Chapter 367

Chapter 367

Ham-geun used killing techniques to his heart’s content while pressing An Ryeong. His sword tip spread out like plum blossom petals, each section harboring killing intent.

But An Ryeong was no pushover either. An Ryeong’s movements were extremely mysterious and her responses were quick. She picked up fallen weapons and used various methods to counter Ham-geun’s plum blossom sword technique.

“As expected, you were hiding your strength as I thought. How could Burning Phoenix of the Three Dragons Four Phoenixes, a junior generation, face me?”

Ham-geun pressed An Ryeong even more fiercely. An Ryeong blocked Ham-geun’s attacks without even having time to speak. Still, she wasn’t being pushed back much against Ham-geun, a veteran of Mount Hua Sect.

Since An Ryeong was being attacked, Im Yi-eon naturally abandoned the Arhat monks she was facing and flew in that direction.

Namgung Geol, who was attacking the Vajra monk while wielding sword steel, saw this scene and twisted his face in a pathetic manner.

“Did I commit many sins in my previous life? I’m doing all the good deeds for others alone.”

At least Jin Ja-gang was moving, so he could only hope the situation would somehow change.

While Ham-geun was away from his position, Jin Ja-gang first approached where So-min’s corpse was.

Flowers had bloomed all over So-min’s entire body in red like tattoos. From the seven orifices of her eyes, nose, mouth, and ears, blood was still flowing as if she were alive.

Pyo Sang-guk’s small greed had resulted in not only his own life but also driving So-min to death.

Though So-min had ultimately brought death upon herself in the end, Jin Ja-gang could not be said to be entirely without responsibility for So-min’s death.

Jin Ja-gang remembered So-min’s innocent smiling face and felt a pang in one side of his chest. It wasn’t a matter between man and woman, but the same empty feeling of futility as when he killed Zhongnan Sect’s Pyo Sang-guk.

“Rest in peace.”

Jin Ja-gang knelt and removed his outer garment to cover So-min’s face.

Then he let out a short sigh and immediately stood up.

The inn was in complete chaos from fights breaking out everywhere.

Sword light danced wildly and dull sounds of bones clashing came from close combat.

Jin Ja-gang approached the young men who were trembling while pressed against the inn wall.

Not only the injured but even the uninjured young men cowered when Jin Ja-gang approached.

Their spirit had been greatly broken so they couldn’t attack recklessly.

Jin Ja-gang selected the most intact among them and spoke.

“I’ll skip the persuasion.”

“Suddenly what, what persuasion…”

“Who sent you?”

The young man whose eyes met Jin Ja-gang’s answered.

“W-we came forward voluntarily for j-justice in the martial world, not because anyone told us to…”

Jin Ja-gang reached out like lightning to cover the young man’s mouth and grabbed his finger to break it.

Crack!

The young man’s eyes opened wide. His face turned red and cold sweat flowed on his forehead. Though he couldn’t make a sound because his mouth was blocked, his jaw trembled.

Jin Ja-gang released his mouth and asked again.

“Why did you come?”

“Ugh… ughhh. T-that’s because we were told to bring P-Poison Dragon…”

Jin Ja-gang immediately bent and broke the young man’s arm. The moment the young man screamed, he kicked his solar plexus so his breath was blocked and no scream came out.

The young man’s eyes rolled back and he immediately fainted. He urinated, soaking the floor.

Jin Ja-gang immediately shifted his gaze to the young man next to him. The young man whose eyes met his crawled trying to escape. Jin Ja-gang grabbed the young man’s foot and pulled. The young man was dragged over.

“S-save me!”

He was so terrified that his fingernails broke and embedded in the floor while scratching the floorboards.

Jin Ja-gang asked.

“By what means were you planning to take me away?”

The young man was completely terrified and glanced sideways. He was gesturing toward where many young men were huddled together.

Jin Ja-gang abandoned the frightened young man and headed in that direction. The young men shuffled sideways to reveal one person hiding among them.

The young man was covering his face with his sleeve, and when his eyes met Jin Ja-gang’s, he looked greatly flustered. Jin Ja-gang approached and pulled out the young man, reaching out his hand without hesitation.

