Amidst the desolate ruins of the penthouse, a plume of cigarette smoke exhaled from Kento's mouth, mingling with the surging atmospheric pressure blanketing his half-naked torso. His pale, deadpan eyes glanced sideways at Xie Jingchen's tense expression as his lips curled upward into a smirk, his voice dripping with absolute arrogance:
— "Relax, I said I'd go easy on you. You definitely won't die."
Kento rotated his wrist, looking around at the crumbled walls before adding nonchalantly:
— "Besides... someone else is footing the bill to repair this building for me! So I don't need to hold back at all anymore!"
SWOOSH!
The moment the words left his mouth, Kento's body burst with a brilliant silver-white radiance. He charged straight ahead with unimaginable acceleration. This time, instead of throwing a punch at his opponent, Kento funneled all his gravitational force into his right fist, slamming it straight down from above into the ground.
Kinetic Sophion Secret Technique Burst: KINETIC CATACLYSM!
BOOM! ROAR!
A colossal multi-directional shockwave of kinetic energy erupted from Kento's body, sweeping across everything in its path. The strike created a terrifying spatial shockwave that echoed throughout the skyscraper's entire steel-reinforced structure. The ground beneath their feet trembled violently; the five-story-deep hole previously created by the X-marked assassin was now punched straight through by Kento's raw force, fracturing severely and caving in several floors deeper.
Xie Jingchen completely lost his balance. He never expected Kento to go this hard right from the opening move. With his body suspended in midair from the gravity shockwaves, Jingchen grimaced, shouting out:
— "Your idea of 'going easy'... is gonna leave me paralyzed from the waist down! But I won't let that happen!"
The black hole energy around Jingchen surged wildly as he prepared to borrow spatial force to retreat. But Kento's deadpan eyes were already right in front of his face, coldly snuffing out that hope:
— "You think I'll give you the chance to cast a technique?"
Forgoing complex footwork or defensive stances, Kento simply swung out the most brutally direct straight punch, unleashing an unprecedented surge of massive Sophion energy.
Reality-Shattering Ultimate Technique: SPATIAL FRACTURE!
CRACKLE... SNAP!
The sheer brutal force and acceleration of his fist were so intense that the entire air mass before Kento compressed into a dense solid state. The pressure surpassed all limits, causing the spatial reality surrounding his fist to fracture, shattering like tempered glass smashed by a sledgehammer.
Beneath this space-shattering power, all of Xie Jingchen's defensive techniques were rendered completely useless. His spatial filter barrier burst like a soap bubble. Impossible to block, impossible to dodge!
BOOM!
The punch slammed dead center into Xie Jingchen's face. His facial features caved inward under the impact, his entire body pinned by the force and slammed violently into the concrete floor.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
A wave of destructive energy from the pressure blast blew out every single remaining sheet of reinforced glass across the entire skyscraper, extending from the top penthouse all the way down to the ground level. The whole skyscraper shuddered violently as if struck by a mild earthquake. At the epicenter, a dark, smoking crater gaped deep into the structure.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Pulling his fist back, Kento's silver hair swayed gently in the night wind blowing through the shattered walls. Looking down at Xie Jingchen collapsed in the crater, he spoke casually:
— "And that was me severely holding back my power. I fight for the thrill and excitement of enjoying the battle, and this is everything I wanted to gift you!"
COUGH... RETCH!
At the bottom of the deep crater, Xie Jingchen lay curled in pain. He was desperately burning a massive amount of his own Sophion to force his body's cells to regenerate, mending the fractured blood vessels and bones shattered by the impact. Pushing his hands against the ground with great effort, he tremblingly pushed himself up into a sitting position, groaning:
— "Damn it all... I'm a spatial Sophion master this strong... and I lost to a purely physical guy like you..."
Before he could finish, Xie Jingchen spat a mouthful of fresh blood onto the ground. His face was etched with sheer exhaustion, yet his eyes burned with stubborn resolve as he used the last remnants of his strength to force his legs to stand:
— "But... I haven't lost yet... Cough... cough, uggh! Damn it, legs... Stand up already!"
His body wobbled and trembled violently, yet he still strained to keep his center of gravity.
Kento stuffed both hands into his trousers pockets, standing at the edge of the crater looking down with indifference:
— "Then go ahead and cast your move, let's see what I do to it. Though looking at your pathetic state right now... you'd better just surrender."
Xie Jingchen grit his teeth, stubbornly channeling his final bits of energy to deploy AUTOMATIC SINGULARITY. Three mini black holes had barely begun to form in midair, before they even had time to generate suction, when Kento materialized right in front of him. He simply raised his index finger and delivered three sharp flicks—FLICK, FLICK, FLICK.
The kinetic force from Kento's fingertips blasted the three mini black holes far away, causing them to dissipate into nothingness like dying embers. Before his opponent could process the shock, Kento lunged forward, driving a straight Muay Thai knee strike dead center into Xie Jingchen's abdomen.
