Chapter 159 - The Black Flame Dragon Quelling the Chaos (4)

"Fire!"

"Fire! There's a fire!"

"Wake everyone up!"

As the flames that started in the pavilion spread in all directions, the Dark Blood Gang buzzed with chaotic activity as if struck by a sudden bolt of lightning.

Intoxicated warriors, unable to even properly fasten their clothes, stumbled about as they scooped water and poured it onto the pavilion, but the flames showed no signs of dying down.

A cartwheel rolled down a mountain ridge does not stop until it catches on a jutting rock.

The nine Underworld sects of Yueyang, led by the Dark Blood Gang and the Black Axe Palace, would not stop their war simply because the Gang Leader of the Dark Blood Gang had died.

The Underworld factions of Yueyang were the cartwheel.

And paradoxically, the jutting rock that would stop them was the exact same method they had been using—

'Instilling fear.'

With the Dark Blood Gang Leader dead, the Vice Gang Leader would step up.

If the Vice Gang Leader died, the Black Axe Palace would step up in place of the Dark Blood Gang.

The way to stop them was to make them realize that their own lives were also on the line.

And not the lives of the low-ranking members to be used and discarded like consumables, but the lives of the decision-makers.

"The minds of those at the top are all the same, after all."

Even within the Murim Alliance, the number of leaders willing to throw their lives away like mere straw was few enough to count on one hand.

Much less did I think these Underworld scumbags were any better than the Orthodox faction bastards.

"Wake the brats up! The fire is spreading!"

"Everyone is out at the Yujang Sect, so we're short on people!"

"Then wake the villagers! Tell them to help if they don't want to die!"

The fire on the massive pavilion where the Gang Leader resided made them even more anxious.

Watching the sight from afar, I executed the Turtle Breath Footwork once more and dashed toward the location furthest from the burning pavilion.

'Now it begins.'

Because of the massive flames spreading from the pavilion, a huge shadow was cast over where I stood.

Hiding my body within the shadow using the Turtle Breath Great Art, I kept an eye out only for those roaming around the Dark Blood Gang and shouting orders.

"Hey, you son of a bitch! Run! Are you going to run or not!?"

On one side was a large man spewing curses and radiating killing intent.

Swinging an axe the size of a human torso, he looked ready to cleave his disobedient subordinates in two with a single strike, and because of this, the Dark Blood Gang's warriors didn't even dare approach the giant.

Riding the shadow, I approached the giant from behind.

Perhaps sensing my presence, he let out a curse and swung his fist.

"Hey, you son of a bitch! Who the hell are you...?"

STAB.

Feeling the foreign sensation piercing his chest, the giant's head slowly dropped.

"What is your rank in the Dark Blood Gang?"

"..."

When I tapped his body because he was unusually quiet, the giant was no longer breathing.

"Oops... I meant to stab him shallowly."

I dragged the giant's body and tucked it out of sight, then moved between the shadows again, searching for a suitable target.

However, the ones presumed to be the command staff were sticking too close to the pavilion to contain the fire, so I couldn't find a proper target.

Instead, I started targeting the low-ranking members.

"Hey, who the hell are you..."

STAB.

"Hey! Why aren't you moving the wa..."

STAB.

There was no need to even fight.

Once I caught and cut the breath of the guys distracted by moving water one by one, other guys would quickly fill their spots.

Before I knew it, the narrow alley behind the building where I was piling the corpses was completely packed with no room to step.

'I should go a little further in.'

CRACK!

Just then, unable to withstand the flames, one side of the pavilion collapsed, sending sparks flying in all directions.

"Dodge! The fire's spreading!"

"Get out, you bastards!"

"Gang Leader! Has anyone seen the Gang Leader!"

As the pavilion collapsed, the neighboring pavilion caught fire.

Half out of their minds, the guys stopped trying to put out the fire, threw their buckets away, and started fleeing in all directions.

CRASH.

Eventually, the largest pavilion collapsed, turning the grand training ground and Grand Equestrian Ground area into a sea of fire.

"The fire's spreading over there too! Bring water!"

"We don't have enough buckets!"

"Bring dirt at least, you bastards!"

The moment people's gazes were focused on the other pavilions.

I slowly approached behind the distracted guys.

And just as I grabbed one and was about to pierce his neck.

A strange voice came from above my head.

"What a fearless fellow."

"!"

The moment I raised my head, dozens of footprints filled the empty air.

CRASH!

I hastily stepped with the Taiyi Eighty Thousand Divine Steps to dodge, and the floor made of blue steel stone shattered into pieces, sending stone fragments flying in all directions.

'What the hell is this destructive power...'

I had heard that Snake Evil's (蛇惡) kicking technique was unmatched, but I never imagined that a foot uninfused with internal energy could shatter blue steel stone.

