After the sunrise of the following day, Jin walked through the main palace again.
He was wandering with distraction clear on his face, thinking: Valerion… who is this person, really? How many Regressors did he kill to be titled the Butcher of Regressors? Why does someone like Ming Yu tremble at the mere mention of his name?
Is becoming a Butcher of Regressors even possible? Damn it… facing a single Regressor is nearly impossible no matter how much you outmatch them in strength; how can you kill hundreds of them?
He looked at the sky for a moment: I'm truly fed up… will Cheonma agree if I ask him for help to reach the continent? Shit… that person will exploit me until the very end.
The youth reached Yuan's private wing, entering directly while ignoring everyone.
He arrived in front of the room and opened the door quickly. Yuan was…
He was sleeping on the sofa, holding a phone, reading some comic stories.
Jin looked at him: "Hey you, isn't that my other phone? What is it doing with you? How did you get a charger in the first place? Man, who taught you how to use it anyway?"
Yuan replied sarcastically: "First question, yes. Second, you left it at the squad headquarters. Third, I brought a charger while I was in the Tower. I learned while I was there as well."
Jin: "Damn you. Forget that, what are you doing anyway?"
Yuan: "Watching Manhwa. Korean Murim Manhwas contain some extraordinary arts if you can apply them in reality. You know? I found a sword style called 'Moon Vein,' it closely resembles the Moon Sword art."
Jin laughed hard: "Oh damn, I can't bully you for this because I do the same sometimes."
Jin sat beside him: "Man, I want to tell you something important."
Yuan: "What is it?" Jin went silent for a moment, then looked out of the corner of his eye: "I… I got married."
Yuan: "That's boring. Why should you think of another person? Just keep fighting and training, that's better."
Jin looked with disgust: "Man, if I see you getting married in the future, I will truly kill you."
Yuan with annoyance: "Why are you telling me this nonsense? What is the matter, really?"
Jin shouted: "Are you joking? I really got married, you idiot!"
Yuan went silent for a moment, then congratulated him like someone with autism: "Sorry, I don't understand how people express their feelings."
Jin: "It's fine. I know you're a psychopath and not normal at all, but that's not what's important now."
"So?" Jin continued, anxiety clear on his face: "Did you find out about the Spirit Beast in the North Sea?"
Yuan: "Yes, I have planted ears in many places."
Jin: "Fine… my wife is the Princess of the North Sea."
Yuan went silent for a moment while thinking: "To be honest, I don't know what a normal human's feelings are like, but I know one thing. On that day, you will have two choices."
Jin: "What are they?" He continued: "Either you save her family only, or you save the entire palace."
"If you try to save the palace, you will likely kill your squad members, and hundreds of fighters you will fight alongside throughout the coming months."
Jin did not reply to these words; he was certain that this was exactly what would happen.
Jin: "Man, get up, let's duel."
A short while later in one of the courtyards, the two youths stood.
Jin held out two ordinary swords: "Let's duel with ordinary weapons. No internal energy or martial arts. By instinct only."
Yuan drew the sword and remained silent for a moment: "You must know something. Even if your instinct leads you in life in a way that defies logic, it doesn't necessarily mean it will be the best in combat as well."
And Yuan attacked immediately after saying this.
Jin blocked the strike with difficulty; it was truly sudden and precise.
There was no sound of energy, no air shock, no glowing halos.
Only the sound of raw metal hitting raw metal, and a harsh friction like the grinding of teeth in anger.
Yuan's attack was not just fast… it was devoid of intent.
Jin felt no hostility, no killing intent, he didn't even feel that Yuan was "fighting" him.
It was like a cold hand trying to carve its way through his body.
Jin retreated only one step, barely.
His sword slipped at a strange angle—not a learned movement, but a movement of a body that refuses to be hit.
The two stopped for a fraction of a second. Yuan noticed it immediately.
—He isn't choosing the strike… his body is choosing it for him. This is strange.
Yuan attacked again, this time with three consecutive strikes, each aimed at a different place:
The neck, the wrist, the waist.
Jin raised his sword high, but he didn't block the second strike.
