I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 108

Martial arts have contributed significantly to human history.

From ancient times to the modern era, more than half of human history is recorded as ’war’.

And what plays a massive role in war is martial arts.

Especially in ancient times, cases where the outcome of war turned on an individual’s prowess were quite frequent.

As time passed and technology advanced, the ultimate cheat item—the ’gun’—emerged, but the importance of martial arts never faded.

Because martial arts were not bound by tools. It was the technique to wield martial power with greater ease.

That is martial arts, and even with guns, accuracy and stability vary wildly depending on the person.

Furthermore, martial arts are difficult to master unless someone teaches you side-by-side. Even if self-study is possible, it is close to impossible.

Everyone differs in arm and leg length, height, weight, and so on; even talent varies wildly.

To correct these in real time, a watcher is required.

’Just who...!’

I couldn’t conceal my shock at the leader gorilla that had unleashed a palm strike.

From approaching as if gliding, to attacks flowing like water.

Every single detail was astonishing. But there was no time to think.

What mattered was that this leader gorilla was my enemy. I had to defeat him no matter what.

Siing!

The moment I dodged the palm strike, my counterattack followed.

Because time felt like it was flowing slowly, my counterattack was fast as well.

My sword swung down from top to bottom. At this rate, the blade would embed into the leader gorilla’s collarbone.

But the leader gorilla still retained a serene face. Instead, he stepped even closer to me.

Teop!

Then, didn’t he grab my arm with both hands?

Not only that, he even spun his body around. A movement as fluid and natural as before.

As the series of movements unfolded, a change occurred in my body.

Buuung!

Without me even wanting it, my two legs lifted off the ground.

Kwaang!

The world spun 360 degrees, and at the same time, a massive impact echoed across my back.

My eyes widened in agony as my breath was completely cut off! What had I just suffered?

’Is this... a shoulder throw...?!’

Being shocked by the leader gorilla’s martial prowess—using jujutsu of all things—lasted only a split second.

Above my head, I saw the sole of the leader gorilla’s foot. If I took a direct hit from that stomp, I’d die.

Kwaaaang!!

Rolling my body at the last second, I barely dodged. I hurriedly composed my breath and stood up.

In the brief moment I stood up, the leader gorilla closed in on me. He had no intention of letting me regroup.

If I messed up, I would truly die. I rapidly accelerated the mana in my body.

If an attack hit me, it would undoubtedly inflict devastating damage.

Kaaaang!

Another palm strike came flying in. I blocked with my shield.

Powerful as it was, it wasn’t enough to pierce the shield. If I could spot an opening, it was doable.

If it were a normal human instead of a gorilla, I would have opened up distance, but...

’His arms are long, so reach difference is meaningless.’

Because he was a gorilla with long arms, measuring distance had lost much of its significance.

In effect, I had to play a mind game on equal footing. It was starkly different from any fight I’d had before.

Unlike battles where I scraped by through improvisation, this was a showdown of pure skill.

Meaning it could devolve into an endurance battle—the very thing I hated most.

Kwaang!

Once again, the leader gorilla’s hand clashed with my shield. This time, it wasn’t a palm, but a fist.

The shock delivered through the shield sent a sharp sting through my shoulder. A level of physical strength in a whole different realm from the previous gorillas.

Frowning, I slashed the sword in my right hand diagonally.

I didn’t forget to stay vigilant against another shoulder throw.

Tuk-

But he evaded my attack with a simple backstep. His distance control was superb as well.

Just who taught this guy martial arts? Whoever it was, they taught him some real bullshit.

’Weakness. I need to find a weakness.’

The gorilla’s short legs? His much longer arms covered for that.

Counterattacking his sluggish movements? If I get hit by a shoulder throw again, I die.

The difference between bare hands and a weapon? That bastard’s whole body is a deadly weapon.

Even though I wanted to find a weakness, I couldn’t find one anywhere. As I said, this was a clash of pure skill.

’No, wait. I have an advantage.’

Thinking it over carefully, it wasn’t as if I had no advantages whatsoever.Read the latest chapters at novel​ping.com.

That guy couldn’t ’block’. He had no choice but to dodge.

Because the moment he blocked, he would inevitably be taken down by the Sword of the Heavenly Demon. I aimed for this very aspect.

Create a situation where he has no choice but to defend. Then an opportunity will surely present itself.

Swiik!

A thrust exploiting an opening. An attack aimed straight at his shoulder.

Yet the leader gorilla not only dodged lightly, but responded by lightly parrying the side of the blade with a tuk-.

Tapping the flat of the blade naturally turned the sword aside, slightly throwing off my body balance.

That meant it was the leader gorilla’s turn. Sensing this, he extended his palm forward.

That was what I was banking on. I charged straight into the gorilla.

"?!"

Not expecting me to charge in, the leader gorilla’s eyes went wide.

But it was too late to retract his extended arm. Even if he managed to pull it back, his posture would end up awkward.

While he was flustered, I thrust my shield forward like a punching fist instead of my sword.

The target was precisely his face. The startled leader gorilla frantically shielded himself with his arm, but...

Kwwadeudeudeuk!!

Physical reinforcement via mana. And it was far from enough to stop a shield surging with Aura.

The bone-crushing crunch sounded vividly in my ears. The moment I heard it, I felt assured of victory.

Udeudeuk!!

"Keuheup?!"

But was it the price of carelessness? I felt a sensation near my ribs as if something burst inside.

An ominous sound was a bonus. Not just a crack, but the sound of bones shattering into powder.

At first, I felt nothing. Just a sharp sting, like lightning shooting through me.

But in an instant, intense agony rushed in, and my vision went dark. I couldn’t even breathe.

"Keueo... keu..."

"Kueoeoeo!!"

