<Black Flame Dragon Who Quells the Chaos (4)>
“Fire!”
“Fire! There’s a fire!”
“Wake everyone up!”
The blaze that had started in the main building spread in every direction, throwing Mukhyul Gang into an uproar as if disaster had struck without warning.
Warriors, drunk and unable to fasten their clothes properly, staggered about, drawing water and throwing it onto the building. But the flames showed no sign of dying down.
A wheel rolled down a mountainside won’t stop until it hits a rock.
The nine heretical sects of Yueyang, led by Mukhyul Gang and Cheukbu Palace, wouldn’t end the war just because the leader of Mukhyul Gang had died.
The heretical factions of Yueyang were the wheel.
And the rock that would stop them was, ironically, the very method they had been using all along—
instilling fear.
After the leader of Mukhyul Gang died, his deputy would take over.
If the deputy died, Cheukbu Palace would step in for Mukhyul Gang.
The way to stop them was to make them understand that their own lives were also in danger.
And not the lives of disposable underlings who could be used and thrown away, but the lives of the people making the decisions.
“The ones at the top are all cut from the same cloth.”
Even within the Martial Alliance, there were few leaders willing to throw their lives away as if they were straw.
I had no reason to think that the heretical rabble were any better than the righteous factions.
“Wake those brats! The fire’s spreading!”
“We’re short-handed. Everyone’s out at Yujang Sect.”
“Then wake up the villagers! Tell them to help if they don’t want to die!”
The fire consuming the enormous building where the gang leader lived made them all the more frantic.
Watching from a distance, I used the Ghost-Breathing Step again and ran toward the place farthest from the burning building.
‘This is just the beginning.’
The enormous blaze from the building cast a huge shadow over where I stood.
I used the Ghost-Breathing Art to conceal myself within the shadow, then moved around Mukhyul Gang, keeping an eye out for the men giving orders.
“Hey, you bastard! Run! Are you going to run or not?!”
A huge man on one side was cursing and radiating killing intent.
He swung an axe as big as a person’s torso. He looked ready to split any disobedient subordinate in one blow, so Mukhyul Gang’s warriors kept their distance.
I moved through the shadows and crept up behind him.
He sensed my presence, cursed, and swung his fist.
“Hey, you bastard! Who the hell are—?”
Thud.
As he felt something pierce his chest, the giant slowly lowered his head.
“What’s your rank in Mukhyul Gang?”
“ …”
He was so quiet that I tapped him a few times. The giant had stopped breathing.
“Damn … I thought I’d only stabbed him shallowly.”
I dragged his body somewhere out of sight, then moved through the shadows again, looking for a suitable target.
But the men I assumed were in command were all too close to the burning building as they tried to put out the flames. I couldn’t find a good target.
So I started going after the underlings instead.
“Hey, what are you—?”
Thud.
“Hey! Why aren’t you carrying water—?”
There was no need to fight them.
The men were so busy carrying water that after I picked them off one by one and strangled them, others quickly took their places.
Before long, the narrow alley behind the building where they piled up the bodies was packed so tightly there was no room to stand.
‘I’ll have to go farther in.’
Crack!
Just then, one side of the building gave way to the flames, sending fire bursting in every direction.
“Look out! The fire’s spreading!”
“Get out, you bastards!”
“Has anyone seen the boss?”
The building collapsed, setting the one next to it ablaze.
The men, half out of their minds, stopped fighting the fire, threw down their buckets, and began fleeing in every direction.
I slowly approached them from behind.
Just as I was about to grab one and pierce his throat—
An unfamiliar voice came from above me.
“You’ve got some nerve.”
Crash!
At last, the largest building collapsed, turning the main training grounds and the great training yard into a sea of fire.
“That building’s on fire, too! Bring water!”
“We’re out of buckets!”
“Bring a shovel, you bastards!”
While everyone’s attention was fixed on another building,
dozens of footprints filled the air above me as I looked up.
Crack!
I quickly used the Taeul Eight Myriad Divine Steps to dodge. The blue steel stone floor shattered, sending chunks of stone flying in every direction.
‘What kind of destructive power …?’
I’d heard that Snake Evil’s kicking techniques were peerless, but I’d never imagined a foot without even a trace of internal energy could shatter blue steel stone like that.
“You ran away from me, then came back. Did you think I was that easy to deal with?”
