The orange light covered Van’s body, which had now begun to grow muscles and was coated in sweat. His stomach, now firmer, rose and fell together with his breath, which came in heavy gasps.
Van’s mouth opened and closed as he tried to inhale as much air as possible. A golden mustache and beard had begun growing wildly across his face, while his golden hair had now reached his neck.
Van’s black eyes looked toward the sunset, which was blocked by the old man floating above the crashing waves. The wind blew against his jacket and white pants.
Van swallowed.
He pointed toward the old man.
Out of nothingness, dozens of invisible blocks slowly appeared and immediately rushed toward the old man from every direction.
The old man did not move.
He did not flinch in the slightest.
His calmness answered with confidence. The invisible blocks never reached him. They slowed down around his body.
Veins bulged across Van’s forehead while the old man descended and stepped onto the shoreline, walking toward Van.
"Hey, old man!! Stop slowing down time all the time, damn it!!"
The old man did not answer Van’s complaint. He simply raised his right hand, all five fingers pressed together like the blade of a knife.
The moment Van saw it, his body stiffened.
The old man immediately swung his hand to the right. Unfortunately, at that exact same moment, Van moved to the left.
Unable to read the direction of the old man’s strike, Van immediately tried to change the direction of his movement.
But the spray of blood came faster than he expected.
His left arm was cleanly severed.
Van collapsed with a groan, while the old man clicked his tongue.
"You idiot... it’s already been months, yet your instincts are still this weak."
Van grabbed at where his left arm had disappeared. He nearly bit through his tongue. He tried to stand, but the old man immediately sliced through both of his legs, making his scream grow even louder.
Blood stained the beach sand where Van lay. He clenched his right fist and looked up at the old man, who was looking down at him.
The orange light was blocked by the old man’s back, making Van swallow.
"You crazy old man... I’ve only been training for a few months after previously not being able to fight at all!! How am I supposed to become a god right away?!"
Hot steam rose from Van’s severed left arm and both of his severed legs. The steam was a sign that flesh and bones were beginning to grow back in his left arm and both legs.
The speed of his regeneration made the old man’s eyebrow twitch.
"Yeah... if I have to be honest, your ability to learn potentials develops much faster than your terrible instincts."
Van let out a sigh. He looked at the old man with a smile so wide that his eyes disappeared. At what Van considered a fast speed, he threw the sand he had already grabbed toward the old man’s face.
Unfortunately, the grains of sand slowed down before reaching the old man’s face, causing Van to try to stand while letting out an awkward chuckle.
"Good grief... why are you still slowing down time? Isn’t that unfair?"
The old man sighed. He brushed away the sand heading toward his face.
"This only proves even more that your instincts are truly terrible."
The old man raised his right leg and kicked the shirtless Van.
Van was sent flying, rolling across the sand until he became nothing more than a dot in the old man’s eyes. Even the sound of the impacts did not stop after dozens of seconds.
A cloud of sand rose together with the wind, reducing visibility. At the far end of the cloud, Van lay on his back, staring at the orange sky.
His body convulsed. Blood continued pouring from his mouth. His breathing could not be heard, while hot steam was still trying to regrow his left arm and legs, which had not yet completely regenerated.
Eventually, hot steam poured from Van’s entire body. After a while, his convulsing body finally returned to normal, and the sound of his breathing gradually returned.
’Damn... that crazy old man. I’m starting to want to chop his head off.’
The sound of footsteps on the beach sand echoed.
Van turned to the right.
The old man was walking toward him, preparing to slash him once again.
Van winced in pain. He raised one hand as a signal for the old man to stop whatever he was about to do.
Fortunately, the old man stopped walking and waited for Van to speak.
After a while, Van slowly got back to his feet, even though his body was still trembling after nearly every bone in it had been broken.
Van spat out the blood in his mouth and wiped it away.
’I think it’s time to use my trump card...’
Van raised one hand.
"Old man!! There’s something I want to show you!!"
"This might be able to chop your head off..." Van shook his head. "No, no. I mean, I’ll show you something."
The old man picked his nose and flicked the booger away while telling Van to do whatever he wanted.
Veins bulged on Van’s forehead.
’Good grief... maybe I really will chop his head off.’
Van stretched his body. The sound of his bones, now fully restored, cracked sharply.
"Don’t slow down time!! You’re cheating if you use that!"
The old man did not answer, while Van let out a breath.
’Alright... hmm, then first... Will to Atonement.’
Van clicked his tongue.
"Beluga..."
As soon as Van spoke the word, something slowly tried to emerge from the pile of beach sand. The mound of sand circled around Van several times before something finally came out.