The leader gorilla and I stumbled backward. A fatal blow had been dealt to both sides.

Me in the ribs, the leader gorilla in his arm. In terms of continuing the fight, I had the upper hand.

Because the leader gorilla’s arm struck by the shield was dangling uselessly. The bone had been shattered to pieces.

’My ribs are...’

Of course, I wasn’t fine either. First of all, I couldn’t breathe.

It was far worse than when I took the shoulder throw. Unable to draw breath, my vision gradually grew hazy.

"Eueueu... Puha! Eueueuk!"

Fortunately, I finally exhaled a breath, but a tremendous wave of pain crashed over me.

It hurt several times worse than when I was hit by the Orichalcum Guardian.

It was just one hit. Taking just one hit dealt damage bordering on total incapacitation.

Good thing it was my ribs; if it had hit any other vital spot, I’d have died in a single strike.

"Ooh-ooh-ooh!"

Did he judge that continuing the fight was impossible?

The leader gorilla grabbed his broken arm with his other hand and fled for his life.

It was a relief, honestly. Continuing the fight was impossible for me as well.

’Elixir... I need to drink an Elixir...!’

Clutching my ribbed side, I went into the cave. I couldn’t breathe properly.

I worried whether the broken bone had punctured my lung. Still, if I had an Elixir, I’d recover.

Reaching the cave, I hurriedly gulped down an Elixir. I emptied an entire bottle whole.

"Huu. Huu. Huu."

Drenched in cold sweat, I regulated my breathing. Thanks to the Elixir, I felt a little better.

But the intense pain persisted, forcing me to grimace every now and then.

"Haa..."

Only after about 5 minutes did I manage to regain composure.

A situation far too different from the Orichalcum Guardian. Injuring my ribs made it hard to even breathe.

"Kollok! Kollok! Kuek!"

To make matters worse, blood even spurted from my mouth. It was a perilous moment.

I roughly wiped the blood off my hand and slumped to the ground.

Why did things seem to get harder with every passing day?

’Just what on earth... was that guy?’

A gorilla using human martial arts. I couldn’t understand it at all.

I wondered if a survivor had taught him, but I questioned whether such a thing was even possible.

Even in the Gallery, users mentioned there were no cases of notable success when trying to teach apes martial arts or breathing techniques.

’Is the Forest of the Four Seasons different?’Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping . com.

He had enough intelligence to learn martial arts, so he learned it. Thinking of it like that might be easier.

But I was curious about who taught him. A gorilla learned martial arts, of all things.

Not only was the teacher’s personal realm high, but their capability as a master was extraordinary enough to impart martial arts to a gorilla.

In the first place, it was a person who survived in the Forest of the Four Seasons and taught martial arts to a gorilla.

Seueuk-

Just as my head grew tangled with thoughts, someone approached. It was Speed Sloth.

Staring quietly at Speed Sloth, I suddenly recalled what this bastard had done earlier.

Decapitating the gorilla captured as a hostage and tossing its head.

A truly wild way, showing a whole new side of Speed Sloth.

"Hey."

"...."

"Why did you let me live back then?"

Speed Sloth didn’t answer. But he seemed to be saying:

Because you were such a weakling there was no point in killing you.

’Mm. True enough.’

I chuckled softly. It was a relief I was weak back then.

If I had posed even the slightest threat to Speed Sloth, I wouldn’t be of this world anymore.

"Speaking of which, Bbareumbo. What do you eat?"

"...."

Apart from that, I needed to consider future meals as well.

Speed Sloth merely wore a relaxed face as he always had.

Of course, reading the meaning behind that expression wasn’t difficult.

"No Fasting Pills for a while. He said to wait a bit."

"...."

The corners of Bbareumbo’s mouth pulled down slightly.

So this guy can make expressions like that too. Fascinating.

The leader gorilla ran, and ran.

One arm was completely broken, making it impossible to swing through the trees, leaving running as the only option.

Even so, his speed was remarkably fast. As the gorilla ran, the surrounding environment shifted in real time.

Just like the technique he used to close in on Grylls in an instant, even his running was extraordinary compared to ordinary animals.

Baseurak!

Before long, the leader gorilla arrived at the main encampment. In the main camp, other gorillas were tending to their tasks.

Gorillas picking bananas hanging from trees. Gorillas lying down asleep.

And finally, gorillas splitting stones to make tools, and so forth.

"Ah-ooh-ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh-ooh!"

Holding his dangling arm, the leader gorilla roared.

At that roar, every gorilla doing its task froze in place.

In an instant, a strange silence settled over the gorilla territory. Just what had the leader gorilla said?

Seueuk-

Then, someone approached from behind the leader gorilla.

Feeling the presence, the leader gorilla immediately spun around.

Its build was similar, but unlike the other gorillas, its very posture was different.

Even the leader gorilla pressed his hands to the ground when running, but this newly appeared individual stood proudly on two legs.

Above all, there was a stark difference in appearance. The other gorillas, including the leader, were bare skin and fur.

But the newly arrived individual was wearing ’clothes’ like a human.

Though those clothes were completely worn out and little more than tattered rags... they were clothes nonetheless.

Black clothing that Grylls would have described as Eastern-style had he seen it.

"Ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh!"

The moment the leader gorilla saw him, he explained the whole story from start to finish.

Even pointing at his broken, dangling arm.

The newly arrived individual silently listened to the leader gorilla’s words.

"Ooh-ooh!"

"...."

"Ooh-ooh-ooh! Ooh!"

As he listened to the leader gorilla’s explanation, a seriousness spread across the newly arrived individual’s face.

A face etched with wrinkles and maturity, as if he were older than the other gorillas.

"Ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh-ooh!"

"...."

Furthermore, across one of his eyes was a five-clawed scar.