Chapter 325
Chapter 325
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 333
Chapter Title: Overrunning the Great Tiger Stronghold
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In an instant, bandits poured out in front of the Great Tiger Stronghold.
Two hundred bandits scattered a ferocious killing intent as they charged toward the enemies in front of the stronghold.
The Thirty-Two Bandit Strongholds were no small-time outfit.
Aside from their status as bandits, they could easily pass for a martial arts sect.
Every one of the two hundred bandits in the Great Tiger Stronghold had trained in greenwood martial arts and honed their skills through real combat on the mountain paths.
Even mid-sized sects avoided tangling with the Great Tiger Stronghold because of their brutality forged in battle.
The bandits called themselves heroes and styled themselves as mountain kings because their lives truly were like those of tigers.
Escorts were prey, and failure to hunt meant going hungry.
Every mountain trek was tied to life and death, so they had no choice but to stake their lives on every raid.
The bandits heightened their killing intent and leaped in.
"Kill them!"
"Hraaap!"
"Chaaat!"
Skakakakang!
The clash of metal rang out sharply, one after another.
The bandits charged madly up the lower path, roaring ferociously.
As battle-hardened bandits, they instinctively sought out their opponents and moved...
Moved...
Pwaaaang!
Swaaaang! Kwang!
"Huh?"
One bandit blinked in confusion. His pupils dilated as he watched a comrade fly off like a shooting star.
Kwaang! Pwaaaang!
Pung pung pung!
With every swing of Peng Yeon-hwa's fists or the log she gripped, people bounced away like balls.
Skak! Skak!
"Uwaaaak!"
"T-That bitch cut off my wrist...!"
"Ugh! M-My arm!"
"Kyahaha!"
On one side, So Hye-yeon was slicing off bandits' wrists and laughing.
The bandits panicked.
Go one way, and you'd get smashed like a ball into pulp; go the other, and your wrist flew off.
Regardless of their four-to-one numerical advantage, the bandits felt terror from the two rampaging women.
And through that gap, Peng Jung-hyuk and the Blood Death Squad leaped in.
"Keurk!"
"Kraaak!"
"Huek!"
The bandits cried out in alarm.
The quietly advancing Peng Jung-hyuk and Blood Death Squad were masters they couldn't overwhelm with numbers.
The difference between master and novice lay in how they used space.
In a one-span gap, a novice could only attack from three directions, while a master commanded all ten.
In the confined space before the stronghold, the gap between the Blood Death Squad and the bandits was even greater.
Skakakakak!
"Kraaaak!"
"Keurk!"
"F-Fall back! Create distance!"
"You bastards!"
The bandits suffered heavy losses and retreated in an instant.
Seo Gang-jong ground his teeth.
"You stupid fuckers!"
The enemies' skills exceeded his expectations.
'Those guys are definitely not bandits!'
Bandits of that caliber would be at the top of the Thirty-Two Strongholds.
Why would they, from the same Thirty-Two, attack while wearing masks?
That meant these were damn righteous sect bastards pretending to be bandits.
As he watched the madly rampaging enemies, Seo Gang-jong issued an order to the Great Tiger Ten Heroes.
"Capture those prancing bastards! I'll confirm myself where they're from!"
"Yes, Stronghold Leader!"
"Let's go!"
The Great Tiger Ten Heroes leaped into the battlefield with fierce glares.
The eldest of the Great Tiger Ten Heroes, First Hero, narrowed his eyes.
His gaze locked on Peng Jung-hyuk, who was rampaging at the front.
"Second and Third! With me—we take down that bear bastard!"
"Yes, brother!"
"The rest of you, grab those prancing ones over there!"
The Great Tiger Ten Heroes split into three directions.
First Hero swung his massive hooked sword at Peng Jung-hyuk.
"You bastard!"
The hooked sword, capable of severing a bull's neck in one stroke, aimed for Peng Jung-hyuk's throat.
Jjiririrung! Kaang!
Peng Jung-hyuk casually deflected the hooked sword.
First Hero's eyes bulged.
His hooked sword, infused with full internal energy, bounced away so easily, and his hands throbbed as if torn.
He shook off Peng Jung-hyuk's instantly closing grip and hastily retreated, while Second and Third Heroes blocked the charging Peng Jung-hyuk.
