Chapter 181

“Hoo! Hoo! This crazy bastard.”

Hwa Ok-gi gasped for breath, looking up at Soma, who was squatting on a high tree branch.

He had felt it from the very beginning, but Soma resembled a crow.

Even the way he sat on the branch was a dead ringer for an unlucky, ominous, pitch-black bird.

Hwa Ok-gi straightened his back and looked around.

The martial artists of Juk Hae-jang, who had joined him in attacking Soma, were scattered on the ground in a wretched state.

Horrific wounds were carved all over their bodies. All were injuries from the Seven Deadly Wheels.

He hated to admit it, but the crow-like boy was strong.

Strong enough to withstand the combined assault of himself and the Juk Hae-jang martial artists.

Who would have expected such a small boy to be this strong? The Juk Hae-jang martial artists had lost their lives because of it.

Conversely, thanks to the Juk Hae-jang martial artists, Hwa Ok-gi was able to save his own life. They had become Soma’s sacrifices in his stead.

It wasn’t easy to see because of the baggy black clothes, but Soma had also sustained quite a few injuries.

No matter how strong he was, he was still a young child.

He was bound to be inexperienced in many ways.

Until now, he had used his childlike appearance to make his enemies let their guard down, overwhelming them with unexpectedly brilliant Martial Arts. But when a fight dragged on like this, he ended up exposing his weaknesses to his enemies.

Soma’s weakness was his stamina.

No matter how outstanding his Martial Arts were, his stamina was only that of a child. He didn’t have the stamina of an adult. That was why his endurance was weak.

Hwa Ok-gi had only noticed this fact after sacrificing all of the Juk Hae-jang martial artists.

Soma squatted on the branch, catching his ragged breath.

“Chaaat!”

Hwa Ok-gi launched himself toward Soma.

Although Soma was on a high branch, it wasn’t a problem. He too was a Martial Arts Expert, and he could leap up a tree of this height with his eyes closed.

Sh-sh-sh-sh!

Hwa Ok-gi landed on the branch and unleashed his Ultimate Technique.

Sword Qi had already formed on his sword.

He knew that using Sword Qi would quickly deplete his Internal Energy, but he didn’t care.

“I will kill you, no matter what.”

“Who said I’d let you?”

Soma stuck out his tongue and fled to another branch.

Hwa Ok-gi kicked off the tree and pursued Soma.

Even while escaping, Soma didn’t forget to throw his Seven Deadly Wheels. The wheels he threw in succession cut off the branch where Hwa Ok-gi was about to land.

Unable to find a foothold, Hwa Ok-gi plummeted to the ground. But he quickly flipped his body, kicked off a nearby tree trunk, and soared back into the air.

Waiting for that moment, Soma threw his wheels again.

Cha-cha-cha-chaeng!

The sword and wheels clashed violently in mid-air, and the nearby branches were cleanly severed.

Hwa Ok-gi’s face was filled with killing intent as he swung his sword.

Soma was not afraid of him.

To him, who had endured a hellish time after being abducted by the Small Thunder Sound Temple, Hwa Ok-gi’s killing intent was not much of a threat.

Soma repeatedly threw and retrieved his wheels. His entire body was soon drenched in sweat.

Mok Ga-hye watched Soma with her hands clasped tightly together.

She was worried that Soma seemed to be gradually getting pushed back, but she still believed in him.

It was then.

Shooo!

A sudden gale swept through the forest.

Mok Ga-hye quickly looked in the direction the wind was coming from.

In an instant, her eyes flew wide open as if they would tear.

An old man with the valiant features of a lion was rushing toward them at a terrifying speed.

The formidable aura emanating from the old man was causing a fierce wind to surge forward like a tidal wave.

Kwa-kwa-kwa!

The trees in the old man’s path were shattered, and the blades of grass on the ground scattered in all directions.

“What?”

Hwa Ok-gi and Soma belatedly noticed the old man’s appearance. But by then, the old man had already reached them.

The old man collided with the two at full speed.

Kwaang!

“Keuk!”

