Chapter 174
Chapter 174
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 174
Chapter Title: Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors
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Only four of us participated in this battle: me, Jin So-cheong, Lee Gwang, and Geuk Ho. Sa Gong-rin’s martial arts were still not fully matured, and the safety of the Sa Gong family depended on her. The same went for Jae Hu, which meant we ended up with just four people breaking through the Righteous Heaven Alliance’s all-encompassing net.
However, not a single one of us four felt any fear or anxiety. Even I, who had always been uneasy under the threat of death, could advance forward with complete ease.
Since we were exactly four, we decided on individual breakthroughs from the Azure Dragon Martial Hall in the east, west, south, and north directions. Lee Gwang was confident that none of the four Thunder God Style experts would be held back by something like an encirclement, so he ordered individual breakthroughs. Moving together would only make piercing the net more troublesome.
“South, huh.”
I wondered what my luck would be like today.
After leaving the Azure Dragon Martial Hall and walking about tenzhang, killing intent began to slowly fill the air around me. I expanded my senses to quickly gauge their skills and numbers, even pinpointing their positions.
‘Around twenty men. Mostly second-rate and first-rate...’
Sreeek!
Suddenly, child-mother soul-chasing darts flew at me. The one who threw the three darts had first-rate skill; their speed and power were beyond the ordinary. They seemed aimed precisely at my blind spot, where movement would be difficult.
Clang!
I deflected the child-mother soul-chasing darts with one slash, but then a dozen hidden weapons came flying from a completely different direction. I moved again and swept them away with my sword, only for three times as many to pour in from all sides.
Kakakakang!
‘Sword veil.’
I deflected the indiscriminate barrage of hidden weapons without missing a single one, then leaped onto a nearby rooftop. As if waiting, five warriors appeared and unleashed fierce crescent blades, swords, spears, and sabers at me.
“Die!”
As expected, no real experts yet. I muttered that to myself as I lightly kicked off the spot. At the same time, I felt the air strongly beneath my foot.
Thud!
I kicked off the air once more, and my figure appeared three zhang away in an instant. The warriors coming at me in joint attack flailed about, momentarily losing sight of me. Of course, that lasted only a moment—heads severed by my Ten Thousand Victories Sword Arts’ swift strike sprayed blood into the air as they soared up. Using Annihilation Soul Step and swordsmanship, taking five heads was easy.
Someone threw more hidden weapons, but I had no reason to be swayed by ranged attacks anymore. I stomped strongly on the rooftop, and tiles exploded up before my eyes. The tiles perfectly blocked the weapons’ path, and I snatched one, infused it with internal energy, and hurled it like an arrow.
Puk!
“Urk...”
Serves you right. You shouldn’t throw hidden weapons at people so carelessly.
I smirked at the enemy twenty zhang away, a tile embedded in his chest. At the same time, I understood why Jin So-cheong had once warned me to be careful of hidden weapons. Individually, their martial arts weren’t much, but sniping at openings from range was annoyingly effective.
Dancing lightly, I stepped Annihilation Soul Step toward the remaining ambushers.
“Gasp!”
“W-what?!”
My Annihilation Soul Step was too fast for them to track with their eyes. In a flash, I closed twenty-odd zhang to point-blank range and struck the vital points of the panicking foes with the flat of my blade, one by one. The impact alone sent them tumbling, rendering them unable to fight.
Crack!
In the time it took to catch my breath a few times, I’d dealt with all twenty ambushers, and the encirclement seemed temporarily lifted. It was called an all-encompassing net, but it relied on numbers pinning down the few to tighten the noose. Annihilating them in short order left no choice. I leaped across rooftops in Guanzhong’s streets, advancing further as I muttered.
“Nothing impressive.”
Lee Gwang’s words from yesterday, when he’d gathered the Thunder God Style experts, came to mind.
[Tomorrow’s plan is to smash through whatever’s in our way and rendezvous at Tiger Flying Mountain.]
Tiger Flying Mountain was a peak about forty li outside Guanzhong. Geuk Ho, who had been listening, spoke up.
[Just kill them all?]
