Chapter 93

In that moment, the innkeeper squeezed his eyes shut.

No one here had seen Pyo Wol for longer than he had. That was why he knew better than anyone just how terrifying the man was.

It was as if he could clearly see what was about to happen. And his premonition became reality.

Shhhk!

A chilling sound of something slicing through the air echoed inside the inn.

“Hut!”

The Iron Hunchback, startled by the sudden killing intent, threw his head back. In that instant, something sharp tore a long gash across his brow.

If he had been even a fraction of a second late in dodging, his forehead would have been pierced.

“What the?”

The Iron Hunchback glared at the man he had just insulted.

Shhhk!

At that moment, another sharp sound of something cutting through the air echoed from behind his head.

The Iron Hunchback, who thought he had escaped the danger, was horrified and quickly threw himself flat on the floor.

“Keuk!”

Something sliced across his back.

Because he had dodged so quickly, it ended with only his clothes and skin being torn; had his reaction been even slightly slower, his spine would have been severed.

“You bastard!”

The Iron Hunchback scrambled to his feet and glared at the man more beautiful than a woman. In his hand was a small Flying Dagger.

The Iron Hunchback instinctively knew that the Flying Dagger in the man’s hand was the weapon that had wounded him.

The Iron Hunchback undid the chain hanging from his waist.

The iron ball attached to the end of the chain dangled.

“You crazy bastard! Attacking without warning? What’s your deal? You!”

“I don’t think the person who cursed first has any right to say that.”

The man who had been sitting, Pyo Wol, stood up and spoke.

A faint Crimson Light now swirled in his eyes.

Pyo Wol was not one to start a fight, but he was also not one to refuse a fight that was brought to him.

Pyo Wol knew just how unreal his appearance was. So he also knew that many people looked at him with disdain.

Those with less confidence in their own appearance were especially quick to belittle and attack him. It was obvious what would happen if he just let such people be.

Whoosh!

The Iron Hunchback spun his chain and said.

“Do you have any idea who I am?”

“A lump of inferiority complex who talks way too much. It seems the problem isn’t your body, but your mind.”

“This son of a bitch…”

The Iron Hunchback’s anger exploded.

He swung the chain recklessly.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

The iron ball at the end of the chain smashed the furniture inside the inn as it flew toward Pyo Wol.

“Oh, dear!”

The innkeeper squeezed his eyes shut and dropped to the floor. He couldn’t bear to watch his inn get destroyed any further. But the sound he had imagined never came.

Chrrk!

It was because Pyo Wol’s hand had caught the chain.

“Hut!”

The Iron Hunchback was horrified when the chain was caught in Pyo Wol’s hand, rendered completely powerless.

In that instant, Pyo Wol yanked the chain hard. The Iron Hunchback was sent flying out the window, still clinging to the chain.

Pyo Wol leaped out after him.

“This son of a bitch…”

The Iron Hunchback, who had been thrown to the ground, shot back up.

A thick killing intent had already gathered in his eyes. His anger had reached its peak.

The Iron Hunchback infused his Internal Energy and swung the chain.

Kwa-kwa-kwa!

With a force incomparable to before, the iron ball flew toward Pyo Wol.

Heaven-Pressing Iron Ball Art.

That was the name of the Martial Arts he had learned.

The Heaven-Pressing Iron Ball Art was a Pinnacle Realm Martial Arts that, as its name suggested, could crush even the heavens with an iron ball.

An iron ball imbued with Internal Energy possessed the power to pulverize a house-sized boulder in a single blow.

“Die!”

The Iron Hunchback let out a roar thick with killing intent.

It was then.

Pyo Wol’s body seemed to float into the air like a kite filled with wind, then he lightly landed on the iron ball that was flying toward him with terrifying force.

“Huk!”

The Iron Hunchback was so shocked he felt his heart drop.

He had crushed and killed countless enemies with his iron ball until now, but something like this had never happened before.

Tat-tat-tat!

Pyo Wol kicked off the iron ball and sprinted along the chain.

In the short moment it took to draw a single breath, Pyo Wol had reached the Iron Hunchback.

Pyo Wol’s and the Iron Hunchback’s gazes clashed in midair.

Instantly, the Iron Hunchback’s face turned deathly pale.

The moment he looked into Pyo Wol’s emotionless eyes, he felt a pain as if his own eyes were being gouged out with an awl.

