Chapter 85
Chapter 85
Translator: Penny
Chapter 85
One Strike, One Kill (3)
I sat down a short distance from Yeom Hwa and ordered some wine.
"Wine and snacks, please."
I watched the innkeeper's reaction. When Yeom Hwa nodded in approval, the innkeeper hurried to the kitchen.
The Yeom Hwa I knew was hot-tempered and willful. There were only two possible reasons for his current either he was toying with me before killing me brutally, or he sensed an instinctive sense of danger.
Yeom Hwa turned to me and asked, "Who are you?"
"Just a traveler passing through. I stopped at the inn because I was hungry."
Yeom Hwa scoffed at my answer.
"This isn't the only inn around, is it? Why did you specifically choose this one?"
"And what's your reason for drinking in front of everyone like this? If I were you, I wouldn't be able to swallow a single bite."
Yeom Hwa's eyes narrowed. He instinctively sensed that I wasn't an ordinary person. That's why he was trying to reason with me instead of resorting to his usual first response: a punch.
I grinned and said, "Well, I understand. Some people just need to feel superior, no matter what."
I-u, who was standing beside him, lunged forward and grabbed my collar.
"You bastard! Do you want to die?"
Just then, the innkeeper, who was bringing out the drinks and dishes, startled in surprise.
"Let him go," Yeom Hwa said. "Even dogs aren't bothered when they're eating, right?"
At Yeom Hwa's words, I-u released my collar and stepped back.
I said to I-u in a languid tone, "Touch me again, and you're dead."
"You little shit! Even so—!"
Yeom Hwa raised his hand to stop I-u from charging forward.
I ate the food and drank the wine the innkeeper had left behind.
"Delicious. Now I understand why you want to keep this place all to yourself."
"What do you want to say to me?"
"Why do you assume I have anything to say to you?"
"You just seem too composed for someone about to commit suicide while eating."
I glanced at Mae-rang and Ho-yeon Suk-jeong, who were sitting nearby, and said, "It seems there are people even braver than me."
Mae-rang sighed. "We women were brought here against our will."
Sam-u, who was sitting beside her, bared his teeth. "Shut up, you old whore!"
His venomous words made the onlookers grimace. While scattering silver taels might earn goodwill, hurling insults at an elderly woman was a deeply offensive act.
I spoke for their hearts.
"You bastard."
"What?"
"Just muttering to myself."
Sam-u, enraged, lunged at me, but Yeom Hwa raised his hand to stop him again.
"Did you come from the Ho-yeon Family?"
"I heard the news. You said you wanted to kill all the disciples who were there that day, didn't you?"
The onlookers murmured among themselves. This information hadn't yet reached the general public.
Yeom Hwa didn't deny it. Instead, he shouted loudly for everyone to hear, "That's right! It's better for all the useless ones to disappear!"
"Nonsense!" Mae-rang roared, stepping forward, but Ho-yeon Suk-jeong restrained her.
I asked Yeom Hwa, "It's already over. Why? Is it because of your worthless pride?"
"What?"
"Is your pride so great that it's worth the lives of so many young people?"
"Of course. How dare you compare me to such insignificant beings?"
It was unimaginable how many innocent people had died unjustly to earn him the title of "The Butcher of the Heavenly Blade Gate."
Yesterday, Il-u had been the same. Simply for interfering with his affairs, he had pursued me with murderous intent.
These people weren't incapable of controlling their anger; they simply chose not to. They didn't need to.
"To me, you seem far more insignificant."
Before Yeom Hwa could even react with displeasure, I-u, standing beside him, grabbed me by the collar again.
"You little bastard! You think you can run your mouth just because you have a hole in your face? You're dead meat."
"Didn't I warn you? Touch me again, and you're dead."
I grabbed I-u's wrist, which was clutching my collar, and lightly kicked his foot from the side.
Whirr!
He lost his balance and spun a full circle in the air, twisting as I turned him.
Thud!
He landed heavily on the ground, having performed an acrobatic flip. To the untrained eye, it looked like child's play.
"Hahahaha!"
The onlookers burst into laughter. But the laughter quickly died down.
I-u lay motionless on the ground.
Sam-u rushed over to check on him.
He cried out in horror, "He's... he's dead!"
In the next instant, my hand slashed through the air with lightning speed, as swift as a snake striking its prey.
Whoosh!
My palm struck Sam-u's neck with pinpoint accuracy.
Crack!
My hand, which had shattered Sam-u's neck, snapped back to its original position in an instant. The movement was so swift that those watching only heard the sound.
Crack. Thud.
