Chapter 358

Chapter 358 – Two Lives Wouldn't Be Enough to Survive This Danger (2)
The man's shoulders were shaking. It was a sight of subtly unbalanced posture.
Martial arts was the study of perfecting oneself.
That's why martial artists called martial arts cultivation.
The deeper one's cultivation, the closer the body also became to perfection. Not just muscle quality or physique, but left-right balance also became perfect. Because of this, martial artists who had reached a high level in martial arts all possessed perfect balanced beauty without exception, regardless of body type.
That was Jang Cheon-so's common sense and the preconception held by most who lived in the martial world.
Viewed that way, the man walking toward where Jang Cheon-so and Hae So-wol were had truly the worst conditions. His body's left-right symmetry was broken and he was even limping.
A smile appeared at Jang Cheon-so's lips. It was clearly mockery by anyone's standards. He was a martial artist as proud of his martial arts as he was arrogant, and therefore was endlessly harsh toward martial artists inferior to him or those who couldn't manage themselves.
"What? A cripple?"
His lips, already curled upward, rose even higher toward the sky.
Everyone was holding their breath in this situation. In such circumstances, a cripple stepping forward ignorantly seemed laughable.
But the limping man paid him no attention and approached Hae So-wol.
Scraaape!
The sound of him dragging his foot echoed particularly loudly throughout the inn.
The moment they heard the ominous footsteps that stimulated the heart, several people's complexions changed completely.
'Could it be?'
'Is it him?'
A fragment of legend passed down in the martial world.
"Be careful when you meet a man who limps. He might be the Fist Demon. Be especially careful if he wears black clothes. He would be a merciless death god."
Any martial artist with even a little martial world experience knew that legend and had engraved it deep in their hearts.
To the off-beat steps, people's hearts also pounded madly as if they would burst. So they were certain.
'It's the Fist Demon.'
'He has appeared.'
They kept their mouths tightly shut.
The Fist Demon didn't like people talking much in front of him. If something got on his nerves, he would attack without warning – that was the existence called the Fist Demon.
A single wrong word and that moment would be death.
So silence fell over the hall.
Jang Cheon-so thought the silence was because of him and grinned.
Though he hadn't been active in the martial world for over twenty years, it was proof that martial world people still remembered and feared him.
The Fist Demon, Dam Ho, finally arrived in front of Hae So-wol.
"Dam… Great Hero."
Hae So-wol's voice trembled involuntarily.
Her pupils looking at Dam Ho standing before her were shaking violently as if an earthquake had occurred.
Dam Ho opened his mouth.
"It's been a while."
"Yes. I've been hearing news about Great Hero Dam anyway. But how did you end up here? Don't tell me you're going to Shaolin Temple?"
"Yes!"
"I thought so."
With those words, Hae So-wol tightly closed her lips.
She caught the scent of blood.
The intense bloody smell stimulating her sense of smell turned even her mind white.
'He's become stronger.'
Chills spread along her spine.
Once started, the trembling didn't easily fade.
That's when Jang Cheon-so interrupted.
"What? Cripple. Did you know this wench?"
Dam Ho's head turned toward Jang Cheon-so without a sound.
"Huk!"
Instantly Jang Cheon-so unconsciously let out a rough breath.
The moment he saw those emotionless pupils containing no feelings whatsoever, Jang Cheon-so felt an inexplicable fear. But he soon gritted his teeth.
Though he had come out to the martial world after twenty years, he too was a recognized previous generation master in the martial world. Having come out to the world with high spirits, he couldn't acknowledge the fact that he had felt fear and been intimidated even briefly by some unknown cripple. So he raised his voice with inner power.
"When an elder speaks, you should answer quickly instead of glaring with such eyes!"
Hum hum!
Objects in the inn trembled at the mighty inner power contained in his voice. But Dam Ho's face, receiving Jang Cheon-so's voice head-on, showed not even the slightest change.
Dam Ho opened his mouth.
"Do you want to die?"
It was the most common threat made in the martial world.
Words anyone could say, and the easiest way to threaten an opponent. Because it was such a stale expression, normally Jang Cheon-so would have just ignored it with a snort.
But at this moment, he kept his mouth tightly shut and couldn't say anything.
Shiver!
His body was reacting before his mind.
The trembling that started near his heart spread throughout his body and eventually became so intense he couldn't control it.
Jang Cheon-so kept his mouth shut. Blood vessels protruded on his forehead and his eyes became bloodshot.
He had his pride.
He took great pride in the nickname Great Strength Black Bear.
Though he had come out to the martial world after twenty years, he thought there weren't many who could match him. Because even after retiring from the martial world, he had steadily cultivated martial arts for twenty years.
'This young bastard…'
Though anger welled up in his heart, the trembling that started from his heart wouldn't stop. So he couldn't move.
A strong premonition that the moment he moved, his head would be smashed by Dam Ho's fist bound his hands and feet like shackles.
This was his first such experience.
He had heard stories about a level where one could kill people with just a look, but he never thought he would actually experience such a thing.
His hands and feet trembled and his breathing became increasingly rapid.
"Heok! Heok!"
His greatly swollen chest seemed ready to burst at any moment. Dam Ho's gaze was pressing down on his heart.
Finally, Jang Cheon-so took a step backward. Then the intense momentum that had been strangling his heart weakened considerably. Only then did his complexion somewhat return to normal.
Taking advantage of the momentum, Jang Cheon-so stepped back and said:
"Ahem! Ah, this young friend doesn't know worldly matters yet. Well, fine! Since this elder needs to relieve himself, I'll just let it pass this once. Consider yourself lucky."
With those words, Jang Cheon-so ran outside without looking back.