"To think you'd run away from me and come back. Do I look that easy to you?"

A middle-aged man descending from the roof with his hands behind his back.

The man, whose goatee made his impression look even more cunning, chuckled and said.

"I heard the Black Flame Dragon was a fellow who only had a running mouth. But it seems you've learned some bizarre martial arts."

"I am not the Black Flame Dragon."

"I saw you at the Underworld Night Walk."

Damn it, was he one of the Underworld bastards gathered there?

"Ah! So we have a connection. Then would you kindly step aside? This is between me and the Dark Blood Gang."

Snake Evil twirled his goatee with his finger and said.

"To be exact, it is a matter between the Dark Blood Gang and the Yujang Sect."

"There's no one left to pay you now, so isn't there no need to work so hard?"

"I always get paid in advance."

"True, trusting the credit of an Underworld bastard. What an idiot."

"Hehehe. For a fellow whose martial arts reek of Daoist flavor, your mouth sure sounds like a back-alley thug."

Snake Evil (蛇惡), with his hands behind his back, raised his right foot and whipped it eight times like a lash.

BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM!

Even though I hadn't neglected my external martial arts training and had even shrouded myself in qi, the areas I was grazed felt like the bones were about to shatter.

Moreover, the advancing and retreating of his kicking technique were faster than most fast swords, leaving no opening to exploit.

I tried to open up some distance and swing the Black Dragon Sword, but Snake Evil didn't just stand by and watch.

To create an opening, I spat out some nonsense.

"My sword is unmatched, don't you want to witness my swordsmanship?"

"Pfft, you mean the swordsmanship that killed the Dark Blood Gang Leader? I have small guts, so I lack curiosity."

However, he was different from those stupid Minor Orthodox Unit bastards.

BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM-BAM!

With three kicks, his kick qi thoroughly dominated the space without leaving a single gap, and when I tried to retreat, he threatened with an even greater attack to close the distance.

"Where do you think you're going, you rascal!"

When I rushed in to trip him up, he used the narrow distance to strike my thighs, and each time, the impact was heavy enough to make my body stagger.

'His adaptability is incredible.'

It was not fighting honed through sparring matches or practice, but the ultimate hand-to-hand combat technique forged through true life-and-death battles.

Because of that, even when he used the same martial move, it felt like a different martial move,

And even when he used a different martial move, it felt like the same martial move.

It was a brief moment, but because the battle had dragged on, the members of the Dark Blood Gang began to look over one by one.

If I delayed any longer, it was clear that my original intention of instilling fear would fail, so I desperately pulled back.

Retreating was also an important tactic.

"Are you still trying to run away?"

"I have people waiting for me, you see."

"I'll deliver the message that you won't be able to make it."

"I'll decline. I prefer telling them directly."

Pushing the Taiyi Eighty Thousand Divine Steps to the extreme, I created three illusions.

At the same time, I executed the Ten Thousand Transformations Invincible Fist to obscure Snake Evil's vision, and drew out the Sacred Fire Demon-Extinguishing Hand to target his vital points.

He desperately twisted his body and unleashed his kick qi to dodge the Sacred Fire Demon-Extinguishing Hand.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

Along with the explosion sounds, embers burst out in all directions.

"I felt it earlier too, but those are no ordinary flames. What exactly is this martial art?"

"The flames of justice that beat down the Underworld."

Scattering the Sacred Fire Demon-Extinguishing Hand with my words to open up a gap, I changed direction and put strength into my legs.

But then, Snake Evil spat out strange words.

"He's still mine. Don't touch him."

SHIVER.

He definitely wasn't talking to me.

The moment I quickly ducked my head at the eerie sensation crawling up my spine.

SWOOSH!

Along with a sharp sound of tearing air, a lock of my hair was cut off and fell to the floor.

'... I couldn't sense his presence?'

Snake Evil (蛇惡) clicked his tongue looking at my fallen hair on the floor.

"Tsk, tsk. I told you not to touch him."

"Snake Evil (蛇惡), our employer is dead. Stop playing around."

"See? I told you to get your payment in advance."

"..."

Why are you getting sulky in the middle of a battle?

Ah, I really hate this.

One guy is throwing around jokes with a smirk even though his employer is dead, and the other is sulking like a child because he won't get paid.

There are plenty of bizarre people in the Orthodox faction's Murim, but compared to these Underworld bastards, they are completely normal.

"Oh? Your banknote is running away."

Don't call a person a banknote! You crazy bastard!

Lifting his head at Snake Evil's words, Sword Evil (劍惡) appeared right before my eyes and blocked my retreat.

"Do not run away, banknote."

"At least treat me like a human being!!"