Sam-u's head, its neck bones pulverized, wobbled violently before dropping forward with a thud.
Thump.
He collapsed to the floor.
Sam-u had also been killed with a single strike.
"You bastard!" Sa-u roared, lunging at me.
Whoosh!
Thwack!
Sa-u flew past me, crashing out of the inn and onto the ground outside.
"Aaaah!"
The onlookers outside screamed.
A dagger had already been embedded in Sa-u's forehead as his corpse lay sprawled on the ground.
The speed at which Sa-u had thrown himself at me was impressive, but embedding a dagger into the forehead of a hardened martial artist required extraordinary internal energy and skill.
Before Sam-u could even take a proper breath, he had become a cold corpse.
Yeom Hwa shot to his feet, his eyes a tangled mix of shock and competitive fervor.
"You!"
I finished the wine in my cup, which I had been drinking while standing, and asked, "Is that fist only used to drag women here and intimidate them?"
My taunt intensified the glare in Yeom Hwa's eyes.
"Of course not."
"Then there's no need to fight dirty by taking them hostage, is there?"
I gestured for Mae-rang and Ho-yeon Suk-jeong, who were sitting beside me, to leave. They hurried out.
The onlookers outside retreated, but no one left, unwilling to miss such a spectacle.
Yeom Hwa extended his hand to the side.
Tssst! Tssst! Tssst!
Alcoholic Qi poured from his palm. Instantly sober, he was clearly a master capable of rapidly expelling the Qi from his body.
He approached me with clear, focused eyes.
"What's your purpose?"
"Purpose? Of course I have one. Would I be causing such a scene in broad daylight if I didn't?"
"What is it?"
"That's for after I kill you. You don't need to worry about it."
"You bastard!"
Yeom Hwa's murderous intent surged.
I felt a thrill of excitement. Yeom Hwa was a practitioner of Fist Arts. This would be my first time facing a true master of Fist Arts using the Immortal Crane Secret Art.
Whoosh!
A fist flew toward me, generating a tremendous wind. Underestimating it just because it was bare-handed would be a fatal mistake. A master like Yeom Hwa could shatter a massive boulder with a single strike.
Whoosh! Bang!
His attacks were like invisible, continuous strikes from a colossal iron hammer, each blow pulverizing anything it touched.
Having dodged repeatedly, I finally channeled internal energy into my fist.
Instead of evading the incoming strike, I threw my own punch.
Clang!
Our fists collided head-on.
I staggered backward, sliding several steps. Yeom Hwa was also forced back.
The Immortal Crane Secret Art wasn't primarily a frontal assault technique. It was a martial art that amplified the opponent's force, redirecting it to deliver an even more devastating counterattack.
But I wanted to face him head-on, just once.
To see the true destructive power of the Immortal Crane Secret Art. Fighting an opponent like Yeom Hwa was a rare opportunity.
BOOM!
Our fists collided in mid-air, sending shockwaves through the surroundings.
A jolt ran up my arm. Yeom Hwa's Fist Arts, honed to the extreme, carried immense power.
Of course, Yeom Hwa wasn't faring much better. His face contorted in pain as he threw his punches.
At first, I thought my internal energy was overwhelming him, creating the illusion of equal power.
But the more we clashed, the more I realized there was a hidden destructive element within the Immortal Crane Secret Art.
I understood then: this destructive force wasn't inherent to the art itself, but rather a reflection of the creator's temperament, infused into their martial arts.
The creator of the Immortal Crane Secret Art must have been someone who wielded the most domineering martial arts. Yet, in his later years, he gained a new enlightenment and created the fluid, graceful Immortal Crane Secret Art instead. Though he succeeded in creating a completely different martial art, the essence of a martial artist had naturally permeated the process.
Ah, so this is possible!
This realization would have been impossible to grasp had my Martial Arts Attainment not reached its peak.
After several clashes, we briefly separated.
Yeom Hwa glared at me, panting heavily. He was genuinely astonished.
It had likely been a long time since he'd engaged in such a brutally direct, orthodox exchange, and my ability to withstand his punches must have been equally shocking.
In truth, my arm felt like it was about to fall off from the pain. So, this crude test ends here.
"Alright, let's get serious now."
Yeom Hwa flinched at my words.
From his perspective, he probably hoped my words were just a bluff to shake him, but my fighting style had completely changed.
Swish!
I dodged a fist imbued with tremendous Internal Force and lunged toward his chest. My movements had become faster and more precise.
Thud!
My shoulder slammed into his chest. The impact was devastating not only because of my speed but also because he hadn't anticipated such an unorthodox maneuver.
