Chapter 172
Chapter 172
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Translator: penny
Chapter Title: Nangong Family (5)
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"I clearly concealed my internal energy!"
"Muscles don't need internal energy!"
"Stop!"
The instructors who grasped the situation drew their swords one after another, but merciless kicks were already raining down on the man sprawled on the ground.
"Uwahaha! Ghost Leg Technique!"
"Take a hit from the Ghost Fist!"
"Shick! Shick! You can't see me, can you, you fucking bastard!"
They tried to charge in with swords drawn at the sight of him turning into pulp in an instant.
"What? You can see me?"
Chu Un-hwi muttered in a daze as he flicked up Eo Jeong-geun with his toe and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck.
Shring.
He seized the limp Eo Jeong-geun's hand, drew his sword, and swung it threateningly.
"Taste the sword of a senior instructor possessed by a ghost."
Come at me!
He was so nimble that every time they tried to attack, he used Eo Jeong-geun as a shield, making it impossible to get close.
'This crazy mad dog!'
It was the thought on everyone's mind.
But Chu Un-hwi, now fully in the momentum, showed no sign of stopping.
Shwick!
With one hand gripping Eo Jeong-geun's scruff and the other swinging the sword in his grasp, the sight was brutally swift and impossible to counter.
"What tremendous raw power."
Even with his internal energy sealed, his movements were anything but ordinary.
Paat!
Whenever they tried to circle behind, he somehow knew and kicked up dirt, burning their insides with frustration.
Sssat!
In the end, a line of blood bloomed on the thigh of a floundering young instructor.
"You bastard!"
The instructor's eyes blazed as he unleashed his swordsmanship in earnest.
But Chu Un-hwi had been waiting for it.
Shwick.
The serpent-like, cunning technique was indeed worthy of a Silver Hall instructor.
"Instructor shield!"
Unfortunately, he hadn't expected the opponent to hurl the hostage.
"Gasp!"
He swallowed empty air and tried to pull back his sword, but Chu Un-hwi had shoved Eo Jeong-geun forward at the perfect moment, leaving no time to react.
Puk.
Eo Jeong-geun frothed at the mouth even in his unconscious state as the blade pierced his abdomen.
"I-I..."
The instructor hurriedly caught the sagging body impaled on his own sword.
But he had forgotten one thing.
"Ghost possession!"
Chu Un-hwi lunged in, striking the acupoint as if he'd been waiting for the chance.
"Gurk!"
Grabbing the now rigid instructor by the scruff, Chu Un-hwi set him up as another shield and grinned over his shoulder.
"Alright. Round two."
Come at me, you fucking bastards.
The arena froze at the unprecedented sight of one instructor holding another hostage.
***
"What did you say?"
Moyong Seon-ya screamed at the sudden report.
The person across from her couldn't close their mouth, refusing to believe what they'd heard.
Baek Ri-seon-ho stammered,
"If I didn't hear wrong... then Acting Instructor Chu Un-hwi has a senior instructor..."
The disciple from Myo Jin Sect hastily corrected,
"He's clashing with the senior instructor and other instructors."
"Why!"
Even the disciple seemed at a loss for words.
"He claims he's a ghost. I don't really know."
"Oh no."
Moyong Ju, hand over her forehead, let out a groan.
"Just when my head was already pounding, this guy's causing trouble again."
"This isn't the time. If things escalate further, we won't be able to handle it."
It wasn't just any incident—it was outright insubordination against a superior.
But suddenly, something occurred to Moyong Seon-ya.
A few days ago, Jegal Tan had come asking,
- I have a question about the Instructor Duty Manual.
She had explained the manual, including the section on 'suspension of duties.'
'No way he planned this.'
Moyong Seon-ya's heart sank as she shook her head.
"Hurry. Let's go. This might not end quietly."
"Let's go!"
Moyong Ju and Baek Ri-seon-ho bolted from their seats, and she scrambled after them.
What she saw upon arriving at the annex was...
"Druwaa! You fucking bastards!"
Chu Un-hwi, waving a sword threateningly while holding a battered instructor as hostage amid the chaos.
"What are you doing! It's just one guy!"
The scene of instructors cautiously herding him to one side.
"Ahh. We're screwed."
Moyong Seon-ya swept a hand over her face at the irreversible situation.
***
"Still haven't made up your mind?"
In the guest reception room provided by Myo Gwang.
This lavishly decorated space for honored guests felt suffocating to Nangong Yun-ho.
