[Chapter 16]
"Master Lee! We've broken through the southwest gate! The fire there has been put out!"
"R-really?"
Shin Mo looked at Yeon Ji Pyeong with a puzzled eye.
Yeon Ji Pyeong's expression was strange. He seemed to be afraid of something, and also amazed by something.
"Master Lee?"
"This is not the time to be like this! Hurry and evacuate the people!"
Yeon Ji Pyeong ran forward.
"I'll bring the people with Je Gal Se!"
"Ah! Master Lee! That way is dangerous! The enemy's monsters are…!"
"It's okay! My brother took care of them!"
Brother? Did he mean the Grand Master?
Shin Mo turned his head to the outside of the broken gate with a confused eye.
At that moment, a loud blast rang out.
Boom!
'Ah!'
After the fierce collision, Ma Bang retreated without knowing it.
'Does it hurt?'
He looked at his own hand.
His palm was swollen red. His hand that could split a log with an unarmed palm strike was faintly trembling.
Ma Bang looked at Yeon Ho Jeong's iron rod.
A blue aura was rising like a mirage from the tip of the rod.
'A spear?!'
It was like a spear technique, not a rod technique.
It looked like an iron rod, but the move he just made was definitely a spear strike. It was a murderous method that pierced the opponent's chest with one blow.
"You bastard…!"
"Bring it out."
"What?"
Yeon Ho Jeong said coldly.
"Didn't you get stuck while learning the Crimson Flow of Darkness?"
"…!"
"Come on, I'll take it."
Ma Bang's eyes turned red.
The anger that he had forgotten for a while slowly rose up. It was not because the opponent was more skilled than he imagined. It was because he was surprised by the opponent who knew the Crimson Flow of Darkness.
"It's no use asking how you know, right?"
Whoosh!
Yeon Ho Jeong rushed in like a madman.
His speed was nothing remarkable, but his momentum was incredibly fierce. It was hard to avoid it just by his fierce momentum.
'He's like a beast.'
Whoosh!
The iron rod he shot out aimed at his neck in an instant.
It was his neck, not his chest. Aiming at the small target of the neck meant that he was confident in his precise attack.
Clang!
He twisted the path of the iron rod with his two daggers.
'Ugh!'
A strong shock remained in his two hands holding the daggers.
He didn't know anything else, but his strength was above his own. He couldn't understand how he could exert such power with that skinny body.
They exchanged three blows, but Ma Bang finally realized it. He couldn't win against this guy in this state.
'You bastard!'
Sizzle.
A red flame seemed to burst out from inside his body.
'If you want to see it so much, I'll show you!'
Ma Bang's eyes shot out a killing intent.
Yeon Ho Jeong's eyes flashed.
That was the problem.
Whether it was the White Flow of Darkness or the Crimson Flow of Darkness, if one learned the martial arts of the Dark Flow, they would never reveal their killing intent. It was a martial art that was originally created for assassination.
Ma Bang was clearly out of his mind. He was not afraid of facing the children of Je Gal Se, and he even thought of torturing and selling the siblings.
Ma Bang was now suffering from madness after falling into the devil's trap.
But that was a great opportunity for Yeon Ho Jeong.
"You son of a bitch!"
Whoosh!
Ma Bang's movement changed.
His sinister and passive technique suddenly became rough and active. He threw away his poison-coated daggers and aimed at Yeon Ho Jeong's head with his bare hands.
'He's coming.'
Whoosh!
His palm strike tore the air with a fierce sound.
His technique was as fast and aggressive as his exposed killing intent. It was a fiery martial art indeed.
Bang! Boom!
A sound like a drum exploding in the air rang out.
He never stopped attacking, whether it was against the Thunder Fire Gang or Ma Bang until now. He seemed like a person who didn't know how to defend or evade.
Not now.
He avoided Ma Bang's fiery martial art completely. His movement was choppy and didn't look natural, but he didn't allow a single hit.
'This bastard?!'
Ma Bang, who kept attacking, couldn't help but be flustered.
'Does he know the characteristics of the Crimson Palm of Darkness?'
The Crimson Palm of Darkness was a dark palm technique that specialized in penetrating force.
It was not a martial art that focused on destructive power, but one that penetrated and damaged the inside. Even if it was blocked, it would break through the defense and cause internal injuries to the opponent.
