"St-stop… I was wro… Keu-eok!"
Peok! Peok! Peo-eok.
Jo Gangmin couldn't even finish his sentence as the relentless blows rained down, forcing him to scream. Finally, his eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness.
Gwak Cheolju, unable to watch, ground his teeth and shouted, "What the hell do you want? The Sogaju was trying to apologize, why won't you even listen…!"
"Ah, was he? I didn't hear him. My bad."
"Eek…!"
"Aigoo, it would have been nice if he'd apologized before it came to this. What to do? Should I wake him up again?"
This was the third time he had woken him up and knocked him out.
The truth was, it wasn't that he couldn't hear. To be precise, Namgung Cheon was making it impossible for Jo Gangmin to apologize.
In his past life as a fugitive, the result of a fight was always one of three things.
The most common was killing them all. Wiping out every person who came to kill him. It was the cleanest method, as there were no worries of future repercussions.
Well, there were occasional times he let them live. On days when he was in a good mood, on days he was uncharacteristically moved by pity, or if the opponent was someone he took a liking to, like Namgung Seon.
Hmm, I should correct that. In Namgung Seon's case, it wasn't me who saved her, but she who saved me. See how objective I am.
Anyway.
Sometimes, the outcome of a fight unexpectedly led to a new connection. That was when he took his enemies as subordinates. They were mostly Heukdo bastards, though.
In any case, his method back then was the same as it was now. Demand an apology, and then, the moment they try to open their mouth, beat them senseless.
Jo Gangmin had already tried to apologize several times, but Namgung Cheon hadn't listened. He'd just beaten him up the moment he opened his mouth.
In short, it was a situation where he desperately wanted to apologize, but couldn't, because he was too busy getting beaten. It was enough to drive a man insane.
So, what happens when you do this?
From now on, the moment they see him, they'll shrink back as if they've done something wrong, adopting a posture of begging for forgiveness.
It was his own, unique brainwashing method. Making the sinner truly repent.
See how good I am at rehabilitating people.
Come to think of it, it might not be a bad idea to start a religion and be a cult leader.
Let's see.
Perhaps due to the indirect influence, Gwak Cheolju, Song Wongyo, and Baek Rihyang were also pale. Only the students who had come with them were inside the Banjang, slurping down their noodles.
Namgung Cheon suddenly found the situation hilarious and burst out laughing at the pouring rain.
"Hahaha!"
By now, a large crowd had gathered, mostly Yongcheongwan students and local residents.
In the pouring rain, Namgung Cheon was beating a student and laughing maniacally at the sky. Meanwhile, inside the Banjang, other students were eating noodles with their faces buried in their bowls.
The crowd murmured, unable to comprehend the scene.
"What's going on?"
"It's the Jayu Gyeonsik Gigan, must be a fight between students."
"Hey, that guy! Wasn't he the official Hogu of Yongcheongwan?"
"This is pretty bad. He's completely bloody."
Yun Jongseung and Paeng Suhyeok, who had just arrived, looked at each other. Yun Jongseung, blocked by the crowd, frowned.
"It seems… Namgung Cheon is the one getting beaten badly."
"Tsk! Namgung Cheon…! He's supposed to be beaten by me!"
Paeng Suhyeok's brow furrowed. He pushed through the crowd, striding forward. He was the one who was supposed to crush Namgung Cheon. The son of his grandfather's murderer. He had finally deemed him worthy of being crushed, and now Jo Gangmin had to ruin it by bringing his cronies. It felt like having a piece of meat he was about to eat stolen by someone else.
'Namgung Cheon! You were supposed to be destroyed by me! You shouldn't be lying here…!'
Paeng Suhyeok, who had pushed to the front of the crowd, froze. Because of this, Yun Jongseung, who was following closely, slammed his nose into his back.
"Keuk! Wh-why? What about Namgung Cheon…!"
Yun Jongseung's words died as his jaw dropped. My god, what is this?
Namgung Cheon, who he thought would be lying in a bloody heap, was laughing like a madman, while Jo Gangmin was completely knocked out, sprawled on the ground.
"What happened? Huh? Paeng Suhyeok, where are you going?"
Ignoring Yun Jongseung, Paeng Suhyeok strode forward. His mouth split into a wide grin.
'Namgung Cheon! Yes, that's it! This is how it should be! This makes the desire to crush you even stronger! I will definitely crush…!'
Paeng Suhyeok, who had been taking large strides, suddenly froze like stone.
'Wh-what is this…!'
A strange aura was binding his entire body like chains.
'Salgi…?'
Paeng Suhyeok ground his teeth. But the feeling was strange. It didn't feel like salgi directed at him. It was just a deathly aura, spreading thickly like fog. It was as if Namgung Cheon were standing tall on a hill that had become a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
The desolate aura sent a shiver down his spine.
'That bastard…!'
The strange energy surrounding Namgung Cheon was sending a warning. No one is to interfere with me. Anyone who ignores this warning and approaches will become one of the corpses scattered around.
"Eek…!"
As Paeng Suhyeok struggled to move against that unpleasant aura, Namgung Cheon nudged the unconscious Jo Gangmin with the tip of his boot.
"Kkeueueu…!"
Jo Gangmin groaned, looking up at Namgung Cheon. It was hard to even open his eyes in the pouring rain. Namgung Cheon's heartless gaze felt like that of Yeomra (King of Hell).
"Namgung… hyeong…"
He forced his mouth open, fighting his fear. Will I be able to apologize this time?
"I-I'm… sorry. Please stop… forgive me."
He finally said it. He had given the apology he so desperately wanted to give.
