Chapter 80: White Tiger Divine Art (2)

The White Tiger Spear Technique of the White Tiger Divine Art.

As the name implied, it was a supreme martial skill created in the image of the white tiger.

The white energy surging from Second’s whole body looked like the flowing mane of a great tiger.

Boom! Boom!

She kicked off the ground with all her might, charging in like a tiger the size of a house.

Fwoooosh!

The Demonic Flame of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art blazed upward.

Carl stood firmly in place with his sword raised, blocking Second’s oncoming attack head-on.

Claaang!

Both the Heavenly Demon Divine Art and the White Tiger Divine Art were martial arts of a domineering nature.

The sharp-edged energy from each side overflowed into the other’s domain, twisting and writhing to tear the opponent apart.

But Carl and Second, without yielding an inch, locked sword and spear and began a contest of strength.

‘Solid.’

Second, who had been breathing roughly from repeated bursts of excitement, curled her lips upward.

Even though she had attacked with sincerity, he hadn’t budged in the slightest.

Whenever they sparred, Master always met her at the same level.

Even so, the fact that she wasn’t being pushed back meant she still had plenty of room to grow at this stage.

“……”

A shiver ran down her whole body.

A tingling sensation passed from head to toe, and her breathing began to grow heavier.

It felt like the pent-up desire inside her was slowly being released.

The dopamine rush was so intense it almost brought tears to her eyes.

“You’re not telling me you got this excited just to show me this much, are you?”

“This is just the beginning!”

Second twisted her wrist, spinning the spear shaft.

When the Vajra Energy of the White Tiger Divine Art imbued the weapon, its force leapt to an entirely different level from before.

Kagagagak!

The demonic energy surrounding Carl’s sword was shaved away little by little, scattering black fragments into the air.

“Hup!”

At the same time, Second used the mystery of the Absorption Technique to pull Carl’s sword toward her.

It was a method to disarm the opponent or make them drop their weapon by using rotational force.

Thud.

Naturally, such a petty trick didn’t work on Carl.

He deliberately pushed his sword further in, creating rebound force to free himself from the bind.

Of course, Second had expected Master to easily break her technique, so she immediately unleashed the follow-up she had prepared.

Tsszzz.

The spear tip split apart.

Each fragment turned into a tangible shadow, pressing in from all directions toward Carl.

Kagagagak!

White claws, harder than diamond, scraped against the protective energy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, producing a metallic screech.

Holding his sword at an angle, Carl let a faint smile form on his lips at the shock pounding against his entire body.

He blocked the real strikes and relied on the Heavenly Demon Divine Art’s protective skill to endure the feints.

‘So, divine arts are divine arts after all.’

If they had been at exactly the same level, even the protective energy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art wouldn’t have completely stopped the assault.

Carl also scattered sword energy to check Second’s repeated follow-up attacks.

Whoosh.

Second leapt high into the air, avoiding all of Carl’s counterattacks.

Then, lowering her spear tip sharply, she used the momentum of her descent to unleash a decisive strike.

“Meteor.”

Second became a streak of starlight and smashed into the floor of the training arena.

The figure of Carl, who had been right before her eyes, vanished into black smoke as if performing a body-switching illusion.

He had evaded Meteor’s form with Dark Flow Footwork and concealed himself in the air.

But Second did not panic; she instantly spread her sensing ability wide around her.

‘There!’

The butt end of the spear thrust fiercely into the empty air.

At the same moment, the space distorted, and Carl’s figure popped out, batting the spear aside.

Seeing her footwork technique read in an instant, Carl wore a faintly impressed expression.

“You’ve gotten used to Dark Flow Footwork.”

“How many times do you think Queen has caught me with it? At this distance, even Master can’t hide from my eyes.”

Extending her spear, Second wore a triumphant smile.

At her confidence, Carl gave a light chuckle and tilted his head.

“Are you sure about that?”

Thwack!

Second didn’t answer.

She suddenly thrust the spear tip, aiming at Master’s face.

Once again, Carl’s figure dispersed into black smoke and vanished.

Just like before, Second spread her senses and immediately picked up a presence nearby.

Swoosh!

Her spear tip pierced the target point with not the slightest margin of error.

"…!"

But there was nothing at the spear tip.

She had clearly sensed a presence there, so what had happened?

"The senses of an expert are sharp. But that also makes them easier to deceive. Especially if that expert trusts their senses."

Swoosh!

Hearing the voice from behind her, Second reacted instantly.

But again, the spear tip only cut through empty air, not even grazing a strand of Carl’s hair.

"……."

A shadow fell at her feet.

Overhead—making her judgment in an instant—Second twisted her waist and swung the long spear shaft in a sweeping arc.

Slash─!

This time, she had certainly cut something.

The problem was that it was only the coat Master had been wearing.

The next moment, a voice came from directly behind her, making Second’s skin crawl.

"That’s why you must always doubt. Doubt whether what you see, hear, and feel is real."

Thud!

She stabbed the spear tip behind her.

Of course, there was nothing there either.

Only then did Second realize what kind of trick she had fallen into.

‘He condensed his energy in empty space to lure me with a false presence, then used a delayed transmission of his voice to throw off my timing!’

Then where was the real Master?

Thump.

From her blind spot, Carl, who had been lying low to the ground as if touching it, sprang forward in a charge.

Closing the distance in an instant, he withdrew his sword and opened his palm wide, placing it over Second’s abdomen.

"Constantly doubt. That’s the shortcut to victory."

Boom─!

A rough wave of energy exploded.

Second’s body was flung from her spot, rolling several times before she barely managed to stop on the floor.

"Ugh."

