I glared at Hongshin as I spoke.

“If you hand over all the money you brought, I’ll spare you your limbs today out of brotherly affection.”

That’s what I said, but I had no intention of letting Hongshin go from the beginning.

“Come back with more money next time, and I’ll accept your challenge again. If you manage to beat me even once, I’ll give it all back. Ever heard of Martial Gambling?”

Martial Gambling.

As the name suggests, it’s fighting for money.

Since theft and gambling go hand-in-hand, it was a proposition Hongshin couldn’t resist.

Her eyes instantly changed.

“Are you serious?”

From behind my mask, I smiled with my eyes and provoked her.

“Sister, be grateful I’m not killing you. If you’re scared, just leave the money and disappear quietly.”

She wouldn’t be able to back out after that—no way.

Hongshin replied, “Martial Gambling, huh… Don’t tell me you’re going to dictate the match rules just because I’m your junior?”

“You decide.”

I was going to beat her senseless anyway if she lost the bet.

Hongshin was caught off guard.

“Then let’s keep it simple. The one who removes the other’s mask wins. Use whatever means necessary within half a ke. We’re not about to settle this with bare fists like some uncivilized brawlers, are we? And if it’s just a footrace, I’d have the upper hand. A time limit makes it fair. If you can take my mask off within that time, you win. How’s that?”

I nodded.

“Sounds fair.”

Having already read the strategy guide, I figured she’d propose a light footwork-based duel. But this made it even easier.

“I warned you in advance—I’ll use any means necessary. Let’s keep the fight within Black Cat Cult grounds. Cross the wall, and you lose.”

She’d probably throw concealed weapons, scatter smoke bombs, and try to stall using tricks and speed. I yawned exaggeratedly and replied,

“Let’s start. I’ll take my nap once this is over.”

Hongshin let out a shrill laugh, leapt onto the wall, and tossed a small hourglass toward one of my subordinates.

“Referee, flip that. When all the sand runs out, that’s half a ke. Start!”

She crooked her finger at me.

“Come on, Brother.”

I slowly approached Hongshin with my hands behind my back.

‘What a cocky brat.’

She laughed.

“You’re so slow. What are you even doing?”

“Playing tag.”

Because I moved so slowly, she had no reason to flee just yet.

Hongshin kept an eye on me as she stepped backward along the wall.

I half-heartedly followed her, barely even looking at her, and casually hoisted myself onto the wall with both hands.

“Oof…”

“……”

Hongshin commented with a hint of confusion.

“Half a ke isn’t that long, you know.”

“Shut up. How dare you backtalk your senior.”

I rolled up my sleeves and said to her,

“Today, I’ll give you a proper lesson. I clearly said you could walk away unscathed if you just left the money, but here you are, not knowing your place.”

I stared her down as I approached.

There was no need to chase someone as nimble as her at full speed from the start. Hongshin backed away slowly, checking my position. She must’ve decided that walking along the walls and rooftops wasn’t necessary, as she lightly jumped down into the center of the courtyard.

“Such composure.”

I also descended into the courtyard and chased after her at the slowest speed possible. Like a tortoise creeping toward its prey.

It was all psychological warfare, of course.

Because I was so slow, Hongshin didn’t feel the need to show any of her tricks yet. But this match would be decided in an instant—and in that instant, my hand would be faster than her eyes.

“It’s not too late to back out. Just leave the money and you won’t suffer humiliation in front of my ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) subordinates.”

“Ooh, I’m so scared.”

I stopped in place and stared at her.

The distance between us was roughly three jang—about nine meters.

As she slowly backed away, Hongshin opened her mouth.

“Broth—”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

But before she could even finish saying “Brother,” I shot forward like lightning in reverse. More precisely, I lunged diagonally—just past her head.

She couldn’t even finish speaking before reacting. She should’ve turned and fled—but instead, she backed up, as if determined not to miss my strange movement.

And since I was faster than her to begin with, there was no way she could escape.

Leaping in a curve, I instantly closed the three-jang gap to one. Just as she widened the distance again, I kicked off the ground like a bowstring snapping back to place and caught up instantly.

Hongshin reached into her robes and threw a handful of white powder into the air.

Before my vision could be fully clouded—

I scattered the powder with a palm wind, gauged her position by sound, and the moment I landed, I closed the distance like a ghost, sticking right behind her.

She let out a sudden shriek, finally turning and leaping into the air with all her might.

At that moment, the space between her foot and my outstretched hand was impossibly narrow.

Just when she probably thought she had escaped—

I deliberately muttered the name of the martial art I’d honed in the elixir storage chamber.

“Absorption Art.”

A technique-name declaration.

Calling out technique names during a fight in Jianghu is both taboo and childish.

But doing so shamelessly is proof of dominance. Just as she tried to escape through that narrow space, my hand snagged her ankle.

Gripped by the sudden fear of death, Hongshin twisted her body and unleashed her inner force with one hand.

Still holding her ankle, I swung my arm and slammed her hard into the ground.

Hongshin hurriedly reached out with both hands to brace herself and screamed,

“Spare m—!”

But to my surprise, she bounced off the ground with her internal force, spun around, and hurled a fierce palm strike at my face.

After all, using any means necessary included this sort of thing.

Calmly, I used a finger technique infused with the fragrance of Elm to strike her palm—and with my left hand, I executed the Absorption Art again and yanked off her mask.

Just then, a boom—a drum-like thud—rang out, and Hongshin’s body was hurled into the air, flames erupting here and there across her form. Her upper garment crumbled to ashes, scattering in tatters and revealing bare skin. But true to her reputation as a notorious thief, she was wearing sturdy protective undergarments.

