Chapter 164
Chapter 164
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 164
Chapter Title: You Absolutely Suck at Acting!
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“You bastards dare to pull this shit—!”
Gong Son-beom, who had been sitting there all smug until now, shot up from his seat in a panic.
What, did you sit on a thorn or something? Huh?
Gong Son-beom’s words didn’t get to continue.
Before they could, Yi Cheol-san was already charging at him.
“You… bastards… ambushed… Bi Cheon-hori… and… now… my… brother-in-arms… I won’t… forgive… you!”
Man, your acting sucks!
At a time like this, you need heartfelt anguish and raging fury! And you blow it like that?!
At least, thankfully, with the lion’s roar infused, the emotions didn’t come through too strongly.
Instead, his voice rang out crystal clear to the people waiting outside the lodging for us.
“W-what!? Bi Cheon-hori ambushed them?”
“Why attack people who came to apologize?!”
“What the hell is going on?”
“Y-young Master Dang! Are you alright?”
People came rushing toward me in a frenzy.
I put on a devastated and spat out two more mouthfuls of blood. My stomach’s killing me.) as I barely managed to stand.
“Everyone… stay back! It’s dangerous here!”
Nice voice. Perfect expression acting.
Damn, even I have to admit it’s like a grand opera.
In their eyes, I must look like a noble soul who set aside honor to pursue the greater good by venturing into enemy territory, only to be gravely wounded by their petty rejection—yet still worrying about others first.
「Argh! Even knowing the truth, it’s heartbreaking, but those clueless fools must be totally buying it!!」
「Some among the crowd behind us are already fuming at Bi Cheon-hori’s pettiness!」
「A full house! A total jackpot!!」
「They’re flopping around like hooked fish! We’ve landed a ton of big ones!」
“Get away, quick!!”
“W-why did Great Hero Gong suddenly attack—”
A few tried to piece together the suspicious parts, but the chaos around them wouldn’t allow it.
I’d anticipated this and dosed those four guys in advance.
Boom boom boom!
Yi Cheol-san unleashed his full power with qi blasts to shut Gong Son-beom up before he could spout nonsense.
He’d shown reluctance about deceiving people, but lit up at my offer to let him take on Gong Son-beom directly.
He wouldn’t say it outright, but he was pissed about what almost happened to Dang Gyu-jin.
He already had a grudge from all the backtalk, so with the stage set, he was rampaging like a madman.
In the end, Gong Son-beom couldn’t just ignore Yi Cheol-san either, so he poured everything into Wall Mountain Manor.
Qi and palm force collided, sending massive shockwaves that shook the entire lodging.
Rumble rumble…!
The building couldn’t hold and started crumbling bit by bit.
Dang Gyu-jin, Yu Su-min, and Sima Seon-i didn’t sit idle either.
The three scattered in different directions, engaging the Hori-chung warriors.
Their goal was to keep Hori-chung from aiding Gong Son-beom.
“Keeheeheehee! Know what’s the most fun thing in the world? Massacring peasants! You think I’d lose to trash like you? Huh? Huh?!”
Dang Gyu-jin thrashed about like a fish in water.
His blue demon mask with the infant manifestation cackled like a total psycho as he kicked and pummeled the warriors.
“In the name of justice! I won’t forgive you!!”
Yu Su-min overwhelmingly crushed the Hori-chung warriors, while Sima Seon-i expressionlessly bashed their heads with the sheathed sword.
Seemed like she was taking out her grudge from getting beaten by Gong Son-beom on them instead… I decided to let it slide.
They must’ve been bottling up frustration from not being able to fight back properly before, so they needed this release.
The power gap was massive.
But the Hori-chung resistance, which I expected to crumble and scatter in no time, was surprisingly fierce.
No, it was downright desperate—they clung to the three women like their lives depended on it.
It started creating slight hesitations in the women’s attacks.
Truth be told, the key to this ambush was seizing the initiative right after I faked getting attacked: the four of them unleashing hell to gain the upper hand.
We needed to show everyone that while they might oppress us, we only counterattack—and we don’t shed blood for the greater good.
For that, we needed Hori-chung to disband or surrender, but it wasn’t happening as easily as hoped.
What’s going on?
No way those ragtag bunch had that kind of loyalty.
Sure, the martial world is a place where you’d share life and death after just a day if your goals align, but for that many people to feel it all at once? Unlikely.
Something was up.
「I’ve figured it out!!」
‘What is it?’
A specter drifting in the air pointed at Gong Son-beom and shouted.
「It’s that pouch he’s carrying!」
Pouch?
I focused my inner sight on Gong Son-beom’s waist, locked in combat with Yi Cheol-san midair.
A fairly large pouch dangled there, bulging heavily.
Stuffed full of something.
That’s when it hit me.
“…Tokens.”
“What was that, Young Master Dang? You okay?”
The warrior supporting me turned at my mutter.
But I had no time to answer.
If my guess was right, Hori-chung had no choice but to fight the three women to the death.
Their lives were in Gong Son-beom’s hands.
Whether willing or forced, Gong Son-beom had clearly seen through the first test.
If I played this right, I could reel in Hori-chung without lifting a finger.
What luck. See, good deeds pay off. Kuhahaha!
