Chapter 775: Next, It’s Your Turn.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 775: Next, It’s Your Turn.
"Anyone else want to stop me?"
Tang Seo-yoon’s cold gaze began to sweep across the room.
Slide.
Clatter, clatter.
One by one, the people inside the teahouse began to rise from their seats, their hands gripping the hilts of their swords.
Tang Seo-yoon stared them down, her eyes as piercing as the Bitter Cold Northern Wind.
Those who had stood up began to move. A few blocked the entrance, clearly intending to prevent any chance of escape.
Step, step, step.
Others climbed to the second floor, quickly surrounding her. They moved with the singular purpose of leaving her no room to maneuver.
"There are plenty of people to stop you, My Lady."
A man stepped forward slowly, breaking the silence.
He had unkempt, shaggy hair and a beast-like gaze steeped in murderous aura. His skin was bronzed, as if he had spent his life under the scorching sun of the South Sea, and he carried a crude sword covered in the scars of countless battles.
He radiated an exceptionally dangerous pressure.
"Please, take your seat. I would rather not show you something so unsightly," the man continued, his voice flat and devoid of emotion.
"And if I refuse?" Tang Seo-yoon asked, glaring at him coldly.
"Then I will have no choice but to be rude."
"Do you think you’re capable of that?"
The frost in Tang Seo-yoon’s eyes deepened, sharp enough to cut like the Bitter Cold Northern Wind.
"And why do you think I wouldn't be?"
The man did not flinch. He met her icy stare head-on. A tense psychological battle unfolded as the two locked eyes, neither willing to be the first to look away.
After a long moment of suffocating silence, the man spoke again, his eyes burning with a sinister light.
"Please... sit down... My Lord is not finished speaking, My Lady."
It was a final warning.
"By 'Lord,' do you mean my sister?" Tang Seo-yoon asked calmly.
"Who else could it be?"
"I see."
Tang Seo-yoon nodded slightly.
Tap, tap, tap.
She began to walk forward slowly.
Stop.
She came to a halt right in front of the man’s nose. Then, she slowly tilted her head back to look him in the eye, her gaze unwavering.
"I refuse."
Whoosh!
She threw a punch instantly. It was a strike so fast it was nearly invisible to the naked eye.
BOOM!
Her fist slammed into the man’s chest. Simultaneously, a deafening explosion rocked the teahouse, the sound sharp enough to make one's ears ring.
"Urgh!"
"Agh!"
The surrounding men groaned in pain, clutching their ears as the piercing sound tore through the room.
Vroom!
The man who had been struck in the chest was launched into the air. Unable to withstand the sheer, violent force of her internal energy, he was sent flying.
CRASH!
A moment later, he slammed into the tables and chairs on the opposite side of the room, landing in a pathetic, broken heap.
"Anyone else?"
Tang Seo-yoon looked around again, her voice cool as she asked if anyone else intended to stand in her way.
But unlike before, the men remained silent, their expressions grim and their mouths shut tight. The fact that their leader had been taken down so easily was clearly a massive shock.
"Then I’m leaving."
Seeing their silence, Tang Seo-yoon turned to walk away without a hint of hesitation. She felt she had sufficiently asserted her dominance.
Tap, tap, tap.
She was walking away with light steps when a sound erupted behind her.
"Heh... hehehe... Hahahaha! HAHAHAHAHA!"
A loud, boisterous laugh echoed through the room.
Whish.
Tang Seo-yoon whipped her head around.
There, she saw the man picking himself up.
"Impressive... Hahaha... I couldn't even react... Hahaha!"
The man burst into laughter as if something were genuinely hilarious. Tang Seo-yoon’s eyes narrowed.
Though she had thrown that punch casually, it contained enough raw power to knock out an ordinary martial artist in a single blow. Having reached the Transcendent Realm, every single one of her movements was now potentially lethal.
Yet, he had endured such a strike. And he was acting as if it were nothing.
This could only mean one thing: this man’s level was on an entirely different plane from an ordinary warrior.
'At least the Upper Stage of the Super-Peak Realm.'
She calculated that no matter how low she estimated him, he wouldn't be below that level.
"What’s so funny?" Tang Seo-yoon asked, watching the laughing man.
"How could I not laugh? I was acting so tough, only to be sent flying like a pathetic dog."
The man continued, a look of genuine amusement on his face.
"Madman," Tang Seo-yoon spat, her expression one of disbelief. She found it absurd that he could make light of his own humiliation. How could a martial artist, who should value pride above all else, behave this way?
"Hahaha! Well, martial arts are originally meant for madmen anyway."
The man flashed a playful smirk.
Shring.
He slowly drew the crude sword from his hip. As the blade emerged, it revealed a worn, rusty surface that looked as though it had never been maintained.
"Do you still intend to stop me?"
"I won't be alone this time."
The man gestured subtly to those behind him.
Clang, clang, clang.
The men surrounding her raised their swords one by one, pointing them at her. Their eyes burned with unmistakable hostility.
"How petty," Tang Seo-yoon said, her voice dripping with contempt.
"Hahaha! It’s just that I don't think I can handle you by myself."
The man let out another jovial laugh and slowly raised his crude sword, infusing it with a sinister, heavy internal energy.
"No matter how much of a genius you are, you won't be able to handle this many people."