Staggering, clutching her stomach, she got to her feet with a furrowed brow and an exhale.

She had concentrated her inner energy in her abdomen at the last moment to minimize the impact—otherwise, she might have made a disgraceful scene in front of Master.

Carl lightly brushed his hands off and looked at her with a faint smile.

"Understood?"

"…I’ll keep it in mind."

Exhaling deeply, calming her surging inner energy, Second nodded.

Carl returned the nod, then turned his gaze toward Queen, who had been hanging upside down from a training apparatus in the back.

"This time, both of you at once."

"Finally?"

Queen dropped from the apparatus as if she had been waiting for this, landing on the floor.

If they used the Heavenly Demon Divine Art or the Bright Heaven Divine Art, they could put on a good sparring match.

But going beyond that was risky—the Black Label executives were skilled enough that even Carl had to control his strength.

One wrong move, and he could end up killing them.

But if there was a certain premise in place, the situation changed completely.

Tsszzzz.

Gray energy began to rise faintly from Carl’s body.

Unlike the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, this aura carried no sense of oppression—colorless and odorless—yet Queen and Second looked more tense than at any other point in the spar.

"…You’re not tired, are you?"

"As if. I could go for three more days and nights."

Second gripped her spear shaft firmly as she replied to Queen’s question in a strong voice.

"Then Formation D."

"We only started practicing that recently."

"That’s the point. If we want to target Master, we have to rely on unpredictability."

Listening to their conversation, Carl smirked.

After just a few joint spars, they were already coming up with coordinated techniques.

‘The right choice.’

When many weaker fighters faced a strong one, they had to devise a method.

If they simply relied on numbers and charged head-on, a single sword strike could take their heads.

Swoosh.

Suddenly, a concealed weapon flew toward him.

Carl naturally reached out and caught the small Hidden Poison Needle aimed at his forehead.

At the same time, Queen and Second charged in from his left and right blind spots, closing in almost simultaneously.

Carl snapped the Hidden Poison Needle in his hand and began fully channeling the energy of the Primordial Unity Divine Art.

Boom─!

He had merely channeled the energy of the divine art.

That was all—yet a massive wave of energy burst forth, sweeping across the inside of the training hall.

"……."

Queen and Second clenched their teeth.

Even though it was just a wave of energy, it felt as if invisible blades were slicing through their entire bodies.

But without batting an eye, they charged forward, targeting Carl.

Swoosh!

Second struck first.

With a large motion to draw Carl’s attention, she swung the spear shaft in the longest slash she had shown yet.

Thunk.

Carl casually swept his hand, knocking the spear shaft aside.

He hadn’t used his sword.

If he did, there was a chance they might get hurt.

After neutralizing the spear, he clenched his fist and thrust a straight punch.

Claaang!

A shock on an entirely different level from before.

Even so, Second pushed her Vajra Energy to its limits and endured it.

She retreated, leaving a long mark across the training floor, but still managed to create an opening for Queen to slip in.

Rustle.

Without warning, Queen’s figure—whose presence had vanished moments earlier—appeared behind Carl.

‘Going for a vital point.’

There was no hesitation.

The sword in her hand thrust toward Carl’s back, driving in deep.

No—it only seemed to.

Tap.

With just a light twist of his body, Carl caught Queen’s attack in the gap between his arm and torso.

She exhaled sharply and immediately released the sword, but when Carl reached out, an immense suction force pulled her in.

Whirr.

She hurriedly swung her arm, deploying a wire that latched onto the top of a piece of equipment in the distance.

Using the pulling force as a rebound, she leapt into the air, putting distance between herself and Carl.

But Carl didn’t give her time to breathe—he casually struck the air.

Boom!

The Shaolin Hundred-Step Divine Fist was so named because it could strike an opponent from a hundred paces away.

The distance between Carl and Queen was even shorter, yet the force riding his fist came at her like a gust of palm wind, sending her flying.

Flip!

Queen, who had been flung into the air, barely managed to twist her body and land safely.

But this was only the beginning.

Queen and Second kept kicking off the ground, charging at Carl again and again.

No matter how hard they tried, touching or pushing him back was impossible.

“Haa… haah…”

“……”

In less than ten minutes, both were sprawled on the floor, panting heavily.

For two experts of their caliber to lose their pace in such a short time meant the fight had been grueling.

“…I’m dead.”

Second outright dropped her spear and lay spread-eagle on the ground, declaring defeat.

Queen, still maintaining her composure and poise, caught her breath and asked Carl,

“Master, it feels harder than before.”

“I was fighting at the same level as before.”

“To us, it didn’t feel like that at all. Could it be you’ve reached a higher stage?”

“Hm.”

Carl tilted his head.

His realm in the Primordial Unity Divine Art was still at 2-star.

He hadn’t broken through the wall to 3-star, so it should be the same as before.

“Perhaps the fight in Erendal Forest brought about the change.”

“That Matthias fellow, you mean?”

“They called him Matthias of the Seven Wings.”

Carl nodded at Queen’s words.

“He was a swordsman who handled irregular techniques at a high level.”

After the Erendal subjugation battle, Carl had investigated Matthias.

And surprisingly, he had discovered that Matthias had truly existed hundreds of years ago.

‘…They say in his later years, he was betrayed by those he trusted and met a miserable death.’

Perhaps unable to forget that grudge, he had wandered Erendal Forest for centuries.

While he was pondering, his gaze fell on Queen and Second, who were tidying up and getting to their feet.

They clearly thought the spar was over.

“Why are you cleaning up? We’re just about to start in earnest.”

“……”

“……”

At Carl’s words, paired with the slight upward curl of his lips, Queen and Second’s faces turned pale.

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