Episode 613
Chapter 158: The Opening Ceremony (Part 2)

‘Wait, what is this all of a sudden? And more importantly, is no one bothered by how ridiculously wealthy the main hall suddenly is?’

There was no time to ponder further.

Jin and Ban’s radiant hearts resonated, triggering their divine fusion. Almost immediately, a spear shot straight toward Jin’s eyes.

It was Teto’s spear.

‘Damn, I’m late…! Or maybe I’m not?’

Under normal circumstances, blood would have been spilled by now. Or at least, Jin would have suffered some injury trying to fend it off recklessly.

But the icy-blue spear blade flying toward his face didn’t look fast at all.

In fact, Jin had to make an effort just to get hit!

‘So that’s why the divine brothers insisted on resting enough to perform the fusion before coming to the main hall. The moment the opening match started, the brothers showed their true fighting spirit because half-hearted resistance against Ban’s brother is meaningless.’

There was no need to even draw his sword.

‘Well, I did want to test the power of the divine brothers in real combat at least once.’

Jin’s fist shot forward at nearly the speed of light, aimed at the spear blade. From Teto’s perspective, he couldn’t even perceive the moment Jin moved.

Zheeeeng!

The strike, infused with the spirit of the Divine King, collided with Jin’s fist—but it was Teto who was pushed back.

No, it wasn’t just a simple push.

“Ugh!”

Riding the shockwave along the spear, Teto coughed up a mouthful of blood and was flung far across the main hall, like an arrow or shards flying off a shattered rock.

As soon as Teto flew away, Jin’s vision cleared, revealing a barrage of weapons hurtling toward him.

Swords, spears, bows, and even mysterious nets that looked like they’d be used to capture giant monsters.

The fact that all of these came at him with such a ‘safe’ feeling made Jin involuntarily thrill with excitement.

‘So this is how strong they are…!’

He’d known for a long time that Ban’s effortless power was like the vast ocean.

But wielding that power firsthand was on a whole different level.

Fwaaah!

With just a single burst of energy, Jin was able to repel the brothers charging at him like ravenous beasts all at once.

Baltrock’s greatsword, Lumora’s spear, Palem’s greatsword, Linpa’s massive blade, Boras’s fists and hand cannons, Dalpir’s twin swords, Beliz’s greatsword, Garmund’s greatsword, Baba’s greatsword, Kaio’s bow, Nata’s kicks, and Teto’s spear again.

Even the countless weapons of the foot soldiers—all their attacks failed to pierce the energy Jin radiated.

Meanwhile, Jin’s own attacks landed with ease. A powerful gust of his fist swept the foot soldiers away like fallen leaves, while the Divine Kings raised their energy.

Their battle cries thundered across the sky, shaking it as if it might shatter.

The lightning energy, so bright it was almost white, instantly formed a storm like a tidal wave, and the distorted space echoed with screams and explosive sounds.

It was a scene that seemed to announce the end of the world.

Already, some foot soldiers couldn’t withstand the storm of lightning energy and collapsed.

As if it were their natural strength.

Jin sent his lightning energy to form protective shields around the fallen, ensuring they wouldn’t be further harmed.

He felt confident he could protect all the foot soldiers this way with ease.

“Haha…”

A hollow laugh escaped him. This was the power of the ‘Divine Warriors’ of the Myungwang clan.

“Kyaaaah!”

The first Divine King to break through Jin’s lightning energy was Nata.

Kaio had shot an arrow to clear a path, and Nata roared as she charged through it.

It was then that Jin drew Sigmund.

The blade was soaked in lightning energy deeper than ever before. The moment the sword slid from its sheath, Jin felt a certainty.

If he wanted, he could cut down the charging Nata with a single strike.

Though Jin didn’t voice it, Nata sensed it instinctively.

“If you were truly the divine brothers, you wouldn’t hesitate, Jin.”

Whoosh! Lightning energy swirled, gathering into Nata’s fist.

‘Is this a misjudgment? No, it’s a variable. Something Nata created.’

The moment certainty struck, Jin knew he had to strike anywhere and everywhere.

Even so, Nata wouldn’t die so easily—she would somehow push forward and throw that punch again.

She was a Divine King of the Myungwang clan.

Though not quite on the level of the Divine Warriors, she was no one to be taken down by a single strike.

Even if Jin was truly Ban, he would have to give his all to kill them—especially when all twelve Divine Kings and the foot soldiers were attacking at once.

Nata’s fist passed just beside Jin’s ear. The shockwave briefly threw off his balance, but not enough to affect his counterattack.

He blocked the punch with the hilt of his sword and immediately launched a vertical slash.

Just as Nata’s blood began to evaporate in the lightning energy, Beliz’s greatsword came flying in for a second strike.

Jin dodged and stabbed, deflected Kaio’s lightning strike while firing off sword energy, twisted the attack trajectories of Palem and Lumora, pushed Baltrock back, toppled Dalpir and Garmund, bounced Linpa away, struck Boras’s jaw (carefully controlling his strength, knowing Boras would be busy later), and then slammed down on Teto’s spear.