As I scattered the Twin Heaven Sword Art and constricted Sword Evil from all eight directions, one of his eyebrows twitched.

In an instant, Sword Evil's sword began to move so fast that it appeared blurry.

SHING- SHING- SHING- SHING- SHING-

I was appalled by Sword Evil's move.

My god, he's not even distinguishing between phantom swords and true swords.

Phantoms (幻) beguile and deceive.

Conversely, striking everything away without distinguishing between phantom and reality means you won't be beguiled.

It sounded incredibly stupid, but witnessing it in person drew out an involuntary marvel.

It was almost secretly covetable.

"How much money were you supposed to get?"

"A lot."

"I can give you a lot, too."

"How much will you give?"

"Ten thousand taels of gold?"

Sword Evil's eyebrow twitched upward.

Wait, he's actually falling for this?

"... What do I have to do?"

"Just kill the Dark Blood Gang bastards and that Snake Evil (蛇惡) over there."

Snake Evil, who had been listening, grumbled and unleashed a kick.

"Th-That idiot, why are you even listening to that!"

"..."

Sword Evil sulked and pouted his lips before shaking his head.

"Snake Evil has a bad personality. He holds grudges. He will torment me for a long time."

I dodged Snake Evil's kick with the Iron Bridge technique and said.

"You can just kill him here, can't you?"

"If Snake Evil dies, I won't get jobs."

"Are you two friends?"

The answer came back from Snake Evil.

"Childhood friends, you could say."

Oho. So they are friends.

"This is why adults say to choose your friends carefully."

"That guy becoming one of the Eight Evils (八惡) was all thanks to me."

Just as Snake Evil said, whether it was because they had been coordinating for a long time, they filled in each other's flaws exceptionally well.

Above the waist, Sword Evil distracted the soul, while below the waist, Snake Evil tangled the feet.

In a situation where dealing with just one was already overwhelming, exchanging blows with two made the idea of escaping seem impossible.

I began to form a plan, searing each of their martial arts into my mind one by one.

"Is ruining your friend's life really something to be proud of?"

"Just like the Black Flame Dragon, infamy is still fame."

Fuck, since when did my title become infamous?

The question rose up to my throat but was swallowed back down by the sword blade that suddenly appeared before my eyes.

'What kind of swordsmanship has no presence!'

As if to prove my earlier sensation was not wrong, Sword Evil's swordsmanship had no presence this time either.

Speed aside, because it couldn't be caught by the senses, I couldn't turn my gaze away.

But when I fixed my gaze on Sword Evil, Snake Evil tenaciously targeted my lower body.

"Over there! There's the intruder!"

The Dark Blood Gang members, who had been distracted by the flames, began to gather one by one.

In one hand, I prepared the Ten Thousand Transformations Invincible Fist imbued with the Sacred Fire Demon-Extinguishing Hand, and with the other hand, I executed the Ten Thousand Seas Heaven and Earth Sword Art to manifest two Ten Thousand Swords.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.

Meeting Snake Evil's kicking technique, the Ten Thousand Transformations Invincible Fist burst flames in all directions.

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

The Twin Heaven Sword Art scattered by the Ten Thousand Swords was shattered to pieces by Sword Evil's blade.

It would be much stronger if I infused it with Sword Qi, but I couldn't buy any time while dealing with Snake Evil.

The Dark Blood Gang members, who had occupied the area before I knew it, could not easily approach due to the aftermath of the battle, but they were exuding a fierce momentum, ready to charge at me with their weapons at any moment.

"Banknote, give up. Your arm will be cut off."

"..."

Just as he said, I was moving my sword and hands so frantically that I couldn't even spit out a curse.

It felt like I was a piece of debris wedged between two perfectly interlocking latches.

It was truly a situation where even a single inch of hesitation would mean certain death.

Instead, I threw my body right into their midst.

Sword Evil's blade grazed just above my eyebrow, and the tip of Snake Evil's foot left a sharp gash on my thigh.

'Now!'

I retracted the Ten Thousand Transformations Invincible Fist and extended even my left hand toward Sword Evil.

"So you're saying my foot is worth taking?"

Snake Evil swung his foot, distinctly clad in internal energy, with all his might.

A destructive power that promised not only to shatter my bones but also to shred my skin the moment it hit.

With my retracted left hand, I grabbed Sword Evil's blade.

My skin split open, and blood burst out like a fountain.

"Hm?!"

While Sword Evil made a surprised expression, I executed Lotus, a technique of Shifting Flowers and Grafting Trees, at full power to twist Sword Evil's blade path toward Snake Evil's foot.

SHHKK--.

BOOM!

The sound of flesh being pierced and the sound of condensed internal energy exploding rang out.