Chapter 325

A shudder.

That was the emotion everyone present shared.

Huashan, the Beggars’ Sect, the Zhongnan Sect, the Lower District Sect, and even the Yongbong Escort Bureau. Dozens of trembling pairs of eyes stared dumbfoundedly at the scene unfolding before them.

“So.”

Thwack!

“While I was still asking nicely.”

Thwack!

“You should’ve stopped.”

Thwack!

“And where do you get off throwing the first punch—the first sword, even?”

Craack!

The final blow was especially loud. With a wet, choking rattle of blood in his throat, the old man’s body crumpled to the ground.

His face was covered in blood. The sharp bridge of his nose, which had once made countless women’s hearts flutter, had long since been flattened, and the even teeth that had belied his eighty years of age had been reduced to a single front tooth.

“You talk shit about someone else’s Master like you’re insulting their fucking dad, you piece of shit.”

Craack!

The last remaining front tooth went flying through the air and landed in a corner of the tea house.

As they stared at the scene in stunned disbelief, one thought flashed through everyone’s mind.

What the hell am I looking at?

Something no one had thought would happen—something that should never have happened—was happening right before their eyes.

Who would believe that a young man barely twenty years old, only just beginning to make a name for himself in the martial world, was brutally beating the Zhongnan Sect’s greatest master and the Sect Leader’s senior brother?

And yet everyone present had witnessed it with their own eyes.

The exchange between two men whose movements had been too fast to follow. And at the end of that exchange, the fallen old man and the young man standing alone.

“The fire dragon…”

Someone muttered those two words like a groan, and they sank deep into the hearts of all who heard them.

The Sleeping Dragon of Shanxi. That was the martial name by which the young man Jin Taekyung had been known in the Murim.

But that was wrong. The Hidden Dragon had finally risen, and he would soar through the skies of the entire world—not merely those of Shanxi.

As a fire dragon.

“The only subject I ever got a perfect score in was ethics. But today, I’m making an exception and attacking an old man properly. Get up.”

No. Not a fire dragon.

Was he a Mad Dragon instead?

The sight of Jin Taekyung gripping Hwangbo Eom’s beard, which was a filthy mess of soot and blood, as though it were a fistful of hair jolted the thirty members of the Taeeul Sword Unit out of their stupor.

Who was that old man?

He was Taeeul Merciless Sword Hwangbo Eom, a senior of their sect and the Sect Leader’s senior martial brother.

“W-wait!”

“Martial Grandmaster!”

The voices erupted all at once, as if they had been rehearsed.

Among them was one particularly loud shout, filled with force.

“You bastard! Release Senior Martial Uncle this instant!”

Hwangcheon¹, the Commander of the Taeeul Sword Unit and a second-generation disciple of the Zhongnan Sect, hurriedly drew his sword and stepped forward.

Shing. Clack.

“……!”

Hwangcheon’s eyes widened like saucers.

It had happened in the blink of an eye.

A cold blade had stopped at his throat. A yellow bamboo staff was pressed against his chest, while the blade he had drawn halfway from its scabbard had been caught on someone else’s sword and could not be drawn any farther.

The three martial artists who had subdued Hwangcheon, a Peak master of the Zhongnan Sect, in an instant spoke in turn.

“You’d better not draw that sword.”

“If you want a fight, the Yongbong Escort Bureau and I will be your opponents.”

“It’ll hurt quite a bit if you get hit by the Dog-Beating Staff Technique. I’ve only mastered it to five stars, though.”

Huashan’s Lone Crane Baek Museong, Dagger Hidden Flower Ju Hwaran, and the Beggars’ Sect’s Successor Beggar, Gung Gibang.

And that was not all.

“Protect the Young Bureau Head!”

“This is troublesome. We’re almost done here, so it would be a problem if things ended like this.”

Chief Escort Heo Jun and the cold-faced Song Ilseom, who had been muttering something incomprehensible, led the Yongbong Escort Bureau’s escorts in confronting the Zhongnan disciples.

“The branch leader commands you filthy Beggars’ Sect bastards! Show those dogs who are beneath even a yellow dog what a beggar’s cudgel feels like!”

“We’re both beggars. Why are you calling us bastards?”

“Good grief. It’s been ages since I got to really cut loose.”

“If any of you get hurt, it’s the branch leader’s responsibility. Don’t hassle us just because we can’t beg for a while.”

Heukgeol Beggar and the Beggars’ Sect disciples drew the cudgels hanging from their waists with considerable enthusiasm.

“You lot, don’t get involved and hurt yourselves for no reason. Write down every detail of what happens. We’ll be able to sell it for a high price later.”

“Um, are you planning to make an enemy of the Zhongnan Sect?”

“Hm? Why would I make an enemy of an important customer? I’m going to sell this to the Zhongnan Sect. Even if I jack up the price sky-high, they’ll have no choice but to buy it.”

“Ah! Of course!”

