Chapter 166
Chapter 166
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 166
Chapter Title: Pseudo Heart Technique
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“Who made this?”
Cheonhwi tilted his head, staring piercingly at the Blood Dragon Sect Leader and his disciples.
He had seen countless energies over the years.
From Confucian Qi Arts, Daoist Qi Arts, Buddhist Qi Arts, and energies based on Yin-Yang and the Five Elements, of course.
To reverse-heaven energies like demonic qi, evil qi, and blood qi.
But this was on another level entirely.
It wasn't Yin-Yang Five Elements, nor was it reverse-heaven energy.
It simply didn't belong to this world.
As if artificially created.
'It's like a shell claiming to be qi.'
Cheonhwi's eyes took them in.
The energy emanating from them felt like something forcibly shoved into their bodies by someone.
At that moment, they straightened their postures.
Their red sclera, which had been drooling in a loss of reason, gradually recovered.
Clear black-and-white eyes emerged. But their gazes weren't fixed on anything specific.
They just stared straight ahead.
'Their eyes are clear now, but they've still lost their reason?'
They looked fine on the outside, but seemed hollow inside.
Just like the energy they were emitting now.
“Pseudo Heart Technique...!”
A thrilled voice rang out then.
Looking over, Cheon Ig-ae was gazing at the Blood Dragon Sect Leader and disciples with sparkling eyes.
He couldn't hide his joy.
“This really is the place...”
“Pseudo Heart Technique?”
“Eek!”
Cheon Ig-ae jumped in surprise at Cheonhwi's sudden appearance, clutching his still-throbbing heart and grumbling.
“Why do you pop up like that! I thought my heart was gonna drop out!”
Ignoring Cheon Ig-ae's scolding, Cheonhwi asked what piqued his curiosity.
“What's that technique? Doesn't look like an ordinary one.”
At the question, Cheon Ig-ae smirked.
“Why, wanna know?”
Grinning slyly, he stared straight at Cheonhwi and opened his mouth.
“That is...”
It was then, as he was about to speak.
Taat!
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader and disciples lunged forward.
But something was off.
They weren't targeting Cheonhwi, who had taken them down, but only Cheon Ig-ae.
Cheon Ig-ae's face twisted savagely.
“You damned bastards!”
Spitting curses in a gravelly voice, he circulated his inner energy and moved his feet.
Sruruk—
In an instant, his body swayed like a drunkard's, leaving afterimages.
It was the Drunken Eight Immortals Step, the most unique footwork praised even in the Beggar Clan.
“Why are you after me! The one who took you down wasn't me, it was that guy!”
Dodging their relentless attacks, Cheon Ig-ae bellowed.
From his position, it was utterly unfair.
He hadn't laid a hand on them, let alone done anything!
Yet they were only attacking him.
But the Blood Dragon Sect Leader and disciples swung their weapons at Cheon Ig-ae with mouths shut tight, as if they couldn't even hear him.
Veins bulged on Cheon Ig-ae's forehead as he evaded with Drunken Eight Immortals Step.
“You little shits...”
Trembling with rage, he clenched his fists and ground his teeth.
“Think you can look down on this old beggar! Fine, come at me!”
Only then did his aura change drastically.
Pure white energy rose from his body, slowly wrapping around his fists.
Cheonhwi's eyes locked onto him.
'Drunken Eight Immortals Art?'
Interest flickered in his gaze.
The Drunken Eight Immortals Art was a bizarre technique so rare that extremely few in the Beggar Clan even cultivated it.
This was due to its unique training process and the scarcity of those willing to learn it.
A faint smile curved Cheonhwi's lips.
Could anything be more intriguing?
'A clash between an energy I've never seen and the Drunken Eight Immortals Art... This'll be fun.'
Just then, Cheon Ig-ae stomped his true stance.
Kuwoong!
With a massive thud, his form turned into a single gust of wind.
Shooting forward at tremendous speed, he targeted the Blood Dragon Sect Leader first.
Whoosh!
Weaving through the flurry of blades, he brought his fists together.
'Smash the head first...'
Recalling a method etched into his mind from countless battles, he poured inner energy into his right fist and thrust it out in an instant.
Hoooowooong—
The fist force ripping through the air carried immense power.
This power grew fiercer the longer it extended, generating a vortex.
Finally, it reached the Blood Dragon Sect Leader's chest.
Peueueok!
With a gruesome sound, the Blood Dragon Sect Leader's body flew back, crashing into the wall.
Kwaaang!
He was soon buried in the shattered debris.
“Think you can mess with me! Sure, I'm more famous as an info broker than a martial artist, but you think I'm weaker than trash like you?”
Cheon Ig-ae grinned and dusted off his hands.
The area around him was a mess.