[That’s fine too. But show mercy to weaklings who can’t match us, if possible.]
[What do you mean...?]
[Leave enough leeway to make it look like self-defense.]
[Understood.]
Right, I’d understood Lee Gwang’s words back then too.
Leave leeway to make it look like self-defense—that was another way of saying “display of power”! It meant showing that even just four of us could break through the Righteous Heaven Alliance’s net with strength to spare. It demonstrated we could spare them while piercing it, while creating an excuse later for not massacring everyone. As long as it wasn’t excessive force.
‘Well, I can still kill as many as I want to kill.’
That said, Lee Gwang’s words were just a guideline. The Thunder God Style fundamentally didn’t spare those who attacked with killing intent, so the other three—excluding me—were probably killing anyone who annoyed them. I decided inwardly to spare only those with no promising future and pressed on.
Pew pew pew!
After running about one gak, more hidden weapons came flying. I deflected them while muttering irritably.
“Ah, damn it.”
With the power of life and death over them in my hands, even trivial actions grated on me. Self-defense be damned—I wanted to kill them all. But I knew getting a taste for slaughter would know no bounds, so I thought to myself.
‘Then I’ll just cripple them.’
Flash!
I threw more tiles to subdue the hidden weapon throwers. Infused with my internal energy, they hit ten times harder than clumsy throws, tearing limbs from their bodies.
“Arrrgh!”
“Aaack.”
Their screams pleasantly tickled my ears. Warriors with swords and spears came at me relentlessly, but I subdued them all with a single exchange each, indifferently. Flashing past like lightning for one annihilation strike, they collapsed like bundles of straw.
I didn’t kill them. Just subdued. The skill gap was too vast; I didn’t even feel like killing them on purpose. One swordsman still conscious trembled and shouted.
“M-monster!! How can you take us down so easily...”
I approached, squatted in front of him, and grinned.
“You guys? What are you even?”
“......”
“You haven’t even seen a real monster, yet you’ve got this weird pride.”
Snap!
I flicked my finger, concussing him into unconsciousness. They seemed like low-tier muscle from the Righteous Heaven Alliance’s forces. Of course, encirclements basically wore you down with weaklings before elites finished the job, so mistaking these for the alliance’s true strength would be wrong.
I’d taken down around forty so far. With the area clearing up and killing intent fading, I realized how many I’d dropped. A bit further, and I’d exit Guanzhong city, so I ran leisurely.
“You bastard!”
Then, a shout rang out, and experts blocked the city gate ahead. Unlike the previous posers, these had properly trained martial arts. About a dozen, similar in number, but their individual skills were worlds apart.
I twitched an eyebrow, identifying them.
‘Nine Great Righteous Sects affiliates.’
They all wore sect uniforms or orthodox faction robes. Likely experts from the Nine Great Righteous Sects under the Righteous Heaven Alliance, dispatched externally—not rabble.
All first-rate or better. Scanning for peak experts, two stood out as such. I landed before them blocking the gate and crossed my arms.
“Righteous Heaven Alliance folks?”
“Correct. Lay down your weapons obediently.”
“And you’ll spare my life?”
“That’s not for us to decide.”
I chuckled.
“Crazy bastards. You call that an offer to surrender?”
“Kid, you’ve got impressive martial arts. But you won’t beat us easily.”
Swish.
They moved swiftly into formation. Not encircling me, but holding defensive positions at the gate like fortifying, and I recognized it embodied the mysteries of the Four Symbols.
‘Wudang Sect formation, probably.’
That meant it enhanced each person’s responsiveness and subdued intruders. Of course, dumping a massive Thunder God Palm with my brute internal energy would shatter it easily.
But I stepped forward casually, like on a stroll. I was confident I could break through without relying on internal energy. The Wudang peak expert anchoring the front raged.
“Do you truly seek punishment!”
Peeing!
Led by him, three experts up front unleashed sword strikes simultaneously. Unlike before, these weren’t something I could end in one exchange. I dodged backward with footwork matching the incoming slashes, then flowed into Annihilation Soul Step to burrow in.
“Gasp!”
