Chapter 68

Chapter 68: The Blood Star Shines and All Hold Their Breath (3)

A cold trickle of sweat ran down Lee Sin-pung's spine.

Dam Ho's words could have been dismissed as idle bluster. But Lee Sin-pung could not do so. He had watched with his own eyes how Dam Ho kept his word.

However, if he allowed himself to be cowed by Dam Ho's momentum and backed down now, the reputation he had built as the self-proclaimed sovereign of northern Gansu Province would suffer an irreparable blow.

*'This has become ugly.'*

He had been drawn into this affair against his will. What had begun as a simple matter of personal grudges was spiraling wildly out of control.

It was as though he were sinking into a swamp, his body being pulled under without regard for his own will. If he did not make a decision soon, he would sink to the bottom. Once that happened, escape would be impossible.

The gaze Dam Ho fixed upon him did not waver. Within those pitch-black pupils, not the slightest fragment of emotion could be discerned.

It was the first time in his life he had encountered such eyes. But one thing was certain:

*'A man with eyes like that will surely keep his word.'*

It was a rare type of person. But it was also the first time he had encountered one.

"How dare you spout such nonsense! It seems you wish to die!"

The one who responded was No I-myeong, the leader of the Blood Flower Corps. He could not bear to watch the man he most revered, Lee Sin-pung, receive such treatment.

*Whoooosh!*

The Demon-Subduing Staff strapped to his back swung toward Dam Ho. Forged from a single piece of iron, it weighed three hundred pounds and was nearly one chi in length.

A single blow would not merely tear flesh and rupture muscle. It was a weapon of devastating power—capable of shattering bone and rupturing internal organs.

*'I won't kill him. But I'll make certain to teach him a lesson in manners.'*

His plan was to shatter his kneecaps first.

*CRASH!*

In that instant, the world screamed. No—No I-myeong's head screamed.

No I-myeong's head was knocked sideways, and the Demon-Subduing Staff snapped in two, clattering to the ground.

"Guhk!"

The scream erupted from his mouth only after the blow had landed. No I-myeong's eyes had gone glassy and unfocused. But his ordeal was not yet over.

*Grab!*

Dam Ho's iron grip had seized No I-myeong by the collar. Then, as though swept by a cyclone, his body was lifted into the air.

"Guh!"

No I-myeong finally recovered his senses and tried to pry himself free from Dam Ho's arm. In that instant, the world turned upside down. Dam Ho had rotated in midair and driven No I-myeong headfirst into the ground.

Heaven-to-Earth Strike—the killing technique was deployed against No I-myeong.

The bluestone floor expanded rapidly in No I-myeong's vision. His face went white.

"N-no—!"

*BOOM!*

In that instant, No I-myeong's head met the floor. His skull, colliding with the hard bluestone, shattered like a pumpkin.

Bright red blood and gray-white brain matter sprayed in all directions.

At the shocking spectacle, the onlookers were struck speechless. Among them was Lee Sin-pung himself, the master of Hongam Mountain Villa. His face had gone pale.

No I-myeong had been Lee Sin-pung's loyal retainer for many years. He knew No I-myeong well.

No I-myeong was not the sort of man who could be killed so easily.

Dam Ho rose to his feet. His eyes swirled with darkness. In that moment, the very air around him began to tremble.

Dam Ho spoke.

"I've made my choice. Have you?"

His hands were stained red with blood. The decisive action, without a moment's hesitation.

Countless martial artists watched, but Dam Ho did not care. Whether it was Lee Sin-pung alone or every martial artist present attacking him simultaneously, it made no difference.

His entire body burned with fury. During the time he had been confined in the cave, a beast had grown within his heart—a dark, colossal beast.

This ferocious black creature knew nothing of compromise. Its nature demanded the destruction of anything that bared its fangs at it.

In that moment, the people in the hall felt the temperature plummet and shivered involuntarily.

"Guh!"

"What—?"

These were men who had come expecting nothing more than entertainment. The aura and pressure emanating from Dam Ho's body were a burden they could not bear.

For Lee Sin-pung, the situation was the same.

He was a renowned master of Gansu Province. In the war against the Demonic Cult years ago, he had achieved great deeds that attested to his extraordinary skill.

But now, he was merely an aging martial artist. His former vigor had long since vanished, and his past courage was nothing but an old man's tale.

Dam Ho approached Lee Sin-pung and spoke.