Puk!

At that moment, the Flying Dagger Pyo Wol was holding buried itself deep in the Iron Hunchback’s shoulder.

“Keuk!”

The Iron Hunchback hastily tried to pull out the Flying Dagger. But Pyo Wol flicked his hand faster. The Iron Hunchback’s body flew into the air.

He had thrown the Iron Hunchback with the Soul Restraining Thread.

Pyo Wol flicked his hand once more toward the Iron Hunchback, who was suspended in midair.

Pipipit!

Ghostly Rain was fired in succession.

“Damn it!”

The Iron Hunchback hurriedly tried to protect his entire body by unleashing the Ultimate Technique of the Heaven-Pressing Iron Ball Art. But perfectly executing an Ultimate Technique in midair with no footing was impossible from the start.

Eventually, an opening was exposed, and the Ghostly Rain struck like venomous snakes.

Pububuck!

“Keok!”

The Iron Hunchback screamed as he plummeted.

Just as Pyo Wol was about to launch another Ghostly Rain to finish him off.

“Show some mercy.”

“Stop!”

“Iron Hunchback!”

Three different voices rang out as six figures surrounded the Iron Hunchback.

One caught the falling Iron Hunchback, while the other five swung their respective weapons to deflect the Ghostly Rain.

The one who appeared to be the eldest among them examined the Iron Hunchback’s injuries, then revealed his anger.

“I don’t know what happened between you two, but for a young man, your methods are too harsh.”

The middle-aged man with piercing eyes and eyebrows that shot up toward the sky was none other than Sa Hyokyung, the leader of the Seven Stars Hall.

His martial prowess was so powerful that he had earned the Alias, Gale Fire Dragon.

The ones who appeared with Sa Hyokyung were the rest of the Martial Artists of the Seven Stars Hall.

Hidden Venom Sword, Jeung San-wi.

Wandering Wave Guest, Ja Ung-pyeong.

Blood Fire Demoness, Yo Seol-yeong.

Bamboo Leaf Swordsman, Gam Il-Hae.

Raging Wind Blood Scatter Blade, Jo Samcheok.

Each one an Expert of the Pinnacle Realm whose name resounded throughout the Jianghu, they stood protecting the Iron Hunchback, glaring at Pyo Wol.

Just then, Pyo Wol flicked his hand. The Ghostly Rain embedded in the Iron Hunchback’s body and the Flying Daggers that had fallen to the ground were all retrieved.

Sa Hyokyung was quite surprised by this.

It looked as if Pyo Wol was performing the Special Technique of Psychokinesis.

Only then did his expression turn grave.

He did not know the opponent’s identity, but he could tell that he was an Expert who could not be ignored.

Above all, his opponent had instantly neutralized and subdued his sworn brother, the Iron Hunchback.

He could not dare to be careless with someone possessing that level of martial prowess.

“Reveal your identity. Why did you attack my sworn brother? Attacking my sworn brother is the same as attacking the entire Seven Stars Hall. If you do not have a valid reason, you will not be forgiven.”

Sa Hyokyung’s voice thundered through the streets.

The people on the street were startled and began to murmur.

They didn’t know the name Seven Stars Hall, but Sa Hyokyung’s aura was so murderous that they assumed it was a formidable sect.

In reality, the Seven Stars Hall boasted great fame in the vicinity of Hunan. The Martial Arts of the seven members were all so formidable that most sects would take a step back just at the mention of the name Seven Stars Hall.

Sa Hyokyung did not expect the same effect in Sichuan Province, far from Hunan. But he did expect the opponent to feel some pressure.

However, the effect he had hoped for did not materialize.

“So you’re saying you’re with that hunchback?”

The Crimson Light in Pyo Wol’s eyes deepened.

Sa Hyokyung realized it had only backfired.

Many Martial Artists of the Jianghu showed respect for the name Seven Stars Hall, but it had no effect whatsoever on the beautiful man before him.

Either he disregarded the Seven Stars Hall itself, or he had never even heard the name Seven Stars Hall.

Sa Hyokyung thought it was the latter.

If the opponent had been in Sichuan Province all this time, it was understandable that he wouldn’t know the name of the Seven Stars Hall.

Just then, a woman in her early to mid-thirties who had been examining the Iron Hunchback’s condition stepped forward in front of Sa Hyokyung.