One expert who’d exposed a blind spot to me spun on his left foot to block, but my Thunder Cloud Strong Fist was already smashing his side.
Boom!
“Argh!”
My internal energy-charged Thunder Cloud Strong Fist was no ordinary fist technique. He screamed as he flew off and crashed. The remaining experts hurriedly filled his spot for joint attack, but I didn’t give them time to surround—instead burrowing deeper into the formation. I struck the rearmost Qingcheng Sect peak expert with Ten Thousand Victories Sword Arts.
Clang!
“Urgh!”
His Qingcheng Shooting One Sword Art blocked my assault for about ten exchanges. As expected, a renowned sword expert. But even without leading with internal energy, I spotted his opening and sealed his shoulder well, forcing him to his knees.
Thud!
“......!!”
The Qingcheng peak expert—and those attacking me—showed dismay simultaneously. The formation toyed with in an instant, a peak expert subdued. I pressed my blade to the Qingcheng expert’s throat and grinned.
“Want to keep going?”
“Urk...”
I’d unintentionally taken a hostage, but that wasn’t the issue. They instinctively knew even charging and abandoning him offered slim odds. With Annihilation Soul Step ignoring the formation to pick them off individually, joint attack was pointless.
The Wudang peak expert said gravely.
“How can you wield such fearsome martial arts at your age... Who are you?”
“Baek Woong of the Thunder God Style.”
“Don’t do anything you’ll regret. No matter your strength, when the Righteous Heaven Alliance’s main force steps in, you can’t win.”
His words were probably true. These were just one unit of the alliance’s forces; the Nine Great Righteous Sects’ transcendent experts hadn’t appeared yet. If they joined the encirclement, even I couldn’t win alone. But I sneered coldly.
“A mouse worrying about the cat. Worry about your own neck right now.”
“......”
“I’ll give you three breaths. Decide if you’ll fight or not.”
As I counted one, two, three, he hurriedly said.
“Fine, we yield. Release him.”
“You lot stay put here for a day. Got it?”
“...Got it.”
I left the stunned group and exited Guanzhong city. I could’ve killed them all if we kept fighting, but it would’ve drained stamina and energy considerably, so I was content to escape. Whether they’d keep their word was doubtful, but what mattered was my dominance over them.
That settled it. No one could stop me without transcendent experts.
“Hahaha!”
Feeling great, I burst into laughter. Miho, transformed into a jade ornament, sent grumpy spirit words.
[What’s so funny? Not fun at all.]
“Miho. Bored?”
[Hmph! I wanted to fight too...]
“This is the Thunder God Style’s fight, so that’s tricky. Bear with me.”
Miho said.
[Get to Tiger Flying Mountain quick. Buy me something tasty later.]
“......”
Ending up owing Miho treats again, I scratched my head. Inwardly, I smirked.
‘I’m probably the fastest?’
Even I thought I’d slipped through without a hitch. I’d surely be first to Tiger Flying Mountain and brag about it. But upon arrival, my face twisted.
“You’re late, Baek Woong.”
Lee Gwang and Jin So-cheong waited at Tiger Flying Mountain’s entrance. As expected, these monster freaks had finished off enemies faster than me, disrupted the encirclement, and arrived.
“Didn’t see Senior Brother Geuk Ho on the way?” Jin So-cheong asked.
“Nope.”
Then, Geuk Ho burst from distant brush, landing lightly. He wiped sweat from his brow.
“Whew! Am I last...?”
“Senior Brother Geuk Ho, you’re late.”
Geuk Ho scowled at my jab.
“Damn it. Know how hard it is not to kill? Thought they’d die even holding back.”
Lee Gwang said to him.
“Geuk Ho. Your training’s lacking.”
“Ah, yes...”
“Still, we’ve broken the first encirclement.”
Muttering that, Lee Gwang looked to the peak and said.
“They say Tiger King Stronghold, leader of the Eighteen Green Forest Bandit Strongholds, is here. We’ll subdue them.”
“Tiger King Stronghold...”
Eighteen Green Forest Bandit Strongholds!
The term for the eighteen strongest bandit groups. I’d heard of Tiger King Stronghold, their leader. But something felt off, so I tilted my head at Lee Gwang.