“Heup!”

With a deafening roar, Hwa Ok-gi and Soma’s bodies were thrown backward.

A red current of Qi was swirling around the old man’s entire body. The red current had acted like a Repulsion Force Energy, attacking the two of them.

Hwa Ok-gi and Soma suffered severe internal injuries and coughed up blood.

“Ak… Chusan!”

Hwa Ok-gi instantly recognized the old man’s identity.

The one who had attacked them was none other than the Lion Sword, Ak Chusan. The red current swirling around his body was a phenomenon that occurred when one mastered the Lion Overlord Way to its peak, and it possessed a power similar to Repulsion Force Energy.

It couldn’t deal much damage to experts on the same level as Ak Chusan, but it could inflict a massive shock on lesser opponents, so it was a technique he enjoyed using.

Hwa Ok-gi’s eyes were filled with fear as he looked at Ak Chusan.

Ak Chusan was not a martial artist he could dare to even try to match.

That was why he had abandoned even his trusted subordinate, Hwangbo Chiseung, and fled. But to face him again like this, fear washed over him like a tidal wave.

“Dammit!”

Hwa Ok-gi didn’t even think of daring to challenge Ak Chusan.

The gap in their Martial Arts was so vast that his spirit was broken first. But Soma was different.

“Who’s this grandpa? Why are you butting in?”

Soma picked up his Seven Deadly Wheels and glared at Ak Chusan.

There was no fear in his eyes.

At that, Ak Chusan burst into a hearty laugh.

“Hahaha! You’re better than that fellow.”

“Don’t laugh!”

“What?”

“I said, don’t laugh like you’re so magnanimous. Your eyes are as vicious as a scorpion’s, yet you pretend to be a great man.”

At the unexpected venomous words, Ak Chusan was momentarily at a loss for words.

He had never dreamed he would hear such vitriol from a little kid who was barely six or seven years old. The shock was all the greater for it.

“You’re just a kid with a sharp tongue.”

“Hmph! Is that any worse than an old man who rudely intrudes on someone else’s fight?”

“Do you have any idea who I am, to be running your mouth so carelessly?”

“Who are you? Just a rude old man.”

Soma shot back, not intimidated in the least.

The impact of the collision with Ak Chusan had left his whole body throbbing and aching. Blood kept rising from within, as if his internal organs had been violently shaken.

He knew he had suffered serious internal injuries without even having to look.

He also realized that he was absolutely no match for the old man. If he kept provoking Ak Chusan, he couldn’t guarantee his life.

Even knowing that, Soma didn’t back down an inch.

Instead, he glared at Ak Chusan with eyes full of Poison Qi.

“Tsk! What a waste.”

Ak Chusan genuinely thought it was a waste.

He had roamed All Under Heaven, but he had never seen a child so full of Poison Qi at such a young age as Soma.

If he had the time to properly tame him and take him as a disciple, he would surely have been useful, but it was a pity that he couldn’t.

He didn’t have much time.

Sreung!

He drew the thick blade that hung at his waist.

It was Ak Chusan’s beloved weapon, the Lion Sword.

A roaring lion was engraved on the hilt and blade.

“Keuk!”

The moment Ak Chusan gripped the Lion Sword, a frustrated groan escaped Hwa Ok-gi’s lips. The formidable blade pressure emanating from Ak Chusan was crushing him.

‘Dammit!’

Hwa Ok-gi’s eyes darted around frantically.

In a short time, countless thoughts and calculations raced through his mind.

Trying to fight Ak Chusan with his own strength was like hitting a rock with an egg.

He never challenged things he deemed impossible.

The most important thing to him was his own life.

“Eek!”

Hwa Ok-gi let out a bizarre scream and performed his Lightness Art.

He had escaped before Ak Chusan could even make a move.

“Hah!”

Ak Chusan watched Hwa Ok-gi’s retreating back with a dumbfounded expression.

He never imagined that the young lord of the newly prominent Heavenly Eunuch Clan would choose such a cowardly escape. But his target from the beginning was Soma, not Hwa Ok-gi.

