Chapter 30: In Any Case, This Popularity of Mine (2)
Chapter 29 – In Any Case, This Popularity of Mine (2)
Whoosh.
The man who landed on the ground after performing a flip from the roof wore a black headband and held a long spear.
Swish! Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Showing off a few flashy spear techniques, the man drew a semicircle with his left foot and completed a flamboyant movement.
Shhht! Tap.
Namgung Cheon stood with his weight on one leg and spoke nonchalantly.
“What a load of bullshit. Are you a descendant of General Ak-bi?”
“I am the second son of the Shandong Yue Clan, Yue Goeng.”
“You were born into a prestigious family, yet your spear techniques are in that state. General Ak-bi must be lamenting in the underworld.”
“Hmph! It seems you are trying to use a provocation tactic, but it won’t work on me.”
Yue Goeng laughed coldly and aimed the spear shaft straight at him.
Namgung Cheon picked his ear.
“What provocation tactic when it’s not even a one-on-one? I was just stating the truth.”
Yue Goeng furrowed his brow.
It was then.
“You certainly have guts!”
A booming voice resounded from the roof, and a massive figure with a heavy build fell down like a comet.
Thud.
His body was so heavy that the ground shook slightly when he landed.
Step.
As he took a step forward, a deep footprint was revealed on the ground.
When the giant clenched his fists and took a starting stance, a heavy energy was transmitted intact.
Namgung Cheon rounded his lips and admired.
“Oh, you are truly massive. I should apologize to the Ghost King for calling him an old pig. There was a real pig right here.”
“This bastard…”
As the massive man spat out those words, a yellowish energy tightly condensed on his two fists.
Namgung Cheon said.
“Seeing you wear dark brown leather wrist guards and use fist techniques… are you from the Huangbo Clan?”
“Fufu. Your eyes haven’t rotted.”
“There’s nothing rotten. Fortunately, I came back to life before that could happen.”
When Namgung Cheon grinned, Hwangbo Seung made an incredulous expression.
‘What is with this bastard who has absolutely no sense of tension?’
Just then, a raspy laugh leaked from the roof.
“Kekeke. What a funny guy. I thought you just got lucky beating up Jo Gang-min, but like Zhuge Gi said, it seems you have something to rely on.”
The man on the roof, with his back to the moonlight, curled his lips into a wide grin.
As if his voice were a signal, shadows rained down from the roofs of the buildings on both sides.
Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-shk.
Close to thirty people surrounded Namgung Cheon from the front and back.
In addition, about ten people still remained on the roof to keep watch.
A total of forty people.
Escape was practically impossible.
‘Tsk, what a pain.’
Since he could not dig into the ground to run away, his only choice was to break through head-on.
Chring.
Namgung Cheon drew the Emerald Silk Sword and opened his mouth.
“Line up.”
“…?”
“Line up in the order you want to get beaten. If you stand in such disorder, it’s hard to beat you up.”
“Pfft, hahaha! This guy is really funny. You’re one of two things. Either a madman, or just a funny bastard.”
Namgung Cheon was surprised.
To understand him so accurately?
Indeed, in his past life, he had heard the words “madman” and “funny guy” the most.
Mostly, the orthodox martial artists called him a madman, and the unorthodox ones called him a funny guy.
At any rate, the guy’s eye was impressive.
If so, he had no choice but to return the favor.
“Seeing how you won’t even crawl down from the roof, you must be a despicable Tang Clan bastard who hides in some corner and fiddles with hidden weapons.”
At the blatant mockery, Tang Wu-gi stopped laughing immediately.
His angry eyes gleamed sharply in the darkness.
“You’re going to die because of that mouth of yours.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than something flashed and flew toward him.
Swish!
Of course, prior to that, Namgung Cheon saw the inner force rising from Tang Wu-gi’s dantian rapidly traverse the Hand-Taiyin Lung Meridian and erupt from the Shaoshang acupoint on his thumb.
Considering that ordinary hidden weapon techniques release inner force from the index and middle fingers, the concentration of inner force in the Shaoshang acupoint pointed to the Tang Clan’s ultimate technique, the Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly.
