Chapter 68 – Yongbongjihoe Finals (2)
My second opponent in the finals was a man with the nickname “Blood Wolf.”
He was a martial artist who mainly caught bandits for bounties or cooperated with the government to catch criminals.
Perhaps his ominous nickname came from the fact that he never let go of his prey, even if he was covered in blood?
His martial arts skills were nothing special. At best, he had the level of swordsmanship and internal energy that barely reached the peak.
So how did Blood Wolf make it to the finals? The answer was simple.
He was just strong.
His sharpened swordsmanship, honed through countless real battles, was unmatched, and his tenacity to dig in like crazy at the slightest opening was mind-boggling.
However, I was able to defeat him by making basic mistakes due to his impatience.
I had felt it when I fought against Unjuwon, but I had become much stronger than I thought.
I was able to easily win two matches against Pengsoso and Hong Yeonhwa.
Pengsoso’s skills were unparalleled among the post-sixth-degree members of the Five Great Sects, but he had not been active outside of his sect, which was why he was not well-known.
As for Hong Yeonhwa, it was a complete uproar.
Since her first opponent was the youngest son of Sachendangmun, everyone expected her to lose, but she memorized all the moves and won the victory.
From Hong Yeonhwa’s point of view, she just treated him fairly, but to those around her, it seemed like an unknown post-sixth-degree member suddenly overwhelmed the martial artists of the Five Great Sects.
In addition, she was the most beautiful, cute, and kind person in the world, and her popularity skyrocketed to the sky, even though it was just one victory.
Even the youngest son of the defeated Tangga sent her a secret letter.
Of course, Hong Yeonhwa refused it immediately, and Peng Ojin personally intervened to prevent any further trouble.
It was strange to see Hong Yeonhwa, who had a high nose, bragging about how good she was.
…So that day, I risked danger and hid in her room all night, teasing her until she declared, “I, I am yours…ugh!”
Anyway, as we advanced relatively smoothly to the round of 16, most of the remaining participants were martial artists from the Gupa Ilbang and the Five Great Sects.
So it was reasonable to say that my third opponent was a familiar face.
“Hmph! The opportunity for sex has come faster than I thought.”
“Wow…if anyone hears that, they’ll think you’ve been wronged.”
“What? Did you think I wouldn’t know that your little group with the big breasts stole my Jeonnang?” yelled Jegal Yeongyeong, my opponent for this round.
“Heheh….”
Surprisingly, my opponent was Jegal Yeongyeong, whom I had met by chance in Nakyang and who had made our wallets richer.
“But did you come alone? What about that guy, Moyonghwi?”
“Eek…! Hwi-rang…Hwi-rang was eliminated in the preliminaries! How dare you make me say it with my own mouth…how far are you willing to humiliate me?!”
“Well, I didn’t know…”
It was all just insults.
But still, Moyonghwi was weaker than me when we stayed in Nakyang, so it was natural that he was eliminated. I wonder why Jegal Yeongyeong was boasting like that when he knew that.
According to Peng Soso, Moyonghwi wasn’t a bad guy from the roots, but one day he started to pick fights with him as if he was his punching bag.
Maybe he had some circumstances. I don’t need to pay attention to that.
“Stop it there. If you’re a martial artist, shouldn’t you be conversing with a sword instead of your tongue? Besides, we have a good opportunity here.”
Jegyeong, the judge who had judged the preliminaries and now the finals, spoke up, and Jegal Yeongyeong, who had been flailing around until a moment ago, let out a deep sigh and regained his composure.
“Phew…Jegyeong-nim is right. There’s no need to exert ourselves now.”
Then he opened his fan and covered his mouth. It was as if he was saying he wouldn’t say anything.
Come to think of it, that fan…it was made of iron, not wood.
I thought he was a martial artist without any weapons, but was he planning to fight with that iron wire?
It suited Jegalsega well. The problem was that I couldn’t imagine how to fight with it.
Could I even block a sword with that iron wire?
It wouldn’t cut, but the fan wasn’t a tool made for fighting in the first place.
Every time he hit a weapon, he would suffer damage because he couldn’t deliver his strength properly….
Still, the fact that he confidently took it out meant that he had some kind of plan.
I raised my guard against Jegal Yeongyeong one step further in my mind.
“Shoo….”
I took a deep breath according to the logic of the Muryeongsingong, and the feeling of the pillar of determination that had become familiar to me supported my body like another spine.
“Phew….”
When I exhaled again, a slightly heated breath flowed out of my mouth along with my inner strength.
Jegal Yeongyeong’s eyes sharpened as he saw the change in my momentum over the fan.
“I’m sure now that I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Your martial arts…are definitely explosive in the Jamryeok style. That’s why you’ve been able to end all the fights so far in a short time.”
“Um….”
“I think Jegal Yeongyeong is talking nonsense, even though he knows that Muryeongsingong has the power of strengthening,” I thought to myself.
