The holo-projection illuminated the sharp, refined face of a man holding a rustic Katana, radiating an overwhelming, bloodthirsty aura. Xie Jingchen pointed at the dossier, his gaze narrowing with utmost seriousness:
— "This is our next target. For this recruitment, I've decided to assign Shin, Kento, Tae-Joon, and Roxy to go together!"
Shin stared at Jingchen in shock, holding up four fingers in confusion:
— "Huh? Why mobilize four people, Jingchen? Isn't just Kento or me enough?"
Roxy crossed her arms, her dog ears twitching slightly as she shook her head at Shin:
— "Do you even need to ask? If four of us have to go together, this guy must be ridiculously strong!"
— "Wicked strong, to be exact!" Xie Jingchen clicked his tongue, continuing: "He's a rogue swordsman. The most dangerous thing about him is his genius combat instinct paired with the Katana in his hands. Rumor has it he once wiped out over one hundred thousand enemy troops on a battlefield single-handedly... just because he accidentally... got lost between two clashing armies!"
Hearing this, Kento exhaled a trail of cigarette smoke, his eyes lighting up with fierce interest:
— "Oh? This guy sounds like a monster!"
Loona poked her head out from the lab, nodding in admiration:
— "Sophion energy never fails to amaze! Whenever someone masterfully translates it into combat techniques, they always leave us speechless."
Tae-Joon scratched his head, rubbing his chin with a clueless look:
— "I wonder if this swordsman likes good food? Give him a piping hot plate of spicy cheese tteokbokki and he'll be hooked in no time!"
Xie Jingchen shook his head with a chuckle:
— "Just keep that in mind for now. Currently, intel shows he is staying on a planet belonging to the 10-Planet Federation, so rest assured he isn't in this city."
Shin stood up, cracking his knuckles with excitement:
— "Looks like another earth-shattering battle is on the horizon!"
Kento flicked his cigarette ash into the ashtray, saying decisively:
— "We set out tomorrow morning while the iron is hot!"
Xie Jingchen slammed his hand onto the table, breaking into a bright smile to liven up the room:
— "As for right now... let's throw a feast to celebrate our two newest members!"
— "YEAHHHH!" Loona cheered wildly.
Tae-Joon rolled up his sleeves in enthusiasm:
— "Let me show off some authentic Korean dishes for everyone to taste!"
Roxy's eyes sparkled as she patted her stomach with a chuckle:
— "Awesome! My stomach is starving right on cue!"
And so, a chaotic night unfolded at the Zero Horizon base. While Tae-Joon was busy in the kitchen preparing mouth-watering dishes, Shin and Kento were busy arm-wrestling on a stone table in the common area. Their surging muscles caused hairline fractures to ripple across the stone surface, while Roxy and Tae-Joon excitedly placed bets on who would win.
In another corner, Loona's hands got itchy, bringing out her newly finished "peculiar" inventions. She accidentally activated a vacuum robot fitted with a mini energy bomb, sending the entire group scrambling around the lab like a game of cat and mouse!
Meanwhile, Xie Jingchen paid no mind to the world, curled up on the sofa sleeping like a log. As for the Mikami brothers, wrapped in bandages from head to toe like two Egyptian mummies, they lay motionless on their hospital beds, witnessing the utter madness before them.
The next morning, as the first rays of dawn broke, the team of four—Shin, Kento, Tae-Joon, and Roxy—had packed their gear. They made their way to the city's Spatial Teleportation Station, stepping into the acceleration gateway to reach the planet where Kamishiro Seijuro was residing.
WHOOSH!
A flash of matrix light burst forth, and the four stepped out of the portal.
Shin looked around at the clear blue sky and high-rise buildings, commenting in surprise:
— "This planet looks no different from Earth!"
Kento shoved both hands into his pockets, speaking sluggishly:
— "So where do we find this guy in a massive place like this, Shin?"
Tae-Joon pointed toward the bustling cityscape ahead:
— "I reckon he's right in the central city where we're standing."
Roxy took a deep breath, her eyebrows furrowing slightly. The dog ears atop her head drooped down, her eyes flashing with obvious discomfort:
— "There are many beastfolk and foreign races here... But this entire city reeks of discrimination and oppression!"
The group split up to gather intel across the streets, asking everyone they encountered, from humans to alien races. Strangely enough, the moment people heard the name "Kamishiro Seijuro," everyone from merchants to street thugs instinctively felt a cold shiver run down their spines.
They all gave the exact same answer: That monster swordsman was at the largest dojo in the city, as Seijuro had a habit of going around challenging and demolishing every kendo dojo he could find!