Wait, I wanted to apologize? I don't know. Whatever.
At last, a small hope of escaping this pain had emerged. In the face of this near-death agony, he had thrown away his pride long ago.
Namgung Cheon grinned. It was a somewhat wicked smile, and Jo Gangmin felt a faint sense of despair.
"Oh? Then as a sign of forgiveness, let's have just one more."
Namgung Cheon raised his fist. A thought suddenly crossed his mind. In my past life, did I ever forgive anyone like this? Almost never. I killed most of them.
As he always felt, forgiveness is hard. For him, a fugitive, forgiveness was no different from putting his own life on the line. Forgiveness was just that difficult. That's why you shouldn't carelessly tell others to "just forgive" or "forget." Because forgiveness is something that hard, something you risk your life for.
Shiiiik!
Finally, his fist cut through the air.
In that instant.
Seupat!
A gust of wind seemed to blow, and a dark shadow suddenly intervened.
Namgung Cheon's eyes widened, and he quickly flipped his hand. The opponent also used Geumnasul, immediately countering.
Not bad. Who is it? Gwak Cheolju doesn't have this kind of agility.
He wanted to check the opponent's face, but his reaction was so fast that he couldn't look away for even a second.
Pababat.
After two or three exchanges, he sent a palm strike imbued with Gongnyeok.
Shuuuuut— Peo-eong!
The compressed air exploded, and Namgung Cheon and the shadow were pushed far apart.
Chwachwaaaat!
The two skidded to a stop in the rain. Long footprints were left in the wet ground like scars.
Swaaaaaa…
The sound of the rain once again filled the surroundings. Now, he could see his opponent.
'Bi Ryang…?'
Namgung Cheon hardened his gaze. Bi Ryang was now holding the battered Jo Gangmin by his side.
Gwak Cheolju, Song Wongyo, and Baek Rihyang finally recognized Bi Ryang and collapsed to the ground, as if their tension had snapped.
Bi Ryang whistled. "Hwiyoo. You really made a scene. How about we stop here? Even if it's the Jayu Gyeonsik Gigan, if things go too far, the instructor has to intervene."
"What's the limit for 'too far'?"
When Namgung Cheon asked, Bi Ryang propped his chin on his hand for a moment, then said, "Seems like... right about here."
"I'll just hit him one more time."
"No."
"Then half a time."
"Goo… huh? How do you hit someone half a time? No."
"Tsk, didn't work. Anyway, how did you know to come here?"
Bi Ryang pointed to Paeng Suhyeok and Yun Jongseung standing to one side. "I followed those two, and this is what I found."
Namgung Cheon glanced back. Paeng Suhyeok was glaring at him. Right, well, your grandfather died by my hand, so I'll give you that. At least you have a better reason than those who torment the weak for fun.
Anyway, Bi Ryang.
Namgung Cheon narrowed his eyes. He's strong. We only crossed hands for a moment, but he's a formidable opponent. At that level, he'd have few rivals even in the Murim Alliance. He probably wasn't even showing his full strength, so he might be one of the top masters in the Alliance. Still, he's probably weaker than the Alliance Lord.
…No. I shouldn't jump to conclusions. The Murim is a place where even a turtle can learn Gyeonggong and beat a rabbit. It's a place where you can't be surprised by any variable. That's the Jianghu.
'With this, one thing is certain.'
I need to get stronger. Not just by accumulating internal energy, but I need my own unique martial art.
He had felt this keenly in his past life as a fugitive. The Chogyeon Pagongan was a great talent, but it wasn't omnipotent. When facing an absolute master who had honed one field their entire life, even the Chogyeon Pagongan struggled to overcome that wall.
So, what's the best way forward?
First, out of respect for Namgung Seon, the Cheonhajeillyong, it would be good to base it on the Namgung Family's martial arts. Well, I am familiar with them. And since I'm living as Namgung Cheon, there's no better condition.
This was different from his past life, where he was too busy running to properly learn martial arts.
As Namgung Cheon was lost in thought, Bi Ryang's voice pierced his ears.
"It looks like the match is decided, so I'll take the injured. No objections?"
"Well, go ahead."
It wasn't a situation where he could object. Bi Ryang lifted Jo Gangmin and started to walk, then glanced at Paeng Suhyeok.
"That's enough for today."
It was unclear if he was speaking to Namgung Cheon or Paeng Suhyeok. Or perhaps, to both.
Paeng Suhyeok just ground his teeth, and Bi Ryang gave a small smile and left.
Paeng Suhyeok glared at Namgung Cheon. "Namgung Cheon. Let's have some fun soon, you and I."
"Let's."
Namgung Cheon replied nonchalantly. Paeng Suhyeok snorted and walked away.
Honestly, this popularity. Seems I'm fated to draw people in, in this life, just as in my last.
As the situation more or less settled, the Ghost King rushed out of the Banjang. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. How about you?"
"Ah, thanks to you, we've hit a jackpot on our opening day! Hehehe. Everyone was crazy for the noodles!"
"That's great."
"And I found out one more thing you were curious about, Lord."
"Oho, what's that?"
Is it about Bi Ryang? Namgung Cheon's eyes sparkled as he asked, and the Ghost King lowered his voice.
"On a rainy day, dust definitely does not rise. Only water droplets. If they scatter like fog, it can look like dust, but…"
"…"
"…?"
Ttaak.
"Keuk! Wh-why…?"
"You found out something amazing. I praise you greatly."
"Hehe, right? I'm very observant, you see."
Namgung Cheon stared at the beaming Ghost King.
Haa, should I kill this thing?
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