Martial Arts Worlds-Chapter 852: The Best

CRASH~

Mercedes smashed into the ground—feet first—and she looked very calm despite the screaming citizens around her.

The stadium was quickly getting evacuated.

She wanted to stop them but couldn't because of one person who was currently being a massive pain in the ass.

Gently, Kiernan landed on the ground with his arms crossed.

"Ever heard of German Aikido?"

Mercedes asked.

"Yes, I heard about it during my time over on Earth. A very old martial art, but during my time that martial art was basically extinct."

Kiernan said.

"My master created it—it emphasizes, "Where aikido seeks peace through blending, German Aikido seeks order through control."

Mercedes said.

She then moved fluidly—like a fish in the water—and she only grabbed the air around Kiernan, but that was enough.

She suddenly flipped Kiernan over—he didn't even see what happened—and then hurled him down to the ground.

Headfirst, his head smashed into the ground, and he stopped moving altogether—as if he were unconscious.

In that moment.

He stood back up, scratching his head, and he was slightly bleeding from the forehead.

"The world is under my control—under the influence of German Aikido—it still listens to my orders even after two thousand years.

"The world around us is a living thing—just like World Seas is—it breathes, which releases oxygen into the atmosphere for us to breathe. It weeps, drenching our planet in rain showers that replenish the land and nourish all living creatures.

"It also gets angry and unleashes its fury through powerful storms and natural disasters. But it can also become happy, sharing moments of peace and serenity with us as we bask in the warmth of the sun on a perfect summer day.

"I made the world as my slave about two thousand years ago. I've held it as my hostage ever since. And thus, my word is the law."

Mercedes put her hands together.

"…What a poor thing, then."

Kiernan said with a sigh.

He now had another motivation to end her terror—to free the world from her tyranny.

And in that moment, the sky above Irio stopped being gray. It felt like it was suddenly painted over with blue paint.

The sky turned a brilliant shade of azure. A sun appeared too. It was like the world had suddenly become happy.

It was able to "hear" Kiernan's intentions.

"You might've reached the pinnacle of the martial arts—but in the end, I rule over this world, and thus, your skills are meaningless."

Mercedes suddenly shot her hand towards him.

"Iron Lance!"

Kiernan pierced through the air with his spearhand, and it was about to collide with Mercedes' hand.

In that moment.

A void appeared in the way of his spearhand. It swallowed his hand. His hand started freezing as if his hand were suddenly in outer space.

"Hehe~ I opened up a 'hole' in the reality. Even I don't know where the 'hole' leads to, but seeing how dark it is, it must've led somewhere in the space~"

Mercedes giggled.

Kiernan pulled his hand back, and his hand was encased in ice—it looked like a magical ice glove.

"Does not matter."

Kiernan said.

In that moment, his hand started burning, and it melted off the magical ice glove—the warmth returned back to his hand.

"High Supernova!"

Kiernan punched out with all his might.

With an open hand, Mercedes caught the burning fist, and an explosion occurred—it swept outwards in a wave of pure power and light.

Boooom~

She then threw him high into the air.

He was flung so high that he was able to see the curve of the earth, and he expected to start falling soon.

But then.

Another 'hole' appeared in the air, and he got sucked right into it and appeared somewhere in outer space.

'I… can't… breathe…'

He thought with a shocked look.

The freezing temperature of the space hit him like a ton of bricks, and he was slowly losing consciousness.

In that moment.

At the corner of his eyes, he saw something bright and turned to look towards the light—it was a glowing star.

It was almost like he was standing right beside the sun, but this one obviously wasn't the actual sun.

This was a red star, but it was bright and beautiful, shining like a beacon in the dark night sky.

'Argh!'

Kiernan opened his eyes, looked towards the 'hole' that was slowly closing, and lunged towards it with speed.

In the last possible moment, he went through it, and the 'hole' closed behind him.

He was a second away from being trapped in the space for all his eternity.

"You just don't die!"

Mercedes suddenly grabbed his arm and tried tossing him down to the ground, but in that moment…

"Hmm?"

She tried using her German Aikido to send Kiernan flying, but he didn't budge at all, like a mountain standing firm against the strongest winds.

"What?"

She looked at him in surprise.

"I lied a little. I haven't only heard about your German Aikido. I also learned a few moves myself when I visited Germany.

