied on their Traits, he had honed his innate strength.
Even if his Trait was F-rank, Shin YuSung was on the path of pursuing the peak of martial arts.
Bam! Boom!
As Ju HaJin fell out of the bounds of the arena, a few of the students nearby screamed in shock.
Shin YuSung also looked at Ju HaJin with a shocked expression.
‘Err, no way? Is that really the level of his skills?’
His thoughts were the complete truth.
Soon after, an announcement came out of the speakers to prove it.
—First-year D Class student, Ju HaJin, has lost by falling out of bounds.
That was when Shin YuSung finally looked at his surroundings.
Admiration and astonishment. The headmaster, Yu HanNah, and the students were mired in shock.
“He beat up someone that was already out cold…”
“Into tatters…”
“A-a demon! He’s a total demon!”
Shin YuSung was shocked at suddenly being labeled a demon, but the students were already revering him as one.
“The Fist King has created a demon!”
Headmaster Jin ByungCheol rushed up to him with an elated expression.
“Kuuuuu! As expected of the Fist King! You’re definitely Yu WonHak’s disciple!”
“I-is my spar partner…”
As Shin YuSung shakily asked while pointing at Ju HaJin, Jin ByungCheol firmly waved his hands.
“Oh! Gaon Academy’s medical nanomachines are the best in the world! So don’t worry about that!”
Yu HanNah, who was filming, belatedly ran towards Shin YuSung as well.
“Fist King’s disciple! You’re student Shin YuSung, right? This is your debut fight. Do you have any first impressions or anything you want to say?”
Shin YuSung pondered over what to say while giving a blank look at the interview microphone. It felt incredibly clear to him what he was feeling.
“Um…”
As Shin YuSung opened his mouth to speak, everyone at the sparring arena held their breath. With a bemused expression, he continued:
“The opponent was too weak.”
The audience couldn’t say anything to the unexpected response. The silence awkwardly permeated the arena. Shin YuSung’s interview would be one that would go down in K Channel’s and Gaon Academy’s history.
* * * *
The next day.
[Fist King’s Disciple! Accepted to the Academy!]
[Exclusive footage of his spar on K Channel!]
[TV Ratings Already Over 9%…]
News of Shin YuSung decorated several different headlines. Of course, the image of him portrayed in the news was very different from his actual personality.
[Shin YuSung: declares that opponent is too weak]
[Shin YuSung, a controversial personality! Didn’t stop the spar even when his opponent had fainted……]
[Shin YuSung, already called a demon in the Academy……]
Gaon Academy, the cream of the crop of South Korea and the world; even there, the first impressions of Shin YuSung were shocking.
Of course, his opponent was a mere D Class student. The reason he still grabbed so much attention was because of several star-like qualities he possessed.
An F-rank Trait…
Beautiful looks from the nine blocked yin pathways…
A hand-to-hand-based hunter, which was rare to find in this day and age…
At this moment in time, Shin YuSung was causing enough ripples to rival an S-rank hunter.
The world’s attention became focused on one point.
____
Gaon Academy’s sparring arena.
A celebrity has come to visit this sacred training location.
“Yeow! It’s far!”
Anchor Yu HanNah, often called the “billboard” of Korea’s representative public service broadcast, K Channel. She was looking at the cameraman next to her, and her eyes blazed with the hunger for a scoop.
“Isn’t this huge news?!”
“Uh, w-what is?”
The cameraman with a large body asked while wiping his sweat. Yu HanNah was all fired up, despite the cameras not even rolling.
“The hunter world’s legend who sequestered himself for 20 years! The Fist King! They’re saying the disciple of that Fist King is going to appear at the Academy!”
“T-that’s… definitely news.”
“Fufu! But that’s not even the end of it! According to the tip, that disciple is going to debut today with a spar! Iiiif!!”
Yu HanNah pointed to herself with a raised thumb to grab the cameraman’s attention.
“I-if?”
Gulp.
Yu HanNah giggled cutely as the cameraman swallowed.
“Fufu! If we, K Channel, films his debut fight, wouldn’t that be huge?”
“Ohh!”
“What kind of reaction is that? Oh boy~ even explaining this to you has gotten to be a bother.”
She immediately opened her mouth again, even after she herself said that it was a bother.
“Anyways, the producer just ordered us to film it, so focus! Don’t miss anything! If it goes well, this can be the birth of a star hunter from his student days~ so focus! Focus! Capiche?”
“C-capiche!”
The robust cameraman nodded. Right then, Gaon Academy’s headmaster arrived at Yu HanNah immediately, despite having been far away.
“Oh my, what is K Channel doing at Gaon Academy? Are you perhaps here to interview our Adela?”
“Hm? Of course, we’re here for the disciple of the Fist King! I was under the impression that our news station, as your publicist, had the right to freely shoot anything here… is there a problem?”