"Heok! Heok! Where did such a bastard come from…"
Cold sweat flowed down Jang Cheon-so's spine.
He never expected such a monster to be lurking in the martial world he had confidently entered after twenty years.
His return to the martial world wasn't because of a sense of justice or mission. It was because of the shallow calculation that he could receive great treatment by lending his strength during chaotic times.
"Euhaha!"
"Look at that."
He seemed to hear people's mocking voices from behind. Though no one actually dared to laugh, it felt that way to Jang Cheon-so.
Jang Cheon-so ran straight to the stable without looking back. In the stable was his beloved horse he had cherished for years.
His powerful steed White Wind, strong enough to bear his massive frame. If he rode White Wind, he could quickly escape from the inn where that monster lurked.
But the moment he entered the stable, Jang Cheon-so unconsciously let out a cry.
"What is this?"
Neigh!
His beloved horse White Wind was sprawled in the stable, struggling. Beside it stood a monstrous black horse.

"I heard the news. That you went to Sichuan Province…"
"……"
"I never expected the Tang Family to side with the Demon Cult. If it weren't for Great Hero Dam, the martial world would have suffered great damage."
The Hainan Sect disciples nearby nodded at Hae So-wol's words.
The story that the Tang Family had betrayed the orthodox sects and sided with the Demon Cult was revealed to the world by Cheong-un, who escaped from the Qingcheng Sect.
It was shocking news that no one had expected, but the Martial Alliance didn't have the capacity to send forces all the way to distant Sichuan Province. The Martial Alliance itself was in the position of having lost its base and living off Shaolin Temple's charity.
They had no choice but to abandon Sichuan Province.
Though Cheong-un, the eldest disciple of the Qingcheng Sect and one of the Nine Martial Dragons, requested help while coughing up blood, the Martial Alliance kept delaying and subtly refused.
In the end, Cheong-un suffered great emotional wounds.
Though this fact wasn't widely known in the martial world, those who should know knew it. They criticized the Martial Alliance's incompetence and cowardice, but didn't step forward themselves to help the Qingcheng Sect.
The Tang Family that sided with the Demon Cult was truly a frightening place.
Especially their poison and hidden weapons were feared by all martial artists. Once you made enemies with the Tang Family, you weren't living even if alive, and you never knew when you might die painfully.
Don't get entangled in grudges with the Tang Family.
Such stories didn't circulate in the martial world for nothing. The Tang Family's actions over the past several hundred years proved it – how miserable the ends of those entangled in grudges with them were.
People tried not to see the Tang Family's brutal actions even though they had eyes, and tried not to hear the voices of those crying because of them even though they had ears.
That was the reality of the martial world.
When everyone was turning away from Sichuan Province like this, one rumor was heard – precisely the legend of the Fist Demon.
Dam Ho was known to be in seclusion at Mount Hua in distant Shaanxi Province. No one knew why he was in Sichuan Province thousands of li away. But that wasn't very important.
What was important was that Dam Ho was in Sichuan Province and had made enemies with the Tang Family.
Dam Ho was a tyrannical existence who never let those he once defined as enemies live. Such a person clashed with the likewise unyielding invincible family.
It was like an unstoppable spear clashing with an impenetrable shield.
It was truly a fierce contradiction and an unbelievable bloody march.
They clashed in Sichuan Province, and the result was truly shocking. The Tang Family, which had boasted invincibility for hundreds of years, suffered near-annihilation damage and chose to close their gates.
Because of this, the Qingcheng and Emei Sects could regain their freedom, and the Tang Family completely stopped external activities with diminished power.
The martial world cheered and also feared the miraculous result created by a single person.
They cheered for ending the bloodbath in Sichuan Province and feared Dam Ho's might in accomplishing alone what no sect or organization could achieve.
In the gazes of people in the inn looking at Dam Ho, those two emotions were complexly mixed.
They looked up to Dam Ho while also fearing him. But Dam Ho paid them no attention at all.
Dam Ho asked:
"Why are you going to Shaolin Temple?"
"To ask for help. As everyone knows, with the Demon Cult seizing Hunan Province and southern Central Plains, our sect's situation isn't very good. We're not completely isolated yet, but it's a matter of time. We need a breakthrough to overcome the current situation."
Hae So-wol honestly spoke about the Hainan Sect's current situation.
Hainan Island, where the Hainan Sect was established, was easy to defend due to its island characteristics, but once isolated, it would inevitably become completely cut off.
Until now, there was no need to worry much about isolation. There were no sects or forces in the area capable of threatening the Hainan Sect, and they had friendly relations with the Nine Great Sects.
However, the situation changed when the Demon Cult seized Hunan Province and the surrounding area. Ships that had traveled to and from the Central Plains were cut off, and trade routes with the outside were blocked.
That Hae So-wol and the first-generation disciples could escape from Hainan Island was possible because heavenly fortune accompanied them. If they had escaped even a little later, they would have been completely isolated on Hainan Island.
"We can hold out for a few months, but no longer. Before that, we must either end this confrontational situation with the Demon Cult or return to Hainan Island with reinforcements."
"……"
"It's not just the Hainan Sect. Many sects in southern Central Plains are in the same situation as us. They're slowly dying. We must inform the Martial Alliance of this fact and prepare countermeasures. That's why I'm going to Shaolin Temple."
Hae So-wol's words contained her desperate feelings. The Hainan Sect disciples nodded and agreed with her words.
Because of this, the atmosphere in the hall became heavy.
Hae So-wol tried to change the mood by turning the conversation.
"But why is Great Hero Dam going to Shaolin Temple?"
"To keep a promise."
"Pardon?"
"I have a promise to keep."
Dam Ho's voice echoed indifferently.