The True Hecleus’s Style 2

Once upon a time, 100 years ago.

An ignorant drunkard asked the three Heroes seated side by side at a tavern:

‘Between Busker’s Swordsmanship and Hecleus’s Pugilism, which is the supreme art?’

At the insolent query, his companions tried to silence him.

But after a brief contemplation, Busker, far from angered, answered with his usual cold, emotionless expression.

‘Hecleus’s Style was perfected from the very beginning.’

My sword has yet to reach its conclusion.

He recited matter-of-factly, without a shred of regret, as if stating the obvious.

Busker’s swordsmanship was the product of research – the quintessence of the Sword Saint’s life journey.

But Hecleus’s Pugilism? It was merely a name Enoch had attached to Hecleus’s instinctive movements.

Like Busker and Enoch, his martial art too evolved over time.

However, this was not an advancement of the art itself, but simply the blossoming potential of his maturing physicality.

That earth-shattering, quake-inducing pugilism of unparalleled might.

It was so profoundly selfish in its overwhelming power that only Hecleus himself could wield it, for no other body could withstand its backlash.

Even Enoch in his prime could only mimic fragments using Localized Acceleration Control to temporarily reinforce his body at great risk.

But.

[You have consumed the Elixir ‘Hell Waters (Master Alchemist Edition)’]

[Your exalted ‘Divine Beast’ trait greedily absorbs the elixir. Absorption rate greatly increased.]

[Level 8 ‘Vitality’ stat aids in absorption. Elixir efficiency greatly increased.]

[Pain receptors deactivated.]

[Warning! Crisis perception deactivated.]

[Endurance stat level increased to an unbelievable degree! Current level: 8]

[Status Window]

Name: Han Doyun

Race: Human / Divine Beast

Affiliation: –

Talent: Genius

Stats:

Strength – Level 5

Agility – Level 4

Vitality – Level 8

Endurance – Level 4 -> Level 8

Mana – Level 4

Dark energies of forbidden magic rippled across his body.

The true, uncompromised Hecleus’s Style wielded by its creator, without diminishing its power or backlash.

Enoch had termed this the True Hecleus’s Style to distinguish it from the fragmented version he could only imitate.

A body with Level 8 Endurance surpassing even human Enoch’s, incapable of feeling pain, undeterred until death.

‘Combined with Localized Acceleration Control…’

Could he utilize the genuine Hecleus’s Style?

Doyun’s eyes blazed with golden willpower.

The moment Berthe saw that gaze, his body froze rigid.

‘…Me?’

Not only sensing some hidden truth Doyun possessed, but having withstood one of his strikes – it was an impossibility.

For a dragon to feel fear towards a human.

Yet his draconic senses undeniably detected an intense foreboding from those golden eyes.

From afar, Haineken screamed desperately.

“Don’t, Doyun!!!”

Losing his composure, Berthe lashed out with a punch fueled by vicious intent.

“Enough prattling!!”

A fist imbued with overwhelming tyrannical aura, vastly surpassing his previous strikes.

Hecleus’s Style – True Strike

In the brief instant that fist breached the sound barrier, all despaired.

Yet.

The unbelievable occurred.

‘True.’

Hecleus’s Style – True Strike

Kwahaaahng–!!!

Like a bomb’s detonation, a concentric shockwave emanated from the point of impact, violently shaking the entire area.

The earth cratered around them, forming a shallow depression.

The very ground and atmosphere trembled before the might of the continent’s paramount pugilism.

An aftermath so cataclysmic, it defied comprehension as a mere clash of flesh.

“…!!”

Not just Berthe, but all who witnessed it gaped wide-eyed in disbelief.

Haineken muttered in an entranced stupor.

“H, How is this…”

Yet none were more astounded than Berthe himself.

Despite his armor-like scales thickly encasing even his fingertips, the bones in his right arm reverberated with a jarring tremor.

Though Doyun’s Endurance was the lesser Level 8 compared to Berthe’s Level 9, and all his other stats like Strength, Agility and Mana paled in comparison.

His Localized Acceleration-enhanced arm combined with the superior True Hecleus’s Style had negated that difference.

Berthe realized through the stalemate of their fists.

“You, you…!”

The technique this human had just utilized.

It was undoubtedly Hecleus’s Style.

“How do you know Hecleus’s Style…!!”

At those words, even Haineken and the soldiers doubted their own ears.

“What…did you say?”

That Doyun could use Hecleus’s Style?

Locked in the exact same stance, fists meeting Berthe’s without budging an inch, Doyun growled savagely.

“Is this…”

The clenched left fist at his waist slowly unfurled with a creak.

“…Hecleus’s Style?”

Chill.

At the smoldering golden gaze, even the Armored Dragon retreated a step.

‘…Again!’

Feeling fear once more, this time prompting evasion.

Though still vastly inferior in power, Berthe’s draconic senses had glimpsed the blazing will in Doyun’s eyes.

The inextinguishable resolve of that paramount man who had transcended all others.

And having failed to anticipate the diminutive human instantly closing the gap, leaving an opening in his momentary lapse of instinctive caution, Doyun had capitalized on it.

