Chapter 211
Chapter 211
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 211
Chapter Title: Straightening Out the Tang Heir
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"What did you say?"
Dang Jeok's face twisted in fury.
The mere words from that Mount Hua Daoist were enough to make his blood boil, but the concerned gazes directed at him now only fueled his rage further.
"Do you even realize who you're daring to spout such nonsense to?"
Cheonhwi met Dang Jeok's glaring eyes steadily, one corner of his mouth twisting upward.
"Who else? You."
"...This bastard."
Dang Jeok ground his teeth.
That brazen face staring him down was utterly infuriating.
"You think you're better than me just because you got lucky with a sneak attack?"
The moment his rage-filled voice rang out.
Ssshh―
Purple mist spread low across the floor.
"What is this?!"
Pyeong Cheolwi leaped into action immediately.
Arms raised high, he blocked the mist emanating from Dang Jeok and shouted.
"Everyone, fall back! It's poison!"
His shout, infused with inner energy, echoed through the Taian Inn, sending the diners on this floor scrambling away in panic.
"Argh!"
"Gasp! Poison! Run!"
"The Tang Clan of Sichuan is unleashing poison arts!"
In an instant, the inn descended into chaos, with people fleeing like the tide receding.
And shortly after.
Only Cheonhwi's group remained on this floor, along with Dang Jeok and the guards he had brought.
Swish―
Cheonhwi, who had been in a standoff, sheathed his sword and stood up.
With two swords at his waist, he tilted his head toward Dang Jeok.
"You need to fix that attitude of yours..."
As he spoke, Dang Jeok's eyes turned icy, and he moved.
Swish―
In a split second, his figure vanished.
No, his movement was so swift it merely seemed to disappear.
"Not bad footwork..."
Cheonhwi's eyes narrowed.
The movements and flow Dang Jeok displayed as he began to move his feet were among the top-tier lightness skills he knew.
"Too bad the one using it falls short."
Meanwhile, Dang Jeok circled Cheonhwi, seeking an opening, his eyes growing colder.
'Does he think I'll fall for it again?'
The previous humiliation had been his own mistake.
He had let his guard down due to the unexpected overwhelming presence.
'Not this time.'
His eyes filled with venomous qi.
The Tang Clan of Sichuan was famous for poison arts, but their hidden weapons were equally renowned.
To wield hidden weapons effectively, one needed mastery in two areas.
First was the technique to handle them fluidly.
Second was a lightness skill optimized for deploying hidden weapons efficiently.
And now, Dang Jeok was closing the distance using the Tang Clan's most secretive footwork, tailored perfectly for hidden weapons: Dark Dragon Blood Step.
More stealthily and swiftly than ever.
Reaching within three feet of Cheonhwi in one breath, Dang Jeok thrust upward the right hand that had hung limp at his side.
A venomous hand gathered with purple energy.
It was one of the Tang Clan's signature techniques, the pinnacle of the martial arts Dang Jeok had mastered: Violet Cloud Divine Palm.
Crackle―
In that instant, his sleeve crumbled away from the poison qi.
The venom so potent he couldn't even control it enveloped his hand and spread a thick poison mist into the air.
As it coalesced into a cloud-like form, he raised his head.
His gaze pierced toward Cheonhwi.
Confirming that face still staring straight ahead, unaware of his position, Dang Jeok's lips twisted viciously.
'I won't kill you just yet.'
Sneering, he stepped forward to seize the perfect opportunity.
Crack!
The wooden floorboard underfoot caved in.
At the same time, his upward-striking hand accelerated, a trailing shadow following like a tail.
'Instead, I'll make you taste humiliation greater than what I suffered.'
The Violet Cloud Divine Palm was about to strike Cheonhwi's seemingly oblivious chin when.
Cheonhwi's eyes slid downward.
"...!"
For a moment, Dang Jeok felt chills from that piercing gaze.
Those utterly transparent eyes held no emotion whatsoever.
No surprise, no bewilderment.
It was the indifferent stare one might give a bug crawling at one's feet.
Then his eyes half-closed.
'Even if you look at me like that, your defeat is inevitable.'
Denying the chill from Cheonhwi's gaze, Dang Jeok gritted his teeth.
His palm was already at the chin, and realizing it now was too late to block the Violet Cloud Divine Palm.
That was the truth.
But that truth warped.
Grab.
His hand was blocked midway.
Cheonhwi's left hand had twisted and seized his wrist.
"...How?!"
It shattered his common sense.
Even with postemptive counters, this was on another level.
It was right under the chin.
He hadn't even seen the movement from the start of the attack until now, yet his wrist was caught?
His mind couldn't comprehend it.
Then, as Cheonhwi looked down at him, gripping his wrist, his closed lips slowly parted.
