NPLLD 14

Chapter : 14

Korea Martial Arts Association (2)

“Correct.”

At Seoyul’s question, Kang Taesan nodded calmly and admitted it was a grip strength trainer.

Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he removed his upper clothing and revealed his back.

His back, sculpted with dense, rugged muscle, was covered in horrific, deep scars.

“Th, that is…”

“It’s made from the jaw of a monster called Cheolakgui, a rare solitary-type monster. When I was younger, I nearly died because of that thing several times. I participated in three raids just to barely bring it down. It could tear through iron and metal like paper, and those terrifying teeth were driven by an overwhelming jaw strength. That’s why I came up with this training method.”

He casually gripped the handle and squeezed with enough force to crush steel.

Crreeeak!

The iron jaw slowly opened, releasing a sinister aura as it spread apart.

The trainees watching the scene all stiffened with tension.

Everyone stared at the iron jaw in a daze.

It was a natural reaction—Awakened ones often reacted this way when facing dungeon phenomena or fear beyond comprehension.

Even just looking at a monster’s remains could trigger such reactions, proving how dangerous the object in front of them was.

This is the power of a solitary monster that almost killed an S-rank hunter.

Seoyul also felt an involuntary shiver.

Solitary monster.

Unlike goblins, orcs, lizardmen, and other common monsters that appear in groups and have many variants, solitary monsters were different.

They were mutations—monsters that were either unique in the world or existed only as a single specimen.

Most dungeon bosses were highly likely to be solitary monsters like this.

“Its jaw strength is still as monstrous as ever.”

Kang Taesan smiled casually as he forced open the jaw of Cheolakgui with pure grip strength.

Soon after, his disciples placed a solid rock between the open jaws.

Kang Taesan squeezed again.

Kwaaaang!

When the jaws snapped shut, the rock inside exploded like a balloon, scattering into fine powder.

Kang Taesan looked at Seoyul.

“From now on, this is your training. I hope you clear it as quickly as possible.”

“Understood. May I try it once before that?”

Kang Taesan nodded.

Seoyul grabbed the handle tightly and… trembled.

Frrr…

His hand shook violently, unable to move at all.

“Aren’t you supposed to be the master’s chosen disciple?”

“Looks weaker than expected.”

Jealous whispers and disappointed murmurs spread around him.

Seoyul glanced around, then suddenly smiled and took off his training jacket.

“It’s been a while since I felt motivated.”

If it doesn’t work, try until it does.

Clench!

He poured every ounce of strength into his grip.

Drip.

But he couldn’t withstand the pressure. Flesh tore slightly, and blood began to flow from his palm.

“….”

Everyone stared at his almost manic determination.

So he really is the direct disciple.

That seemed to be the conclusion they reached.

Kang Taesan looked at Seoyul for a moment, then smiled with satisfaction and turned away.

“Everyone, continue your training.”

Meanwhile…

Jang Geunsoo had once been a well-known B-rank hunter.

At one point, he believed that with a little more effort, he could join one of Korea’s top three guilds—Overcross.

But that illusion shattered just three months into his career.

During a raid against a stone golem, debris crushed his arm.

No one paid attention to him. He was on the verge of death.

The Overcross members focused only on mining mana stones and collecting loot.

They didn’t even glance at the injured.

That moment left a deep scar on him.

“You’re the best, Geunsoo.”

“You’re the only one we can rely on.”

Words of praise—he once thought they were genuine.

But they were just tools of exploitation.

When he realized that, he understood how cruel the world truly was.

As he drifted in and out of consciousness under the rubble, someone’s desperate voice rang out:

“Don’t lose consciousness! You can’t fall asleep! Your body temperature is dropping!”

When he woke up, he was in a hospital bed.

He had narrowly saved his right arm, but lingering tremors ended his guild career permanently.

He tried to appeal for compensation, but nothing came of it.

The world was endlessly cruel.