“You bastard!”

The young man tried to resist. Jin Ja-gang kicked the young man’s chest.

The young man tried to use footwork to dodge but stumbled in his haste. Thump! At Jin Ja-gang’s kick, the young man’s back struck the inn wall.

When the hand covering his face fell away, it became clear. It was the young man from Zhuge family he had met at Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan before.

“You still haven’t learned your lesson after being beaten once?”

The young man from Zhuge family, Zhuge Gu, turned red as if remembering the humiliation from that time.

But he soon wore a killing smile and drew his sword.

“You became alone and brazenly entered among us without fear. You’re the one who hasn’t learned your lesson.”

Several young men approached Jin Ja-gang’s left and right to surround him. About two faces were familiar. One was a young lady from Red Sword Sect, one was a young man from Taihang Sword Sect. And the rest were faces he hadn’t seen before. But the aura he subtly felt was familiar.

“Retainer family warriors of Zhuge family.”

Zhuge Gu flinched.

“How do you know that?”

Jin Ja-gang said to the retainer family warriors of Zhuge family.

“I knew a warrior named Shin Yong. If anyone here knows him, I’ll spare them today. Leave now.”

When Shin Yong’s name came up, the warriors were briefly flustered but none fled.

Red Sword Sect disciple Yang Yang shouted in a sharp voice.

“Your habit of wagging that evil tongue is the same as before! Someone like you doesn’t deserve to eat in the martial world!”

Taihang Sword Sect disciple Guan Ren also chimed in.

“Arrogant bastard! Last time we were caught off guard, but this time we won’t be! As long as it’s not poison, there’s nothing to fear!”

Jin Ja-gang was puzzled. They were spouting words that were difficult for Jin Ja-gang to understand.

Soon Zhuge Gu gave a command.

“Attack!”

Three Zhuge family warriors simultaneously rushed at Jin Ja-gang. But Red Sword Sect, Taihang Sword Sect, and even Zhuge Gu himself weren’t rushing at Jin Ja-gang.

Then suddenly they took out pills wrapped in gold foil from their bosoms to put in their mouths!

Jin Ja-gang’s eyes flashed.

‘Is that strange confidence the reason for this?’

He had to prevent the consumption of those pills to confirm their identity!

But Zhuge family warriors were already surrounding Jin Ja-gang in a 品-shaped formation and striking with swords.

Jin Ja-gang quickly judged. He had no choice but to accept some damage.

Jin Ja-gang took one breath, then floated his body while drawing ten needles on the fingers of both hands.

But seeing Jin Ja-gang prepare to throw poison needles, Zhuge Gu, Yang Yang, and Guan Ren weren’t trying to dodge or block but were swallowing the pills even more urgently!

Jin Ja-gang felt disgusted. He threw empty needles without poison. Since a Zhuge family warrior was blocking the front with his body, Jin Ja-gang’s needles only embedded in Yang Yang and Guan Ren’s bodies.

“Kugh!”

“Ugh!”

Since he hadn’t particularly aimed for acupoints, the needles Jin Ja-gang threw while accepting damage were useless.

Jin Ja-gang allowed one sword strike while throwing needles. A burning feeling came to his spine. And swords were also falling on both sides. Jin Ja-gang twisted his body in mid-air to make his body horizontal with the floor, then urgently stretched both feet left and right to kick the Zhuge family warriors’ wrists.

Thud thump!

One had his wrist broken and one dropped his sword. Jin Ja-gang used that rebound to leap again and straighten his body, then spun his upper body like a top while extending both feet to kick the warriors. This time he could breathe more leisurely and apply more Two Light Emperor internal energy than before.

Crack snap! At the kick containing Five Lights internal energy of Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Art, one had his neck broken and the other had his chest cave in.

The warrior who had struck Jin Ja-gang’s back once thrust at his waist. Jin Ja-gang turned his body while placing his finger on the warrior’s sword from the front and released energy.

Twiiiiing!

The sword bent like a bow as if it would break, then bounced back to bend the opposite way and sway greatly left and right.

Flutter flutter!

