Chapter 30
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Money-Grubbing Ghost Lord
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Cho Ak-ryang and Han Seol-hwa nodded.
As they took their seats, the crowd's attention turned back to the entrance.
It was then that someone stepped through the first-floor entrance.
He looked to be in his mid-forties.
His pale face and the dark circles under his eyes gave him a somewhat grim appearance.
“Huh? That guy?”
At Beom Gye-wi's words, Cho Ak-ryang turned toward the entrance, a flicker of recognition in his eyes.
He, too, recognized the man.
“Do you know him?”
Cho Ak-ryang nodded at Dan Ak-seon's question.
“He's a rather famous money-grubber in these parts.”
“A money-grubber?”
“His name is Sa Mu-sim. Anyone who's dealt with him despises him; he's a notorious miser. It's no wonder his title is the Money-Grubbing Ghost Lord.”
Beom Gye-wi added to the explanation.
“His obsession with money is no joke. And he's so stingy, even Brother Cho can't hold a candle to him.”
Cho Ak-ryang glared at Beom Gye-wi.
“I'm frugal.”
At his words, Han Seol-hwa's veil rustled.
Seeing this, Cho Ak-ryang's eyebrow twitched.
He couldn't see her expression because of the veil, but it was clear she was scoffing.
And sure enough.
“When a rich man is frugal, it's a virtue, but when a poor man is frugal...”
Beom Gye-wi immediately picked up where Han Seol-hwa left off.
“It's just being dirt poor.”
“You two?”
If there was one thing they were serious about, it was slandering each other.
Just then, Sa Mu-sim, who was entering the Howon Pavilion, flinched and looked around.
He, too, had sensed something was wrong.
Sa Mu-sim turned and went right back out the way he came.
At that moment, the people packing the first floor all shot to their feet.
“Dammit!”
“After him!”
They chased after Sa Mu-sim, pouring out in an instant like a receding tide.
In a flash, the Howon Pavilion was empty, save for Dan Ak-seon's group and five other customers.
“So that guy was who the Martial Alliance bastards were waiting for?”
Cho Ak-ryang expressed his doubt at Beom Gye-wi's words.
“Right? He may be from the Unorthodox Faction, but there's no particular reason for the Martial Alliance to be after him, is there?”
Just then, they overheard a conversation between the other customers.
“That's the Money-Grubbing Ghost Lord, right?”
“So he's the reason Lanzhou has been in an uproar these past few days.”
“I hear all the nearby Evil-Shattering Corps have gathered to catch him.”
“The Martial Alliance?”
“Didn't you hear? The Martial Alliance recently declared they would exterminate the Hundred Great Villains.”
Cho Ak-ryang and Beom Gye-wi exchanged glances.
The Sa Mu-sim they knew certainly possessed martial arts skills that ranked high in the underworld.
But to shoehorn him into the Hundred Great Villains, bypassing so many other evildoers, seemed quite forced. While the man was obsessed with money, he had his reasons.
“That Sa Mu-sim fellow, he's a bit ruthless, but isn't he a decent guy? I hear he's saved over a thousand orphans.”
Just then, the waiter brought the food they had ordered.
“Wow!”
Dan Ak-seon exclaimed in constant admiration at the feast of splendid dishes covering the table.
True to its reputation, every dish was a delicacy among delicacies.
The *kaisui baicai*, made with cabbage, had a clear and refreshing broth that was superb. The *leshan bang bang ji*, a chicken dish, and the *niurou piansi*, finely shredded beef drizzled with sauce, also boasted excellent flavors.
And yet, Cho Ak-ryang and Beom Gye-wi only picked at their food with their chopsticks, hardly eating anything.
Finally noticing, Dan Ak-seon looked at the two with a puzzled expression.
“Is something wrong?”
“Hm? No, I just don't have much of an appetite.”
At Cho Ak-ryang's words, Beom Gye-wi subtly pushed his chair back.
“I'm going to use the privy.”
A glint flickered in Cho Ak-ryang's eyes.
“Then I suppose I'll go for a walk.”
The two men stood up and left the Howon Pavilion side by side.