His left foot's stomp had cracked the ground like a spiderweb, from the sheer inner energy and force in his fist.
The shockwave had flung the nearby Blood Dragon disciples back, toppling them before they could approach.
“Now that I've got your tails, time to uncover your identities. Oh right, first I need to cripple your dantians...”
As he strode confidently toward the Blood Dragon Sect Leader,
Tududuk—
A sound made him furrow his brow.
The debris twitched, and the Blood Dragon Sect Leader was rising.
Cheon Ig-ae's lips twitched.
He didn't like seeing the man get up right now.
“...You withstood Jade Shattering Fist?”
The Jade Shattering Fist he unleashed was one of the Beggar Clan's top destructive fist arts.
Even a peak expert would faint from a direct hit.
Yet this weakling not only endured it but stood up unscathed.
“Trained some external arts...”
Cheon Ig-ae shut his mouth.
More like he had no choice.
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader's state upon rising was unnatural.
“How's he standing in that condition?”
A clear mark from the Jade Shattering Fist remained on his chest.
Blood streamed from his mouth.
It was a critical injury with shattered bones and internal damage, yet he rose with no sign of pain.
“You idiot! Stay down! Your body's in the worst state right now. Moving more will kill you!”
Cheon Ig-ae shouted urgently.
His purpose here was intel gathering, not killing the Blood Dragon Sect Leader.
Then.
An unbelievable change occurred.
Udu-duk—
A chilling sound echoed, followed by white steam rising from his mouth.
His body turned blood-red like flesh. Simultaneously, a heartbeat resounded.
The next moment, white steam erupted from his entire body, and the chest wound healed rapidly.
“What kind of freakish...”
Cheon Ig-ae blanked out for a second.
If not for the torn martial robe on his chest, it would be impossible to believe he'd taken the Jade Shattering Fist. He looked utterly serene.
A wound from Jade Shattering Fist required at least half a year bedridden.
Yet it healed that fast?
No elixir could achieve that.
As Cheon Ig-ae stared dazedly,
“Fascinating.”
Cheonhwi's eyes gleamed coldly.
More precisely, at the changes inside him.
“Just now, innate true qi arose, enveloped the body, and healed it rapidly.”
It looked like the wound simply closed, but the energy inside had mixed with innate true qi to manifest.
'Even using innate true qi, that recovery isn't possible. So that energy is dominant.'
“Pseudo Heart Technique, you said?”
Cheonhwi recalled the name Cheon Ig-ae mentioned, a faint smile on his lips.
His interest deepened.
In that energy, and its creator.
Then the Blood Dragon Sect Leader charged again.
At a speed incomparable to before.
Using a mad, forward-only footwork, he unleashed sharp claw techniques at Cheon Ig-ae's head.
Cheon Ig-ae's eyes widened.
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader's inner energy had surged far beyond before.
'He's stronger than moments ago. Is this the bizarre power of the Pseudo Heart Technique?'
He hurriedly circulated his inner energy.
Then thrust twin palms at the claw technique sharp enough to sever his head.
It was Jade Shattering Divine Palm.
Their hands clashed soon after.
Kwaang!
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader's wrists twisted.
But they snapped back immediately, launching a follow-up strike.
“You damned bastard...!”
A curse escaped involuntarily.
As Cheon Ig-ae whipped his head aside, a sharp wind grazed his cheek.
Then vicious killing intent washed over him.
Before he knew it, Blood Dragon disciples had surrounded him, closing in.
“Don't hate me when you die!”
He unleashed Drunken Eight Immortals Step again.
With drunken steps, Cheon Ig-ae dodged their weapons by a hair's breadth and struck with palms.
Peuk! Peuk!
Divine palm winds lashed out continuously.
The disciples were flung back, rolling on the ground...
But Cheon Ig-ae's expression soured.
'Why are these guys so tough now!'
His hands tingled.
It felt like striking hard rock; the impact reverberated through his palms.
And not only that.
The disciples on the ground were slowly rising again.
“You crazy bastards! Stay down! Or you'll die! Die, I say!”
Cheon Ig-ae bellowed.
But despite his shouts, they resumed their attacks.
“These fools are really trying to get themselves killed.”
Making a fed-up face, he turned to Cheonhwi and yelled.
“How long you gonna watch! Wanna see this old man die?!”
It was absurd.
No matter how much they recovered and attacked, their limits were clear.
Innate true qi wasn't infinite.
Besides, Cheon Ig-ae's skill outclassed theirs by leagues.
He wouldn't even get scratched, let alone die.
Yet Cheon Ig-ae shouted again, heedless.
“Help me already! We need to snap them out of it!”
Normally, Cheonhwi would ignore it.
But he prepared to step in.
Not to help Cheon Ig-ae, but because he was interested in them.
“Wanna clash with that energy once. See what it's made of.”