The warrior couldn’t overcome the force of the sword swaying left and right, and his grip tore. He lost hold of the sword handle. The sword fluttered and spun in an unpredictable direction in mid-air, then slashed the warrior’s face.

“Agh!”

Jin Ja-gang immediately grabbed the warrior’s sword floating in the air and struck down hard.

He didn’t even need to put much internal energy into it. With a thump sound, the sword embedded in the head of the warrior whose face was greatly slashed.

The warrior stared at Jin Ja-gang then fell forward and died.

Jin Ja-gang turned his body with his spine damp and looked at the three people.

Yang Yang and Guan Ren, who had been hit by Jin Ja-gang’s needles, waited tensely then realized nothing was wrong and smiled brightly.

“H-hahaha! It really worked!”

“Uhahaha! Just as Grand Master said. Now Poison Dragon’s poison is useless!”

Jin Ja-gang was about to say they were empty needles. But what Guan Ren said made Jin Ja-gang stop speaking.

“Grand Master?”

Jin Ja-gang confirmed that one person, Zhuge Gu, was still looking around cautiously and hadn’t swallowed the pill until then.

Zhuge Gu was only bringing the pill to his mouth after seeing Yang Yang and Guan Ren were fine.

Jin Ja-gang finally understood why these Cherry Blossom Corps members were making strange words and actions.

It was Mang Ryo. Mang Ryo had instigated this.

Jin Ja-gang was about to attack to stop Zhuge Gu but gave up trying and lowered his arms.

“Is it medicine Mang Ryo gave you?”

Zhuge Gu laughed “hehe” and answered.

“How dare you call Grand Master by his real name. That’s right. You must have been arrogantly rampaging relying only on Asura Blood that has no antidote? But that’s over now. This poison resistance pill personally manufactured by Grand Master counters your poison!”

“Before…”

Jin Ja-gang trailed off then continued.

“I’ve seen this kind of thing before. You’d better not eat that pill.”

“Hah, that’s funny. Are you scared because your poison won’t work?”

“Do you think you can beat me without poison?”

“If your poison doesn’t work, we win! Even at Shaolin Temple earlier, they said the same thing as Grand Master. Without poison, your martial arts are nothing special!”

It was getting to the point where Jin Ja-gang thought Mang Ryo was impressive. How had he coaxed and incited them to think they could win after experiencing Jin Ja-gang?

“You’ve seen with your eyes and experienced directly, yet still don’t know?”

At Jin Ja-gang’s feet, three Zhuge family warriors who had become cold corpses were proving Jin Ja-gang’s might. But Zhuge Gu actually sneered.

“How dare you compare the military power of mere retainer families with direct lineage families. Last time there was a Qingcheng Sect Taoist, and this time unexpectedly a Shaolin Temple high monk is here, so things turned out this way. Don’t you know that if you were alone, you’d already be a dead man?”

Jin Ja-gang extended his hand.

“Stop the nonsense and hand it over if you want to live.”

“Cut the crap.”

“It’s not crap. Many people are already watching you.”

Zhuge Gu looked around and was startled.

From the moment he mentioned the poison resistance pill that could overcome Asura Blood, weren’t the gazes of the masters who were fighting turning toward him! Even while fighting among themselves, they were watching Zhuge Gu.

Zhuge Gu quickly threw it into his mouth like tossing it, afraid the poison resistance pill might be snatched.

Then a shadow fell over Zhuge Gu’s head.

“THUMP!”

The poison resistance pill wrapped in gold foil flew backward and rolled on the floor.

He had been throwing the poison resistance pill into his mouth, his hand was still in the throwing position, but Zhuge Gu’s head that should have received the pill… was gone while his mouth was open.

Instead, a hole deep enough for one person to stand was carved in the floor, and chunks that had become minced meat were scattered left and right of the hole.

The hand that had been throwing the poison resistance pill, precisely the part above the elbow that had disappeared and could no longer stay attached, fell to the floor.

A Vajra monk was standing behind that hole, having jumped down from above at some point.

Yang Yang and Guan Ren on the left and right screamed in great alarm.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

“Brother Zhuge!”

Mu-gak laughed “hehe.”

“An antidote to Asura Blood?”

