Infinity, The Arcade Age-Chapter 374: A Martial Artist Who Doesn’t Fight Fair

[Name: Chizuru Kagura]

[Strength: 30]

[Constitution: 30]

[Agility: 30]

[Spirit: 60]

[Skills: Kagura-Style Ancient Martial Arts (Grade B), Threefold Harmony Formation (Grade A), Origin of Zero (Grade S)]

[Bloodline: Kagura Bloodline (Grade A)]

[Description: Chizuru Kagura isn't exactly a qualified martial artist—after all, the true heir of the Sacred Treasures is actually her older sister. But just because she hasn't undergone systematic training doesn't mean she's weak. The Kagura family has never relied solely on raw strength to fight.]

Watching Chizuru Kagura assume a combat stance across from him—though her movements looked more like dance than actual battle posture—Qin Ming's eyes suddenly flared with light. His skills were still sealed, but...

Her stats aren't high! And she's not that durable either! Her only terrifying aspect is the skill-sealing effect!

But the thing is—my passive skills aren't affected by sealing!

Which means—I can counter-kill her!

A gleam of killing intent flashed in his eyes. One of the three great illusions of gaming surfaced in his mind as Qin Ming suddenly lifted his hand to signal.

Hiding behind cover, Eiri Kasamoto nodded hard and, without hesitation, drew her axe and charged forward.

She didn't dare to fire her gun—too loud, it would draw unwanted attention.

She planned to assist Qin Ming through close combat and take down this enemy by force.

Qin Ming didn't fear having his skills sealed. And Eiri Kasamoto? She had no active skills to begin with!

One charged with fists, the other with an axe—two boss-level entities rushed straight at Chizuru Kagura.

But the woman who'd ambushed Qin Ming and landed an entire combo without doing any real damage... now furrowed her brows at the sight of their frontal assault. Instead of retreating, she rushed in to meet them!

A clone suddenly burst forth, darting straight toward Qin Ming.

Just as Qin Ming raised his fist to counter, the clone vanished. The real Chizuru veered off to the left, rushing toward Eiri—and instantly split again!

The flickering illusions danced up and down, floating unpredictably, constantly shifting between body and clone, completely untrackable.

You thought the one attacking was the real body? Punch it—and it turns out to be a clone.

You thought the one slipping past you was a clone? Next second, it's the real one!

This terrifying fake-real-switching ability left both Qin Ming and Eiri Kasamoto completely disoriented.

Even with Qin Ming's top-tier, Grade A-level martial arts, he had no idea how to deal with it.

Or more accurately—there was no way to deal with it!

The clone could hit. The real one could hit. And they could switch places freely!

Unless you had two people attacking at once, you simply couldn't land a blow. And even if you did try that, she could just recall the clone and release it again, instantly escaping your attack range.

Bizarre movement! Terrifying speed! And most importantly—that disgustingly effective skill-seal!

At first, Qin Ming saw Chizuru Kagura's low stats and thought she was easy prey. But he hadn't even touched her—and ended up getting clobbered instead.

Now he finally understood why the Kagura sisters managed to survive even after Goenitz, that top-tier monster, ambushed them first—and still protected the Sacred Treasures.

With powers like hers? Unless you ambush her too, even Goenitz might not be able to finish her off!

In the roaring wind, three figures weaved and darted through the courtyard in wild motion.

Flowers were trampled. Trees were shattered. In the blink of an eye, what had once been a peaceful little garden was completely ruined.

And the result of this chaotic three-way fight? No one could do anything to anyone.

Qin Ming and Eiri Kasamoto simply couldn't land a single hit on Chizuru Kagura. Not even once.

And Chizuru Kagura? She couldn't hurt Qin Ming at all! Not even a scratch!

She could hurt Eiri Kasamoto, sure—but that woman was lightning-fast. And once she activated her "dino mode," her reactions only became sharper. Attacking her was risky.

That's why Chizuru mostly ignored Eiri and just kept hammering on Qin Ming.

After several exhausting minutes of intense skirmish, the trio finally broke away from the fight.

Qin Ming and Eiri Kasamoto, having been run around in circles, leaned on their knees, panting heavily.

Chizuru Kagura, who had been constantly on the move, was also sweating from her forehead.

As they locked eyes, all three looking worn down, Qin Ming gulped down a breath and suddenly swung his arm.

"Alright, alright! Sis! We trained under the same master, didn't we?! I can't break your moves! How 'bout we just call it here and walk away?"

At this point, Qin Ming really didn't want to fight Chizuru Kagura anymore. He'd fought battles all his life—and never encountered something like this.

Earlier, after being run around for so long, Qin Ming had finally caught her—finally grabbed Chizuru Kagura once! Only to watch her poof into a mirage and vanish again right in his arms.

He swore he'd grabbed a solid body! Heck, she even slapped him because he'd grabbed her... somewhere inappropriate!

But even that didn't stop her from escaping. Which meant... this wasn't speed.

This was damn teleportation!

She could swap positions with her clones at will! How do you even fight something like that?!

That's when Qin Ming seriously considered a tactical retreat.

