“Hahaha! Looks like you’re finally running out of steam! Tang Hochang!”
Cheolhyeol Majon Gu Yangcheol.
His main weapon was a gigantic two-bladed double axe.
Every time he swung the axe with grand movements, Tang Hochang’s body, taking a defensive stance, slowly got pushed back.
If it weren’t for the mana surrounding the handcuffs, his arms would have been sliced off by now.
“When do you plan to stop just playing defense? Until you’re lying in a coffin?!”
“Tch.”
Annoyed by Gu Yangcheol’s incessant mockery, Tang Hochang momentarily widened the distance and threw a hidden dagger he had concealed in the manacles.
Clang!!
“Get back!”
But Gu Yangcheol easily deflected it.
Tang Hochang didn’t genuinely believe that would work; he quickly stepped forward and used the first move of his martial art, the Tangmun Power’s ‘Crescent Slash,’ to land a punch squarely in Gu Yangcheol’s abdomen, immediately transitioning into the fifth move, ‘Fire Hook.’
As a flurry of punches rained down like a tempest, Gu Yangcheol stumbled back.
But due to his seasoned external martial arts, it didn’t seem to have any real impact.
Knowing this, Tang Hochang executed the fourth move, ‘Ant’s Nest Collapse,’ as soon as the fire hook concluded.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Noticing the signs of an impending attack, Gu Yangcheol immediately fortified his defense.
But he only knew one thing, not two.
The technique Tang Hochang just used could transform into the ultimate move, the ‘Heavenly Collapse,’ at any moment.
Thud!!
Tang Hochang smashed Gu Yangcheol’s hands away with the back of his hand to disrupt his defense and dove deeper into his attack.
Tangmun Power’s ultimate technique!
‘Heavenly Collapse!’
“Ugh!”
Attacked internally rather than externally, Gu Yangcheol, struck by Tang Hochang’s infiltration tactic, vomited blood, indicating a possible internal injury.
Seeing this, Tang Hochang smiled triumphantly. Unfortunately for him, Gu Yangcheol’s resilience was much stronger than he had anticipated.
Gotcha!
“You didn’t think you could take me down with just that, did you?”
As he coughed blood and let go of the axe, Gu Yangcheol grabbed Tang Hochang’s shoulder with his remaining hand.
“What?!”
Feeling the danger, Tang Hochang urgently tried to escape from his grasp, but Gu Yangcheol’s grip was that of an old man who was far from feeble.
Crack!!!
Despite the mana enveloping him, the intense pain radiating from his shoulder made Tang Hochang grimace. Gu Yangcheol smirked and raised the axe he held in his left hand high.
Just then, Gu Yangcheol’s axe was poised to fall upon Tang Hochang’s head like a guillotine.
“Get away from my grandfather!”
Suddenly, an attack of daggers rained down toward Gu Yangcheol, forcing him to retreat.
Seizing the opportunity, Tang Hochang hastily increased the distance.
“What is this nonsense, girl?”
Gu Yangcheol glared coldly at Tang Sosu, who was supporting Tang Hochang, his composure disrupted by her interference.
“Ugh.”
Tang Sosu’s legs trembled with fear under his piercing gaze.
But she didn’t flee.
To her, her grandfather, who had raised her in place of her parents, was irreplaceable.
“…You’ve grown up so much, Sosu.”
Surprised to receive unexpected help, Tang Hochang looked at Tang Sosu supporting him.
“Grandfather! Your arm!”
Noticing her grandfather’s right shoulder with a shocked expression, Tang Hochang forced a smile.
“I think I might have messed up.”
His right shoulder, caught in Gu Yangcheol’s grip, was already a mangled mess.
If he hadn’t acted quickly and shielded his arm with mana, he would have lost it entirely.
“I’ll handle this, so you should run, Sosu.”
“No way! I will protect grandfather!”
But Tang Sosu shook her head with determination and blocked Gu Yangcheol with a dagger in hand.
Seeing her stance, Gu Yangcheol’s eyebrows twitched.
“Step aside, girl. My business is with the one behind you, Tang Hochang.”
“…As long as I’m alive, you will not kill my grandfather!”
But even as Tang Sosu stood her ground, Gu Yangcheol sighed softly.
“You’re foolish. Choosing to face punishment instead of running away.”
Then he picked up the axe that lay on the ground.
“Then I’ll at least ensure that both grandparent and grandchild can attend each other’s funerals together.”
‘Here it comes.’
