The Iron-Blood Squad was a problem. Jin Ryeong sat in his woodshed, staring at the scroll Mei had brought him. It was a dossier on her Quarter-Final opponents.
Captain: "Iron Wall" Chen (Not to be confused with the bully Chen).
Cultivation: Earth Attribute.
Equipment: Full Plate Armor forged from Cold-Steel.
Strategy: They don't dodge. They tank hits until the opponent exhausts their Qi, then they crush them.
"My sword chipped just looking at them," Mei said, pacing the small room. She was nervous. "Water Style is fluid. It flows around rocks. But it can't break a dam. If I strike them, I bounce off. If I try to drown them, they use Earth Qi to anchor themselves."
Jin Ryeong was holding a rusty nail he had pulled from the shed's wall. He twirled it between his fingers. Scalpel was resting on the table, emitting faint sparks. The beetle had consumed the Thunder Stone and was currently in a digestive stupor, its shell vibrating with static.
"You are thinking like a warrior," Jin Ryeong said calmly.
"Warriors try to break armor. Doctors try to infect the man inside."
"I can't poison them," Mei argued.
"The armor is airtight. And the referees are watching for toxic mist."
"I didn't say poison the man," Jin Ryeong corrected.
"I said infect the metal."
He activated his Diagnosis Eye on the rusty nail.
[Analysis: Iron Oxide]
Process: Oxidation.
Catalyst: Moisture + Oxygen + Time.
"Armor has an immune system," Jin Ryeong lectured.
"It's called 'Polishing' and 'Qi Reinforcement'.
But every armor has a disease waiting to happen. Rust."
Jin Ryeong stood up and walked to his hidden stash of chemicals. He pulled out a jar of highly concentrated vinegar (acetic acid) he had distilled from spoiled wine, and a pouch of salt.
"Water + Salt + Acid + Air," Jin Ryeong muttered. "Accelerated by Qi."
He turned to Mei. "Your Water Style. Can you mist it?"
"Yes. It's called 'Morning Fog'. It's used to obscure vision."
"Good. I am going to give you a powder.
You will mix it into your water Qi before you cast the mist."
Mei looked at the white powder Jin Ryeong was grinding in a mortar.
"What is it?"
"A hyper-oxidizing agent," Jin Ryeong lied. It was mostly salt and acid, but calling it an "agent" sounded more professional.
"When this hits their Cold-Steel armor, it won't break it. It will eat the joints."
Jin Ryeong pointed to the diagram of a suit of armor he had scratched onto the table.
"The elbow. The knee. The neck. These parts rely on sliding rivets. If rust forms there, the friction coefficient increases by 1000%. They won't be able to move."
Mei stared at the diagram.
"You want to... glue them in place?"
"I want to turn their greatest strength into a coffin," Jin Ryeong smiled.
"Armor is protection only if you can move in it. If you can't... it's a statue."
He handed her the pouch.
"Don't get it on your own sword. Or you'll be fighting with a rusty spoon."
The Quarter-Finals - The Arena
The crowd was roaring. The betting pools were closing. Squad Iron-Blood marched onto the stage. They looked terrifying.
Three massive disciples encased in black steel plate armor, carrying tower shields and maces. They walked with heavy, thudding steps that shook the marble floor.
Opposite them, Squad Azure looked fragile. Mei stood with her sword drawn, looking pale. Liang (the Vanguard) was fully recovered but looked small next to the iron giants.
In the stands, Liu Bao was sweating. "Doctor," he whispered to Jin Ryeong.
"I put all 111 taels on Squad Azure. If they lose, we are broke."
Jin Ryeong didn't blink. "Then pray for rain."
"Begin!" the referee shouted.
"Formation: Phalanx!" the Iron-Blood Captain roared.
The three armored disciples locked their shields together, forming an impenetrable wall of black steel. They advanced slowly, like a glacier.
"Charge!" Liang yelled, rushing forward to meet them. He slammed his granite fist into the center shield. BOOM.
The shield didn't budge. Liang bounced off, clutching his hand.
"It's like hitting a mountain!"
The Iron-Blood Captain laughed. "Crush them!"
He thrust his mace through the gap in the shields. It caught Liang in the ribs.
CRACK. Liang crumpled, gasping.
Mei gritted her teeth. She retreated, keeping distance. The Archer fired arrows, but they harmlessly pinged off the plate armor.
"Now, Mei," Jin Ryeong whispered from the stands.
Mei reached into her pouch. She crushed the packet of "Rust Powder" in her palm.
She began to circle the Phalanx.
"Water Style: Morning Fog!"
She swung her sword in wide arcs. Water Qi surged from the blade, mixing with the powder in her hand. A thick, white mist rolled across the arena, enveloping the Iron-Blood Squad.
"Ha!" The Iron-Blood Captain scoffed from inside the fog.
"You think hiding will save you? We will just march forward until we find you!"
The three armored giants continued to march.
Clank. Clank. Clank.
But inside the mist, a chemical reaction was accelerating. The salt and acid, carried by the humid Qi, clung to the Cold-Steel plates.
The "Earth Qi" the disciples used to reinforce the armor protected the surface from impact, but it didn't protect the chemistry.
Jin Ryeong watched with his Diagnosis Eye.
[Reaction Speed: 500%.]
[Target Status: Corroding.]
He saw orange spots appearing on the black steel. At the joints—where the metal rubbed against metal—the rust formed instantly. It created grit.
