Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: All-Out Assault
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The martial art of using one’s fists is called fist techniques. The most common way to grow stronger is to master various forms and learn their application through sparring with opponents.
However, with hundreds of different styles, not everyone can be said to learn in the same way.
But the basics are the same.
One hardens their fists by striking trees, stones, or heated sand until calluses form, eventually training them to be stronger than steel to increase their destructive power.
Yet, upon reaching the realm of a master, such separate training becomes unnecessary.
This is because of the use of ki.
A fist imbued with energy can crumple steel plates and shatter boulders. And as that realm deepens and one awakens to a force aura, that fist becomes no different from a treasured sword.
Like Jong Ri-gang right now.
*Fwoooosh!*
“……!”
Neung Un-bi barely managed to duck his head, dodging the powerfully swung fist.
But does a force aura remain only in the fist?
The passing aura pulled at his cheek as if it would tear it open.
*Crazy! How is it so fast?*
Even though he had seen it coming and dodged, the aftermath nearly tore his face apart, and he was so preoccupied with evading that he couldn't even right his posture.
*Craaaash!*
“……?!”
And what in the world was this destructive power?
The fist aura from the punch Neung Un-bi had dodged blew away the entire opposite wall of what little remained of the tavern.
“You move quite well, boy.”
“……”
Having missed, Jong Ri-gang glared at Neung Un-bi as if he would devour him.
*Don't misunderstand.*
“That was purely luc—”
He tried to quickly clear up the misunderstanding, but the next blow was already flying toward him.
Faster than before, with more brilliant variations.
Seeing Jong Ri-gang charge at him with a terrifying look, Neung Un-bi’s face contorted as he stomped the ground.
*Pang!*
The Three Nothings Footwork, unleashed at a moment of life and death.
He had poured a tenth of his internal energy into it, so he barely dodged the second attack, but there were too many fists coming at him.
*Damn it!*
Hurriedly drawing upon his demonic energy, Neung Un-bi’s pupils widened.
The Eye of Insight.
If he couldn't dodge them all, he had to choose.
Dodge the heavy ones no matter what, and let the lighter ones hit him.
And…
*Claaaang!*
The moment the dull impact struck his body, Neung Un-bi’s hand touched his waist and pulled away.
*Shwoook!*
A streak of pure white light shot between the retreating Neung Un-bi and Jong Ri-gang.
“Keuk.”
The immense impact felt as if it shattered his forearm and pierced through to his chest.
After being pushed back a considerable distance, Neung Un-bi finally steadied himself, the Flying Swallow Sword in his hand.
*Drip, drop.*
A single drop of blood that had formed at the tip of the blade trickled down its length.
The third attack did not follow.
Jong Ri-gang, standing tall amidst the ruins, looked down at his own chest.
A torn piece of clothing. Through the gap, a small scratch oozing blood was visible.
“Branch Chief!”
“……”
Tak Chu called out to him in surprise, but Jong Ri-gang silently wiped the wound on his chest with his hand.
Blood on his fingertips.
The amount was so minimal that the bleeding stopped almost immediately.
But as Jong Ri-gang stared at his reddened fingertips, his bloodshot eyes flashed menacingly.
“Quite impressive. For a mere whelp to leave a scratch on my body.”
“Ah, this time it was luck, no, a mistake…”
The flustered Neung Un-bi quickly tried to protest, but Jong Ri-gang ignored him as if he were deaf and began to laugh like a demon.
“Indeed, so this is a disciple of the Demonic Cult, even if he’s not yet seasoned. In that case, I too… will now fight with all my strength.”
“……”
*You were holding back before?*
*You were wrapped head to toe in a force aura!*
Neung Un-bi wanted to scream it, but the words wouldn't come out.
The dust that had settled all around began to move like a whirlwind, being sucked into a single point.
Straight toward Jong Ri-gang.
Simultaneously, the pressure crushing his entire body instantly doubled.
“Tak Chu.”
“Yes!”
As Jong Ri-gang muttered softly and extended his hand, Tak Chu threw something at him.
*Clack, thwack!*
What seemed like a short staff suddenly elongated the moment it was caught in Jong Ri-gang’s hand.
A staff? A club?
What did it matter? They were basically the same weapon.
The problem was that the moment he held that iron cudgel, be it staff or club, Jong Ri-gang's presence amplified immensely.
It felt as if he were standing before a colossal mountain.
Just by holding it, the club in his hand seemed to press down on him.
*Ah, how did a single misplaced sword stroke lead to this mess?*
He had heard that the King of the Green Forest wielded a club with a skill that was not inferior to even Shaolin’s.
