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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“What’s that?”
Heuk Sa-tang, the leader of the Black Shadow Sect, threw his wine bottle to the ground and stood up at the sudden commotion.
He stepped outside and saw a man in a bamboo hat surrounded by his disciples.
‘Just one?’
Only one person?
His brow furrowed at the unexpected visitor.
‘An uninvited guest at this time?’
“Move aside.”
“Yes, Sect Leader!”
He walked past his subordinates.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps.
Finally close enough to see the face beneath the bamboo hat, he narrowed his eyes and peered at the man. Then, his beady eyes widened in surprise.
“The Lion Sword?”
“It’s an honor that even a sect leader knows my name.”
“I’ve been watching you since you entered the city.”
“I’m not interested in men.”
‘How annoying.’
The blatant sarcasm made his temple throb. But he was the leader of the Black Shadow Sect.
He had built this sect from the ground up and spent years meticulously planning his takeover of the city.
He wouldn’t be shaken by something like this.
“I don’t know why you came here alone…but it seems you have a death wish.”
“That’s my line.”
William calmly retorted, shaking the sign he held.
Then, he dramatically snapped it in half over his knee.
Heuk Sa-tang’s temple throbbed.
“You bastard! How dare you defile our sect’s sign…!”
As he unleashed his aura in anger, the Black Shadow Sect disciples recoiled in fear.
‘He’s quite skilled for someone in this backwater town.’
At least high-first-rate, possibly peak expert. But judging by the strange aura he emanated, William deduced that he hadn’t cultivated his martial arts through conventional methods.
“Huh.”
“And you should wash up. You reek.”
“What?”
William’s playful taunt made Heuk Sa-tang’s already flushed face turn even redder. No one in this city dared speak to him like that.
“Why don’t you go take a bath? I don’t want to kill something that smells so bad.”
“Ha! You’ve got guts.”
“We’ll see about that.”
William casually replied and extended his hand, as if to grab him by the collar. His hand approached, neither slow nor fast.
But as the leader of a sect, he was no pushover.
“Disciples of the Black Shadow Sect! Teach this insolent fool a lesson!”
“Oh, you’re not going to fight me yourself?”
“Why should I dirty my hands?”
“Do you think your subordinates can defeat me?”
“Even if you’re a renowned master, do you think you can overcome sheer numbers? You’ll pay for your arrogance.”
‘There are over a hundred of them.’
Overwhelming numbers.
While most were around second-rate level, there were a few first-rate martial artists among them, so even a peak expert like him couldn’t ignore them.
“Are you planning to run away, Sect Leader?”
“No! I’ll enjoy a drink while watching you get beaten to a pulp! Attack!”
As soon as he finished speaking, the Black Shadow Sect disciples surrounded William, brandishing their weapons.
‘I think I’ve seen a movie poster like this before.’
William, his face betraying no fear, casually surveyed his surroundings. He saw his enemies, their weapons raised.
“There’s a saying in Europe.”
He naturally shifted his left leg back. His gaze fixed on Heuk Sa-tang, who had just sat down on a platform with a bottle of wine.
“Never point your weapon at a knight.
…It’s no different from pointing your weapon at a fortress wall.”
Aura surged from his mana core like a wild stallion, spreading throughout his body. It clung to his mana roads and muscles, then seeped out through his pores, taking shape.
“W-what’s that?”
“Protective chi?”
“I’ve been practicing a new footwork technique. It’s nice of you to provide me with so many practice partners.”
“What?! You crazy—”
He bent his knees, lowering his stance. The aura clinging to his skin began to form a concrete shape.
The armor of aura, a knight’s symbol, their shield, and their most powerful weapon.
“If you want to live, get out of my way.”
Boom!
A thunderous roar shook the ground as he shot forward.
Like a cannonball. Instinctively sensing the danger, the disciples tried to dodge, but how could they escape in such a crowded space?
“Aaaargh!”
Those who collided with William screamed and collapsed.
Broken weapons and pools of blood stained the ground. Having bowled over more than fifteen martial artists in an instant, William looked at the approaching Heuk Sa-tang and said,
“Do you want to play scarecrow king after losing all your subordinates, or do you want to fight me and at least try to survive?”
‘What kind of monstrous technique is that…?!’
While there were many techniques that enhanced strength, such a brute-force charge was rare.
The reason was simple.
It consumed an immense amount of internal energy and placed a heavy burden on the user’s body.
It was a technique difficult for a Central Plains martial artist to handle. Even those who had mastered external martial arts wouldn’t consider such a reckless charge.
