Chapter 167: The World’s Strongest

Description

Sword Saint Cheon Jun

A man hailed as China’s best and strongest Hunter, and even called the world’s greatest Hunter by some.

Naturally, the Chinese people’s pride in him was limitless. Some even worshipped Sword Saint Cheon Jun almost like a god.

He recently appeared while handling the Gate Incident that erupted in reality, and gave a brief interview to reporters.

-Hello, Sword Saint. First, as a citizen, I extend infinite gratitude for your efforts on behalf of the nation.

-I merely did my duty.

Cheon Jun answered humbly, but the video recorded alongside the interview was anything but.

The Gate that appeared in China this time was in a city center, and with major damage anticipated, Cheon Jun personally stepped forward and cleared it swiftly.

In the process, the sight of him slaughtering over a hundred monsters flawlessly with a single sword was both awe-inspiring and overwhelming.

The power of Cheon Jun, which had only been rumored as the strongest, was now fully revealed to the media, and tremendous cheers followed.

But…

-Haha.

With the strongest Hunter protecting China like this, the people must have nothing to worry about.

-The strongest?

-Pardon?

-I am not the strongest.

-Ah. Are you referring to America’s Alex, Russia’s ‘Death King,’ or Mexico’s ‘Slaughterer’?

Each of them was a Hunter always grouped with Sword Saint when discussing the world’s best.

Naturally, the Chinese people called Sword Saint the best, and considered the others second no matter how hard they tried.

-No.

They may be remarkable Hunters, but they can’t compare to Hunter Lee Tae-sung of Korea.

-Hunter Lee Tae-sung?

Ah, the one who helped during the Black Mist Incident…?

Lee Tae-sung was already fairly well known in China through the media.

But with Cheon Jun’s statement this time, he received unprecedented attention.

-Yes. I’m certain that he is the world’s strongest Hunter.

Before I sparred with him, there was a time I inwardly believed I was the world’s strongest.

The truth about the world’s strongest, openly declared by their own idol. Naturally, Chinese public opinion was turned upside down.

-Oh… that can’t be true.

-Why would Cheon Jun say something like that?

Being too humble isn’t a good look either.

-He lost in a spar?

Maybe his condition was really bad that day?

-Or perhaps he had an injury.

-No… the strongest is Cheon Jun……

These news stories spread to Korea as well.

[Title: Chinese folks collectively in despair]

-(News link)

-This isn’t some tabloid, Sword Saint Cheon Jun said it directly in an interview.

That Hunter Lee Tae-sung is the world’s strongest.

Wait, why is this real?

└Keukeukeukeukeu what is this.

The Chinese people can’t accept it so they’re shaking with rage.

└Since their own strongest Hunter said it himself, they can’t deny it and are collectively dumbfounded keukeukeu.

└But was Hunter Lee Tae-sung really that strong?

I only vaguely remember seeing news about a rookie appearing.

└Same here.

└That was ages ago keukeukeu.

You’ve been cut off from the news since then?

Apparently he became a Ranker incredibly fast after that.

└Is he some kind of prodigy?

He hasn’t been around long, how did he get so strong so fast?

Either way, it was welcome news from a Korean perspective.

Whenever a world number one is born in fields like K-pop, athletes, or E-sports, national pride rises across the board.

But a Hunter?

The very people who support this society, and news that the strongest among Hunters is in Korea—that was a dose of National Pride injected to the max.

And the media excitedly spread related stories even more.

When there’s a hot topic, they run with it until every last drop of hype is squeezed out.

Attention and buzz are what feed them, after all.

Naturally, the Taesung Guild led by Lee Tae-sung was flooded with contact attempts, but the guild’s response was quiet.

That was due to Lee Tae-sung’s orders.

“There’s no need to respond. Let’s wait until things calm down.”

Was there anything good for Lee Tae-sung in receiving media attention? Not really.

He did pride himself on being quite likely the world’s strongest.

That should be enough—why seek validation from others?

China’s high-ranking officials and various nations’ leadership already knew Lee Tae-sung was a powerhouse on a similar level, even if not the world’s strongest, and orders for Elixirs were pouring in.

If anything, without public attention, he could live more freely without restrictions on his actions.

However, this attitude only made the public more curious, and in the short term, it actually served to explode their curiosity even further.

Moreover, an official statement from the Chinese government poured fuel on the fire.

[Chinese government side. We believe we partially agree that the World’s Strongest Hunter is Korea’s Lee Tae-sung]

This wasn’t some fake internet news—it was a post directly from the government itself.

-??? What did I just see?

