“It looks like a success, doesn’t it?”

“Seems like it, haha. His eyes looked a bit unfocused.”

“No matter how great he is, do you think he can endure after taking that?”

The Nati Clan trio laughed gleefully. The moment Heo Sungshik drank the wine, they instinctively knew their plan had succeeded. They had to resist the urge to rush straight to his room.

“Just in case, let’s wait exactly one hour before going in.”

They were exercising extreme caution. Even they believed their plan was practically foolproof at this point.

“By the way, are we just taking the sword? What do we do after that?”

“Hmm.”

At Han Seokwon’s question, a glint of murderous intent flashed in Seo Jiwon’s eyes.

“Let’s kill him.”

“Hmm, do we really have to kill him?”

“Sigh, Yoonsang, you always get so soft at times like this.”

“Yeah. If we can kill him, it’s better to do so. If he comes after us for the sword, it’ll be a hassle.”

“Besides, if he happened to store the sword in his inventory… we’d have to tie him up and force him to take it out. In that case, we’d have to silence him anyway.”

A chilling conversation unfolded. Tonight, they were prepared to commit murder.

They never intended to remain in Korea after stealing Heo Sungshik’s sword. Their plan was to flee to Singapore, where even foreigners were permitted to raid Gates.

Because of that, they had no hesitation. Regardless, once the sword was stolen and they vanished, they would inevitably be identified as the culprits. Given the situation, eliminating Heo Sungshik seemed like the best way to leave no loose ends.

“Alright, time’s up. Let’s go.”

After confirming once more that the CCTV in the hallway was disabled, they took the master key given to them by the manager and headed to the room where Heo Sungshik was staying.

Beep— Click.

Opening the door, they cautiously stepped inside.

Click.

Flipping the switch at the entrance, the room was bathed in light. In the corner, a bed sat against the wall, and atop it, Heo Sungshik lay completely motionless.

He was likely deep in sleep due to the effects of the sleeping drug. That was their assumption as they quickly scanned the room.

“Found it.”

The Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword rested on a shelf beneath the TV opposite the bed. They carefully approached it and reached out to seize it.

Zap—

“Aagh—”

Seo Jiwon screamed, clutching his right hand. The moment he touched the sword, an intense repulsive force threw his hand back.

“What the hell? What’s wrong?”

Kim Yoonsang, baffled by the scene, also reached for the sword.

“Argh—”

He, too, recoiled in pain. Seeing this, Han Seokwon realized something was very wrong.

“Damn it… Don’t tell me…”

They finally understood.

“I’m getting a message: ‘You cannot touch a bound item without the owner’s consent.’”

The Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword was a [bound] weapon. This was the worst-case scenario they had feared.

“If that’s the case….”

That meant they had to eliminate the owner to lift the binding.

Just as their eyes gleamed with murderous intent—

“Why? Something not going as planned?”

A sudden voice startled them. They whipped their heads around in shock, their eyes widening in disbelief.

“Y-You… How…?”

There, leaning against the headboard of the bed, was Heo Sungshik.

This was impossible. They had seen him drink an entire glass of drugged wine. Even if he were an exceptional superhuman, no one—no matter how strong—should have been able to resist the effects.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Heo Sungshik smirked. That smile sent chills down their spines.

“Damn it, kill him!”

They panicked, their rationality collapsing. If they all attacked at once, they believed they could kill him. They had no idea how he had woken up, but they assumed the sleeping drug was still affecting him.

Furthermore, he had no weapon in hand and was seated on the bed, unable to position himself properly. All these factors made them confident of victory.

“Die!”

With frenzied shouts, the three lunged forward. Their daggers rushed toward Heo Sungshik, who remained completely still, not even reacting.

As their blades neared his body, they felt a surge of exhilaration.

‘This fraud.’

‘As expected, he’s nothing without his sword.’

Those thoughts flashed through their minds. They were certain Heo Sungshik would be torn apart by their blades.

But in the next instant, an intense pain surged through them, and their world spun before collapsing around them.

Crash.

The trio crashed to the floor with a loud thud. They had no idea what had just happened.

‘Wha…?’

It took them several seconds to grasp the situation.

They had lunged at Heo Sungshik—only to end up sprawled on the floor, defeated. Worse, they had no idea how they had been taken down. It was an unbelievable situation, but the sharp pain radiating through their faces proved this wasn’t a dream.

Struggling to lift themselves, they stared at Heo Sungshik in disbelief.

“W-What is this…?”

Perhaps they still hadn’t accepted that Heo Sungshik was a 7-Star Superhuman. But after what just happened, they could no longer deny the truth—he was an elite among elites.

It was a realization that came far too late.

“Is this what you wanted?”

As Heo Sungshik reached toward the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword, it floated into his hand.

Sching.

As the sword was drawn from its sheath, its blade gleamed sharply under the ceiling lights.

Shudder.

The trio trembled in terror. Only now did they truly grasp the gravity of their actions and the perilous situation they were in.

“P-Please forgive us.”

“S-Spare us…”

They collapsed to the ground, trembling. But there was no mercy in Heo Sungshik’s eyes.

“A crime must be punished.”

With those words, he swung the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword.

Slice.

Splurt—

“Aaaagh—”

“Aaaaaaah—”

Blood spurted from their severed right wrists. The Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword had ruthlessly cut them off.

Their agonized screams filled the room. At the same time, hurried footsteps echoed from outside. It seemed others had heard the commotion from Heo Sungshik’s room and were rushing over.

“This isn’t enough.”

Sungshik kicked aside those who were grabbing his wrist and wailing, exposing their abdomens. Without hesitation, the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword pierced their dantians.

Thud.

