Chapter 97 – The Plan (2)

Six warriors were walking down the street.

They stopped from time to time, in order to examine the shops around them.

When they made their way to a guest house, a middle-aged man pointed to the place and said.

“Since we came all the way here, how about eating something?”

Ka Hong was second in rank amongst the Blue Dragon Sect warriors. It was lunchtime, so the other men naturally agreed with his suggestion.

However, Kwang Sewong, the right-hand man of the sect leader Baek Yang-chun, didn’t respond. One of the men spoke up.

“It should be fine. Actually, it’s said that this guest house is a famous one in the area. And the mapo tofu they serve is delicious.”

The other warriors nodded their heads. One by one, they kept trying to convince their leader.

“By the way, Captain. Isn’t this a guest house of Geum Man-jung? There’s no need to be misunderstood while eating, right?”

Ka Hong frowned at this and immediately replied.

“What are you talking about? We’re in charge of most of the security around here. Since we came, hasn’t it been hard to see his men?”

“Yes, but…”

“Ka Hong is right.”

Kwang Sewong finally responded.

He looked at the guest house and its signboard, and told his subordinates.

“Because we treat everyone with respect, a few don’t know that the owner of this place has changed. At this point, we need to stamp it into their heads.”

He said that and then walked into the building.

It was noisy as they entered. Since it was time for lunch, the inside was crowded with people.

There was a place that caught their attention.

It was a round table in the center. The chairs, the wood it was made of, and the luxurious feeling it exuded, made their group head towards it to sit down.

“Take our order!”

One of the warriors shouted. A server approached them and bowed his head.

“What shall I bring you?”

“Bring us the food that this place is most confident in.”

“Yes?”

“Did you not hear me? Bring us all of the best food this guest house serves.”

The server looked at their outfits.

Grey robes. And when he saw the words embroidered along with a dragon on their right chests, he knew who they were.

“Right away, sirs.”

The server quickly bowed his head again. And after a while, an extravagant amount of food covered the round table.

“Kuak! Delicious!”

“I ate a lot!”

Most of the food that had been served was now gone. Each of the warriors expressed their satisfaction by patting their stomachs.

“The food is different at a famous guest house!”

Ka Hong looked at the captain with a happy face.

“Then, shall we head back now?”

When Kwang Sewong got up, the others followed suit. On their way to the door, the server hurriedly stopped them.

“Customers! You did not pay for the food!”

“What did you say?”

The tallest man in the group growled. And as they all glared at him, the server mumbled fearfully.

“The food, you… kuak!”

He was suddenly lifted off the ground. His assailant was grabbing him by the neck and choking him.

“You don’t know who we are? Huh?!”

“Kuk! Guak!”

The server’s face was turning red, and he was unable to speak. Kwang Sewong intervened.

“Stop.”

The man let go, and the server fell to the floor. He was coughing and gasping for air.

“We’ll be back to collect the month’s rent.”

Kwang Sewong looked at the server on the floor, and then to the rest of his surroundings.

On one side was another server, and the owner of the guest house. Neither of them dared to come forward.

He smiled and then turned his head away.

“Let’s go.”

It was around that time, when they were about to leave…

“Wherever I go, I always see these fucking gangsters.”

“… What?”

Kwang Sewong turned around slowly. Not far away was a man, sitting on a chair, with his legs resting on a table.

For some reason, it felt like he had seen this man’s face before. So he asked the man.

“Are you…”

“Right. A warrior of that old Geum Man-jung.”

“…!”

Kwang Sewong’s face hardened.

Not just anyone, but the closest warrior and escort to Geum Man-jung.

So he asked for confirmation.

“…Did you follow us?”

It was too much of a coincidence for him to be there. This was intentional, an invitation for a fight.

“If you step on our things, what else can I do?”

In the end, Kwang Sewong turned back. Fighting here with him was risky.

“You’re asking for a fight. Do you know what that means? It means war.”

“War?”

Seol-Hwi chuckled.

It was because of this sudden and hasty warning, which sounded ridiculous.

“Okay. Then we can do this instead. Right now, you give me four hundred gold, and I’ll send you back home safely.”

“Crazy bastard!”

“How dare you!”

Did they notice that negotiations had broken down?

The Blue Dragon Sect warriors instantly showed their hostility.

“Captain.”

Ka Hong approached his captain. Seeing that, Kwang Sewong stayed silent. Soon after, he noticed a warrior moving behind the enemy, and nodded.

It was then.

The warrior extended his sword to attack Seol-Hwi, who was seated carelessly on a chair, with his legs up on the table.

From anyone’s point of view, this man can be taken down easily.

