Episode 614
Chapter 159: The Twelve Kings Tournament (1)
It had been a battle like a dream.
The sensations and experiences of wielding the God of War’s power during the opening match lingered in Jin’s mind for days, stirring something deep within him.
Like an artist on the verge of creating a masterpiece, struck by a sudden, intense inspiration, Jin found himself constantly replaying the opening battle, his eyes often distant and unfocused.
“That wasn’t how I should have blocked the Kaiyo brothers’ arrows. Instead of just blocking, if I had parried and sent them right back, I could have handled their follow-up attacks much more easily. And then…”
Watching Jin like this, his brothers clicked their tongues with concern.
“Since the opening match, Jin’s been acting strange.”
“Yeah, he seems a bit off. Maybe it’s because the God of War’s power isn’t truly his own—it’s frustrating.”
“But Jin’s not usually like that. I think he’s just trying to process the insights he gained from that fight.”
“Well, now that everyone’s healed, the Twelve Kings Tournament starts today. Still, I worry if Jin can really go toe-to-toe with the Twelve Kings brothers like that.”
As Ban had predicted, the first match after the opening battle was between Jin and Teto. Unlike Jin, who had rested after Boras’s treatment, Teto had been training relentlessly every day.
Jin could no longer use the God of War’s unification until the tournament’s end.
He had to rely solely on his own strength to prove himself against his brothers.
While the regular warriors chatted or trained together, the Twelve Kings—except for Boras—didn’t even exchange glances.
It was hard to believe these were the same brothers who had been so close.
No matter the opponent, their fierce determination to win had turned their interactions into a tense psychological battlefield.
Even if one emerged as the ultimate victor, ranking first, all the Meiwang clan—except the God of War—were still just brothers.
At least, that had always been the case in Ban’s era.
Yet the Twelve Kings sharpened their edges like this because of their innate competitiveness and pride.
They believed giving their all was the greatest respect they could show their opponents.
Above all, the ultimate winner of the Twelve Kings Tournament was the one “closest to the God of War.”
The God of War was the Meiwang clan’s ultimate ideal.
To become the closest to the God of War was the highest honor any Meiwang could achieve.
Jin wanted to be that honored one.
Crack! Rumble!
Suddenly, lightning struck the main hall.
It was the signal to begin.
Defying the storm, the Meiwang clan members on the ground rushed toward the hall.
Some climbed using ropes, others flew by whipping up sword winds, and some even leapt onto the backs of their brothers to ascend.
Though strange to behold, there was a certain solemnity in the way they braved the lightning to reach the hall.
Ban waited for them at the center.
“Twelve Kings brothers and Jin, step forward.”
Only then did Jin and Teto finally meet each other’s eyes.
Teto’s usual playful expression was replaced by fierce determination, while Jin’s face remained calm.
“The rules are simple. You win by incapacitating your opponent or knocking them out of the hall. Killing is strictly forbidden, but there are no restrictions on drawing your killing sword.”
All the Meiwang, including the God of War, stood ready as safety officers, so even with killing swords drawn, it was nearly impossible to kill.
Still, accidents could happen.
As the lightning subsided, a tense silence fell.
The fight began the moment Ban turned and stepped back.
Whoosh!
Jin struck first, his sword energy and lightning erupting in all directions, while Teto lunged with his spear.
From the very first exchange, both aimed for lethal strikes—Jin targeting the chest, Teto the neck—and both left faint wounds.
Blood droplets splattered but vanished instantly without a trace.
They closed and distanced themselves repeatedly over about a hundred paces, leaving afterimages scattered around.
This was no comparison to their earlier sparring before the chaos was cleansed.
The watching brothers tensed, nerves on edge, as the fight was fierce enough that an accident could happen at any moment.
“This can’t be all you’ve got, right? Fight properly, Jin!”
Teto shouted, pushing Jin back.
Jin’s stance wavered under the relentless assault, and Teto pressed the advantage mercilessly.
But something was off.
Even as Jin lost his balance, Teto couldn’t inflict more than superficial wounds.
Though the small cuts multiplied rapidly, accumulating damage, Teto felt an inexplicable unease and proceeded cautiously.
‘This isn’t the feeling I expected…’
Meanwhile, Jin was still replaying the opening match in his mind.
He struggled inwardly to revive that sensation as much as possible without the God of War’s unification.
“Ah!”
Jin suddenly opened his eyes wide and shouted, causing Teto to pause his attack.
“Sorry, Twelve Kings brother. I was distracted thinking.”
Not a lie, but Jin said it with a deliberately irritating tone to provoke him.
Teto blinked, then replied, “Throwing out cheap taunts like that ruins the mood, Jin.”
