Chapter 749: Reform.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 749: Reform.
CRASH—!
"Keuk!"
Struck squarely in the abdomen, Peng Jeowoo flew backward and rolled across the dirt. His massive frame tumbled across the arena before he barely managed to steady himself.
"Kugh..."
He clutched his stomach, the searing pain still fresh, when—
WHOOSH—!!
THUD—!!
His great sword whistled past his head and slammed into the ground. Peng Jeowoo stared at his beloved weapon embedded in the earth beside him. It was the weapon he had lost control of only moments ago.
"What a fucking joke."
A rough voice followed.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?"
The incredulity in the voice was palpable. A tone dripping with irritation rained down on Peng Jeowoo.
"Did I ask for much? I just told you to last fifteen minutes. You can't even do that?"
"...!"
A foot appeared right before his eyes. Peng Jeowoo instinctively twisted his head away, but the incoming boot changed its trajectory mid-air and struck his shoulder.
CRACK—!
"Kuk!"
A sharp impact rocked his left shoulder, and Peng Jeowoo’s body twisted in agony. The intense pain was bearable, however. He lunged, grabbing the sword embedded in the ground.
SHIING—!
As he pulled the blade free, it was instantly enveloped in a black aura. But then—
Tap.
"...!?"
Suddenly, Peng Jeowoo’s feet tangled. Another foot had slipped in, disrupting his footwork at the crucial moment.
"Those Inner Demons of yours are quite the excuse, aren't they?"
CRUNCH—!
"Kuock!"
A fist slammed into his face. His upper body snapped back, and he hit the ground only to bounce back up from the force.
"It's the perfect excuse for everything, isn't it?"
A fist smashed down on his rising chest.
BOOM—!!
THUD—! CRACK—!!
Peng Jeowoo’s body was driven into the dirt, cracks spreading through the stone floor in all directions.
"Keoheok—!"
Blood burst from his mouth.
"Stop trying to wrap up your own incompetence with that fucking bullshit."
Still, the words and the fists didn't stop.
BAM—! BAM BAM—! BAM—!!
The blows rained down relentlessly. Just as the repeated agony was about to snap Peng Jeowoo’s consciousness...
The assault ceased.
Drip.
Drip...
At the faint sound, Peng Jeowoo weakly opened his eyes. He wondered what the sound was and immediately saw its source. It was Gu Yangcheon. Blood was dripping from his raised fist. That blood was almost certainly his own.
"Kk... Keuk..."
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Peng Jeowoo trembled.
"You... bastard... I... I am... the Lord of the Peng Clan... the Dao King... Peng..."
"What's this? Are you trying to introduce yourself?"
At Peng Jeowoo’s words, Gu Yangcheon scoffed. Then—WHOOSH—!!—he grabbed the man and threw him.
Thud!
He barely managed to land on his feet. Staggering, Peng Jeowoo tried to find his bearings.
"Keok... Keuk."
What was that? What just happened?
'I was... by that brat...'
He had been beaten—not just by anyone, but by the son of Gu Cheolun, the very man he wanted to kill.
Ssk.
Peng Jeowoo touched his cheek. Pain shot through his badly swollen face at the slightest touch. Of all places, his cheek. It was just like the spot that bastard had struck back then. It burned with a particular, humiliating sting.
Grit—!
Gritting his teeth, Peng Jeowoo glared at his opponent, Gu Yangcheon.
"Look at those eyes."
Seeing this, Gu Yangcheon immediately sneered.
"After getting your ass beat, what's with that look? Still don't know your place?"
"You damned bastard—!"
Peng Jeowoo’s face twisted like a demon's. He knew Gu Yangcheon was strong. How could he not? He’d seen the boy's duel with the Heavenly Dragon and his fight with the brat from Mount Hua. He knew Gu Yangcheon was powerful, but...
'This is impossible.'
He never thought the boy would be strong enough to overwhelm him like this.
'Just what is this monster...!'
