Chapter 58. Justification for the Fight (2)
Amchil, who had been running through the forest for a long time, finally saw the forest's edge.
'Just a little further...!'
Then, it happened.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Gah!"
Thud!
Struck, Amchil flew back, colliding with a tree and coughing up blood.
The impact was severe, amplified by his running speed. If his attacker hadn't momentarily retracted his internal energy, Amchil's heart would have burst, killing him instantly.
"You're quite impressive. I thought you were just a mere soldier, but your skills are considerable. The Myeong Clan truly lives up to its name, huh?"
"Cough!"
Amchil, spitting out a short cough, asked in a trembling voice.
"Who... who are you?!"
"Me?"
Gadeuksang grinned.
"I'm the street cleaner, you bastard."
He swung his foot.
Crack!
Struck on the temple, Amchil immediately lost consciousness.
Gadeuksang looked down at Amchil with cold eyes.
"What you guys are doing is quite entertaining. And I'm the type to share entertaining things. I want everyone in the Central Plains to know."
Rustle.
Two beggars carrying clubs appeared and picked up Amchil.
"What should we do, Hugae?"
"What do you mean? Tie him up with the others we caught."
"But is that really okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"They're from the Myeong Clan..."
"So what? Should we just endure it? After seeing what these bastards are up to, should we just say, 'Oh my, they're strong, so we should just take it'?"
"...It's not that, but."
"Stop talking nonsense and take him away."
"Yes, sir."
It was clear that Hugae was furious. The beggars, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire, hurried to take Amchil away.
Gadeuksang stood there for a while, staring at a tree, then sighed.
"Damn it. That fortune teller was disgustingly accurate. He kept babbling about the 'changing of the times' and whatnot. He said I'd be running around sweating buckets since spring this year, and he was spot on."
He was extremely angry, but he wasn't just acting on his emotions. If he were that simple, he wouldn't have become Hugae.
'There's no time. It's no different from when we were dealing with spies. If there's no contact from the Shadow Squad, the Myeong Clan will take their own measures.'
He wanted to expose their actions immediately, but he couldn't.
The Nine Great Sects were the strongest under Heaven. Trying to accuse them with flimsy evidence could backfire.
That would be a headache. Whether it was the Beggars' Sect or the Yeon Clan, they could face public backlash. The Myeong Clan would undoubtedly become even more secretive.
He needed more evidence. Enough to make it impossible for them to touch his side.
"Well, I'll have to think about it after Young Master Yeon deals with the remaining stragglers..."
Then.
'......!!'
Gadeuksang looked to the east.
In the dark forest, a chilling killing intent flowed with the cool breeze.
It was a killing intent he knew all too well. Even though he wasn't the target, it felt like a giant beast was pressing its teeth against his neck, a chilling ferocity that was overwhelming.
"...That bastard!"
Whoosh!
Gadeuksang, using the Beggars' Sect's secret technique, the Ten Thousand Li Autumn Wind footwork, his face filled with urgency.
"I told him to capture them, not kill them!!"
* * *
*Crack!* Boom!
A tree, shattered from its base, crashed down.
Even while destroying the tree, his speed didn't decrease. A massive axe blade was flying towards his side.
Swish!
Myeong Onji, ascending with nimble footwork, dodged the axe.
That wasn't all. Immediately after evading, Myeong Onji kicked a thick branch and swung her palm towards Yeon Hojung's head.
It wasn't a killing blow. It was a palm strike aimed at knocking him out in one hit.
At that moment, Yeon Hojung's iron club underwent an incredible transformation.
It wriggled like a snake, its attack direction shifting flexibly. The axe blade, rising upwards, created a terrifying pressure.
Urgency appeared on Myeong Onji's face.
The attack was so perfectly timed that she couldn't retract her hand. The internal energy imbued in the axe blade was too strong to simply deflect.
Thump!
She managed to twist her body and retract her palm strike, but the sharp axe blade instantly sliced through her forearm.
Drip!
Hot droplets of blood fell to the ground.
"Ugh!"
Myeong Onji's face turned pale as she landed.
'I hit an artery.'
The wound was deep. Blood was flowing freely. It wasn't the kind of bleeding that could be stopped with mere hand pressure.
Whoosh!
Yeon Hojung was cold and calculating. He closed the distance in an instant, attacking with a ferocity that suggested he didn't care if he died in the process.
Bang!
The axe shattered a small tree into pieces.
Thud!
Myeong Onji dashed away again.
She had intended to lure him in and subdue him, but that was no longer possible.
Yeon Hojung was not an opponent she could subdue with her abilities. His strength was one thing, but his stamina was monstrous.
Tap!
She pressed her pressure points, forcibly stopping the blood flow.
But there was a limit. If her internal energy consumption continued, the pressure points would release on their own. Then the bleeding would resume.
She was running out of time. She couldn't die trying to capture the enemy.
Boom!
A chilling explosion echoed through her spine.
'What a monster!'
Goosebumps covered her entire body.
Heavy weapons inevitably consume more internal energy than light weapons. The heavy weight is negated by internal energy, leaving only destructive power, so internal energy consumption increases rapidly over time.
And that's not all. Stamina is also a problem.
No matter how skilled a martial artist is, there's a limit to how much they can increase their stamina. Without the internal energy of someone like the heads of the Seven Great Clans or the leaders of the Nine Sects, there's no way to compensate for the decrease in martial power due to stamina issues.
But what about this guy?