"Come to think of it, I don't even remember sharing a drink with my son."
Clink.
His father poured the cup with an unusually gentle voice, while his grandfather watched fondly.
It would be nice if it were just a simple family gathering, but this was anything but comfortable.
"Yong-ho, you eat too. The chef put in quite the effort."
Nangong Yong-ho, summoned to the same table, was visibly uncomfortable.
'He must know better.'
Everyone filling the seats showered them with pleasant words.
"Haha. What a heartwarming sight."
"Father and son on such good terms—truly the Nangong Family."
All were either close to the Nangong Family or eager to curry favor.
Half were even instructors from Nangong Changcheon Corps and the Divine Martial Academy.
Not one was on his side.
The pressure from the atmosphere they created.
Zing.
Nangong Yun-ho felt breathless under the subtle probes testing his ki sense.
'Are they telling me to give up now?'
He tried to hold out, but with fellow students and even instructors involved, resistance seemed futile.
"Brother."
If not for Nangong Yong-ho beside him, he might have crumbled.
"Take the cup. Consider it a sign of permission."
Swish.
He tried to avert his eyes from the cup offered before him, but a soft voice pressed in his ear.
[You know, don't you? What I decide, I get.]
His father's emotionless transmission.
[I can't give you more time. Give up and follow your father.]
Grind.
The mounting pressure made Nangong Yun-ho's vision darken.
'Instructor.'
As he kept his head down, avoiding eye contact, Nangong Mu-san chuckled.
"Looks like you still haven't given up. Well, not much longer."
"...What do you mean?"
"The news should be arriving soon."
Before he finished, a Changcheon Hundred Sword Corps member dashed in from beyond the garden and knelt.
"Right on time."
Word on the disposition of his last bastion.
'Seeing the one he trusts groveling before his father will finally dispel any lingering attachments.'
As Nangong Mu-san awaited good tidings,
"A message for the Family Head!"
"Speak."
The report was unexpected.
"Senior Instructor Eo Jeong-geun..."
"Still needs more time?"
The corpsman bowed hastily and shouted,
"N-no! Acting Instructor Chu Un-hwi, who took Senior Instructor Eo Jeong-geun hostage, is heading this way!"
What!
Not just Nangong Mu-san.
Even Nangong Chan's stoic expression cracked.
***
Clang! Clang-clang!
The serene garden turned into chaos.
"Come at me, you fucking bastard!"
A man using an instructor as a shield had barged in, pursued by over a dozen others.
Swish swish.
Backing away while holding his fellow hostage, he screamed mercilessly.
"What the hell is this place!"
Seemingly displeased with the tranquil garden, he swung the limp instructor around, wrecking it further.
The madness continued.
Thinking this heavily guarded spot by the Changcheon Hundred Swords was safe?
"Whew. For real."
Thud.
He tossed the instructor from his hand and strode in boldly.
'What in the world.'
Trampling the steps and threshold with muddy feet, he dirtied the pristine hall with filthy footprints.
"Halt!"
Unable to bear it, a few corpsmen stopped him.
"You can see me too?"
This is tricky.
"You all called me a ghost when you saw me."
Is a ghost supposed to be this visible?
No one in the world can be trusted.
As Nangong Mu-san opened his mouth in exasperation at the grumbling fool,
"Let him in."
The corpsmen withdrew at Nangong Chan's rare command.
Only then did the man exhale sharply, scan the room, and blurt out,
"What? Everyone here's a stranger."
Ah, a few look familiar.
Spotting the instructors subtly avoiding his gaze, he hopped toward Nangong Yun-ho.
"Whoa, Yun-ho. What are you doing here?"
Thud thud.
Striding in with even more irreverent steps, he plopped down beside him and jabbed his side.
"You punk. Thought you'd run off somewhere, but you're hiding here hogging the good stuff."
"...Instructor."
Watching Nangong Yun-ho's crumbling expression firm up again, Nangong Mu-san realized this man's identity.
'This is Chu Un-hwi?'
Nothing like he'd imagined.
'From Bronze Hall, lucky to become acting instructor—thought he'd be frail.'
Sometimes there are those types.
Ones who excel as educators through theory and knowledge alone.
But this one was different entirely.
'Like a wild boar bursting from the brush.'
Moves with body before mind learns the arts.
'From some nameless clan, I heard.'
How is this possible?
He had his doubts.
"Hey. You crying? Crying?"
"...No."