“Draw pictures, too. Make them vivid enough to leap off the page.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Wolhwa and the Lower District Sect members, who were hoping to make a fortune, began recording the scene before them in words and pictures without missing a single detail.

“Wow! This is the first time I’ve seen anything like this in my life!”

“You bastards! Hyuk Mujin is here too—the Vice Squad Leader of the Jin Dragon Squad and the Captain’s right-hand man!”

Finally, even Cheongpung and Hyuk Mujin, who had been standing a step away and watching the fire from across the river, joined in.

As events took an unexpected turn, Hwangcheon’s face flushed with confusion and rage.

“W-what is the meaning of this? Everyone, stop this at once!”

The answer came from somewhere else.

“What if we don’t want to stop?”

“……!”

Hwangcheon sucked in a breath.

Over the shoulders of the people blocking the Zhongnan Sect’s path, a pair of eyes filled with cold flames stared directly at him.

“I asked you. What are you going to do if I don’t want to stop?”

White steam escaped from Jin Taekyung’s lips as he sneered.

Was it because he had witnessed that unbelievable display of power? Merely meeting Jin Taekyung’s gaze and hearing his low voice bore into his ears was enough to make Hwangcheon’s breath catch.

His aura was truly overwhelming.

H-How can someone so young…?

Hwangcheon realized it once again.

To the young man who had defeated the greatest master of the Zhongnan Sect, age was nothing more than a number.

He’s a monster. That man is a monster.

And that monster was looking directly at him.

How could the martial arts he had once been so proud of feel this insignificant?

Hwangcheon swallowed dryly again and again as Jin Taekyung’s aura pressed down on him.

That was when—

“Junior Brother, withdraw. Everyone else, sheathe your swords.”

A calm voice accompanied the back of a man who stepped in front of them.

Hwangcheon’s eyes widened at the familiar figure.

“Senior Brother Hyuk…!”

Zhongnan One Dragon Hyuk Sopyung.

He had been called the future of the Zhongnan Sect, and even now, despite his indulgence in wine and women, he had not lost his reputation as the sect’s greatest young prodigy.

Standing before Hwangcheon, he stared at Jin Taekyung with firm eyes.

Though dozens of weapons were pointed at him, his voice did not waver in the slightest.

“Please stop this meaningless fight.”

“Meaningless? Stop it?”

A short, breathy laugh escaped through Jin Taekyung’s lips.

“Even if you started it, I’m the one who decides how it ends.”

“I know. That is why I’m asking.”

“You’re asking? Just because you have a mouth doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want. You might end up with that mouth actually being pierced.”

“The victor is already clear. I’m asking you to show the magnanimity of the stronger party.”

The Zhongnan disciples’ eyes widened—not at his surprisingly courteous manner or voice, but at the meaning of his words.

Hwangcheon, who had remained silent behind Hyuk Sopyung, raised his head and shouted.

“Senior Brother! The magnanimity of the stronger party? That would damage Senior Martial Uncle’s and the Great Zhongnan Sect’s reputation—”

“Junior Brother.”

“Y-yes?”

Hyuk Sopyung cut him off in a gentle voice.

But his next words were as sharp as a drawn blade.

“Will you shut that mouth of yours?”

“……Senior Brother?”

Not only Hwangcheon, but all thirty members of the Taeeul Sword Unit stared at Hyuk Sopyung with blank expressions.

Receiving all of his junior disciples’ stunned gazes, Hyuk Sopyung slowly opened his mouth.

“Anyone who wasn’t blind would have seen it. Anyone who wasn’t deaf would have heard it—how all of this began.”

“…….”

“We plotted in the shadows to swallow the Yongbong Escort Bureau whole. That is not the conduct of a great orthodox sect. Therefore, our sect has already lost its dignity.”

His voice was low, and his expression was twisted with pain. But Hyuk Sopyung did not stop.

“Worse, even in the face of such clear evidence, we refused to admit our wrongdoing, harbored murderous intent, and swung our swords. That severed the last shred of trust our sect still possessed. And yet which one of us dares speak of reputation? Me, who forgot my duty and floundered in wine and women? Or you, who refuse to admit your mistakes and cling only to your pride?”

Hwangcheon lowered his head.

He was not the only one. All thirty Zhongnan disciples fell silent, gripping the scabbards at their waists so tightly that their knuckles turned white.

They were ashamed because everything Hyuk Sopyung had said was true. And as the pride they had held in their sect crumbled, they felt hollow and humiliated.

No one spoke, but the emotions they felt were vividly conveyed to everyone around them.

“At least today… we were not the Great Zhongnan Sect.”

With those final words, Hyuk Sopyung looked at his junior disciples with eyes filled with regret, then turned around.

He took a deep martial salute toward the one man who had silently waited for him to finish speaking.

“This Zhongnan disciple, Hyuk Sopyung, humbly asks this of you. We deeply regret and apologize for the wrongs our sect has committed. Please show mercy just this once and spare him.”

His manner was exceedingly respectful, as though he were addressing a legendary master of the martial world.

And yet the person receiving his salute was a barely grown young man.

