Chapter 121

“Incredible!”

“Wow!”

“Are you seeing this?!”

Shouts of astonishment burst from the organization members tracking the monitor.

The stadium floor was washed in fresh crimson, and the three decapitated Vocalists dissolved back into unsummoned states.

Ki Jaehyeok, Kang Jiho, and even Hong Ari bounded out of their seats, staring in disbelief.

It was breathtaking.

He could completely suppress Xenos through nothing but flawless input execution?

Without possessing any sort of armaments?

“……”

Yet.

No sign of triumph showed on Baek Jinwoo’s features as he observed the scene.

Instead, his eyes scanned the arena with a frozen, solemn intensity.

There was no chance this was the extent of his opponent’s arsenal.

A deeper trap had to be lurking.

Xenos maintained a position as one of the Five Emperors for a reason.

Letting down his guard was out of the question.

Hadn’t Hikaru pushed Rachel to the absolute limit despite the latter’s massive advantage?

“……!”

In that precise instant!

Baek Jinwoo sensed the stone floor shifting violently under his feet.

Simultaneously, the Tyrant lunged at Drill Sarge from a blind spot.

The execution of that trajectory made it clear—

He is attempting to distract my focus.

“You are truly out of your mind, JinuGod!”

Xenos roared just as the Tyrant brought down a heavy fist.

Swish, crack! Bam-bam-bam!

Drill Sarge parried and deflected every strike with seamless coordination, meeting each attack with an immediate counter.

Deprived of the Vocalist’s debilitating hex, mitigating the onslaught had grown considerably more manageable.

“Don’t tell me you mimicked the Tyrant’s techniques through raw mechanical skill? How can that even happen? Your Drill Instructor is meant to be a blade-wielding servant, for heaven’s sake.”

“Hmm.”

Baek Jinwoo’s brow twitched.

“You’re awfully talkative right now, Hyung.”

“……I’m completely dumbfounded, you brat. Seriously, that is completely unfair. Do you know how many rare technique volumes I sacrificed through synthesis just to grant the Tyrant that specific move?”

“No. That’s a bluff.”

Baek Jinwoo’s expression stayed frozen and heavy.

And perceptive.

From the opening seconds, he had been recording the positioning of every single entity, analyzing and reanalyzing.

Xenos was stalling the clock, plain and simple.

“Thinking back, what has that Alchemic Transmuter been occupied with this entire time?”

“……The Alchemist? What makes you say that?”

Xenos persisted in steering the Tyrant, but Baek Jinwoo caught the subtle shift perfectly.

The brief flash of panic behind the reply.

Did Xenos understand that his reaction had exposed his scheme?

“Ha.”

A mirthless chuckle escaped him.

“Just as I thought, outsmarting JinuGod is an impossible task.”

“Not JinuGod. Use Baek Jinwoo, if you don’t mind.”

Seriously.

Drop that ridiculous title already, please!

“Hahaha, fair enough. Fair enough, fair enough. Baek Jinwoo.”

Xenos offered a relaxed laugh and gestured in agreement.

“You hit the nail on the head. The Alchemist has been gathering seconds this whole time. But what can you do about it now?”

Rustle.

Dropping down onto a single knee, Xenos slammed his open hand against the arena floor.

The Alchemic Transmuter’s metallic cylinder flared with intense radiance once more.

“It appears the required window has already been secured.”

Baek Jinwoo clamped his teeth together.

The defining trait of the Alchemic Transmuter was its ability to engineer chimeras.

However, the specific monstrosity creation technique Xenos had acquired remained completely hidden from public knowledge.

He had never once displayed it in an official match.

…What if I plan for the absolute worst case?

Engineered abominations spanned from minor nuisances to world-ending catastrophes.

A rare few possessed such game-breaking power that they could render the challenge of an entire high-level zone completely irrelevant.

One notorious entity among them was Chimera No. 9……

The unique property of that particular creation was straightforward: the longer it remained sealed away within the summoning pool, the more apocalyptic its strength became upon liberation.

The drawback was that all built-up power evaporated following a single manifestation, but…

Why now?

Baek Jinwoo’s instincts screamed that Xenos was unleashing Number Nine.

The subtle, deep vibration originating from the bedrock.

That was the signature awakening indicator of Number Nine.

“Drill Sarge, retreat upward.”

Thump!

Responding instantly to Baek Jinwoo’s directive, Drill Sarge severed the engagement mid-exchange and launched himself toward the ceiling.

“Oh.”

Xenos’s gaze flashed with excitement.

“As expected of Baek Jinwoo!”

Merely from observing the initial setup, he recognized exactly which beast was being called forth.

A truly terrifying level of perception.

Nevertheless.

Xenos smirked.

This specific Chimera No. 9 operated on an entirely different scale.

Xenos had kept Number Nine gathering energy for two unbroken years since unlocking the Alchemic Transmuter.