Shin was the first to locate the spot. He stood before a massive, classical kendo dojo built in an elegant traditional style.
Shin glanced around, scratching his head in confusion:
— "I wonder if he's actually inside?"
SLICE!
The words had barely left his lips when a massive crescent light tore through the air! The air-cutting slash cleanly bisected the entire structure of the dojo.
RUMBLE! CRASH!
In an instant, the entire building—spanning hundreds of square meters—was cut cleanly in half along a perfect diagonal line, completely collapsing into a mountain of rubble and broken timber!
Amid the thick grey dust cloud, a tall figure stepped out. Seijuro stretched his arms, letting out a long, bored yawn. Exactly as described in Xie Jingchen's dossier, he carried a rustic wooden-scabbard Katana at his hip, radiating immense pressure.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Shin quickly stepped forward, blocking Seijuro's path:
— "Are you Seijuro? Nice to meet you, I'm Yanagisawa Shin!"
Seijuro flicked his sharp, hawk-like eyes over Shin, responding coldly:
— "Hi."
Shin cut straight to the point with a friendly smile:
— "Let's get straight to business! I came here to recruit you into my organization. What do you say?"
Seijuro didn't even pause, walking right past him:
— "I don't join anything. Get out of my face!"
Shin hastily stepped in front of him again, spreading his hands:
— "Don't be so hot-tempered, brother! Once you're in my sights, you can't escape!"
Seijuro's eyes darkened, his left hand lightly resting on the hilt of his Katana:
— "Annoying... You're really getting on my nerves!"
Just as Seijuro lowered his stance to draw his blade—
THUD!
A textbook 360-degree spinning Taekwondo kick ripped through the air, driving straight toward Seijuro's temple! Kento descended from above, followed by Tae-Joon and Roxy, who had regrouped just in time.
Kento straightened up, a arrogant smirk curling his lips:
— "Why waste words with him, Shin? Knock him flat and drag him back, problem solved!"
CLANG!
However, Kento's powerful kick was effortlessly blocked by Seijuro's scabbard. The impact force merely caused Seijuro to slide back a few meters on the pavement.
Seijuro raised his head, looking at the four before him, raising an eyebrow:
— "Didn't expect four whole people coming to recruit me... So, who's the leader here?"
Shin raised his hand, pointing at himself:
— "I'm the lead—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Shin instinctively jerked his head to the side in shock. WHOOSH! An invisible slash grazed past his ear, cleanly slicing a stone wall in the distance in half!
Seijuro let out a quiet exclamation:
— "Fast dodge."
— "Good reflexes!" Kento didn't miss the opening, closing in with a heavy straight punch aiming dead-center at Seijuro's face.
Seijuro once again blocked Kento's fist with ease using his scabbard. Right at that moment, Roxy lunged from his flank, sharp claws tearing through the air. Seijuro was forced to leap into the air to evade the blow.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Seijuro casually flicked his wrist. SLICE! The burning cigarette in Kento's mouth was cut cleanly in half, dropping to the dirt. Kento dodged by a hair's breadth, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
Kento clutched his neck, yelling with a grimace:
— "Hey, you bastard! You better pay me back for that cigarette!"
Shin stared at Seijuro, nodding in admiration:
— "Your sword skill is utterly surreal!"
Seijuro sheathed his sword close to his hip, replying coldly:
— "It's the result of grueling discipline."
Tae-Joon and Roxy didn't wait any longer. Both exploded with speed simultaneously, unleashing a combination attack blending Muay Thai and Hellhound claw strikes directly at Seijuro. Yet Seijuro moved fluidly like a ghost, continuously slipping past every strike. Every time he dodged, a vacuum air-pressure slash was unleashed in return!
Shin and Kento jumped in to assist, forming a four-on-one close-quarters encirclement. Yet despite their best efforts, none of the four could touch even a fringe of Seijuro's clothes. He completely dominated both long and short ranges with his invisible slashes!
Seijuro came to a stop, letting out a gentle breath, dropping a blunt evaluation:
— "Nice effort... but negligible!”
He looked at the four and issued a challenge:
— "If you guys can actually land a hit or knock me down... I'll agree to join!"
Shin gestured to the three behind him:
— "Careful, everyone. This guy isn't messing around!"
Seijuro narrowed his eyes, surveying his surroundings before declaring nonchalantly:
— "Under the governance laws of the New Human Central Zone cities... I will restrict my Sophion energy and fight you with pure physical combat!"
