Chapter 230
Translator: uly
Chapter: 230
Chapter Title: The Arm That Hurts
There was something Hwangbo Seongu hadn't told Paeng Yeonhwa.
Yang Jeon was heading out to take on the Black Heaven Prince tonight. That was why Hwangbo Seongu had no choice but to turn down her invitation.
If Yang Jeon didn't make his move tonight and some other Black Tyrant struck first, Hwangbo Seongu would have helped Wi Seongcheon under the pretext of eliminating a rival.
But Yang Jeon had been the first to act.
It went without saying that he hadn't told Paeng Yeonhwa about it. Telling her would just mean one more enemy.
Hwangbo Seongu had no real desire to fight Paeng Yeonhwa. Just a year ago, he'd relentlessly picked fights with her.
'Things have changed since then.'
When Paeng Yeonhwa had first entered the Heavenly Academy, she was like a bristling cat. She'd tried to ignore the stares of curiosity, contempt, fear, and more, but if anyone approached, she'd hiss like a cat and make them back off. Hwangbo Seongu, who knew her from childhood, hadn't liked that version of her.
Paeng Yeonhwa hadn't done anything wrong. She was just unlucky. So why was she the only one curled up like that? That's why he'd poked at her.
That was all. Paeng Yeonhwa was no longer curled up. In just half a year, the way people at the academy looked at her had changed dramatically. It was all because of the shocking impression she'd left at the Heavenly Tournament.
The large gash across his mouth had throbbed with pain back then. But the pain was gone now.
At the end of his first year, Hwangbo Seongu had singled her out as his opponent in the year-end evaluation and won. With that, he'd settled the score.
But the pain in his arm hadn't gone away.
The broken bone had healed cleanly, leaving no scars or aftereffects. And yet, sometimes it still throbbed as if the bone were fractured.
It was throbbing sharply now.
"See?"
Hwangbo Seongu twisted the scar at the corner of his mouth into a grin. Woo Heera, following behind him, widened her eyes as she looked at him.
Yang Jeon, walking a bit ahead, stopped in his tracks.
"Since when did you switch from Black Eagle to Black Heaven Prince?"
Yang Jeon asked with a fierce expression. Beneath the cloudy night sky. In the dark forest where moonlight and starlight barely pierced through. Wi Seongcheon stood at its center.
"I didn't switch."
"Then?"
"After Sanggwan Hu, it was you. That was the plan. I was going to take you a bit later, though."
Yang Jeon would be the first to move.
That's what Wi Seongcheon had thought. The students who could challenge the Black Heaven Prince were Yang Jeon, Jegal Ihyeon, Ha Jieun, and Baegri Hyang.
Baegri Hyang had grown stronger rapidly, but she still wasn't ready to go after the Black Heaven Prince.
Yang Jeon lacked the skill, too. He wasn't the type to patiently watch the situation like Jegal Ihyeon or Ha Jieun.
'Jegal Ihyeon will wait for Ha Jieun to make her move.'
She'd swoop in for the fisherman's benefit. That was Jegal Ihyeon's style. What about Yang Jeon? He didn't have the ability to play it that safe. In the end, impatience would make him charge first. Wi Seongcheon had kept an eye out, and sure enough, he'd been right.
"...What the hell are you talking about?"
After Sanggwan Hu, you'd be next. At the obvious provocation, Yang Jeon flew into a rage easily. But Hwangbo Seongu grabbed his shoulder.
"You alone?"
"...Of course I'm alone. What do I have to fear that I'd need to team up?"
"Hmm."
Hwangbo Seongu chuckled. As expected, Wi Seongcheon had no idea what Paeng Yeonhwa was up to.
"You didn't even bring Black Eagle."
"She's busy training."
"Not because she's no help?"
Yang Jeon sneered. Wi Seongcheon shook his head with a chuckle.
"Baegri Hyang as she is now could take you while picking her nose."
Wi Seongcheon couldn't imagine Baegri Hyang picking her nose, but the taunt worked. Yang Jeon's hair stood on end, and his body was enveloped in protective aura.
"Bullshit!"
