CLS-Chapter 258

Chapter 258

The Dark King could now understand that the saying about being so angry that smoke comes out of your ears wasn’t just an empty expression. With so much heat rising to his face, steam was actually rising from the crown of his head and his ears.

‘To think I would be subjected to such humiliation.’

Who was he?

The Dark King.

Wasn’t he the head of the Sichuan Tang Family and the real power behind the Heavenly Medical Alliance? If asked whether he was ‘one of the strongest in the world,’ it would be difficult to answer yes, but he could strongly assert that he was among the ten most influential people in the world.

But now all that influence was about to fly away completely.

All because of that brat standing before him, with mischief smeared all over his face.

‘I must calm down.’

The Dark King had to struggle tremendously to suppress the rage bubbling up in his chest.

Anyone could rush at that little punk. But he couldn’t become just ‘anyone.’

The title Dark King wasn’t earned at a gambling table. Leading a massive family like the Sichuan Tang Family couldn’t be easy, could it?

He had successfully led the Sichuan Tang Family until now and had built the current Heavenly Medical Alliance through various means since his youth.

In the midst of his boiling rage, a coldness began to slowly raise its head.

‘This is a crisis.’

No matter how great the achievements he had built up until now, the moment he was defeated by that damned brat here, all the reputation he had built would be smashed to the ground.

He would no longer be able to wield his authority in the martial world under the name Dark King. The news that the Dark King had been defeated by a junior would surely spread throughout the entire martial world within two days.

“That cannot happen!”

The Dark King’s eyes flashed blue.

What kind of reputation had he built? What kind of prestige had he created?

And that reputation was on the verge of crumbling in one blow!

The Dark King’s hands trembled.

But what was truly terrifying was that the brat before his eyes was not such an easy opponent.

Even if he had been momentarily careless, it was Wei Yan-ho who had sent him flying like a child throwing a frog.

Carelessness was something that applied between those of similar martial prowess. For someone of the Dark King’s level to be sent flying through the air after being hit by a junior due to carelessness was absolutely impossible.

‘I thought it was exaggerated…’

Rumors about Wei Yan-ho spreading from Mount Hua had already reached the Dark King’s ears. Even before those stupid subordinates made their reports, the Dark King had already heard rumors about Wei Yan-ho.

It was already absurd that someone who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere had become the strongest candidate for victory, surpassing Wei San-ho and the Hundred Sword Hero, but when they said his level of strength had already surpassed that of a junior, he had simply thought it was an exaggeration.

No matter how true it was that an awl in a pocket would eventually poke through, and that there were many hidden masters in the world, what emerged from the pocket should be an awl, not a long sword.

If someone said ‘something came out of a pocket, and it turned out to be a long sword half a jang long,’ who would believe that?

But it turned out to be no exaggeration at all.

The Dark King glared at Wei Yan-ho, who was slowly walking toward him. Seeing Wei Yan-ho swagger forward with his face full of spite made him let out a bitter laugh.

This was his first time encountering such a fellow.

A master should have the dignity befitting a master. But Wei Yan-ho possessed no such dignity. If word spread that he had been beaten by someone without dignity, the Dark Heavenly Lord’s status would fall even further.

The Dark Heavenly Lord erased the word ‘carelessness’ from his mind.

He also erased the word ‘face.’

Right now, he had to defeat Wei Yan-ho by any means necessary. And overwhelmingly at that. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to make excuses for having just disgracefully flown through the pavilion.

Crack.

The Dark Heavenly Lord gripped a poison bottle tightly with his fingertips inside his wide sleeves.

‘To think I’d have to go this far.’

No matter how much the Sichuan Tang Family was notorious throughout the world for poison, using poison in front of others was still an awkward matter.

Even if everyone knew and acknowledged it, poison was bound to be viewed with suspicion, and there was a difference between seeing with one’s own eyes and hearing with one’s ears.

Using poison against a junior in front of all these people was certainly not a pleasant matter.

But…

‘This is not the time to be picky about such things.’

The Dark Heavenly Lord opened the poison bottle. Red smoke began rising from his right sleeve.

“It’s Soul-Chasing Smoke!”

Someone recognized the poison the Dark Heavenly Lord was using and shouted. Red smoke swirled around both his sleeves. The hidden weapons concealed in his sleeves began to absorb the poison.

“…Don’t resent me, boy.”

Wei Yan-ho snorted at the Dark Heavenly Lord’s words.

“Where does this old man get off putting on airs!”

Wei Yan-ho waved his sword around while shouting.

“When were you being considerate, when you were sprinkling poison on someone lying still? And now you’re talking as if you were showing mercy!”

“Ah, no, please be quiet.”

“Oh my! People of the world! The person who sprinkled poison behind someone’s back is pretending to be honorable! Such shamelessness in this world!”

The Dark Heavenly Lord’s face turned red.

Glancing around with his eyes, he could see the audience murmuring.

“He already used poison?”

“Well, that’s probably why he got beaten and sent flying like that.”

“From behind?”

“Isn’t that the Tang Family’s specialty? Quietly releasing poison and pretending to win through skill. Didn’t Tang Jong-ui get caught doing the exact same thing last time?”

Veins bulged on the Dark Heavenly Lord’s forehead.

‘I must win.’

Winning through underhanded means and losing through underhanded means were problems of entirely different dimensions. If he could just win, he could package it as the Tang Family using any dirty trick necessary to achieve their goals, but if he lost like this, the reputation the Tang Family had built would fall into the abyss along with him.