“I will use all my strength… to tear you limb from limb.”
“……”
The monster had awakened.
*Don’t! Don’t use your full strength!* But he could only scream it in his mind.
*Swoooosh!*
Taking a single step forward, the tip of the club thrust straight ahead, shooting forward as if it were stretching out.
Brimming with a force aura.
*Crack! Craaash!*
Neung Un-bi, having barely dodged with the Three Nothings Footwork, glanced at Hyang-i nearby.
*You're my only hope now.*
“Hyang-i…”
*Flex.*
“……”
The moment he was about to ask for help, Hyang-i clenched her teeth, raised her balled fist, and cheered him on.
*Damn it all… Why did I have to act so tough?*
*I should have just asked for help. I should have told her to fight the King of the Green Forest…*
*Fine, I’ll do it!*
*I’ve already died once, what’s there to be afraid of?*
“Hah!”
Finally giving up on receiving help, Neung Un-bi pushed his demonic energy to its absolute limit.
Jong Ri-gang, the King of the Green Forest.
*So what if you’re a master of force aura? You think I’ll go down easy?*
*I’ve already experienced countless people like you when I was Cheok Wol-rin.*
*Cheong Jin of Mount Hua!*
*Hyeon Myeong of Wudang!*
*Jeong Hwa of Shaolin!*
*The Imperial Palace’s… let’s leave that bastard out.*
*A freak who was neither man nor woman.*
*Anyway, the point is, I’ve fought all those masters of force aura.*
*I may not have won, but I survived with my head still attached!*
*So there’s definitely a chance.*
*Cheok Wol-rin’s Three Nothings Footwork and Three Battles Sword, plus Neung Un-bi’s Lunar Eclipse and Eye of Insight. I haven’t fully mastered it yet, so I’ll leave out the listening thing!*
*If I’m going to die, I’ll die after throwing everything I know at you!*
“……!”
At that moment, a strange light flickered in the eyes of Jong Ri-gang, who had been unleashing a fierce assault.
In an instant, Neung Un-bi’s movements changed.
*Shwiiik!*
His form vanished as if extinguished, reappearing at Jong Ri-gang’s side, a decisive palm strike aimed at his flank.
Lunar Eclipse, Sinking Strike!
*Whooosh! Craaash!*
Startled by the unexpected movement, Jong Ri-gang hastily swung his hand to block the attack.
*Flick!*
“……!?”
But the hand that had been aiming for his flank vanished without a trace.
*Could it be, a feint?*
His eyes widened in surprise, but unable to locate Neung Un-bi, Jong Ri-gang hurriedly retreated.
*Fwoooosh!*
At that moment, hundreds of sword strikes rained down from the sky like a net.
Lunar Eclipse, Moonlight Killing Dance!
“Damn it!”
In that life-or-death moment, Jong Ri-gang’s club drew a large circle.
“……Hoo.”
A low breath escaped him.
As both his feet pressed firmly into the ground, Jong Ri-gang’s club shot out powerfully.
*Pak, papapapak!*
Streaks of light shot toward the Moonlight Killing Dance.
The shattered sword strikes scattered faintly, like fragments of light.
But at the edge of the sword strikes, Neung Un-bi was nowhere to be seen.
*Where is he?*
Jong Ri-gang, searching for Neung Un-bi, flinched and lowered his head.
Right in front of his chest.
Neung Un-bi, a pale smile on his face, was striking upwards with both palms.
“Eat this!”
Lunar Eclipse, Heaven Shatter!
Faced with the twin palms that drove in with formidable power, Jong Ri-gang hastily threw away his club and extended both hands.
*Craaaash!*
But it was too sudden a defense.
His hands, not fully extended, lacked power, and his body staggered and was pushed back by the impact of Neung Un-bi’s Heaven Shatter.
“Keuk!”
Jong Ri-gang, stumbling backward, his face contorted in a grimace.
*Clang, clatter.*
The club he had thrown fell to the ground with a loud noise.
Finally steadying himself, Jong Ri-gang stared ahead with a scowl.
“Uweck!”
“……”
He saw Neung Un-bi, collapsed on the ground, vomiting blood.
No matter how fast the attack was, Jong Ri-gang was a master of force aura. The purity of his internal energy was on a different level, so even if he blocked late, Neung Un-bi couldn't withstand the shock.
But… to think he would be pushed back by a boy who hadn't even reached adulthood.
Tasting the metallic tang of blood in his mouth, Jong Ri-gang's face flushed red with shame.