“Then I apologize.”
The taunt was just a test. At that moment, Jin recalled part of that sensation.
And with it came a sudden certainty that he could defeat Teto—the weakest of the Meiwang’s Twelve Kings.
Crackle…!
Swirling lightning gathered into a sigmund.
Everyone watching, including Teto, immediately recognized what kind of sword Jin was about to unleash.
“As an apology, I’ll honor the Twelve Kings brother’s wishes.”
Ten Stars.
Jin’s aura had already reached that level. But it wasn’t just about raw power.
What mattered was how transcendently he could wield that power.
“I hope this sword becomes a glorious memory for the Twelve Kings brother.”
Meiwang Sword God Technique, Tenth Sword
Meiwang Sovereign Sword – Kai (Open)
Except for Ban, none of the brothers had ever seen Jin wield the Meiwang Sovereign Sword himself.
Even if they had, the Meiwang clan wouldn’t have been particularly impressed.
Jin’s previous attempts at the Sovereign Sword paled in comparison to Ban’s original and were fundamentally incomplete.
But this time was different.
Though still far from the original’s power, the form and opening stroke were nearly perfected—wielded through Jin’s body and Ban’s sensation.
‘Jin really has mastered the essence of the God of War technique.’
Watching, the Ninth King, Baba, couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
Teto, facing this ultimate technique, was left utterly stunned.
The floor of the hall cracked and crumbled as lightning erupted like molten lava.
Jin’s eyes glowed blue with lightning energy, his radiant heart vibrating as if about to explode, radiating brilliance.
A fierce storm of lightning formed his domain in an instant.
In response, Teto unleashed his Meiwang Sword Spear technique, the Twelve Kings’ style.
Within Jin’s domain, Teto’s radiant heart trembled, forming a distinct point of energy.
The forces from both hearts clashed, sparking blue flames.
“Compared to the real thing… this is nothing!”
The moment Teto shouted, the outcome was all but decided.
If it truly were nothing, he wouldn’t have rushed to unleash the Twelve Kings technique.
Yet Jin didn’t stop his sword’s advance, confident of victory.
As in the opening match, the Twelve Kings were capable of turning the tide even in dire situations.
Jin was now channeling the newly learned 7th Sword Dragon’s Wrath and 9th Sword Annihilation, gained through the God of War unification, following the 3rd Sword Judgment.
A regular warrior wouldn’t survive even one of those strikes.
But the regular warriors were enduring the storm of the Sovereign Sword without Ban or the Twelve Kings’ help.
“Kyaaah!”
Teto’s spear pushed back the surging lightning momentarily.
Had he not been wielding the Sovereign Sword, Jin would have been in serious danger.
[You shouldn’t have given me time to think, Twelve Kings brother.]
Jin deliberately held back the second stage of the Sovereign Sword’s secret technique, War.
He had no intention of killing Teto, but this was already enough to end the fight.
It was the 9th Sword Annihilation that finally brought Teto down.
Blue energy spread like giant wings around Jin, unleashing a storm of lightning that battered Teto relentlessly.
There was no way to dodge—only to parry, block, and endure.
Teto was pushed back, stumbling, while the Annihilation blades pressed down harder, their power amplified to the limit by the Sovereign Sword.
“Ugh… ha…”
When the Annihilation ceased, Teto stood drenched in blood, looking as if he were dead.
But Jin didn’t stop there.
He fired the final Judgment spike.
Even as Teto lost consciousness, he still tried to parry the strike.
Though he couldn’t withstand the backlash and fell outside the hall, it was inevitable.
Jin suppressed the chaotic energy surging within and caught his breath.
The other brothers immediately rushed to catch the falling Teto.
It was tradition in the Twelve Kings Tournament to rescue the loser in any form once the match ended.
Thud!
Rumora caught Teto, and the others helped pull him back into the hall.
“D-damn… I have to break free from being the weakest.”
“I told you to wake up from your dream. The Twelve Twin Kings fought with such weak minds, so it’s no surprise they got crushed this badly. Next time, try challenging the Jin brothers again. Honestly, the Twelve Twin Kings should be the ones winning.”
“The match is over. The winners are the Jin brothers.”
As Ban quietly announced the result, Jin didn’t hear the usual thunderous cheers from his brothers.
Instead, what greeted him were the fierce, murderous glares of the Twin Kings, as if they were ready to tear him apart on the spot.
Still, there were a few Twin Kings quietly swallowing their pride and accepting the outcome.
‘This will be the first and last easy victory,’ Jin thought, meeting his brothers’ deadly stares with a smile, though he couldn’t help but swallow hard.