"German Aikido is a two-bladed sword—it is powerful against people who don't understand its intricacies—but against someone who does, the style becomes useless.

"That's why, whenever the two practitioners of German Aikido face against each other, they always have to do techniques from other styles to get an edge.

"I learned it because German Aikido was extinct, and nobody knew of it—except a couple of old heads."

Kiernan said.

He grabbed Mercedes' hand. Twisted it a little bit. And she winced in pain and turned pale.

"It looks like you haven't evolved German Aikido any further. A bit of disappointment, I must say. You became too comfortable with that style being… mediocre."

Kiernan suddenly flipped Mercedes over and hurled her down to the ground—she fell like a meteor.

Boooom~

She crashed through the stadium.

"…"

In the rubble, Mercedes watched as he kept floating above her—she still looked calm—and then she sat back up.

"Martial arts… Was never my passion… Why did I even have to get sent into this realm? I don't understand it at all.

"I would've preferred if I had only gotten my ticket to Heavens, where I could've rested, but no… Those selfish motherfuckers 'gifted' me a reincarnation.

"Is it really a gift if I didn't want it, you motherfuckers?!"

Mercedes screamed hideously.

She turned angry. And the world reacted to it. The rain started falling, thunder roared, and lightning struck.

"Martial arts is painful… And somehow this world's people like it… What a joke, a bunch of masochists.

"I never liked it. Why would I want pain? I just had to swallow the pain, especially after I got my 'reward' system, which was just a punch in the face.

"The system forced me to become a martial artist, or I would've lost it. Everyone should just go to hell!"

Mercedes shouted.

In that moment, Kiernan landed on the ground in front of him and looked her straight into those angry eyes.

"You never understood what martial arts is really about—which is why you hate it—mental discipline, physical discipline, and moral discipline.

"Learning to stay calm under stress. Controlling fear, anger, and ego. Developing focus, patience, and emotional regulation.

"A fighter who cannot control themself cannot control a fight.

"Consistent training. Pain tolerance. Fatigue management. Precision and repetition.

"You learn to obey structure before gaining freedom.

"Knowing when not to fight. Using force responsibly. Respect for others and restraint. You lack all of these aspects of life.

"Martial arts show people's true colors—and you showed yours—which are those of anger and impulsivity."

Kiernan said calmly.

"You can preach. Preach. And preach. But it won't change one fundamental thing, and that's the inevitable strength difference!"

Mercedes stopped holding back.

The power of Primordial flowed out of her body. She had just been using the power of Transcendence so far. Now she was on a completely different level.

And Kiernan was able to sense it—it felt crushing, like a tidal wave crashing down on him.

'I am ready, Kiernan…. It is time for you to stop holding back… Show the true strength of Iron Style, right fucking now!'

Bael screamed inside his mind.

"You don't have to tell me twice."

Kiernan moved into the offensive stance of Iron Style—his body started smoking—he used Flow State!

"You are not the only one who has reached the state of flow!"

Mercedes screamed, and she started smoking as well—red smoke—as if she was releasing her anger in the form of smoke.

In that moment.

The two of them moved. They met at the center of the stadium. The stands were empty, so nobody was there to cheer.

"Der Jäger!"

Mercedes thrust her hand forward.

With this attack, she destroyed King Redice the Third of the Paradise World—nobody had been able to survive this attack.

Yet.

She was facing the ultimate master of the martial arts.

Kiernan side-stepped the thrust attack. The hand went past her. His fingers turned black like charred wood as he extended them.

"BLACK RIPPER!"

The five fingers slashed through the air—they left behind five deep gashes in the air—and the attack was really mighty.

The stadium got cut into five distinct sections. The nearby buildings were also sliced. So were the roads, the trees, and everything else the attack came into contact with.

Even the sky!

The sky was cut!

"…"

Mercedes watched in silence as she suddenly gushed with blood, and her face got shredded by the sharp edges of the invisible force.

Her beautiful face… Ruined…

'This is what happens when you fight against the master of the martial arts… This boy, when he was only eight years old, was able to kill a murderous tiger with his bare hands.

'I knew back then… That one day he would reach the pinnacle… and I came to support him as his biggest fan…

'And today… You'll see… What it means to be the best.'

Bael thought inside his mind.