*Grit.*
Grinding his teeth fiercely, Jong Ri-gang glared at Neung Un-bi and muttered.
“You… you’re quite something. To think you’d inflict an internal injury on me.”
“……Shit, just an internal injury? I thought you’d drop dead.”
“You dream big!”
*Pang!*
Seething with rage, Jong Ri-gang leaped high into the air. As he stretched out his hand, the club on the ground was sucked into his grasp.
“Haaap!”
Gripping the end of the club and raising it high, Jong Ri-gang then swung his arm with all his might.
*Whirwhirwhirwhir!*
The club, bent as if it would break, descended as if to split Neung Un-bi’s head open.
“Damned bandit bastard… won’t give me a moment to rest!”
Wiping the dark blood from his lips, Neung Un-bi drew the Flying Swallow Sword to his waist.
There was nothing to be gained from clashing head-on with a master of force aura.
*Thud!*
Neung Un-bi stomped the ground hard, escaping Jong Ri-gang’s attack.
*Craaaash!*
As the descending club struck the ground, the earth split open.
Neung Un-bi, having retreated, immediately closed in on Jong Ri-gang, swiftly drawing the Flying Swallow Sword.
As Hyang-i had said, hold the sword lightly and let the flow be swift.
Three Battles Sword, Flash Strike.
*Shwaaaak!*
A streak of white light shot out, aiming for Jong Ri-gang’s flank.
“Hmph!”
The incoming sword strike was too fast to follow with the eyes, but Jong Ri-gang snorted as if it were ridiculous and swung his club.
*Clang!*
The Flash Strike was blocked.
But the deflected sword created countless trajectories.
Three Battles Sword, Chaotic Strike.
*Shwiiiiik!*
With erraticism added to the speed of the flash, Jong Ri-gang’s vision filled with sword strikes.
But what appeared on Jong Ri-gang’s lips was a sneer.
“Hoop!”
With a deep breath, the club in his hand spun like a windmill.
The Wolf Fang Staff Arts that had made Jong Ri-gang known as a master of the club.
Though it was a wild onslaught, his staff technique tore apart and shattered all of Neung Un-bi’s sword forms.
“Boy! Is this desperation all you have?!”
*You think this is all?*
*Fwip!*
“……?”
As the clash of sword and club was about to end, Neung Un-bi had already closed in on Jong Ri-gang’s flank.
“Hah!”
He then gripped the Flying Swallow Sword with both hands, pouring all his internal energy into it, and swung it toward Jong Ri-gang’s waist.
Three Battles Sword, Breaking Strike!
“Boy! Did you really think such a light sword would work!”
Jong Ri-gang forcefully jammed his club into the ground in the direction of Neung Un-bi’s approaching sword strike.
*Booooong!*
Steel met steel, the internal energies of a force aura and blade energy collided.
Anyone could see Neung Un-bi was at a disadvantage. He had already overused his internal energy, and his insides were churning.
But the expression on Jong Ri-gang’s face, the one actually on the receiving end, was contorted.
*Creek, creeeak.*
The club bent like a bow, and Jong Ri-gang’s feet slid, creating long tracks in the ground.
“Y-You bastard!”
“……”
At Jong Ri-gang’s irritated voice, having lost the struggle of strength, Neung Un-bi fought back his nausea and grinned.
*Yeah, all those masters of force aura are surprised when they see this.*
The Breaking Strike was a sword technique that concentrated all power into a single point.
Moreover, unlike in the past, the internal energy he had gained from the Demonic Spirit Divine Pill was now spread throughout his energy channels.
*Even if it’s just blade energy, it means I won’t die from running out of internal energy during a fight!*
“Hah!”
“……!”
Neung Un-bi pushed the sword with all his might, and Jong Ri-gang pulled his club from the ground.
Any later and it would have snapped.
And as the bent club straightened, Jong Ri-gang’s body staggered.
Neung Un-bi had been aiming for that from the start.
Would a master of force aura really fall to him? Unlikely.
But he could at least create an opening.
This current stagger was that very opening.
Lunar Eclipse… Sinking Strike! Heaven Shatter! Ascending Moon! Cloud Shatter! Moonlight Under Heaven! Moonlight Killing Dance! Linked Moon Slash! Falling Moon Shattering Slash!
“Haaaaaaaah!”
*To hell with collateral damage!*
*I’ve got plenty of internal energy!*
*So I’ll pour it all out until you die, you bandit chief bastard!*
Neung Un-bi poured every martial art he knew into that small, narrow opening that Jong Ri-gang had shown.