Ak Chusan built up his momentum and approached Soma.

“You couldn’t have done this alone. Call them!”

“Call what?”

“Call the one behind you. If you don’t cooperate, I’ll slit that wench’s throat first.”

Ak Chusan raised his sword and aimed it at Mok Ga-hye.

There was a distance of about a dozen Zhang between him and Mok Ga-hye.

For an ordinary person, it was a distance that would take three or four breaths to cover, but for an expert like him, it was a meaningless distance. If he put his mind to it, slitting Mok Ga-hye’s throat was as easy as flipping his palm.

At Ak Chusan’s threat, Soma’s eyes wavered. But he quickly spoke with an unfazed expression.

“So what?”

“What?”

“What do I care if that Noona dies or not?”

“Ho! You even know how to bluff.”

“What bluff?”

“Then you won’t mind this, either.”

A bitter smile appeared on Ak Chusan’s lips.

‘Damn it!’

In that instant, Soma bit his lip.

Ak Chusan had swung his sword like a flash of lightning.

Blade Energy shot out from his sword and flew toward Mok Ga-hye.

It was a technique called Flying Blade Energy, which launched Blade Energy.

Shwaak!

The Flying Blade Energy, with its formidable power, aimed for Mok Ga-hye’s neck.

Mok Ga-hye didn’t even perceive Ak Chusan’s attack. By the time she felt something was wrong, the Flying Blade Energy was just about to hit her.

Just before the Flying Blade Energy struck, a small figure knocked her away and took the hit instead.

Kwang!

“Keok!”

The small figure that tumbled to the ground with a scream was Soma. A deep gash was on his back. He had pushed Mok Ga-hye away and taken the Flying Blade Energy with his small body.

Mok Ga-hye hugged Soma’s body.

Covered in blood, Soma twitched weakly in her arms.

“Why did you do that?”

“I told you… I was hired. So I have to protect you.”

“You fool…”

“Heehee!”

Soma laughed weakly.

The old ginger was indeed spicy.

He had tried to bluff, but it hadn’t worked at all.

Even Soma hadn’t expected him to launch a Flying Blade Energy so mercilessly.

Ak Chusan approached Soma and Mok Ga-hye.

Woooong!

The Lion Sword in his hand was letting out a rough cry.

At the Sword Cry, the blades of grass shot up into the air all at once, as if a storm had hit.

“If I kill you two, he will come out.”

Ak Chusan raised his Lion Sword high. Then he brought it down on the two of them.

Swish!

The moment the chilling sound of something slicing through the air rang out, something flew toward the three of them.

“There you are.”

Ak Chusan cried out in triumph and changed the trajectory of his sword.

The sword, which had been plunging vertically, swerved mid-way and flew horizontally. And it directly struck the figure that was flying toward them.

Poof!

With a sound like a Thunderbolt Bomb exploding, the flying figure was thrown backward.

The formidable Qi imbued in Ak Chusan’s Lion Sword caused the figure’s chest to explode like a firecracker.

Flesh, blood, and bone fragments scattered in all directions.

No matter how peerless an expert one was in All Under Heaven, it was impossible to survive such an injury.

A smile naturally formed on Ak Chusan’s lips.

He had thought that if he pressured Soma, the one in hiding would surely appear, but he hadn’t known it would work out so perfectly.

Ak Chusan thought himself lucky and approached the corpse tumbling on the ground. But when he confirmed the corpse’s face, the smile on his face vanished without a trace.

The corpse with the exploded chest was someone he knew well.

“Hwa… Ok-gi?”

It was indeed Hwa Ok-gi, who had just fled.

He couldn’t understand why Hwa Ok-gi, who should have escaped the Forest of the Dead, had come back.

In that moment, a chill ran down his entire spine.

He didn’t come back of his own will.

Someone had clearly caught Hwa Ok-gi and thrown him.

At that moment, a strong sense of crisis assailed him.

Ak Chusan spun like a top and swung his Lion Sword behind him.

A black shadow was rising there.