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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: TushChen
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In the early hours, Tang Do-gyeong and Ho Cheon-an’s match was unfolding.
“What’s going on?”
The outcasts, finishing their training and preparing for the day, pressed down their black hats one by one and headed outside the inn as a Six Harmonies Divine Voice suddenly echoed through.
They could see six Tang family martial artists, completely covered in dirt and sweat.
The outcasts gasped when they saw the Tang family’s attire.
From Tang Do-gi, who had invested everything in lightness techniques except for minimal energy circulation for several days, to the Tang family members who had run non-stop to Sacheon since leaving Jeomchang, a fierce aura lingered in their eyes.
While it wasn’t strange for the outcasts to be overwhelmed since all the Tang family warriors could be called masters, the outcasts were keeping quiet now due to the angry aura of the Tang family martial artists.
“It’s been a while, Uncle.”
“You bastard! Tang Do-gyeong! How much more do you intend to tarnish the Tang family name! I swear to heaven and earth, I will bind you and take you back to the main family today no matter what!”
Despite Tang Do-gi’s anger, Tang Do-gyeong’s expression remained utterly calm.
“Didn’t you say you would remove me from the Tang family registry?”
“How dare you mention that! You should be begging for forgiveness, yet you speak such insolent words. You still haven’t come to your senses!”
As Tang Do-gi raised his hand, the six martial artists behind him simultaneously drew their whips.
Seeing this, Ho Cheon-an thought,
‘Is this a proper elite unit?’
What are the Tang family’s secret martial arts?
They are assassination techniques and poison usage.
Everyone in the world knows this, but as a righteous faction, the Tang family couldn’t use assassination and poison on people, so Tang family members separately learned whip techniques or fist techniques.
This, too, can be considered a characteristic of the Tang family.
Assassination tools are consumables, and poisons are consumables, too.
As one reaches higher realms, precious assassination tools and poisons are often used, so even in the Tang family, the quantity of assassination tools and poisons that can be provided to martial artists is limited.
Particular poisons and superior assassination tools are prioritized for those with unique talents, and they are the true elites who inherit the Tang family’s assassination and poison techniques.
Those who focus solely on assassination and poison techniques often handle whips in preparation for situations where they can’t use those two.
After all, whip techniques, with their long range and ability to utilize dexterity for variation and power, have aspects in common with assassination techniques.
It’s not that they were exceptionally skilled in whip techniques.
It would be more accurate to say they were reluctantly using the weapon most similar to assassination tools among those commonly used in the Central Plains.
Most of the Tang family’s branch members are more familiar with fist techniques than whip techniques, so the fact that they all drew out whips proved that they were indeed the Tang family’s elite force focused on assassination and poison techniques.
“Uncle, haven’t I already told you? Before the Tang family, I am a man, and I cannot easily bend my will once I’ve set it. I will return when I achieve results I’m satisfied with. Even if I’m expelled in the meantime, there’s nothing I can do about it.”
“You’re still wagging that worthless pride and insolent tongue!”
Zhaak!
Tang Do-gi struck the ground with his whip.
“Subdue that bastard!”
Just as the Tang family masters were about to use their whips, an outcast blocked Tang Do-gi’s path.
It was Jeong Sam of the Half-Moon Blade.
“Oh no…”
Ho Cheon-an sighed.
Although he had been thinking that if such a situation arose, he would first strike the back of Jeong Sam’s head, the problem was that it happened precisely when he was in the middle of the shell game match.
While he was cleaning up the game and coming out from the third floor, all the outcasts who had sensed the commotion had gone outside, so Ho Cheon-an, who came out with Tang Do-gyeong under everyone’s gaze, had no chance to quietly deal with Jeong Sam.
‘Why did you have to come at exactly that time out of the 24 hours?’
As Jeong Sam moved, even the Comrade Faction outcasts began to stand beside Tang Do-gyeong, causing Tang Do-gi’s eyes to blaze with fury.
“Step back! Don’t you dare to interfere with the Great Tang family’s affairs now! Do you think you can hide your identities with those petty black hats, that you dare to step forward now!”
Along with this, the Tang family masters’ aura exploded!
While the Tang family members had been trying to subdue Tang Do-gyeong carefully because he was family, their attitude towards the outcasts was utterly different.
The outcasts’ bodies trembled at the merciless killing intent and the tsunami-like aura of the transcendent masters.
“Although we are outcasts, we are the Comrade Faction who have decided to share joys and sorrows with Hero Tang! Even if it’s a Tang family matter, when the person in question says he’s cutting ties, how can forcibly dragging him away against his will be a family matter!”
“That’s right! We will protect Hero Tang!”
‘The flow is…’
Ho Cheon-an quickly assessed the situation.
Initially, there were fifteen members in the Comrade Faction.
Eight of them had stepped forward, including Jeong Sam of the Half-Moon Blade.