Screech. A sound like nails on a chalkboard echoed from the armor of the disciple on the left.
"My leg..." the disciple grunted. "It's... sticking."
"Ignore it! Push forward!" the Captain ordered. He tried to raise his shield.
Grind. Skreeonk.
His shoulder joint seized. The rust had fused the pauldron to the breastplate.
"What is this?" The Captain tried to force his arm up.
The resistance was immense. It felt like he was lifting a thousand pounds.
The mist cleared. The crowd saw the Iron-Blood Squad. They weren't shiny and black anymore. They were orange. Streaks of rust ran down their armor like dried blood.
"They look... old," a spectator whispered.
Mei saw it too. She saw the Captain struggling to lift his mace, his movements jerky and slow. She smiled. A wicked smile.
"Archer! Aim for the visors!" Mei commanded.
The Archer fired. Usually, the Iron-Blood squad would raise their shields to block. The disciple on the right tried.
Errrrrgh. His elbow joint was fused solid. His arm locked at a 45-degree angle. He couldn't raise the shield.
THWACK. The arrow hit him square in the eye-slit of his helmet. "ARGH!"
"Captain! I can't move my knees!" the left disciple shouted. He tried to take a step, but his knee joint had rusted into a solid block.
He lost his balance and fell over. CLANG.
A man in full plate armor who falls over and cannot bend his knees is not a warrior. He is a turtle on his back. He flailed, trying to get up, but his armor was fighting him.
The Captain roared in fury. "You witch! What did you do?" He channeled his Earth Qi, trying to burst the armor off.
[Technique: Iron Skin Explosion]
But Earth Qi reinforces metal. By pumping energy into the armor, he unintentionally hardened the rust.
Mei walked up to the Captain. He was stuck in a half-crouch, his shield heavy on the ground, his mace arm locked by a rusted elbow.
"You are strong," Mei said, raising her sword.
"But you are stiff."
She didn't attack the armor. She thrust her sword into the gap under his armpit—the only place where the armor had to be open for movement.
Squelch.
The Captain gasped. "I... yield."
The referee stared. He touched the rusty armor of the fallen disciple. It flaked off on his finger. "Winner... Squad Azure!"
The crowd went wild.
"She aged them! She used a Time Art!"
"No, it was acid!"
"Who cares? Look at the payout!"
Liu Bao jumped up and down, shaking the floor.
"We're rich! Doctor! We're rich!"
Jin Ryeong smiled.
111 Taels -> 333 Taels. (3:1 odds).
He watched the Iron-Blood Squad being carried off the field by servants. They had to use oil and crowbars to get the disciples out of their armor.
"Corrosion," Jin Ryeong noted.
"The silent killer."
The Next Day - The Woodshed
Jin Ryeong was counting the money.
333 Taels. It was a small fortune. Enough to buy rare ingredients. Enough to buy information.
Mei sat opposite him. She looked confident now.
The fear was gone, replaced by the arrogance of a winner.
"The Semi-Finals are next," she said.
"We face Squad Shadow. They use stealth and illusions."
"Illusions are tricky," Jin Ryeong said. "But eyes can be tricked. Noses cannot."
Mei nodded.
"I trust you. What's the plan?"
Before Jin Ryeong could answer, a strange sound filled the shed. Crack. Fizz. Pop.
It came from the box in the corner. Scalpel's Box.
Jin Ryeong stood up. "Wait."
He walked to the box. The Iron-Vein Scarab had been dormant since eating the Thunder Stone. Now, the box was vibrating. Blue sparks were arcing across the wood, scorching it.
[System Notification]
[Pet Evolution Complete.]
[Integrating: Thunder Attribute.]
Jin Ryeong opened the lid. A flash of light blinded them for a second.
When the spots cleared from his eyes, Jin Ryeong looked inside. Scalpel had changed. It was no longer just black. Its shell was now a deep, metallic purple.
Along its back, jagged yellow lines pulsed with electricity.
Its mandibles were no longer just pincers. They were electrodes.
[Pet: Galvanized Scarab (Variant)]
[Grade: Rare -> Unique.]
[New Ability: Taser Bite.]
Effect: Delivers a high-voltage shock upon biting. Can paralyze nerves instantly.
[New Ability: Static Hover.]
Effect: Uses magnetic fields to fly silently. Speed increased by 40%.
The beetle flew up. It didn't buzz anymore. It hummed, a low, electric drone. It landed on Jin Ryeong's hand. It didn't prick him; the static field kept it hovering millimeters above his skin.
"Beautiful," Jin Ryeong whispered.
Mei stared at it, horrified.
"Is that... a lightning bug?"
"It's a living taser" Jin Ryeong corrected.
"And it's hungry."
He turned to Mei.
"You said Squad Shadow uses illusions? Illusions rely on disrupting the enemy's Qi flow to create hallucinations. Or they use smoke."
Jin Ryeong petted the sparking beetle.
"Lightning clears smoke. And static electricity disrupts Qi illusions."
He looked at the beetle.
"Scalpel won't be in the stands for the next match. He's going in with you."
"What?" Mei balked.
"How? Pets are forbidden unless you are a Beast Tamer class!"
"He won't appear as a pet" Jin Ryeong grinned.
He reached into his inventory and pulled out a decorative hairpin—a silver flower.
"He will clamp onto this. He will look like jewelry. Until he bites."