Chapter 31

-Yeomdo, on the Verge of Utter Humiliation

Yeomdo was dumbfounded.
He couldn't believe the fact that a snot-nosed brat, whose head was barely dry of blood, had interfered with his move.
Yeomdo was flabbergasted. So he couldn't resist saying a word to the fearless brat standing over there.

"This is a suckling baby. Are you crazy?"

"I'm not crazy."

Bi Ryu-yeon's answer was even more spectacular, so Yeomdo could only be even more flabbergasted.

"Kekekek. I don't know whose kid you are from where, but you're a little brat who's lost all fear. A snot-nosed brat with baby fuzz, you dare to stand before my saber? You dare to become a shield against my saber? Is that what you're saying?"

Yeomdo said in a tone that was so absurd it wasn't even funny. At that, the corner of Bi Ryu-yeon's mouth, who had been evaluated as a fearless, greenhorn brat, curled up slightly to one side. Soon, his two eyes, sparkling with silver flecks, began to fill with confidence and mischief. His two pupils held a confidence that seemed to say he didn't give a damn about the likes of Yeomdo.

"You could say that."

A pure and calm admission. But its content was by no means calm and ordinary. It was absolutely not a common content. Naturally, Bi Ryu-yeon's answer made Yeomdo's angry gaze even darker with the red color of 'wrath'. Thus, it made his anger surge even more fiercely.

Yeomdo's red gaze was incredibly fierce. Its degree and intensity were the very definition of a dreadful ferocity, enough to pop Bi Ryu-yeon into his mouth and swallow him down with a bowl of cold water. There would be few in the entire martial world who could look straight at his fierce gaze, and an ordinary person would probably find it hard to even stand properly, their knees buckling.

In any case, judging by his flashing red eyes, Yeomdo must have made some kind of decision.

'I've already decided to catch one punk and am about to execute it, so even though you're an unplanned variable, while I'm at it, I'll put in a little extra effort and catch you too. And so, I'll send you both to the next world together so you won't be lonely!'

It was clearly a gaze burning with that meaning and will. His decision was represented by the fierce snorts coming from his nose, his flushed face, and the numerous veins popping out on his forehead.

"Heh heh... You want to take me on? Do you think that's even possible? Do you think there's even a one in a thousand, or one in ten thousand, chance of that? A pup that doesn't know to fear a tiger, your liver has left your body. Little brat!"

Yeomdo said in a tone that dismissed it as absurd nonsense. But Bi Ryu-yeon's reply was one that scratched Yeomdo's insides four or five times and then flipped them over with a 'whoosh'.

"Ah, of course. Absolutely. I'm confident I have enough skill to cook up one strange old man whose three-character name sounds just like a girl's. How can one live in this harsh world without that much skill, right, old man? Ah, if you don't believe me, you can test me, I won't say a word."

Bi Ryu-yeon had fearlessly touched a place that should never be touched. He had beautifully trampled with muddy feet on the absolute forbidden ground of Yeomdo, a place that had a history of making many people see blood when it was touched.

"Heup, keok, heok, heuk!"

The sounds that burst out when one hastily swallows their breath, the death rattle created as they mix. If a blind person had been present, they would have mistaken all the guests of Hwaunru for suffering from respiratory diseases. Everyone had swallowed their breath so hastily that it was caught in their throats. The inside of Hwaunru had completely entered a state of extreme tension, on the verge of exploding.

It was like the string of a zither, pulled so taut it would snap at the slightest touch. The hand that was precariously plucking the string of extreme tension, which was clearly about to snap, was the bitter laugh that flowed from the mouth of Yeomdo, one of the parties who had pulled the string.

"Hehehe, a test? Alright, I'll test you. Of course, I'll test you. Hehehe, not only will I test you, but I'll even give you a graded evaluation as a bonus. Of course, you'll have to pay a high price for the score of that graded evaluation."

Yeomdo's two eyes were already slit wide open, and his pair of rough, red eyebrows were twitching with anger, soaring towards the sky. On the back of his two pot-lid-sized fists, which were clenched tightly, thick blood vessels like green vipers eyeing their prey began to pop out from under the skin, looking as if they would make a popping sound.

However, even while looking straight at Yeomdo's state with both eyes wide open, Bi Ryu-yeon was full of composure, as if he had nothing to be ashamed of. It was impossible to find the word 'tension' on his face, no matter how hard one looked. He might just be a half-wit.

"Ah, that's great. I'm ready to face the 'old man's' evaluation at any time. If you don't believe me, you can test me. Of course, that's only if the 'old man' is confident."

With a somehow detestable, or at least what Yeomdo felt was a very detestable and insolent, smile hanging on his lips, Bi Ryu-yeon delivered the final blow to Yeomdo.

"Of course, it's only if the old man is confident, so don't worry too much. If you think you'll lose and don't have the confidence, you don't have to do it. Wanna make a bet?"

SNAP!

