Chapter 130: I'll Pour You a Drink
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The hall suddenly stirred slightly.
Amid the sideways glances, doubt gleamed in the surrounding stares.
The luxurious table in the center of the hall was actually difficult to sit at without Seol Pan-gyo’s group’s permission, so when a young man in shabby clothes suddenly appeared and took an empty chair, everyone looked surprised.
“Who’s that…?”
“Who knows.”
“Ha, without even asking Master Seol’s permission, so fearlessly…”
“A wanderer?”
“What, so he’s picking a fight intentionally because he wants to spar with that famous group?”
“Well, the life of a renowned master is always tiring from constantly receiving challenges from others.”
“Master Seol is a generous man, so he’ll probably calm him with kind words. Now, now, let’s just drink.”
The guests here didn’t readily guess Cheol Ryu-heun’s identity since he currently wasn’t wearing White Peak Sword Sect’s distinctive martial attire.
Though most of them had never even seen Cheol Ryu-heun’s face anyway.
Meanwhile.
The young swordsman in the chair opposite, receiving Cheol Ryu-heun’s gaze directly, composed his expression and muttered internally.
‘Quite surprising. When did he fully recover?’
The young man’s skin was so white it rivaled that of a dressed-up woman, and his features were handsome and distinct, as if carefully drawn by a skilled artist with his brush.
A crane among chickens – a typical noble young master’s appearance.
On the left chest of his loose martial attire made of blue silk, two characters embroidered dramatically revealed his identity and status.
Azure Heaven.
Indeed.
He was Seol Pan-gyo, the twenty-five-year-old senior disciple known as Azure Mark Sword – a genius swordsman produced by Azure Heaven Sword Sect and a famous rising star of the orthodox faction.
The two young men seated to the right of Cheol Ryu-heun at the table had appearances closer to vigorous men with sturdy builds rather than refined beauties.
First, the man with long, narrowly slitted eyes wearing white martial clothes was Wu Yong, called Moon Gleam Sword, the foremost rising talent of Bright Moon Sword Sect.
The same age as Seol Pan-gyo, he was a talent who had been told countless times since childhood that he would become someone great.
And.
The young man in black martial clothes with a cold impression sitting next to him was Wan Ryeom, the young sect master of Six Righteousness Gate.
He was called Iron Brush Young Master because his swordsmanship resembled delicate brushwork.
He was two years younger than Seol Pan-gyo and Wu Yong.
Finally, the woman at the left side of the table boasting outstanding beauty was Mae Yak-bang, the second daughter of the sect master of the long-established orthodox Soaring Swallow Sword Sect.
Now twenty-four years old, her martial world alias was Jade Robe Swallow Lady – an emerging master known as one of the eight great beauties within the Hunan region.
Because she possessed both talent and beauty on par with Seol Pan-gyo, she was treated preciously everywhere, so her temperament was arrogant, but she was so good at putting on airs that most people didn’t know her true nature.
“My, Young Sect Master Cheol, I never thought I’d see you here. So, have you recovered fully? When I first heard the news that you’d become a vegetable, how my heart ached…”
When Jade Robe Swallow Lady Mae Yak-bang spoke with false concern, Iron Brush Young Master Wan Ryeom quickly adjusted his expression and spoke up.
“Young Sect Master Cheol, it’s nice to meet you again. First, I’m really glad you seem to have recovered your health.”
Just as Moon Gleam Sword Wu Yong was about to add a word, a blunt voice rang in their ears.
“Are you deaf?”
Cheol Ryu-heun pointed at the empty cup with a chin gesture along with those words.
Meaning fill it with liquor.
The target of his indifferent words was Seol Pan-gyo sitting directly across.
Simultaneously.
TWITCH.
Wu Yong raised one eyebrow and let out a hollow laugh.
‘Ha, look at this bastard? Dropping formalities? But…’
Something felt different.
Compared to Cheol Ryu-heun’s attitude when he’d seen him before, the atmosphere was completely like a different person.
Mae Yak-bang and Wan Ryeom felt the same.
Starting with that expressionless face where it was hard to read emotions – wasn’t something strange?
Most of all.
His personal presence – close to nothingness – was the most incomprehensible.
Like an ordinary person who knew no martial arts at all, not even the smallest trace of energy was detected in his body.
‘What is this?’
Seol Pan-gyo, with doubt, briefly met the other’s gaze, then soon rose with a faint smile.
“Very well, Sect Master Cheol. Before I hear what this is about, let me personally pour you a drink.”
He then tilted the bottle in his hand and filled the empty cup in front of Cheol Ryu-heun to the brim.
POUR-
Cheol Ryu-heun immediately emptied the cup.
At that moment, Wu Yong surreptitiously sent a sound transmission.