The moment the words left his mouth, Shin and Kento lunged forward together! Kento unleashed a flurry of lethal 360-degree spinning Taekwondo kicks targeting Seijuro's upper guard. But Seijuro merely shifted his body by milliseconds to evade smoothly, driving the pommel of his scabbard into Kento's ribs.
Shin pressed close with a barrage of punches, but every blow hit empty air. Seijuro's fundamental physical movement speed was superior to even Shin and Kento's!
Roxy and Tae-Joon immediately joined the fray. All four coordinated flawlessly, continuously baiting and driving Seijuro toward the wall of a large building.
Seeing their opponent cornered, Roxy was thrilled. But without a moment's hesitation, Seijuro swung his Katana through the air with immense force!
BOOM!
The sturdy brick wall behind Seijuro instantly collapsed inward, creating a gap for him to step back.
Roxy jumped back, scratching her head with a grimace:
— "Basically, this guy is way faster than I imagined!"
Tae-Joon wiped the sweat from his forehead, panting:
— "His movement and swing speed are both fast as lightning. At this rate, we'll never touch his clothes!"
Shin rolled his eyes, thinking quickly before ordering:
— "I have a plan! I'll rush in and press him continuously to force him backward. Right at that moment, the three of you strike simultaneously from the remaining three directions! Let's see where he runs then!"
Kento asked with a frown:
— "What if he leaps into the air?"
Shin smirked mysteriously:
— "Can't you just leap up after him?"
With that, Shin took action! Bursting at maximum speed, he charged straight at Seijuro, executing a barrage of Judo throws and deflections, giving Seijuro no room to draw his blade or set a stance.
Seijuro was forced to step back repeatedly to maintain distance. And just as planned, Tae-Joon from the left, Roxy from the right, and Kento from behind lunged simultaneously to lock down every escape route! The four formed a perfect four-corner encirclement!
Seijuro looked in all four directions, muttering quietly:
— "Surrounding all four corners, huh?"
Shin was fully prepared; the moment Seijuro leaped up, he and Kento would immediately spring up to pin him in mid-air.
However, all four of them were dead wrong!
Seijuro didn't leap. He dropped his center of gravity as low as possible, reversed his Katana, and struck the stone pavement below with terrifying physical torque!
BOOM!
The physical strike exploded the street! Dirt, rock, and rubble sprayed into the air like a mini sandstorm, blinding their vision and halting their attack momentum.
SWOOSH!
When the dust cloud gradually cleared, Seijuro was no longer at the center of the trap. He was standing tall on the roof of a building tens of meters away, casually flicking his Katana to clear off dust, looking down with a proud smile:
— "Catching me... isn't that easy!"
Standing tall on the rooftop, Kamishiro Seijuro looked down at the four below. Though his Katana remained tucked inside its scabbard, the bloodlust emanating from him made the surrounding air feel thick and heavy.
He offered a subtle compliment:
— "Pretty good teamwork! A four-way encirclement with no openings."
Seijuro pulled back his smile, his gaze turning razor-sharp:
— "But I must ask... What is your purpose in coming here to recruit me? And what is this organization called Zero Horizon actually aiming for?"
Shin took a step forward, his black hair fluttering in the breeze. He raised his head, looking straight into Seijuro's eyes, his voice ringing out with resolute power:
— "You are our next target because of your overwhelming combat strength. Having a master like you stand alone is a waste, so I want to bring you into Zero Horizon. As for my goal? Simple... I want to change this entire generation!"
Seijuro smirked at the ambitious answer. He pressed further:
— "Change an entire generation? Sounds grand. What if a powerful force... or even this whole world stands up to stop you? What will you do then?"
Without a single second of hesitation, Shin's eyes flashed with unyielding resolve and chilling killing intent:
— "If anyone gets in my way, they'd better start praying to God... because I won't hesitate to kill anyone! And if the whole world turns against me... then I'll fight the whole world!"
A silence lingered for a few seconds. Seijuro stared at Shin intently before bursting into loud laughter:
— "Hahaha! Straightforward! You truly have the demeanor of a leader!"
However, Seijuro's expression instantly turned ice-cold once more. His hand rested on the hilt of his sword:
— "But now isn't the time to talk about the future... when you haven't even touched the hem of my clothes!"
SWOOSH!
Without a word, all four—Shin, Kento, Tae-Joon, and Roxy—unleashed 100% of their physical speed simultaneously! Four blurs tore through the air, leaping onto the roof in an all-out assault far more overwhelming than before.
This time, the pressure pushed boundaries. Kento unleashed sweep kicks, Roxy slashed with her claws, Tae-Joon drove elbows and knees... Seijuro was forced into continuous parries and dodges. The group began grazing and touching his attire!