A middle-aged man descended from the roof with his hands clasped behind his back.
His goatee made him look even more cunning. He chuckled.
“I heard the Bloodflame Dragon was all talk. So you’ve learned some strange martial arts, after all.”
“I’m not the Bloodflame Dragon.”
“I saw you at the Dark Faction Night Gathering.”
Damn it. Was he one of the heretical fighters who had gathered there?
“Ah! So we’ve met before. Then would you mind stepping aside? This is between Mukhyul Gang and me.”
Snake Evil twisted his goatee around a finger as he spoke.
“To be precise, it’s between Mukhyul Gang and Yujang Sect.”
“There’s no one left to pay you now. Isn’t it time to stop working so hard?”
“I always get paid in advance.”
“Right. Trusting the word of a heretical fighter. What an idiot.”
“Heh heh heh. Your martial arts reek of the Daoist path, but your mouth sounds like some alley thug’s.”
Snake Evil raised his right foot, still holding his hands behind his back, and lashed out like a whip eight times.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
Even though I’d trained my external arts well and had reinforced myself with energy, the glancing blows hurt as if my bones had been broken.
On top of that, the kicks came and went faster than most swift sword arts, leaving no opening to exploit.
I tried to create some distance and swing the Blood Dragon Sword, but Snake Evil wouldn’t allow it.
To make an opening, I tried to distract him with a pointless remark.
“I’m peerless with the sword. Wouldn’t you like to see my swordsmanship?”
“Pfft. You mean the sword art that killed the leader of Mukhyul Gang? I’m not curious enough to risk my neck.”
But he was different from those foolish Sojeong Unit bastards.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
His kicks covered every gap around me. When I tried to retreat, he threatened me with an even stronger attack and closed the distance.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
When I rushed in to knock him down, he used the close quarters to strike my thigh. Each blow hit hard enough to make my body stagger.
‘His improvisation is incredible.’
This wasn’t a fight honed through sparring or practice. It was extreme hand-to-hand combat forged in real battles.
That was why even when he used the same technique, it felt like a different one.
And even when he used a different technique, it felt like the same one.
The fight had only lasted a short while, but as it dragged on, Mukhyul Gang’s fighters began turning to look our way.
If I delayed any longer, my original plan to spread fear would surely fail. I desperately tried to pull away.
Retreating was an important tactic, too.
“You’re still trying to run?”
“Someone’s waiting for me.”
“I’ll tell them you couldn’t make it.”
“I’ll pass. I’d rather tell them myself.”
I used the Taeul Eight Myriad Divine Steps to the utmost and created three afterimages.
At the same time, I unleashed the Myriad Transformations Invincible Fist to block Snake Evil’s view, then brought forth the Sacred Fire Demon-Subduing Hand and aimed for his vital points.
He desperately twisted his body to avoid the flames and sent a kick at me.
Pop! Pop! Pop-pop-pop!
Flames burst in every direction with a series of explosions.
“I noticed it earlier, but that’s no ordinary fire. What kind of martial art is it?”
“The righteous flame that beats up the dark faction.”
As I spoke, I scattered the Sacred Fire Demon-Subduing Hand to create an opening, turned, and pushed off with my legs.
But then Snake Evil said something strange.
“He’s mine. Don’t touch him.”
A shiver ran through me.
He clearly wasn’t talking to me.
The moment I felt something strange crawl up my spine, I ducked.
Whoooooosh!
A sharp sound split the air, and a lock of my hair fell to the ground.
‘ …I didn’t sense him?’
Snake Evil clicked his tongue as he looked at my fallen hair.
“Tsk, tsk. I told you not to touch him.”
“Snake Evil, employer is dead. Don’t play around.”
“See? I told you to get the advance payment first.”
“ …”
Why did he sound so dejected in the middle of a fight?
Seriously …
One was cracking jokes even though his employer was dead. The other was sulking like a child because he wouldn’t get paid.
There were plenty of strange people among the righteous martial world, but compared to the heretical lot, they were perfectly normal.
“Oh? Your promissory note is running away.”
Don’t call people promissory notes, you lunatic!
At Snake Evil’s words, Sword Evil lifted his head. He had appeared in front of me and blocked my escape route.
“Don’t run, promissory note.”
“Show me a little respect and treat me like a person!”
I scattered the Twin Heaven Sword Art, hemming Sword Evil in from all eight directions. One of his eyebrows twitched.