As he approached, Tang Sosu instinctively swallowed hard with a sense of imminent danger.
Crash!
Suddenly, a beam of light fell from the sky.
“A sword?”
As Gu Yangcheol muttered, realizing it was a sword, someone pointed skyward.
“Look! Someone’s flying in the sky!”
Instantly, everyone’s attention turned skyward.
Gu Yangcheol felt the same.
“What the…?”
Using one’s own will to control a sword, a legendary martial art only accessible to those who have reached the level of a saint.
What shocked Gu Yangcheol even more was the realization that the one wielding it was a young girl who looked no older than a teenager.
If she was indeed her apparent age, she would be a prodigy, and if not, a seasoned master who had undergone reverse aging.
Soon, the girl, soaring on the sword, descended toward the ground.
“Rin!”
Tang Hochang exclaimed, delightedly calling out to a girl he recognized.
Seeing her, Gu Yangcheol felt a sense of relief wash over him.
If she were truly a seasoned old master, he couldn’t guarantee victory, but if she appeared to be her age, she would likely lack the experience and insight commensurate with her power.
“Good to see you’re not late.”
The girl, who had interventions in the sudden skirmish, murmured and glanced at Gu Yangcheol, her face blank.
Perhaps practicing an extraordinary martial art, her hair, dyed a fluorescent green, flowed gracefully in the wind.
With her beautiful appearance, she looked like a celestial being descending from the heavens.
Gu Yangcheol, with caution in his eyes, questioned her.
“Who are you? Reveal your identity.”
The girl responded calmly.
“I am the daughter of the unsparing Lord Dokgojin, Dokgorin.”
Upon hearing this, Gu Yangcheol let out a hollow laugh.
“Hah— the daughter of the dead unsparing one… looks like he did manage to sow some good seeds.”
In the meantime, Dokgorin positioned herself protectively in front of Tang Hochang and Tang Sosu, directing her sword at Gu Yangcheol.
“I don’t wish to engage in unnecessary conflict, so if you leave peacefully, I won’t harm you.”
Gu Yangcheol frowned at Dokgorin’s words.
‘How dare you say such things to me, Gu Yangcheol?’
With his experience, he wouldn’t be provoked by such a slight.
However, it was still true that his pride was wounded.
‘It’ll be my first time facing someone using one’s will to control a sword, but that doesn’t mean there’s no way to deal with it.’
Remembering the painful mistake of underestimating Weijichun in a past battle, Gu Yangcheol remained vigilant.
Thus, he decided to unleash his strongest strike immediately.
‘Asura Blood Sky Technique!’
The legendary technique that placed Gu Yangcheol in his present position.
While it had the drawback of losing rationality when overused due to bloodlust, the sheer destructive power it wielded was undeniably tempting.
As blood-red mana enveloped the double axes in his hands, Gu Yangcheol moved.
‘I won’t give you any time to evade.’
Launching with the hungry wolf of the left hand and the greedy wolf of the right, he executed his devastating assault.
“Twin Sharks of Asura!”
Like the jaws of sharks, two axes surged forth, aiming to cleave his opponent in two.
Dokgorin, observing with a blank expression, slowly lifted her right hand.
In that moment, nine streaks of light burst forth from behind her.
Gu Yangcheol saw this but didn’t flinch, as he had faith in his resilience.
His body had already entered the state of impenetrable flesh.
Since he had withstood vicious attacks before, his mindset was to seize flesh and bones, and he pressed on with his attack.
But he would soon regret this decision.
Boom!
‘What the—!’
In an instant, the nine swords surrounding Gu Yangcheol unleashed beams of yellow light toward him.
Even though he had enveloped himself with mana, it pierced his skin like cutting through tofu.
But the attack didn’t cease; the nine swords continued to emit relentless streams of yellow light.
Eventually, Gu Yangcheol, kneeling and bleeding profusely, came to a halt just a hair’s breadth from Dokgorin.
Looking down at him with an expressionless face, Dokgorin remarked,
“I thought you would surely reject any chance of survival.”
“Ha… all along, you’ve been reading my mind, haven’t you?”
“Yes.”
In the next moment, another beam of light pierced Gu Yangcheol’s brow.
Thud!
The dismal end of Cheolhyeol Majon Gu Yangcheol, who held the title of the strongest for half a century in the Sapa Murim.
All the warriors gathered in the Seongcheon Gate square held their breath at the shocking sight.
The rise of a new absolute power had begun.