Somewhere, someone's something snapped. Of course, that someone was Yeomdo, and what snapped was the thread of patience, which was already so thin it looked transparent. At the same time, a huge explosion occurred inside Yeomdo, and the force released by that explosion burst out without restraint.

Was it the aftereffect? In that instant, with a 'crack' sound, a spiderweb-like pattern of cracks appeared on the expensive, sturdy-looking, and beautifully grained floor of Hwaunru where Yeomdo was standing, and spread outwards. What a powerful masterpiece of force!

The floor had broken, unable to withstand the force, due to the powerful wave of ki generated from Yeomdo's body. It was probably unknown, but to fix the Hwaunru floor that had just been damaged by Yeomdo's aura, the owner would have to swallow his tears and spend a considerable amount of silver.

"Hehehe, fine. A bet? Good, very good. But for that bet, you'll have to put up something of very great value as your stake."

Despite the immense pressure, imbued with a stinging killing intent that even the martial artists sitting around, who prided themselves on having a move or two, found hard to bear, Bi Ryu-yeon was completely composed. No, he was taking it a step further, currently suppressing the desire to shout for joy. As expected, isn't it an unavoidable truth since ancient times that a person who is just ignorantly strong is simple?

The fish he was after had taken the bait on the fishing rod, and Bi Ryu-yeon began to carefully pull the rod. The fish that took the bait had already been pulled to the water's edge, and now all the fisherman had to do was to finish it off by scooping it up with a net.

"Ah, I'll bet my life. If that's not enough, I'll throw in the entire fortune of the Jungyang Escort Bureau."

Bi Ryu-yeon's single sentence, casually handing over the entire foundation of the Jungyang Escort Bureau for a pittance as if it were his own, was so shocking that it could have made Bureau Chief Jang U-yang faint on the spot. It wouldn't have been strange at all if Jang U-yang's soul had left his body and wandered the nine heavens. It was admirable that Jang U-yang was still managing to keep his sanity.

"Hmph, you think you're in a position to dispose of the entire fortune of the Jungyang Escort Bureau?"

Yeomdo said with a 'don't make me laugh' expression, but Bi Ryu-yeon replied without hesitation.

"Ah, of course. The Jungyang Escort Bureau is bound to be annihilated if left as it is, so if I save it, isn't it as good as my property? If you just leave it, it will disappear. If I fix it up and it remains, it's as good as mine. Well, don't worry. The Bureau Chief over there has agreed to it. Right? Bureau Chief Jang!"

Bi Ryu-yeon might have thought he was giving a pure and innocent smile, but to Bureau Chief Jang U-yang, it was a sinister smile that felt downright detestable. But as if in agreement, Bureau Chief Jang U-yang said nothing and just sat there silently. Why was that? Why didn't Jang U-yang refuse at once and just stay quiet? Everyone was puzzled, but no one noticed the thin needle stuck in the nape of his neck.

"See? The Bureau Chief agrees too. Are we good now? Shall we start the bet?"

"Hehehe, fine. I'll make you regret it for all eternity in the next world."

As Yeomdo's thick and rough hand gripped the hilt of Hongyeom, a storm-like heat began to pour out. It was the moment Yeomdo's ultimate technique, Sword Flame Ki, was about to be activated.

---

• Yeomdo, Humiliation of the Family

Yeomdo had only just gripped the hilt of his saber.
But with this one simple action, everything around him changed.
Yeomdo became like an active volcano, about to erupt at any moment.
An active volcano with the mighty destructive power to sweep away everything with its force...

The gathered and concentrated power was about to transform into a huge and powerful destructive force. Now, his beloved saber, Hongyeom, would leap out of its scabbard, attack the opponent with tremendous power and speed, split his prey in half, shatter it to pieces, and burn it to black powder. And thus, in the end, only a handful of ashes would remain. It had always been so. But...

"Ah, wait a moment."

Just as he was about to draw his red-flame saber and burn Bi Ryu-yeon to a crisp with a single slash, Yeomdo's body flinched at Bi Ryu-yeon's sudden word. Towards Yeomdo, who was casting a gaze filled with the puzzlement of 'Why did you stop me when you could have just died, you annoying thing!', Bi Ryu-yeon said.

"Surely you weren't about to draw your saber here, were you? A renowned master of the Jianghu wouldn't do such an indiscriminate thing. I must have seen it wrong, right?"

"Hehehe, of course I was about to draw it. Surely you're not scared now, are you? It's too late to beg for forgiveness. You're going to die the most miserable death in this world."

Yeomdo replied in a gloomy voice. It was utterly unreasonable to expect the furious Yeomdo to forgive him now, saying "Oh, alright then," just because the opponent begged for forgiveness. But it seemed that wasn't Bi Ryu-yeon's intention.

"Ah, that's not it. Surely a master of your level, old man, wouldn't have failed to consider the aftereffects and impact on the surrounding environment when unleashing his martial power. That would be truly disappointing. If a master of your level, old man, draws his saber, do you think the guests in this Hwaunru can be safe? They absolutely can't be safe. They'll surely all die, swept up in the powerful ki and sword ki. A man of your age and high reputation shouldn't commit such an indiscriminate act. Of course, that's right."

