Chapter 102

Chapter 102: To Move Forward Without Regret (2)

Namgung Chang's face was reflected in Dam Ho's retinas. The expression on Namgung Chang's face was painted with shock.

'He intercepted my telepathic transmission?'

It was impossible for any martial artist to eavesdrop on a telepathic transmission. That was Namgung Chang's understanding.

As if to answer his question, Dam Ho opened his mouth.

"You see, I spent a very long time in an underground space. It was a dreadful world where not a single ray of light could enter. But do you know what's funny?"

"……"

"In that place, even the smallest sounds became enormously loud. A single drop of water would strike the walls and amplify dozens, even hundreds of times. You cannot possibly imagine how agonizing that was."

Dam Ho's voice was very soft, and his words came out slurred. Yet somehow, they rang with perfect clarity in the ears of everyone present.

"Imagine this. For every moment of your life, you breathe and live, and without a single instant of rest, that sound continues. How would you feel?"

"……"

Namgung Chang could not utter a word. A strange sensation, as though he must not open his mouth, dominated his entire body.

Even as that moment passed, Dam Ho's words continued.

"I imagine you would go mad within three days. I did, too. I was on the very brink of madness. So do you know what I did? I plugged my ears with mud. But the sound still wormed its way in."

Dam Ho's voice carried no emotion whatsoever. Yet from his voice, people sensed an indescribable despair.

It was as though iron were being scraped right beside their ears, sending shivers down their spines. But not a single person could escape Dam Ho's voice. It was as though they were shackled by enormous chains, unable to move so much as an inch.

"I believe I spent about a year in that state of near-madness. But you see, the human body is truly remarkable. At some point, it began to adapt. I stopped hearing the sounds I did not wish to hear, and the sounds I wished to hear—I could hear them loudly, no matter how faint they might be."

"So… what are you trying to say?"

"Are you asking because you don't know?"

Dam Ho stared directly at Namgung Chang. At this, a cold trickle of sweat ran down Namgung Chang's spine.

'He heard that as well?'

He had never imagined that there existed a martial artist who could intercept telepathic transmissions. That meant Dam Ho had seen through his intentions.

A cold light began to flicker in Namgung Chang's eyes.

Dam Ho's ability to intercept telepathic transmissions was certainly unexpected. But Namgung Chang's mental fortitude was not so shallow as to be shaken by this alone.

"With such a flimsy excuse, do you think you can be forgiven for offending the Namgung Family?"

"Forgiven?"

"The Namgung Family never forgives any who have earned our enmity. It is too late to beg for mercy now."

"Do I look to you like the sort of person who begs for mercy from anyone?"

The corners of Dam Ho's mouth curled upward. Anyone with the slightest bit of perception could clearly see that it was a sneer.

Namgung Chang was a man of sharp perception above all others. His face hardened.

"That is enough insolence. It is not yet too late. Cut off your right arm. Then we might consider showing you a measure of leniency."

The thirty martial artists of the Golden Sword Squad surrounding Dam Ho bristled with sharp killing intent. But Dam Ho paid them no mind whatsoever.

Dam Ho raised his right arm.

The calluses on his fist were so thick they resembled armor.

"Cut it off if you can. But you had better be prepared. I will cut off your neck. I swear it!"

The instant Dam Ho's words ended, the air around them grew deathly cold.

"Guh!"

From the mouths of the Golden Sword Squad came stifled groans.

They were overwhelmed by the murderous aura emanating from Dam Ho and the savage killing intent that churned within the air around him.

Dam Ho's words seemed to contain the power of言靈—the spirit of language.

It felt as though what he said would inevitably come to pass.

That terrifying sensation made Namgung Chang shudder.

Namgung Chang cried out involuntarily.

"What are the Golden Sword Squad doing? Subdue him at once!"

At his shout, the Golden Sword Squad began to move.

"Subdue him!"

The commander of the Golden Sword Squad, Namgung Jung-mun, was the first to move with a shout.

Swoosh!

From his hand, the Namgung Family's sword art, Flash Lightning Thirteen Sword Thunder, was unleashed.

That was merely the beginning.

The Heaven Wind Lightning Sword, a technique passed down exclusively within the Golden Sword Squad, unfolded from every direction. Like dozens of bolts of lightning striking down, a storm of sword energy rushed toward Dam Ho.