The Chinese government is admitting this?

I don’t think I’ve ever seen China admit something like this.

Could the media officer have posted it by mistake?

└Ah, that’s possible.

Then they’ll probably get ‘dealt with’ soon.

└A correction notice should appear shortly.

But no matter how long they waited, nothing of the sort happened.

And for good reason—they had felt Lee Tae-sung’s power during the Black Mist Incident, and high-ranking officials were maintaining personal ties with him.

They hadn’t expected Cheon Jun to say such things about Lee Tae-sung, but from the government’s position, they couldn’t outright deny it.

That would only worsen their relationship with Lee Tae-sung.

Cheon Jun and the Chinese government’s official recognition.

This news became an enormous topic even among Western nations, and Lee Tae-sung became so famous in an instant that virtually every Hunter in the world knew his name.

---

While the media and public were digging into Lee Tae-sung.

Lee Tae-sung was seated on his living room sofa with the Ascendants gathered around.

Flame Emperor, Goeseung, Mad Demon, Hakseon.

Flame Emperor was holding a handheld game console, while Goeseung, Mad Demon, and Hakseon each held tablet PCs.

Goeseung was watching a historical drama, Mad Demon a thriller film, and Hakseon was reading an E-book.

“Have you been resting well?”

“Resting well, indeed. I was holed up in a temple until recently.”

Flame Emperor said without taking his eyes off the game console.

Due to the Hallasan fire incident last time, Lee Tae-sung had punished him by making him follow Goeseung around.

So while the other Ascendants did as they pleased, Flame Emperor had to do temple stays beside Goeseung, which wasn’t in his nature at all.

“That crazy bald monk—true to his alias as Goeseung—is holed up in the mountains even on Earth. Does that make any sense?”

“Hehe. Benefactor. Earth’s sermons had a different flavor to them, and my ears were gratified.”

“Shut up! I almost died of boredom!”

Flame Emperor shouted while furiously mashing the game console.

Only now that Lee Tae-sung had summoned them to his home did they have free time, finally enjoying the modern amenities they’d been missing.

It was inevitable that Flame Emperor’s eyes were glued to the game console.

Lee Tae-sung ignored Flame Emperor’s complaints and continued.

“You all seem well rested. The reason I called you here is that I’d like to ask for your help with something.”

“What is it? Want me to kill someone?”

“Just say the word, young lady. We’ll even overthrow a nation for youuuu.”

“I can also impart knowledge that could bring about Earth’s ruin.”

Flame Emperor, Mad Demon, and Hakseon’s eyes sparkled.

The longer they stayed on Earth, the more keenly they felt how precious Lee Tae-sung was.

Only when he summoned them and used Ascendant Maintenance Tickets could they enjoy these wonderful modern conveniences.

Naturally, if Lee Tae-sung asked for help with anything, they were fully prepared to do whatever it was.

If anything, Lee Tae-sung never asked for anything, to the point where they wondered if they should emphasize their own usefulness.

“That’s not it. I’m currently at the Peak Absolute Master realm. I want to ascend to the Transcendental Realm, but it’s not easy.”

The night he met Cheonwang and retreated to Demenmark.

He had sought Enlightenment even staying up all night, but ultimately failed.

The door to Transcendental Realm still wasn’t approaching.

But he didn’t want to just give up and let his hands fall idle, so he sought help from those around him.

And who better to ask than the Ascendants, whom he could approach most casually?

Flame Emperor tilted his head.

“Transcendental Realm?”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t that something you just reach by swinging a sword a few times until you get a feel for it and gain Enlightenment?”

“……?”

Lee Tae-sung wondered what kind of absurd nonsense that was.

He then looked at the other Ascendants, and surprisingly, they were nodding in agreement with Flame Emperor’s opinion.

“Hmm. Indeed. This Monk recalls stepping into Transcendental Realm suddenly while cultivating the Buddhist path.”

Apparently, Goeseung had been in his late teens at the time.

Mad Demon went even further.

“This young lady… hmm… it was so long ago that this young lady doesn’t remember it welllll.”

Despite looking the youngest, Mad Demon was far older than the rest.

A monster who had lived for nearly two thousand years.

Her existence was so ancient that history barely recorded her, and as such, her memories had become rather muddled.

Flame Emperor’s teasing remark made Hakseon admit his own lacking talent.

Having reached Ascension yet taking that long to reach Transcendental Realm was indeed worthy of being called slow-witted.

“……”

Lee Tae-sung felt a sudden headache coming on and pressed his forehead.

It seemed he had been seeking advice from the wrong places.