"I knew from the beginning."

"Wh-what are you talking about?"

"That you are a coward."

"Rubbish!"

"The Great Tiger Who Hides in the Forest—the great tiger that conceals itself in the woods?"

The darkness in Dam Ho's eyes deepened. In contrast, Lee Sin-pung's pupils visibly wavered.

Even then, Dam Ho's voice continued.

"A true tiger never hides."

"What?"

"A tiger that has lost its wildness is no longer a tiger. From the moment you hid yourself in the forest, you ceased to be a tiger. You merely pretended to be one."

"Wh-what nonsense are you spouting?"

"When was the last time you fought? When was the last time you bled and gave everything you had to defeat an opponent?"

"…?"

"There was none, was there?"

Lee Sin-pung could not answer. He was crushed beneath Dam Ho's pressure.

"That is why you force choices upon others while being unable to make one yourself."

Dam Ho was now directly before him.

Reflected in Dam Ho's dark retinas was Lee Sin-pung's face. The man in those eyes was not a confident martial artist.

He was merely a frightened, insignificant old man. In the span of moments, he appeared to have aged decades.

*'Is… is that me?'*

Lee Sin-pung could not believe it. He looked down at his hands. His fingertips trembled violently.

"Da-damn it! I am—"

"An old man who hid himself because he feared battle. That is who you are."

Dam Ho's words tore through Lee Sin-pung's heart.

Though the Sect Master was being humiliated, the Blood Flower Corps did not move. No—they could not.

To move was to die. Their instincts whispered as much.

But they could not remain idle forever. Whether it led to death or ruin, they had to act.

They waited for Lee Sin-pung's command. But Lee Sin-pung could not issue one.

It was then.

"That is enough, friend."

A strange voice echoed through the hall. It was a voice carrying both weight and power.

Every gaze turned toward its source.

"It's the Southern Scholar of the Tongtong Sect!"

"The Thunder Striker!"

As the crowd murmured, the newcomer revealed himself: the Southern Scholar of the Tongtong Sect. Behind him, martial artists of the Tongtong Sect followed.

The Southern Scholar and the Tongtong Sect martial artists advanced toward Dam Ho. The martial artists of Hongam Mountain Villa parted to either side, opening a path.

Dam Ho's gaze turned to the Southern Scholar as well. Relieved of the pressure, Lee Sin-pung let out an involuntary sigh.

The Southern Scholar walked straight toward Dam Ho. True to his epithet, the Thunder Striker, a heavy, formidable aura radiated from his entire body.

At last, the Southern Scholar stood before Dam Ho. His eyes blazed with intense fighting spirit as he met Dam Ho's gaze. Without a hint of intimidation, he spoke.

"My name is Nam Hak. The man whose arm you destroyed—Sang-han—is my Junior Brother."

"And?"

"I have heard everything from him. Jwa Sang-cheon tried to steal your horse, is that correct? But paralyzing him was excessive."

The Southern Scholar's eyes gleamed coldly. His gaze, sharp as a honed blade, pierced toward Dam Ho as though it would carve through his entire body.

It was the confidence of a man who had never once been broken by another. All of it was contained in his eyes.

He surveyed his surroundings.

He saw the corpses of Jang Hak-gyeong and Mo Jung-hyeon. And the body of Jo Gyeong-ui, who had lost his life for having intervened without understanding the situation.

"Tsk."

The Southern Scholar clicked his tongue. Jo Gyeong-ui should not have died in such a futile manner. Gansu Province's martial community was already suffering from a shortage of talent, and Jo Gyeong-ui was among the more capable ones. His loss was considerable.

The Southern Scholar looked back at Dam Ho.

"Sang-han told me not to provoke you further. He admitted that they were entirely in the wrong."

"…?"

"I agree. Regardless of the outcome, the ones who provided the cause were Jwa Sang-cheon of the Hyunhyeon Sect and those others. But that does not give you the right to kill them at will. The martial world has its own laws."

The Southern Scholar stepped toward Dam Ho. The aura emanating from his body swelled like a snowball.

The man called the Thunder Striker. In terms of internal energy, he was second to none among the supreme masters. Very few could withstand his aura head-on and remain unscathed.

"Guh!"

Lee Sin-pung stumbled backward, his face contorted with shock. The internal energy radiating from the Southern Scholar far surpassed his own.