He ducked instead, feeling the blade pass beside his ear, the heat of the metal almost burning his skin.
At that moment, Jin thought: What is this? It's as if he is planning the next strike before the current one!
Jin suddenly flipped forward, lunging instead of retreating.
He let Yuan's sword pass behind him and directed a short strike—not beautiful, not clean… but lethal if it hit.
Yuan retreated only half a step. He didn't block; he let the blade pass millimeters in front of his chest.
Their eyes crossed. Yuan realized something now.
—This fool… he doesn't think of the future… he doesn't calculate it… he lives only in the moment.
The speed of the clash increased.
The swords were no longer raised high; there was no longer room for wide movements.
Close combat, tangled breaths, feet sliding over the courtyard. Jin was fighting in a strange way.
He gripped the sword tightly for a moment, pushed it, let it slip, changed the angle of his grip unconsciously.
As for Yuan… he was fighting as if he were the sword himself.
No tension, no accelerated breathing, no confusion. His eyes were steady, his body moving with the least effort possible, every move calculated—not because it was learned… but because it was the most logical.
A strike from Jin pierced Yuan's defense for the first time, grazing his shoulder with a superficial wound.
Yuan stopped. He looked at the wound, then at Jin, then both attacked at once.
At that moment, neither was better.
But one thing was clear: Jin's body was leading him in the fight, and Yuan was the one leading his body!
It was truly strange for Yuan. Under the clashing of swords, both began to see each other's sword movement in slow motion.
Jin thought in amazement: This is the first time I've seen this in my entire life. Is this possible without energy at all!
As for Yuan, he was used to it. Jin felt something strange; he felt as if… his opponent was giving him a chance in the fight!
Jin stopped for a moment: "What are you doing? Why aren't you bringing out your best?"
Yuan: "Do you want to lose? This will only increase your sadness."
The youth stopped for moments and felt anger at this; his pride took control of him: Lose? Are you joking with me? My instincts that made me hate my life are losing? I, who am titled the best talent in the world, lose in a purely physical struggle?
Jin spoke seriously: "Man, fight me seriously."
Yuan looked for a bit while thinking: What is this? Am I imagining it, or is his pride taking over? Isn't he the one who was giving lessons in humility? Fine… he must be exposed to this at least once.
He dashed toward him with speed. Two minutes passed normally, then…
Yuan dropped to the ground and attacked, raising the sword from below. Jin saw it as a joke; he came down with a vertical slash quickly.
At that moment, Yuan tilted his body to the right, and switched the sword between his hands under the descent of the other sword.
He came down on the sword vertically with speed and heavy pressure. The sparks of the clash flew like a blazing fire.
The tip of Jin's sword touched the ground before he realized the situation. Yuan placed his foot on the youth's hands and pressed hard, stepped with his other foot on his shoulder, then dropped behind him.
Yuan stood in the opposite direction, their backs meeting, holding his sword reversed as if holding a dagger.
The tip of the blade touched the youth's neck. The situation was shocking. Yuan stood coldly, and Jin knelt on his knees, shocked.
Drops of blood fell from Jin's neck. The situation didn't take more than a single second.
The youth remained in the same position, shocked: "What… what is this?"
"What happened? Did I lose that simply?"
Yuan thrust the sword into the ground and looked around them. People in the palace had gathered to see the fight, but the two youths had not felt them from the intensity of the focus.
Words followed among the audience.
: "Isn't this the Twelfth Elder?"
: "Did he just lose in one move?"
: "Isn't his title the Best Talent in the Continent?"
: "This is truly humiliating."
The words increased among the audience, and unfortunately, Jin heard everything.
The sword fell from his hands, and astonishment controlled his face.
Yuan spoke coldly: "Don't hold a grudge against me. I might be a strange person, but you are not. You had to be exposed to something like this."
"Man, you don't control your instinct in combat; your instinct is what controls you."
Jin did not reply, and the audience continued discussing the fight. The youth sat on his knees for a long time, thinking about that fight. It was the first time… he had lost like this.
His mind drowned in questions; he looked at his hands and they were shaking. He could not understand what occurred.