The person facing it had to be careful. There was no way to counter it except to avoid or find a gap.
Ma Bang, who raised his inner power more, thrust his palm at Yeon Ho Jeong's chest.
Shriek! Boom!
Yeon Ho Jeong's body spun and went over Ma Bang's back.
Ma Bang's eyes shook.
The blow that aimed at his chest was a feint. He pretended to attack with the Crimson Palm of Darkness and aimed at his midsection with his toes, but he avoided that too.
'Did he read that?'
He even avoided the decisive move. It was an amazing evasion skill.
Yeon Ho Jeong swung his iron rod without looking back.
Thud!
"Ugh!"
Ma Bang staggered.
His back felt like it was split. If there was inner power in it, his ribs and some of his shoulder blades would have been shattered.
"Did you steal and learn it from somewhere? Why are you so clumsy?"
"…!"
"Do it properly, will you?"
Ma Bang's eyes glared with anger.
"I'll make your guts fully cooked."
Whirring!
Yeon Ho Jeong spun his iron rod. When he grabbed the middle of the rod and spun it, the air seemed to be sucked in.
Ma Bang's eyes sparkled with fire.
Yeon Ho Jeong's face had no expression. He looked somewhat languid, but no plausible emotion showed.
'Does he ignore me?!'
He doesn't see the opponent as an opponent. Ma Bang felt his boiling inner power rise to his head.
"You bastard!"
Whoosh!
It was faster than before.
It lost its finesse, but it became more threatening. Especially, the faint red light (赤光) that emanated from Ma Bang's hands made the viewer feel an inexplicable uneasiness.
At that moment, Yeon Ho Jeong's eyes shone.
'Fire energy (火氣)!'
The opponent finally unleashed his true power.
Ma Bang's hand aimed at Yeon Ho Jeong's face.
Crack!
The tree that was hit by the Crimson Palm of Darkness broke in half from the middle. The surface of the broken tree was charred.
'Impressive.'
Yeon Ho Jeong, who avoided it skillfully, was satisfied with the opponent's level.
Ma Bang gritted his teeth. It was because he saw Yeon Ho Jeong's face smiling as if he was pleased.
"You bastard! I am the successor of the Dark God (陰神)!"
Bang! Boom!
The air heated up.
The faint red glow gradually became darker, and soon it spewed out a shape similar to a flame.
'A little more.'
Boom! Whoosh!
Small flames appeared and disappeared in the air.
The more he used his martial art, the more his fire energy and killing intent increased. His speed also became faster.
Ma Bang's eyes were bloodshot. He was clearly out of his mind. On the other hand, Yeon Ho Jeong's eyes sank calmly.
'More!'
"Die!!"
Whoosh!
Ma Bang's movement became bigger.
He stretched out a powerful energy, as if he was going to launch the maximum attack. His fire energy and killing intent rose to the highest point.
Yeon Ho Jeong's eyes changed.
'Here!'
In an instant, Yeon Ho Jeong's body, which was seven steps away, rushed to Ma Bang's nose.
Ma Bang, who was flustered, struck his palm.
Boom!
Yeon Ho Jeong's left hand grabbed Ma Bang's right hand.
Ma Bang's face was ecstatic.
"You stupid bastard! You're dead!"
Woo woo woo woo!
A strange resonance sound echoed from the hands of the two people.
Ma Bang, who had a cruel smile, was momentarily bewildered.
'What is this?'
The force that entered through the opponent's hand should have burned his blood vessels and organs in an instant.
But Yeon Ho Jeong was still looking at him with a blank face and clear eyes. He seemed fine even from the penetrating force of the Crimson Palm of Darkness.
"…Huh?"
Ma Bang said with a shaky face.
"What is this? Why are you fine?"
That was when.
Something dark shot up from Yeon Ho Jeong's eyes, which were shining faintly blue.
It was darkness, but different from ordinary darkness.
It was a black color that gave a feeling of being cold and soft. The black energy that rose and swayed was like a raging river that would spill out of his eyes and sweep Ma Bang away.
Screech!
A faint steam rose from their hands.
Ma Bang's eyes widened.
'Fire energy?!'
The energy of the Crimson Flow of Darkness was sucked into the young man's palm.
It was as natural as water flowing from a high place to a low place. As if that place was his original place, the fire energy that escaped Ma Bang's control headed toward Yeon Ho Jeong at a frightening speed.