But, when the sword touched his back, the man’s body disappeared.

“Kuak?!”

The head of the warrior who attacked Seol-Hwi first was instantly smashed, and his body fell down.

Those combat skills…!

Kwang Sewong was shocked.

A type of close-body martial arts where one hand is enough to kill a person. Hitting, kicking, and punching were a part of this killing technique. But, that movement!

To be precise, Kwang Sewong hadn’t even seen the movement clearly.

“It’s a fight!”

“Run away!”

The other people inside the guest house who witnessed a sudden death before their eyes, began to run outside. Only a few were left behind.

“This fight is going to be fun.”

Seol-Hwi, who had changed into Sang Cheon-jang, smiled. Clearly, these people were more skilled than the subordinates he faced yesterday.

“Go!”

A loud shout rang out.

Kwang Sewong’s men rushed to kill Seol-Hwi.

But their martial arts were very different from his.

Shhhhhing!

One blow.

One hit was enough to take down the warrior in the lead.

And then four were left.

Among them, Ka Hong, who was second in their ranking, stopped. He realized that he couldn’t defeat the opponent in front of him.

“N-No!”

Despite his warning, the men didn’t stop.

This time, as if better prepared, they took out their swords and swung them, aiming for Seol-Hwi’s neck. But then they witnessed a scene that made them doubt their eyes.

The two blades’ attacks were blocked, and at the same time, Seol-Hwi counterattacked.

One died with his body exploding, and the other was caught by the flames, his body slowly engulfed by them.

Those martial arts made the warriors think of only one terrible memory.

“… Blood Hand Demonic Martial Arts.” Ka Hong murmured.

The peak martial arts.

A technique which can be used only by those in the Demonic Sect. There was no way to know for sure, until now, the martial arts they had been seeing.

Seol-Hwi looked at the two remaining warriors.

“You two are quite talented.”

And it didn’t end there.

<Ka Hong [Front line guard of the Blue Dragon Sect] >
Health: 550k
Internal energy: 320k
Combat power: 1.2 million
<Kwang Sewong >
Health: 1.88 million
Internal energy: 990k
Combat power: 2.01 million
These two had skills incomparable to the others.

“Unfold the Seven Plum Blossom Lines.”

Kwang Sewong drew his sword and instructed Ka Hong.

“Yes… that’s the only way.”

Ka Hong nodded as he gripped his sword.

When one is at the super master level, five plum blossoms bloom on their weapon.

Kwang Sewong is at four.

And Ka Hong is at three.

If the two of them combine to make seven, they will be able to show an even greater force.

In that way, they thought they could defeat their enemy.

“Is that your solution?”

Seol-Hwi could already guess what their strategy was.

According to the contents of the Plum Blossom Sword technique, if the plum blossoms bloom, the sword turns swift and spreads in seven directions.

It was a sword with a lot of history and experience, so he couldn’t take it lightly.

“Then I’ll show you something good too.”

Seol-Hwi raised his sword diagonally.

The tension filled the guest house.

Then, Kwang Sewong and Ka Hong, who made eye contact, moved.

…!

Seol-Hwi’s eyes widened.

This was different from what he knew. The direction of the swords wasn’t in a straight line but a curve.

Moreover, it was faster than expected too.

Swish!

Left and right.

He was hesitating on which sword to respond to first.

Ah!

And things beyond expectation were happening.

<Warning! Kang Sewong discovered a gap in Seol-Hwi. How will you respond?>
<Warning! Ka Hong discovered a gap in Seol-Hwi. How will you respond?>
He couldn’t understand.

Why was this popping up?

No.

Just in case, he looked over the heads of his opponents.

<Combat power: 2.2 million (↑1 million)>
<Combat power: 3.01 million (↑1 million) >
Their combat power increased.

How did this happen?

Hm.

Seol-Hwi’s worries were short-lived.

Even if they had seen a gap. Even if the situation is unpredictable.

There was already an insurmountable chasm between their skills.

So.

<You have chosen to ‘Respond’. >
A light flashed. And Kwang Sewong’s sword hit Seol-Hwi’s body.

“I won…?!”

But his cheers didn’t last long.

Their swords couldn’t penetrate his body.

Full Body Ice Armor.

It was because he succeeded in defending himself, that, at that moment, Seol-Hwi pulled his sword and grabbed the blades of the two warriors.

Flames began to rise.

“…!”

“…!”

The flame energy soon got transferred to their bodies from their swords. They didn’t even have time to drop their weapons, before the fire swallowed them up.

“Kuaaak!”

And gradually, their screams died down.

So the two knelt and did not move once more.

Their last actions.