“Orabeoni, stop it.”

“What do you mean, stop?”

“Can’t you tell just by looking? That dwarf started the trouble, and that’s how this mess happened. He must have acted on his own again and incurred that man’s wrath.”

“That’s…”

Sa Hyokyung stammered.

He too thought that the Iron Hunchback had likely started the fight. But to back down as if nothing had happened when the Iron Hunchback was in such a state would be a loss of face.

The woman glared at Sa Hyokyung.

If any other woman had looked at him like that, Sa Hyokyung would never have let it slide.

He was an extremely authoritarian person. He would never tolerate anyone, man or woman, challenging his authority.

But the story was different if the person was the Blood Fire Demoness, Yo Seol-yeong.

She was the fifth member of the Seven Stars Hall and its only woman.

She was a being loved not only by Sa Hyokyung but by all the men of the Seven Stars Hall.

The reason the Iron Hunchback had tried to buy accessories at the market and caused a commotion to get a room at the inn was all to look good for Yo Seol-yeong.

The Iron Hunchback was so devoted to Yo Seol-yeong, but Yo Seol-yeong herself did not like the Iron Hunchback very much. No, she found him utterly repulsive.

She hated the pure affection the Iron Hunchback directed at her, and the feeling of his gaze on her skin made her shudder.

She hated it even more when he caused incidents like this.

Although she had the eerie Alias of Blood Fire Demoness, Yo Seol-yeong was fundamentally a striking beauty.

What accentuated her bewitching face was her curvaceous figure. Her appearance in a form-fitting outfit that clearly revealed her body was enough to enchant the men on the street.

Yo Seol-yeong looked at Pyo Wol with her eyes slightly raised.

In that instant, her pupils wavered.

‘What kind of man…’

Pyo Wol’s beautiful appearance completely shook her heart.

Compared to him, the Martial Artists of the Seven Stars Hall with her looked worse than shriveled-up octopuses.

Yo Seol-yeong spoke with a bewitching smile.

“I’m sorry you had to go through this trouble because of that dwarf. I’ll apologize on his behalf. My name is Yo Seol-yeong of the Seven Stars Hall. People call me the Blood Fire Demoness. Oh, please don’t misunderstand. Just because the word Demoness is attached doesn’t mean I’m a bad person. May I ask for the Young Hero’s name?”

“Pyo Wol!”

“What a wonderful name. Just like your appearance. In any case, this incident is entirely this dwarf’s fault, so we will apologize. So I hope we can both back down for today. Of course, we will compensate you for all the damages you’ve suffered today. Isn’t this a pretty good offer for you as well?”

Yo Seol-yeong’s words were polite and persuasive.

Pyo Wol nodded his head without a word.

If he was determined to fight, he could fight as much as he wanted, but doing so would destroy the streets of Chengdu, which had only just regained stability.

As much as Pyo Wol didn’t care about others, he didn’t want to repeat such a situation twice.

Pyo Wol went back into the inn. Then, Sa Hyokyung asked Yo Seol-yeong.

“What are you thinking? Don’t tell me you’ve been bewitched by that pretty boy face too?”

“Hoho! Why? Is that not allowed?”

“Keung!”

“Don’t worry, Orabeoni! It’s not like that. It’s just that something is bothering me.”

“What is it?”

“The atmosphere in Chengdu.”

“What about it?”

“It’s strangely stagnant. Sects exist in Chengdu, and it’s a place where the influence of the Emei Sect and Qingcheng Sect is strong, but strangely, I don’t feel that kind of atmosphere.”

“Now that you mention it…”

Sa Hyokyung agreed with Yo Seol-yeong’s words.

No matter how famous the Seven Stars Hall was in the vicinity of Hunan, they had to be careful in Sichuan Province. It was far from their territory, and powerful sects like the Qingcheng Sect and the Emei Sect were established there.

Because of that, they had been extremely tense and vigilant when entering Chengdu. But the atmosphere inside Chengdu was completely different from what they had imagined.

There were no Martial Artists from the Qingcheng Sect or the Emei Sect to be seen, and Martial Artists from other sects were also almost nowhere to be found.

It was as if all the Martial Artists in Chengdu had been wiped out.

Yo Seol-yeong looked around the streets of Chengdu with a cool gaze and said.

“Something definitely happened here. Until we know the truth, any rash conflict is forbidden.”