Explosive bursts from Doyun’s Localized Acceleration-enhanced feet propelled him forth in an instantaneous boost, catching up to Berthe.

Mana Control equated to willpower.

Fueled by furious wrath for his friend, the adamant determination to slay this Legion Commander had allowed him to fully manifest the Overlord’s Divine Palm he had always held back.

Doyun’s extended left palm struck Berthe squarely in the solar plexus. And then.

‘Overlord’s Divine Palm’

Jjeojeojeojeojeong–!!

“Kkugh-“

The Armored Dragon Kyu-ryong, having forsaken even his innate magic to focus solely on physical durability.

He experienced the sensation of his armor’s interior being completely crushed for the second time since the battle against Hecleus.

Doyun immediately attempted to follow up his attack.

But even amidst the blinding agony, Berthe’s draconic survival instincts moved his body unconsciously, swatting Doyun away.

Kwang!

Doyun’s body smashed through several trees before embedding itself in the earth.

Yet he rose unfazed, as if completely unharmed by even the slightest impact.

“Kkugh, kkhugh- uh… kkhuh…”

The winded Berthe clutched his solar plexus, wheezing raggedly. Only frothy spittle dribbled from his agape maw as he struggled to breathe.

‘Just what in the world…!’

That last strike had pierced his armor, severely rattling his insides.

The fatal technique born from merging transcendent martial knowledge and Doyun’s Mana Control prowess – the Overlord’s Divine Palm.

Even with a millennium of life, he could only be stunned by such an attack.

Naturally, had Berthe been fully prepared, Doyun would never have even grazed him with that palm strike.

But it was the dire consequence of that momentary lapse triggered by various unfathomable factors.

Having inflicted a critical blow, Doyun first tended to Haineken.

“Can you still fight?”

“You…”

Haineken could not continue.

Doyun’s use of Hecleus’s Style, his ability to wound the Kyu-ryong, the fact that he remained unscathed despite being struck repeatedly – none of it made any sense.

The only aspect Haineken could comprehend was the dark energy emanating from Doyun’s body.

“…!”

The aura of forbidden magic.

“You, you…!”

He recalled the elixir proposed by the Death King at a past council meeting, only to be shelved due to ethical and efficiency concerns.

Coughing up blood with each word, Haineken grabbed Doyun’s collar in a rage.

“Forbidden magic! Hell Waters…! Kkhughk!”

“Choose your words wisely.”

“That’s suicide! Are you truly insane enough to…desire death…khuhurkk!”

Ignoring his words, Doyun assessed Haineken’s condition.

Despite the constant healing, the damage was too severe. Fortunately, Dragon Tiger Clash was still active, but whether he could sustain combat was doubtful.

“When the effect ends… the accumulated damage will hit you all at once…”

“Y, Yes.”

“Our Master repeatedly stressed preserving your life… ugh… foolish brat…”

“You may regret those words later.”

“What?”

Haineken failed to comprehend Doyun’s words, spoken with a wry smile.

No matter how many inexplicable displays Doyun had shown, Haineken could not fathom his true identity. And rightfully so – only later would he fully understand and rue his words.

“I cannot simply stand by while my juniors are imperiled.”

With Haineken receiving treatment, Doyun rose from his spot.

After this battle, there would be no concealing his identity. Against a Legion Commander, he could not hold back.

In a life-or-death situation, what did his identity matter?

He may still be able to deflect the masses somehow… but a formidable fighter like Haineken would not be so easily misled.

“All I can do is buy time. Retreat swiftly.”

“……You ask… the impossible.”

Haineken felt pathetic, relying on a 6-month rookie Disciple to buy time for him.

But absurd as it was, he had no other recourse. At least Doyun’s recent displays were no mere illusions.

Closing his eyes, he circulated his mana, focusing solely on healing.

Doyun gazed towards the still-agonized Berthe.

He slipped the sword back into the spatial rift at his waist.

‘A blade cannot inflict so much as a scratch.’

Even with Level 8 Endurance, Berthe still vastly outmatched him in sheer power.

Originally, landing a single strike would have been nigh impossible, only succeeding due to exploiting that lapse. His strategy going forward would have to revolve around that critical wound.

‘Swordplay is unusable.’

To utilize a sword, he would need to manifest his full Elemental Sword at minimum to pierce those scales and land a decisive blow. But there was no way Berthe would willingly receive such an overly conspicuous attack – a single miss could spell his defeat.

Hecleus’s Style, pushing his physical might beyond its limits, combined with Level 8 Endurance to endure the backlash and accumulate that very force.

His strongest weapon now was not the finely-honed blades of Busker’s Collection, but his own sturdy flesh itself.

“Huuu….”

After a deep inhale to oxygenate his entire body, he adopted a stance – one fist aimed at his plexus, the other forward.

‘It has been a while since I fought unarmed with full commitment.’

The supreme unarmed martial art even Enoch Razvolnic could not utilize – the True Hecleus’s Style.

Following its creator, those fists would unfurl in the hands of Disciple Han Doyun for only the second time in history.