The man spoke with absolute confidence as he faced her.
"Numbers are meaningless," Tang Seo-yoon replied flatly.
"Hehehe... Of course, you’re not wrong. Against a supreme master, hundreds or thousands of mere rabble would be meaningless."
The man chuckled as if he found her words entertaining. She was right—numerical superiority meant nothing in the face of an absolute powerhouse.
"But the men here aren't rabble. They are vicious killers ranging from the Peak Realm to the Super-Peak Realm."
The man’s eyes glittered with a terrifying light.
"And I, their Unit Leader, am a master who has reached the Transcendent Realm."
A menacing aura began to radiate from his body.
"Do you still think you have a chance in this situation? Because I don't."
The man wore a relaxed smile. The moment he had taken Tang Seo-yoon’s blow, he knew. He knew she was a master who had reached the same heights as him.
She had reached the Transcendent Realm at the young age of barely thirty.
That was why he had to use his subordinates. To perfectly suppress a woman who was his equal. It was a petty tactic that a prideful martial artist wouldn't even consider, but he didn't care. To him, the only thing that mattered was capturing her with minimal losses.
Hehehehe.
A vulgar smile spread across his lips. He was certain that victory was already his.
"Numbers are meaningless."
Tang Seo-yoon’s cold voice pierced his ears once more.
"You certainly are stubborn."
The man shook his head slightly. It seemed this sheltered girl had no intention of breaking her pride.
"Are you relying on your Poison Arts? If so, I should tell you now that it’s useless."
The man looked at the still-confident Tang Seo-yoon with annoyance.
"Myself and these killers here all possess extreme resistance to poison. We can fight while suppressing any toxic qi."
He and his Honma Unit possessed near-total immunity. Driven by Tang Jin-seol’s desire to create demons who would not succumb to poison, they had spent hundreds, thousands of days forced to build resistance inside jars filled with various venomous insects, creatures, and herbs.
It was impossible for them not to have developed peak-level immunity.
That was why he was so certain. Even if Tang Seo-yoon unleashed her Poison Arts, they would be able to endure it.
"I’ll ask again. Can you handle all these killers alone? Are you confident you won't die?"
The man smiled brightly. He expected Tang Seo-yoon to fall into despair, given the hopeless odds. Just imagining her despair made the corners of his mouth twitch toward his ears. The sight of a beautiful woman in despair always stimulated a man’s sadistic side.
"My opinion hasn't changed," Tang Seo-yoon murmured calmly. "Numbers are meaningless. Whether you are in the Peak, Super-Peak, or Transcendent Realm."
She spoke with an utterly composed expression.
"You’re just clinging to useless pride," the man thought. There was no other reason she could look so unbothered.
He glared at her with murderous eyes.
"Strike."
He gave the simple command.
Immediately, the men with swords lunged at her all at once. The leader also raised his sword and dove in, intending to pierce her shoulder.
Swoosh!
The man’s sword reached her faster than anyone else's, his speed reflecting his status as a master of the Transcendent Realm.
Watching this, Tang Seo-yoon slowly reached out her hand, her expression still serene.
CLANG!
Tang Seo-yoon’s palm, now tinged with a green hue, collided with the tip of the man’s sword, triggering a massive shockwave.
"Now!" the man roared. It was the signal for the others to swing their blades.
'It’s over!'
A thick smile spread across his face. He was moments away from seeing her despair.
They remained locked in that clash for a heartbeat.
'Wait, what?'
The man felt a surge of confusion. No one was swinging at her.
Furthermore, the green-tinted palm was slowly starting to push his sword back.
'She’s too strong!'
Cold sweat began to pour down the man’s face. He was being pushed back inch by inch, unable to withstand the overwhelming toxic qi concentrated in her palm.
'If I stay like this, I’m in danger!'
The man focused his internal energy into the tip of his sword.
BOOM!
An explosion erupted, and both Tang Seo-yoon and the man were pushed back. He had detonated his energy to force a distance between them.
"You idiots! I told you to jump her!"
As he skidded back, the man began to scream at the top of his lungs, his irritation at his subordinates' lack of support boiling over.
"...W-What!?"
Suddenly, the man’s vision began to tremble uncontrollably. An unbelievable sight unfolded before his eyes.
The subordinates who had surrounded her were gone. Every single one of them.
Only pools of bright red blood remained, drenching the floor.
"What... what the hell is this!?"
The man’s face was a mask of pure bewilderment. He couldn't comprehend what had happened.
As he stood there in shock, Tang Seo-yoon’s calm voice drifted into his ear.
"I told you."
She looked at him with hollow, indifferent eyes.
"Numbers are meaningless."
"..............."
Meeting that gaze, the man finally realized. Tang Seo-yoon had annihilated his subordinates in an instant, leaving nothing behind but blood.
"Next, it’s your turn."
Tang Seo-yoon faced him, her eyes calm and settled.
Grit.
The man ground his teeth together. He felt a searing sense of humiliation from the way she was looking down on him.
"You arrogant bitch!!!!!!"
Vroooooom!
Ominous, ink-colored energy began to surge from the man’s body. It was the energy handled only by demons.
Demonic Energy.
"I’ll kill you!"
The man lunged at Tang Seo-yoon, radiating a terrifying, murderous Demonic Energy.