Chapter: 749
Bang-!
“Cough!”
Peng Zhou, struck in the abdomen, flew rapidly and rolled across the ground.
A massive body tumbled over the martial arts stage, barely managing to regain its balance.
“Ugh….”
As he clutched his aching stomach, it seemed the pain wasn’t fading.
Whirlyrick-!!
Crack–!!
A sudden blow flew past him, embedding itself forcefully into the ground beside him.
Peng Zhou turned to look at his beloved weapon that had flown in beside him.
It was the weapon he’d lost long ago.
“Seriously, this is insane.”
Then a rough voice echoed around him.
“What on earth are you doing?”
The bewilderment in his voice was obvious.
The tone was thick with irritation. Such remarks began to rain down on Peng Zhou.
“Did I expect something great? I just told you to hold on for a moment. Can’t you even do that?”
“…!”
A foot suddenly appeared right in front of his face.
Peng Zhou quickly turned his head.
But the foot that was flying towards him changed angles and struck his shoulder instead.
Wham-!
“Ugh!”
A jarring impact erupted from his left shoulder, twisting Peng Zhou’s body awkwardly.
The pain was severe but still bearable.
So he shifted his body and grabbed the sword that was embedded in the ground.
Swish-!
The sword was pulled free, instantly enveloped in a dark aura.
But then—
Thud-.
“…!?”
Suddenly, Peng Zhou’s toes got tangled up.
Another foot slipped in and disrupted his stance.
“The heart demon really holds a position of power.”
Crash-!
“Cough!”
A fist smashed into his face.
He fell over, crashing to the ground, then bounced back up.
“That alone gives you a perfect excuse. Right?”
An unrelenting fist came crashing down onto his rising chest.
Thud-!!
Boom! Crack–!!
Peng Zhou’s body slammed into the ground, causing cracks to spread in every direction.
“Hurg-!”
Blood erupted from his mouth.
“You’re disguising your incompetence with some pathetic excuse.”
Yet, the barrage of words and punches showed no sign of stopping.
Thud-! Thud-thud-! Thud-!!
The assaults kept pouring in.
As the repeated agony threatened to shatter Peng Zhou’s sanity.
Bam-!
Just as it felt like he could break, the onslaught paused, as if waiting for the perfect moment.
Stop.
Stop…
Through a faint sound, Peng Zhou opened his eyes weakly.
What was that sound? It became clear instantly.
It was Gu Yangcheon. Blood dripped from the fist he was holding.
Perhaps that blood was from him.
“Pull…cough…”
Spitting out a handful of blood, Peng Zhou shivered slightly.
“This… this bastard… I am… I am the head of the… Peng family… the King… Peng…”
“What? Planning to introduce yourself?”
At Peng Zhou’s declaration, Gu Yangcheon let out a chuckle, then—Whistle-!!
He grabbed Peng Zhou and flung him aside.
Thud-!
He barely landed on the floor.
Stumbling, Peng Zhou attempted to move his body.
“Ugh… cough.”
What just transpired?
What had happened?
‘…Did I just… lose to that rookie…?’
Of all people, Gu Cheol-woon’s son. Did he just get beat by that jerk’s offspring?
Swish.
Peng Zhou touched his cheek.
Even a light brush against his swollen face was painful.
Of all places, it had to be the cheek.
It felt particularly painful, reminiscent of the slap he received from that guy back then.
“Snarl-!”
Clenching his teeth, Peng Zhou glared at his opponent, Gu Yangcheon.
“Look into my eyes.”
When Gu Yangcheon saw this, he immediately burst into laughter.
“Why are you staring at me like that after taking a beating? Do you still not understand your place?”
“This damn bastard-!”
Peng Zhou’s face warped, resembling an evil spirit.
He knew he was strong. How could he not?
He had witnessed a duel with the dragon, and saw the fight against the volcanic newbie.
He was aware that Gu Yangcheon was formidable.
‘This is ridiculous.’
He didn’t think it’d come to a point where he’d be on the defensive.
‘What kind of monster is that…?!’
Even with the heart demon clouding his judgement, Peng Zhou was still no novice.
The disparity from earlier was enough to teach him.
That guy’s level was so outlandishly high, it was hard to believe it was merely strength.
It was utterly absurd.
Peng Zhou had already gathered intel on Gu Yangcheon.
He knew that Gu Yangcheon was once called a troublemaker in the mountains as a child.
‘They said he was dubbed the ‘Hobu Gyeonja’. ’
Those same words he heard in his youth.
He was told that Gu Cheol-woon’s son had been privy to that background.
How comforting it was to hear.
For a while, he thought he could consider it a means to conquer him.
It surely was.
“What the hell are you—!”
Peng Zhou abruptly halted, raising his sword instinctively.
Bam-!!
Gu Yangcheon’s knee collided heavily with Peng Zhou’s side.
“Argh-!”
The sound of bone cracking echoed through the arena.
It was broken. You didn’t need to look to know that.
Pain shot through his lower body, making him falter.
One moment to sense it? Not a chance.
“Chest.”
“Ugh!”
This time, his body reacted instinctively to the voice.
Remembering the prior strike, he instinctively tried to guard his chest.
Crunch-!
“Cough!”
This time, his left arm was the one that cracked instead of his chest. What just happened? As he looked at Gu Yangcheon with wide eyes, confusion prevailed.
“And you believed it.”
Gu Yangcheon said, smirking mischievously.
“How can a ‘gentleman’ like you, who’s so naïve, handle this world?”