Weren’t people vulnerable even to small daggers? No martial artist would willingly walk into a deathtrap with a single mistake.
But a knight, who always stood on the front lines, had to face death head-on!
Heuk Sa-tang, caught off guard, threw his wine bottle at William to buy some time.
‘He’s definitely stronger than me! I have to use a wheel formation or a combined attack to take him down!’
As befitting a sect leader, his mind raced, searching for a solution.
“Surround him again! Attack his back while I hold him off!”
“Too late, Heuk Sa-tang.”
William used his footwork technique again.
‘Here he comes!’
The human cannonball launched himself forward once more. Heuk Sa-tang, seeing the simple yet incredibly fast charge, used his Shadow Movement technique to the fullest and narrowly dodged.
“Haha! You can’t defeat me with such simple—”
‘My main hall!’
Was that really the result of a human colliding with a building? Heuk Sa-tang stared in disbelief at the gaping hole in his main hall.
His subordinates were equally shocked.
“I-is he indestructible?”
“Can a human even do that? Destroy a building like that?”
“That was a bit…stiff.”
William, having created a shortcut through several rooms, rotated his shoulder and reappeared among the enemy. He chuckled at the hole he had created in the main hall and checked his aura reserves.
‘I can do that three or four more times.’
Thanks to the leather vest he wore to reduce aura consumption and the elixir he had won as the tournament prize.
‘I wonder if the Black Shadow Sect has any hidden elixirs.’
The more aura, the better.
He decided to loot the place after dealing with Heuk Sa-tang.
“My precious main hall…!”
He had worked so hard to build this hall. Seeing the unsightly hole, he couldn’t contain his rage.
“Why don’t you just surrender?”
“I’ll skin you alive and display your remains in the marketplace!”
“Try it if you can.”
“Disciples of the Black Shadow Sect! Take up arms! Don’t let this intruder escape!”
“Do you think you can?”
William’s figure blurred as he charged forward once more.
A devastating charge.
His target, of course, was Heuk Sa-tang.
Heuk Sa-tang assumed the stance for his signature Shadow Fist technique, channeling powerful internal energy into his fists and unleashing a flurry of blows. He moved his feet rapidly.
‘Dodge and counter!’
Evade the direct attack and strike from behind.
His simple plan seemed like a solid solution. With such a reckless charge, William’s movements would be limited.
But his prediction was proven wrong.
“What…!”
“Did you think I would use the same trick twice when I know you’ll dodge?”
Landing precisely in front of him, William’s sword blocked the dark red fist aura and slowly pushed Heuk Sa-tang back.
‘What power…!’
As a practitioner of an aggressive martial art, he had trained his muscles diligently and prided himself on his strength, so being pushed back like this was unpleasant.
“Ha! You brute! But I’m not alone! Disciples, now!”
At his command, dozens of disciples charged at William’s back.
A desperate situation.
But William’s reaction wasn’t one of panic or despair, but a smile.
“You have loyal subordinates, Heuk Sa-tang.”
Using Heuk Sa-tang’s body as a pivot, William spun around, his sword sliding along his hand towards Heuk Sa-tang’s neck. Simultaneously, his foot slammed into Heuk Sa-tang’s shin.
An unexpected move.
Heuk Sa-tang channeled internal energy to his shin to prevent his stance from collapsing and countered with an elbow strike to William’s solar plexus.
“Not bad.”
Their positions had reversed in an instant.
The disciples hurriedly retracted their weapons, which had almost struck Heuk Sa-tang.
“Ha!”
“Then let’s get serious.”
William charged forward again.
His Aura Armor was fainter than before. Heuk Sa-tang gritted his teeth, channeled internal energy throughout his body, and dodged the charge.
He knew he couldn’t withstand a direct hit. But he had overlooked one thing.
“Aaargh!”
“Run!”
“My arm!”
This time, his disciples were behind him.
“You’re going to get your disciples killed.”
Seeing twenty of his subordinates fall to William’s reckless charge, Heuk Sa-tang’s rage boiled over.
“With our great undertaking so close to completion, where did this dog come from…!”
“Oh, a great undertaking. I’m curious about what that means.”
‘There’s definitely something more to this.’
The scale of the plan was too large for the small Black Shadow Sect to handle alone. Having glimpsed a piece of the truth hidden beneath the surface, William smiled.
“I have another reason to bring you to the clans.”
“Nonsense!”
As if he couldn’t tolerate William’s actions any longer, Heuk Sa-tang charged like an enraged bull.
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Thanks fusion!
thanks for the chapter