Chapter 110

Chapter 110
## Chapter: 110

## Chapter Title: The Endless Clash

—

Good grief, I’ve certainly lived long enough to witness every flavor of absurdity. Gazing at that colossal inferno as it gulped down the surrounding oxygen and emitted a blinding radiance, I found myself grappling with some truly tangled emotions.

Am I panicked? Hardly. I’ve seen plenty of madness and conquered even greater trials to get where I am now.

A massive sphere of fire suspended in the heavens, charring the earth beneath it? That isn’t enough to shake my resolve.

“Just how much mana is she throwing away with that thing?”

It was the sort of vision that would cause most ordinary people to lose control of their bladders as if they’d downed a gallon of lemon juice, leaving them with soaked trousers.

Consuming the sun itself? That’s out of the question. My Paradox Flame wasn’t built to process something of that magnitude.

“Whatever. I suppose I should view this as a stroke of luck.”

Choi Yeoreum reached out toward me, a crimson shaft of light erupting from her palm as she spoke.

“The atmosphere is saturated with mana. I assume your dark fire is responsible for that?”

I offered no reply. The Paradox Flame was busy devouring the thermal energy from her conflagration and systematically venting mana in exchange.

She seemed to have grasped that much, yet she remained oblivious to what I was actually doing with that energy. The mana pouring out of the Paradox Flame as it digested the searing heat was becoming more concentrated by the breath.

As that energy surged through my physical form, it was tempering my meridians. It was happening at a remarkably efficient clip, too.

If circumstances permitted, I would gladly maintain this stalemate for months. A few months in this environment, and I could likely double the threshold of mana my body can withstand.

But that’s a fantasy. Time isn’t a luxury we possess, and Choi Yeoreum isn’t the type to just stand there and watch.

“You’re quite good at slipping away. It’s irritating.”

Choi Yeoreum scowled slightly, pressing her index fingers together to form the shape of a crucifix. A set of wings composed of pure fire erupted from her shoulder blades.

Simultaneously, a giant cross of flame hurtled in my direction.

“You really do have a flair for the dramatic.”

I sprinted directly into the path of the coming fire and threw a punch. The Paradox Flame swallowed the crucifix whole. In a heartbeat, the scarlet cross turned pitch black and dissipated into nothing.

“….”

She was hemorrhaging mana, certainly, but that didn’t render her helpless. When I attempted to close the distance, she retreated with desperate speed.

At this point, Choi Yeoreum and I were moving at velocities far beyond the capabilities of any recording device.

A camera would likely only see blurred afterimages of us appearing and vanishing in the blink of an eye.

Otherwise, the only thing a spectator would witness were the roars of her red flames and the dark blaze of my Paradox Flame.

“A meeting of crimson and coal.”

A poetic summary, if I do say so myself.

The hours continued to slip away. The sun began its descent. Even as the natural light faded, the area where I stood remained as bright as high noon due to the intensity of Choi Yeoreum’s fire.

“Why don’t we wrap this up and you just lay down?”

Choi Yeoreum looked like she was losing interest.

“If you want me on the ground, you’ll have to put me there.”

That’s the reason we are still at it even after nightfall. We will likely be here to see the sun rise tomorrow morning. And the next sunset after that.

If we keep this pace, her mana reserves will eventually hit rock bottom. That particular instant will signal my triumph.

I’ll dissolve her like a piece of hard candy.

“You’ve never gone up against someone like me before, have you?”

Choi Yeoreum didn’t bother with words. She simply increased the output of her heat and lunged.

My task remained straightforward. Business as usual. Spot a crack in the relentless assault and strike back. Maintain my concentration. Draw the mana saturated in the air into my system and continue to fortify my meridians.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

The television crew spoke into their microphones, their voices heavy with exhaustion.

“We are now entering the fifth day of combat.”

There were no words left to describe it. The team tasked with broadcasting the duel between Yoo Chan-seok and Choi Yeoreum were elite professionals.