Jjjeojeong!
"Keurk!"
"Ugh!"
Clashing with Peng Jung-hyuk's blade, Second and Third Heroes staggered back from the sheer power.
First Hero shouted.
"That guy's the leader! He's their chief!"
Peng Jung-hyuk's brow twitched.
"You bear bastard!"
"This one's the ringleader!"
"We need to gang up. He's no ordinary guy!"
Bear?
Ringleader?
Leader?
No, fuck!
Couldn't they see the one swinging the axe over there?
He could almost hear Tak Hyuk-dong's mocking laugh from nearby, where he was axe-chopping away.
Peng Jung-hyuk went berserk.
"You fucking sons of bitches! How the hell do I look like the ringleader?!"
Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang!
Peng Jung-hyuk's savage blade strikes shattered the hooked swords of First, Second, and Third Heroes.
Jjjeeeong!
"Keurk!"
"The ringleader...!"
"Kuhk!"
"Ringleader? Don't call me ringleader! I said don't call me that!"
Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang!
Immense power rode Peng Jung-hyuk's wild overhead chops.
The Hebei Peng Family men's innate strength, combined with the mighty energy of the Mixed Origin Divine Art, added a thousand-catty force even to his reckless swings.
Kwang! Kwang!
"Kraaak! Str-Stronghold Leader! Th-This guy's the...!"
First Hero's eyes bulged.
Peng Jung-hyuk's fist smashed into their faces.
Kwaang!
Crushing the Great Tiger Ten Heroes like crumpled paper, Peng Jung-hyuk wailed.
"I'm not the ringleader—!"
Peng Jung-hyuk began rampaging like a madman.
As the battle heated up, Namgung Hyeok leisurely moved toward the stronghold.
While So Hye-yeon, the Peng siblings, and the Blood Death Squad handled the bandits, the Thunder Dragon Squad swiftly joined Namgung Hyeok.
The Thunder Dragon Squad trio stood behind Namgung Hyeok, beating down any bandits that poked their heads out.
Namgung Hyeok smirked and eyed Seo Gang-jong standing before the stronghold.
Seo Gang-jong glared at Namgung Hyeok, his eyelids twitching.
"Who the hell are you bastards?!"
Namgung Hyeok smirked and glanced back at the Thunder Dragon Squad trio.
"See? He doesn't even know who we are."
"...Doesn't seem to think we're bandits either."
They were wearing masks and leather outfits, so of course he wouldn't know.
"What's it matter? Once we take the stronghold, we're bandits, right?"
"Uh... yeah."
Namgung Hyeok brazenly grinned at Geon Cheon-hwi.
'Don't say a word.'
Geon Cheon-hwi nodded obediently.
Seo Gang-jong's eyelids spasmed.
With him, the Great Tiger Stronghold Leader, right there, they were cracking jokes among themselves—it ignited his rage.
"How dare you!"
He swung his massive cleaver with full force.
Huaaaang!
Immense energy crossed thirty paces and flew at Namgung Hyeok.
Shwaaaang! Kaang!
Namgung Ryong leaped out and deflected the incoming cleaver energy.
Seo Gang-jong's eyes shook slightly.
An attack infused with eighty percent of his internal energy, nullified so easily!
But there was no time to be surprised.
The moment Namgung Ryong deflected the cleaver energy, he charged at Seo Gang-jong with terrifying speed.
Seo Gang-jong clenched his teeth.
"You damn fucker!"
The cleaver whipped through the air in all directions.
With bloodshot eyes, Seo Gang-jong slashed at Namgung Ryong as if ready to carve him into a thousand pieces.
Shwaaa! Buung buung! Shwaaang! Kwaang!
Wherever the cleaver grazed, ear-splitting whooshes and blasts echoed in succession.
The cleaver's energy, warping the air, was truly fearsome.
But Namgung Ryong's movements were far lighter and more fluid than he expected.
Even as the lowest among the Thirty-Two Bandit Strongholds, he was the Great Tiger Stronghold Leader.
It would take an escort leader from a major escort agency to match him, yet Namgung Ryong was overwhelming him with movement alone.
He blocked the axe trajectories as if he knew them, baited feints into empty swings.