In an instant, Sword Evil’s blade began moving so fast it blurred.
Zip! Zip! Zip! Zip! Zip!
I was stunned by one of Sword Evil’s moves.
Good heavens. He didn’t distinguish between illusion swords and true swords.
An illusion confuses and deceives.
But if you don’t distinguish between illusion and reality and simply cut through both, you can’t be fooled by an illusion.
It sounded like an incredibly stupid idea, but seeing it in action was genuinely impressive.
I almost wanted to learn it myself.
“How much were you promised?”
“A lot.”
“I can pay a lot, too.”
“How much?”
“Ten thousand nyang in gold?”
Sword Evil’s eyebrow twitched.
Wait, he’s actually considering it?
“ …What do I have to do?”
“Kill the Mukhyul Gang bastards and Snake Evil over there.”
Hearing that, Snake Evil grumbled and kicked at me.
“Y-you idiot! Why are you listening to him?”
“ …”
Sword Evil pouted dejectedly, then shook his head.
“Snake Evil has bad personality. Holds grudges. Harass me forever.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to kill him here?”
I dodged Snake Evil’s kicks with the Iron Plank Bridge technique as I spoke.
“Snake Evil dies, no more work.”
“Are you two friends?”
Snake Evil answered for him.
“We’re childhood friends.”
Oh, so they were friends.
“No wonder they tell adults to choose their friends carefully.”
“Snake Evil only became one of the Eight Evils thanks to me.”
Just as Snake Evil said, they’d been fighting together for a long time. They covered each other’s weaknesses remarkably well.
Above the waist, Sword Evil kept me distracted. Below the waist, Snake Evil tangled up my legs.
It was hard enough to fight one of them. With both attacking me, I couldn’t even think of escaping.
I began forming a plan as I committed their techniques to memory.
“Are you proud of ruining your friend’s life?”
“Even notoriety is a kind of fame, like the Bloodflame Dragon’s.”
Damn it, since when had my title become a disgrace?
The question rose to my throat, but the blade that suddenly appeared before my eyes swallowed it back down.
‘What kind of sword art leaves no trace?’
As before, Sword Evil’s sword art gave off no sign of its movement. My earlier impression hadn’t been wrong.
Speed aside, I couldn’t turn my gaze away because I couldn’t sense the blade.
But if I kept my eyes fixed on Sword Evil, Snake Evil would relentlessly target my lower body.
“There! The intruder’s over there!”
The Mukhyul Gang fighters, who had been distracted by the fire, began gathering around us.
I gathered the Sacred Fire Demon-Subduing Hand into the Myriad Transformations Invincible Fist in one hand. In the other, I formed two swords with the Ten Thousand Seas and Heaven-Earth Sword Art.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Myriad Transformations Invincible Fist clashed with Snake Evil’s kicks, scattering flames in every direction.
Clang-clang-clang!
The Twin Heaven Sword Art scattered by the Ten Thousand Swords was shattered against Sword Evil’s blade.
They would have been stronger with sword energy, but I couldn’t spare the time while fighting Snake Evil.
Mukhyul Gang’s fighters had taken control of the surrounding area. The aftershocks of the battle kept them from approaching, but they were ready to charge at me with weapons in hand.
“Promissory note, give up. Arm will get cut off.”
“ …”
Just as he said, I was moving my sword and hands so frantically I couldn’t even curse.
It felt like I was stuck between two perfectly fitting latches.
One small slip, and I’d be killed.
So I threw myself straight into their reach.
Thud—
Sword Evil’s blade grazed just above my eyebrow, while Snake Evil’s toe left a sharp wound on my thigh.
‘Now!’
I pulled back the Myriad Transformations Invincible Fist, then thrust out my left hand toward Sword Evil.
“So my feet are worth taking a hit, are they?”
Snake Evil swung his leg with all his strength, clearly charged with internal energy.
Its power was such that the moment it hit, I expected my bones and skin to be ruined.
With my left hand, I caught Sword Evil’s blade.
My skin split, and blood burst out like a fountain.
“Hm?!”
While Sword Evil looked startled, I used the Lotus Flower technique of the grafting art with all my strength and twisted the path of his sword toward Snake Evil’s leg.
Boom!
The sound of flesh being pierced overlapped with the explosion of condensed internal energy.
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