“Master. Sorry, but subduing bandits now seems weird.”
Jin So-cheong and Geuk Ho looked curious too. We’d broken the Righteous Heaven Alliance’s encirclement around Guanzhong—great—but hitting bandits, even the top stronghold, didn’t fit.
Lee Gwang chuckled.
“Not weird at all.”
“Huh?”
“Tiger King Stronghold’s chief, the Green Forest King, is Wind God Style.”
“......!!”
“You’ll see. Let’s go.”
Bewildered, we followed Lee Gwang up to Tiger King Stronghold. Its base was huge, visible even from the base. We easily repelled bandit attacks en route and reached it.
Boom!
Lee Gwang’s single fist shattered the main gate. Fifty-odd bandits flinched in fear upon seeing him. I realized why they were cowed.
‘They’ve all trained in martial arts.’
Ordinary bandits without skill lack judgment and charge recklessly. But Tiger King Stronghold’s all seemed diligently trained in formal martial arts, many second- to first-rate. Thus, they instantly recognized the transcendent Thunder God Style’s power and felt terror.
Thinking about it, it was astonishing. A mere bandit group training like a formal sect! No wonder Tiger King Stronghold led the Eighteen.
Lee Gwang coldly swept his gaze over them.
“I don’t want needless slaughter. Tiger King Stronghold’s leader, come out.”
“I’m right here.”
Step...
A middle-aged man in tiger skin, bearing a curved saber, walked out from inside. The fierce-faced man muttered gravely.
“Lee Gwang. Here for my head?”
“Depends on your attitude.”
He dropped to his knees right there and cried to Lee Gwang.
“I, Green Forest King Gu Cheol, beg you earnestly! End it with my life. Spare these men’s lives!”
“......”
Lee Gwang silently looked down at him for a while. Then he said.
“I knew you gathered nearby bandits on Wind God Style orders and monitored me and the Azure Dragon Martial Hall near Guanzhong. Now’s the day Thunder God Style and Wind God Style settle who’s superior, so no reason to spare a pawn like you.”
“......!!”
Only then did I grasp the full picture from Lee Gwang’s words.
That’s right.
The reason bandits swarmed Guanzhong was because Wind God Style had detected Thunder God Style nearby and dispatched Green Forest King Gu Cheol as surveillance! As a Wind God Style disciple, he’d secretly watched the Azure Dragon Martial Hall and local martial forces.
Green Forest King Gu Cheol shed tears.
“Please... I beg you. I just followed orders as a Wind God Style disciple, but these men in Tiger King Stronghold all have stories. We never raided women or weaklings wantonly; we gathered seeking our own path. Please spare their lives!”
“......”
I felt astonishment.
‘Wind God Style has a guy like this?’
I’d thought Wind God Style—from its guardian warriors—was full of scum. Yet here was one willing to die for his men! It felt like a blow to the head.
Lee Gwang was silent for a long time. Then he spoke.
“Gu Cheol. Then abandon Wind God Style.”
“......!!”
“Become the Thunder God Style youngest disciple and follow us henceforth. Promise that, and I’ll spare you.”
“T-that...”
“I’ve seen your skill before. If you join us, I can spare Tiger King Stronghold.”
Green Forest King Gu Cheol groaned, pondering briefly. But his answer was set; he prostrated and said to Lee Gwang.
“So be it!”
Soon after, Green Forest King Gu Cheol performed the nine prostrations initiation rite and became the Thunder God Style’s youngest disciple, after Sa Gong-rin and Jae Hu. I could only gawk at the absurd scene.
‘He’s the youngest?’
Green Forest King Gu Cheol’s martial arts were clearly beyond peak realm, nearing transcendent. His internal energy marked him as a Wind God Style master, yet Lee Gwang recruited him as a subordinate in one go.
Having taken Tiger King Stronghold, Lee Gwang said.
“Send all other Tiger King Stronghold men down the mountain. They won’t aid our forces.”
“What do you plan?” Jin So-cheong asked.
Lee Gwang grinned with killing intent.
“Obvious. We hit Yellow Mountain Sect.”