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Ham-geun used killing techniques to his heart’s content while pressing An Ryeong. His sword tip spread out like plum blossom petals, each section harboring killing intent.

But An Ryeong was no pushover either. An Ryeong’s movements were extremely mysterious and her responses were quick. She picked up fallen weapons and used various methods to counter Ham-geun’s plum blossom sword technique.

“As expected, you were hiding your strength as I thought. How could Burning Phoenix of the Three Dragons Four Phoenixes, a junior generation, face me?”

Ham-geun pressed An Ryeong even more fiercely. An Ryeong blocked Ham-geun’s attacks without even having time to speak. Still, she wasn’t being pushed back much against Ham-geun, a veteran of Mount Hua Sect.

Since An Ryeong was being attacked, Im Yi-eon naturally abandoned the Arhat monks she was facing and flew in that direction.

Namgung Geol, who was attacking the Vajra monk while wielding sword steel, saw this scene and twisted his face in a pathetic manner.

“Did I commit many sins in my previous life? I’m doing all the good deeds for others alone.”

At least Jin Ja-gang was moving, so he could only hope the situation would somehow change.

While Ham-geun was away from his position, Jin Ja-gang first approached where So-min’s corpse was.

Flowers had bloomed all over So-min’s entire body in red like tattoos. From the seven orifices of her eyes, nose, mouth, and ears, blood was still flowing as if she were alive.

Pyo Sang-guk’s small greed had resulted in not only his own life but also driving So-min to death.

Though So-min had ultimately brought death upon herself in the end, Jin Ja-gang could not be said to be entirely without responsibility for So-min’s death.

Jin Ja-gang remembered So-min’s innocent smiling face and felt a pang in one side of his chest. It wasn’t a matter between man and woman, but the same empty feeling of futility as when he killed Zhongnan Sect’s Pyo Sang-guk.

“Rest in peace.”

Jin Ja-gang knelt and removed his outer garment to cover So-min’s face.

Then he let out a short sigh and immediately stood up.

The inn was in complete chaos from fights breaking out everywhere.

Sword light danced wildly and dull sounds of bones clashing came from close combat.

Jin Ja-gang approached the young men who were trembling while pressed against the inn wall.

Not only the injured but even the uninjured young men cowered when Jin Ja-gang approached.

Their spirit had been greatly broken so they couldn’t attack recklessly.

Jin Ja-gang selected the most intact among them and spoke.

“I’ll skip the persuasion.”

“Suddenly what, what persuasion…”

“Who sent you?”

The young man whose eyes met Jin Ja-gang’s answered.

“W-we came forward voluntarily for j-justice in the martial world, not because anyone told us to…”

Jin Ja-gang reached out like lightning to cover the young man’s mouth and grabbed his finger to break it.

Crack!

The young man’s eyes opened wide. His face turned red and cold sweat flowed on his forehead. Though he couldn’t make a sound because his mouth was blocked, his jaw trembled.

Jin Ja-gang released his mouth and asked again.

“Why did you come?”

“Ugh… ughhh. T-that’s because we were told to bring P-Poison Dragon…”

Jin Ja-gang immediately bent and broke the young man’s arm. The moment the young man screamed, he kicked his solar plexus so his breath was blocked and no scream came out.

The young man’s eyes rolled back and he immediately fainted. He urinated, soaking the floor.

Jin Ja-gang immediately shifted his gaze to the young man next to him. The young man whose eyes met his crawled trying to escape. Jin Ja-gang grabbed the young man’s foot and pulled. The young man was dragged over.

“S-save me!”

He was so terrified that his fingernails broke and embedded in the floor while scratching the floorboards.

Jin Ja-gang asked.

“By what means were you planning to take me away?”

The young man was completely terrified and glanced sideways. He was gesturing toward where many young men were huddled together.

Jin Ja-gang abandoned the frightened young man and headed in that direction. The young men shuffled sideways to reveal one person hiding among them.

The young man was covering his face with his sleeve, and when his eyes met Jin Ja-gang’s, he looked greatly flustered. Jin Ja-gang approached and pulled out the young man, reaching out his hand without hesitation.

