Chapter 71

‘Kill the Martial Alliance Leader.’

At the calm remark of the unknown, Unmu Yong couldn’t help but laugh, both in disbelief and awe.

“…Ha!”

Talking to him, it’s hard to tell if he’s timid or arrogant. A confusing guy.

“It’s true that I hired you for that purpose, but it’s not the time yet. Besides, the Martial Alliance Leader… isn’t someone you can easily kill.”

“Well, I’ll survive. I just move as the employer commands. But….”

The unknown, pausing for a moment, carefully opened his mouth, mindful of the employer’s mood.

“This might be unnecessary meddling, but aren’t you going to meet Namgung Sososo?”

“…What?”

“No, it’s just… seeing that you came all the way here personally, even if you agreed to kill her as a member of the Ilwol God Sect for the plan, I thought maybe you actually wanted to save her.”

The unknown’s black eyes, which didn’t smile, stared at the employer, trying to read their intentions, contrasting with the awkward smile meant to appear friendly.

“Well… she’s the daughter of your martial brother, your niece, after all.”

When Namgung Seon, Sososo’s father, was shamelessly mentioned by the unknown, Unmu Yong frowned and coldly replied.

“If I cared, I wouldn’t have joined hands with you, the enemy of my martial brother.”

“Haha… hearing you say that… I feel a bit sorry.”

The unknown, just genuinely curious, apologized appropriately, thinking he had misspoken again.

Unmu Yong, resembling Namgung Seon, gazed in the direction where Sososo’s cold aura could be felt, quietly muttering to himself as if admonishing himself.

“…Everything is for the plan. I can’t ruin things because of past connections.”

Even if he didn’t say it, it seemed to bother him.

In any case, lingering here any longer was dangerous, so Unmu Yong and the unknown moved into the shadows.

Step… step…

“Tsk-!”

…And not long after, feeling his legs going numb, Unmu Yong frowned with a pale face and clicked his tongue.

“Uh… are you okay?”

“It’s fine. It’s nothing.”

Even though his body was replaced with a Jiangshi (zombie), his legs sometimes went numb like this. Probably something like phantom pain.

It’s annoying.

‘Worthless.’ ‘Dropout.’ ‘Crippled trash.’ ‘Disgrace to the family.’ ‘Useless.’

At times like this, the words he heard since childhood echo in his ears.

In a leaky, rat-infested room, he dreamed of revenge while looking up at the sky.

He’ll destroy the Martial Arts World that treated him like trash, not even as a human, just because his legs were inconvenient.

That was all from the beginning.

***

“Martial Arts—Drinking Water Slowly Without Making Noise.”

The Martial Alliance Leader, one of the Ten Great Masters of the World, known as the Martial God Jaro, who had mastered a thousand martial arts, calmly brought a water bottle to his mouth and drank without haste, even in this urgent situation.

Gulp~ Gulp~

His Adam’s apple moved rhythmically, supplying water to his body.

…And that ridiculous sight.

To be precise, the Martial Alliance Leader’s absurd act of calling drinking water slowly a martial art made the members of the Ilwol God Sect frown.

They didn’t like his casual attitude, but insulting martial arts with such behavior was unacceptable.

“That… that’s not martial arts—!!”

One of Ma Yang’s seven disciples, Cheon Seon, flushed red and shouted.

Born an orphan, her life was changed by Ma Yang, who saved her from being sold to a brothel. Her pride in the martial arts taught by her respected master was immense, so she couldn’t hold back her anger.

To be precise, she didn’t hold back. She didn’t even grasp the situation.

“…So what?”

When Jaro spat out those words after taking the water bottle from his mouth, all noise was suppressed. It felt like being plunged into the deep sea.

“If I, the Martial Alliance Leader, say it’s martial arts, what are you going to do about it?”

Breathing became difficult.

They wanted to retort immediately, but no words came out.

…And suddenly, the Martial Alliance Leader disappeared from sight.

“Martial Arts—Moving Really Fast.”

By the time the rough, low voice was heard, he had already entered the enemy’s midst, and before anyone could react, Jaro’s arm swung like swatting a fly toward Cheon Seon.

“Cheon Seon-!”

Though raised as a substitute for the cute Wang Miaoyang, Ma Yang quickly intervened, cutting off Jaro’s arm with her sword to save her little disciple.

Clang-!!