Twenty-four months of stacked magnitude would eclipse even the ultimate guardians dwelling on the lower tiers of the Tower of Trials!

“If you can find a way around this as well, you’ll have my full respect, Baek Jinwoo!”

Soft Alchemist.

Evocation.

Chimera No. 9!

BOOM-CRASH-RUMBLE!

The stone foundation split asunder, and from the deep fissure tore a colossal segmented worm of unbelievable scale.

This was no mere subterranean creature.

Its gaping, circular maw was packed with hundreds of ivory, razor-sharp fangs arranged in concentric patterns—a terrifying nightmare of anatomy.

CRUNCH, SMASH!

The terrain had already buckled into a jagged wreck, sending rocky debris flying wildly everywhere.

— Whoa!

Drill Sarge braced himself.

His master had driven the lesson home repeatedly:

When facing raw, overwhelming mass, technical mastery loses its meaning.

That segmented terror embodied that exact principle.

If forced to draw a parallel, it carried an aura reminiscent of a golden dragon’s devastating Ascension Breath.

“Stay sharp, Drill Sarge.”

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

Drill Sarge’s fists and boots struck furiously against the rising abomination’s jagged teeth.

Even when his strikes failed to hit dead center, he refused to back down.

Instead, he leaped directly onto the thrashing beast and wrapped his hands around one of its massive fangs.

“Operating without a blade presented a slight issue, but a tooth from Number Nine will serve as a fine substitute.”

Understood, Master!

Drill Sarge’s expression contorted under the immense strain as he focused his internal energy into his grip, seizing the razor-sharp spike.

Squeak!

His palms tore open and blood splattered across the ivory surface, but he paid the pain no mind.

“Yes, Xenos Hyung. Now we’re finally escalating.”

That was the standard expected of someone belonging to the Five Emperors!

“If your entire strategy against me amounted to simple Tyrant execution, I would have walked away unsatisfied.”

TEAR!

With a violent wrench, Drill Sarge tore the massive fang from the jawline.

— KREEEEEEEEEE!

A massive spray of corrosive emerald vitriol erupted from the depths of the beast’s throat, but Drill Sarge spiraled through the sky, maneuvering around the toxic discharge like liquid grace.

Swoosh!

A single mid-air flip.

The pull of gravity claimed him once more.

And concurrently—

THUD!

Shifting his hold on the extracted fang, he drove it with full force directly into the creature’s thick hide.

SLASH!

The weaponized tooth possessed such incredible sharpness that the monster’s dense, protective armor began tearing open down the middle.

Xenos had no intention of staying passive.

“Tyrant! Rising Dragon Fist!”

The Tyrant, positioned directly underneath, rocketed skyward like a climbing drake.

Concentrate.

Xenos felt his chest tightening.

Chimera No. 9 represented his ultimate ace in the hole, cultivated over two full years for the sole purpose of toppling Rachel.

The anomaly known as JinuGod had forced him to expend this ultimate asset prematurely, but—

Now that the die was cast, securing a triumph was the only acceptable outcome.

If he exhausted a twenty-four-month restriction period only to suffer a loss?

The setback would be catastrophic to his standing.

But……

Was victory truly within reach?

From the instant Chimera No. 9 arrived on the battlefield, the scales had undeniably tipped in his direction.

Yet, consider Baek Jinwoo’s demeanor.

Did that resemble the countenance of a scholar stymied by an unsolvable equation?

It was expressionless, yet radiating pure competitive joy.

And then.

Drill Sarge abandoned his grip on the embedded spike, launched himself off the beast’s flank, and completely bypassed the incoming Rising Dragon Fist!

A blatant, confident smile was carved across his face.

Unbelievable.

It always played out this way.

No matter how impossible or oppressive the scenario appeared, Baek Jinwoo consistently discovered a method to tear it apart.

Without exception.

Every single obstacle yielded the identical conclusion.

Drill Sarge spun gracefully through the air and thrust his knuckles forward once again.

A single punch fracturing into a trio of impacts!

Unbelievable.

That ridiculous summon was replicating the Tyrant’s signature striking style once more.

And on this occasion—

“Drill Sarge! Rising Dragon Fist!”

BAM-BAM-BAM-BOOM!

Drill Sarge converted his downward momentum into a corkscrewing ascent, launching his fist toward the sky.

The execution, the kinetic force, the velocity—it was a flawless mirror of the Tyrant’s technique.

“No, that is completely, undeniably BROKEN!”

Toiling away in highest-tier Thursday dungeons hour after hour yielded premium ability scrolls at a miserable frequency.

Constantly combining those premium ability scrolls to finally manifest the precise technique you required.

Every competitive individual endured that exhausting process.

And yet.

“WHO ON EARTH MIRRORS HIGH-TIER TECHNIQUES THROUGH PURE EXECUTION ALONE?!”

Who? The individual standing right before him.