“You bastard!”

The young man tried to resist. Jin Ja-gang kicked the young man’s chest.

The young man tried to use footwork to dodge but stumbled in his haste. Thump! At Jin Ja-gang’s kick, the young man’s back struck the inn wall.

When the hand covering his face fell away, it became clear. It was the young man from Zhuge family he had met at Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan before.

“You still haven’t learned your lesson after being beaten once?”

The young man from Zhuge family, Zhuge Gu, turned red as if remembering the humiliation from that time.

But he soon wore a killing smile and drew his sword.

“You became alone and brazenly entered among us without fear. You’re the one who hasn’t learned your lesson.”

Several young men approached Jin Ja-gang’s left and right to surround him. About two faces were familiar. One was a young lady from Red Sword Sect, one was a young man from Taihang Sword Sect. And the rest were faces he hadn’t seen before. But the aura he subtly felt was familiar.

“Retainer family warriors of Zhuge family.”

Zhuge Gu flinched.

“How do you know that?”

Jin Ja-gang said to the retainer family warriors of Zhuge family.

“I knew a warrior named Shin Yong. If anyone here knows him, I’ll spare them today. Leave now.”

When Shin Yong’s name came up, the warriors were briefly flustered but none fled.

Red Sword Sect disciple Yang Yang shouted in a sharp voice.

“Your habit of wagging that evil tongue is the same as before! Someone like you doesn’t deserve to eat in the martial world!”

Taihang Sword Sect disciple Guan Ren also chimed in.

“Arrogant bastard! Last time we were caught off guard, but this time we won’t be! As long as it’s not poison, there’s nothing to fear!”

Jin Ja-gang was puzzled. They were spouting words that were difficult for Jin Ja-gang to understand.

Soon Zhuge Gu gave a command.

“Attack!”

Three Zhuge family warriors simultaneously rushed at Jin Ja-gang. But Red Sword Sect, Taihang Sword Sect, and even Zhuge Gu himself weren’t rushing at Jin Ja-gang.

Then suddenly they took out pills wrapped in gold foil from their bosoms to put in their mouths!

Jin Ja-gang’s eyes flashed.

‘Is that strange confidence the reason for this?’

He had to prevent the consumption of those pills to confirm their identity!

But Zhuge family warriors were already surrounding Jin Ja-gang in a 品-shaped formation and striking with swords.

Jin Ja-gang quickly judged. He had no choice but to accept some damage.

Jin Ja-gang took one breath, then floated his body while drawing ten needles on the fingers of both hands.

But seeing Jin Ja-gang prepare to throw poison needles, Zhuge Gu, Yang Yang, and Guan Ren weren’t trying to dodge or block but were swallowing the pills even more urgently!

Jin Ja-gang felt disgusted. He threw empty needles without poison. Since a Zhuge family warrior was blocking the front with his body, Jin Ja-gang’s needles only embedded in Yang Yang and Guan Ren’s bodies.

“Kugh!”

“Ugh!”

Since he hadn’t particularly aimed for acupoints, the needles Jin Ja-gang threw while accepting damage were useless.

Jin Ja-gang allowed one sword strike while throwing needles. A burning feeling came to his spine. And swords were also falling on both sides. Jin Ja-gang twisted his body in mid-air to make his body horizontal with the floor, then urgently stretched both feet left and right to kick the Zhuge family warriors’ wrists.

Thud thump!

One had his wrist broken and one dropped his sword. Jin Ja-gang used that rebound to leap again and straighten his body, then spun his upper body like a top while extending both feet to kick the warriors. This time he could breathe more leisurely and apply more Two Light Emperor internal energy than before.

Crack snap! At the kick containing Five Lights internal energy of Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Art, one had his neck broken and the other had his chest cave in.

The warrior who had struck Jin Ja-gang’s back once thrust at his waist. Jin Ja-gang turned his body while placing his finger on the warrior’s sword from the front and released energy.

Twiiiiing!

The sword bent like a bow as if it would break, then bounced back to bend the opposite way and sway greatly left and right.

Flutter flutter!

