Infinity, The Arcade Age

Chapter 385: The Emperor, Rugal!

Chapter 385 - 385: The Emperor, Rugal!

Boom!

Another deafening explosion shook the air. Forced to withstand attacks from several opponents at once, Chin Gentsai suddenly exploded into action, choosing to trade injuries for injuries.

First came a blaze of fire to clear the way, immediately followed by the Drunken Eight Immortals Fist.

Relying on the lethal combo of these two ultimate moves, Chin Gentsai left no chance for the adventurers to use any special methods to heal themselves. In a flash, he instantly killed one of them!

However, at the same time the adventurer was burned to a crisp, Chin Gentsai was also struck by several others who seized the opening.

Already wounded, Chin Gentsai took on even more injuries and was sent tumbling through the air.

The moment his body hit the ground, he braced himself on one hand and sprang back up, narrowly dodging several Hadoken blasts aimed at him.

Landing steadily, Chin Gentsai looked around at the seven adventurers closing in from all directions. He was panting heavily, blood trickling down his forehead.

The surrounding adventurers, despite catching up to him, kept a cautious distance. None dared to launch a reckless attack.

After all, that burst just now had truly scared them.

Even in an eight-against-one situation, he had managed to counter-kill one of them! This old man's combat experience was downright terrifying!

And he's even injured! If he were at full strength... would any human be able to take him on?!

Previously, when the Godslayer Squad ambushed the team of espers, they had only managed to disable Chin Gentsai by secretly poisoning him after getting close under false pretenses.

The toxin they used had been sourced from the Warriors of Fate world—specifically from the Golden Scorpion King's venom! A consumable item of ordinary gold-grade!

Even with such a potent poison, Chin Gentsai had only been half-crippled. He had still managed to fight evenly against numerous adventurers while enduring the excruciating pain.

Now, with the poison purged from his system, even though he was wounded, his combat power hadn't declined—it had actually increased!

The eight adventurers who tried challenging him head-on immediately realized the sheer value of a veteran martial arts grandmaster.

Chin Gentsai hadn't been boasting earlier. Had this been twenty years ago, he really would have wiped the floor with all of them.

Back in his prime, Chin Gentsai had been a monster who could ascend to the ranks of top-tier fighters with nothing but his fists and footwork!

Imagine it! If he had seventy points in all attributes, combined with an S-rank mastery in martial arts, how devastating would that have been?!

It was only due to aging and declining physical strength that Chin Gentsai had been forced to rely on skill-based fighting styles like drunken boxing.

But when he was young! He had specialized in Baji Quan combined with Iron Body techniques—using raw power to crush opponents through sheer force!

Tension filled the air as the two sides faced off, neither making a move for over ten seconds. Suddenly, one of the adventurers roared.

"Don't hesitate! All of us, together! He can't hold out!"

With that battle cry, the adventurer charged forward, gritting his teeth. The others followed without hesitation.

The seven of them launched a coordinated assault, and another intense melee erupted around Chin Gentsai.

Using his small stature to his advantage, Chin Gentsai weaved through fists and kicks, blocking and countering skillfully. He looked calm and composed, handling everything with ease.

From the very beginning, he hadn't aimed to defeat them. His goal was to stall them!

As long as he could hold these people back and keep them from reaching the inner chamber, it would be his victory.

Once my new disciple emerges after merging with the potion, Chin Gentsai thought, these bastards are going to be in for a real surprise.

A numbers advantage? When have you ever heard of someone trained in Iron Body techniques fearing a numbers advantage?

Masters counter brute force! Brute force counters mobs! Mobs overwhelm masters! Practitioners of Iron Body techniques were made to crush mobs!

Chin Gentsai's delaying tactic was going extremely well. By taking down one enemy through an explosive counterattack, he had successfully instilled fear into the others, making them hesitant to attack full-force.

Combined with his extraordinary combat skills, while he had little hope of defeating all of them, dragging out the fight and avoiding defeat was effortless for him.

.....That is, assuming no new developments occurred.

"Enough! You useless trash! Get out of my sight!"

Just as the fierce battle raged on, a thunderous roar echoed from the courtyard entrance.

And right after the voice rang out, a gust of wind followed.

The adventurers, startled by the commotion, turned their heads—only to see a massive energy sphere hurtling toward them.

They had no time to dodge. The energy sphere smashed into them, sending them flying.

Chin Gentsai swiftly sidestepped the blast, his pupils contracting as he stared at the shattered wall behind him, his expression turning grim.

At the entrance, a hulking figure slowly straightened up from a shooting stance, arms extended forward.

Skill: Emperor Caesar Wave!

The newcomer: The Emperor of Fighting—Rugal!

With a swift yank, Rugal tore off his cloak, revealing his true form.

One of his eyes was a glowing mechanical eye, and one arm was a mechanical prosthetic. Standing nearly two meters tall, his body was packed with muscles.

His grayish skin gave him a ghastly appearance. Expressionless, Rugal stared coldly at Chin Gentsai.

"Useless trash. You can't even handle an old man. What good are you? And you think you're worthy of recruiting me?"

Hearing this, the nearby adventurers from the Street Fighter Squad stiffened visibly.

"Master Rugal, this guy's strength is no joke..." one of them started.

"Hmph! No excuses!" Rugal cut him off sharply. "If not for the fact that you possess some strange power I've never seen before—and because you saved me once—I wouldn't even consider doing this filthy job for you! Ganging up to hunt down fighters? Only hyenas hunt in packs!"

With a sudden lift of his hand, Rugal activated a newly acquired ability. A violent surge of energy exploded outward from him, sweeping across the courtyard.