Ho Cheon-an had initially expected it would take 5 days for the Tang family masters to arrive.
He was just at the stage of ruining the perception of the Comrade Faction.
Still, the Tang family people had already arrived…
About half of the members had fallen away not due to Ho Cheon-an’s machinations but rather because they were overwhelmed by the Tang family’s spirit, who had rushed here, burning everything far beyond even Ho Cheon-an’s expectations.
“What do you think you’re doing! You guys who stepped forward! How do you plan to deal with the consequences of this! If you don’t step back right now, you’ll be permanently expelled!”
Yu Sa-yeon stepped in to suppress them.
“This is something we can’t back down from as men, before being Sacheon outcasts!”
“Even if I’m expelled and have to take off my black hat, I can’t back down from this!”
“…These guys!”
While some might have stepped forward momentarily like Jeong Sam, most standing with Tang Do-gyeong now were outcasts feeling the limits of self-study and the walls of their status.
They were people who had been stuck in place, blocked by the reality that without connections, one couldn’t find a master and proper martial arts no matter how much money they had.
They didn’t want to miss this opportunity called Tang Do-gyeong.
They had become Sacheon outcasts because it was easier to learn martial arts from the position of an outcast, so they were people who didn’t hesitate to throw away their black hats in front of an opportunity to learn martial arts.
Tang Do-gi, watching the commotion, drove in the final nail.
“This is not a situation for you to interfere with at that level. I, Tang Do-gi, swear in my name that I will repay today’s grudge tenfold to anyone who steps forward here.”
Although the outcasts couldn’t bring themselves to answer, none of them stepped back.
Tang Do-gyeong seemed perplexed by the current situation, alternately looking at the outcasts and the Tang family people.
‘Ha, damn…’
Ho Cheon-an let out a deep sigh.
After Tang Do-gi’s declaration, the aura exuded by the Tang family masters changed again.
The aura had been fierce until now, but now its very nature was completely changing.
They might have wielded their whips with rough movements if a fight had broken out earlier.
Still, now, seeing the outcasts’ attitude of not backing down even after the Tang family’s grudge was mentioned, the killing intent they were emitting was gradually becoming sharper.
If they clashed like this, some outcasts might lose their lives, and Ho Cheon-an couldn’t predict how the rest of the outcasts would react to the sight of their bleeding comrades.
If all the outcasts rushed in, even the Tang family martial artists wouldn’t be unscathed.
The Tang family masters were at the transcendent level.
Among the outcasts, even peak level was a minority, with most being first-rate. Still, if an actual slaughter broke out, the outcasts would become more threatening opponents than any martial artist.
After all, the life of an outcast, treated as the bottom of the martial world, was marked by danger and blood.
If they were just miscellaneous outcasts, it would be one thing.
Still, Sacheon outcasts who had risen by seizing life at the crossroads of life and death were indeed experts in slaughter.
Even among the Tang family masters, it was uncertain how many might die or be injured.
Well aware of this fact, even Tang Do-gi, whose anger had peaked, had backed down once when the outcasts stepped forward.
“The killing intent of the Tang family members seems a bit excessive.”
Yeo Jin-sang’s muttering penetrated Ho Cheon-an’s ears.
“What do you think we should do? Even for the Tang family, this oppression seems too much.”
“If blood is shed, we’ll have to step in. After all, aren’t we all family?”
The situation had changed.
Seeing the Tang family members unleashing their killing intent without restraint, the neutral and Flower Path Faction outcasts, who had hardened their expressions, began to gradually release their own killing intent.
Some outcasts stepped forward one step while others touched their sword hilts.
The faces of the Tang family martial artists also grimaced.
The killing intent of the outcasts, who experienced real battles as if they were eating meals, was indeed on a different level.
Although the overall aura was smaller, the sharpness of the killing intent the outcasts were emitting was enough to surpass that of the Tang family martial artists.
It was indeed a powder keg situation.
“Wait!”
Ho Cheon-an’s hand shot up.
In that hand was the Blood Jade Plaque.
“The Blood Jade Plaque..!”
“It’s that guy!”
The gazes of the Tang family martial artists and the Sacheon outcasts instantly converged on Ho Cheon-an.
After deeply breathing, Ho Cheon-an pushed through the martial artists and stood before Tang Do-gyeong.
“Hero Tang. This commotion is happening because of you, yet how can you not say a word?”
“…I.”
“What do you intend to do? The test to become a Sacheon outcast is still ongoing, and our shell game bet is still in progress. But I wonder, are these things important enough to warrant paying the price of opposing your family?”
“Ya brother…”
“I say forget the bet. If you want to become a Sacheon outcast, can’t you come back anytime? I won’t use the Blood Jade Plaque and will keep it safe, so how about settling your family matters and making an appointment for the future?”
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