The King's Unyielding Pride
At the very moment Yang Cheon’s fist tore through the air toward him, Kang Liang’s eyes captured it with perfect clarity.
‘Fast. And powerful.’
The fist that pierced the wall of air like an awl carried a force that far exceeded imagination. For the current Kang Liang, it was a realm he could not even dare to gaze upon. The density of power, its flow, the geometric waves it carved through the air—nothing about it failed to inspire awe.
‘So such a fist exists.’
It was astonishing that a seemingly ordinary punch could contain such intricate true qi manipulation and power circulation.
Kang Liang’s eyes deepened.
The surprise lasted only an instant.
‘Is this how I die?’
He could neither dodge nor block it. No technique he had learned could respond to it. All the effort he had accumulated over the past dozen years could vanish in a single moment.
‘How fleeting.’
Time, which had slowed, now accelerated at a terrifying speed.
Boom!
Considering the speed of the fist, the sound of air exploding was not particularly loud.
“Kuhack!”
Kang Liang was sent flying three jang away and vomited a bowlful of blood.
‘……?!’
Surprisingly, Kang Liang did not die.
‘It’s dark?’
Perhaps because it was night, the blood he spat looked unusually dark. The smell rising from it was also intensely foul and toxic, as if he had been poisoned.
Kang Liang looked up at Yang Cheon.
Yang Cheon stood with his hands behind his back, gazing down at him.
“……What is this?”
“What do you mean?”
Kang Liang rose to his feet. The dull pain in his chest felt as though it would linger for days. It had been that heavy a blow.
Yet his insides felt far cleaner than before. The blood he had vomited contained a minuscule amount of turbid qi that even he had not noticed.
Staring quietly at Yang Cheon, Kang Liang asked again.
“Why show such favor?”
Indeed, this was a favor. After all, he was the man who had openly declared he would kill Yang Cheon. Yet Yang Cheon had instead drawn out the turbid qi from his body.
Yang Cheon shook his head.
“Do not misunderstand. I am not mad enough to help a man who intends to kill me.”
“But……”
“However, the pride of the King of Combat runs far deeper than you imagine.”
Yang Cheon’s eyes twitched. It looked like a smile, yet also like a frown. A truly peculiar expression.
“If you are dangerous, would Yeon Hojeong be any less so? Even he cannot compare to the powerhouses of the Holy Thirteen Seats. At least not yet.”
“……”
“There are countless people in the world who declare they will kill me. One more talented youth among them changes nothing.”
Yang Cheon looked up at the sky. The unusually bright moonlight seemed to stir something within him as well. His gaze, usually as hard as steel, had softened slightly.
“As Lord of the Black Dragon Department, you are someone I must kill. Yet the King of Combat who knows that such an act would only hinder the growth of a talent who could inspire his disciples feels regret.”
Yang Cheon looked back at Kang Liang.
Kang Liang’s eyes did not waver even now.
Yang Cheon smiled.
“Think of it as returning things to how they were. If I had not come here, you would have crossed the wall of the Limitless Realm and entered a new world. Though I cannot make you break through that wall immediately, I can at least lay down a few stepping stones.”
After gazing at Kang Liang for a moment, Yang Cheon turned and walked toward the tavern.
“It was an impressive sword dance. You still have a long way to go, but at least you have not strayed from the path.”
Yang Cheon walked away calmly, as if he had said all he needed to say.
Watching his retreating figure, Kang Liang felt an emotion difficult to harbor toward an enemy.
‘……So this is what it means to be a grandmaster.’
Kang Liang spoke.
“You must have heard this countless times before.”
“Hmm?”
“You will regret this.”
Yang Cheon paused.
But only for a moment. Then he waved his hand as if to say it was nothing.
“If you ever become stronger than me, I would never regret losing to such an opponent.”
“Then I suppose I must aim for the moment when you grow weak, my lord.”
“Unfortunately, the moment I grow weak will never come. You will grow stronger faster than that.”
With those words, Yang Cheon entered the tavern.
Left alone, Kang Liang mulled over Yang Cheon’s words.
‘You will grow stronger faster……’
What tremendous confidence. Those words meant that Yang Cheon himself would never weaken until the day he died.
But if interpreted differently?
‘It means that even against someone like you who will never weaken, I can still become stronger.’
He did not know what intention lay behind those words. What mattered was that an absolute powerhouse who stood at the pinnacle of the martial world—an enemy he could never share the same sky with—had acknowledged him as a martial artist.
Yet that fact brought Kang Liang no great excitement.
“To most of the Dark Faction’s martial artists, you are a giant worthy of respect. But to me, you are nothing more and nothing less than an enemy with whom I cannot share the same sky.”
Kang Liang pressed a hand to his chest.
He did not consider Yang Cheon’s help as help. In the same vein, he did not believe he had failed to break through the wall of the Limitless Realm because of Yang Cheon.
It was simply because he himself had been lacking. If he had truly concentrated, he would have broken through that wall regardless of whether Yang Cheon came or not.
Of course, if that had happened, Yang Cheon’s reaction would have been different as well.
“Haaam!”
Kang Liang stretched. The pain remained, but his mood was refreshed. At the same time, he felt extremely tired.
“I should get some proper sleep. Damn, it hurts like hell. That man, I wonder if he deliberately left the pain behind.”
* * *
With two bright lanterns and a single candle lit, Yeon Hojeong sat alone, drinking by himself.
Creak. Creak.
The sound of footsteps echoed from the stairs.
Yeon Hojeong righted an overturned cup.
