Chapter 25

25. Therefore, it exists.

Hyuknyeon Hong introduced me to a man sitting alone by the bonfire.

"Lord Zhuang, I have brought Lujuzi Xia here."

It was peculiar that he was called "Lord Zhuang" here, whereas he was called "Lord Jiaozhu" before. Just by how his subordinates addressed him, it was clear that he was a man with great ambition.

Of course, that ambition would also lead to his dismemberment.

Ban Shaxiong, the leader of Jin Feng Pavilion, wearing a coat made of animal skin, put down the bow he was working on and said,

"Is this you? The one who plundered three brothels? You look younger and more disrespectful than I expected. Come closer."

I was curious about Ban Shaxiong's usual personality, so I replied briefly to avoid revealing my own.

"Yes, it's me."

I slowly moved, glancing around the mountain lodge.

It seemed that many people had died here, as the overall atmosphere was heavy and gloomy. It felt as if the souls of the unfortunate were watching us from the darkness.

Ban Shaxiong was a man who looked like a wild boar that had caught another wild boar with his bow. I couldn't help but smile for a moment.

The wild boar, or rather Ban Shaxiong, opened his smelly mouth.

"Close the door."

As soon as he finished speaking, the iron door slammed shut with a thud.

I picked up a chair nearby and placed it in front of the bonfire. When I naturally sat down opposite him, Ban Shaxiong said,

"Who told you to sit? Are you crazy?"

I stared at Ban Shaxiong and replied,

"Yes."

Ban Shaxiong ordered his subordinate,

"Oh, so you're crazy. The right answer for a crazy person is a mad dog. Bring me a hungry one."

* * *

A man brought a large dog.

The black and fierce-looking dog was surprisingly well-behaved, sitting quietly on the ground.

The man who brought the dog tapped its head with a knife to make it look at me.

Ban Shaxiong said to me,

"Your posture should be like that of the dog."

"Is that so?"

I observed the hungry dog, the man training the hungry dog, and Ban Shaxiong, who treated the trainer like a dog. Some people nearby were watching to see how I would react.

When I didn't get up from the chair, Ban Shaxiong ordered,

"Bite."

The trainer echoed,

"Bite!"

With a growl, the large black dog charged at me. Just as the black dog got very close, I flicked its nose with my finger, hitting it precisely.

The dog was pushed away as if swept by the ground, thrashing at a distance. It must have been in great pain due to the Tan Zhi Gong, which contained the power of the Wood Element.

As the people in the mountain lodge watched the thrashing black dog, a silence fell.

.

.

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After dealing with the black dog, I said to Ban Shaxiong,

"How should I act for you to spare my life? Think about it calmly after calming down a bit."

I held out my hands like a dog and said,

"Should I pant like this to be spared?"

"..."

"Or should I offer all the money hidden in the manor to be spared? Or should I swear to be your spy in the Black Cat Gang to be spared? I'm not sure if the right answer is among these. You're a parasite of the Black Path, a bastard like a leech."

While insulting him, the man who was preparing meat, the man who was serving food, and the man who was just waiting gathered as if to form a包围圈.

Ban Shaxiong grinned and waved his hand.

"You're an interesting madman. We need to talk more, so you all go back to your duties."

The subordinates replied in a low tone,

"Yes."

I laughed in a low voice.

I thought about how fate can be so ironic.

A man destined to be dismembered and die was indeed destined to meet a cruel end.

I was just curious about what I would gain after killing this man.

Money? Or dog-like subordinates? Or a few hunting dogs?

Ban Shaxiong asked me, lost in thought,

"You look young. How old are you?"

"You didn't call me here just to ask my age, did you? I'm younger than you. Can't you tell just by looking?"

Ban Shaxiong laughed, slapping his knee.

"Ha ha ha ha."

I finally got up from the chair.

"I can read faces. You embezzled money and got caught by the Black Cat Gang leader, so you will die with your limbs torn apart. You have the face of a wild boar with excessive greed. However, if you hand over a substantial amount of money, I might spare you. What do you think?"

Ban Shaxiong, who had risen with a chuckle, shook his head.

"Even if I wanted to spare you, it's too late now."

I looked around and said,

"Will you die alone? Or will you drive your subordinates to death first? As a leader, you should think about your subordinates before you die..."

Ban Shaxiong replied,

"I'm not that kind of good person..."

Before Ban Shaxiong finished speaking, I kicked him in the chest with my left foot. Since Ban Shaxiong didn't have time to draw his sword, he crossed his arms to block my kick.

With a thud, Ban Shaxiong's body was pushed back in a parabolic arc.

He was quite sturdy.

Ban Shaxiong drew the sword from his waist and cursed.

I grabbed a burning oak log from the edge of the bonfire.

There was no need to draw the sword from my waist right away.

As I infused the oak log with the power of the Wood Element, the flames burned even more fiercely.

Whoosh!

Ban Shaxiong's eyes widened immediately.

I swung the flaming oak log at Ban Shaxiong without saying a word.

