Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Obliterating the Mad Wind Bandits
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“Kuhahaha! Our little Hiang has skin as soft and delicate as her gentle heart!”
“Oh ho hot! You sure know how to sweet-talk a girl!”
A middle-aged man, half-drunk and his clothes disheveled, was reveling in a messy tangle with several women.
His flushed face twisted in a sleazy grin as he kept guzzling down drinks, lost in the revelry with the women.
But just then, urgent footsteps echoed from the corridor.
And as the sounds halted nearby...
“Boss! We’ve got big trouble!”
Two underlings flung the door open in a panic.
Ssslit!
The torso of the one who entered first was cleaved clean in half by a sword strike.
The Mad Wind Bandits’ leader, Explosive Fury Demon Sword Hwang Ak, had already drawn his blade and risen, his voice ice-cold as he spoke.
“Who gave you permission to open my door?”
His chilling glare made the surviving underling pale and drop flat to the floor, scrambling to explain.
“Forgive me! It was an emergency I had to report right away!”
“An emergency, you say... Let’s hear it.”
Hwang Ak pointed his sword at the man.
“But if it’s not worth interrupting my fun, you can look forward to what comes next.”
The underling shuddered, shooting a glance at his cooling corpse of a comrade.
He reported in a trembling voice.
“The Cult Leader has arrived at Yangha and taken the village! In the process, the deputy boss and all his men guarding it were wiped out!”
“...The Cult Leader?”
Hwang Ak’s hand, twisting the sword as if ready to strike, froze for a moment.
A brief silence fell before he asked again.
“You mean the Cult Leader I know?”
“Yes! The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult’s Leader has descended and entered the Akhan Desert himself!”
“Ku... ku... kuhahaha!”
Hwang Ak burst into mad laughter.
He laughed so hard it seemed to shake the heavens, then opened his mouth with an excited grin.
“To think such an opportunity rolls right under my feet like a vine—what else could this be but heaven’s luck!”
Sheathing his sword, Hwang Ak expelled the alcohol from his system with his inner energy in one go.
His face beaming with delight, the underling stammered as if unsure he’d heard right.
“The d-deputy boss was k-killed...”
“Deung Yeom was weak to begin with. He only had high rank because he’d been around so long.”
Hwang Ak clicked his tongue and continued.
“And that fool always overestimated himself. Thinking he could take down the Cult Leader with those pathetic bugs? What an idiot.”
Pushing the women aside, he finished dressing and headed straight for the corridor.
Even as he walked, the grin never left his face.
“Perfect! Time to spread the fame of Hwang Ak and the Mad Wind Bandits across Shin River—no, the entire martial world!”
Kuhahaha!
He let out a guttural laugh and strode outside.
Before setting out for the Mad Wind Bandits’ stronghold, Hyeok Mulin granted the Divine Demon Blood Death Squad a day’s rest.
Once they’d fully recovered from their fatigue and restored their condition, they marched southeast the next day.
“Our destination is Sawol Nokju.”
Sawol Nokju was the name for Nokju, a place with just four puddles of water. It was where the Mad Wind Bandits had settled, fortifying it into their stronghold.
“How did you learn of their base?”
“We’ve been keeping tabs on the Mad Wind Bandits for a while.”
“For a while?”
When Jang Wi asked in surprise, Hyeok Mulin replied nonchalantly.
“Yes. They’ve been plotting rebellion against our cult. If we don’t crush them now, they’d come at me with blades again in a few years.”
“No way!”
“Those mongrel bastards!”
“We won’t even leave their bones this time!”
The squad members bristled with outrage, their eyes flashing.
Then Man Hyobom piped up.
“So, does that mean no hostages at the base we’re heading to?”
“Right. The captives they took are being held separately in nearby villages, not at the main base.”
“Which means Sawol Nokju is crawling with nothing but bandits.”
Man Hyobom’s lips curled into a grin at the thought of rampaging freely without worry.
Fired up for battle, the squad moved out and soon arrived within sight of Sawol Nokju without issue.
Staring straight ahead, Ji Wolhon parted his lips.
“It’s a fortress, alright.”
Sawol Nokju was walled off on all sides with mud and bricks.
Inside, four watchtowers loomed high, allowing quick detection and response to any nearby movement.
Hyeok Mulin, pondering the terrain, soon spoke to Ji Wolhon.
“Send out the three who shone before, leading divided squads.”
Danri Hyang to the left flank.
Man Hyobom to the right.
And Han Baek straight ahead.
“They each have different styles, so it’ll be interesting to watch.”
“Understood.”
Ji Wolhon split the squad per Hyeok Mulin’s orders and immediately commanded the assault.
They scattered in three directions with perfect coordination, charging toward Sawol Nokju.
Hyeok Mulin watched from a nearby hillock with Jang Wi and Ji Wolhon.
“Begin.”
At Ji Wolhon’s signal, the squads attacked the walls from all three sides at once.
The bandits inside swarmed like rabid dogs, desperately defending.
Looking down, Hyeok Mulin glanced right and spoke.
“Man Hyobom’s the fastest, as expected.”
He was the first to breach Sawol Nokju.
At the start, he moved on pure instinct, grabbing the wall barehanded and vaulting over.
Then he smashed the inner gate, paving the way for his squad.
“Brutal. He moves like a wild beast.”