It took three seconds.

Jin hadn’t taken a single effective hit yet, and with their formation broken, he was ready to counterattack.

But one person remained.

Old Divine King Baba, a direct descendant of the former Divine Warrior Nana. Her blue blade was slicing through the chaotic battlefield.

‘This is dangerous.’

A chill ran down Jin’s neck. The sense of crisis he thought impossible to feel in the divine fusion state suddenly snapped him fully awake.

The only perfect solution was to meet her strike head-on.

The divine brothers’ eyes and senses allowed Jin to swing his sword steadily even in this desperate moment.

But if he blocked this, Baba would either die or be crippled.

If it weren’t for Nata’s earlier attack, Jin might have hesitated again. After all, they were brothers sparring, not enemies.

‘Trying to hold back to avoid hurting Baba would actually insult my brothers.’

As if on cue, Jin’s lightning energy converged into Sigmund before his eyes could even blink.

Before their blades touched, all of Jin’s strength condensed into the sword’s tip for a brief moment.

Grrk…!

Baba’s sword bent. Her arm twisted painfully, but Jin didn’t stop.

A shockwave erupted as if it would destroy the entire main hall.

Nearby Divine Kings were flung wildly, but Jin didn’t withdraw his power.

He amplified it even more, determined to annihilate every Divine King.

The explosion turned his vision blinding white, and the shock was so intense that even his divine senses couldn’t immediately grasp the situation.

But what Jin didn’t regret happened.

Through the massive blast, Baba’s sword came down like lightning again, tearing through the white storm of lightning energy, threatening him once more.

It wasn’t as threatening as before.

Jin easily deflected Baba’s blade and threw her to the ground, leaving no chance for her to rise.

Like a beast, he lunged forward, pressing his sword to her throat.

Just before he could strike, an arrow from Kaio knocked Sigmund away.

The Divine Kings’ coordinated attacks resumed with even fiercer intensity.

Moreover, some foot soldiers had finally broken through the path the Divine Kings had carved and were entering the fray.

At that moment, Jin’s eyes shone with exhilaration once more.

The fact that even after performing the divine fusion, he could be pushed to the brink like this—and that these tenacious, powerful warriors were his brothers—pounded his chest with pride.

What Jin felt was the pride of the greatest warrior race in history.

“Protect the twelve Divine Kings!”

“They’re charging—don’t face them one-on-one!”

“The old Divine King needs time to recover!”

As the battle dragged on, Jin’s body began to show scratches here and there.

Other Myungwang clan members had broken bones and crushed muscles, yet their momentum never faltered.

If anything, they grew fiercer.

Alone, it would have been impossible, but the Myungwang clan’s coordinated assault made individual injuries irrelevant.

They moved as one, regardless of rank or status. Though there were differences in skill, anyone could become the center of attack when the opportunity arose.

Jin charged wildly through them, breaking their formation.

But no matter how much he shattered their lines, his brothers showed no sign of collapse.

Ban watched from above the sky, riding on Lingling’s transformed body, contentedly observing their fight.

[Hmph… Seeing that guy fight so well just annoys me. He was strong enough already, but with Ban’s power added, it’s like he’s got wings.]

“Lingling, if you don’t really dislike Jin that much, then why act like that?”

[Then why do you ask when Ban can read my mind?]

“Fair enough.”

[…But are you really okay with giving Ban everything you have?]

Ban smiled softly.

“I’m ready to give all I have not just to Jin, but to all my brothers.”

[Tch, how can Ban say that so sincerely?]

“And to you as well, Lingling. You’re not a brother, but you’ve become a part of me—no, family.”

Lingling didn’t answer, but shyly fluttered her wings.

Hoo…

Ban took a weary breath.

It was time for the divine fusion to end.

They had already pushed the limit of ten minutes earlier, so this fusion was even more exhausting.

The moment the fight ended.

Jin exhaled heavily, a blade pressed against Baba’s throat, while the Twin Kings aimed their weapons at him.

At first, Jin had the upper hand, but as the synchronization of their spirit fusion gradually weakened, he found himself on the defensive.

The Mingwang clan ceased all attacks the instant the spirit fusion ended.

Though the battle had lasted less than ten minutes, Jin and the others from the Mingwang clan looked like they’d been living on the battlefield for days.

“Damn, you were strong, Brother Jin!”

“Strong? Without Ban’s power, it would’ve been over in an instant.”

“That’s true enough. Still, it was a good fight!”

As always when Jin achieved a feat, the Mingwang clan suddenly opened their mouths toward the empty air of the main hall.

Then, like young beasts trying to catch falling snowflakes, they eagerly swallowed the air.

It was a little awkward, but Jin couldn’t help but laugh at his brothers’ suddenly innocent expressions, as if they’d been transformed.

“Excellent. With this, we conclude the opening round of the Twin Kings’ tournament.”