A normal martial arts master would have had their chest crushed, but this man merely staggered, remaining largely unscathed.
"Not good enough!"
Two more fists came hurtling at me in quick succession, followed by a third strike—his elbow aimed squarely at my forehead.
Whoosh!
The attack grazed my forehead.
Having narrowly avoided the major strike, I seized the opportunity to capitalize on his mistake.
Thwack! My elbow struck precisely into his armpit.
Seizing the moment of his stagger, I kicked his arm again, targeting the elbow joint. Crack!
"Ugh!"
For the first time, a scream escaped his lips.
Thwack! Pow!
My fists landed in rapid succession on his vital points.
Yeom Hwa charged at me like a wounded beast, his eyes blazing with flames as he pushed his internal force to its absolute limit.
But rage only translates to skill in battles among Intermediate Masters.
Whirr!
I wrapped my arm around his and spun him around in a swift rotation.
Crack!
The bones in his arm creaked, but didn't snap completely.
"Ugh!"
I strained with all my might.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Yeom Hwa's arm finally broke.
"Aaaaaaaah!"
I launched myself into the air, wrapping my legs around his neck and spinning him in a full circle.
Yeom Hwa's massive body rotated once before crashing forward. I-u had died from this single move, but Yeom Hwa survived.
He scrambled to his feet and bolted outside.
The onlookers screamed.
What he sought were Mae-rang and Ho-yeon Suk-jeong. A mix of rage and fear drove his instincts: taking them hostage was his only chance to live.
Just as Yeom Hwa was about to pounce on the two women, he froze mid-motion.
Both of his legs were paralyzed. I, who had been shadowing him like a phantom, had suppressed the Pressure Points in his legs.
"Didn't I tell you? You look even more pathetic now. Just look at what you're trying to do. This is the real you!"
The Martial Heroes' gazes converged on him, their eyes filled with contempt.
For a man who had lived to bask in their envious admiration, this was his worst moment.
"Uwaaaaaaah!"
He roared in agony.
In the next instant, I leaped onto him, wrapping my legs around his neck and spinning like a whirlwind. His massive body whirled through the air with me.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
The gruesome sound ended abruptly.
Thud!
He crashed to the ground. His neck was twisted completely around, his eyes wide and lifeless.
In the ensuing silence, everyone stared at me with shocked expressions.
I addressed them all in a low voice, infused with internal energy:
"The Heavenly Blade Gate, which produced the Alliance Leader, has been sending its successors across the Central Plains to build their influence and seize regional interests! I issue them a clear warning: those who underestimate the Martial Arts World will inevitably pay the price!"
I could sense the joy of those watching. Though they remained silent due to public scrutiny, their hearts were filled with elation.
If this weren't the Martial Arts Alliance Headquarters in Wuhan, where the Heavenly Blade Gate held sway, they would have erupted in cheers and applause.
I turned to Mae-rang and said:
"This man came here to investigate the death of his grandson, a disciple of the Ho-yeon Family. Yet he couldn't even meet the Alliance Leader. For whom does the Alliance Leader serve? The Heavenly Blade Gate? The Ho-yeon Family? Today, I stepped forward to show both the Martial Arts Alliance and the Heavenly Blade Gate that justice still lives in this Martial Arts World. That is all."
As I turned to leave, Ho-yeon Suk-jeong asked, "Please tell me Your Honorable Name, benefactor."
I gave her a faint smile and leaped into the air.
Soaring through the sky, I landed on nearby rooftops, leaping from one to the next until I vanished from sight in an instant.
My reasons for intervening today weren't solely to save Mae-rang and Ho-yeon Suk-jeong.
From this moment forward, the Nameless One would become the talk of the entire Martial Arts World.
The reason I eliminated Yeom Hwa in broad daylight, in front of everyone, rather than secretly, was precisely for this purpose.
I now felt the need to create a hero.
Byeok Ridan would quietly cultivate his strength, and when the time came to make a move, the Nameless One would step forward. The more the Nameless One acted, the more Byeok Ridan could evade the attention of his enemies and amass overwhelming power.
When the Nameless One's true identity as Byeok Ridan was eventually revealed, the Martial Arts World would be shocked once again.
There was another reason as well. In the coming days, the shadowy forces behind the scenes, the Martial Arts Alliance, and the Heavenly Blade Gate would all mobilize to uncover the Nameless One's identity. I intended to exploit this to my advantage.
From now on, I would fight them as both light and shadow. Sometimes I would drive back the darkness with light, and sometimes I would smother it with an even greater darkness.
Against these unknown enemies, I was advancing step by step.