After staring silently at the bowed Hyuk Sopyung for a moment, Jin Taekyung opened his mouth.

“It leaves a bad taste in my mouth to keep an old bastard like this alive… but fine. I’ll let him off this once.”

Before Hyuk Sopyung could even raise his head, Jin Taekyung continued brightly.

“After I hit him one more time.”

Craack!

The inside of Tengwang Pavilion was beyond ruined.

The roof had collapsed completely, and all the furnishings had been reduced to splinters by the battle between Hwangbo Eom and me. Cold wind and the murmuring of onlookers drifted in through the collapsed walls.

“My heavens, Tengwang Pavilion…”

“What on earth happened? Does anyone know?”

“I don’t know the details either. But from what I’ve heard, about one shichen ago, Taeeul Merciless Sword of the Zhongnan Sect led his disciples…”

Xi’an was the center of Shaanxi Province. No matter how far from the main streets Tengwang Pavilion had been, it could not escape the people’s attention.

And the commoners who had gathered out of equal parts curiosity and concern were forced to face dozens of sharp martial artists’ gazes.

“That’s far enough.”

“This is a matter of the martial world. Don’t get involved. Go back!”

Dozens of armed martial artists formed a wall of people to block their approach. The commoners hesitated, then slowly backed away.

I clicked my tongue as I watched the Zhongnan disciples struggling desperately to keep the scene inside from being exposed.

“You’re really trying. Really.”

The Great Zhongnan Sect’s reputation had already been destroyed, yet they were still struggling to preserve even a shred of it.

It was both pitiful and idiotic.

I dropped into a wooden chair with a broken back and opened my mouth.

“Well, unpleasant things happened, but we still have to finish what needs finishing. Let’s find some common ground through dialogue instead of barbaric violence.”

“…….”

“…….”

Oof. Those stares were sharp.

I ignored the gazes raining down on me from every direction and smiled at one person.

“So, Great Hero Hwangbo, what do you think?”

Hwangbo Eom answered immediately.

Or rather, he groaned.

“Hrrgh… hrrrgh…”

Both of his arms were broken, and one leg was fractured. On top of that, he had suffered an Internal Injury that would require at least a year of recovery, while his nose and teeth had been smashed to pieces.

A sobbing groan escaped from his slightly open mouth, accompanied by the wet rattle of blood and phlegm.

“Hrrrgh…”

I grabbed Hwangbo Eom by the wrist.

Resisting the urge to break it, I sent a small amount of internal energy into him. The pallor of his face improved slightly.

“Patient, patient, wake up. It’s time for your injection—no, your negotiation.”

“Hrrgh… Jin Taekyung. You…”

“That catchphrase went out of fashion fifty years ago.”

“You bastard. Do you think our sect will let you get away with this…?”

“Hm.”

What do I do? He still doesn’t seem to have come to his senses.

I scratched the back of my head, then whipped my hand out like lightning.

Smack!

“Guh!”

Hwangbo Eom’s eyes rolled back after the slap.

As he trembled all over and began to slide out of the chair, Hyuk Sopyung caught him and sighed.

“Whew.”

“It’s not my fault. He keeps earning these beatings. He’s practically begging me to kill him. What else am I supposed to do?”

“Even so, restrain yourself. Any more than this could endanger his life.”

“You’ve had a rough time, too. Judging by his personality, I can’t imagine he treated you particularly well either. Am I wrong?”

“……What kind of person he was to me is irrelevant. He is my Master’s senior martial brother, and a disciple of our sect.”

The complicated expression on Hyuk Sopyung’s face suggested that there was some story between them.

He seems surprisingly decent, considering. Was that why he used to drink and cause disturbances?

The question crossed my mind for an instant, but I had no intention of asking.

I was not particularly curious, either.

There was something more important to deal with now.

“All right, then. Let’s negotiate. Young Lady Ju, are you ready?”

“Pardon? Y-yes, yes.”

“You may state your demands.”

What on earth happened here? Is this a dream?

Still looking as though she could not quite believe what was happening, Ju Hwaran rubbed her flushed cheek and began to speak.

“As compensation for this incident, the Yongbong Escort Bureau demands that the Zhongnan Sect void the contract and pay the contractual penalty—”

Hwangbo Eom’s hoarse voice cut her off.

“We refuse. Our sect will not pay any compensation.”

I knew it.

I gestured toward Ju Hwaran, who had gone rigid.

“Young Lady Ju, wait a moment.”

“Yes?”

“It’ll only take a second.”

Without hesitation, I slapped Hwangbo Eom across the face.

Smack!

“Guh!”

“Senior Martial Uncle!”

“I’ll ask again. Are you paying compensation or not?”

Hwangbo Eom glared at me with burning eyes.

“Our sect will… not pay any compen—”

Smack!

“Guh! No compensation whatsoever.”

Smack!

“Guhhh! Our sect will pay any compensation!”

“Okay, compensation! Okay! Thank you!”

Negotiation sure was easy.