Sure enough, the movement of the hidden weapon flying through the air was unusual.
The flat hidden weapon flipped wildly, as if it had been thrown incorrectly.
At a glance, it even seemed like a butterfly fluttering forward.
In truth, hidden weapon techniques were quite tricky martial arts even for Namgung Cheon.
What he could break through with the First Sight Skill-Breaking Eyes was strictly limited to when it was still connected to the body.
But once the hidden weapon left the hand, looking at it with the First Sight Skill-Breaking Eyes was of little meaning.
Nevertheless, the reason Namgung Cheon could quickly execute his footwork to dodge the Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly was thanks to the countless experiences he had accumulated in his past life.
Since among the pursuers in his past life, there had been a sickening number of martial artists from the Tang Clan, including the Tang Clan Head himself.
The key to dodging or blocking the Tang Clan’s Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly was to wait until the hidden weapon reached right in front of one’s nose.
Until one felt like, “I’m going to die at this rate.”
‘Just like now!’
When the hidden weapon arrived within arm’s reach, Namgung Cheon executed the Boundless Steps.
Slide.
His feet slid naturally as if the ground were a sheet of ice.
Swish.
The hidden weapon passed through the spot where Namgung Cheon had been standing just moments before.
An instant.
Clang!
The Emerald Silk Sword shot up like lightning, striking away the dark hidden weapon.
Whoosh, thud.
“Keugh!”
In the blink of an eye, the deflected hidden weapon lodged itself in the flank of a Righteous Chivalry Academy cadet.
The cadet widened his eyes, then soon convulsed and slumped down.
Judging by the looks of it, it was not a fatal injury that would cost him his life, but it seemed paralyzing poison had been smeared on the hidden weapon.
“This guy is a really bad bastard. You even smeared poison on the hidden weapon?”
As Namgung Cheon furrowed his brows deeply, Tang Wu-gi twisted his lips.
“This bastard, you know how to play! Let’s see how long you can run that proud mouth of yours!”
Patapat!
In that instant, Tang Wu-gi waved both hands as if dancing.
Swish, swish, swish.
At that, a total of twelve hidden weapons flew in at high speed, connected like links in a chain.
It was the Tang Clan’s ultimate technique, the Linked Twelve Slashes.
At the same time, the cadets scattered in all directions charged forward, letting out their respective battle cries.
“Hyaah!”
“Haah!”
Namgung Cheon clicked his tongue and darted forward.
“You bastards really don’t listen when I tell you to line up.”
Namgung Cheon deflected the very first hidden weapon that flew in.
Clang!
With a clear metallic ring, the first hidden weapon was deflected away.
Thud.
“Argh!”
Someone’s scream.
In truth, if Tang Wu-gi had executed the Linked Twelve Slashes properly, deflecting them so easily would have been impossible.
But Tang Wu-gi was still young.
One would need at least two cycles of inner force to execute the Linked Twelve Slashes threateningly.
The current Linked Twelve Slashes were nothing but a plausible imitation.
If he was a child of a great clan, he should have eaten some spiritual pills. The Tang Clan should have spiritual pills overflowing.
The Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly thrown earlier was the same.
Why was the Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly called what it was?
It was called the Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly because it was said to chase even the soul as it flew.
This was more effective the deeper one’s inner force was.
However, Tang Wu-gi, whose inner force was shallow, lacked the ability to control the hidden weapons at will.
Thus, he threw hidden weapons that would bounce unpredictably depending on air resistance, calling it the Soul-Chasing Flying Butterfly.
As expected, it was a clumsy imitation.
Though it was not to the point of being completely terrible.
‘Well, imitating it to that extent at such a young age is impressive in its own right.’
If Tang Wu-gi had not been careless in the slightest and had done his best, it might have become quite troublesome.
But with only this much…
‘Not a chance!’
He was the one who had navigated lightfoot work while dodging even the Shower of Flowers Filling the Sky.
Of course, that he had almost died back then was a secret.