Hearing Qin Ming's words, Chizuru Kagura frowned. Despite being exhausted, she showed no signs of giving up. Instead, she stiffened her expression and raised her hand again.

"Hmph! Goenitz's lapdog! Don't even think about escaping the Kagura family! Today, you're done for!""No! Why are you getting so worked up?! I've been the one getting hit! I can't land a hit on you, and you can't hit me! What's the point of this fight... damn it!"

Halfway through his words, Qin Ming suddenly yelled out in shock, his eyes widening in disbelief.

Because, across from him, Chizuru Kagura—heiress of one of the three Sacred Treasures families, inheritor of an ancient martial art passed down for thousands of years—suddenly pulled a large-caliber revolver from her waist...

Bang!

Qin Ming was instantly shot in the shoulder, stumbling back from the impact, his defense shattered.

Chizuru Kagura, holding the large-caliber revolver, began summoning clones to surround Qin Ming and Eiri Kasamoto, unleashing a furious barrage of gunfire.

Bullets rained down from all directions, striking Qin Ming, sparking from his body, and occasionally splattering blood.

Stunned by the sudden change in tactics, Qin Ming, having taken three shots, finally snapped out of his shock and shouted in disbelief.

"You're a martial artist! And you're using a gun?!"

Hearing the roar from behind, Chizuru Kagura, moving swiftly, couldn't help but smirk.

"If you've got a gun, why not use it? What kind of martial artist doesn't take advantage of all their tools? Were you brainwashed into thinking that martial arts are about just fists?!"

"This is your fault! Eiri! Grab the weapon!"

Seeing Chizuru Kagura's blatant disregard for martial arts etiquette, Qin Ming finally snapped.

Ignoring the noise and the possibility of attracting more people, he raised his hand and caught the machine gun that Eiri Kasamoto threw to him, aiming it and beginning to unleash a wild spray of bullets.

Eiri Kasamoto, in turn, pulled out a grenade with a wooden handle from her waist, transforming into a bomb-carrying machine and causing explosions all around.

The sound of explosions filled the air, and what had once been a martial arts duel quickly turned into a battle with modern firearms.

Caught off guard by her opponent's flagrant disregard for martial arts conventions, especially with such absurd weapons like grenades and machine guns, Chizuru Kagura was momentarily stunned.

Under the overwhelming firepower, she was forced to retreat, taking cover behind some debris.

Chizuru Kagura's abilities were devastating against other martial artists, but she was vulnerable to modern weapons—especially ones with an astonishing rate of fire.

What she had originally hoped would be a victory with her handgun was now turned against her.

With the machine gun in hand, Qin Ming roared madly, pulling the trigger and charging toward her position.

The giant fake mountain was shattered into flying rocks as he advanced, the force of his assault forcing Chizuru Kagura, hiding behind cover, to feel disoriented from the shockwave.

The tables had turned!

But before Qin Ming could use his firepower to force her out of cover, a sudden gust of wind came from behind him.

After all, this was Kagura's territory, and the noise he was making couldn't help but attract others.

And the worst part? The first person to arrive was exactly the person Qin Ming had been targeting!

Kyō Kusanagi!

The fiery roar of Kusanagi Kyō filled the air as he, transformed into a pillar of flames, smashed through the fake mountain and attacked from the side.

No—he didn't crash through! He melted it! Using terrifying heat, he simply liquefied the mountain!

Flame of Kusanagi! Crimson Blaze!Ultimate Move: Orochinagi!

Seeing the massive flames approaching and feeling the temperature rapidly rise, Qin Ming's pupils contracted sharply. Without thinking, he tossed aside the machine gun, yelling as he hurled a fireball of his own.

White Flame! Pseudo-Orochinagi!

Boom!

The two massive flames collided in midair. In the battle of high temperatures, neither was willing to yield.

Seeing the familiar move in front of him, Kusanagi Kyō, breaking through the mountain, looked shocked. After a moment of realization, he furrowed his brows, swiftly changing his move. He spun into the air, his hand ablaze as he aimed it toward Qin Ming.

Skill: Demon Flame!

Just as Kusanagi made his move, Qin Ming mirrored his action, trying to counter with an identical strike.

But this time, as their flames collided, Qin Ming's White Flame was devoured in an instant!

The next moment, Kusanagi's blazing inferno engulfed him, setting him alight and sending him flying!

Rolling and hitting the ground, Qin Ming scrambled to his feet, using the force of his Ki Wave to dispel the lingering flames, his expression grim as he stared down his opponent.

Kusanagi Kyō, having knocked Qin Ming back with a single strike, landed gracefully. He then tossed the flames in his hands aside with a smirk.

"Playing with fire in front of the Kusanagi family? You're asking for death!"

[Name: Kyō Kusanagi][Strength: 50][Constitution: 50][Speed: 50][Spirit: 50][Skills: Kusanagi-Style Ancient Martial Arts (Grade A), Orochinagi (Grade A), Power of the Amaterasu Cloud (Grade S)][Bloodline: Crimson Blaze Bloodline (Grade A)]

(End of Chapter)