As Yu Hannah squinted at Jin ByungCheol, he gulped and waved his hands together.
“Ah yes, you’re always welcome to shoot! B-but the student isn’t anyone strong enough to be worth broadcasting…”
“Oh no! A hunter’s star quality isn’t entirely dependent on their strength. And, headmaster?”
Yu HanNah shook her head, then thumped her chest. Thump thump.
“The decision to air the footage will be made by this broadcasting genius! This news rundown genius! By Yu HanNah! Don’t you get it? No one has an eye for star quality like I do!”
Jin ByungCheol laughed good-naturedly while thinking to himself:
‘…She’s definitely crazy.’
But this was a society where being popular with the mass public was synonymous with the level of renown of a corporation, which led to more grants. The headmaster always had to look good to the mass media.
‘Hum… they’re too excited. Even if he’s the disciple of the Fist King, no, that Yu WonHak, he can’t win against a D Class student with his F-rank Trait… what should I do?’
While the headmaster was deep in thought, the participant from D Class, Ju HaJin, was mussing up his orange hair and stepping onto the white tiled stage of the sparring arena.
“Now then, first-year D Class Ju HaJin. All ready.”
Shin YuSung drew the attention of the crowd as he slowly walked onto the arena.
“I’m also ready.”
Right then, everyone lost it. The first reason was because of the arrival of Shin YuSung, the one with the title of the disciple of the Fist King. The second reason was because of the good looks he had gotten from his nine yin blocked pathways.
“Oh, t-take a look at that. This is a first, even for me.”
Yu HanNah’s eyes were sparking while looking at Shin YuSung. She tapped the cameraman who was next to her.
“His face is perfect. Go ahead and zoom into it! Zoom! Zoom!”
“O-okay!”
While the two were focused on Shin YuSung’s looks and his star quality, the students were starting to wonder about his skills.
“Will he fight well, even with an F-rank Trait?”
“Well… Traits and skill aren’t completely proportionate to each other.”
“Naw, even then, fighting a D Class student… Wouldn’t it be a bit too hard for an F-rank Trait to win against that?”
The din was increasingly getting louder.
Shin YuSung ignored all such distracting sounds and concentrated on his opponent. Ju HaJin made fun of Shin YuSung’s sincere attitude.
“Hey, why’re you so tense? Can you even spar properly when you’re so scared?”
But Shin YuSung was cautious and careful, never lowering his guard in front of his opponent. He was taught by the Fist King to give his all against any foe.
Ju HaJin, whose specialty was trash-talking, was dissatisfied with Shin YuSung’s demeanor.
‘Why’s he not reacting? It ain’t fun unless they get worked up by my taunts…’
An angry opponent’s movements became wider and created openings. Of course, that sort of taunting didn’t work on Shin YuSung.
Ju HaJin spat on the ground and lowered his stance.
“Tch, no fun… well, whatever.”
“I look forward to a good fight.”
At Ju HaJin’s movements, Shin YuSung got into stance as well, putting one foot in front. As he did so, the speakers started to make an announcement.
—The spar will soon start.
Shin YuSung looked at Ju HaJin’s stance and fell into thought.
‘What a poor posture with an incredible number of openings. What are his intentions?’
—Get ready!
Shin YuSung looked at Ju HaJin with a serious expression while steadying his balance with both legs.
‘…What an easygoing expression. So he’s sure he’ll win, even with a stance like that.’’
He concluded that Ju HaJin’s sloppy stance was a kind of handicap.
‘What incredible confidence.’
—Start!
As the speakers announced the start of the match, Ju HaJin kicked at the ground with his feet. He ran dizzying circles around Shin YuSung.
“Kuhaha!”
His Trait, [Speed Up], made him faster the more he ran. Ju HaJin fought by heightening his speed as much as he could to assure that his blows would connect.
“How’s this? You can’t see me, huh?”
Even at the question, Shin YuSung didn’t reply. Instead, he followed Ju HaJin’s movements with his eyes.
‘What’s going on?’
He was panicking because of Ju HaJin’s actions.
‘…He’s slow.’
The reason was because Ju HaJin was incredibly slow.
‘…He’s much too slow.’
This was because of Shin YuSung’s Trait, [Heightened Focus]. When he poured all of his focus into combat, he would subconsciously use [Heightened Focus] and increase his concentration.
Shin YuSung’s world was moving very slowly due to this.
“Eat this!”
Ju HaJin threw a triumphant kick at Shin YuSung, but the other boy dodged his leg and aimed a punch at his torso.
Battle God Style Third Form – Heaven Shattering Fist Strike
Craaack!
In a flash, Shin YuSung’s punch hit Ju HaJin squarely in the torso. The impact made a shockwave and lifted Ju HaJin’s body into the air.