However, even the most seasoned pros find themselves speechless after staring at such a display for five consecutive days.

“Hunter Choi Yeoreum appears to be reaching her limit. On the other hand….”

Yoo Chan-seok looked remarkably composed. At least, for someone who hadn’t slept or eaten in nearly a week.

“The power behind her strikes has noticeably waned.”

Choi Yeoreum was no longer maintaining a sun in the sky. She was hoarding what mana she had left.

“While it’s a known fact that Hunter Yoo Chan-seok’s mana pool seems bottomless, seeing it in person is staggering.”

“He is dictating a rhythm that suits his endurance and is methodically dragging out the engagement.”

The broadcast fell silent once more. The feelings of the media team were incredibly conflicted. The audience watching this historic battle were just as drained.

People would come home from their jobs, and the fight was still going. They’d spend their entire weekend watching, and by Monday morning, nothing had changed.

Even the fans were reaching a breaking point, and the news crew was on the brink of a total breakdown.

Predictably, Choi Yeoreum—who was the one actually trading blows with Yoo Chan-seok—was on the verge of a mental collapse.

“That’s enough!”

By the evening of the fifth day, Choi Yeoreum’s poise had completely evaporated. The man named Yoo Chan-seok darting around her was like a bloodthirsty mosquito buzzing in her ear on a humid summer night.

Vexing, relentless, and impossible to pin down. Her mana had plummeted to roughly 30% of its total.

‘If this continues, I’m going to lose.’

the concept of “defeat” was beginning to take shape in Choi Yeoreum’s mind. After days of constant fighting, she still hadn’t managed to break him. That realization meant she never would.

However, there were other parties who were unwilling to let her fail.

“Ugh, is this really the conclusion? What a disaster.”

Kim Chae-hyun, the leader of the Mugunghwa 1st Team under government contract, had been observing the duel between Yoo Chan-seok and Choi Yeoreum for days with a face etched with fatigue.

“Seriously, what kind of anomaly is that guy?”

Kim Chae-hyun had witnessed Yoo Chan-seok in action once before in Seoul. He certainly hadn’t possessed this level of power then.

Yet, in a terrifyingly short span of time, he had demolished another rank-1 Erosion Core and evolved into a monster capable of dominating Choi Yeoreum.

“Cold-blooded. Completely heartless.”

The method he was using to secure his advantage was suffocating to watch. From the opening bell to now, his physical state had barely fluctuated.

This wasn’t a duel anymore. Choi Yeoreum was the quarry, and the predatory serpent known as Yoo Chan-seok had already coiled around her and was beginning to feed. Kim Chae-hyun dialed a number.

“This is Kim Chae-hyun. It looks like we have to trigger the next phase. If we let this play out, we’re going to lose Choi Yeoreum.”

Anyone observing the fight could feel her imminent downfall.

From the perspective of the South Korean government, her losing was an unacceptable outcome.

But they couldn’t simply force Yoo Chan-seok to lose either.

Essentially, the battle had to be interrupted without a clear winner. And they had a contingency for exactly this scenario.

It was the specific reason this duel had been sanctioned to begin with.

“Is this truly the path we’re taking?”

Even for Kim Chae-hyun, the plan felt wrong. It wasn’t exactly a clean operation.

—The preparations are complete. If Choi Yeoreum falls here, the political fallout will be a catastrophe.

“But we’re talking about civilians.”

Prior to the start of the duel, agents posing as relief workers in the foreigner housing district near Anseong had distributed crystals hidden inside capsules, marketed as nutritional supplements given with their meals.

The research had progressed to a point where these crystals could remain inert, only triggering upon command. Now, all that remained was a practical test to verify the data.

The estimated result? Every individual who had swallowed the crystals would enter a state of rampage.

Eliminate some foreigners, stop the fight, and gather field data. A single move with multiple rewards.

Kim Chae-hyun was tied down by her contract regardless. There was no turning back. Government agreements weren’t things you could just walk away from because of a guilty conscience—and she had discovered far too much after joining.