But right now, to the crowd, I was the pitifully injured victim of dirty tricks. Couldn’t jump into the fray.
“May I have your name, Great Hero—?”
“Na Chipung of the Sun and Moon Sect!! Remember those three words!!”
The warrior helping me thumped his chest and bellowed heartily.
I grinned.
“Yes, I’ll never forget, Great Hero Na. Since it came up, could you help me one more time?”
“Just say the word. I’d give you my underpants if you needed them!!”
…Why the hell would I need your underwear?
“Got any spare daggers or hidden weapons? I didn’t bring any on the way here.”
“I’ve got three hunting daggers, but not sure if they’d suit a Tang family man—”
“That’s fine.”
“Here you go.”
“Thanks.”
I took the three daggers and possessed them with specters.
Then hurled them with a spinning technique.
Whish! Whiiish!
The daggers tore through the air.
Target: Gong Son-beom’s waist, now atop another building’s roof.
He’d been dazzling Yi Cheol-san with flashy footwork.
They were such natural counters that even the Dark Lord had roomed them together.
It all came down to who struck the other’s weakness first.
He was pressing with relentless offense to find Yi Cheol-san’s opening—when my daggers flew in.
“What the—?”
Gong Son-beom twisted midair.
An opening appeared.
Yi Cheol-san didn’t miss, blasting qi.
In an instant, the area was engulfed in red and blue radiance.
Azure Clouds Earth-Shaking Sword
Radiance River Crossing
Boom boom boom—
The sword strike piercing his weakness split into dozens of chains, whipping up waves.
Gong Son-beom hurriedly stepped to create distance.
But the second dagger blocked his retreat.
His foot froze.
“You sneaky bastards are ganging up with tricks now?”
Yi Cheol-san and I ignored him.
If it bugs you, cheat and gang up yourself. Ehhe.
Slash!
Sword qi dropped vertically.
Gong Son-beom gritted his teeth and launched Wall Mountain Manor. Extreme speed amplified the destructive power from his palm.
Kablooey!
The impact blew entire roof tiles off where he stood.
Gong Son-beom extended his left to follow up, aiming for Yi Cheol-san’s nape.
But the third dagger blocked it. His palm struck the dagger.
Clang! Boom!
The dagger shattered instantly. Dozens of large and small shards rained on his face.
I’d packed them with max Heavenly Demon Qi and specter poison.
Each fragment carried serious force, and even a graze was toxic.
Only one way to block: total destruction.
Too late to dodge with movement arts.
Problem was, even after dealing with the shards, he’d still face Yi Cheol-san’s incoming sword strikes.
Trapped with no way out.
Alright, how you gonna block this, Ghost Sect fox—no, rat bastard.
“Damn it……!!”
Gong Son-beom clenched his teeth and unleashed Annihilation Step.
His power surged to the max, infusing his feet with immense force.
Aura rippled out in concentric circles.
Crackle!
Yellow lightning sparked from his toes.
Flying Fox Evil Step
Annihilation Wasteland Breaker
And I saw it.
The Ghost Sect ultimate he’d desperately hidden, mixed in.
Thunder Six Line Method
Split-Split Thunderbolt
Rumble rumble rumble!
Lightning from his foot enveloped his body in a flash.
His chilling eyes, like North Sea icebergs, unleashed a palm strike brimming with thunder—no longer mere Wall Mountain Manor.
Thunder shook the world.
The sky filled with lightning pulverized the dagger shards and surged at Yi Cheol-san.
“I’ll kill you all!!”
Gong Son-beom’s face was savage, like a thunder god from legend.
Funny thing: even in this, he kept his wits and hid his demonic qi to the end.
Not a pushover.
Boom boom boom!
Yi Cheol-san’s sword barrier held firm against the thunder’s devastation.
His qi deflected every bolt outward. The red-blue mist thickened.
Seizing the gap, I drew the fourth dagger I’d hidden: North Hell Edge.
Flash!
North Hell Edge appeared before Gong Son-beom’s eyes in a blink.
Aimed straight for his brow.
From a mere inch away.
Carrying a biting cold that chilled the thunder-heated air.
“!!!”
Gong Son-beom’s eyes widened.
North Hell Edge loomed larger in his pupils.
He desperately twisted aside.
Far nimbler than any movement he’d shown.
North Hell Edge barely grazed past his head.
Tch, close one. A bit faster and I’d have crushed his skull.
But no big loss.
I wasn’t aiming for his life, but his waist.
Slice!
His sash snapped.
The bulging token pouch dropped.
Whoosh!
I unleashed Gale Wind Divine Speed, snatching it midair and landing on the opposite roof.
“Phew! Thought I’d miss. I’ll put this to good use.”
I checked the tokens inside, then lightly tossed the pouch up and caught it.
In my smirking eyes, Gong Son-beom’s pupils shook wildly.
“H-how did you—?”
As expected, the cult-born Gong Son-beom recognized North Hell Edge.
Only he, who saw it vanish as quick as it appeared, clocked it.
I curled one lip in a smile.
『Who knows. Why do you think I have it?』
『!!!』
Watching his ugly mug crumple made all the tension melt away.
Nice and relaxed.
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