“Keuk!”
Booooom!
Shin YuSung didn’t immediately assume that the Academy hunters that his master told him about would be taken down this easily.
‘Maybe he has a Trait related to absorption? Or is his body is strong enough against regular hits to take an attack of this caliber with no protection?’
He didn’t think about it for long. Quickly making a decision, Shin YuSung blasted energy in front of him from his palm.
Crash!
A perfect combination play.
Shin YuSung’s martial arts skills, which he had been honing all this time, displayed the full potential of the nine blocked yin pathways and the abundance of bodily yang.
‘He can’t have been hit by that blow so easily. Maybe his Trait has something to do with illusions…? I also have to keep the possibility of his Skill in mind.’
The ragged Ju HaJin was hit by a shockwave and flew back, but Shin YuSung’s assault did not stop.
‘In any case, since I don’t have enough information, I’ll have to put my all into my blows.’
His master, the Fist King Yu WonHak, had a saying that he often said.
[It’s important to have a finisher for every attack]
Shin YuSung never went easy on his opponent as long as he was in a fight.
Bam!
He kicked the ground with his foot.
His well-trained physique actually ended up overtaking the flying Ju HaJin. Shin YuSung lifted his foot towards Ju HaJin, who was sailing towards him.
Battle God Style First Form – Falling Moon Kick
He twisted the foot he was using as a fulcrum and transferred the momentum to his other foot.
Bam!
His clean roundhouse kick bunted Ju HaJin into the air like a ball. Unlike Fist King Yu WonHak, who had a repertoire of punching attacks befitting his name, Shin YuSung’s techniques had a larger degree of freedom.
Nine blocked yin pathways.
Abundance of bodily yang.
His physique had surpassed human limits. Unlike modern hunters who always relied on their Traits, he had honed his innate strength.
Even if his Trait was F-rank, Shin YuSung was on the path of pursuing the peak of martial arts.
Bam! Boom!
As Ju HaJin fell out of the bounds of the arena, a few of the students nearby screamed in shock.
Shin YuSung also looked at Ju HaJin with a shocked expression.
‘Err, no way? Is that really the level of his skills?’
His thoughts were the complete truth.
Soon after, an announcement came out of the speakers to prove it.
—First-year D Class student, Ju HaJin, has lost by falling out of bounds.
That was when Shin YuSung finally looked at his surroundings.
Admiration and astonishment. The headmaster, Yu HanNah, and the students were mired in shock.
“He beat up someone that was already out cold…”
“Into tatters…”
“A-a demon! He’s a total demon!”
Shin YuSung was shocked at suddenly being labeled a demon, but the students were already revering him as one.
“The Fist King has created a demon!”
Headmaster Jin ByungCheol rushed up to him with an elated expression.
“Kuuuuu! As expected of the Fist King! You’re definitely Yu WonHak’s disciple!”
“I-is my spar partner…”
As Shin YuSung shakily asked while pointing at Ju HaJin, Jin ByungCheol firmly waved his hands.
“Oh! Gaon Academy’s medical nanomachines are the best in the world! So don’t worry about that!”
Yu HanNah, who was filming, belatedly ran towards Shin YuSung as well.
“Fist King’s disciple! You’re student Shin YuSung, right? This is your debut fight. Do you have any first impressions or anything you want to say?”
Shin YuSung pondered over what to say while giving a blank look at the interview microphone. It felt incredibly clear to him what he was feeling.
“Um…”
As Shin YuSung opened his mouth to speak, everyone at the sparring arena held their breath. With a bemused expression, he continued:
“The opponent was too weak.”
The audience couldn’t say anything to the unexpected response. The silence awkwardly permeated the arena. Shin YuSung’s interview would be one that would go down in K Channel’s and Gaon Academy’s history.
* * * *
The next day.
[Fist King’s Disciple! Accepted to the Academy!]
[Exclusive footage of his spar on K Channel!]
[TV Ratings Already Over 9%…]
News of Shin YuSung decorated several different headlines. Of course, the image of him portrayed in the news was very different from his actual personality.
[Shin YuSung: declares that opponent is too weak]
[Shin YuSung, a controversial personality! Didn’t stop the spar even when his opponent had fainted……]
[Shin YuSung, already called a demon in the Academy……]
Gaon Academy, the cream of the crop of South Korea and the world; even there, the first impressions of Shin YuSung were shocking.
Of course, his opponent was a mere D Class student. The reason he still grabbed so much attention was because of several star-like qualities he possessed.
An F-rank Trait…
Beautiful looks from the nine blocked yin pathways…
A hand-to-hand-based hunter, which was rare to find in this day and age…
At this moment in time, Shin YuSung was causing enough ripples to rival an S-rank hunter.
The world’s attention became focused on one point.
____
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