"I heard the Tang Clan of Sichuan prides itself on poison arts, but they're not that impressive."
Dang Jeok bit his lip hard.
Ignoring him was bad enough; mocking his clan made his eyes bloodshot as he glared at Cheonhwi.
Grab!
He twisted his hand sideways, seizing Cheonhwi's hand in turn.
Hands intertwined, gripping each other.
Cheonhwi glanced at Dang Jeok in that state.
"What, got more?"
"You've made a grave mistake."
Dang Jeok spat the words like chewing gravel.
And then.
Whoosh!
He unleashed the Return to Origin Myriad Poison Qi Art.
This time, surpassing purple, a green energy flowed from his hand, corroding the surroundings where he stood.
"Fool. To grab the hand of one versed in poison arts."
As he spat coldly.
Sizzle―
His sleeve rapidly melted, and his eyes turned green.
At the same time, vivid green energy fully enveloped Cheonhwi's hand.
Just like his sleeve, it seemed it would corrode the hand in moments.
However.
"...!"
Cheonhwi's hand showed no change.
No, not just his hand—even the Daoist robes he wore were unaffected by the poison qi.
Flustered, he looked up at Cheonhwi.
Cheonhwi gazed down with a bored expression, interest lost.
"A grave mistake? Is this all?"
Cheonhwi sneered, twisting his left hand slightly. Their entangled hands came undone in an instant, freeing his left.
"Pathetic."
"How can you remain so calm after the poison of Return to Origin Myriad Poison Qi Art?! Are you immune to myriad poisons or something?!"
Dang Jeok shouted in bewilderment.
Return to Origin Myriad Poison Qi Art was the Tang Clan's most aberrant poison art, harboring the strongest venom.
Yet he was unscathed!
"Not quite yet. At best, I'm a bit beyond ten thousand poison immunity right now?"
Cheonhwi said calmly.
"Well, I might get there soon."
"What nonsense...?!"
As the flustered Dang Jeok yelled.
"No need for more explanations. Time to fix that attitude of yours."
With those words, Cheonhwi drew his scabbard.
His stance seemed oddly casual.
Less like preparing a sword art and more like haphazardly raising it to swat a bug.
Then, as he swung the scabbard, Dang Jeok's eyes filled with shock.
"...!"
The seemingly random swing split into dozens of scabbard strikes in an instant.
"I-Impossible!"
He desperately flung out his hands.
Violet Cloud Divine Palm, Three Yang Divine Palms, Venomous Whip Fist, and more.
He unleashed countless techniques to bat away the dozens of scabbards, but.
Thwack! Thud!
The scabbard shattered or dodged his techniques, pummeling his entire body.
"Guh! Ack!"
Caught off guard, Dang Jeok was beaten senseless in moments.
"Release Young Master Dang!"
"Stop this instant!"
The guards, who never imagined Dang Jeok would be overwhelmed, rushed in desperately.
Their sleeves fluttered.
Whoosh―
Sharp hidden weapons shot out.
"Oh? Look at these guys."
Cheonhwi, gleefully thrashing away, swung his scabbard at the incoming projectiles.
Clang! Clang!
The weapons collided heavily with the scabbard and ricocheted back at them.
"Hup!"
Caught off guard by the counter, the guards' eyes widened.
But quickly assessing, they stomped the ground in retreat.
Thud! Thud!
The weapons embedded where they had stood, and the evading guards' eyes wavered.
What they had unleashed was one of the Tang Clan's top five hidden weapon techniques: Linked Twelve Slashes.
Even peak masters struggled to dodge fully, usually taking wounds.
Yet he had not only deflected but returned them.
"Why butt in?"
Cheonhwi said, looking at them.
"He said it was his personal matter. Surely the famed Tang Clan of Sichuan isn't going back on their word?"
The guards' eyebrows twitched.
As he said, with Dang Jeok claiming it personal, intervening would tarnish the clan's reputation.
But how could they stand by?
Even as he spoke, the scabbard showed no mercy!
"Martial arts are mediocre, but you've got some durability."
Thud! Thud! Thud!
"Guh, guh, p-please... stop..."
Already collapsed on the floor, Dang Jeok curled up to dodge the scabbard.
One guard, glaring at Cheonhwi, said.
"Young Master is incapacitated. Wouldn't it be best to stop?"
"Huh? Why should I?"
His 'what of it?' attitude made the guard snap.
"Are you trying to make an enemy of our clan?!"
"What are you talking about? This is between him and me."
Cheonhwi's mocking words made veins bulge on the guards' foreheads.
"You bastard!"
"Can't even grasp reality!"
As they shouted again, Cheonhwi spoke irritably.
"So noisy."
As he spoke, he lightly stomped the floor.