A sound that couldn’t be thought of as a clash between human flesh and a steel sword echoed. And then….

“Martial Arts—Punching.”

As the calm words were uttered, fists wrapped in strong energy and sword blades clashed continuously, shaving off each other’s blue energy.

Clang-! Clang-clang-clang!!

Ma Yang, who had been the overwhelming powerhouse in this space just moments ago, was forced to step back.

“Ugh-!”

Realizing there was no chance of winning like this, Ma Yang quickly distanced herself.

“…….”

Jaro stood there, his Nine Yin Divine Meridians, which would corrode his body the longer he fought, still active.

The only daughter of a short-lived disciple, forced to fight while releasing cold energy.

Feeling Namgung Sososo’s cold aura, Jaro’s blazing eyes flashed toward the Ilwol God Sect members dressed in white martial uniforms.

The reason he drank water slowly was that if he didn’t, his stomach would churn, and he might really make noise or even vomit.

***

“That, that’s—! The 289th technique of the Martial Alliance Leader Jaro, who mastered a thousand martial arts! Punching—!!”

Seol Wonhwa, perhaps afraid of sitting alone and sobbing, had crawled over and clung to Sima Mantian’s left leg, starting to tremble with excitement.

“…….”

…But Wang Miaoyang and Sima Mantian were silent. They had noticed.

Ma Yang, who had just exchanged basic moves, probably realized that the martial arts shown by the Martial Alliance Leader weren’t just simple, fast punches.

“What on earth….”

Wang Miaoyang, well-versed in the martial studies of the Jeonjin Sect, vaguely recognized that the footwork and fist techniques Jaro used were Taoist martial arts, but she couldn’t tell more as she had never seen them before.

…And Sima Mantian, to be honest, the difference in skill was so vast that he wanted to hide behind Wang Miaoyang’s small back, saying, ‘Enough, I’ve seen your level. It’s so amazing I want to cry.’

But as a fledgling martial artist, he couldn’t take his eyes off the high-level battle between two masters who would be respected anywhere in the world.

Every nerve in his body engraved the fight before him.

Even a graze from the scattered energy could be fatal, but he didn’t turn his back or distance himself.

His amber eyes sparkled like a hungry beast, craving martial arts.

Of course, this time didn’t last long.

Swoosh-! Swoosh-!!

Realizing she couldn’t win with her current strength, Ma Yang summoned the Dragon Abyss, one of the Ten Great Swords of the World, with a clear cry.

“Ha… everyone is safe. That’s a relief.”

Following that, Sososo, wrapped in the cold energy of the sword, appeared with pale lips clenched, using qinggong to approach Sima Mantian and Wolhwa.

And then, not stopping there, another shadow appeared on the roof.

‘Damn it… behind us is the unknown, in front is the Martial Alliance Leader… this is insane.’

The Third Elder of the Ilwol God Sect, Tang Wu, who had escaped from the unknown, arrived at the scene and looked at Jaro, who had appeared out of nowhere, with a desire to bite his tongue.

The characters who had gathered at the beginning of the incident came together again to conclude the story.

“Tang family brat, is this what you do when you leave home? Joining the Demon Sect?”

Jaro, who had been active in the Martial Alliance during the later stages of the Four Great Assassin Families, raised an eyebrow and mocked the wayward junior.

“…I’m past the age to be called a brat by you.”

Tang Wu bit his lip and retorted, but despite his strong words, his legs trembled slightly.

Jaro, the Martial God, one of the Ten Great Masters of the World.

A genius among geniuses, who rose to the top of the righteous martial world as the Martial Alliance Leader, originally a secular disciple of the Wudang Sect.

The one closest to the title of the strongest in the world.

A sigh naturally escaped. He had no idea why the Martial Alliance Leader had come here alone.

‘Could it be… there’s a traitor in the sect who leaked information?’

Sweat dripped from Tang Wu’s face as he looked at Jaro, who exuded killing intent with a face more fitting for an evil sect leader than a Taoist.

In the past, when he worked under him.

‘No, damn it. How is drinking water a martial art? If that’s the case, I’ll master a thousand martial arts too.’

‘Martial Arts—Taking a Nap Instead of Working!’

—He got beaten to near death under the guise of education.

“…….”

In any case, one thing was certain.

The assassination operation for Namgung Sososo was a complete failure.