Attempting to back out now? The penalty was glaringly obvious.

“I understand.”

The dormant crystals could be triggered through specialized hardware. Activating that machinery required a massive influx of mana.

Only a hunter of Kim Chae-hyun’s caliber was capable of providing the necessary charge. She rested her palm on the device and channeled her energy into it.

The machine began to glow with a sickly greenish-black light, pulsing at a rhythmic pace. Green was usually a color associated with peace, but this particular hue felt sinister.

It wasn’t the color of vibrant forest leaves, but rather the slimy moss found in a polluted sewer.

“I still don’t quite get it.”

Kim Chae-hyun stared at the foreigner housing district from a distance. Shoddily built 3D-printed huts were scattered everywhere—no running water, no electricity.

The device’s pulsing stopped. Kim Chae-hyun stood up and vanished from the location immediately.

“Ah… huuuh?!”

Abruptly, the weary residents began to convulse, retching up thick black bile from their throats as they let out guttural sounds of pain.

Strange, clicking noises echoed as their bodies were lifted slightly off the ground by some unseen force.

Bones snapped and joints rotated in impossible directions with sickening thuds. In some cases, broken bones tore through muscle and skin; others shrieked as their veins swelled grotesquely beneath their flesh.

In a matter of seconds, the land that had been filled with tired, malnourished, and desperate foreigners was transformed into a waking nightmare.

The cries of over a thousand souls were cut short nearly all at once. There were no humans left. Those who had their bodies shattered and rebuilt while still conscious had been completely remade.

They were now hairy abominations with the heads of black goats and leathery bat wings protruding from their spines. A stench of burning sulfur drifted from their skin, and eyes made of living fire burned with malice.

The creatures’ shoulder blades twitched as they spread their dark wings.

🚨 EMERGENCY ALERT 🚨
“Emergency protocol initiated. I repeat, emergency protocol. As of this moment, unknown biological threats have been identified in the Anseong foreigner residential district.”
A thunderous siren erupted immediately, signaling the start of a crisis broadcast.

The response was incredibly fast, as if they had been poised for the signal. Because they were.

The Korean government had administered the crystals to 1,500 individuals. Their benchmark for success was at least 1,200 of them turning.

But the actual count of those who had transformed in the residential area? All 1,500.

A 100% conversion rate. Every single person who took the crystal had mutated into a winged goat-headed beast.

“….”

The report from the Anseong foreigner district was instantly transmitted to Yoo Chan-seok and Choi Yeoreum, who were still fighting on the Anseong Plains.

The news arrived just as Choi Yeoreum stumbled back from a heavy blow to her midsection.

“The duel is being called off?”

She pulled out her phone and made an immediate call.

“This is your work, isn’t it?”

—I’m not sure what you’re implying, Hunter Choi Yeoreum.

“You bastards must take me for a fool. That mana signature I just sensed from the district—that belonged to that balisong-wielding bitch.”

Choi Yeoreum was well aware that Kim Chae-hyun was a government contractor. Detecting her energy meant the state had interfered.

Just like they always did.

Her accusation was met with a brief pause from the other side.

—But things ended on a clean note, didn’t they?

“Clean… Ha, did you really just say ‘clean’?”

—Hunter Choi Yeoreum was moments away from losing. We were providing assistance.

Her skin turned a deep shade of red as she screamed into the receiver.

“Listen to me, you piece of shit! If I’m going to lose, then I lose! Who gave you the right to turn my fight into a goddamn puppet show?!”

That was the core of her rage. It wasn’t about the sanctity of a fair duel.

After all, she had used her own influence to sabotage Han Sang-ah and Jeong O-hun during the earlier rounds.

Accepting their “aid” now would mean she owed the government a massive favor.

And she would eventually have to settle that debt. But she had no desire to be in their pocket.

Certainly, she did owe those people—but this was interference she never asked for, pure and simple.