Clatter-clang.
After deflecting five or six hidden weapons in succession, he headbutted the cadet who had run up the fastest.
Thwack.
“Keugh!”
As the cadet clutched his nose and backed away, a hidden weapon lodged itself deep into his back.
The cadets, who had been charging forward high-spiritedly, faltered with bewildered expressions.
It was only natural.
Regardless of the Namgung Clan’s forms, he was headbutting people; it was nothing but a dogfight.
It could not be helped.
When facing an absolute majority, forms be damned! Driven by survival instinct, his original style could not help but come out.
The sword forms of the Boundless Sky Great Expansion Sword Art and reckless dogfighting became jumbled together.
Thud! Slash! Thwack! Thud! Slash, slash.
“Argh!”
“Aaakh!”
The feeling of striking an enemy and the sensation of cutting flesh were always thrilling.
As the scent of blood brushed past the tip of his nose, the senses of his entire body seemed to awaken and cheer.
How long had it been?
Ah, he should not feel thrilled by such things… but he could not help it.
Indulging in a strange nostalgia, Namgung Cheon lightly leaped and stamped down on a cadet’s forehead with his foot.
Thud.
“Keugh!”
Soaring up from there, Namgung Cheon quickly flew right in front of Tang Wu-gi’s nose.
“You bastard!”
Hard-pressed, Tang Wu-gi drew a flying dagger and swung it.
Clang!
Sparks flew along with a metallic sound.
“Why didn’t you eat some spiritual pills and grow your internal energy? Did your dad not give you any? Did he say he’d eat them all by himself?”
“You crazy bastard!”
As expected, this guy analyzed him well.
That was why he did not like him.
Instantly, Namgung Cheon executed a grappling technique, grabbed Tang Wu-gi’s sleeve and collar, and threw him down from the roof.
Whoosh, thud.
Falling shoulder-first, Tang Wu-gi gritted his teeth and quickly stood up.
Papat!
In the meantime, a dark shadow soared into the air and swung a spear straight at Namgung Cheon.
It was Yue Goeng.
Clang!
Namgung Cheon barely blocked the spear, but due to the immense force, he was pushed back while smashing roof tiles, before falling into the alley.
Rumble! Whoosh, tap.
“You bastard!”
This time, Hwangbo Seung charged like a bull.
“I will smash that mouth of yours!”
Swwoooosh!
Hwangbo Seung’s fist, carrying fist energy, flew straight at him.
When Namgung Cheon quickly executed the Boundless Steps to move away, Hwangbo Seung’s punch flew straight into the wall and exploded.
Boom!
The solid wall cracked wide open.
Hwangbo Seung pulled back his hand and smirked.
“Running wild like a colt ends here.”
Before he knew it, Righteous Chivalry Academy cadets, displaying fierce energy around Hwangbo Seung, tightly surrounded Namgung Cheon.
Namgung Cheon looked at the cracked wall and said to Hwangbo Seung.
“I take back calling you a pig. You’ve been promoted to wild boar.”
“This crazy bastard…”
It was then.
Thud.
“Argh!”
A dull sound was heard from far behind, followed by a cadet’s scream.
As the Righteous Chivalry Academy cadets flinched and turned around, Paeng Su-hyeok growled while wiping the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
“You bastards… how dare you covet someone else’s bowl…”
“What is this now?”
A Righteous Chivalry Academy cadet raised his chin and marched forward.
In that instant, Paeng Su-hyeok swung his broadsword, and the flat of the blade accurately slapped the cadet’s cheek.
Smack.
“Keuk!”
It truly happened in the blink of an eye.
The cadet, who was sent flying like a bullet, crashed straight into the building’s wall.
Crash!
Paeng Su-hyeok rested the large blade on his shoulder.
“Anyone who wants to deal with Namgung Cheon, line up behind me, you bastards. Don’t cut in line.”
While the Righteous Chivalry Academy cadets wore blank expressions, Namgung Cheon shrugged his shoulders.
“See? What did I tell you? I told you to line up.”