Even with his judgment clouded by Inner Demons, Peng Jeowoo was still a martial artist. The gap between them just now was enough for him to understand. The boy’s level was beyond simply 'strong'—it was monstrous.
It was utterly unbelievable. Peng Jeowoo had already been gathering information on Gu Yangcheon. He knew that the boy had been nothing but a scoundrel in Shanxi when he was younger.
'A dog born of a tiger,' they had called him.
The same words Peng Jeowoo had heard in his own youth. And now, Gu Cheolun’s son was hearing them too. How satisfying it had been to hear that. He had even relished it for a time, believing it would be a way to crush his rival.
That was how it was supposed to be.
"You... just what the—!"
Peng Jeowoo cut himself off, hastily raising his great sword.
BOOM—!!
Gu Yangcheon’s knee slammed into the flat of the blade.
"Kuk—!"
SKRRRT—!
The impact sent Peng Jeowoo sliding backward. As if he had no intention of waiting for an answer, Gu Yangcheon continued his relentless assault.
CLANG—! CLANG CLANG—!
The sound was bizarre for a clash between a fist and a blade. It meant Gu Yangcheon’s Fist Aura was unbelievably hard.
Screech—!
It was all Peng Jeowoo could do just to block. This felt different from his fight with the Dragon Warrior. The Dragon Warrior had neutralized every attack, leaving not a single opening. But this kid...
'He’s crushing me with sheer power.'
It was as if he was showing off how much higher his level was. He was focusing on faster, stronger attacks. There were plenty of openings; his movements were wide and powerful, so there should have been gaps.
Thwack.
"Keoheok!"
But Peng Jeowoo couldn't exploit them. Gu Yangcheon was simply too fast. Was that young bastard truly at a higher level than him?
'...Damn it.'
He had to muster more strength. Just then—
"Legs."
Peng Jeowoo reacted to the sharp command. What does he mean? The moment the thought crossed his mind...
CRACK—!
"...!!!"
Gu Yangcheon’s shin slammed into Peng Jeowoo’s knee joint. He heard the sound of bone shattering. He didn't need to look to know it was broken. As pain shot through his lower body, his stance crumbled.
But he had no time to register it.
"Chest."
"...Kkeuk!"
This time, his body reacted to the word. Remembering the last blow, he instinctively moved to guard his chest, but...
CRACK—!
"Keoheop!"
It wasn't his chest that was broken this time, but his left arm. What happened? He looked at Gu Yangcheon with shocked eyes.
"You actually fell for that," Gu Yangcheon said with a vicious smile. "How can a clan lord be so naive? What use are you?"
"You son of a bitch—!!"
Peng Jeowoo raged, realizing he’d been tricked.
"What an idiot."
But there was nowhere for his anger to go. GRAB—! Gu Yangcheon seized the left arm he had just broken.
RIP—!
He suddenly ripped out two of Peng Jeowoo’s fingernails.
"There. Two, as promised."
A promise with whom?
It happened so suddenly that Peng Jeowoo couldn't even scream, let alone react.
THWACK—!
"Kup!"
His head snapped up. What had hit him? He couldn't even tell. From the impact, it felt like a kick.
"From now on, this is just me blowing off steam."
With that, a new barrage rained down on Peng Jeowoo. Hands and feet. A countless flurry of attacks. The sounds of things breaking and shattering began to erupt from his body.
CRACK—!
CRUNCH—!
With an expressionless face, Gu Yangcheon broke him.
"Keok... kkeu...!"
Peng Jeowoo couldn't even manage a proper scream. Perhaps because of the brutality, the crowd was utterly silent.
"...That's... that..."
"To think the Dao King is being beaten so badly..."
He was the Lesser King of Hell who had defeated the Heavenly Dragon. Given the power he’d displayed then, some had suspected the Dao King might lose. But...
"Isn't this too... cruel?"
"Shouldn't someone stop him...? He might actually die."
No one had expected him to be so mercilessly crushed. It was a scene that could hardly be called a duel. It was just one-sided violence. It looked like a bully tormenting the weak.