'Ah!'
Ma Bang's body shivered.
Yeon Ho Jeong exhaled.
"Whoo."
A thick moisture came out of his breath.
'Good, I pulled it out.'
Like the legend of the Four Sides of Chu (四面楚歌) that was entwined with the King of Western Chu (西楚霸王), the fire wall that surrounded the Chosung Tower was spewing out the fire energy of dilemma.
But that was not enough.
The Four Gods Martial Art (四神武) was a clear human martial art, and it activated properly when it received the opponent's killing intent (殺意) and fighting spirit (鬪氣). Unless the realm was deep, the entry (入門) itself was based on the battlefield of life and death.
More easily, more surely.
He encountered the enemy who spewed out fire energy and killing intent, and finally Yeon Ho Jeong awakened the legend of the Four Gods (四神) that was sealed in his soul.
Yeon Ho Jeong swung his iron rod in his right hand.
Whoosh! Boom!
"Ugh!"
Ma Bang groaned and fell backward.
It felt like he was hit by a very thick whip. His left collarbone felt like it was going to break. He came to his senses from the pain.
Whoosh!
It was hard to breathe.
Thud!
Yeon Ho Jeong took a deep breath as he slammed his iron rod on the ground.
Whoosh!
The fire that was being suppressed tilted toward Yeon Ho Jeong.
'Come.'
The divine power of the Four Gods, stimulated by Ma Bang's fire energy, finally raised its head and drew out a stronger flame to amplify the water energy (水氣).
The amplified water energy wrapped around his body and made it flexible. The meridians that were heated by the Crimson Palm of Darkness quickly returned to their original state.
Whirring!
The wind blew.
The water energy that Yeon Ho Jeong spewed out met the wind and created a translucent shape of a divine beast. The divine beast had a snake's head and a turtle's body.
The water god of the Gye-hae (癸亥) year. The ruler of the north.
The Hyun-mu (玄武) of the Four Gods Martial Art revealed itself.
Screech!
The rising water energy circled around the entire iron rod.
Ma Bang, who spat out blood, screamed.
"Ahh! You bastard! What did you do to my inner power!!"
Ma Bang, whose face was covered in blood, threw a punch. It was a punch that swung with the little remaining inner power, but it had enough destructive power.
Then, Yeon Ho Jeong spun his iron rod.
Bang!
Ma Bang, who attacked, bounced off at a tremendous speed and rolled on the ground.
Ma Bang's body twitched as he rolled on the ground. His right arm, which he swung, was grotesquely broken.
It was an incredible rebound force.
Whirring!
A faint barrier formed in front of the circular iron rod.
It was the martial art of Hyun-mu. It was a secret technique of absolute defense that could block even firearms and siege weapons at its peak.
"Thank you. Thanks to you, I was able to pull it out faster than I thought."
He passed the entry of the Four Gods Martial Art, so it was only a matter of time before he summoned the other three gods (三神).
The legendary martial art of the Four Gods of the ancient martial world was an invincible martial art that had never been defeated in a thousand years.
Once awakened, Ma Bang's martial art could not touch a single hem of Yeon Ho Jeong's clothes. He only awakened one of the Four Gods, but that alone was enough to block any attack.
Yeon Ho Jeong grabbed the collar of Ma Bang, who fell down.
"Since you saved me some time, I should give you some kind of reward."
"Gurgle!"
"You seem to like fire, so I'll let you spend your last moments in the fire."
Ma Bang's eyes widened as he lost his strength.
"Ah, no…"
Thud!
His front teeth were all broken by the iron rod.
As everyone watched, Yeon Ho Jeong, who held Ma Bang, walked toward the burning fire.
The faces of the people had a look of disbelief. Among them were Yeon Ji Pyeong, Shin Mo, and Je Gal siblings.
Yeon Ho Jeong grabbed Ma Bang's neck and lifted him high.
"When you are reborn, play with fire by yourself."
"Grunt!"
Yeon Ho Jeong threw Ma Bang toward the Fire Demon (火魔).
Whoosh!
The fierce flame swallowed Ma Bang. Ma Bang, who suffered terrible internal and external injuries, could not escape from the flame.
A horrible scream echoed throughout the Chosung Tower.
The audience shivered at the sight of a person burning alive.
After a while,
The fire of the Chosung Tower was put out.