A beluga whale appeared and swam through the air around Van. The beluga wore glittering golden ornaments covering its white skin.
Around its neck hung a necklace with a gold chain and a diamond almost as large as its face. Its eyes were hidden behind a special pair of sunglasses covered in diamonds and gold.
A shrill voice rang out as the beluga opened its mouth.
"Beluga is here!!! Beluga is ready!!"
Van covered his ears the moment he heard Beluga’s shout.
He looked to the right and left until he found a tree branch. Van picked it up and pointed it at the old man, who was simply standing still.
"Beluga... turn this branch into something that can kill that man."
Beluga fell silent for a moment. Its tail swished through the air as though it were swimming in water. Then it repeatedly lifted and lowered its sunglasses with its flipper.
"Okay!!!"
Van turned toward Beluga as the whale smiled warmly.
"The payment is your life now, and all the lives of your future incarnations if you reincarnate... of course, until this world ceases to exist."
Beluga let out a shrill laugh.
"Alright!! Let’s begin!!"
The moment Van heard Beluga’s words, he immediately crossed his arms in panic.
"No, no!! Never mind!!! Don’t do that!!"
Beluga chuckled while spinning through the air as though swimming underwater.
Van scratched his eyebrow.
"Just turn this branch into the sharpest object in the world."
Beluga tilted its head while looking at the branch.
"Hmm... okay!!!"
"The payment... hmm...."
Beluga glanced over Van’s body from head to toe before smiling faintly.
"The payment is both of your hands!!"
Van let out a tired sigh and nodded.
The branch in Van’s hand began glowing white. When the light finally faded, the branch had not changed its appearance at all. Then it fell into the beach sand and sank as though it had passed through silk.
Both of Van’s hands disappeared.
Not long afterward, hot steam rose once again, regrowing both of his hands. He raised his head after noticing the old man yawning.
"Wait a moment!! And don’t slow down time!!"
After Van’s hands had fully regenerated, he immediately picked up the branch, which had now become the sharpest object in the world.
He then raised his left hand.
’Hmm... next, Will to Destroy.’
The temperature around Van’s left wrist began dropping drastically. His wrist slowly froze.
Ice covered his left wrist and formed the barrel of a cannon. Van stopped the ice from continuing just as it reached his shoulder, preventing it from freezing the rest of his body.
He frowned.
’Then... Will to Achieve.’
Van’s body gradually became lighter. Both of his feet slowly floated above the sand.
He bit his lip while the old man merely waited with a bored expression.
’What else? Will of Acceptance is already being used to regenerate my hands...’
One of Van’s eyebrows rose.
’Ah, right... Will to Protect!’
Van looked around, searching for something, but found nothing. He then shouted at the old man.
"Old man!! Can’t you create a few animals?! I can’t use Will to Protect like this!!"
The old man rubbed his face in annoyance. He looked at Van with a cold stare that made Van shrink back slightly.
"You sure ask for a lot. I’ve been waiting for a long time, and all I’ve seen is a clown floating around a little."
Van burst into laughter.
"Come on... create a few fish... I really want to try this to chop your head off."
Van shook his head.
"I mean, this is my ultimate move!!"
Van let out a breath, then created several invisible blocks once again that surrounded the old man.
’Will for Freedom is ready too.’
The old man finally raised his hand and snapped his fingers. Instantly, the beach with its eternal sunset where they stood turned as white as an unpainted canvas.
Gradually, the blank canvas was painted a deep blue. As the color became more vivid, pressure suddenly crashed down on Van’s body together with an icy cold sensation.
Bubbles escaped from Van’s mouth as he realized he was now beneath the cold ocean. His eyes instantly turned gray. He, who had been unable to breathe before, could now breathe freely underwater.
’Whoa... so I can use Will to Survive at the same time too.’
Van raised his head. His eyes, which should not have been able to see through the darkness of the cold sea, could now clearly see the old man, who was also submerged.
From the darkness of the ocean, various kinds of sea creatures slowly appeared. Van exclaimed inwardly when he saw a humpback whale, a pod of orcas, a school of flying fish, and many other creatures.
’Good grief... this is the perfect stage!’
Van immediately aimed his ice cannon at the old man. A ball of ice formed and shot out, striking the old man.
The old man did not react. He simply accepted it without expression, even as his body froze into a solid block of ice.
Van grinned widely. He then waved the branch in his right hand as though he were conducting an orchestra.
’Okay!! First up is Big Boy!!’
Van tilted his head.
’Or Big Girl? Whatever!!’
Behind the old man, the enormous mouth of a humpback whale slowly opened. The whale swallowed the old man, who was now encased in ice.