“But if we can leash him, he’ll be a huge asset.”
“No. I have no intention of putting a leash on him.”
“...Pardon?”
Ji Wolhon tilted his head.
Hyeok Mulin calmly described his nature.
“He’s the type who shows his true interest and ability when left unobserved. Give him as much autonomy as possible.”
Even his own Man Clan had given up trying to collar him as heir.
But Hyeok Mulin had no plans to abandon Man Hyobom.
He aimed to win true loyalty without restraint.
Of course, it would take time to reach that point.
“Yes, sir. I’ll do that.”
Hyeok Mulin’s gaze shifted left, and soon a soft exclamation escaped him.
“Ho.”
Danri Hyang focused all his power on the gate for a pinpoint breakthrough.
Soon the gate crumbled, and his squad poured inside.
“Unlike Man Hyobom, he uses his squad, but still aggressive.”
“Yes. If one’s a merciless hammer, the other’s a sharp blade.”
“Hammer and sword.”
Hyeok Mulin nodded in satisfaction, then eyed the front.
Han Baek was tackling the fortress by the book.
But as bandits rushed east and west for support, he seized the gap and slipped inside.
“Han Baek holds the center steadily.”
“You need at least one by-the-book type in the unit.”
If everyone charged like Danri Hyang or went berserk solo like Man Hyobom, the squad would collapse fast.
Han Baek complemented them, leading while staying aware of flanks and methodically dismantling foes on his terms.
“Looks like the Divine Demon Blood Death Squad’s balance is coming together.”
“Yes. If they sync up, their power will be immense.”
But they were still out of rhythm.
Danri Hyang’s path crossed Man Hyobom’s, getting in each other’s way; some of Danri Hyang’s men even fell into Han Baek’s traps.
Watching the chaotic coordination, Ji Wolhon rubbed his forehead with a deep sigh.
“Still a long way to go.”
“No rush. Build them solid like a sandcastle that won’t crumble. They’ve got the talent.”
As he said, despite the mismatch, their individual prowess was driving back the bandits.
Soon, the bandits began retreating one by one.
“R-run!”
“They’re too strong...!”
“We can’t handle them!”
As they fled toward the rear gate...
Slash!
A middle-aged man appeared, slicing a fleeing bandit’s throat.
“From now on, anyone heading my way dies by my hand.”
His threat made the panicking bandits wheel around in terror, charging forward again.
Hyeok Mulin eyed him intently as the mood flipped.
“That’s Hwang Ak.”
He was the last disciple of the Red Fury Sword Sect, once famed for his savage swordsmanship.
But after being expelled for slaughtering innocents, he harbored grudges, killed his master, and hid deep in the desert.
‘His skill’s the real deal, though.’
He’d slain his sect leader master and nearly sparked a rebellion in Hyeok Mulin’s past life almost single-handedly.
Gauging his level, Hyeok Mulin spoke calmly.
“Ji Wolhon.”
“Yes.”
“Go finish it.”
Man Hyobom and Danri Hyang together might win, but Hyeok Mulin wouldn’t gamble their lives on uncertainty.
Time to end it cleanly.
“Yes, sir!”
Ji Wolhon bowed and vanished in a blur.
Soon, he reappeared in the heart of Sawol Nokju.
“Captain...!”
“Captain?”
“Then that’s Ji Wolhon!”
The squad’s cheers drew all eyes to him, bandits included.
Ji Wolhon advanced on Hwang Ak with a blank expression.
Hwang Ak laughed loudly, taunting him.
“Kuhahaha! You’re that prison dog from the thunder dungeon! Repeating your old tricks, eh?”
He tried to provoke emotion, but Ji Wolhon’s face didn’t twitch.
“Hmph, boring.”
With no retort, Hwang Ak snorted and drew his sword.
As the one-on-one duel formed, onlookers scattered.
Most halted fighting to watch.
“I’ll kill you and the Cult Leader too. Hwang Ak’s name will echo through the martial world.”
“......”
Ji Wolhon stared coldly ahead at the blatant taunt.
Then—
‘Now!’
Thinking him shaken, Hwang Ak lunged with Explosive Fury Sword.
Demonic energy gathered at the tip, flashing like it’d burst, hurtling at Ji Wolhon.
But.
Thud.
Ji Wolhon stomped heavily, meeting the blade’s tip with his fist.
Suddenly, the world slowed for Hwang Ak.
‘Impossible!’
The qi-wrapped sword shattered against the fist.
And it didn’t stop.
The fist drew closer.
“N-no...!”
As it neared his nose, Hwang Ak’s eyes bulged.
Then a deafening explosion roared.
Kaboomboomboom!
A massive dust cloud rose.
When it settled, everyone watching froze in awe.
One strike.
With Great Demon Fierce Fist, Ji Wolhon had obliterated Hwang Ak’s upper body.
Not a scrap of organ or flesh remained in his torso.
The ground behind fanned out in a deep crater, and the rear wall was gone.
“......”
“......”
“......”
The squad shivered at the overwhelming might; the bandits lost all will to fight, dazed.
One by one, they dropped weapons and knelt.
“...We surrender.”
Accepting the remnants’ unconditional surrender, the Mad Wind Bandits subjugation ended.
However, days later, this event stirred new ripples, ushering the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult into a fresh phase.