Drill Sarge, recovering smoothly from the ascending strike, grabbed the discarded fang he had driven into the hide earlier.

“Apologies, Xenos Hyung.”

Despite its lack of length, the jagged tooth served perfectly as an improvised short sword.

The performance gap between Drill Sarge fighting bare-handed versus Drill Sarge commanding a edge? It was night and day.

SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SH-SH!

Eight devastating cuts materialized in a fraction of a second.

Six targeted lacerations struck the Tyrant’s vital points with pinpoint accuracy, while two sweeping arcs sliced through the beast’s ruptured flesh, tearing deeper into its internal structure.

GUSH!

The surrounding space was painted crimson.

“Whether back in the days of BoS or in this current moment, I have never tasted defeat. And I see no reason to alter that record.”

The concept of losing simply didn’t exist in his vocabulary!

That precise reality was why his summoned spirits executed Baek Jinwoo’s strategies with absolute faith.

“Particularly when dealing with beasts of this nature.”

Chimera No. 9?

To an individual like Baek Jinwoo, who had systematically dismantled the Tower of Trials, it amounted to nothing more than another target to clear.

In truth, dealing with it was far simpler and more intuitive than fighting complex humanoid entities.

— KREEEEEEEE!

The massive worm wailed in agony.

For roughly sixty seconds, a chaotic storm of devastating abilities and brutal trades of force erupted across the arena, but—

The final outcome was definitive.

Neither the abomination’s thrashing nor the Tyrant’s desperate maneuvers could connect with Drill Sarge, whereas Drill Sarge’s localized strikes continuously inflicted catastrophic critical wounds.

“Ah.”

Xenos’s mouth fell open as he gazed into the open air with defeated, empty eyes.

The ultimate entity he had nurtured for twenty-four months, designed exclusively to dethrone Rachel just a single time—

It was disintegrating under the pressure of a far more terrifying anomaly.

— Kreek, KREEEEEK!

Convulsing in terminal pain.

SPLIT!

Drill Sarge, acting to sever its remaining life, scrambled up the segmented creature’s towering frame.

The engineered beast, already mutilated beyond any recognizable form, thrashed blindly as if it could no longer even perceive Drill Sarge’s presence.

And then.

The makeshift blade plunged straight into the abomination’s brain pan.

Squish, THUD! SQUELCH! CRACK!

Extract, plunge, extract, plunge.

Drill Sarge’s weapon, already drenched in deep red fluids, carved deeper into the creature’s head, compounding critical failure upon critical failure.

Until at last.

All vitality drained from the massive organism.

Its massive upper body, incapable of countering the pull of gravity any longer, swayed unsteadily once or twice before crashing heavily against the arena floor.

BOOM!

The engineered terror collapsed with a deafening impact.

Only at that moment did an expression of quiet satisfaction emerge on Baek Jinwoo’s face.

Excellent.

Precisely according to the strategy formulated at the start—securing the win using Drill Sarge alone!

A perfect execution.

“Wow.”

“Unbelievable……”

A sudden hush gripped the entirety of South Korea, pierced only by quiet murmurs of pure reverence.

A clash so spectacular it defied the choreography of high-budget cinema.

That exact display was materializing live right before the eyes of the public.

Could that truly represent the capability of their homeland’s competitor?!

Utilizing merely a single entity.

He had entirely crushed Xenos’s combat forces—forces that by all logic should have proven insurmountable.

Drill Sarge performed marvelously, certainly, but Baek Jinwoo’s orchestration was supernatural.

Despite the protective barrier isolating his position, he stood unmoved in the center of that devastating turbulence without showing a hint of hesitation.

Analyzing the battlefield for vulnerability.

And the instant a weakness materialized, he exploited it with absolute lethality.

The consequence?

The engineered beast that had appeared godlike lay broken on the floor.

The champion: South Korea’s own Baek Jinwoo!

— ……He, he actually pulled off the victory……!

— An unimaginable demonstration of tactical dominance over America’s representative, Xenos……!

— I-in that case, does this confirm a place in the ultimate round?

The moment Xenos’s avatar collapsed—

An absolute guarantee of advancement to the final matchup. One hundred percent.

— YES! THE FINALS! THE FINALS! OUR NATION IS CARVING ITS NAME INTO THE HISTORY OF THE FINAL STAGE!

Accompanied by the roaring declaration of the broadcasting booth—

“WAAAAAAAAAAH!”

“YEAAAAAAAAH!”

An explosive ocean of celebration erupted across the length of South Korea.

Citizens cheered, shed tears of joy, and dissolved into pure euphoria.

“Excellent performance, Drill Sarge.”

— ……!

Across the broadcast monitors, Drill Sarge strode toward his commander after wiping out both enemy entities, lowering his forehead in a gesture of absolute fealty. Baek Jinwoo gave his upper back a supportive pat.

Thump, thump!