<Hey, Pan-gyo. This guy seems to have deliberately sought this place out.>
Seol Pan-gyo also responded with sound transmission without any visible sign.
<Yes, eight or nine times out of ten. But… That cocky behavior doesn’t please me at all.>
<Could he be thinking of sparring with us again to avenge what happened? Seems less capable than before though.>
<Ha, nothing but petty bravado from a powerless fellow, isn’t it?>
<Keke. Then shall we humor him a bit? And then make him suffer another disgrace.>
<Sounds good.>
Seol Pan-gyo then briefly exchanged sound transmissions with the remaining members, Mae Yak-bang and Wan Ryeom, to align their intentions.
‘Cheol Ryu-heun, you fool. Having lost even your master, you seem to be coming at us with a whatever-happens-happens attitude… Do you think I’ll let that slide? When a lowly person shows recklessness, they should rightfully be made to pay the price.’
Having laughed internally, he grasped the bottle again and poured for Cheol Ryu-heun, then filled his own cup to the brim and raised his voice.
“Everyone, here, Young Sect Master of White Peak Sword Sect, Cheol, has visited. He seems to have miraculously recovered his health, so how about we all raise our glasses and congratulate him?”
Suddenly the crowd stirred greatly, then soon raised their liquor-filled cups high, following Seol Pan-gyo’s words.
Seol Pan-gyo had deliberately spoken loudly so everyone in the hall would know Cheol Ryu-heun’s identity.
If he was humiliated while many people were watching, his heart would hurt double.
“Now, let’s all cleanly empty our glasses for Young Sect Master Cheol who has risen remarkably!”
With Seol Pan-gyo’s cry, the crowd gave cheers and gulped down their drinks.
Yet Cheol Ryu-heun didn’t reach for the filled cup.
TAP.
Seol Pan-gyo set down his cup and asked, hiding his intentions.
“Hm? Why aren’t you drinking?”
Mae Yak-bang hastily added an annoying comment.
“Hoot. Young Sect Master Cheol. Why, is it too expensive a drink that you’re afraid to touch? It’s alright. Drink freely. Since you probably don’t have the money to buy and drink such a premium high-quality liquor anyway, when else would you get to taste it if not now?”
At that, Cheol Ryu-heun picked up the cup disinterestedly.
DRIP, DRIP, DRIP.
He poured all the liquor onto the floor.
“Doesn’t taste good.”
At his indifferent voice, the hall was engulfed in silence.
Everyone’s eyes were shocked.
Good heavens, casually throwing away the liquor that none other than Seol Pan-gyo had offered… One and all wore expressions as if they’d received a great shock.
Wu Yong’s mood soured.
What, that bastard.
It looked like he was picking a fight on purpose.
Seol Pan-gyo, Mae Yak-bang, and Wan Ryeom also curled up the corners of their mouths as if finding it absurd.
At that moment, one of the drinking guests somewhere called out quietly.
“How rude!”
Soon the crowd stirred in agreement with that cry.
While watching Seol Pan-gyo’s reaction…
That’s right.
Humans who followed the powerful, lacking the courage to defy from the start.
Rising one by one, they gathered like a wall around the luxurious table and cast their gazes.
As if inwardly expecting what a ridiculous sight fearless Cheol Ryu-heun who had provoked them would suffer.
It was just like back then.
A lonely place.
Currently everyone in this place was entirely on Seol Pan-gyo’s group’s side.
Wan Ryeom made his cold face even colder as he sneered.
“Young Sect Master Cheol, it seems your martial skills have regressed from lying around like a corpse, so wouldn’t it be better to refrain from picking unnecessary fights? Ah, is it rude to say this? Haha.”
But Cheol Ryu-heun didn’t mind and grasped a bottle.
“This time I’ll pour you a drink.”
Wu Yong, as if he’d been waiting, smirked and held out his cup.
“Hey, pour here first.”
He responded with informal speech right away, as if he couldn’t stand watching Cheol Ryu-heun’s cocky behavior any longer.
DRIP, DRIP.
After pouring the drink, Cheol Ryu-heun picked up a cup and held it out.
Seeing that, Wu Yong reached out while sneering internally once more.
‘Ha. Good, shall I emit some energy through the cup?’
His plan was to make Cheol Ryu-heun drop the cup so the liquor splashed on himself, then use that as an excuse to bring out real force.
But.
The moment Wu Yong grasped the cup with his hand, he was flustered.
‘Huh! What, this…!’
The cup, mutually held with Cheol Ryu-heun, didn’t budge an inch, as if it were a rock weighing tens of thousands of geun.
‘CHIK!’
Wu Yong immediately operated his internal energy, but the cup in contact with Cheol Ryu-heun’s hand remained unmoved.
His face flushed bright red.
Evidence that he was straining with all his might to snatch the cup away.
‘Wait, is that bastard using formless energy right now…? His internal energy level is this strong?’