"No, for real. You ought to thank Hwangbo Seongu and Junior Heera. They drag you along even though you're useless. What do you do for them? Provide room and board? Anything else?"
"I'll kill y..."
"Don't talk big if you can't back it up. You should thank Hwangbo Seongu for that, too. If you'd rushed me earlier when you were pissed, you'd have a jaw that can't chew tough meat for the rest of your life."
Wi Seongcheon cackled and pointed at his own chin with a finger.
"I'd have smashed your jaw, you idiot."
"Let go!"
Yang Jeon shook off Hwangbo Seongu's hand. Hwangbo Seongu let him go. Yang Jeon's roar shook the forest.
"W-What do we do?"
"What do you mean? The opponent's just changed. Why? Disappointed you thought it'd be the Black Heaven Prince, but now it's an academy senior?"
Woo Heera hesitated, at a loss for words. Hwangbo Seongu grinned and shrugged off his outer robe.
"Too bad. I like the sound of your pipa."
"Y-Yes...?"
Ignoring Woo Heera's reply, Hwangbo Seongu charged. Though he started later, he overtook Yang Jeon and reached Wi Seongcheon first.
'Huh.'
Wi Seongcheon knew Hwangbo Seongu's skills had improved greatly. But facing him directly now, the pressure was on another level. Wi Seongcheon hardened his expression and slid his foot back.
Boom! The downward punch cratered the ground. Wi Seongcheon leaped up and kicked at Hwangbo Seongu's head. But it was blocked by his forearm. He tried to chain into another attack, but in that instant, Yang Jeon intervened.
"You bastard!"
Yang Jeon shouted and reached for Wi Seongcheon. It wasn't a lethal strike, but it restricted his movements.
Wi Seongcheon tilted his body back sharply, shifting his weight. His body flipped in midair. Yang Jeon's hand grazed past him perilously close.
In that moment of evasion. Wi Seongcheon's hand pierced Yang Jeon's protective aura. Yang Jeon's face stiffened. He hurriedly dropped his aura and focused internal energy in his opposite hand.
'His technique destroys protective aura.'
That was Yang Jeon's snap judgment. If his aura broke, it would disrupt his energy flow. Better to drop it voluntarily and sacrifice one arm.
'Not bad.'
Wi Seongcheon read Yang Jeon's intent. A broken arm wouldn't end the fight. The power gathered in Yang Jeon's hand wasn't enough for a killing blow, but if it created an opening for Hwangbo Seongu to grab him, that would be trouble.
'They've gotten their teamwork down.'
Wi Seongcheon gave up seizing Yang Jeon's arm. His decision came faster than Yang Jeon's action, who had already unleashed energy from his left hand toward Wi Seongcheon.
Wi Seongcheon twisted his waist sharply.
Boom! Yang Jeon's energy blast swept through the forest. No time to relax. Hwangbo Seongu's massive hand came to grab him.
'He's thoroughly supporting Yang Jeon. That's not his style.'
Wi Seongcheon felt puzzled by Hwangbo Seongu's movements. But he had no time to dwell. No pause in his own motions.
He fully opened his meridian points. Internal energy from his dantian exploded forward.
Whoosh! Wi Seongcheon's body vanished, leaving only an afterimage. Hwangbo Seongu narrowed his eyes at the fading image between his fingers.
'Phantom Shift!'
Hwangbo Seongu remained calm, but Yang Jeon was shocked. He immediately used the Thousand Jin Drop to plant himself on the ground and opened his senses wide. But even with that, he couldn't track Wi Seongcheon. The moment Wi Seongcheon took up position behind Yang Jeon.
Screeech!
A piercing sound tore at their ears. Wi Seongcheon's body froze at the eerie noise.
'I thought she wasn't fighting...!'
It was Woo Heera. She had somehow put the pipa to her lips and begun playing a sonic attack. Her sound wave focused on Wi Seongcheon, and the sweet melody from the pipa sounded to him like nails on a chalkboard.
If it were just the noise, it would only hurt his ears. But it wasn't. The melody, infused with internal energy, twisted Wi Seongcheon's own energy.
