Crucible Initiative - Sublevel 9 - 6:31 AM
The old man's grip felt like iron.
Yoo didn't struggle. Struggling against Gold 38 at Iron 19 was pointless. He went limp instead, letting his body weight drop suddenly.
The old man compensated automatically, shifting his stance to catch the falling weight—
Yoo twisted. His shoulder popped from the socket with a wet sound. Pain bloomed white-hot, but Akasha Archive categorized it as acceptable damage. The dislocation let him slip free.
He hit the ground rolling. Came up three meters away.
The old man stared at his empty hand. Then at Yoo. Then he laughed.
"Smart kid. Dislocate your own shoulder to escape. Most Iron-ranks would rather keep their arm."
Yoo's left arm hung useless. Blood vessels had ruptured during the dislocation. His hand was already swelling.
"Calculating recovery time. Estimate: 40 minutes with Adaptive Evolution. Recommend—"
Not now.
"What do you want?" Yoo asked.