"That man?"

Cho Yeon-woon let out a cry of alarm.

The Golden Sword Squad was an extraordinary fighting force, even among the Namgung Family's elite. Their combined formation was so powerful that even Cho Yeon-woon could not guarantee he could withstand it.

The situation was hurtling toward the worst possible outcome.

The provocation had clearly come from Namgung-su, but the Namgung Family was not the sort of faction to care about such distinctions. Yet neither could Cho Yeon-woon simply stand by and watch his friend fight the Namgung Family's warriors.

To become enemies of the Namgung Family was tantamount to becoming enemies of all Five Great Families. If he made enemies of them, there would be no ground left for Dam Ho to stand on in this world.

'How am I supposed to resolve this?'

Cho Yeon-woon felt frustrated with Dam Ho for having clashed with the Namgung Family without any plan. But he was not so lacking in loyalty as to abandon a friend he had painstakingly befriended.

His gaze suddenly drifted to Oh Gun-gi.

Oh Gun-gi, Hae So-wol's Martial Uncle and an elder of the Hainan Sect, was watching without intervening.

'If it were him…?'

While Cho Yeon-woon was racking his brain, the situation escalated.

Boom!

"Guh!"

With a thunderous sound, someone was sent hurtling backward. The man who was bleeding from the head and had lost consciousness was none other than a warrior of the Golden Sword Squad.

The Dragon Cloud Sword, once the pride of his existence, lay shattered. His left arm and chest had been crushed as though struck by a massive hammer. It was the Fortress Breaking Fist that had struck him.

Boom! Boom!

Again and again, thunderous sounds erupted. And the warriors of the Golden Sword Squad were sent flying in every direction.

"Damn it!"

The face of Namgung Jung-mun, commander of the Golden Sword Squad, twisted in agony.

Hummm!

The Dragon Cloud Sword in his hand was crying out. Though he had managed to block Dam Ho's blow, the price was that his entire arm had gone numb, and he could no longer hold the sword.

Namgung Jung-mun was forced to switch the sword to his other hand.

In the meantime, three or four more members of the Golden Sword Squad had been smashed by Dam Ho's fists and lay collapsed.

Boom!

"Argh!"

With a desperate scream, the youngest of the Golden Sword Squad, Namgung Se-gyeong, rolled across the ground. His torso had been torn nearly half apart, as though he had been mauled by a wild beast.

Fortunately, he still drew breath, but he was worse than dead. Even if he survived, he would never again be a functional human being.

Dam Ho had done this.

"You cruel wretch."

In that instant, Dam Ho's gaze turned to Namgung Jung-mun.

Chill!

In that instant, Namgung Jung-mun felt an inexplicable sense of danger and hastily leaned his body backward.

Whoosh!

Dam Ho's elbow grazed across Namgung Jung-mun's face. The flesh caught on the elbow was torn away, and a fountain of blood sprayed into the air.

"Argh!"

Namgung Jung-mun screamed involuntarily.

Half of his face had been ripped away, revealing the raw red flesh beneath. He staggered, screaming from pain he had never experienced in his life.

Whoosh!

In that instant, a fierce gust of energy swept over him as Dam Ho's kick landed.

It was the Demonic Bouncing Kick.

Crack!

Dam Ho's foot punched a hole through Namgung Jung-mun's chest.

"Guh!"

Namgung Jung-mun clutched his chest and staggered backward. Where his heart should have been, there was now a hole, through which the space behind was visible.

Dam Ho leaped over Namgung Jung-mun's body as it crumbled like a sandcastle.

Dam Ho charged in a straight line.

The face of Namgung Chang, contorted with shock, came into his view.

The Golden Sword Squad had been painstakingly cultivated by the Namgung Family. It was not an organization that should have collapsed so emptily. That was precisely why the shock Namgung Chang felt was beyond the power of words to express.

'Where did such a monster come from…?'

Namgung Chang's body trembled.

He too had mastered the Namgung Family's martial arts to their peak. But his opponent was a monster who had neutralized the Golden Sword Squad in the blink of an eye.

Shiver!

His body shook involuntarily.

A billowing black robe. Tossing black hair.

Between them, emotionless black eyes glinted.