*'So this is what it means to be the chief disciple of the Tongtong Sect?'*

He had believed he had narrowed the gap, but the true depth of the Tongtong Sect's power was far greater and more formidable than he had imagined.

If the chief disciple Nam Hak was this powerful, then the elders and the Sect Leader—the extent of their martial might was beyond his estimation.

Lee Sin-pung looked at Dam Ho, expecting him to be somewhat cowed by the Southern Scholar's presence.

In that moment, Dam Ho spoke.

"You'll regret this."

"Insolent!"

Unable to contain himself any longer, the Southern Scholar was the first to charge.

*Swish!*

The sound of the Southern Scholar's fist cleaving through the air rang fiercely. It was the Tongtong Sect's supreme art, the Cloud-Chasing Fist—a technique whose name meant to chase the clouds, and whose power was no less formidable.

At that moment, Dam Ho kicked off the ground. His body shot forward in a straight line toward the Southern Scholar.

No feints, no tricks—only the Charging Step, which advanced relentlessly forward.

Deployed simultaneously: the Fortress Breaking Strike.

*CRASH!*

Dam Ho's fist and the Southern Scholar's fist collided in midair.

"Hmm!"

The Southern Scholar's pupils quivered for an instant. His fists, hardened to surpass steel through brutal training, ached as though they would shatter upon meeting Dam Ho's.

This was unprecedented, and for a moment, bewilderment crossed the Southern Scholar's face. In contrast, not a trace of change appeared on Dam Ho's.

For the first time, the Fortress Blocking Strike had been stopped. But Dam Ho did not panic.

Rather, a thin smile graced his lips. Until now, it had been too easy.

No martial artist had been able to properly receive even a single one of his strikes. They trembled at the mere sight of his gaze.

Dam Ho had trained his martial arts at the risk of his life. Naturally, he wished to fight at the risk of his life. The fierce battles he had envisioned thousands upon thousands of times in his mind—those were the fights he craved.

But none of the opponents he had encountered thus far had met his expectations. Yet here before him stood a man who appeared genuinely strong.

His status or background—none of it entered Dam Ho's eyes.

The Tongtong Sect?

What did that matter?

In this moment where life hung in the balance, the only thing one could rely on was one's own martial strength. The singular determination to kill, and the killing intent—that was all.

"Heh!"

A dry laugh escaped Dam Ho's lips. He had thought all emotion had burned away, leaving only ashes, yet the feeling of enjoyment still remained within him.

The sight of Dam Ho laughing while fighting for his life was enough to send a chill through the multitude present.

"Madman!"

The Southern Scholar muttered and unleashed the subsequent techniques of the Cloud-Chasing Fist.

Blood Wind Chasing Cloud, Cloud-Chasing Decapitation—two techniques were deployed in rapid succession, both among the most powerful moves in the Cloud-Chasing Fist's arsenal.

*BOOM BOOM BOOM!*

The sky itself seemed to tremble with the sound.

The Southern Scholar attempted to suppress Dam Ho by releasing his fist energy freely. But Dam Ho simply tilted his head left and right, evading every strike.

*Pop!*

The Charging Step was deployed once more. Like a battering ram charging a fortress wall, his body hurtled toward the Southern Scholar with terrifying speed and destructive force.

"Hmph!"

The Southern Scholar snorted. Having identified the strengths and weaknesses of the Charging Step in a single exchange—

*'It charges only in a straight line. The destructive power is immense, but dodge it and it's useless.'*

The Tongtong Sect's Parting-Reuniting Step was useful precisely for such moments. A single footwork technique brought ten variations, leaving the opponent momentarily unable to find an opening. From that moment, the Southern Scholar's counterattack would begin.

The Southern Scholar deployed the Parting-Reuniting Step, evading Dam Ho's Charging Step. No—he thought he had evaded it.

*Pop!*

In that instant, something impossible occurred.

Dam Ho's body, which had been charging in a straight line, suddenly pivoted at a right angle—without any preliminary movement.

In the Southern Scholar's understanding, this was impossible. No martial artist in the world could change direction while charging at such terrifying speed.

The question was not whether it was possible or impossible, but whether the body could withstand it. Such an abrupt change in direction would cause the legs and waist to buckle under the pressure and snap.

But Dam Ho, mocking the common sense of all present, advanced toward the Southern Scholar in perfect form, his black hair and black robe billowing.