It felt like playing in the palm of his hand.
"Y-You bastards!"
What flustered and enraged Seo Gang-jong even more was Namgung Hyeok and the Thunder Dragon Squad slipping past him as if they'd planned it.
As if he meant nothing to them.
No, that was exactly it.
"Fuck. It's disgustingly huge. Where the hell is it?"
"Should we spread out and search?"
"First, fan out and scout the stronghold corner to corner for the treasury locations."
"Yes? The treasury?"
"Yeah, the treasury."
"......"
"What? We finally nabbed a warehouse—gotta check it out."
Even in this chaos, he was thinking that far ahead.
'...He sees the stronghold as just a treasure vault.'
Quintessential Namgung Hyeok thinking.
"Yes... We'll search! Let's go!"
The Thunder Dragon Squad scattered in all directions to scour the stronghold.
Namgung Hyeok turned his head.
"Brother, keep that bastard occupied. Gotta ask him about the location. Looks like he's the leader here."
"Mm!"
Namgung Ryong nodded vigorously and pressed Seo Gang-jong.
Kang! Kaka-kang!
Seo Gang-jong was helplessly pushed back.
Fast, sharp thrusts—as if anticipated—added wounds to his body one by one.
"Keurk!"
Seo Gang-jong was stunned.
'No way!'
The moment the Green Forest King's envoy arrived, this shit happens!
Watching the Great Tiger Stronghold bandits collapse helplessly, Seo Gang-jong swallowed hard.
Puuuk!
"Kraaaak!"
Pain like a branding iron on his shoulder made Seo Gang-jong scream.
Namgung Ryong's cold eyes drove his sword straight in.
Suuuuk!
"Khaak!"
Seo Gang-jong staggered back.
The worst situation.
"You fucking damn...!"
At this rate, it was all over.
Forget the stronghold—he had to worry about his neck first.
Over two hundred in the Great Tiger Stronghold couldn't stop fifty?!
Where the hell did these masters pop from?!
Seo Gang-jong clutched his shoulder and tried to retreat, but Namgung Ryong's sword slithered after him like a snake.
As he clenched his teeth against the inescapably lethal strikes.
Kaaang!
Namgung Ryong's sword before him deflected a flying dagger from the side.
Sparks flew as Namgung Ryong lightly withdrew his sword and glanced across.
Cheong Woo-jin and two Mountain King Stronghold masters emerged, escorting him.
Seo Gang-jong rolled his eyes and hurriedly dashed toward him.
"H-Hero!"
Cheong Woo-jin swept his gaze over the battlefield and glanced at Seo Gang-jong.
"So this is the commotion."
Seo Gang-jong hastily bowed his head.
"S-Suddenly these bastards hit the stronghold... Th-They're challenging the Thirty-Two Bandit Strongholds. These mad fuckers otherwise...!"
"Call your men and reform ranks."
"Yes? B-But... Yes, yes. Understood!"
Under Cheong Woo-jin's razor-sharp glare, Seo Gang-jong clutched his wounded shoulder and ordered his men.
"All retreat! Reform ranks!"
At his shout, the bandits from the rear swiftly pulled back into the stronghold.
Cheong Woo-jin furrowed his brow and turned past Namgung Ryong toward Namgung Hyeok.
"You lot... You're righteous sect bastards, aren't you?"
Namgung Hyeok's eyes glinted slyly.
"What bullshit? We're bandits."
"Bandits? Hilarious."
"Not laughing."
"Even if you are, those guys aren't."
Cheong Woo-jin's gaze shifted to the fierce fighting.
Even hiding internal energy and true arts, the righteous sect traits leaked out inevitably.
Neatness, precision, and bursts of energy—they couldn't hide their nature.
Cheong Woo-jin's eyes sharpened.
Namgung Hyeok tsked and clicked his tongue.
"That's why sharp guys don't live long. Loyal retainers lose their heads early, y'know?"
Sreung!
His sword slowly drew, emanating a chilling aura.
Cheong Woo-jin's eyes darkened.
"What's your purpose here?"
Namgung Hyeok cracked his neck side to side and smirked.
"Taking over the stronghold!"
Madness gleamed in his eyes through the mask.