“He’s crazy!”
“Completely insane.”
Two men stood in a tall tree overlooking the swamp.
One was a man with an ordinary face, while the other had a striking dark-colored skin.
They were Jang Mugeuk and Dok Gohyang respectively.
Jang Mugeuk had his eyebrows furrowed as he watched Pyo-wol deal with the Black Cloud Corps.
Pyo-wol’s martial arts were beyond common sense. Jang Mugeuk had never seen anyone else who could perform martial arts similar to Pyo-wol’s.
He had never thought of manifesting his qi as thin as threads and wielding them with daggers.
Furthermore, there were ten strands of qi.
There were so many martial artists who struggled just to draw out qi, but Pyo-wol effortlessly uses an even more advanced technique than that.
“But there’s still clearly a limit to his skill.”
“His martial arts are designed for assassinations.”
“Exactly. While his martial arts is perfect for assassination, it’s useless against a real warrior.”
Jang Mugeuk spoke flatly.
Dok Gohyang did not find Jang Mugeuk’s statement surprising.
Although Pyo-wol’s Soul-Reaping Thread was certainly an innovative martial art that went beyond common sense, it still had quite a few weaknesses.
If Pyo-wol used it while launching a surprise attack, he could cover and take advantage of its weaknesses. However, if he encountered a martial artist who had already reached a level where surprise attacks no longer worked, he was likely to suffer a defeat.
Jang Mugeuk was one of those martial artists.
Although he was not well-known to the public due to his lack of activity, his actual martial arts skills were nothing short of extraordinary.
Likewise, Dok Gohyang also saw at least a couple of ways to counter the Soul-Reaping Thread that Pyo-wol was currently displaying. However, he didn’t bother mentioning this fact.
“Anyway, he still could be a useful weapon if used properly, right?”
“Yes. He could definitely be useful.”
Jang Mugeuk nodded.
Not only was Pyo-wol’s martial art strange, but his boldness and mindset were also unusual.
He chose the battlefield that was most advantageous to him and lured his enemies into it.
This meant that he knew how to use the terrain to his advantage.
Although Jang Mugeuk had several hidden weapons, there was no one as clever as Pyo-wol.
“My only concern is whether or not I can control him. A sword that cannot be controlled is better off being discarded.”
“He’s still human. There’s no reason why we can’t control him. We just have to give him more than what he’s used to. And if a beautiful woman and wealth is not enough to control him, then we’ll just have to resort to using forceful methods.”
“Do you really like him that much?”
“I’ve liked him since the moment I first saw him.”
A cold smile tugged at the corners of Dok Gohyang’s mouth.
Even now, Pyo-wol was engaged in a fierce battle with the remaining members of the Black Cloud Corps.
At first, Dok Gohyang thought that Pyo-wol was at a disadvantage in the fight, but before he knew it, he was overwhelming the Black Cloud Corps.
“Don’t you think the nickname ‘Reaper’ suits him well? If I take the Reaper as my sword, then I can easily kill whoever I want.”
Jang Mugeuk wrinkled the tip of his nose at the greed in Dok Gohyang’s voice.
He was well aware of Dok Gohyang’s desire for collecting talented individuals, but he had never seen him so fixated on one person before.
‘He’s like a child.’
But he didn’t think it was a bad thing.
Everyone has desires.
Humans who have no desire will no longer develop, that’s why Jang Mugeuk didn’t trust people without desire. He thought that a person saying that they have no desire or greed is just a way to justify their laziness.
Dok Gohyang, on the other hand, was faithful to his own desires.
His desires became the driving force for his development, allowing him to get to where he is today.
‘Isn’t that the same for me?’
Jang Mugeuk was also one of those people who had an insatiable appetite for collecting talented individuals. He wanted to bring any exceptional individual under his control by any means necessary.
But for some reason, he wasn’t attracted to Pyo-wol.
Even though he was a new type of talent that he didn’t have under his control.
‘Am I instinctively wary of him?’
Jang Mugeuk frowned.
It was an unreasonable thought.
He shook his head, denying his own thoughts.
Dok Gohyang looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Really? Oh! It’s finally over.”
Dok Gohyang suddenly burst into cheers.
Pyo-wol had defeated the last of the Black Cloud Corps’ martial artists.
The swamp, which was filled with mud, was now stained red because many martial artists had been devoured by the swamp.
Pyo-wol stood at the edge of the swamp, his breathing ragged.
It had been a battle against more than a hundred people.
No matter how skilled Pyo-wol was, as a human, he was bound to get hurt and tired. His body was covered with countless new wounds.
Most of the wounds would heal and fade quickly, but some of them seemed too deep to ever go away.
It didn’t matter to Pyo-wol though.
It was a small price to pay for bringing down the entirety of the Black Cloud Corps.
His tough and bitter fate with them had finally been cut off.
With this, he will never have to deal with the Black Cloud Corps again.
When his internal energy had recovered to a certain extent, Pyo-wol raised his head and looked up at a tall tree.
His gaze met the eyes of the two people on the tree.
Pyo-wol noticed their existence when his fight with the Black Cloud Corps reached its peak.
His senses had become extremely sharp, and his expanded nerves detected every movement within a radius of twenty meters.
It was at that moment that he felt the presence of the two people.
Even as he fought the Black Cloud Corps, Pyo-wol remained wary of them.
If they intervened, he would flee without a second thought. Fortunately, contrary to his fears, they didn’t seem to have any intention of intervening. Still, Pyo-wol didn’t let his guard down for a moment.
Exerting all his strength while being watched by others was equivalent to exposing his weaknesses. That was why the fight against the Black Cloud Corps had taken so long.
Then, Dok Gohyang and Jang Mugeuk suddenly jumped off the tree.
The distance between the swamp and the tree was more or less dozens of meters, but they had quickly crossed the distance and reached Pyo-wol in no time.
“Long time no see, my friend!”
Dok Gohyang waved his hand and acted familiar with Pyo-wol.
“It doesn’t feel like it’s been that long.”
“Hehe! It’s nice to see you again, though.”
Despite Pyo-wol’s cold words, Dok Gohyang remained unfazed.
Pyo-wol’s gaze then shifted to the man at the Dok Gohyang’s side.
Jang Mugeuk spoke up,
“Not bad.”
“…….”
“I’m not being sarcastic. Your strength is truly admirable.”
“Should I thank you for the compliment?”
Jang Mugeuk slightly raised his eyebrows at Pyo-wol’s unexpected answer, but he quickly returned to his usual demeanor.
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