My subordinates let out strange exclamations at the sight.

“Ooh yeah.”

Hongshin lay sprawled out, her upper clothes burned through and much of her skin exposed.

But I never once thought she might be dead.

The strength I felt when striking her with my finger technique wasn’t inferior to that of the former Black Cat Pavilion Master at all.

Not bad.

At the very least, it seemed the strategy guide was right about her having considerable internal energy from stealing and consuming elixirs.

As my subordinates stared at Hongshin’s half-exposed figure, I grabbed the collar of my black long robe with two fingers and flung it toward her. The fluttering robe landed over her body, finally cutting off the line of sight from the gawking fools.

“Quit staring.”

“Yes, Pavilion Lord.”

I glanced at the red mask in my hand and said,

“Anyway, I won easily, leisurely, in a single stroke, without the slightest danger.”

“Congratulations.”

“Oh, think nothing of it.”

By my estimate, Hongshin should have regained consciousness by now. And yet, she remained still. So, I kindly offered a lesson on martial world psychology to my subordinates.

“Look at Sister Hong. Does she really look unconscious to you?”

“Yes.”

“She’s not. She’s just waiting to get carried away on a stretcher so she can wake up in the middle of the night, rob the elixir storage, or make off with our funds like a night thief. But that won’t work on me. You all need to be especially wary of seduction tactics. In the underworld, doubly so.”

No sooner had I finished speaking than Hongshin sprang upright like a ghost and began to put on the black robe I’d tossed her.

“Brother, I learned a lot today.”

At last, the martial artists of the Black Cat Pavilion saw Hongshin’s face without her mask. And I realized even that act of unmasking was part of her charm tactic. She had the kind of face that nine out of ten men would find attractive. And naturally, female experts with cultivated martial arts tend to have good figures. In the eyes of the lowlife men of the dark world, she was certainly an object of desire.

As expected, a flicker of sympathy already gleamed in some of their eyes.

Tsk.

Seduction was a terrifying weapon.

“Sister, don’t even think of running. Kneel. If you get caught, that robe will be the first thing I strip off. And don’t forget—I’m faster than you.”

Hongshin, who had been subtly tensing her legs, faltered for a moment and obediently knelt.

“Brother, I was very rude today. I didn’t expect your martial arts to have advanced so far.”

“Quiet. You lost, so cough it up.”

She glared at me, then pulled out a heavy pouch from her robes. As I calmly approached and reached for it before she could speak, I activated the Absorption Art.

Shwoooosh!

With a bizarre, reverse-tornado-like sensation, the pouch shot into my hand. The Absorption Art, rooted in the power of the Heavenly Pearl, grew more familiar with every use.

This thing is insane...

The pouch was impressively heavy.

When I opened it, it was filled with rectangular gold and silver ingots, the local currency.

“You’re definitely loaded, Sister.”

Hongshin looked up at me and asked,

“Brother, what is that Absorption Art, anyway?”

“The Absorption Art is the Absorption Art. It’s my own secret technique. Why? Looks perfect for stealing, doesn’t it? I guess if someone mastered it, they could be known as the greatest thief in history.”

But it was a martial art that could never be taught. I was the only one who possessed the Heavenly Pearl. Someday, if the Cult Leader tried to recreate it, I’d personally kill him. There was still time.

Then Hongshin suddenly pleaded.

“Brother, can’t you teach that art to a pretty little sister like me? I’ll find whatever you want and bring it to you. You know what I can do…”

“My secret art can never be passed on. Snap out of it. Even if you brought me the world, I wouldn’t teach it to you.”

“You’re saying it’s just a form of object-drawing technique you naturally mastered with deep inner strength. That’s harsh.”

“Think whatever you want. And pass this on to the other junior members: the gap has widened. Don’t bother me again.”

Hongshin gave up without protest.

“I’ll pass it along. And… thank you for sparing me.”

I looked at her mask. Like the Black Cat mask, it had clearly been crafted with care.

“Brother, may I have my mask back?”

As I examined the mask and pondered its meaning, I spoke.

“For free? Not a chance. Bring me a hundred silver ingots and trade for it. I’ll keep it safe.”

Hongshin’s voice turned cold.

“Are you really going to be like this?”

“Two hundred silver.”

“You know I’m closer with the Four Divine Generals than you, right? Especially Brother Baek-yu.”

“Three hundred silver.”

“Give it back.”

“Four hundred.”

“I’ll tell Master.”

At the mention of the Great Rakshasa, I instantly closed the distance and struck her pressure points on both shoulders with Finger Drum technique.

Hongshin froze, stiff like a wooden puppet.

I gave the order to my subordinates.

“Lock her up in the shed. I’ll interrogate her myself.”

I stepped forward to get a good look at her expression, frozen like a red wooden monkey, and glared into her face.

Then, as if finally able to focus on the look in my eyes beyond the mask, Hongshin muttered in a subdued voice,

“Who… are you?”

I responded with a smiling gaze—then slapped her across the cheek. Smack! The sound echoed through the Black Cat Pavilion.

“Is that any way to talk to your senior? Calling me ‘Brother, brother’—did I seem like a joke to you? Take her away.”

My men hoisted the red wooden monkey and carried her off to the shed. As I noticed my officers still staring blankly, I addressed them.

“Break time’s over. Afternoon training begins now.”

And finally, I let out a long yawn. I’d been studying the Absorption Art late into the night these past few days, and sleep had been sorely lacking.