The whale then swam rapidly toward the surface. It spun around once, creating a massive wave beneath the sea.
Van burst into laughter in his heart. He then spun the arm holding the branch three times.
’Three more times!!’
The humpback whale did exactly as Van wanted. It spun three more times, causing the sea to churn as its largest inhabitant moved like a dolphin.
Van then began arranging the formation of the orcas that had been waiting for their turn. They were positioned at different corners of the dark ocean.
After the humpback whale finished spinning, it immediately spat the frozen old man toward one of the orcas.
Van flicked his branch once.
The orca spun around and swung its tail, kicking the frozen old man away.
’Ding!!’
The old man, showing no reaction at all, was launched deep into the sea, where another orca was waiting to do the same thing.
It continued over and over again as Van kept moving the hand holding the branch as though he were reaching the climax of his performance.
’Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding.’
The final sweep of an orca’s tail shattered the block of ice surrounding the old man’s body. He merely looked at Van, who was completely absorbed in his own performance, without any expression.
Meanwhile, dozens of invisible blocks emerged from the ocean floor and repeatedly punched the old man’s body until he was launched toward the surface.
Van followed soon after, carried upward by one of the invisible blocks until he reached the surface of the sea.
Van immediately flew rapidly into the orange sky, paying no attention to the setting sun.
He flew higher into the sky while the old man fell helplessly back into the ocean after the invisible blocks finally stopped punching him.
Van stopped flying when he heard the sound of the old man hitting the water.
He turned around and looked down at the old man from the orange sky, while the old man floated on the sea with the same expressionless face.
Van aimed the cannon at the sea, then fired another ball of ice.
As soon as the ice ball struck the sea, the sea instantly turned into an endless field of ice. The old man was trapped, with half of his body along with both of his arms imprisoned inside the field of ice whose end could not be seen.
Van spread his arms, dismissed his ice cannon, then immediately flew quickly and directly toward the place where the old man was trapped.
Van held the sharpest branch in the world with both hands, then surfed across the field of ice before slashing at the old man’s head with a movement like hitting a baseball.
Silence enveloped the two of them.
There was no sound. No scream.
The orange light became the witness to the battle between the two of them, which was won by the old man.
Van, who stood motionless, remained silent for a few moments until his body finally collapsed into cube-shaped pieces cut neatly into the same size.
No scream was heard like before.
Only the sound of pieces of flesh hitting the layer of ice.
The old man let out a breath, and cold vapor formed behind it.
He then tried to free both of his trapped hands. After that, he flew and landed on top of the endless field of ice.
His white jacket and white pants felt cold, but he did not care about them, just as he did not care about Van, who had now turned into hundreds of cube-shaped pieces.
The old man yawned until tears came out of his eyes, his mouth opening so wide as if it could swallow the setting sun.
He then took something out of nothingness.
It was a lit cigar.
He took a puff from it once in the middle of the cold field of ice and the unhelpful sunset.
"Yeah... his progress in learning the potentials is indeed good. But his instincts are bad again."
The old man took another puff from his cigar.
"What else..."
The old man blew out the cigar smoke.
"Ahh... he also hasn’t been tested when being ganged up on."
The old man simply stood there while enjoying his cigar. Then he raised his hand as Van’s pieces of flesh began to freeze.
The old man snapped his fingers.
Darkness immediately answered him without being given any time.
An endless and formless darkness stretched without an end. A darkness that did not allow smell and sound to set foot within it.
That continued for a while before a voice pierced through it. At first the voice was far away, but little by little it came closer until it could be heard clearly.
"Old man!! Can’t you create a few animals?! I can’t use Will to Protect like this!!"
The old man opened his eyes, causing the darkness surrounding him to come to an end.
Now he saw Van holding a branch while his other hand had turned into an ice cannon as he floated in the air.
The old man let out a sigh.
"Stop it."
Van frowned and shouted in response.
"What?! Stop what?! I was just about to start, damn it!!"
The old man picked his ear and pointed toward the supermarkets lined up on top of the cliff.
"Go and get the ingredients for a barbecue... bring a lot. I’m hungry."
Van’s face froze, and his mouth hung open, not knowing what to say.
The old man sighed softly while yawning.
"Today’s training ends here. Hurry and do what I told you. We’ll eat, and I’ll tell you the stories behind the potentials you’ve learned."
"Yeah... it might give you a new perspective. But if you still want to train, then come. I’ll cut you into cubes."
The old man cracked his fingers.
’Just like a while ago.’
Van blinked several times, and a wide smile slowly appeared on his face.
He dismissed everything he had created and immediately ran toward the forest.
"Really?! The training is over, right?! Just wait! After we eat, we’ll train again!!"