This power was none other than one of the ultimate forces from the Street Fighter world—Murderous Intent Surge!

Rugal raised his head, gazing down at Chin Gentsai with eyes full of scorn.

"Chin Gentsai, Grandmaster of Martial Arts, is it? Old man, we meet again."

Hearing those words, the stunned Chin Gentsai finally snapped out of his daze.

"Rugal?! You're alive?!"

"Of course I'm alive. But you..." Rugal sneered, "you won't be for much longer. And with your pitifully decayed body, you're not even worthy of being made into one of my statue collections. Old man, you were born twenty years too early."

Rugal's words made Chin Gentsai's expression grow darker and darker.

Chin Gentsai, who had once witnessed the bloody battle between Rugal and Kyo Kusanagi alongside Iori Yagami, immediately realized things were going south.

This guy, who had already reached the pinnacle of frontline combat power and was on the verge of becoming a top-tier martial artist—and moreover, specialized in hard-hitting tactics—was practically his natural nemesis.

Taking a deep breath and gulping down a mouthful of alcohol, Chin Gentsai shook off his shock, raised his hand, and assumed a Drunken Fist stance.

Seeing this, Rugal raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Oh? Facing me alone, and you not only didn't choose to run away, but are trying to resist instead? Chin Gentsai, your courage isn't bad... but do you still think the me standing before you is the same as the me of the past?!"

He suddenly spread his hands and clawed forward, as blood-colored ripples began swirling around him.

Rugal, having activated Killing Intent Wave, had a red glow flashing in his eyes.

"The me now—has completely transformed! Can you even block me?!"

With a flick of his hand—amplitude boost—Kaiser Wave!

A massive energy ball nearly a meter wide howled forward at an astonishing speed, carving a deep, straight trench into the ground.

Seeing this, Chin Gentsai gathered his qi at his dantian and raised both arms to try to block it, but the moment they collided—he was directly blasted flying!

Before he even had a chance to roll and climb back up, energy balls came whistling at him one after another! Each shot was heavy and destructive!

[Skill: Incomplete Killing Intent Wave][Level: A][Effect: After activation, choose one attribute of your own to amplify by 100%.][Description: Come, use your life to comprehend this supreme martial art!]

At this moment, Rugal, having activated the skill, had amplified—Strength! Unparalleled strength!

With rapid swings of both arms, he bombarded Chin Gentsai without pause, causing him to roll and scramble frantically across the ground. From start to finish, Rugal hadn't moved a single step, yet he hurled nearly twenty energy balls.

After being chased and blasted around Rugal for three full circles, Chin Gentsai finally managed to maneuver closer to his enemy.

With a roar, he abruptly halted mid-slide. In the next instant, flames ignited around him as he spun and charged straight at Rugal.

A-rank Skill: Roaring Column Summon!

Looking at the blazing fireball hurtling toward him, Rugal's pupils contracted, but instead of dodging, he actively reached out toward it.

Killing Intent Wave Boost—Constitution!

Whoosh!

Amidst the howling wind, Rugal forcibly endured the ultimate technique's impact, skidding back a full three meters.

But that was all. As Chin Gentsai's spinning attack ended and the flames on his body dissipated, he raised his head in disbelief.

His ultimate move—had actually been taken head-on by Rugal!

Meeting Chin Gentsai's stunned gaze, Rugal grabbed him by the head, a ferocious grin twisting his face.

"Your techniques are finished? Then it's my turn!"

With one hand, he lifted Chin Gentsai high. As a bloody light flashed through his eyes—

Killing Intent Wave Boost—Strength!

Skill: Genocide Cutter!

Blood-tinged claws instantly slashed across Chin Gentsai's body!

In the blink of an eye, Rugal clawed him three times and followed up with a brutal kick, sending him flying!

Almost within a mere instant, Chin Gentsai was gravely wounded.

The mismatch between the two was too great. One relied on technique, while the other specialized in raw brutality. If their attributes were equal, technique would have the upper hand.

But once the brute's attributes could completely crush the technician, so-called techniques became nothing but a joke.

And this was exactly the case now! Even Chin Gentsai's ultimate techniques couldn't even scratch Rugal, who was boosted by Killing Intent Wave!

Watching Chin Gentsai crash heavily to the ground, Rugal crossed his arms, eyes narrowing slightly, a hint of mockery flashing through them.

"So this is the strength of a so-called martial arts master? You're a bit disappointing, Chin Gentsai. Your so-called perfected techniques—can they even block one of my punches?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Rugal suddenly spun around and waved his hand, instantly condensing a green energy shield.

And just as the shield appeared, a small energy ball came speeding over, only to be deflected instantly.

Flicking his hand to dissipate the remaining energy, Rugal glanced at Athena Asamiya, who had appeared across from him out of thin air, raising an eyebrow.

"Little girl, do you also want to overestimate yourself and challenge me?"

Hearing this, Athena gave no reply. Seeing her master in danger, she gritted her teeth and forced her way out of the encirclement. Her body then abruptly vanished in a strange flash.

Teleport close + Shining Crystal Wave!

Using teleportation to close in instantly, and then unleashing the all-in-one offensive-defensive move Shining Crystal Wave, was one of Athena's signature tactics—catching enemies off guard time and again.

However, this time, Athena's special move was thwarted. To be precise, it never even got the chance to activate.

Because the moment she teleported in and her body began to glow, a hand was already clutching her throat, forcibly interrupting her ultimate move.

Lightning-fast, Rugal had accurately snatched her mid-teleport.

Turning his head sharply, Rugal's gaze was vicious.

"Your speed is too slow—woman!"

Killing Intent Wave Boost—Speed!

(End of Chapter)