As if he possessed infinite stamina, he had taken down all the Shadow Squad members and was still using such powerful martial arts. If anything, the axe's power seemed to have increased since the beginning.
*Bang!* Crash!
It was like lightning striking.
Despite her fear, she couldn't suppress her curiosity. Myeong Onji involuntarily looked back.
'......!!'
Two or three trees were collapsing in place.
No, "shattered" would be a more accurate description. Like a cavalryman made entirely of steel, he was randomly smashing through trees as he charged.
It was a storm-like rush.
'Crazy!'
She broke out in a cold sweat, realizing she had been fighting such a ruthless opponent.
It was the first time she hadn't recognized an opponent's skill at first sight. She couldn't even tell what kind of martial arts he had learned.
'Will I be caught? If it comes to that, shouldn't I just use my Secret Arts?!'
Fear fueled her desire. She wanted to unleash her hidden power and take him down immediately.
'...No. Not yet. It's a power I can't reveal.'
Whoosh!
Myeong Onji increased her speed.
Yeon Hojung's eyes flashed.
'I've been waiting for this.'
Thud!
With a flexible slash, he cut down a small tree and kicked it.
Bang!
It was like an explosion. The tree, struck by his incredible leg strength, flew straight towards Myeong Onji's back.
"Gah!"
Because of her high speed, changing direction was difficult. Myeong Onji turned her body to block the incoming tree trunk.
*Crack!* Thud!
"Guh!"
Myeong Onji's body crashed through a tree and fell.
"Whew."
Yeon Hojung also stopped his footwork.
He seemed to have infinite stamina, but he was still human. He used the enlightenment of the Black Darkness Emperor to manage his internal energy and supplement his stamina, but he couldn't do that forever.
He had caught her at just the right time. The beggars supported by Hugae were surrounding the entire forest, so they must have caught the fleeing Shadow Squad members as well.
Yeon Hojung walked towards Myeong Onji.
Capturing Myeong Onji would end the situation. It was finally over.
Then.
Boom!
Yeon Hojung's body was pushed back.
Whoosh!
A tremendous fighting spirit erupted from the pile of broken trees.
Killing intent surged from Yeon Hojung's eyes.
'...This martial art?!'
Fwoosh.
Myeong Onji's pupils glowed golden as she stood up.
That wasn't all. A powerful energy swirled from both of her hands.
"I didn't want to go this far, but..."
The swirling energy gradually permeated her entire body. Her presence was completely different from before.
"I have no choice. It's better to kill than be captured."
Flash!
'Gah?!'
Myeong Onji looked up at the sky in alarm.
A mass of killing intent was flying from there.
Bang!
A beast-like blow struck her forearm.
Surprisingly, she crossed her arms to block the slash. The axe blade dug two inches into her arms, but they weren't cut off.
This was practically invulnerability to blades. Myeong Onji shouted.
"You bastard!"
Yeon Hojung turned and kicked her in the chest.
Bang!
Myeong Onji staggered back.
It was an incredible force. The attack power was completely different from before.
Myeong Onji couldn't believe it.
'What is this?!'
Recently, the Myeong Clan had acquired the martial arts of Josa.
Those martial arts were truly remarkable. They solved the lifespan problem of the Myeong Clan's martial arts and also increased their overall power.
It wasn't the time to use it, but she was about to be caught by this guy. She decided it was better to kill him outright and unleashed her secret technique.
But he had changed too.
To be precise, his temperament had changed.
Step! Step! Step!
Yeon Hojung closed the distance in just three steps and swung his iron club.
It was a merciless flurry of attacks. An immense killing intent poured out from the axe strikes, which were faster and more violent than before.
'Argh!'
*Clang!* Bang!
Myeong Onji swung her hands to block the iron club.
But Yeon Hojung's attacks became even more aggressive. Faster, and more ferocious.
*Bang!* *Clang!* Thud!
"Gah!"
Her arms, blocking the axe, gradually became tattered.
'Impossible!'
It was a martial art that had perfectly blocked even the Second Young Master's techniques. But it couldn't block Yeon Hojung's axe strikes.
"Ugh!"
Thud!
"Aaaagh!!"
A scream finally escaped Myeong Onji's lips. The axe blade had severed her right arm from the elbow.
Yeon Hojung didn't stop there.
'I'll kill you!'
He had seen the martial arts used by one of the clan's villains.
The martial arts of the giant who had smashed the clan's signboard and broken down the gate. The martial arts of the Diamond Warrior who had charged through the Yeon Clan warriors' fierce swordsmanship with his bare body.
Seeing that martial art made his head turn white.
Thud!
Tripping Myeong Onji, Yeon Hojung stood over her and raised his axe.
*Bang!* *Clang!* Bang!
"Guh! Cough!"
Myeong Onji's body was gradually being buried in the ground.
It was an axe strike of brute force. In an instant, her entire upper body was covered in blood. Her forearms, chest, and shoulders were all marked with axe wounds.
Terror appeared on Myeong Onji's face.
A crazed murderer was trying to kill her with an axe. It was the most intense fear she had ever felt in her life.
"St-Stop! Stop it, you bastard!"
*Bang!* Clang!
"Cough! Gag!"
*Boom!* Boom!
"S-Save me..."
"You didn't."
Yeon Hojung raised his axe again.
His face, looking down at Myeong Onji, looked like a monster's.
"You didn't show any mercy."
Just then, Gadeuksang came running from afar.
"Young Master Yeon! Don't!!"
He swung his axe down with all his might.
BOOM!