Cheonhwi's eyes sparkled brightly.
He took a step forward.
Jeobuk—
In that instant, the atmosphere shifted drastically.
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader and disciples, about to attack Cheon Ig-ae, turned to Cheonhwi for the first time and hesitated.
Their instincts screamed warnings.
Don't approach him!
Seeing them, Cheonhwi chuckled.
“What, scared? If you've lost reason, follow your instincts.”
He said it in a deliberately defenseless stance.
But the Blood Dragon Sect Leader and disciples trembled uncontrollably, unable to move.
Because they'd lost reason?
They were relying solely on instinct now, more than anything.
Thus, they couldn't move.
Like a deer freezing against a tree at the sight of a tiger.
“This won't do.”
Cheonhwi smacked his lips.
He wanted to precisely gauge their energy. For that, they needed to come at full force...
“Any other way?”
As Cheonhwi pondered methods,
“Did you do something? Good job!”
Clueless to his thoughts, Cheon Ig-ae rejoiced at their halt.
“You stay put. Once I cripple their dantians, their minds will...”
As he excitedly approached the Blood Dragon Sect Leader and disciples,
Hweeeik—
A whistle sounded from afar.
The faint inner energy in the sound vibrated the air, arriving swiftly.
'Sound art?'
Cheonhwi turned toward the source, reading the inner energy piercing his ears. Then,
“What the...!”
Cheon Ig-ae shouted.
At the same time, the Blood Dragon Sect Leader, forgetting instinct, charged at Cheonhwi.
“So that's it.”
As Cheonhwi eyed the one hiding silently on the eaves,
Hweeeik!
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader swung his hand.
As he tried to unleash Blood Dragon Claw, Cheonhwi was already moving.
Deobseok.
Staring fixedly at the Blood Dragon Claw, Cheonhwi raised his left hand and gripped the wrist.
“Put a bit more effort. You're mobilizing innate true qi—don't make it pathetic.”
Veins popped on the Blood Dragon Sect Leader's arm.
Muscles tore with sounds, inner energy blazing fiercely.
White steam rose.
His muscles repeatedly collapsed and repaired for a moment.
“That's it?”
Cheonhwi said casually, tossing him aside.
By now, deep wrinkles creased the Blood Dragon Sect Leader's face, and half his hair had turned white.
“Is this your limit? Hmm, for something fueled by innate true qi, it's a bit disappointing. No, considering original skill, it's impressive.”
Cheonhwi yanked the Blood Dragon Sect Leader forward with force, extending his right hand.
Ppakak!
His palm smashed the face.
Releasing the gripped wrist, he slammed the body to the ground in that state.
Kwajik!
The occiput embedded an inch into the ground, cracking the earth.
“Don't let your guard down! He'll get up again!”
Cheon Ig-ae shouted urgently.
And as he said,
The Blood Dragon Sect Leader planted palms on the ground, rose, and met Cheonhwi's eyes.
The moment he raised a hand,
Jureureuk—
A bowlful of blood poured from his mouth.
The dark blood smeared the blood dragon emblem on his robe as he collapsed face-first.
“...!”
Cheon Ig-ae's jaw dropped.
He'd felt how tough the Blood Dragon Sect Leader was in their exchange.
Yet taken down in one strike.
“Similar to Yin-Yang Gu.”
Cheonhwi glanced at the fallen Blood Dragon Sect Leader.
The strike he'd just used.
The intent within had read the energy dominating the body.
Cheonhwi's gaze lifted.
To the eaves precisely.
“You use that sound art to control those who've cultivated Pseudo Heart Technique at will?”
“...”
No answer to the question.
“Not?”
“...”
Still silent.
“Gave you a chance, but you refuse.”
With those words, Cheonhwi thrust his palm.
Kwaaang!
The eaves shattered, debris raining down.
“Uwa! What the hell?!”
Startled by the sudden palm force, Cheon Ig-ae dodged the falling debris.
“How long have you known?”
A chilling voice emanated.
The one who'd whistled earlier; faint inner energy laced the voice.
“Since you were skulking like a rat on the wall, watching secretly.”
“...”
“More importantly, how long you gonna hide and use that useless sound art? The ones you tried to control are frozen; they won't heed you.”
Cheonhwi pointed at the Blood Dragon disciples.
Despite the sound art command, they couldn't move like the Sect Leader.
“Useless trash.”
A cold voice struck.
“Gave you worthless scum the power you craved so much, yet you can't even follow a simple order...”
“Not because the sound art's weak?”
“...”
“And it was what you wanted. To use them as puppets. Of course, your meager skill failed.”
“...You don't know fear of the world.”
“Yeah. Never have. So why don't you teach me?”
Cheonhwi grinned.
“How scary the world is.”