A moment later, Yang Cheon appeared.
“It has been a while.”
“Have you been well?”
“Quite the picturesque scene. Drinking alone under a bright moon…… You seem to appreciate atmosphere after all.”
“I have prepared good liquor. Have a seat.”
“Very well.”
Yang Cheon walked over casually and sat across from Yeon Hojeong. His expression was as gentle as if he had come to meet a close friend. Not only his face, but his gait and atmosphere were the same.
Yeon Hojeong let out a sigh.
Yang Cheon tilted his head.
“Why the sudden sigh?”
“Have you gained some new insight in the meantime? You seem even more difficult to deal with than before.”
It was a blunt, honest remark without any embellishment.
Yang Cheon thought that Yeon Hojeong’s perceptiveness and reaction were remarkable. Just as he had told his disciple, this fellow understood far too well how to handle people.
“It is thanks to you. After detoxifying that damned poison, I have felt a sense of ease in my heart.”
“It was unnecessary.”
“If you had not done that unnecessary thing, your life would have been quite bleak, would it not?”
Yeon Hojeong chuckled.
“I cannot deny that.”
“Enough nonsense. Pour the drinks.”
“As you wish.”
A moment later, the two men clinked their cups and emptied them cleanly.
“Kuh, did you not say it was good liquor?”
“Does it not suit your taste?”
“Is the simplicity not excessive? How can cheap white liquor be considered good?”
“There is nothing better to my palate.”
“If you keep drinking this stuff, your stomach will suffer.”
“If my stomach could be ruined by something like this, I would have died of illness long ago. Anyway……”
Yeon Hojeong wore a meaningful smile.
“Why did you do something so unlike the Lord of the Black Dragon Department?”
Yang Cheon feigned ignorance.
“I do not know what you mean.”
“I am talking about Kang Liang.”
Yang Cheon felt oddly embarrassed. He had thought the remark was about Botam.
“He is not someone who meets the Lord’s standards yet.”
“If he had been someone who met my standards, his head would already be rolling.”
“This will not do. I need to increase my training time as well.”
“Hahaha.”
Yeon Hojeong spoke in a somewhat serious tone.
“No one can know the future, but when the day comes that our relationship is severed, I have a feeling that it will be his hand, not mine, that takes the Lord’s head.”
“On the contrary.”
Yang Cheon refilled Yeon Hojeong’s cup as he spoke.
“It is also possible that all of you will die by my hand. And I believe that probability is higher.”
“That is true.”
“How easy and comfortable life would be if everything went according to plan. Then again, an easy and comfortable life is not interesting.”
“That is also true.”
The two men emptied their cups once more.
Yang Cheon, his face twisted from the harsh taste of the white liquor, spoke as if sighing.
“I received the gift you sent well.”
Yeon Hojeong chuckled.
“I only did the packaging.”
“Indeed. If it had passed through your hands, it would have arrived with all its joints shattered.”
“It might have been better that way. Losing an arm is fatal for a martial artist.”
“If losing one arm allows one to reach a higher realm, it would be a profitable trade. Losing a leg would be another matter.”
He was sincere.
Yeon Hojeong realized it. Yang Cheon’s words just now were genuine.
“I did not think he was someone worth cherishing.”
“I treat my disciples with great equality. I value equal education and equal treatment. However, to those who properly climb up from there, I give without holding back.”
“Like your second disciple?”
“That is right.”
For a moment, Yang Cheon’s eyes turned cold.
“However, even if he is foolish and ill-mannered, he is still my disciple. The title of ‘Disciple of the King of Combat’ has not disappeared from before the name Jeon Hong.”
“How fortunate. Thanks to that, he did not die.”
“The heir of the destroyed Ghost Sword Sect overwhelmed and humiliated the third young master of the Black Dragon Department. You must know how troublesome this problem is.”
“That is why I said it was fortunate.”
“If he had killed him instead, at least a picture of generous forgiveness could have been drawn.”
“Are you serious?”
Yang Cheon stared at Yeon Hojeong with cold eyes, then soon smiled.
“As expected, this level of threat does not even make you flinch.”
“If I had truly disliked it, Kang Liang would not have survived.”
“I find myself admiring you anew. You truly have excellent insight.”
Yeon Hojeong, who had been smiling quietly, refilled Yang Cheon’s cup once more.
“In any case, since it was your disciple who started the trouble first, let us consider this matter as never having happened.”
“Very well.”
The two men emptied their cups again.
After the third round of cups had been emptied, the conversation finally moved to the main point.
“I believe you know the reason I invited the Lord here.”
“Has the time for playful probing passed?”
“It has.”
“Then I will admit it. Yes, I know very well why you invited me to this place.”
Yeon Hojeong’s eyes sank deeply.
In that moment, Yang Cheon felt it. The Yeon Hojeong who had returned after concluding matters in Guangdong had grown another level compared to before.
Beyond enlightenment or internal energy, he sensed that something had changed.
“Was it you, my lord, who reduced Botam to that state?”
Yang Cheon admitted it in an almost cheerful voice.
“There is no fact more certain than that.”
“As Lord of the Black Dragon Department, I know well that the Sword Queen of Botam was a thorn in your side.”
“……So you knew.”
“But it does not seem to be for that reason alone……”
“My apologies, but before that, let me ask one thing.”
“Please speak.”
Yang Cheon asked with an expressionless face.
“To destroy the Sama Cult, just how far are you willing to go?”
“……?!”
“Are you prepared to throw away everything you have?”
The corner of Yeon Hojeong’s mouth curled upward.