They happened to run into Pung Jin-seong at the entrance, who was just arriving.
“Have you finished your meal already?”
Cho Ak-ryang trailed off in response to Pung Jin-seong's question.
“We just have some business to attend to.”
Pung Jin-seong studied their expressions and let out a soft sigh. Perceptive as he was, he couldn't have missed the killing intent lingering in their eyes.
“Please be careful not to reveal your identities.”
Beom Gye-wi nodded at Pung Jin-seong's request.
“That won't happen.”
The reason for Beom Gye-wi's confidence was simple.
Dead men tell no tales.
Because the dead do not speak.
***
“*Gasp, gasp!*”
Sa Mu-sim heaved ragged breaths.
His stamina had long since reached its limit, and his entire body felt as heavy as waterlogged cotton. His mouth tasted of iron, but escaping the Evil-Shattering Corps' inescapable net was a distant prospect.
*Clang!*
Sa Mu-sim swung his unique weapon, an iron ruler, and parried a sword lunging toward him.
*Swish.*
But in that instant, a dagger that had approached stealthily grazed his side.
“Kugh...!”
A suppressed groan escaped through Sa Mu-sim's clenched teeth. Fortunately, the wound wasn't deep, but the real problem lay elsewhere.
The accumulation of major and minor injuries like this was finally starting to take its toll.
Watching from a distance, Cho Ak-ryang clicked his tongue.
“*Tsk, tsk,* look at him struggle.”
He was putting up a decent fight, but he couldn't handle the Evil-Shattering Corps, who swarmed him like a pack of wolves.
Eventually, he saw Sa Mu-sim buckle to his knees, brought down by the relentless, layered assault.
A member of the Evil-Shattering Corps approached Sa Mu-sim and raised his blade high.
But his blade never struck Sa Mu-sim.
*Thud.*
Because Beom Gye-wi, who had suddenly appeared in front of Sa Mu-sim, had caught the falling blade.
Beom Gye-wi drove his fist into the surprised man's face.
*CRACK!*
The corps member, having dropped his blade, flew through the air for a good distance.
*Thump.*
Sprawled on the ground, he convulsed once and then went limp.
His face was caved in, utterly unrecognizable.
It was, without a doubt, an instant death.
“...!”
A cold silence fell over the area.
No one present dared to speak.
The shock Sa Mu-sim felt, in particular, was beyond words.
Having experienced the Evil-Shattering Corps' attacks firsthand, he knew their strength better than anyone. Yet this giant who had suddenly intervened had killed one of them as easily as wringing a chicken's neck.
He could only be dumbfounded by such overwhelming martial prowess.
Just then, Beom Gye-wi set down Cho Ak-ryang, whom he had been carrying on his back, and warned him.
“Remember Doctor Dan told you not to use your internal energy.”
“As if I need internal energy for scum like this.”
The Evil-Shattering Corps members bristled with killing intent at the two men's clearly dismissive attitude.
At that moment, a man stepped forward from among them.
He was a man in his late forties with a square face and a sturdy build.
“I am Team Leader Paeng Mu-wi, in charge of three Evil-Shattering Corps teams, acting under the Alliance's orders.”
Beom Gye-wi turned his head to look at the man who had identified himself as Paeng Mu-wi.
In that instant, Paeng Mu-wi's heart sank.
It was because of the hulking man's chilling gaze, which sent a shiver down his spine just by meeting it.
His presence was truly overwhelming.
“And who might you esteemed masters be?”
Normally, he would have demanded to know why they were interfering with Martial Alliance business and, depending on their answer, issued a warning and held them accountable. But in the face of their presence, the words wouldn't come out.
“You must be from the Paeng family.”
“That is correct.”
Paeng Mu-wi nodded at Cho Ak-ryang's words.
The prestigious family of blade masters who reigned as the hegemon of the Hebei region.
His dignified posture was filled with the pride of one who carried that family name. But it wasn't long before his gaze wavered.
It was because of the scholar standing before him.
At first, he had felt that aside from his cold eyes, the man was no different from an ordinary person.
But that was only a first impression. He soon realized that an oppressive weight emanating from the man's entire being completely dominated the surroundings.