The image of Dam Ho approaching at terrifying speed was unlike any martial artist the Southern Scholar had ever seen.

The issue was not simply strong versus weak.

*'I'm afraid.'*

The Southern Scholar recognized his own emotion and was startled.

Yes. Dam Ho possessed some force that instilled fear in others.

"Tch!"

The Southern Scholar gritted his teeth and delivered twelve consecutive punches.

*Shhh-shhh-shhing!*

Fist energy imbued with powerful internal force. A single blow would not merely break bone and flesh—it was the Whirlwind Divine Fist, the Tongtong Sect's supreme art and one of the Southern Scholar's favored techniques.

Twelve punches—enough to pulverize the soul.

Dam Ho had already closed to within the Southern Scholar's immediate range. Evading twelve punches from this distance seemed impossible. And Dam Ho had no intention of dodging.

Dam Ho slightly contracted his body. His shoulders curled inward, his waist bent slightly. Overall, he assumed a rounded shape.

In that posture, he deployed the Charging Step once more—like a man hastening toward his own death.

The Southern Scholar believed that the fist energy packed into his twelve punches would deal a devastating blow to Dam Ho. But in the next instant, he realized the magnitude of his miscalculation.

*Ting-ting-ting!*

The strikes that connected with Dam Ho's body glanced off at oblique angles or were deflected entirely. Once again, something beyond the Southern Scholar's comprehension had occurred.

Golden Turtle Shell—a unique defensive technique Dam Ho had created, inspired by the dung beetle. All of the Southern Scholar's attacks were deflected at angles.

"Gasp!"

This time, the Southern Scholar was truly shocked to the point of losing his breath. Dam Ho's techniques were nothing short of revolutionary.

*Swish!*

Dam Ho's hand shot out like a whip. The Southern Scholar hurriedly crossed both arms to block.

*Crack!*

"Guh!"

In that instant, the Southern Scholar received a massive blow to his abdomen and folded like a shrimp.

His eyes wavered uncontrollably. He had calculated the angle and blocked with his chest, yet he had been struck in the abdomen. This too was incomprehensible to him.

Severed Pattern Strike—a technique created by Dam Ho. The whip-like punch bent at an impossible, unpredictable angle.

Much like the foreign boxing transmitted from the distant Western Regions, where the joints momentarily dislocated to allow free movement, it was nearly impossible for an enemy to predict the trajectory of the Severed Pattern Strike.

"How can this be—!"

The martial artists' faces turned ashen at the sight of the Southern Scholar being driven back. Though Lee Sin-pung was one thing, none had imagined that the Southern Scholar—the chief disciple of the Tongtong Sect and a member of the Nine Dragons—could be so thoroughly overwhelmed.

The Southern Scholar was sent flying backward, coughing up blood. Defeat was plain on his face.

But the Southern Scholar was also a master at the pinnacle. He was not one to simply lie down and take it.

"CHA!"

In that instant, tremendous energy surged throughout the Southern Scholar's body along with bolts of lightning. He had unleashed the Full Thunder Heart Technique.

*Crack-crack!*

The power of lightning crackled through the air.

Though he had reached only the seventh level and had not attained Full Thunder, dozens of bolts of lightning still coiled around his body.

A direct hit from lightning would reduce the body to char.

He had unleashed it with all his might, and its power was formidable. But Dam Ho did not hesitate. He threw himself directly into the lightning.

"Madman!"

The spectators cried out in alarm. No matter how strong Dam Ho was, hurling himself into a place where lightning crackled was nothing short of suicide.

In that instant, Dam Ho's body trembled slightly, but no one noticed.

*Fssss!*

The lightning that struck Dam Ho's body scattered in all directions, its power broken.

Shield—a defensive technique inspired, like the Golden Turtle Shell, by the wings of the dung beetle. A micro-vibration defensive technique that made its first appearance before the assembled crowd.

The lightning that struck the Shield scattered like a mirage.

The Southern Scholar's face, previously hidden behind the lightning, was revealed. His mouth hung open in disbelief, his eyes wide.

Dam Ho's right palm was suctioned to his chest.

Five Finger Rock-Breaking Technique.

"AAARGH!"

With a scream of agony, the Southern Scholar's body was sent hurtling backward. His chest had been torn open as though struck by a thunderbolt.

*Thud!*

The moment the Southern Scholar's body hit the ground, a suffocating silence descended upon the hall.