Logically, Jegal Yeongyeong’s words were correct. The problem was that Muryeongsingong was not a conventional martial art.
Well, it’s better if he thinks that way.
I deliberately took an ambiguous attitude, neither positive nor negative. Jegal Yeongyeong, who seemed to have been pricked by my indifference, started to laugh.
I tried to control my emotions, which were about to burst out at his typical childish reaction, and tensed my muscles throughout my body.
“You have a good posture. Since both of you already know the rules, I’ll skip the explanation…let’s begin.”
Cheongryongdanju, who had judged the preliminaries and was now judging the finals, saw that Jegal Yeongyeong and I were ready and retreated to the corner of the practice field.
Jing—
And the sound of the bell signaling the start of the fight.
Jegal Yeongyeong jumped out as if he had been waiting, while I jumped back to create some distance between us.
When I rushed towards him again, he sidestepped to maintain the distance.
“Did you think I would just let you catch me?”
“Well, then how are you planning to fight?”
“I don’t know. Isn’t that something you should be worried about, not me?”
Jegal Yeongyeong, who acted as if he had already won, was irritating me.
Muryeongsingong, which ignites the explosive power, has a short duration and causes considerable aftereffects after use.
He seemed to be trying to drag out the time and wait for me to weaken, but it was meaningless for me. In fact, if I used Muryeongsingong, my stamina and inner strength would increase, and I could fight all day if I wanted to.
“Haah!”
Thump!
I slammed the ground so hard that it shook. Jegal Yeongyeong, who frowned slightly at my increased speed, swung his fan while dodging this time.
Whoosh—
The intense gust that started with a simple fan swing pushed my body back and slowed me down. In the end, I couldn’t touch Jegal Yeongyeong, but it didn’t matter.
The advantage in this endurance battle was not Jegal Yeongyeong, but me.
I pretended to be anxious and flew towards Jegal Yeongyeong again.
***
How much time had passed? It wasn’t that long, maybe about a quarter of an hour?
But it was enough time for Jegal Yeongyeong to realize that his strategy was wrong.
“You tricked me!”
“What nonsense…ugh…”
“Get rid of the useless smoke! Your breathing is steady despite the loud noise!”
Sigh…I tried to act tired, but it didn’t work at all.
I returned to my normal breathing, which I had disguised as rough, and smiled.
“Anyway, you’re right. I’ve never said that my martial art is explosive, but you made up your own story and wasted your time.”
“Heheheh!”
Jegal Yeongyeong chewed on his lips, looking frustrated and unable to say anything. He probably realized that he had made a stupid mistake.
But it was too late now. Even if he regretted it, he couldn’t get back the stamina and inner strength he had wasted.
Should I shake him up a bit more?
“Hehe~ Even monkeys fall from trees sometimes, don’t they? You, Jegal Se, who is famous for your intelligence, fell for my trick.”
Eudeuk.
“Eik…! That’s how it is. You’re a real man, after all. Good. Let me engrave in your body the reason why Jegal Se was able to establish himself as a member of the Odaese.”
I didn’t know where this had anything to do with Pang Soso, but Jegal Yeongyeong reacted fiercely to it.
She quickly folded and snapped the wire she had spread out, and poured her inner strength onto it, causing a visible aura to rise from the wire.
I sensed that Jegal Yeongyeong was aiming for a big move rather than thinking about her defense.
This is it.
I didn’t know what she was planning, but this was her last move. If I could somehow get through this, I would win.
I adjusted my posture and focused my attention.
Before Jegal Yeongyeong could do anything, I stretched my legs out as if I was going to end it right there.
Thud.
Using the movement of my center of gravity and the recoil, I accelerated rapidly, running at the fastest speed I could and preparing the fastest and most powerful attack I could unleash, the Chosikin Palbangpung.
One step, two steps. And on the third step, I was able to put Jegal Yeongyeong within range.
Immediately, my arm muscles, which were coiled like a dragon’s tendons, wriggled and shot forward, but my opponent was a little faster.
As I unfolded the wire I had folded, there were characters engraved on it that weren’t there a moment ago.
Instead of ink, the characters were engraved with inner strength, and they were closer to bone script than Chinese characters, making it impossible to know what they meant.
It was difficult to guess, but it seemed to be something closer to a technique or a spell than martial arts, given that the Jegal family was more famous for their techniques and spells than martial arts.
I was already halfway through my punch. If I hesitated and tried to dodge, I would be hit with a direct blow.
Thinking that I would pierce through whatever came out, I opened my eyes wide.
At the same time, Jegal Yeongyeong, who seemed to be thinking about uttering a mantra with a hint of venom in her eyes, felt something strange.
Suddenly, I felt something coming from all directions.
“What?!”
“Huh?!”
Jegal Yeongyeong and I both felt a change at the same time, and when we forced ourselves to attack, several round pottery-like objects were already flying towards us.
Some were aimed at us, and some were aimed at the audience.
What the hell?