It was as though a massive battering ram were charging straight at him, and Namgung Chang's eyes wavered.

'He was clearly limping…'

A question suddenly crossed his mind.

In that moment, Dam Ho had closed in to his very chest.

Swoosh!

The Fortress Breaking Fist, a strike capable of shattering a great wall, came hurtling toward him.

Namgung Chang recoiled in terror and tried to dodge. But Dam Ho's movement was far swifter than his reaction.

The fist that had been clenched suddenly opened in midair, seizing Namgung Chang's right arm. Then it twisted.

Crack!

"Aaaagh!"

A scream of agony erupted from Namgung Chang's mouth—pain unlike anything he had ever felt.

But Dam Ho's assault did not end there. Dam Ho's hand transformed into a blade and descended upon Namgung Chang's neck.

He intended to sever it cleanly.

In that instant, Namgung Chang recalled what Dam Ho had said.

That he would cut off his neck…

Dam Ho was trying to keep his promise.

Namgung Chang did not even dare to try to dodge. He shut his eyes tight.

Crack!

Namgung Chang tentatively opened his eyes. There, before him, was a familiar back.

"Gun-gi."

Standing before him like a massive whale, blocking his path with an enormous presence, was none other than the White Sword Guest, Oh Gun-gi.

Oh Gun-gi did not answer. No—he could not.

Hummm!

Just from blocking Dam Ho's blow, his sword hand had gone numb. But he betrayed nothing, maintaining a composed expression as he spoke.

"That is enough."

"They started this fight."

As though he had never been engaged in such violent movement, Dam Ho's breathing had not even quickened.

It was as though he were facing a beast that could run forever without ever tiring.

'Has there ever been such a man in the Murim?'

At best, he appeared to be around thirty years of age. That he had achieved this level of attainment at such an age was simply unbelievable.

Dam Ho's expression remained cold. But Oh Gun-gi, facing him directly, could sense the terrifying killing intent lurking beneath the surface.

'They call him Fist Demon for a reason…'

Since entering Hunan Province, the rumor he had heard most often was about the Fist Demon.

The limping martial artist who delivered death.

At first, he had scoffed.

It was his prejudice that a man whose physical balance was broken could never reach the peak. So he had assumed the rumors were exaggerated. But the man before him was real.

In fact, the rumors seemed to barely capture half of his true nature. The aura and killing intent that Dam Ho now radiated were the most terrifying things Oh Gun-gi had ever experienced.

It felt as though a volcano erupting with molten lava stood before him. Once it erupted, no one would be able to stop him.

Then Namgung Chang, who had regained his senses, shouted.

"Kill him. Gun-gi."

Namgung Chang's voice was filled with venom. But the emotion concealed beneath it was unmistakably fear.

Namgung Chang was afraid of Dam Ho. He was shouting in an attempt to shake off that fear, but Oh Gun-gi knew well how futile that struggle was.

Oh Gun-gi looked at Dam Ho.

"Will you withdraw? If you withdraw now, everything that happened here will be treated as though it never occurred."

"Who gave you the right to tell me to withdraw? He is an enemy of the Namgung Family."

From behind, Namgung Chang was shouting at the top of his lungs. Oh Gun-gi turned to look at him.

"Chang, I am not confident I can defeat him completely."

"Gun-gi."

"This is not a proposal for his sake. It is for yours."

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot guarantee that I can fully protect you from him."

"That's… impossible."

Namgung Chang's eyelid twitched.

The Oh Gun-gi he knew was not the sort of man who would show weakness before an enemy. Yet here was Oh Gun-gi, showing weakness in the face of the enemy.

'So he is that powerful?'

Namgung Chang's face turned pale.

If Oh Gun-gi could not handle him, then no one present could do a thing about Dam Ho.

"Chang, let us bury the grudge here. Do you not have more important matters to attend to?"

"Guh!"

Namgung Chang could not bring himself to answer and bit down hard. But Oh Gun-gi took this as acceptance.

He looked at Dam Ho.

"Will you withdraw now?"

Oh Gun-gi believed Dam Ho would listen to him. After all, this would represent a considerable concession from both himself and the Namgung Family.

But the answer Dam Ho gave far exceeded his imagination.

"Why should I?"