Crack―
Splintered wood fragments floated into the air.
Cheonhwi swung his scabbard wide at them, launching the splinters at the guards.
Thuk! Thuk!
The fragments struck their acupoints precisely.
"...!"
Looking at the now-frozen guards, Cheonhwi said lowly.
"You lot stay there quietly and watch what happens to him."
With that, he raised his scabbard again.
And in that moment.
Thwack! Thud! Thud!
A merciless beating far beyond before ensued.
"Guh! Ack!"
Dang Jeok writhed.
But Cheonhwi didn't stop.
If anything, he struck the exposed parts with even more vigor each time he twisted.
"Haa..."
Zhuge Sheng-ho covered his face with his hand.
As expected.
"At least he's not trying to kill him."
As he sighed in partial relief.
"The hero is as formidable as ever."
"No, he seems even stronger than before."
Hwangbo Sohyeon and Pyeong Cheolwi, watching beside him, were filled with unique sentiment.
The way Cheonhwi wielded the scabbard against Dang Jeok resembled the Interrogation Blood Points he had used on Moyong Sang in the past.
"Heup! Graa! Argh!"
Lost in reminiscence, they snapped back at Dang Jeok's ongoing screams.
It looked similar, but was clearly different.
Moyong Sang had faced Interrogation Blood Points; this was just a plain beatdown.
Hwangbo Sohyeon said cautiously.
"But isn't that a bit too much...?"
Pyeong Cheolwi, realizing the gravity similarly, whispered gravely.
"Indeed, no more..."
Just then, Dang Jeok, unable to endure the pain, grabbed Cheonhwi's pant leg.
"Guh, ack, p-please... stop now..."
Cheonhwi looked down at him.
His bare forearms, sleeves gone, were marked with vivid scabbard prints and bruises everywhere.
Pitiful to any onlooker.
But.
"Still yapping, so you can take a bit more."
Cheonhwi paid it no mind.
As he raised the scabbard again, Dang Jeok's face paled.
"Young hero! You must stop now!"
Zhuge Sheng-ho urgently intervened.
Not just him.
"H-Hero! Please stop!"
"You have to stop."
Hwangbo Sohyeon and Pyeong Cheolwi joined in.
Any more, and Dang Jeok might need long-term recovery.
Which could put Cheonhwi in a tough spot.
"Any further, and you'll make a grave enemy of the Tang Clan of Sichuan."
Hearing Zhuge Sheng-ho, Dang Jeok moved his trembling lips with effort.
"I-it's my fault. I won't tell the clan; I'll bear it alone, so please... stop..."
Cheonhwi stared at the near-tearful Dang Jeok and moved his lips.
"You'll bear it all?"
Dang Jeok nodded frantically.
"Hm, hard to believe."
"P-please believe me."
As Dang Jeok pleaded desperately.
Grab!
Cheonhwi seized his collar, lifting him to eye level.
"Hup...!"
Dang Jeok's breath caught.
Those pitch-black pupils.
The transparent, bottomless abyss within gnawed at his mind.
An otherworldly gaze he had never seen in his life.
Such eyes. Was this even human?
They looked down as if he alone existed in the world.
Lonely, aloof.
Yet it suited him.
As if it had always been so.
Then, Cheonhwi's mouth opened, revealing white teeth.
"This is the last time. No next."
A calm voice.
But to Dang Jeok, it struck like lightning.
And the next moment.
Gurgle―
Foam at the mouth, he passed out.
"Man, first guy with absolutely zero mental fortitude."
Cheonhwi tossed the unconscious Dang Jeok aside like trash.
Then, looking at the guards, he raised his scabbard to release their acupoints.
"Gasp! Y-Young Master!"
"Are you alright?"
Regaining freedom, they rushed to the fallen Dang Jeok, checking his condition hastily.
Cheonhwi said to them.
"Take him and go."
The guards bit their lips.
Furious.
But they lacked the courage or strength to attack.
Swallowing their rage, as they hoisted him to leave.
"Oh right. Wait a sec."
Cheonhwi called them back.
"...What?"
One guard asked, and Cheonhwi looked around.
"Pay for the inn repairs before you go. You weren't planning to trash the place and bail, right?"
The guard's eyebrow twitched.
They had caused some damage, but half was Cheonhwi's doing.
Yet he expected them to cover it all.
He wanted to retort but nodded reluctantly.
"...Understood."
Cheonhwi waved him off.
A 'get lost' gesture wounded their pride again, but they left quietly.
"Tch, no eating here now."
Wrinking his nose at the stinging poison scent, Cheonhwi sheathed his scabbard.
Surveying the wrecked inn, he turned to his group, who watched impassively.
"Still hungry. Let's finish eating at another inn."