Sonic attacks had clear limits, but surpassing them made for an annoying, tricky martial art.
Those with firm minds or profound energy weren't greatly affected.
He recalled what the Black Demon King had said at the Heavenly Tournament. Wi Seongcheon thought his own mind was firm and his energy profound, but apparently not.
'How much more profound does it have to be?'
Wi Seongcheon gritted his teeth and forced his rigid body to move. In that gap, Yang Jeon whipped his head around to face him.
Startled that Wi Seongcheon was right behind him, Yang Jeon still raised his fist hurriedly.
Yang Jeon threw the punch. Right up to that moment, he hadn't reformed his protective aura. He simply hurled a fist packed with internal energy at Wi Seongcheon's face.
"Tch."
Hwangbo Seongu, moving to support too late, frowned. Just as Yang Jeon's fist was about to connect.
Wi Seongcheon's foot slipped sideways. He twisted his body to dodge the punch and grabbed Yang Jeon's forearm with his right hand. Since Yang Jeon feared aura destruction, seizing the arm was easy.
"Idiot."
Woo Heera's sonic attack had disrupted his energy flow. In this state, he couldn't use precise techniques like Ghost Soul White Escape or Whirlpool.
But. Explosively moving his stiffened body was possible. No room for Hwangbo Seongu to intervene.
Crack! Wi Seongcheon's thumb dug into Yang Jeon's elbow joint.
"Argh!"
A scream burst from Yang Jeon's mouth. Wi Seongcheon twisted the shattered forearm and closed in tight. Yang Jeon clenched his teeth and tried to smash his opposite elbow down on Wi Seongcheon's shoulder.
But faster still, Wi Seongcheon's forehead rammed into Yang Jeon's chest.
Thud! A simple headbutt, but precisely aimed at the heart. The heavy impact rattled Yang Jeon's heart. He couldn't bring down the raised elbow and instead exhaled sharply.
In that instant, Hwangbo Seongu leaped in. He collided with Wi Seongcheon in a headlong rush. Like bumping into a wild boar. His senses reeled, body floating up.
Even amid it, Wi Seongcheon didn't release Yang Jeon's arm. The broken, dangling arm was pulled by Wi Seongcheon's grip.
Before the stretched arm tore off. Hwangbo Seongu hurriedly grabbed Yang Jeon's forearm and shoulder with both hands.
That brief reprieve was enough. Wi Seongcheon wrapped his legs around Yang Jeon's torso, planted his hands on the ground, and twisted his waist powerfully.
Snap! Yang Jeon's body, coiled in Wi Seongcheon's legs, spun wildly. Hwangbo Seongu let out a hollow laugh and released Yang Jeon's shoulder. Because he'd held firm, only Yang Jeon's body rotated, shattering his shoulder as well.
Boom! Yang Jeon's spinning body slammed into the ground after one rotation.
"My fault?"
"Nah."
Wi Seongcheon rose, slapping his waist. Even using his hands for support, he'd spun Yang Jeon using only waist strength and slammed him down. With his energy flow unsteady, his muscles buzzed.
"It's because the bastard acted like an idiot."
"Yeah, true."
Hwangbo Seongu shook his head, looking at Yang Jeon foaming at the mouth on the ground. Wi Seongcheon still rubbed his waist and glared at him.
"Why pull that out-of-character stunt? You're not the type to play backup."
"That's why I'm doing it my way now. The one I had to play nice for is out."
Hwangbo Seongu said that and turned to Woo Heera.
"That's enough."
"Huh...?"
"Yang Jeon was the one who wanted combined attacks."
"But... Senior..."
"I like your playing, but I can't relax and listen right now."
Woo Heera's sonic attack stopped. Wi Seongcheon glared at Hwangbo Seongu with narrowed eyes.
"Why not take that bastard to a physician?"
"My arm hurts too much."
"...Your arm?"
"Yeah."
Hwangbo Seongu grinned, his scar twitching. Crack! Heavy sounds rumbled from within his body. Hwangbo Seongu's frame began to swell.
"The arm you broke back then."