THUD!
— "Gah... ah..." Xie Jingchen's eyes bulged, the bone-chilling pain robbing him of any remaining ability to stand as he collapsed entirely, kneeling helplessly at Kento's feet.
Kento bent down, staring straight into the sweat-and-blood-drenched face of the black hole genius, asking in a low voice:
— "Now then... will you fulfill our wager?"
Xie Jingchen clutched his stomach, panting heavily:
— "Ugh... ah... This power of yours... is truly far too absurd..."
Kento drew himself up to his full height. The silver-white killing intent surrounding him began to recede, his pale eyes gradually regaining their focus:
— "In this state, I have nothing but ruthlessness and decisiveness. So the mercy I showed you up until now is already an extraordinary stroke of luck. Power... is the scale that measures everything in this world. And I... am the one standing at the top of that scale!"
Xie Jingchen remained silent for a long moment before letting out a soft, defeated sigh, relaxing his hands:
— "Alright... You win."
Kento raised an eyebrow, his arrogant smirk returning to his lips:
— "Wouldn't it have been faster if you just admitted defeat from the start? Anyway, I guess that's enough for tonight. I gotta go collect my 30,000 Sophion Coins—my little sister and big brother are waiting at home for dinner! And... welcome to Zero Horizon, new member!"
Kento turned his back, strolling leisurely through the desolate ruins of the banquet hall. He headed toward the emergency exit to take the stairs down, as the building's entire elevator system had been smashed to pieces by the shockwaves of the battle.
Behind him, Xie Jingchen was still sitting on the ground, resting his chin on his hand as he called out:
— "Hey... So what's your name, White Oni?"
Kento didn't turn back, merely raising a hand with a casual wave, his voice echoing nonchalantly along the hallway:
— "Yanagisawa Kento. Just call me Kento!"
The moment he stepped into the stairwell, his radiant silver hair gradually faded back to its original pitch-black color, the BYAKKI KAKUSEI: HON’NŌ NO SHIRO ONI state completely vanishing as his body returned to normal.
By the time Kento reached the ground floor lobby, the scene there was utter chaos. Massive glass panes surrounding the lobby were shattered everywhere, sparkling like diamonds under the streetlights. A long line of building staff and security guards stood assembled, but seeing Kento walk out shirtless, muscles bulging, with an expression cold as ice, not a single one had the guts to approach him.
He casually pulled out a cigarette from the premium pack Xie Jingchen had given him earlier, popped it into his mouth, and used a tiny spark of Sophion at his fingertip to light it, taking a deep drag.
— "M-Mr. Kento! What on earth just happened up there?!" The middle-aged employer rushed over from a corner of the lobby, pale as a corpse, staring at Kento in horror.
Kento shrugged, blowing a cloud of white smoke:
— "Just fooling around a bit! So, contract fulfilled, right? I don't have a bank account, so I can't take wire transfers. Also... the inside of your building is a little messy, just call some cleaners and it'll be good as new. But I warned you beforehand, uncle—I don't have compensation money!"
Hearing that, the middle-aged man swallowed hard and frantically waved his hands:
— "It's fine, it's completely fine! You saved my life from that assassin today, I couldn't be more grateful! The payment remains as promised, and I'll cover all the building damages myself! After all... I own this skyscraper anyway!"
Saying so, he gestured to a subordinate. A henchman quickly approached carrying a high-grade alloy briefcase and popped it open in front of Kento. Inside were stacks of high-denomination Sophion Coin cards emitting a soft blue glow, filling the entire case. Exactly 30,000 Sophion Coins.
Kento looked at the briefcase, his eyes lighting up as he grabbed the handle:
— "Awesome. Now I've got money to buy some high-end cigarettes."
Glancing down at his shirtless torso, he scratched his head and looked at the middle-aged uncle:
— "Though... do you have a spare suit around here? My jacket was completely shredded, all I've got left are these dress pants."
The middle-aged uncle chuckled, nodding immediately:
— "Oh, that's simple! Sure thing, follow me!"
Ten minutes later.
Kento stepped out of the building's dressing room. He was dressed in a crisp, brand-new black suit, perfectly fitted from top to bottom. His appearance and aura were completely transformed—dapper and magnetic, looking nothing like someone who had just engaged in a life-or-death battle that punched holes through an entire building.
Carrying the briefcase of cash, he casually raised a hand to bid the middle-aged man farewell:
— "Transaction complete, uncle. I'm heading home."
Kento strolled out of the skyscraper, blending into the radiant, light-filled night of the Shin-Jinrui Central District. Looking at his reflection in a roadside shop window, he gently adjusted his suit collar, muttering to himself:
— "Gotta admit, wearing this kind of suit looks pretty slick... Tomorrow I should probably ask Shin to come along and buy a few more suits to see if they fit."
END OF CHAPTER 34