The warrior couldn’t overcome the force of the sword swaying left and right, and his grip tore. He lost hold of the sword handle. The sword fluttered and spun in an unpredictable direction in mid-air, then slashed the warrior’s face.

“Agh!”

Jin Ja-gang immediately grabbed the warrior’s sword floating in the air and struck down hard.

He didn’t even need to put much internal energy into it. With a thump sound, the sword embedded in the head of the warrior whose face was greatly slashed.

The warrior stared at Jin Ja-gang then fell forward and died.

Jin Ja-gang turned his body with his spine damp and looked at the three people.

Yang Yang and Guan Ren, who had been hit by Jin Ja-gang’s needles, waited tensely then realized nothing was wrong and smiled brightly.

“H-hahaha! It really worked!”

“Uhahaha! Just as Grand Master said. Now Poison Dragon’s poison is useless!”

Jin Ja-gang was about to say they were empty needles. But what Guan Ren said made Jin Ja-gang stop speaking.

“Grand Master?”

Jin Ja-gang confirmed that one person, Zhuge Gu, was still looking around cautiously and hadn’t swallowed the pill until then.

Zhuge Gu was only bringing the pill to his mouth after seeing Yang Yang and Guan Ren were fine.

Jin Ja-gang finally understood why these Cherry Blossom Corps members were making strange words and actions.

It was Mang Ryo. Mang Ryo had instigated this.

Jin Ja-gang was about to attack to stop Zhuge Gu but gave up trying and lowered his arms.

“Is it medicine Mang Ryo gave you?”

Zhuge Gu laughed “hehe” and answered.

“How dare you call Grand Master by his real name. That’s right. You must have been arrogantly rampaging relying only on Asura Blood that has no antidote? But that’s over now. This poison resistance pill personally manufactured by Grand Master counters your poison!”

“Before…”

Jin Ja-gang trailed off then continued.

“I’ve seen this kind of thing before. You’d better not eat that pill.”

“Hah, that’s funny. Are you scared because your poison won’t work?”

“Do you think you can beat me without poison?”

“If your poison doesn’t work, we win! Even at Shaolin Temple earlier, they said the same thing as Grand Master. Without poison, your martial arts are nothing special!”

It was getting to the point where Jin Ja-gang thought Mang Ryo was impressive. How had he coaxed and incited them to think they could win after experiencing Jin Ja-gang?

“You’ve seen with your eyes and experienced directly, yet still don’t know?”

At Jin Ja-gang’s feet, three Zhuge family warriors who had become cold corpses were proving Jin Ja-gang’s might. But Zhuge Gu actually sneered.

“How dare you compare the military power of mere retainer families with direct lineage families. Last time there was a Qingcheng Sect Taoist, and this time unexpectedly a Shaolin Temple high monk is here, so things turned out this way. Don’t you know that if you were alone, you’d already be a dead man?”

Jin Ja-gang extended his hand.

“Stop the nonsense and hand it over if you want to live.”

“Cut the crap.”

“It’s not crap. Many people are already watching you.”

Zhuge Gu looked around and was startled.

From the moment he mentioned the poison resistance pill that could overcome Asura Blood, weren’t the gazes of the masters who were fighting turning toward him! Even while fighting among themselves, they were watching Zhuge Gu.

Zhuge Gu quickly threw it into his mouth like tossing it, afraid the poison resistance pill might be snatched.

Then a shadow fell over Zhuge Gu’s head.

“THUMP!”

The poison resistance pill wrapped in gold foil flew backward and rolled on the floor.

He had been throwing the poison resistance pill into his mouth, his hand was still in the throwing position, but Zhuge Gu’s head that should have received the pill… was gone while his mouth was open.

Instead, a hole deep enough for one person to stand was carved in the floor, and chunks that had become minced meat were scattered left and right of the hole.

The hand that had been throwing the poison resistance pill, precisely the part above the elbow that had disappeared and could no longer stay attached, fell to the floor.

A Vajra monk was standing behind that hole, having jumped down from above at some point.

Yang Yang and Guan Ren on the left and right screamed in great alarm.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

“Brother Zhuge!”

Mu-gak laughed “hehe.”

“An antidote to Asura Blood?”

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