* * *

Third-rate Black Path practitioners do not rely on the sophistication of their techniques.

The lower the rank, the more crude their techniques. Whether it's the Black Cat Gang or the leader of Jin Feng Pavilion, their level is inevitably lower than the swordsmen from prestigious schools and families I have faced.

Here's how I see the strengths and weaknesses of the White Path and the Black Path.

The White Path has sophisticated techniques, but they often lack practical combat experience because their training is too focused on sparring.

They are often closed off.

Moreover, they often compete within their schools, so unless they are famous masters, they are not adept at handling various situations. This is a common problem among the young and talented of the White Path, who cannot apply their excellent sword techniques in real combat.

On the other hand, the Black Path has lower-level martial arts compared to prestigious schools, but they have a lot of practical combat experience.

They are fighting for survival.

Even with ordinary sword techniques, they become stronger through practical combat experience, and when they eventually learn better martial arts, their skills improve explosively.

The White Path, the Black Path, and the Evil Path have different ways of living and different martial arts they acquire.

But ultimately, they all meet at the pinnacle of martial arts.

I was a man who had strived to reach that pinnacle, and the Ban Shaxiong I am facing now is not.

My conclusion is that he is a third-rate practitioner, neither here nor there.

* * *

When Ban Shaxiong relied on his practical combat experience to block my attacks over a dozen times,

I launched a surprise attack from the left and struck the oak log in my right hand diagonally downward. Busy with defense, Ban Shaxiong had no choice but to block the oak log with his sword in a straightforward manner.

At that moment, I withdrew the power I had infused into the oak log, allowing the sword to embed itself in the log.

Thud!

The sudden embedding of the sword into the oak log, which had been repelling it, must have been a shock. At that moment, I drew the sword from my waist and slashed in the direction of the draw.

Expecting Ban Shaxiong to narrowly avoid it, I moved forward.

It didn't matter if he avoided the draw.

The sword qi burst from my sword, which extended like a bowstring.

It was a thin, curved sword qi, as if a crescent moon had been brought down from the sky.

As Ban Shaxiong, who had been dodging the sword with his head tilted, was hit by the sword qi,

"Ugh!"

The moment a sword mark appeared on Ban Shaxiong's face, my follow-up attacks continued. Ban Shaxiong, who had never imagined that a mere waiter could unleash sword qi, was caught off guard.

That was his mistake.

As Ban Shaxiong, hit in the face, staggered, I swung my sword from side to side, cutting into his body.

With each swing, a long stream of blood spurted out. Despite his severe injuries, Ban Shaxiong stubbornly held on.

Indeed, he was a man like a wild boar.

In the midst of this, I heard the trainer behind me attempt a surprise attack and turned to swing my sword horizontally.

Thud!

The trainer's head flew into the air as he charged at me at a high speed.

I turned and leaped towards the injured Ban Shaxiong, kicking his torso.

With a crack, one of his shoulders dropped, and Ban Shaxiong fell to his knees.

I continued to stomp on Ban Shaxiong's body with Zhen Jiao (震脚).

I stomped on his head, torso, and lower body, driving him into the ground.

At the same time, the ground where Ban Shaxiong was buried began to sink in a circular shape. I watched the expressions of the approaching men as I stomped the ground with Zhen Jiao, infused with my inner energy.

Boom!

Ban Shaxiong no longer needed a grave.

It was necessary to imprint in the memories of these subordinates how the leader who had tried to touch the waiter of Yiliangxian would die.

So I killed him cruelly on purpose.

There were many reasons.

This man made money through usury, loan sharking, and contract killings, and he did not even show loyalty to the Black Cat Gang leader.

He was a traitor, regardless of which group he belonged to.

After killing him cruelly, no one dared to attack me.

I glared at Ban Shaxiong's subordinates, whose faces had turned pale, and kicked some dirt to cover the grave.

They all watched me, holding their breath.

These were the cowards who usually feared the leader of Jin Feng Pavilion. Since Ban Shaxiong had died without putting up much resistance, their fear had doubled.

I asked the subordinates,

"Who will die following Ban Shaxiong?"

Someone said to me,

"How do you plan to deal with the Gang leader later?"

"The Black Cat Gang leader?"

"Yes."

Looking at the man who had spoken, I said,

"Why should you care? You're all about to die. You third-rate Black Path scum. Life and death are separated by a moment. Get down on your knees before I count to three. I'll send the stiff-kneed ones to Ban Shaxiong first. One, two, three."

A frightened man was the first to kneel.

The men who were waiting to see how the situation would develop quickly knelt down.

There was a slight delay, but eventually, all of Ban Shaxiong's subordinates quietly knelt down.

I liked this atmosphere.

In my past life, I beat up crazy monkeys because of this silence.

I practiced martial arts, risking madness, for this atmosphere.

I sat in meditation without eating or defecating for this atmosphere.

I believe all the pain and suffering were for moments like this.

Therefore, I exist.

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Or maybe not.