From then on, he devoted himself to training at the Martial Arts Association, trying to overcome it all—but the tremor in his right arm never fully disappeared.

Why did Master take that “backdoor” guy as a direct disciple?

That thought crossed his mind again as he gritted his teeth and opened the dojo door.

Shimmer.

The dojo inside was unusually clean and refined.

At the center, Seoyul was sitting with eyes closed, chanting the “Clear Mirror State” technique.

“Oh! You’re here, senior!”

“Ah… hello, senior disciple.”

“Come on, just call me Seoyul hyung.”

“I can’t. Rank matters.”

“It’s not even a martial arts novel…”

Seoyul sighed.

“You cleaned all this?”

“It was a bit messy. Isn’t that normal for someone who came in late?”

“Don’t do that next time. If the direct disciple does chores, we’re the ones who get scolded.”

Seoyul replied calmly:

“If I can do something, there’s no reason to push it onto others. We’re all here to grow together.”

Jang Geunsoo had no answer.

Before the upcoming Wasp Subjugation quest, Seoyul was spending most of his time training and reorganizing his dungeon.

The Martial Arts Association was open 24 hours.

He exploited that fact and even showed up at 2 a.m.

I feel like I’m going to collapse from overworking…

[Fatigue level: 80%]

In the past, he would’ve stopped immediately and gone to sleep.

But now, things were different.

[Clear Mirror State reduces fatigue by 30%.]

[Clear Mirror State optimizes neural processing by 40%.]

As Kang Taesan said, continuously maintaining the Clear Mirror State optimized his entire energy cycle.

What used to produce “1 unit of output” per effort now produced “2 units or more.”

Nice.

Seoyul joined the stone-gripping training like the others.

Instead of using mana, he relied purely on physical grip strength.

The system began reflecting his growth.

[New stat details unlocked.]

[Grip strength added to Physical tab.]

[Grip strength increased.]

[Grip strength increased by 3.]

[Grip Strength: 44]

It had been 17 before.

In less than a week, his growth was extraordinary.

And it wasn’t only him.

Other trainees, once awkward around him, began greeting him warmly.

Soon, the dojo that was once quiet in the mornings was filled with members gathering just to watch him.

“Ooooh!”

“You can do it!”

Today, they were all cheering around him.

The final barrier of his training was the grip device made from the iron jaw of Cheolakgui.

Crreeeak…!

The handle groaned under pressure. Even the jawbone trembled.

No one had ever succeeded before, so the atmosphere was intense.

Bang!

But in the end, Seoyul failed and let go.

The jaw snapped shut with a dull thud.

“Agh… damn it.”

“So close, senior!”

“Ahh, so close!”

Everyone sighed in disappointment.

Seoyul smiled bitterly, exhausted.

Then—

A bottle of sports drink was suddenly held out in front of him.

“…Huh?”

It was Jang Geunsoo.

“Don’t push yourself too hard,” he said.

“Are you a tsundere or something?”

Seoyul laughed lightly and accepted the drink.

Meanwhile…

Hunters arriving through the gate wore polished, extravagant gear.

They were members of one of Korea’s top guilds—Overcross.

Among them, a heavy metallic noise echoed from a massive cube.

Inside was a monster struggling violently.

The Steel Blood Orc.

A creature whose blood contained toxic iron properties, growing stronger as it was injured.

It was the leader of its tribe.

“Shut up already!”

Team leader Kim Jiman glared at it irritably.

“This thing is worth 12 billion won. 12 BILLION. Do you know how carefully we have to handle it?”

“Sorry…”

“Then behave.”

He shook his head.

The orc was meant for blood arenas—underground battles where monsters and hunters fought for entertainment and profit.

To the rich, monsters were not fearsome threats—but valuable commodities.

Kim Jiman smirked as he looked at it.

Just then—

CRACK!

The Steel Blood Orc shattered its restraints.

“…What?”

Within minutes, disaster unfolded for Overcross.