Bi Ryu-yeon said, shaking his head from side to side in a truly dumbfounded tone, and Yeomdo became a mute who had eaten honey. He was at a loss for a rebuttal, and this greatly hurt Yeomdo's pride. Originally, Yeomdo, due to his personality, would act indiscriminately without caring about such trivial things as his surroundings, but when pointed out so openly in front of so many people, he couldn't act carelessly.

In fact, to be fair, if one thought about it rationally for a moment, it was something one could easily understand. When a master whose skills, techniques, and power have surpassed the first-rate and reached the peak unleashes their martial power once, the aftereffects bring a cruel destruction to the surroundings. It was impossible for a peak master like Yeomdo, in the already crowded and cramped Hwaunru, to have any mercy or consideration in the saber he swung while his anger had reached the top of his head. Therefore, if Yeomdo had not stopped his drawing motion just now and had swung his beloved saber Hongyeom at Bi Ryu-yeon, it was a clear principle that the aftereffects of the impact would have led to a catastrophe too terrible to even imagine.

Yeomdo couldn't help but think 'oops'. No matter how notorious Yeomdo was for his foul temper and impatience, as a renowned master of the martial world who proudly advocated the orthodox path, he knew what he should and shouldn't do, and what he should be careful about. He had almost made a huge mistake just now. If he thought about the potential loss of life and property that could have been caused by his recklessly swung Hongyeom, his heart pounded just thinking about it. Also, the criticism he would hear from those around him was terrible just to think about. Yeomdo could let out a sigh of relief at the fact that such a tragedy had been prevented in advance.

'I almost made a huge mistake. I almost got utterly humiliated if things went wrong.'

Yeomdo let out a sigh of relief, stroking his chest.

"Ah, I'm fine with betting anything. But I feel this place is too narrow to receive a true or false evaluation. In this way, neither side can exert their full power properly. We also have to think about the nuisance it would cause to the surroundings. How about we move the testing ground to a more spacious and secluded place and hold the evaluation there? What are your thoughts, old man? Surely you won't refuse. A renowned master of the martial world like Yeomdo wouldn't be so shameless as to not think about the nuisance he would cause to his surroundings. Surely the one called the blade of crimson flame wouldn't do that. Right? Grin..."

Bi Ryu-yeon showed Yeomdo that same detestable smile. Bi Ryu-yeon spewed words at Yeomdo like flowing water, and there was nothing wrong with his words. It was just that he was insolent and had no manners.

'That, that punk...'

Yeomdo couldn't help but be furious inside, but he couldn't move carelessly. Although Bi Ryu-yeon's words were detestable, they were all correct. From Yeomdo's position, he had no choice but to say "Alright!" and move. How could he, when the opponent had so loudly emphasized his name, fame, and position in the Jianghu in front of so many people and prattled on about the conduct of a master? His actions were already decided. How could he tarnish his own reputation that had been so emphasized?

"Fine. I'll gladly agree to your wishes. Let's move."

"Of course you should."

Bi Ryu-yeon kept grinning in a way that annoyed the onlookers. It was a smile of triumph. The opponent had finally fallen completely into the trap. From Bi Ryu-yeon's perspective, Yeomdo was now a rat trapped in a snare with no way out. Bi Ryu-yeon turned first and went out the Hwaunru door, and Yeomdo followed behind him.

At the same time, sighs of relief erupted from all over Hwaunru. As soon as the two disappeared, the oppressive pressure that had been heavily weighing down the inside of Hwaunru also vanished as if washed away, leaving only a slight, calm afterglow.

'I can finally breathe!' was the common sentiment of all the guests in Hwaunru right now. Yeomdo had exuded such an immense presence that the people around him couldn't even breathe properly. And even after he disappeared, the afterglow of that pressure remained. Of course, no one felt a single shred of presence, pressure, or weight from Bi Ryu-yeon. All the pressure and presence had originated from Yeomdo.

Therefore, everyone in the tavern was certain that Bi Ryu-yeon's life would now come to a miserably terrible and wretched end.

"Looks like we'll be cleaning up another corpse today. We almost got caught up in it and died ourselves."

"Will there even be a corpse to clean up? I bet there won't be anything left but a handful of ashes."

"At least we won't have to worry about cremation costs."

"That's a relief, at least. Anyway, tsk tsk... to die crazy at such a young age, what a pity."

The predictions of everyone in Hwaunru were unanimous. A complete incineration, without a single drop of blood or a single piece of flesh remaining. Among them, there were even people who quietly prayed for Bi Ryu-yeon's soul.

"Well then, shall we begin? Tap!"

In a secluded open space. After the two left Hwaunru and found this open space after looking around a few places, the moment the word 'shall we' ended, the tip of Bi Ryu-yeon's left foot lightly rolled on the ground.