“Guaaaah―”

They coughed up blood and lost consciousness. If they had been ordinary people instead of superhumans, the excessive blood loss alone would have caused them to die from shock.

But the important thing wasn’t just the amount of blood they lost.

―Well done. Rather than a painless death, living in suffering like this is the true atonement for their sins.

Heaven-Splitter, realizing the significance of Sungshik’s actions, looked satisfied and praised him.

Piercing their dantians with the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword—it wasn’t just about destroying the lower dantian, the core of their mana. It was also a process of planting the energy of ‘Destruction’ from Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts into them.

Even if they tried to heal their dantians in the future, the destructive mana that Sungshik had embedded in them would make proper mana control impossible. In effect, their lives as superhumans were over.

“Hmph, this is my first time actually using it in reality… Seems like it worked pretty well.”

Back when he was tested on Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts, he had only used this technique a few times in an illusionary world. But now, using it in the real world, it seemed to have been executed flawlessly. These men were now nothing more than physically sturdy ordinary people.

In some ways, death might have been a better fate. To fall from being one of the country’s top superhumans to the bottom, losing all their strength—that loss would be beyond words. Even if they continued to live, their existence would be nothing more than a living hell, worse than death itself.

Not long after, the superhumans from the raid team burst into the room and were stunned by the sight before them. However, after hearing Sungshik’s explanation, they decided to heal the fallen men and transport them outside to face disciplinary action from the Superhuman Association.

Even if their severed wrists were reattached, the energy of ‘Destruction’ was infused in the wounds, meaning they would have permanent impairments in their right hands. No one except Sungshik could remove the destructive energy lingering in their wrists and dantians. Such was the power of an [EX Rank] martial art.

“That turned out well. I always knew those pieces of trash would meet a day like this. I feel relieved just watching it.”

“Ugh, honestly, when I heard those bastards were joining this raid, I almost considered skipping it altogether.”

“All the people they’ve wronged will be grateful to Big Sir.”

The majority of the superhumans, knowing the past deeds of the Nati Clan trio, thought they had finally gotten what they deserved. Even the Nati Clan members couldn’t utter a word in protest, as they had tried to lay hands on Sungshik’s sword.

In the end, the Nati Clan trio received disciplinary action from the Superhuman Association and were sentenced to forced labor. The hotel manager and several staff members who had cooperated in their crimes were also punished.

And with that short incident, the final stage of the raid came to a close.

[Breaking News: A 7-Star Superhuman Finally Emerges in Korea.]
[Strong Hanil Reaches 6-Star+ Rank! And the 7-Star Superhuman He Acknowledges—Who Is ‘Big Sir’?]
[Tracking the Sudden Rise of the Supernova ‘Big Sir’.]
[The 7-Star Superhuman ‘Big Sir’ Wields a [Mythical] Grade Sword?]
[Shocking! The Sins of the Nati Clan Trio Exposed—And the One Who Judged Them Was the Supernova ‘Big Sir’?]

There’s a saying, ‘I went to sleep and woke up a star.’ That was exactly Sungshik’s situation. Overnight, he had skyrocketed to stardom. Every media outlet was fixated on him. The public acknowledgment from Strong Hanil, who had held Korea’s number one ranking for years, was more convincing than anything else.

All the rumors created by those who doubted Sungshik’s strength were silenced in an instant. Even Seohaneul, who had remained quiet until now, added their voice, turning what had been considered mere speculation into undeniable truth.

[Finally! A 7-Star Superhuman in Korea!]
[Kek, now all those monkey neighbors who said Koreans could never reach 7-Star better come out and bow down!]
[Ahh, I want to see Big Sir in action!]
└ Me too. lol

The online community was overwhelmed with discussions about Sungshik.

A large portion of people wanted to witness Big Sir’s strength with their own eyes. It was only natural.

Having suddenly risen as Korea’s strongest superhuman, Sungshik’s 7-Star rank placed him not just at the top of Korea but among the elite even on the global stage. It was only natural for people to want to see how he fought and what abilities he possessed.

And the opportunity to answer that curiosity came much sooner than expected.

Invited by the Superhuman Association, Sungshik visited their headquarters in Gangnam.

It was, in fact, his first proper visit to Korea’s Superhuman Association. Before his regression, the Association had ultimately lost control of the Gangnam area following the Gate Break outbreak, leading to the collapse of their headquarters.

The building he was seeing for the first time was a towering skyscraper exceeding thirty stories. Sungshik was warmly welcomed from the entrance and soon found himself in a private meeting with Association President Lee Manshik.

“It’s truly an honor to meet you, Big Sir. Or rather, may I call you Sungshik?”

“I’m pleased to meet you as well. Feel free to call me however you’re comfortable.”

“Then I’ll call you Sungshik. Using your nickname feels a bit impersonal, haha.”

The Association President smiled warmly and treated Sungshik with a familiar friendliness.

Lee Manshik, the Association President—he himself was a 5-Star+ ranked superhuman and one of Korea’s most prominent figures. Though he appeared to be in his late 30s, rumor had it that he was actually over 50 years old.

‘Superhumans really do stay young, even as they age.’

Even before his regression, Sungshik had seen this phenomenon multiple times. Those who surpassed middle age and became superhumans would often appear much younger than their actual years. Lee Manshik was no exception.

“I actually prefer being called by my name as well.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried I might have come across as too familiar just now.”

Before his regression, Lee Manshik had died during the first Night of Trial. Thus, this was technically Sungshik’s first time conversing with the Association President. He was more composed and gentlemanly than Sungshik had expected.

After some light conversation, Lee Manshik got to the point.

“To be honest, we’ve received a request for cooperation from China.”

The reason for Sungshik’s summons—it was a prelude to the Gate Break outbreak he remembered.