Everyone trembled at the uncomfortable sight. It was proof of the overwhelming gap between them. Moreover, the victim was one of the Six Greats, while his opponent had only just turned twenty. It was a sight that was hard to believe.
BOOM—!
"Kuhup."
Thud! Struck in the face, Peng Jeowoo spat blood, staggered back a few steps, and collapsed to his knees.
"Keok... huh... heok..."
He had never been the tidiest man, but as the lord of a noble clan, Peng Jeowoo had always been well-dressed. Now, however, his appearance was a far cry from what it had been before the duel. His uniform was in tatters, and his face was so swollen from the beating that he was unrecognizable. Bleeding and struggling to breathe, he was a pathetic sight.
Everyone covered their mouths at the wretched scene.
"I really don't get it," Gu Yangcheon said, cracking his neck as he looked down at the man. "Lord Peng. Why are you acting so tough when you're so weak?"
"...!"
The sharp words pierced his chest.
Drip.
A drop of blood fell. It was blood from Gu Yangcheon’s knuckles.
"Kkeu... heu..."
The sight triggered a memory from his past. Gu Cheolun’s image began to overlap with Gu Yangcheon’s.
"...Son... of a... bitch..."
His heart pounded. The situation felt so similar to that day that Peng Jeowoo’s emotions boiled over. So much time had passed. More than a decade had gone by, so why was he in the exact same situation?
Worse, his opponent was that bastard’s son. To be reduced to this state by the son of the man he wanted to kill—and in front of this massive crowd!
"I'll... kill... I'm going to kill you."
It was a rage that couldn't even be compared to what he felt against the Dragon Warrior. Peng Jeowoo was beginning to lose his mind. He no longer thought of this as a duel. He began to amplify the power throughout his body, ready to draw on his Innate Qi if necessary.
"Hmm."
Seeing this, Gu Yangcheon gave a slight nod. Was it because Peng Jeowoo was starting to get serious? No, that wasn't it.
Voom.
It was because of the energy he felt from his own heart.
VWOOOM—!
A signal from his Demonic Qi. Feeling it, Gu Yangcheon covered his mouth and smiled faintly.
'It's time.'
It seemed that, fortunately, a little over fifteen minutes had passed while he was beating the man. The moment he had been waiting for had finally arrived. Having confirmed this, Gu Yangcheon...
"You... you of all people... I'll kill you, no matter what it takes—!"
CRACK—!
"Keok!"
He strode forward and smashed his fist into the jaw of the ranting Peng Jeowoo.
Thump... CRASH—!
Mid-sentence, Peng Jeowoo lost consciousness and collapsed. Gu Yangcheon kicked the unconscious man, casually shoving him aside. An incompetent fool who couldn't even serve as a proper toy. Gu Yangcheon’s gaze, as he looked at Peng Jeowoo, was completely devoid of emotion.
'Tsk.'
What a waste of a good punch. Maybe it was because he’d only been fighting decent opponents lately, but this felt like a waste of his strength.
"Uh, uhh...? Uh..."
Seeing Peng Jeowoo collapse, the judge looked completely dumbfounded. He likely hadn't expected the match to end with the Dao King collapsing like that.
The Dao King had been defeated. One of the Six Greats, the Lord of the Peng Clan, had lost to someone who had just turned twenty. Not only that, he had been beaten into unconsciousness by an overwhelming margin. It was no wonder the judge was flustered.
"The Gu Clan of Shanxi..."
Just as the judge, suppressing his shock, was about to declare the winner...
Gu Yangcheon, who had already forgotten Peng Jeowoo and was staring into space, made his move.
Swoosh—.
He moved the Demonic Qi within his heart, sending it flowing outward. The energy carried a simple message.
'Begin.'
It was a signal. And as it spread...
"Gu Yangcheon is the vict—"
Just before the judge could declare Gu Yangcheon’s victory...
RUMBLE—!
A massive tremor erupted.
RUUUUMBLE—!!!
The Murim Alliance—or to be more precise, the entire Henan region—began to shake violently.