However, the only one who could fully match Seijuro's terrifying rhythm was Shin!
Realizing Shin had closed into lethal range, Seijuro decided to use his finisher. CLIK! He flicked the sword guard (Tsuba) with his thumb, intending to draw his Katana for a close-range lethal slash.
Yet Shin's reflexes were even faster!
THUD!
The split second the blade revealed a fraction of an inch, Shin reached out with his left hand, tightly gripping Seijuro's wrist holding the hilt, applying reverse force to slam the Katana back into its scabbard!
Seijuro's eyes widened in shock:
— "What?!"
Giving his opponent no time to recover, Shin pivoted his hips, driving all his muscle power into his right fist, delivering a heavy straight punch right to the face!
BOOM!
The punch struck Seijuro dead-center on the chin. The horrific physical kinetic force launched the swordsman off the rooftop, sending him plummeting straight onto the stone street below!
CRASH! CRASH!
Seijuro's body slammed into the ground. The shockwave fractured the pavement, creating a deep crater as shattered brick and stone sprayed everywhere.
Shin landed on the edge of the crater, looking down at Seijuro lying amid the rubble:
— "How's that?"
Seijuro coughed, a streak of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth. He smirked:
— "Impressive... But how about this?!"
SLICE!
Even while lying on the ground, Seijuro swung his sheathed Katana, creating an upward slash from below! Shin nimbly leaped backward to dodge. But Seijuro used the recoil momentum to spring up instantly, sweeping Shin's legs and knocking him off balance onto his back.
Just as a triumphant grin appeared on Seijuro's face for turning the tables—
— "Don't forget about us!"
THUD!
Tae-Joon closed in from behind, landing a precise jumping knee strike (Khao Loi) into Seijuro's back! Immediately after, Roxy tore through the air with a Hellhound claw slash, forcing Seijuro to raise his Katana to block.
And the final finishing blow arrived! Kento stepped up, putting his entire weight into a full-power straight punch (Seiken Tsuki) in true Kyokushin Karate style, slamming directly into Seijuro's chest!
BANG!
The penetrating force knocked the Katana out of Seijuro's hands. He gasped for air before collapsing onto the ground, completely losing his ability to fight.
Kento drew back his fist, nonchalantly relighting a new cigarette, shaking his head:
— "You're fast enough to dodge attacks and strong enough to deliver lethal slashes... But your physical durability is only average!"
Roxy and Tae-Joon pulled Shin to his feet. Looking around now, the group was startled by the scale of destruction.
Even though it was a pure physical fight and Seijuro hadn't even drawn his blade from its sheath, his air-pressure slashes had leveled almost the entire block! The structures of multiple houses on both sides of the street were cleanly sliced through, collapsing into ruins.
Roxy shivered as she surveyed the surroundings:
— "Good thing there were no high-rises in this area... or we'd be in big trouble!"
Tae-Joon rubbed his shoulder, smiling at the unconscious Seijuro:
— "What do we do with him now?"
— "Bring him back! A new member has officially joined!" Shin let out a sigh of relief.
He looked at the Katana lying on the ground, clicking his tongue:
— "Recruiting this guy was a close call... If we didn't dodge in time earlier, the four of us would've been cut in half for real. The look in his eyes when he swung his sword was genuine intent to kill!"
The four carried Seijuro back to the Teleportation Station, crossing space to return to Xie Jingchen's private lab.
In the central common area, as Shin and Kento were shaking Seijuro, the swordsman suddenly jolted awake, his eyes snapping open. Seeing a group of people standing around him with curious eyes, Seijuro blinked a few times before understanding the situation.
He let out a long sigh, pushing himself up:
— "Sigh... Guess I'll accept my loss in the bet. This is Zero Horizon's base, right?"
Beside him, Loona was curiously holding Seijuro's wooden-sheath Katana, examining it. She gasped in awe:
— "Your sword is sharp as a razor! Even without drawing it, the aura coming off it is already so sharp!"
Shin smiled, extending his hand to Seijuro:
— "Welcome to Zero Horizon, Seijuro!"
Seijuro shook Shin's hand. But as his eyes drifted to the medical corner, he froze, pointing in utter bewilderment:
— "Uh... Question. Does your base have a hobby of collecting mummies for display? What are those two tightly wrapped mummies over there? Don't tell me you guys just raided a pyramid?"
Kento patted Seijuro's shoulder, replying casually:
— "Two new patients who joined the organization yesterday!"
Shin looked at the wall clock and added with a smile:
— "With that kind of special care, they'll probably wake up any minute now!"
End of Chapter 41