The Dark Heavenly Lord’s hand quietly reached for the hidden weapons in his sleeve.

As he felt the cold sensation of metal at his fingertips, his mind began to settle. The cold metal sensation faded slightly, and a tingling poison began to be felt at his fingertips.

The poison was so potent that even the Dark Heavenly Lord, whose resistance to poison had reached its peak, felt his fingertips sting. Just a graze would melt down even an ox.

“Words aren’t necessary, are they?”

“Then stop talking.”

Wei Yan-ho cheekily responded.

But the Dark Heavenly Lord didn’t get excited. They had already entered the realm of a life-and-death duel.

“Shouldn’t we stop this?”

At the Blue Sword Master’s words, the Blue Hero made a contemplative sound.

“How do you suggest we stop it?”

“Pardon?”

“Can you jump between those two?”

At the Blue Hero’s words, the Blue Sword Master turned his head to look at the two.

“…”

Then he was left speechless. The air between Wei Yan-ho and the Dark Heavenly Lord was growing heavy. Though it looked perfectly peaceful on the surface, the Blue Sword Master could keenly feel how dangerous that place was.

If anyone jumped in there, they would instantly become minced meat.

“Fights between masters of that caliber cannot be stopped. And now that their emotional rift has deepened so much, even if we stopped them now, they would eventually have to settle it with their lives. In that case, it would be better to do it here. However!”

“Yes.”

The Blue Hero spoke with a stern face.

“Deploy the children in front of the audience! Even a single fragment could cause casualties.”

“Understood.”

The Blue Hero turned around and bowed deeply to those at the head table.

“Given the situation, we have no choice but to ask for your assistance.”

Though there was no detailed explanation, everyone nodded and rose from their seats. A fight involving the Tang Family was not something to watch from such a close distance. If someone with weak martial arts was in front, they would suffer a terrible fate.

If they couldn’t stop the fight, they had to at least reduce the damage. Everyone at the head table leaped down from their seats and stood in front of the audience.

“Ah, hey, we can’t see!”

“…It’s better than dying, so please bear with it.”

Complaints flowed from the mouths of those who didn’t understand what a Tang Family fight meant.

‘You’ll understand soon enough.’

The Blue Hero looked at the martial arts stage with a stern face.

‘That said, that fellow is truly remarkable.’

Seeing Wei Jeong-han’s calm face even though his son was about to duel with none other than the Dark King, he thought that naturally, one who raises a lion must be a lion.

‘Perhaps I’ve been underestimating the man called Wei Jeong-han.’

“Consider it an honor to die from the Tang Family’s poison. But there will be no pain. You’ll become a handful of blood in an instant.”

“Getting hit by my sword hurts a lot. I don’t know about other things, but our sect is number one in the world at beating people up. Hey, you look like your joints aren’t in good shape due to your age, so be careful. If they break, they don’t heal well.”

“…Do you have no mother or father?”

“Hey, how can someone who’s the head of the Tang Family not know the genealogy of other sects? That’s why the Tang Family is in such a state.”

What’s wrong with the Tang Family! It’s doing just fine!

The Dark Heavenly Lord, who almost breathed fire from his mouth, poured out hidden weapons instead of fire. A sound of cutting through the wind came from his right hand, and hair-thin needles poured out like rain, flying toward Wei Yan-ho.

“Whoa.”

Wei Yan-ho looked at the flying needles and raised his sword.

Tatatatatang!

With a sound like roasting beans, the flying needles were blocked by Wei Yan-ho’s sword and bounced off in all directions.

“Aaaaaaaah!”

People began screaming in terror.

Gleaming needles soaked with poison bounced off in all directions. When those positioned in front of the audience blocked the needles, quiet silence momentarily swept through the venue.

“Uh oh…”

Suddenly realizing they had stepped one foot into the gates of hell before escaping, people began quietly backing away. Only now did they understand how dangerous this duel was.

Just grazing those bounced needles meant instant death. Antidotes were meaningless. They would already melt into blood before they could take an antidote, so what meaning would an antidote have?

“Hey, old man. You fight pretty stingily.”

Though Wei Yan-ho provoked him, the Dark Heavenly Lord didn’t react.

‘As expected.’

Instead, the Dark Heavenly Lord was raising his tension. The fact that Wei Yan-ho could handle his fired needles so easily was proof of Wei Yan-ho’s martial prowess.

‘I must end it here.’

The Dark Heavenly Lord was convinced he had to kill Wei Yan-ho. He and the Tang Family had already crossed a river they shouldn’t have crossed. If Wei Yan-ho continued to grow like this, the Tang Family wouldn’t be able to breathe until Wei Yan-ho died.

He had to kill Wei Yan-ho here to guarantee the Tang Family’s future. His hand left the needles and reached for the Ox Hair Needles.

Then Wei Yan-ho smirked and opened his mouth.

“As they say, the one who farted gets angry. After attacking out of nowhere, you’re making a face like you’re incredibly wronged.”

His master’s words were right.

Why did those words about how there wasn’t a single sane person among those who wielded some power in the martial world resonate so deeply?

The greatest evidence of those words was his master, though.

“Old man.”

“…”

“Let me teach you something.”

“What?”

“Just because a person is born human doesn’t make them human.”

“What?”

Wei Yan-ho grinned and opened his mouth.

“You have to have shame to be human! I’ll teach you about shame today!”

Wei Yan-ho’s sword began to emit light.

Wei Jeong-han, watching this scene, let out a groan.

“…Says the one who knows that.”

It was a father’s heartaching lament that others couldn’t hear.