"Grown man sniffling like that."
Utterly unpredictable.
But one thing was certain.
'Letting things flow his way is dangerous.'
As he moved to speak,
[He knows how to fight.]
His father, Nangong Chan, who had watched silently, transmitted.
[Look at the footprints he left.]
Glancing at the garden mess again per the advice, chills ran down his spine.
The footprints formed an exquisite painting: small circles interwoven with large ones.
'He can move like that even in a reckless brawl?'
This man had naturally shaped the situation amid the chaos.
'Thought beating a senior instructor was luck.'
Perhaps not entirely coincidence, he mused.
Limited arts and energy maybe, but one who knows fighting is tricky.
As he reeled from the revelation, the man seized control.
"Ow! Shit! Scared me! Why's a voice in my ear."
Possessed by a ghost?
"Some old guy's yapping in my ear."
"Isn't that a transmission?"
"Oh, right. Heard of that. High-class stuff us Bronze Hall scrubs don't know."
At the admission of ignorance, Nangong Chan, who had maintained mystic silence, finally spoke.
The Sword Sage and Changcheon Divine Lord conversing with a mere instructor.
"Are you alright?"
"What do you mean?"
Ah-.
Slapping his forehead, Chu Un-hwi said,
"My body's all stiff for some reason. Old ghost grandpa stuck to my shoulder..."
"......"
The martial artists sensed the Sword Sage unleashing his aura at him from the silence.
Yet this fool kept yapping unscathed.
"I'm a bit dense by nature."
Smack smack.
Stuffing a chicken leg in his mouth, Chu Un-hwi asked without decorum,
"By the way, old man, who are you?"
"...You don't know me?"
"Would I ask if I did?"
"......"
How to handle this idiot? Nangong Chan was dumbfounded.
Nangong Il-jun stepped in to halt the runaway situation.
"Acting Instructor Chu Un-hwi."
Having experienced him before, he couldn't let it continue.
"Hey. Long time no see? Been a while."
The grating greeting forced caution.
"This is our Family Head and Grand Patriarch. Mind your manners."
"Grand Patriarch? Whoa."
Crunch. Crunch.
Tearing into the chicken leg, Chu Un-hwi's eyes sparkled.
"Grandpa's that famous... uh, what was it?"
Nangong Yun-ho quickly answered the glance.
"Changcheon Divine Lord."
"Right. Heavenly Lord Changcheon."
It's Changcheon Divine Lord.
The correcting grandson grated on him.
"Hee hee."
Nangong Yong-ho clamped his mouth at the look.
"Doesn't even know manners before a senior of the martial world."
"Manners?"
Providing cause to act, Chu Un-hwi perked up as if hearing something novel.
And then.
"Uwaaaaaack!"
He vomited a torrent of bright red blood dramatically.
Scratching his head at the ruined table,
"Sorry about that. My stomach's acting up, hard to hold back."
Cough. Cough.
Nangong Chan quietly lowered his hand at the pitiful sight.
"Ugh. Not feeling well, can't stay in this stiff spot."
Thud.
Setting down the half-eaten chicken leg, Chu Un-hwi clicked his tongue, groaned, and rose.
"Leaving?"
"Kid. You coming? Gonna leave a dying instructor without support?"
Realizing the sly fox slipping away in the exchange, Nangong Mu-san slammed the table.
Bang!
"Acting Instructor Chu Un-hwi!"
Even the booming voice shook the hall, but he only whispered to Nangong Yun-ho.
"Huh. Weird. Keep hearing strange voices then not."
"You heard and responded fine till now."
"Don't you hear you're clueless a lot?"
"I do."
"Knew it."
Frustrated, Nangong Mu-san signaled with his eyes.
The Family Head couldn't harm a Divine Martial Academy man directly.
'But another instructor is different.'
Tat-tat.
The signaled instructor leaped over the threshold with graceful footwork.
And then.
Whirl.
Landing before them, he held his sword horizontally.
"Can't let you leave without permission."
Faced with the sunken-eyed stern warning, Chu Un-hwi whined pathetically.
"Can't beat another fellow instructor."
"You beat plenty just now."
"Next lesson: play it smart."
Anyway, Yun-ho.
"How about trying Instructor Hunter?"
"Instructor Hunter?"
Ching!
Nangong Yun-ho picked up a broken branch from the garden and grinned.
"Why not."
The moment the branch moved slowly.
Crack.
The instructor's sword snapped in half.