Suddenly, when Cheol Ryu-heun let go, Wu Yong, who had been pulling the cup, fell over backward on his own momentum.
CRASH- SHATTER-!
The sound of a chair breaking against the floor and a cup shattering.
Wu Yong had pathetically fallen flat on his back.
‘…!’
While everyone was aghast at the unexpected situation, Cheol Ryu-heun’s indifferent voice flowed out.
“Can’t even hold one cup, I see.”
Swept up in shame, Wu Yong shot to his feet, drew his sword and shouted.
“FUCK!”
In the blink of an eye.
BOOM-!
With a roar striking his ears, the luxurious table was smashed to pieces, and in its center, Wu Yong was seen embedded upside down.
His head had gone through the floor.
It was Cheol Ryu-heun’s doing.
A quiet shockwave instantly swept through the hall.
No one had seen it.
Couldn’t even feel it.
The swift strike that Cheol Ryu-heun had just executed…
“He drew his sword first, so this much is justified, isn’t it?”
The moment Cheol Ryu-heun finished speaking, Mae Yak-bang tightly gripped her sword hilt, preparing to strike.
Right then.
“CHAAT!”
Wan Ryeom widened his eyes and thrust his sword.
But.
BOOM!
With a tremendous explosion, Wan Ryeom’s form shot through the upper part of the tavern wall in the blink of an eye and disappeared.
After a brief pause.
THUD…
From far along the street outside the tavern came the sound of a heavy object slamming hard.
It was Wan Ryeom.
Whether he swung his hand or foot, who knew… But was he even still alive?
Mae Yak-bang was about to thrust her sword when she hesitated to a stop.
Having just seen Wan Ryeom fall so helplessly, she had lost her will to fight before the instinctive sense of crisis.
Cheol Ryu-heun turned his head and spoke briefly.
“Go ahead and stab.”
“Ah… Th-the past… I’m sorry. Cheol… Young Sect… No, Sect Master Cheol… Really…”
Fear was deeply embedded in her trembling voice.
She had never seen anything like this.
The power was so overwhelmingly incomparable that her mind felt paralyzed.
“You should have not done something to be sorry for in the first place.”
Cheol Ryu-heun’s indifferent voice.
CRASH!
Just like Wan Ryeom, Mae Yak-bang also shot through the tavern wall and slammed THUD! somewhere in the distance.
Cheol Ryu-heun’s gaze soon rested on Seol Pan-gyo’s face.
“They say you’re a candidate to become the next Five Martial Paragons? Let’s see your strength.”
“…!”
Already dominated in body and mind, Seol Pan-gyo gulped, then conscious of the crowd’s stares, somehow squeezed out his courage.
PAK!
A form advancing nimbly with sword in hand.
Immediately after.
KABOOM-!
With a terrifying roar, Seol Pan-gyo’s form flew backward hard, smashing through several tables before rolling on the floor.
“GAHHH…!”
Seol Pan-gyo lay face down, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
The strike had contained ultimate-level power, as heavy as it was.
“Right, you’re somewhat better. You.”
Cheol Ryu-heun walked toward Seol Pan-gyo with plodding steps, his expression unchanged.
‘CHIT…!’
Seol Pan-gyo, surging with indignation, desperately raised his body and swung his right hand’s sword horizontally.
A slashing technique harmonized with powerful sword energy.
Yet.
CLANG!
With a short metallic sound, the sword’s movement came to an abrupt stop.
Index finger and thumb.
Cheol Ryu-heun’s two fingers had lightly caught the sword.
Seeing that, not only Seol Pan-gyo but everyone in the place widened their eyes greatly.
It was truly a fearsome divine might.
To think this rising powerhouse of the orthodox martial world, who was said to be on par with the Five Martial Paragons, could look this helpless…
Terrified, Seol Pan-gyo ended up letting out pathetic words.
“Y-you… Aren’t you afraid… Of my father?”
Cheol Ryu-heun answered expressionlessly, as if even Azure Heaven Sword Sect Master, one of the Five Supreme Martial Experts of Hunan Province, was beneath his notice.
“If he’s the kind of man who would move carelessly over a single ill-mannered brat, I might as well take the title of Five Martial Paragons from him with my own hands.”
With his arrogant statement.
KABOOOOM-!
Seol Pan-gyo, wrapped in a great shimmer, shot up like a flash of light and had his head embedded in the wooden ceiling between the first and second floors.
CREAK, CREAK, CREAK…
His body dangled limply, swaying as if soaked in water.
Cheol Ryu-heun soon dropped a pouch of silver coins on the floor with a thud.
“Repair costs.”
Having brushed his hair back once, he strode outside and mounted Divine Wind.
“Let’s go.”
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE-!
After horse and rider departed, only the silence born of awe filled the tavern.