It was a steadiness like that of a mountain, or perhaps the sea.
‘Where did these monsters come from!’
And not just one, but two of them.
The sudden appearance of these masters sent Paeng Mu-wi's mind reeling.
But just then.
Something completely unexpected happened.
Though he had given no order, the Evil-Shattering Corps members charged toward the two men.
Paeng Mu-wi's face contorted.
“No!”
He shouted too late; it didn't reach his men. It was as if they were possessed.
Paeng Mu-wi realized something too late.
‘Could it be...’
Unbeknownst to them, everyone present had been seized by fear.
That was why they had charged instinctively, like moths drawn to a flame, throwing themselves into the fire.
It was then that the giant's hand moved.
A blurry shadow of a hand seemed to trace a large arc in the air, and then that chilling trajectory overlapped with his subordinates.
“Gak.”
“Keoheok!”
Death throes erupted from all around!
A thick spray of blood followed.
The scholar with the cold eyes also picked up a sword from the ground and walked among the Evil-Shattering Corps members.
Then, he swung the sword in his hand.
Thrusting forward, slashing up and down—the movements were exceedingly simple.
But the results were anything but simple.
Every time the sword, imbued with killing intent, drew a milky-white arc, someone's neck was invariably caught on its tip.
“...!”
There weren't even screams.
A mere three breaths.
That was all the time it took for the entire Evil-Shattering Corps, save for Paeng Mu-wi, to be annihilated.
“W-who in the world are you?”
Paeng Mu-wi felt a sense of despair as the words came out in an involuntary tremor.
He prided himself on having spent most of his life on the battlefield.
His martial arts were also good enough for him to walk with his shoulders squared. But he had never experienced anything like this.
Beom Gye-wi answered by stepping toward Paeng Mu-wi.
Just that simple act made Paeng Mu-wi feel his breath catch in his throat.
The feeling of an intangible energy gripping his heart.
He could feel the shadow of death looming before him, impossible to escape.
Paeng Mu-wi gritted his teeth.
If death was inevitable, he had to at least accomplish the mission that brought him here.
*Whoosh.*
Paeng Mu-wi suddenly spun around and swung his blade at Sa Mu-sim.
*Shriiiek!*
With a chilling sound of displaced air, a powerful stream of blade energy tore through the atmosphere.
“...!”
Facing it, Sa Mu-sim's face turned pale.
He had no time to react.
The accumulated injuries from fighting the Evil-Shattering Corps were one thing, but he too had been greatly flustered by the monstrous men's intervention.
Sa Mu-sim squeezed his eyes shut.
But the ferocious blade energy failed to harm Sa Mu-sim.
Because someone had stepped in front of him.
It was Cho Ak-ryang.
The fierce blade energy that had rushed in in an instant dissipated futilely.
Following the strange angles of Cho Ak-ryang's pressing and grabbing hand, the blade energy gradually disintegrated until it vanished without a trace.
“Ha...”
Paeng Mu-wi was dumbfounded.
It was a ghostly skill, hard to believe even for the one who had unleashed the blade energy.
How many people in the current martial world could dissipate blade energy with their bare hands?
Paeng Mu-wi completely lost his will to fight.
‘Monster!’
No other word came to mind to describe him.
Before that icy gaze fixed upon him, no amount of determination or resolve was of any use.
“Brother Cho! I told you not to use your internal energy!”
“Hut!”
Standing there dumbfounded, Paeng Mu-wi sucked in a sharp breath.
When he came to his senses, the giant of a man was already within arm's reach.
Paeng Mu-wi hastily raised his blade.
*Clang.*
The broadsword, forged from high-quality steel, snapped far too easily.
*Thwack!*
“Keoheok!”
In contrast, his opponent's hand lodged itself cleanly in his chest.
Deep despair filled Paeng Mu-wi's eyes.
The hand-blade that had shattered his sternum was already an irreversible, fatal wound. But as if that weren't enough, his opponent's hand began to push deeper.
*CRUNCH.*
Crushing his heart and other organs, the hand-blade broke through Paeng Mu-wi's back and emerged on the other side.