“This filthy bastard—!!”
Realizing he’d been deceived, rage enveloped Peng Zhou.
“You must be out of your mind.”
But there was nowhere to unleash that fury.
Crack-! Gu Yangcheon seized the left arm that had just been struck.
Thwack-!
Without warning, two fingernails shot off from his fingers.
“Alright then, I promised to take two.”
Who would be the person he made that promise to?
It was all so sudden, he could neither scream nor react.
Whack-!
“Ugh!”
His head jolted up into the air.
What had he just been struck with? He couldn’t even confirm it.
Given the impact, it felt like a kick.
“From now on, it’s just a venting session.”
With that declaration, he began to unleash a torrent of blows upon Peng Zhou.
Hands and feet.
A multitude of attacks sprouted forth from his body.
The sounds of breaking and crashing resonated from Peng Zhou’s form.
Thud-!
Pop—!
Gu Yangcheon, with an expressionless face, dismantled Peng Zhou.
“Ugh… I… can’t even scream…!”
Perhaps because of this, not a single sound echoed around them.
“… That… what…”
“The King of Dao is receiving such treatment…”
The victorious Soyeonra against the dragon.
There were those who doubted the Sword King’s potential to be defeated because of that displayed martial prowess.
Yet.
“Isn’t this too cruel and barbaric?”
“Shouldn’t this be ended…? He might die if this keeps going.”
No one could have anticipated such merciless trampling.
An affair too sensitive to be called a martial arts match.
That was unapologetic violence.
It resembled a scene of bullying the weak.
Everyone trembled at the uncomfortable sensation.
That signified an overwhelming gulf of disparity.
Moreover, the person being pummeled was one of the six heroes, while the opponent was merely past his prime.
This chaotic vision would seem almost unfathomable.
Crash-!
“Cough.”
Peng Zhou, struck in the face, sprayed blood and took a few stumbles back before finally kneeling.
“Ugh… heh heh…”
Though he had never been one to appear too pristine, he was nonetheless the head of a distinguished family and usually carried himself neatly.
But now, his condition was starkly at odds with how he looked before the bout started.
His outfit was a complete mess, and his face was so swollen from the beating that his own reflection was unrecognizable.
A scene that showcased a bloodied figure gasping for air.
Everyone gasped, covering their mouths at the sight.
“I really don’t understand why I’m saying this.”
At this sight, Gu Yangcheon cleared his throat, speaking casually.
“My lord, why did you come out while being weak?”
“…!”
His sharp words dug right into his heart.
Thud.
Blood dripped down.
It was blood from the gnarled edge of Gu Yangcheon’s fist.
“Ugh… cough…”
That sight resurrected memories from the past.
The image of Gu Yangcheon overlapped with Gu Cheol-woon.
“… you damn…”
His heart raced.
Perhaps because it felt similar to what he faced back then, the emotions within Peng Zhou simmered violently.
Surely, a significant time had passed.
In terms of years, over a decade had rushed by, yet why was he caught in the same scenario?
Especially with the fact that he was facing the son of the person he wanted to kill.
Here, in front of this vast audience…!
“I will… kill… you…”
A fury that trumped that from the time of the two dragons.
Peng Zhou was losing his grip on sanity by the second.
Thoughts of martial arts had vanished from his mind.
If it came down to it, he thought about summoning innate abilities, pushing his body to its limits.
“Hmm.”
Spotting this, Gu Yangcheon nodded.
Was it because Peng Zhou had begun to gather strength?
No, it wasn’t that simple.
Whoosh.
It stemmed from the energy he sensed deep inside.
Woom—!
A signal resonating from the magic arts.
Tuning into this, Gu Yangcheon covered his mouth, a sly smile matching his expression.
‘Alright.’
After a thorough pummeling, perhaps it had been just over the hour.
Finally, the moment he long awaited had dawned.
Once Gu Yangcheon confirmed it, he declared,
“Yes! I shall kill you by any means necessary!”
Crack-!
“Ugh!”
He closed the distance to Peng Zhou, who was venting his frustrations, and then thrust upward into his jaw.
Thud… Boom-! As his words slipped out, Peng Zhou collapsed, unconscious.
Gu Yangcheon merely kicked the fallen Peng Zhou aside with a rough shove.
An incompetent figure, not even worthy of being a toy.
Gu Yangcheon’s gaze was filled with nothing but indifference toward Peng Zhou.
‘Tsk.’
Only the taste remained.
Is it just that he had recently been fighting with capable opponents? It was a shame to see his exertion wasted.
“Uh, uh? Uh…?”
The referee stood there, dumbfounded at the sight of Peng Zhou’s downfall.
He almost certainly hadn’t predicted a defeat like that.
The King of Swords had fallen.
One among the six heroes and the head of the Peng family. He had been defeated by someone just beyond their youthful prime.
It was no wonder he was shocked, having been thoroughly vanquished in such an overwhelming manner that he simply fainted.
“Oh, the Sanseo District…”
Just as the referee was about to speak while suppressing his shock—
Peng Zhou had already forgotten him and was staring blankly into space, now reacting to Gu Yangcheon.
Swish-.
He quickly stirred the magical energy within his heart and sent it surging out.
Its meaning was simple.
‘Let’s begin.’
It was a form of signal.
And as it spread,
“Gu Yangcheon wins….”
Just before the referee could announce Gu Yangcheon’s victory—
A huge jolt erupted!
Boom-!!!
The Murim Alliance.
To be precise, the Hanam district began to quake viciously.
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